Founded in 1999, Thermaltake is a PC case, power supply, and peripherals company based in Taiwan. The ARGENT M5 RGB is part of an entire line of products consisting of a mouse bungee, mouse pad, headphones, headphone stand, and a wireless variant of the M5 RGB. The ARGENT M5 RGB is symmetrical, which means it has side buttons on both sides, and its button layout can be reversed in the software, enabling left-handers to use it normally. Through the software, several RGB lighting effects can be set up and synchronized with other ARGENT devices, including Razer Chroma enabled ones. The sensor is PixArt’s PMW3389 capable of 16,000 CPI, and the scroll wheel is made out of aluminium for better durability and grip. Though listed in the specifications, 2000 Hz polling rate is not supported by the ARGENT M5 RGB.
While in-person Computex has been canceled, companies still have new product to roll out, and today Western Digital adds a trio of new drives to its gaming-focused WD_Black line. There are a pair of D30 Game Drives targeting next-gen consoles, with one model aiming for the PlayStation 5 market, and a WD_Black D30 Game Drive SSD for Xbox targeting Sony’s console competition. But for PC builders and gamers, the internal WD_Black SN750 SE will be of most interest, as it brings PCIe Gen4 support at a starting price of just $49.99. But without DRAM, it will probably have a hard time making it to our best SSD list.
But first, let’s tackle the console-focused externals. Both models will come in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB capacities, with the Xbox model starting at $99.99 and the more generic WD_Black D30 Game Drive SSD starting at $10 less ($89.99). Both come in typical bulky-looking rugged housings with detachable stands, with the non-Xbox model delivering claimed speeds of up to 900 MBps. This drive will allow you to play and store PS4 games, but only allow for archiving of PS5 games. (The PS5 only plays the latest-gen games from the internal SSD).
The D30 Game Drive SSD for Xbox, meanwhile, will ship with a one-month membership of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to help make up for the slight price difference. Similar to the other drive, you’ll be able to play and store Xbox One games on the drive, but only archive Xbox Series X/S titles. WD says the white-accented Xbox-branded drive should arrive in June, while the more generic black model should be available today at “select retailers” and the WD Store.
(Image credit: WD)
Shifting to the new internal M.2 drive, the WD_Black SN750 SE is an NVMe drive that supports PCIe 4.0 (and is also backwards compatible with Gen3). WD says it will deliver read speeds of up to 3,600 MBps. So it’s no barn-burner, but WD says it will consume up to 30% less power than the previous SN750, which may help its appeal for laptop gamers. Note, though, that this model will be a DRAM-less drive, which no-doubt helps keep costs (and power consumption) down.
The WD_Black SN750 SE will start at $49.99 for the 250GB model. Pricing on the 500GB and 1TB capacities has not been revealed, nor is there a mention of a 2TB model. But we’re sure to learn more (and hopefully have a full review for you) as we get closer to availability. WD says the WD_Black SN750 SE is available for preorder from WD now, and will land on store shelves this summer.
The Vengeance RGB Pro SL DDR4-3600 C18 is a great memory kit for AMD owners that don’t have the luxury of a lot of clearance space under their CPU air coolers.
For
+ Great performance on AMD platforms
+ Competitive pricing
+ Only 44.8mm tall
Against
– Disappointing overclocking headroom
– Poor performance on Intel platforms
Products don’t always go through modifications because there’s a defect; sometimes manufacturers revamp successful products because they see an opportunity for improvement. That was probably the idea behind Corsair’s reworking of its thriving Vengeance RGB Pro memory, which already holds a spot on our Best RAM list. For those that aren’t fans of the brand, the Vengeance RGB Pro SL will look like a brand piece of memory, but Corsair aficionados, on the other hand, will likely spot the differences right off the bat.
The Vengeance RGB Pro SL retains a similar design as the normal Vengeance RGB Pro. The memory modules still feature a black PCB with a matching black, anodized aluminum heat spreader. The small aesthetic changes include the small triangle cutouts and a different selection of logos.
The biggest difference between the SL and non-SL versions is the height. The original Vengeance RGB Pro memory modules are 51mm (2 inches) tall, while the SL variant checks in at 44.8mm (1.76 inches) tall. Corsair basically reduced the height by 12.2%, which should be sufficient to make the Vengeance RGB Pro SL fit under the most CPU air coolers and compact cases.
Despite the height reduction, the RGB diffuser remains intact on the Vengeance RGB Pro SL. There are 10 individually addressable onboard RGB LEDs inside the diffuser to provide bright and vibrant lighting. You’ll have to use Corsair’s iCUE software to take full advantage of the Vengeance RGB Pro SL’s illumination, which means installing another piece of software on your system.
The Vengeance RGB Pro SL consists of an eight-layer custom PCB with Samsung K4A8G085WB-BCPB (B-die) integrated circuits (ICs). The memory kit is comprised of a pair of 8GB memory modules with a single-rank design.
Out of the box, the memory operates at DDR4-2666 with dull primary timings fixed at 18-18-18-43. The Vengeance RGB Pro SL has a single XMP profile for DDR4-3600, so you can’t really go wrong. It configures the timings to 18-22-22-42 and the DRAM voltage up to 1.35V. For more on timings and frequency considerations, see our PC Memory 101 feature, as well as our How to Shop for RAM story.
Comparison Hardware
Memory Kit
Part Number
Capacity
Data Rate
Primary Timings
Voltage
Warranty
G.Skill Trident Z Neo
F4-3600C14D-16GTZNB
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
14-15-15-35 (2T)
1.45 Volts
Lifetime
Adata XPG Spectrix D60G
AX4U360038G14C-DT60
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
14-15-15-35 (2T)
1.45 Volts
Lifetime
TeamGroup T-Force Xtreem ARGB
TF10D416G3600HC14CDC01
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
14-15-15-35 (2T)
1.45 Volts
Lifetime
Gigabyte Aorus RGB Memory
GP-AR36C18S8K2HU416R
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
18-19-19-39 (2T)
1.35 Volts
Lifetime
HP V8
7EH92AA#ABM x 2
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
18-20-20-40 (2T)
1.35 Volts
5 Years
Adata XPG Spectrix D50
AX4U360038G18A-DT50
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
18-20-20-42 (2T)
1.35 Volts
Lifetime
Predator Talos
BL.9BWWR.215
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
18-20-20-42 (2T)
1.35 Volts
Lifetime
Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL
CMH16GX4M2Z3600C18
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
18-22-22-42 (2T)
1.35 Volts
Lifetime
GeIL Orion AMD Edition
GAOR416GB3600C18BDC
2 x 8GB
DDR4-3600 (XMP)
18-22-22-42 (2T)
1.35 Volts
Lifetime
Our Intel test system consists of an Intel Core i9-10900K and Asus ROG Maximus XII Apex on the 0901 firmware. On the opposite end, the AMD testbed for RAM benchmarks leverages an AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and Gigabyte B550 Aorus Master with the F13e firmware. The MSI GeForce RTX 2080 Ti Gaming Trio handles the gaming workloads on both platforms.
Intel Performance
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The Vengeance RGB Pro SL placed at the bottom of the charts on our Intel platform. The memory’s strongest showing came in the 7-Zip compression workload, where it ranked second and outperformed the slowest memory kit by up to 7.3%. As for gaming performance, the Vengeance RGB Pro SL’s standing didn’t change.
AMD Performance
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The competition was tight on the AMD platform. Nevertheless, the Vengeance RGB Pro SL outperformed some of the faster rivals and came in at the second position on the performance charts. Once again, the memory performed the best in 7-Zip compression, beating the slowest memory kit by up to 6.8%.
Despite employing Samsung B-die ICs, the Vengeance RGB Pro SL doesn’t have any fuel left in the tank. Increasing the DRAM voltage to 1.45V only got us to DDR4-3866, and we also had to sacrifice timings to get there. The memory wasn’t stable with any value below 19-22-22-40.
Lowest Stable Timings
Memory Kit
DDR4-3600 (1.45V)
DDR4-3733 (1.45V)
DDR4-3866 (1.45v)
DDR4-3900 (1.45V)
DDR4-4000 (1.45V)
DDR4-4133 (1.45V)
DDR4-4200 (1.45V)
G.Skill Trident Z Neo
13-16-16-36 (2T)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
19-19-19-39 (2T)
Adata XPG Spectrix D60G
13-15-15-35 (2T)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
20-19-19-39 (2T)
Team Group T-Force Xtreem ARGB
13-14-14-35 (2T)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
19-19-19-39 (2T)
HP V8
14-19-19-39 (2T)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
18-22-22-42 (2T)
N/A
Adata XPG Spectrix D50
14-19-19-39 (2T)
N/A
N/A
N/A
18-22-22-42 (2T)
N/A
N/A
Gigabyte Aorus RGB Memory
16-19-19-39 (2T)
N/A
N/A
20-20-20-40 (2T)
N/A
N/A
N/A
Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL
16-20-20-40 (2t)
N/A
19-22-22-40
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
GeIL Orion AMD Edition
16-20-20-40 (2T)
19-22-22-42 (2T)
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
The Vengeance RGB Pro SL’s default XMP timings are 18-22-22-42 at 1.35V. A small voltage bump up to 1.45V allowed the memory to run at 16-20-20-40, making it a lot more attractive.
Bottom Line
Corsair markets the RAM as having a compact form factor. It’s shorter than the previous revision, but it’s not exactly considered low-profile, either. Even at 44.8mm, the memory shouldn’t cause any conflicts with CPU air coolers, but it wouldn’t hurt to measure the clearance space before picking up the Vengeance RGB Pro SL if you have an overly large cooler.
You shouldn’t have any qualms with the Vengeance RGB Pro SL’s design as the memory looks good, just like its predecessors. Performance, however, is another case. Evidently, the Vengeance RGB Pro SL performs better on AMD systems than Intel systems, so that’s one point to take into account. The Vengeance RGB Pro SL DDR4-3600 C18 retails for $109.99, and it’s not a bad price considering there are equal or slower competitors out there that cost more than Corsair’s kit.
It will delight you even as you question its need to exist
I spent the entire run of Disney’s Cruella torn between delight and horror. Rarely has a film so neatly emotionally vivisected me as this one about a villain best known for wanting to skin puppies to make a coat. Only Cruella isn’t about that character really. It’s not about her war with the fur industry or PETA. It’s definitely not about a collection of Dalmatian dogs fleeing her furrier desires. It’s a colorful and pulpy tale of a woman with profound narcissistic tendencies getting vengeance on a murderer and becoming a London fashion icon. I’m sorry if you ever thought, “I could never have anything but camp-fueled affection for Disney’s puppy killer” because this gal is a delight.
This is more Wicked than Joker in that it reimagines a notorious villain as a misunderstood hero besmirched by popular media. Yet I have no idea why it is a movie about Cruella de Vil and not simply an original film about a woman with profound narcissistic tendencies getting vengeance on a murderer and becoming a London fashion icon. Where Wicked (both the book and the musical) takes pains to explore how media can corrupt an image, Cruella largely sidesteps jibes about populism or media to just put on a big fabulous show.
Emma Stone looks fabulous 90 percent of the time.Image: Disney
Plus, apart from the occasional cameo from Roger (played by a wonderfully schluppy-looking Kayvan Novak), Anita (a perky but sly Kirby Howell-Baptiste), and some black-and-white spotted pups, Cruella has nothing to do with any of its source material. Wicked at least took us to the natural end of the story after building up its hero. I’m not saying I needed to see Emma Stone skin 101 puppies, but at least then the focus on Cruella would have made sense.
In every lull in the film I found myself trying to figure out why exactly Cruella exists, entertaining as it is. One colleague jokingly told me he thinks it was made because Disney made some digital dog tech from Lady and the Tramp and wanted to get the most out of it. To his credit, there are a lot of dogs running between Emma Stone’s legs and leaping over her and generally being adorable in Cruella. There are even a few Dalmatians! They all look realistic and pettable until the uncanny valley occasionally catches them in its maw and you are reminded that those are some very fake dogs.
And even if this film was greenlit as some bean counter’s way of making back the cash spent to produce the tech for Lady and the Tramp, it still means that somewhere once upon a time some Disney execs were sitting in their office, legs up on the desk, tasteful Mickey Mouse-branded socks peeking out from between expensively tailored pants and more expensive shoes, and looking at this pitch, saying “sure, let’s reimagine the story of that villain who really has no redeemable quality apart from her taste in cars as a misunderstood antisocial heroine just out to resolve some true injustices in the world.”
This woman was previously on fire.Image: Disney
At no point does the film attempt to explain — or even hint — at how Cruella would turn from a fashion icon with a very deeply buried heart of gold into a monster forcing her friends to kidnap puppies from another friend and to make a coat. It starts with Cruella, then called Estella, going to school, causing trouble, and being doted on by her exceptionally nice mother. After a murder that Cruella blames herself for, she flees into the streets of London and meets two young thieves, Jasper and Horace. She dyes her distinguishable hair and joins them in their heist and the three become a family.
But as much as Estella loves crime, her true passion is fashion.
We then shoot forward 10 years to an otherworldly version of ‘70s London. Estella’s adoptive brothers (Joel Fry gives Jasper heart even as Paul Walter Hauser happily plays Horace as a cartoon) get her a job at a high-end store in the hopes she’ll wow them with her skills as a designer and seamstress. And while she enrages her bosses, she catches the eye of the Baroness (Emma Thompson), the biggest and most powerful designer in London. Estella then is torn between a desire to prove herself to the Baroness and to destroy the Baroness, and the movie quickly becomes scene after scene of guerilla fashion shows framed like the most gorgeous-looking heists you’ve ever seen.
Emma Thompson will be compared to Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada. The comparison will be well earned. Image: Disney
Cruella borders on camp with the way it hops between absurdity and melodrama — often in the same scene. I questioned if I was stoned as Cruella raced across London in a dump truck after charging a one-eyed Chihuahua with a jailbreak. Not because it was silly (it was!) but because it was played deadly seriously. Stone and Thompson anchor the whole affair with cartoonish characters treated with the gravitas of historical figures. They do not wink at the camera. They do not make sly referential jokes about the story material. They just go to war with flaming dresses and shimmering moth cocoons and the occasional blow of a dog whistle.
You usually know when you’re supposed to laugh and when you’re just supposed to enjoy yourself watching a movie, but I found myself torn constantly by Cruella. It’s like a fairy tale, and it’s like a really good graphic novel, and it’s unlike any of the films it will get compared to.
Cruella premieres on Disney Plus Friday, May 28th.
App developer and scam app hunter Kosta Eleftheriou’s latest discovery is a real doozy, an iOS app that refuses to function before you give it at least a 3-star review in the App Store. Although the UPNP Xtreme app — which claimed to let users stream video to their TVs — now appears to have been pulled, we were able to verify that it generates the App Store rating box the second it opens. You can’t dismiss the ratings box, nor can you tap the 1 or 2-star ratings, Eleftheriou said. We verified this behavior, but some other users report they were able to dismiss the dialog box or leave a lower rating.
This is just the latest scammy app to have been unearthed by Elefheriou, who’s been waging a war against them after his own Apple Watch keyboard app, FlickType, was overtaken by expensive apps with fake reviews. Eleftheriou says Apple has removed over 100 apps as a result of his reports, but it’s concerning that the multi-billion dollar company isn’t catching these scams during its App Store review process.
If you think you can trust App Store ratings, you haven’t been paying enough attention.
This is the iOS *system* rating prompt, not a custom look-alike one.
The worst part? This trick is EXTREMELY easy for any developer to do, and not limited to this app.
— Kosta Eleftheriou (@keleftheriou) May 25, 2021
The UPNP Xtreme app’s behavior directly contradicts one of the best practices Apple lists on its developer site, which states that developers should “avoid showing a request for a review immediately when a user launches your app.” Generally, developers are allowed to prompt for a rating up to there times in a 365-day period.
Apple’s review process has been under particularly intense scrutiny recently because of Epic Games’ lawsuit against the company. Central to the dispute is the 30 percent commission Apple takes on many App Store payments and in-app purchases. Apple argues it needs the commission to run the App Store and create a safe environment for users. But that argument gets undermined pretty quickly if obvious scammy apps are able to slip through Apple’s review process.
Apps like the ones discovered by Eleftheriou not only harm customers who end up downloading scammy software and can get tricked into paying for difficult-to-cancel recurring subscriptions. It also harms legitimate developers who have to contend with apps that are willing to play dirty to get the good reviews needed to rise up the App Store’s rankings.
Eleftheriou filed a lawsuit against Apple earlier this year, arguing it exploits its monopoly power over iOS app to make money at the expense of app developers and consumers.
You had to wait for months, but you can finally complete your Cyberpunk 2077 outfit with a limited edition OnePlus Watch to go with that limited edition OnePlus 8T. Well, you can if you live in China – the watch went on pre-order at 20:00 local time at a couple of online stores. Sales will start on June 1.
The price is CNY 1,300, which splits the difference between the CNY 1,000 of the standard watch and the CNY 1,600 of the Cobalt Limited edition. In Europe the standard model costs €160, so if the Cyberpunk model ever makes it there, we expect it be over €200.
OnePlus Watch Cyberpunk 2077 limited edition
This limited edition comes with the customizations you would expect – a new Black and Yellow watch band with a custom pattern embossed, plus a few splashes of yellow paint on the watch body. On the software side, there are Cyberpunk-themed wallpapers, icons and even the boot animation is custom.
But there’s one really eye-catching element in this premium package – a robotic hand that can be used to display the watch. It doubles as a charger too.
The rest is identical to the standard OnePlus Watch, you can read our review for more details.
Elite Dangerous took a big step forward with its new Odyssey expansion, introducing new planets, boots-on-ground combat missions and more. Unfortunately, the launch did not get off to a good start, leading to a lot of disappointment amongst early PC players.
Over on Steam, Elite Dangerous Odyssey has quickly garnered a ‘Mostly Negative’ overall review score, with many of the top rated reviews bringing to light the expansion’s issues. Bugs are sending players on missions to planets that don’t exist, server instability is causing players to be booted from the game and some players are suddenly finding that the game runs much worse than it did prior to the expansion.
Frontier has already rolled out the first hotfix for Odyssey and has a second one on the way to address some of these issues. Frontier CEO, David Braben, has also posted a blog post to address player concerns, apologising for the launch-window issues:
“First and foremost, I would like to apologise wholeheartedly to those who have been suffering from these problems. I would like to reassure you that we take these issues very seriously and that they are our top priority and focus”. Braben goes on to promise continued communication as developers begin to crack down on bugs and performance issues.
KitGuru Says: The launch state of Elite Dangerous Odyssey has brought about some comparisons to the Cyberpunk 2077 launch. Have any of you picked up the expansion already? Have you had issues?
If you’re struggling with your audio quality, you may be tempted to buy a dedicated microphone to improve your work calls, live streaming, content creation. Some of you may not want to splash too much cash however, so today we’re taking a look at a very affordable microphone by Tonor, the TC30 USB microphone, which comes in at just £37.99. With over 8500 4.5-star ratings on Amazon, it comes with absolutely everything you need to get started, including a pop-shield, shock mount and desk stand. Is it actually any good – or should you pass on this one?
Watch via our Vimeo channel (below) or over on YouTube at 2160p HERE
Specifications:
Microphone type: Condenser
Cardioid Polar Pickup Pattern
Frequency Response 50Hz – 20kHz
Input Sample Rate 48kHz
Bit Rate 16Bit
Output Impedance 2.2kΩ
S/N Ratio >68dB
Sensitivity: -32dB±3dB
Cable Length 2m
Detachable cable
Cable Type: USB-C to USB-A 2.0
Included desk stand, shock mount and pop filter
Plug and play, no software needed
You can purchase the Tonor TC30 on a limited-time offer from Amazon for £26.99 HERE! The usual price is £37.99.
Tonor have also let us know that KitGuru readers can get 15% off on the Amazon US store with code USBMIC15.
Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.
Pros:
Plug and play, you get everything you need including a shock mount.
Detachable USB-C to USB-A 2.0 cable.
Excellent price point.
Brilliant audio quality when used correctly.
Cons:
No gain control knob or mute button on the mic itself.
Plastic threading on the shock mount.
Fully plastic design.
KitGuru says: If you’re on a restricted budget this is the microphone for anyone looking to improve the quality of their business meeting calls, gaming with friends online, content creators doing voice overs and more. With the very affordable nature of the Tonor TC30 at just £38, we definitely recommend it as the audio quality really is very good considering its price point.
After almost a decade of total market dominance, Intel has spent the past few years on the defensive. AMD’s Ryzen processors continue to show improvement year over year, with the most recent Ryzen 5000 series taking the crown of best gaming processor: Intel’s last bastion of superiority.
Now, with a booming hardware market, Intel is preparing to make up some of that lost ground with the new 11th Gen Intel Core Processors. Intel is claiming these new 11th Gen CPUs offer double-digit IPC improvements despite remaining on a 14 nm process. The top-end 8-core Intel Core i9-11900K may not be able to compete against its Ryzen 9 5900X AMD rival in heavily multi-threaded scenarios, but the higher clock speeds and alleged IPC improvements could be enough to take back the gaming crown. Along with the new CPUs, there is a new chipset to match, the Intel Z590. Last year’s Z490 chipset motherboards are also compatible with the new 11th Gen Intel Core Processors, but Z590 introduces some key advantages.
First, Z590 offers native PCIe 4.0 support from the CPU, which means the PCIe and M.2 slots powered off the CPU will offer PCIe 4.0 connectivity when an 11th Gen CPU is installed. The PCIe and M.2 slots controlled by the Z590 chipset are still PCI 3.0. While many high-end Z490 motherboards advertised this capability, it was not a standard feature for the platform. In addition to PCIe 4.0 support, Z590 offers USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 from the chipset. The USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 standard offers speeds of up to 20 Gb/s. Finally, Z590 boasts native support for 3200 MHz DDR4 memory. With these upgrades, Intel’s Z series platform has feature parity with AMD’s B550. On paper, Intel is catching up to AMD, but only testing will tell if these new Z590 motherboards are up to the challenge.
The ASUS ROG STRIX Z590-I Gaming WiFi is a compact power house featuring a robust 10-phase VRM with top of the line power stages and a substantial VRM cooling solution. BIOS flashback has also been included, as well as ASUS’s excellent BIOS designed to provide an optimal, stress-free overclocking experience. The ASUS ROG STRIX Z590-I Gaming WiFi also offers great connectivity with WiFi 6, 2.5 Gb/s Ethernet, and Thunderbolt 4. All of this performance is packed into an ITX form factor with some clever engineering to make it all fit.
Let’s take a closer look at what the ASUS ROG STRIX Z590-I Gaming WiFi has to offer.
1x Thunderbolt™ 4 USB Type-C® port 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C® port 1x USB 3.2 Gen 2 port 1x USB 3.2 Gen 1 port 4x USB 2.0 ports 1x HDMI™ port 1x ASUS Wi-Fi module 1x Intel® I225-V 2.5 Gb Ethernet 3x Gold-plated audio jacks 1x BIOS FlashBack™ button
iFixit has published a detailed teardown of Apple’s newly redesigned M1 processor-equipped iMac, and it contains bad news about how easy the new all-in-one is to repair. Whether it’s the fans, USB ports, headphone jack, power button, or speakers, iFixit says virtually any repairs to the new desktop require battling through Apple’s adhesives.
Like the other M1 Macs, everything is soldered together now — so there’s no upgrading RAM or internal storage even if you do crack it open. The good news is if you do go through the effort of cracking it open, iFixit says most of the other internal parts (including the ports, webcam, and speakers) are relatively easy to swap out with replacements.
Photo: iFixit
These problems might not matter right now while the iMacs are shiny, new, and generally excellent, but they could make a world of difference in a few years when their components start to wear out and fail. iFixit has long been critical of the repairability of Apple’s devices, but it’s arguably much more important for a device like the iMac, which tends to get replaced less often than a phone or tablet. In our review, we called it “the computer to get if you just want to buy it and not think about it for the next five to ten years.”
If you thought the new iMac looks a lot like a massive iPad on a stand, then you might not be surprised to hear that much of what makes the iPad difficult to repair has been inherited by the new iMac. iFixit has awarded the machine a total score of 2/10 for repairability.
Apple’s M1 processors haven’t even been around for a year yet, so we don’t yet know how they’re going to hold up over time. But if any issues do crop up, this design could make it harder and more expensive for users to fix the machines they’re powering.
Photo: iFixit
This is far from the first time that iFixit has criticized the repairability of an iMac. In 2015, for example, it awarded Apple’s 21.5-inch iMac a low score of 1/10 for its repairability for design elements like having its RAM and CPU soldered onto the motherboard, preventing easy replacements or upgrades. Other iMacs like the 27-inch 5K iMac from 2014 or the 2018 iMac Pro fared better, thanks to their replaceable CPUs and RAM, but these are absent from the new machine.
“Apple’s newest iMac follows the other M1 machines down an interesting, but even-less-repairable path,” the teardown concludes — an expected, albeit slightly disappointing direction that Apple’s ever-thinner hardware has been trending in for years.
Redragon had kicked off a massive chain of 60% keyboard reviews on TPU recently, beginning with the K530 Draconic late last year. It was a 60% keyboard that was followed by an even smaller unit in the form of the K585 Diti gamepad, which unfortunately did not fare as well. Redragon had sent along another keyboard with the K585. As such, we now get to see if it is redemption time for the company with the K595 Vishnu. Thanks again to Redragon for sending a review sample to TechPowerUp!
Brands have used various naming schemes for keyboards, with some going with “Kxx” and others opting for more exotic names in other languages. Some, such as Gamdias, choose to go with Greek gods instead. So I suppose it was only a matter of time before Hindu gods entered the picture, although a Chinese brand doing it is still hilarious to me. The K596 Vishnu, which I will just refer to as the Redragon K596 henceforth, is an interesting take on the TKL form factor. Sure, it misses out on the numpad and takes up less desk space compared to the average full-size keyboard, but Redragon added macro keys on the left and top, which take up more room and are usually things we see on larger full-size units. Let’s see how this works out in practice as we begin this review with a look at the product specifications below.
Specifications
Redragon K596 Vishnu Wireless Keyboard
Layout:
TKL form factor in a US ANSI layout
Material:
ABS plastic case, PBT plastic keycaps, and steel plate
If you’ve been following the SSD space at least a little bit, you definitely know Phison. An SSD controller vendor that started with low-performance budget chips, Phison has improved tremendously since and is now offering solutions that rival the fastest controllers available. Phison was founded in 2000 in Taiwan and is shipping hundreds of millions of controllers each year.
The Phison E18 controller is the company’s first PCI-Express Gen 4 controller. It has been used on drives like the Corsair MP600 Pro, Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus, and Addlink S95. In our MP600 Pro review, we found that Corsair’s fastest SSD delivers performance comparable to the Samsung 980 Pro and WD Black SN850.
All these Phison E18-based drives have one thing in common: They use 96-layer 3D TLC NAND flash from Micron, also known as B27B. These flash chips were released in 2018, so they aren’t exactly based on the latest technology. Especially compared to Samsung, this aging flash tech puts the Phison E18+Micron B27B combination at a small performance disadvantage. That’s why Phison has now qualified Micron’s 176-layer B47R TLC flash chips for the E18 controller. Technically, the controller is the same physical silicon as all changes are done in firmware, which helps keep manufacturing cost down.
Today, we are previewing the performance of this Phison E18+Micron 176-layer B47R flash by using a pre-production sample SSD provided directly by Phison. The drive uses not only B47R, but B47R Fortis Flash, which is the enterprise version of regular B47R. While rated for much higher endurance, it should be very similar otherwise.
Phison hasn’t indicated any pricing because it’s ultimately the SSD vendor’s decision. I have no knowledge of how expensive B47R is compared to B27B, but I doubt it’ll be cheaper. The controller itself shouldn’t be significantly different in pricing because it is the same silicon with firmware changes.
Apple has announced that this year’s WorldWide Developers Conference will take place from the 7th to the 11th June. Like last year’s WWDC, the event will go ahead online.
The big news is typically revealed at the keynote speech on day one. Apple CEO Tim Cook will get the ball rolling from 6pm BST / 10am PDT this year, live from the tech giant’s Apple Park HQ. Fans will be able to stream the event via Apple.com and the company’s YouTube channel.
“WWDC21 kicks off with the unveiling of exciting new updates coming to all Apple platforms later this year”, reads Apple’s schedule. That likely means previews of Apple’s new iOS 15, iPadOS 14, MacOS 12, WatchOS 8 and tvOS 15 software.
As for hardware, we could see the latest ‘Pro’ Macs featuring Apple’s processors (the company ditched Intel’s processors last year). There’s also a (slim) chance we could see the company showcase the rumoured AirPods 3 wireless earbuds.
Following the keynote, WWDC21 will serve up “200 in-depth sessions, one-on-one labs, and more”, so that developers can learn about the latest tools to help rustle up the next generation of iOS apps.
MORE:
Read our review of the Apple AirPods Max headphones
The best AirPlay speakers you can buy right now
Apple HomePod 2: price, release date, features and rumours
Still waiting for the Sonos wireless headphones to appear? They’re expected by the end of 2021, but it seems the Californian tech giant might have another surprise up its sleeve.
A recent US patent filing (spotted by zatznotfunny) appears to depict Sonos’ first ever pair of wireless earbuds. The drawings are rudimentary but appear to show a couple of different designs, including a wedge-shaped pair that slot into either end of a USB-C charging case.
Interestingly, it looks like Sonos is also planning to extend the play time of its buds using tiny, detachable battery plates (Sonos calls them “charging adaptors”). The plates look to be roughly the size of a thumbnail and attach (possibly magnetically?) to the outer body of each bud. The drawings even reveal how the plates would be powered up using the charging case. Ingenious, but is it realistic?
The filing doesn’t give too much else away, other than to confirm the purported Sonos buds would feature voice control, media playback, and the ability to sync with “Multiple Network Devices” (Sonos’ increasingly broad range of wireless multi-room audio products, we presume).
Major tech firms file hundreds of patents every year and many come to naught, so today’s development is no guarantee that Sonos will launch a pair of true wireless earbuds. That said, somebody at Sonos has clearly spent a lot of time thinking about developing an Apple AirPods (2019) rival.
MORE:
Get the lowdown: which Sonos speaker should you buy?
Sonos: everything you need to know about the multi-room king
Read our full review of the new Sonos Roam Bluetooth speaker
ADATA is Taiwan’s largest manufacturer of flash storage and DRAM memory for computers. They have been at the forefront of SSD development for many years, bringing us famous SSDs like the SX8200, SX900, and S510.
Today we are reviewing the ADATA SE900G, which is the company’s latest portable SSD. It is one of the first external storage drives that utilizes the blazing fast USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 20 Gbps interface, which doubles the transfer rates over USB 3.2 Gen 2×1 aka USB 3.1 Gen 2. Many portable SSDs using USB 3.2 Gen 2×1 were bottlenecked by the USB interface speed, so it makes sense to increase the interface transfer rate another notch. At this time, not a single AMD AM4 motherboard natively supports the 20 Gbps USB interface, on the Intel side there’s about 60 motherboards, most using the Z590 chipset. For all our testing we used a Gigabyte GC-USB 3.2 Gen2x2 PCI-Express x4 add-in card—so we can properly test ADATA’s SE900G portable SSD.
Another highlight of ADATA’s SSD is that it has a dazzling RGB lighting implementation that covers almost the whole front of the SSD.
Internally, the SE900G uses a USB-to-PCIe bridge chip, paired with a full-size ADATA SX8200 Pro SSD. The SX8200 Pro uses Micron 96-layer B27A 3D TLC flash, and a Silicon Motion SM662EN controller, with 1 GB of Samsung DRAM.
We review the ADATA SE900G in the 2 TB variant, which retails for $285, but it is also available in capacities of 512 GB, and 1 TB. Warranty is set to five years for all these models.
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