HIS tease single-slot Radeon RX 460 Slim-iCooler OC 4GB

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Nov 25, 2016 5:26 AM CST

Details on the HIS single-slot Radeon RX 460 Slim-iCooler OC 4GB graphics card have emerged, with the new card being a single-slot solution packing the Polaris architecture.

HIS will be the first AIB partner with a single-slot Radeon RX 460, with the card packing its upgraded iCooler. HIS has used a strong lion image on the card, which makes the single-slot card look awesome. The Slim-iCooler itself has a 0dB fan, with the 50mm fan spinning up only when the GPU hits 60C.

HIS has overclocked the GPU, with the Polaris 11 chip running at 1220MHz, while the 4GB of GDDR5 runs at 7Gbps.

Continue reading: HIS tease single-slot Radeon RX 460 Slim-iCooler OC 4GB (full post)

Final Fantasy XV on PS4 Pro has slight FPS issues?

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Nov 25, 2016 1:15 AM CST

Reports indicate that Final Fantasy XV played on Sony's new 4K-ready PS4 Pro might suffer a small frame pacing issue while panning the camera in specific areas, possibly negating the additional optimized and graphical enhancements enabled by the console itself.

Final Fantasy XV on PS4 Pro has slight FPS issues?

According to a recent video uploaded by YouTuber deepo, Final Fantasy XV has some noticable camera lag while played on the PS4 Pro. The lag isn't anywhere to be found in the same area while playing the game in the PS4 Pro's normal default PS4 mode. Deepo notes that this small hitch seems to be isolated in the tutorial area only, so there may not be any cause for alarm. Since we don't have access to the game just yet, we can't verify or squash the reports, but this isn't the first time we've seen the PS4 Pro games technically run worse than their PS4 counterparts.

Final Fantasy XV supports Sony's new PlayStation 4 Pro with two modes: Lite Mode (aka Lightweight Mode) which optimizes higher frame rates to ensure 1080p 60FPS, and High Image Quality Mode (aka High Mode) which enables higher fidelity at upscaled 4K 30FPS. The game is set to Lite Mode by default, but players can also reset the game to it's default PS4 mode while playing on the PS4 Pro.

Continue reading: Final Fantasy XV on PS4 Pro has slight FPS issues? (full post)

Microsoft CEO: Surface Phone is 'ultimate mobile device'

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has started talking about smartphones, and in particular, the purported Surface Phone. Nadella has teased that Microsoft will showcase a "unique approach" with Surface Phone.

Nadella said during an interview with the Australian Financial Review: "We don't want to be driven by just envy of what others have, the question is, what can we bring? That's where I look at any device form factor or any technology, even AI".

He continued: "We will continue to be in the phone market not as defined by today's market leaders, but by what it is that we can uniquely do in what is the most ultimate mobile device".

Continue reading: Microsoft CEO: Surface Phone is 'ultimate mobile device' (full post)

The Last of Us 2 might be revealed next week

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Nov 24, 2016 11:11 PM CST

Rumor has it that The Last of US 2 could be officially unveiled at Sony's PlayStation Experience event next month.

The Last of Us 2 might be revealed next week

Gamers are speculating that The Last of Us 2 could show up at the PSX 2016 event on December 1 alongside Sony's major first-party PS4 exclusives. According to well-known games insider Shinobi602, gamers may not have to "wait as long as E3 2017" for the sequel to be announced. Shinobi has a spot-on track record for teases and predictions, so we might see the game unveiled in just a week.

While the rumor is admittedly shaky, Naughty Dog has apparently been developing The Last of Us 2 since 2014. Voice actor Nolan North outright confirmed the sequel would be happening, and Naughty Dog writer Josh Scherr also slipped up and mentioned The Last of Us 2 on a livestream session.

Continue reading: The Last of Us 2 might be revealed next week (full post)

Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 has 27 km² game world

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Nov 24, 2016 10:19 PM CST

Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 is something we reported on yesterday, as it will launch in April 2017 with multi-GPU support, but no DX12 support - developer CI Games is really aiming for the stars when it comes to the game world they've created.

CI Games has teased the world of Sniper: Ghost World 3, with the team working on a truly gigantic game world. One of the big notes is that there will be no loading screens while moving on one map, but transitioning between maps will have a load screen. Thing is, you kinda need a loading screen when the world is freakin' 27 km² world, which is "full of interesting encounters, challenges and bad guys to defeat".

As for how long it'll take for players to fully complete the game, CI Games says that: "Our goal is it to deliver an immersive experience of being Jon North, highly skilled and well trained Black Ops soldier, that is also a human being which has feelings, doubts and aspirations".

Continue reading: Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 has 27 km² game world (full post)

Fury X beats GTX 1070 in Battlefield 1, thanks to DX12

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Nov 24, 2016 9:48 PM CST

A few weeks ago we looked at the mid-range market and DX12 performance with Battlefield 1, where we versed the AMD Radeon RX 480 against the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 - with AMD coming out on top.

We've done it again, this time with some higher-end graphics cards with the older HBM1-based Radeon R9 Fury X and the newer, 16nm-based GeForce GTX 1070 from NVIDIA. The results are impressive to say the least, but AMD loses in a big way in DX11 mode in Battlefield 1 - and completely, and utterly swings it around with DX12 leadership.

Do you want to see more GPU showdowns like this?

Continue reading: Fury X beats GTX 1070 in Battlefield 1, thanks to DX12 (full post)

EVGA's VRM thermals isn't the cause of cards dying

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Nov 24, 2016 8:32 PM CST

EVGA has been in the headlines over the last couple of weeks over their GeForce GTX 1080 FTW catching fire, and one user even caught it on video - but there were obviously questions surrounding this issue.

Our friends over at GamesNexus, and Steve with his glorious lock of unicorn-quality hair™ has investigated the EVGA VRM thermal issues, concluding that it's not the killer of the cards. GamersNexus did state that EVGA isn't shining perfectly here, adding that "Overlooking thermal pads was silly, if only because their performance is measurably worse in at least one aspect when compared to competition".

They spoke with EVGA, with the company saying they're getting about 200 DPPM (Defective Products Per Million), which means for every 1 million cards shipped to consumers, 200 are defective. GamersNexus are still strict on EVGA, wrapping up: "To restate: This isn't saying EVGA is in the right. The card could have been designed better, and there are still failures, it's just not the reason everyone seemed to think. Maybe bad caps, maybe the usual mix of workmanship / supply-side quality control, but not the VRM temperatures".

Continue reading: EVGA's VRM thermals isn't the cause of cards dying (full post)

WikiLeaks begs: stop asking for proof of life of Assange

Anthony Garreffa | Current Affairs | Nov 24, 2016 6:46 PM CST

We've been posting about Julian Assange for a week now (with two news posts in the bag, and this marking #3) - as the WikiLeaks founder hasn't been seen since October 17.

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AMD powers a $999 gaming/VR rig, includes an Oculus Rift

Anthony Garreffa | Computer Systems | Nov 24, 2016 6:19 PM CST

There's 7 hours left on an absolutely stellar deal that's taking place on Amazon, with a CYBERPOWERPC Oculus Ready GXiVR8020A Gaming Desktop & Oculus Rift Virtual Reality Headset Bundle that costs $999.

Not bad, right? Except it's bundled with an Oculus Rift - which costs $599 on its own. Inside, we have:

But, the star of the show here is the Oculus Rift, bundled for $999 is an incredible price. I personally recommend the HTC Vive, but at this price... you just can't complain. If you've got the money, pull the trigger on this PC now!

Continue reading: AMD powers a $999 gaming/VR rig, includes an Oculus Rift (full post)

Catch a level 10 Salamence Pokemon in Sun & Moon Edition

Emma Tucker | Gaming | Nov 24, 2016 4:33 PM CST

Pokémon Sun and Moon brought to Nintendo 3DS by 'Game Freak' and 'The Pokémon Company', now gets even better with the ability to obtain a level 10 Salamence on the first island.

In order to catch the dragon-like Pokémon, players will have to have completed their first island trial, wild pokémon will then become more prone to using the SOS mechanic to call for help. After this, users will finish Mallow's Trial on the second island so that they can purchase Adrenaline Orbs, increasing the chance of a wild Pokémon calling for help.

Once this task is completed, players will go towards Route 3 on Melemele Isand and then cross the bridge to the patch of grass on the right. When the Bagon finally appears (may take some time) immediately reduces its HP as low as possible and then go in for the catch.

Continue reading: Catch a level 10 Salamence Pokemon in Sun & Moon Edition (full post)