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MSI Introduces New Designs with Tiger Lake, RTX

(Image credit: MSI)

MSI is getting a new lineup, including some new designs, in sync with Intel launching its Tiger Lake-H processors. While it refreshed recently at CES 2021, this new launch includes more new designs. Some of them will also utilize Nvidia’s new RTX 3050 and RTX 3050 Ti graphics cards. Pre-orders begin today, and laptops will begin to ship on May 16.

MSI GE76 and GE66 Raider

The GE76 and GE66 Raider have taken the flagship spot. (The latter has long been on our list of the

best gaming laptops

.) They’re the same design, but with 17-inch and 15-inch screens, respectively. Both will go up to an overclockable Intel Core i9-11980HK and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080. At launch, the GE66 will go up to

, while the GE76 will only have faster but lower resolution 1080p screens. Higher-resolution screens for the 17-incher will come in May and June.

While the design is the same, including a blue aluminum, MSI said it intends on using more powerful cooling. The Raiders also have

FHD

webcams and have bumped up to Wi-Fi 6E and Thunderbolt 4 for connectivity.

	MSI GE76 Raider	MSI GE66 Raider	MSI GS76 Stealth
CPU	Up to Intel Core i9-11980HK	Up to Intel Core i9-11980HK	Up to Intel Core i9-110900H
GPU	Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 (16GB GDDR6)	Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 (16GB GDDR6)	Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 (16GB GDDR6)
RAM	Up to 32GB at 3,200 MHz	Up to 32GB at 3,200 MHz	Up to 64GB at 3,200 MHz
Storage	Up to 1TB	Up to 2TB	Up to 2TB
Display	17.3-inches, 1920 x 1080, up to 360Hz (QHD coming late May)	15.6-inch, up to 4K, QHD up to 240 Hz	17.3-inches, up to 4K, FHD up to 300 Hz
Networking	Killer WiFi 6E AX1675 (2×2), Bluetooth 5.2	Killer WiFi 6E AX1675 (2×2), Bluetooth 5.2	Killer WiFi 6E AX1675 (2×2), Bluetooth 5.2
Battery	99.9 WHr	99.9 WHr	99.9 WHr
Starting Price	$1,499	$2,299	$1,999

MSI GS76 Stealth

(Image credit: MSI)

We’re also seeing a larger version of the existing MSI Stealth. The new GS76 is a 17.3-inch version of the laptop. (We only saw the GS66, the 15.6-incher, at CES, though that is getting upgraded to new parts, too.) It won’t get the overclockable processor, but you get RAM going up to 64GB at 3,200 MHz, up to 2TB of SSD storage and the same 99.9 WHr battery as the Raider line. Like the Raider, there will be

QHD

options coming later in the month.

The new design has top-firing speakers, and MSI says this laptop will have a far more tactile keyboard than the previous 17-inch Stealth, the GS75.

MSI GL66 Pulse and Crosshair

The MSI GL Pulse is a new entry that joins the Crosshair, both of which are intermediate-level gaming laptops. They’re largely the same, including metal lids, but the Pulse has some engraved designs where the Crosshair is plainer.

Both the Pulse will start at $959 with a Core i5-11400H and RTX 3050 and go up from there, topping out at $1,799. Both are getting new keyboards with single-zone RGB, and while the more expensive Raider and Stealth will have Gen 4 SSDs, the GL lineup will stay on Gen 3.

MSI GF Katana and Sword

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(Image credit: MSI)

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(Image credit: MSI)

MSI’s most entry-level gaming notebooks are the new Katana and Sword. They’re replacing the previous GF Thin line. The two notebooks differ only in color: Katana is black with a red keyboard, while Sword is white with a blue keyboard. These differ from the GL lineup in that they are plastic and have fewer panel options.

Katana starts at $999 with a Core i7-11800H and an RTX 3050 Ti and goes up to $1,449 with a Core i7 and an RTX 3060. The white laptop, Sword has a single $1,099 configuration with a Core i7 and RTX 3050 Ti. Sword has a 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080 display at 144 Hz, while Katana will be at both 15 and 17 inches.

MSI Creator Z16

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MSI is taking another shot at the MacBook Pro crowd with its new Creator Z16. It starts at an eye-watering $2,599 with an Intel Core i7-11800H, an RTX 3060, 32GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. The $2,999 configuration bumps up to a Core i9-11900H and 2TB SSD.

The new top-of-the-line creator notebooks are minimalist with a CNC aluminum build. MSI has opted for a 16:10 touch display with 2560 x 1600 resolution and a speed of 120 Hz. It also includes two Thunderbolt 4 ports, microSD slot. Unlike the Raider, this sports a 720p webcam and a 90 WHr battery.

Dell XPS 15 and XPS 17 Get Tiger Lake H and RTX 3050 Refreshes

(Image credit: Dell)

With Intel’s new eight-core, 35-65W Tiger Lake-H processors, Dell is rolling out updates to its most premium workhorses and some of the best ultrabooks, the XPS 15 and XPS 17. The pair will be available sometime this summer, with more exact dates coming soon.

The Dell XPS 15 (9510) will start at $1,199.99 with processor options going up to an 11th Gen Intel Core i9 CPU and an Nvidia GeForce RTTX 3050 Ti graphics card. Dell calls it the “smallest 15.6-inch performance class laptop,” with a 92.9% screen-to-body ratio thanks to a 16:10 display and a new, thinner InfinityEdge bezel. Like the XPS 13, Dell is introducing a 3456 x 2160 OLED screen in the top end.

	Dell XPS 15 (9510)	Dell XPS 17 (9710)
CPU	Up to Intel Core i9-11900H	Up to Intel Core i9-11980HK
GPU	Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti (4GB GDDR6, 45W)	Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 (4GB GDDR6, 70W)
RAM	Up to 64GB DDR4-3200	Up to 64GB DDR4-3200
Storage	Up to 4TB PCIe SSD	Up to 4TB PCIe SSD
Display	15.6-inch 3840 x 2400 touch, 3456 x 2160 OLELD touch, 1920 x 1200 non-touch	17-inch 3840 x 2400 touch, 1920 x 1200 non-touch
Networking	Killer Wi-Fi 6 AX1650, Bluetooth 5.1	Killer Wi-Fi 6 AX1650, Bluetooth 5.1
Battery	56 WHr or 86 WHr	97 WHr
Starting Price	$1,199.99	$1,449.99

Dell’s ports are still minimalist, including two Thunderbolt 4 ports, a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port, a headphone jack and a full-size SD card reader.

(Image credit: Dell)

The new Dell XPS 17 (9710) will start at $1,499.99 and go a step higher with some components. It will go a step further with the processor, topping out at the unlocked Intel Core i9-11980HK with a

boost clock

of 5.0 GHz, while the GPU will go up to an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060. Potential customers will have the same storage and RAM options, but there is no OLED screen here – just a

touch version and

FHD

non-touch.

Dell says this is the smallest 17-inch laptop with a screen-to-body ratio of 93.7%. While that’s impressive, there aren’t that many 17-inch non-gaming laptops out there right now. It has four Thunderbolt 4 ports and a headphone jack, with no SD card reader like its 15-inch counterpart.

On both laptops, Dell is touting quad-speaker designs with Waves NX audio. The company says those speakers were tuned by Jack Joesph Puig, a Grammy-winning producer who has worked with Green Day, U2, Fergie, Sheryl Crow, Sum 41 and more.

The smallest in the lineup, the Dell XPS 13 last saw an update in April, when the Tiger Lake U-based system was updated with an OLED display option.

Nvidia RTX 3050 Ti and RTX 3050 Bring RT and DLSS to Budget Laptops

(Image credit: Nvidia)

The GeForce RTX 3050 Ti and GeForce RTX 3050 will almost certainly come to desktops and finish filling out the bottom end of our list of the best graphics cards, but the new GPUs are slated to be mobile solutions first. That can be good or bad news, depending on whether you’re interested in buying a budget gaming laptop. Considering how difficult it is to find a reasonably priced desktop graphics card these days, we would have welcomed some new lower spec options. However, Nvidia likely sees more of a market for the RTX 3050 series in laptops, so that’s where they’ll start.

Nvidia says that the RTX 3050 GPUs will bring the entry price for RTX gaming laptops down to just $799. We don’t have full specs on what sort of laptops you’ll be able to buy — there are sure to be a variety of options — and we’ll have to wait for our own performance testing, but the new GPUs cover a range of options.

Here’s a quick rundown of the specs for the various RTX 30-series mobile parts, with the newcomers on the left.

GeForce RTX 30 Series Laptop GPU Specifications
GPU	RTX 3050	RTX 3050 Ti	RTX 3060	RTX 3070	RTX 3080
SMs	16	20	30	40	48
CUDA Cores	2048	2560	3840	5120	6144
RT Cores	16	20	30	40	48
Tensor Cores	64	80	120	160	192
Boost Clock (MHz)	1500	1485	1283-1703	1290-1620	1245-1710
GPU Power (W)	35-80	35-80	60-115	80-125	80-150+
GDDR6 Memory	4GB	4GB	6GB	8GB	8GB or 16GB
Memory Interface	128-bit	128-bit	192-bit	256-bit	256-bit
TFLOPS (FP32)	6.1	7.6	9.9-13.1	13.2-16.6	15.3-21
Tensor TFLOPS (FP16)	49	61	79-105	106-133	122-168

There are plenty of questions regarding performance, and we’re curious to see how RTX hardware stacks up. The power range will also be a key factor, as a 35W TGP solution will likely perform quite a bit worse than an 80W TGP laptop. It might not be half as fast, but that big of a power difference will likely drop performance at least 30%.

Obviously, the RTX 3050 and RTX 3050 Ti aren’t intended to be high-end solutions powering 4K displays, but even then, you’ll need to pay attention to the settings used in some of the latest games so that you don’t exceed the 4GB VRAM. Whether ray tracing effects are even viable or meaningful this far down the product stack is also something we look forward to testing.

The potential ace in the hole for Nvidia is that these new GPUs will also support DLSS. That can prove useful even without ray tracing effects, and upscaling from 720p to 1080p on these budget-friendly GPUs might be a great alternative — for the games that support DLSS, obviously. Nvidia provided the following performance preview:

(Image credit: Nvidia)

Spoonfuls of salt as usual, and the “would not run” score of 0 on all the RT-enabled games is a bit misleading at best. It’s true you need RT hardware to run those games with RT enabled, but you don’t actually need to play with ray tracing. In fact, that’s normally what we’d advise on any modest laptop. Still, the combination of RT cores and DLSS means gaming at more than 60 fps, and 1080p is within reach of the RTX 3050 Ti. Strangely, Nvidia didn’t provide performance figures for the vanilla RTX 3050, though, which will presumably be about 20% slower. The idea is probably to run with low to medium settings but still enable ray tracing to get to 60 fps in that case, right?

Forgetting the RT aspect of the above comparisons, there’s still a good jump in performance relative to the entry-level GTX 1650 Ti. With DLSS enabled, some games will even run about twice as fast. More pragmatically, for the large number of games that currently don’t support DLSS, the RTX 3050 Ti still looks to provide about a 50–60 percent boost to frame rates.

There’s more good news as well. You know how cryptocurrency mining has caused a massive shortage of basically everything listed in our GPU benchmarks hierarchy? The 4GB VRAM actually plays in favor of gamers since it effectively precludes Ethereum mining (which now requires more than 4GB). At the very least, it means laptops using the RTX 3050 and 3050 Ti won’t be attractive to miners.

We’re working on getting some review samples for testing, at which point we can provide a larger selection of benchmarks. On paper, RTX 3050 and RTX 3050 Ti will likely perform worse than the previous generation RTX 2060, but they should also cost less. Nvidia also looks ready to abandon non-RTX solutions going forward, or perhaps just continue to produce GTX 16-series parts for that market. Given the other benefits of RTX hardware (DLSS and Nvidia Broadcast are two excellent examples of why Tensor cores and AI are important), we can’t complain about the end of the GTX era.

HP ZBook G8 Line Gets Tiger Lake-H

(Image credit: HP)

HP’s first laptops to use Intel’s 11th Gen Tiger Lake-H processors are its ZBook G8 line, which consists of four notebooks. There are two ZBook Fury laptops — one 15.6-inch and one 17.3-inch — along with the ZBook Power and ZBook Studio.

The ZBook Power is the entry-level workstation, going up to an Intel Core i-11950H CPU, using GPUs with 4GB of VRAM. The HP ZBook Studio G8, aimed at data scientists and creators, uses more powerful GPUs, with both gaming-grade GeForce RTX and workstation-grade RTX A-series cards with as much as 16GB of VRAM.

(Image credit: HP)

In an atypical move, the ZBook Studio G8 is getting an RGB keyboard, which you would typically find in gaming laptops. In fact, it will use the Omen gaming hub to make profiles. These key presets can be set per application, not just games, so you could have custom lighting for creative software.

	HP ZBook Power G8	HP ZBook Studio G8	HP ZBook Fury 15.6-inch G8	HP ZBook Fury 17.3-inch G8
CPU	Up to Intel Core i9-11950H	Up to Intel Core i9-11950H	Up to Intel Core i9-11950H, Up to Intel Xeon W-11955M	Up to Intel Core i9-11950H, Up to Intel Xeon W-11955M
Graphics	Nvidia T1200, RTX A2000 or Nvidia T600 (4GB GDDR6 each)	Up to Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 (16GB GDDR6), Up to Nvidia RTX A5000 (16GB GDDR6)	Up to Nvidia RTX A5000 (16GB GDDR6) or AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (8GB GDDR6)	Up to Nvidia RTX A5000 (16GB GDDR6) or AMD Radeon Pro W6600M (8GB GDDR6)
RAM	64GB DDR-3200 non-ECC	32GB DDR5-3200 non-ECC	Up to 128GB DDR4-3200 non-ECC, 64GB DDR4-3200 ECC	Up to 128GB DDR4-3200 non-ECC, 64GB DDR4-3200 ECC
Storage	Up to 2TB Gen 4 NVMe M.2 SSD	Up to 2TB PCIe Gen 3 x 4 NVMe M.2 SSD	Up to 2TB M.2 SED SSD, 2TB 5,400 rpm SATA HDD	Up to 2TB M.2 SED SSD, 2TB 5,400 rpm SATA HDD
Display	15.6-inch, up to 3840 x 2160 (4K) anti-glare	15.6-inch up to 4K touch	15.6-inch up to 4K touch	17.3-inch up to 4K touch
Battery	83 WHr	83 WHr	94 WHr	94 WHr
Networking	Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201, Bluetooth 5	Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201, Bluetooth 5	Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201, Bluetooth 5, Intel XMM 7360 LTE Advanced	Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201, Bluetooth 5, Intel XMM 7360 LTE Advanced
Release Date	June 2021	July 2021	July 2021	July 2021

The Fury line, which comes in both 15.6 and 17.3-inch sizes, offers the most power, including 11th Gen Xeon processors as well as up to 128GB of RAM. These two laptops also have configurable choices with either Nvidia or AMD graphics and allow for Intel LTE to work on the go.

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(Image credit: HP)

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For this round of workstations, HP is introducing its Tamper Lock system, which came from the Firefly G8, which notifies users or IT departments if the bottom of the laptop is removed. They can choose to disable the system, lock the BIOS or use Bitlocker to secure the system. Users would also know if RAM or HDDs were removed. Additionally, the laptops continue HP’s tradition of using Tile tracking to recover the notebook if it is lost or stolen.

Pricing has not been made available, but HP says it will announce that closer to the laptops’ launches.

The next PlayStation VR will be 4K and include eye-tracking, according to UploadVR

UploadVR has some exciting rumors about what Sony will be including on the next-gen VR headset it’s announced for the PS5: it’ll apparently include 4K resolution, eye-tracking, and a vibration motor in the headset for haptic feedback (to complement the controllers with haptic triggers).

According to UploadVR, the new headset should have a total resolution of 4000 x 2040, giving each eye 2000 x 2040 pixels. The original PlayStation VR had a resolution of 960 x 1080 pixels per eye, for comparison, so this would be nearly double in each direction. The Oculus Quest 2 has 1832 x 1920 pixels per eye, slightly less than Sony’s headset is rumored to have — in both cases, the high resolution can help to avoid the “screen-door effect” that can often keep VR headsets from providing a clear image.

It is worth noting, though, that unlike the Quest 2, Sony had previously announced the PlayStation headset will still be wired, using a single cable to connect to the PS5 system. It’ll be a USB-C cable, according to UploadVR, which shouldn’t come as a surprise given that Sony conspicuously placed one on the front of the PS5.

UploadVR also has interesting information about how the PlayStation VR successor will fill its additional pixels. Its sources say that the headset will track the users’ eyes so it can do foveated rendering, where the image will only be fully sharp where you’re looking, and be blurrier in your peripheral vision. This simulates how your eyes actually perceive the world and lets the computer (or in this case, console) work more efficiently by not having to fully render things at high resolution that you aren’t looking at anyhow. There are, of course, other neat things you can do with eye-tracking (including creating more lifelike player avatars), but it’s currently unclear what Sony plans to do along those lines.

UploadVR also claims that the next-gen headset will use inside-out tracking, which would certainly be an upgrade from the re-purposed PlayStation Move system of the original, which required a fixed camera that could only properly track your head and hands if you held a pair of glowing sticks in a fairly small area between you and the console. Inside-out tracking typically uses cameras mounted on the outside of the headset itself to figure out where you are inside a room.

If these rumors turn out to be true, it sounds like it could be a promising accessory for those lucky enough to get their hands on a PS5. While it’d be nice to see a cable-free Quest 2 competitor, it’s hard to blame Sony for focusing on something that will compliment its console. Personally, I’m already sold, and am starting to set aside some pennies (okay, more realistically, twenties).

Correction: the rumored resolution for the headset is 4000 x 2040, is nearly double the original in each direction. UploadVR’s original story had a typo pegging the resolution to 4000 x 2080, which has also been corrected.

Walmart’s in-house Android TV device might only cost $30

Walmart appears to be getting into the streaming devices with the Onn Android TV UHD Streaming Device, according to a new listing on its website (spotted by 9to5Google). The company’s new streaming box (in this case, really more of a flattened cube) is currently listed for $29.88 but is also “out of stock” — which could be due to the fact it hasn’t been officially announced yet.

According to Walmart’s page, the Onn Android TV UHD Streaming Device can, unsurprisingly, stream in 4K and play “Dolby audio” — although there are no other specifics shared. The small device runs Android TV, connects to a TV over HDMI, and comes with what looks like a Google Assistant-enabled remote with dedicated buttons for YouTube, Netflix, Disney Plus, and HBO Max.

Walmart’s streaming device is a fairly unassuming black square.

Image: Walmart

Design-wise, as 9to5Google notes, Walmart’s streaming device shares a lot of similarities with Google’s developer device, the ADT-3, albeit with Walmart’s electronics brand, “onn,” slapped on top. The remote that accompanies the Onn also seems to be using a new Google design that’s been rumored to come with a host of new Google TV products in 2021.

The Onn Android TV UHD Streaming Device has more dedicated streaming service buttons.

Image: Walmart

Walmart has been in a multiyear competition with Amazon over basically all forms of shopping online and off, so muscling into the streaming device market with what’s essentially a Fire Stick competitor shouldn’t be surprising. For Walmart, the streaming space has standardized and streamlined enough that it’s probably comparatively easy to come out with a cheap streaming cube, stock it in thousands of stores, and let customers do the rest.

It’s hard to not put Walmart’s device in the context of TiVo’s apparent exit from the streaming device space. Streaming sticks and boxes are increasingly becoming a game for big companies who can reach the scale and low costs that smaller companies can’t keep up with. They also tend to have a better handle on software — for Xperi, the TiVo brand’s current owner, Google integrating universal search aped the big feature that differentiated it from the competition.

The TiVo Stream 4K launched for $70, only to later drop to $39 in what seems like a bid to compete with the likes of the $50 Chromecast with Google TV, the $40 Roku Streaming Stick Plus, and Amazon’s $50 Fire Stick 4K. Assuming $30 is the Onn Android TV UHD Streaming Device’s actual price and it’s actually worth using, Walmart may be poised to start yet another race to the bottom.

Apple iPhone 11 Pro vs iPhone XS: What’s the difference?

(Pocket-lint) – We’ve compared the three iPhone 11 devices against each other elsewhere, as well as the iPhone 11 and the iPhone XR in separate features, but here we are looking at how the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max compare to the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max to help you work out what the differences are.

Keep in mind that the iPhone 11 series has been succeeded by the iPhone 12 series, and if you want to know how the iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 compare, then we have a separate feature for that too.

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Design

iPhone XS: 143.6 x 70.9 x 7.7mm, 177g
iPhone XS Max: 157.5 x 77.4 x 7.7mm, 208g
iPhone 11 Pro: 144 x 71.4 x 8.1mm, 188g
iPhone 11 Pro Max: 158 x 77.8 x 8.1mm, 226g

The Apple iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max share several similarities in design compared to the iPhone XS and XS Max. They all have stainless steel frames, glass rears and a large notch at the top of their displays, though their colours differ and the iPhone 11 Pro models have a matte glass rear rather than glossy, which is beautiful in the flesh.

Naturally, the iPhone 11 Pro Max and iPhone XS Max are larger than the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone XS but there isn’t much difference between the models with the XS and 11 Pro similar, and the XS Max and 11 Pro Max measuring around the same too. The Pro models are a little heavier than the XS models though and the matte finish does make the Pro Max appear smaller than the XS Max did but it is of course just an illusion.

Where the main differences can be seen is the rear of the devices. The iPhone XS and XS Max both have a dual rear camera situated in the top left of the device, while the iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Pro Max have a somewhat polarising square camera housing sporting three camera lenses, also in the top left, like the iPhone 12 series also does.

Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max review

Display

iPhone XS: 5.8-inch, HDR, True Tone, 3D Touch, 625nits
iPhone 11 Pro: 5.8-inch, HDR, True Tone, Haptic Touch, 800nits
iPhone XS Max: 6.5-inch, HDR, True Tone, 3D Touch, 625nits
iPhone 11 Pro Max: 6.5-inch, HDR, True Tone, Haptic Touch, 800nits

The Apple iPhone XS and iPhone 11 Pro both come with a 5.8-inch Super Retina OLED display that has a 2436 x 1125 pixel resolution, delivering a pixel density 458ppi. The iPhone XS Max and iPhone 11 Pro Max meanwhile, have a 6.5-inch Super Retina OLED display with a 2688 x 1242 pixel resolution, also delivering a pixel density of 458ppi.

The technology changes for the Pro models though, despite them offering the same size and resolution. The screens are much more efficient, offering big battery life improvements and they are brighter too, delivering between 800nits and 1200nits of brightness compared to the XS models that offer 625nits maximum brightness, which is apparent when placed side-by-side.

The Pro models also opt for Haptic Touch like the iPhone XR, rather than 3D Touch like the XS models. All four models have mobile HDR compatibility, coupled with Apple’s True Tone technology and a P3 wide colour gamut however.

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Cameras

iPhone XS/XS Max: Dual rear (12MP wide-angle+12MP telephoto), 7MP front
iPhone 11 Pro/11 Pro Max: Triple rear (12MP wide-angle+12MP ultra-wide+12MP telephoto), 12MP front

The Apple iPhone XS and XS Max both offer dual rear cameras, comprised of two 12-megapixel sensors, one wide-angle and one telephoto. The wide-angle lens has an aperture of f/1.8, while the telephoto lens has an aperture of f/2.4. The two devices have 2x optical zoom and digital zoom up to 10x.

The Apple iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max both have a triple rear camera, made up of a 12-megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor with an aperture of f/2.4, a 12-megapixel wide-angle sensor with an aperture of f/1.8 and a 12-megapixel telephoto sensor with an aperture of f/2.0. The Pro models have dual optical image stabilisation, 2x optical zoom in, 2x optical zoom out and digital zoom up 10x.

On the front, the iPhone XS models have a 7-megapixel TrueDepth camera, allowing for Face ID, and offering 1080p video recording at 30fps and 60fps. The iPhone 11 Pro models bump the front camera resolution up to 12-megapixels and offer 4K video recording at 24fps, 30fps and 60fps and they also feature a slow-motion video mode for what Apple calls Slofies. It’s another gimmicky feature like Animoji and Memoji but they can be quite fun.

All four devices have Portrait Mode with advanced bokeh and Depth Control, Portrait Lighting and they all have Smart HDR. The Pro models have an extra Portrait Lighting effect though, as well as a brighter True Tone flash, Night Mode and Auto Adjustments.

It’s Night Mode that really sets the iPhone 11 Pro models aside from the XS models though – offering significant improvements in low light environments. The third ultra-wide angle lens is great too though, enabling you to get more in your shot.

Apple iPhone 11 Pro cameras explained: Why three and what does each do?

Hardware

iPhone XS/XS Max: A12, 64/256/512GB storage models, wireless charging
iPhone 11 Pro/11 Pro Max: A13, 64/256/512GB storage models, wireless charging

The Apple iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max have Apple’s A13 chip under their hoods, offering a power boost compared to the iPhone XS and XS Max that have the A12 chip. All four models originally came in 64GB, 256GB and 512GB storage options when they launched and none of the devices have microSD for storage expansion.

Apple doesn’t talk about specific RAM and battery capacities, but the iPhone 11 Pro models offer some great improvements on their predecessors in terms of battery. The iPhone 11 Pro is claimed to last up to four hours longer than the iPhone XS , while the iPhone 11 Pro Max will last up to five hours longer than the iPhone XS Max and we found those numbers to be pretty accurate in our experience.

Apple Pay is on board all four devices, as you would expect, and all offer dual-SIM capabilities with nano-SIM and eSIM. All four models are also 4G capable but none offer 5G capabilities, like the iPhone 12 models.

Both the iPhone 11 Pro models and the iPhone XS models offer wireless charging and support for fast charging. Only the iPhone 11 Pro models come with an 18W fast charger in the box though.

Price

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The Apple iPhone 11 Pro started at $999/£1049 when it first launched, while the iPhone Pro Max starts at $1099/£1149, which is similar to what the iPhone XS and XS Max started at when they launched in 2018.

The Apple iPhone XS and XS Max aren’t available through Apple anymore – and neither are the iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max (though the standard iPhone 11 is) – but you might find them cheaper elsewhere if you’re considering these models over the latest iPhone 12 models.

Apple iPhone 11 review

Conclusion

The Apple iPhone 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max look similar to the iPhone XS and XS Max, at least from the front, but they offer big camera and processor upgrades, material upgrades, display and battery improvements and they trade 3D Touch for Haptic Touch.

If you have an XS or XS Max, the upgrade to the respective 11 Pro model will offer several improvements, especially in terms of camera, design finish and battery capacities, but you’ll need to decide if these are enough to warrant the expense, and whether it might be worth stretching to buy the 12 Pro instead.

If you’re making a choice between the iPhone 11 Pro models or XS models, you’ll save some cash buying 2018’s models, but you’ll miss out on a couple of the features offered by the 2019 models – predominantly camera and battery. It just depends how important these features are to you and your wallet.

Writing by Britta O’Boyle.

Best DVD players 2021: Watch your favourite movies at home

(Pocket-lint) – We might live in the age of streaming media, but there are still countless reasons to find value in a good DVD player. Many of us have massive collections of TV and movies on that format, after all.

Best Blu-ray players: Feel the power of your Full HD or 4K discs with a BD player

Moreover, you can never be sure when a movie might disappear from a streaming service, and many more obscure titles are only available on physical formats. So, whether you need to replace an old workhorse or you’re just starting a new DVD collection, here are some of the best DVD players on the market.

Our guide to the best DVD players to buy today

Sony

Sony DVPSR210P

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This sleek DVD player from Sony looks really nice and classy, with a glossy front and super compact design. It’ll work with both DVDs and CDs, too, so if you hook up a sound system you could have a multi-use box.

There’s an included remote for easy controls, and it’s simple to get it controlling your TV as well, making for an impressive package.

Jinhoo

Jinhoo DVD Player

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It might be a less recognisable name, but this is also a really impressive device, and it’s barely bigger than the size of a DVD itself.

There’s a great blue light that’s nice and futuristic to indicate its status, and the included leads and remote will make setting it all up a total doddle.

ELECTCOM

ELECTOM DVD Player

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Electom enters the fray with a super solid DVD player of its own, one that gives great picture quality and can work with HDMI or older cables.

There’s also USB input if you need it, rounding out an impressive package that has really decent build quality.

Majority

Majority Scholars Compact

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With an interesting design that splashes its maker’s logo across the top of the box, this is a DVD player that ticks every box you’re likely to need.

It’s compact and small, easy to fit into a cabinet or TV stand, and has the outputs you’d want, including HDMI. Picture quality should be really good, and the price is right, too.

Tojock

Tojock DVD Player

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Another player with an interesting lightbar that will let you know when a disc is spinning up or the box is powered on, this is a great little box from Tojock.

It’s really well priced and comes with cables for an easy start-up process, and works exactly as it says on the tin.

Writing by Max Freeman-Mills. Editing by Dan Grabham.

Weekly poll results: vivo V21 5G excites the right crowd, rest of series get little love

Last week we got three new vivo V-series phones and the V21 and V21 5G in particular brought something you don’t see that often – optically stabilized selfie cameras. We asked your opinion on the matter in our weekly poll and you selected the V21 5G as the most exciting device from the lineup.

Most of you aren’t sold on the utility of OIS selfie cameras to begin with and a solid number believe other phones offer better front facing cameras. The 44MP shooter on the new V21 and V21 5G sits behind a standard f/2.0 lens and brings autofocus (a proper rarity in this price segment) and dual LED flash sensors above the screen. You can capture up to 4K video at 30fps though you don’t get OIS. Some of you would have preferred an ultrawide cam on the front though.

The rest of the specs are more or less in line with midrange offerings from other brands. There are 6.44-inch AMOLEDs with 90Hz refresh rates, triple rear cameras with a 64MP main shooter and 4,000 mAh batteries with 33W fast charging.

The big difference between the three phones comes down to the chipset department where the V21 and V21 5G pack MediaTek’s Dimensity 800U while the V21e relies on the Snapdragon 720G. Given the regional discrepancy in pricing and availability, we can see why their appeal might be limited amid the extra competitive midrange segment.

Asus Zenfone 8 specs surface in full, detailing all of the hardware

Asus will be introducing the Zenfone 8 and Zenfone 8 Flip in just a few days, on May 12. Thanks to some pretty-extensive leaks, we already have a pretty good idea what to expect, as well as how the two phones will look. Even more so now that a very detailed specs sheet for the vanilla Zenfone 8, previously referred to as the “Mini” has surfaced online.

12MP front

EIS on both cameras

8K

4K slow-mo at 120fps

Hi-Fi audio playback via headphone jack

USB Type-C, 3.5mm jack

dual speakers

5G, BT 5.2, Wifi 6, FM

ZenUI 8 on Android 11

linear vibration motor#Asus #asuszenfone8

— Mukul Sharma (@stufflistings) May 7, 2021

Most of the basic hardware was already known and is merely being re-affirmed here, like the Snapdragon 888 chipset, up to 16GB of RAM (with 6GB and 12GB variants also potentially a thing) and up to 256GB of storage. Apparently, of the UFS 3.1 variety. The display on the Zenfone 8 was already know to have a 5.92-inch diagonal and FullHD+ resolution. As per the new info, it will also sport 120Hz refresh rate and will be manufactured by Samsung, using the trendy E4 AMOLED technology. Covering it – Gorilla Glass Victus.

We aren’t exactly sure what materials the rest of the body is made from, but an educated guess would be a metal middle frame and an additional Gorilla Glass sheet of some sorts for the curved back. Another recent rumor also mentions IP68 certification. As per the leaked specs, the body measures 148 x 68.5 x 8.9mm and tips the scale at 169 grams. That includes the 4,000 mAh battery, capable of up to 30W charging.

Also crammed inside the fairly-compact body – a stereo speaker setup, as well as a 3.5mm audio jack, with Hi-Fi audio output, in typical Asus fashion. Apparently, there are also three mics on the Zenfone 8, leveraged for OZO audio recording. We can hance expect pretty solid video capture performance from the main 64MP IMX686 camera on the phone, as well as the 12MP ultrawide snapper. Apparently, video capture can go up to 8K, with 4K@120fps slow-mo also an option. Like we’ve already seen from renders, the Zenfone 8 only has two rear cameras. As per the new leaked specs – both equipped with EIS and if we are reading this correctly – autofocus on the ultrawide, so it can double as a macro snapper. Neat! Finally, some other details are also mentioned, like Bluetooth 5.2 and Wi-Fi 6 support, courtesy of the Snapdragon 888 chipset. Also, 5G and an FM radio receiver. Not too shabby for a compact flagship.

No word on pricing yet, but then again, the announcement event is just around the corner anyway, so we won’t have to wait long.

Source

Remnant: From the Ashes to get free next-gen patch

Mustafa Mahmoud
3 days ago
Console, Featured Tech News, Software & Gaming

Unlike the start of the previous generation, where game publishers were trigger happy when it came to reselling older titles at a higher resolution or framerate, this generation has seen a shift toward free next-gen upgrades (with some exceptions). The latest game to get a free next gen patch is the action-rpg Remnant: From the Ashes.

Making the announcement on its website, the developers said “We’re incredibly excited to announce that on Thursday, May 13, Remnant: From the Ashes will receive a free major upgrade patch that will add the option to run the game at 4K resolution at 30fps the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, or 1080p resolution at 60fps on both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S!”

That is not all however, as the team confirmed that the game will be coming to Xbox Game Pass for PC (and can also be purchased outright from the Microsoft Store).

Remnant: From the Ashes is a tough but rewarding third-person shooter with satisfying gameplay, selling over 1.6 million copies. This free next-gen upgrade will only serve to improve that further – though it is slightly disappointing to see the 60fps mode limited to 1080p. Described by some as “Dark Souls with guns”, now is a better time than ever to check out Remnant: From the Ashes.

KitGuru says: What do you think of the game? Have you played it? Which other games do you want to see get a next-gen patch? Let us know down below.

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Galax to release RTX 3070 and RTX 3080 FG graphics cards with Nvidia’s anti-mining tech

Galax confirms Nvidia is preparing the launch of RTX 3070 and RTX 3080 graphics cards …

Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition comes to Xbox Series X/S and PS5 next month

Matthew Wilson
4 days ago
Featured Tech News, Software & Gaming

Today, Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition begins rolling out on PC, with totally reworked graphical features and ray-tracing effects. Next month, the Enhanced Edition update will also be coming to the Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 consoles.

On the console side, the Enhanced Edition will offer ray-tracing on consoles for the first time, including ray traced emissive lighting. For the first time on console, Metro Exodus will also feature higher resolution and frame rate modes, as well as an FOV slider:

In the video above, we can see the Enhanced Edition in action running on an Xbox Series X. This particular version will run at 4K and 60 frames per second, as does the PS5 version. The Xbox Series S on the other hand will run the game at 1080p and 60 frames per second.

Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition launches on Xbox Series X/S and PS5 on the 18th of June. It will be a free update for all existing owners of the game. For those who don’t own the game already, a new ‘Complete Edition’ will be released, containing all the new enhancements and the two story expansions.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: I’m looking forward to seeing Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition in action first-hand. It’ll be particularly interesting to see the comparisons between the console edition and the PC version. Are any of you planning on diving back into Metro Exodus when the Enhanced Edition drops?

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Galax to release RTX 3070 and RTX 3080 FG graphics cards with Nvidia’s anti-mining tech

Galax confirms Nvidia is preparing the launch of RTX 3070 and RTX 3080 graphics cards …

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3

Samsung’s new clamshell will have many new features, including a larger cover display and a sturdy frame. Read all about the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 here!

As the introduction of Samsung’s new foldable smartphones gets closer, more and more is becoming known about the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and the Galaxy Z Fold 3. Earlier this week, official promotional material from Samsung leaked, unveiling the design of both devices. The new Fold will be the world’s first foldable phone with an under-screen camera. In this publication, however, we will limit ourselves to the new Flip which gets a new two-tone design.

Like its predecessor, the Galaxy Z Flip 3 will be a clamshell phone with a horizontal folding line. The dual camera and cover screen is covered in black, the rest of the housing is given a different color. This time Samsung seems to make a whole range of colors available.

The leaked photos show that at least a gray, beige, green and purple model will be released. In addition, there is talk about a black, white, blue and pink model. The available color variants will differ per region. Samsung will probably also offer some exclusive colors via their site.

Based on all the new information, graphic designer Giuseppe Spinelli has created a series of highly realistic product renders for LetsGoDigital, in which the Galaxy Z Flip 3 is shown in all expected colors.

What is expected of the Samsung Z Flip 3?

The dual camera setup seems to remain unchanged in terms of resolution, it contains a 12 megapixel wide angle and a 12 megapixel ultra wide angle camera. The cover screen will be larger, the original Z Flip was equipped with a 1.1” display, the new model will likely feature a 1.83” cover display meaning some more content can be displayed – handy for incoming messages or when taking a selfie.

The 6.7” flexible screen will probably remain the same in size. What is new, the Samsung Z Flip 3 will support the 120Hz refresh rate. The centrally placed punch-hole camera will stay, presumably the same 10 megapixel image sensor will also be retained. As far as the camera is concerned, only software improvements are expected, the sensors and lenses of all cameras seem to remain unchanged – just as with the Galaxy S21.

For the first time Samsung will provide both the front and back of the clamshell with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, to make the foldable extra scratch and drop resistant. In addition, the frame also seems to be adjusted, the new “Armor Frame” will be stronger than before. The screen will also be extra reinforced by “Pro-Shield” technology – presumably a kind of counterpart to Apple’s Ceramic Shield.

This time Samsung seems to invest extra in the sturdiness and durability of its foldables. Not only does this result in a stronger frame and a more scratch-resistant display, the South Korean manufacturer also seems to provide the Galaxy Z Flip 3 with an IP rating for the first time. The folding phone is not expected to be completely dust and waterproof, but it will be splash-proof – which would of course be a step in the right direction.

Naturally, the hardware and software will also be renewed. Supposedly, the Samsung Z Flip 3 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, which will guarantee extremely fast and stable performance. This 5nm chipset comes with an integrated 5G modem. In addition to a 256GB model, a 128GB model is also expected this time. This enables Samsung to lower the starting price. The device will run on the Android 11 OS, in combination with the One UI 3.3 user interface. It is a renewed interface compared to the UI that can be found on the Galaxy S21 models.

Will the Galaxy Z Flip 3 offer S Pen support?

Samsung seems to be working on S Pen support for its foldable devices. It’s almost certain that the Galaxy Z Fold 3 will be compatible with Samsung’s famous stylus pen. Some believe that this will also apply to the Galaxy Z Flip 3. Samsung recently registered a trademark for “Z Flip“, which made mention of a stylus pen. Nevertheless, that is no guarantee that the Z Flip 3 will actually offer S Pen support. I personally do not expect that the upcoming clamshell from Samsung will be made compatible with the S Pen. For this we will probably have to be patient until the Galaxy Z Flip 4. But who knows…

Regarding the battery and fast charging options, unfortunately no changes seem to be made. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 5G, like its predecessor, will be equipped with a dual battery with a total capacity of 3,300 mAh. A recent 3C quality certification has shown that the 15W fast charging function will also remain the same.

This seems to become the weakest part of Samsung’s new clamshell. After all, the battery life of the Z Flip was rated as “poor” in many expert reviews, the new model does not seem to change that. The maximum charging power of 15 Watt is of course also very minimal for a high-end device in the year 2021. It was expected that the fast charging functionality would be increased to a minimum of 25 Watt, some even hoped for 65 Watt. However, this does not seem to be the case; the Galaxy Z Flip 3 will only support 15 Watt wired / wireless charging.

Then the question remains: which accessories will be available for the new Flip? Last year a Leather Cover was released, which consisted of two parts. Samsung may have found a solution to also manufacture covers from one piece, so that the hinge is optimally protected. The South Korean manufacturer was recently awarded a patent for such a protective cover.

Price & Release date of the Galaxy Z Flip 3

Samsung will host a Galaxy Unpacked event around July, where both the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and Galaxy Z Fold 3 will be presented. A month later, another event is expected to be set up for the Galaxy S21 FE, this will be the cheapest model in the S21 line-up.

Last year, both the Galaxy Z Flip and the Galaxy Z Flip 5G -the latter was introduced five months later- carried a suggested retail price of € 1,500. If we are to believe the rumors, Samsung is doing everything it can to market the new model cheaper. This may also be the reason why the battery, fast charging functionality and the cameras will not be upgraded.

On the other hand, the South Korean manufacturer seems to be extra committed to the sturdiness and durability of its new foldable device. The larger cover screen and the many color variants should also make the Z Flip 3 extra attractive to buy. Moreover, Samsung seems to add an extra cheap 128GB model. This may result in a starting price of approx € 1,350 – € 1,400.

It will probably be possible to place a preorder order immediately after the official introduction. The actual release will then take place about two weeks later. Customers who purchase the Galaxy Z Flip 3 are expected to receive a set of Galaxy Buds 2 earbuds during the pre-order period. The new earbuds will probably be introduced simultaneously.

In terms of design, the Buds 2 are expected to be very similar to the Buds+, which was introduced at the beginning of 2020. It will a cheaper model than the Buds Pro, which was released at the beginning of this year at the time of the S21.

By the way, if you’re wondering what happened to the Galaxy Z Flip 2, don’t worry, you haven’t missed anything. Samsung will introduce their next Z Fold and Z Flip devices simultaneously, therefore the company seems to have decided to align the model names this year. Meaning there will be no Z Flip 2, instead there will be a Z Flip 3.

Note to editors : The 8K and 4K renders in this publication are created by in-house graphic designer Giuseppe Spinelli (aka Snoreyn). The images are copyright protected. Feel free to use our pictures on your own website, but please be so respectful to include a source link into your publication.

TiVo’s first Android TV dongle also appears to be its last

Last May, TiVo attempted to muscle in on Roku and Amazon with an HDMI streaming dongle of its own — the $70 TiVo Stream 4K, which traded in the company’s traditional live TV + DVR functionality for the likes of Sling TV, Netflix, HBO and YouTube. It now appears that attempt was so unsuccessful, the company’s planning to abandon its Android TV dongle efforts entirely.

Xperi Holdings CEO Jon Kirchner explained in an earnings call (via Zatz Not Funny) that it no longer feels it can compete using Android TV — the company likes to think its differentiator is a content guide that surfaces and lets you search for shows and movies across a variety of apps, but now that Google’s already baked something like that into its new “Google TV” layer on top of Android TV and sells it for just $50, TiVo doesn’t see much of a future there.

Here’s Kirchner, as transcribed by Seeking Alpha:

Sure, so originally as we approached the combination, we have done a lot of planning around kind of a three phase approach, starting with the Stream 4K product, which is a dongle that attaches to TVs, moving into an embedded application, where we’ll be let’s say the preferred user interface choice on a broader platform but originally around the notion that it would live on top of Android TV.

And then thirdly, going all the way into a much deeper embedded solution, embedded OS where we’re a bigger provider, where we’re really the sole primary interface for the broader content search and discovery and engagement. What has changed is last fall, Google came out and said that they intend to go beyond their core OS level offering and really get into the UX business, and in so doing it eclipses one’s ability to I think reasonably be an alternative that might otherwise live on their lower level platform.

Instead, says Kirchner, he wants to embed TiVo smarts directly in TVs — a strategy that’s worked pretty dang well for Roku, and where Amazon has been competing with Fire TV Edition sets for a few years, too.

Here’s the thing, though: while the Stream 4K was well-reviewed, it wasn’t the user interface that reviewers liked. Some of its most glowing reviews called it cluttered or confusing compared to the competition, and most concluded that it was just fine compared to slicker offerings from Roku and Amazon at or under that price. TiVo dropped the starting price of the Stream 4K to $50 at launch, and reduced it to $39 in December after Google’s $50 Chromecast had arrived.

Google Stadia has figured out a way to ditch the fancy gamepad for TV play

Today, there’s only one official way to play Google’s Stadia game streaming service on your 4K TV — the last-gen Chromecast Ultra, connected to the company’s proprietary Stadia Controller over Wi-Fi. That’s because Google hasn’t yet brought Stadia to the new-and-improved $50 Chromecast, and its predecessor didn’t support Bluetooth, meaning the only way to pair a controller was to loop through Google’s servers in the cloud.

But Google now has a workaround, 9to5Google reports. There’s a new “bridge mode” hidden in the latest version of the Stadia app on Android that should let you send controller signals from your phone — letting you play Stadia with your phone’s touchscreen, or even connect another gamepad to your phone. You’ll be able to use your phone to change your TV’s volume, too, according to text snippets buried in the APK.

9to5Google spotted this graphic in the APK to promote bridge mode.

Image: Google

The original Stadia Controller has been something of a thorn in the company’s side ever since Stadia launched on November 19th, 2019, so it wouldn’t be surprising if Google decides to move on. It took many months for buyers to be able to use Google’s wireless controller wirelessly with anything except the Chromecast Ultra — desktop web browsers and Android phones weren’t supported at first, meaning you had to physically plug in a USB-C cable. USB-C audio took a while too, and Bluetooth audio via the controller still has yet to materialize.

Thankfully, third-party controller support was quite robust on those other platforms, letting you easily sync a PlayStation or Xbox gamepad to play, and it’s unlikely you’ll even need this new Bridge Mode to play Stadia on the 2020 Chromecast whenever it arrives; the new Chromecast does support Bluetooth game controllers. Judging by a few Steam Link and GeForce Now sessions with my 8BitDo gamepad, Bluetooth gamepad support may work just fine.

Right now, it’s just a little unclear how much Google cares about Stadia; after it axed all its in-house game studios in February, I argued that the writing was on the wall; since then, Stadia has lost its head of product and at least six additional staffers, and been the subject of two reports about its internal struggles. Apparently, Google had to pay tens of millions of dollars to publishers like Ubisoft, per game, just to get games ported to Stadia.