The Securities and Exchange Commission believes Elon Musk has violated his 2018 settlement agreement twice, according to correspondence obtained by The Wall Street Journal between the SEC and Tesla. The agreement requires a lawyer to approve his tweets about the company.
Tesla lawyers didn’t review Musk’s May 2020 tweet about how Tesla’s stock price was “too high imo” before he published it. The company’s lawyers also didn’t approve a July 2019 tweet about Musk’s goal to make 1,000 of Tesla’s solar roofs per week by the end of that year. The SEC sent the letters to Tesla in 2019 and 2020 shortly after each tweet, but has not taken any apparent enforcement action against Musk or the company.
Musk originally found himself in hot water with the SEC in August 2018 after he infamously tweeted he had “[f]unding secured” to take Tesla private at a price of $420 per share. (He did not, and had only held preliminary talks with Saudi Arabia to fund such a move.) The agency charged him with securities fraud in September, and the two sides quickly settled. Musk agreed to step down as chairman of Tesla, and also agreed to have his public communications (aka his tweets) vetted by the company.
In early 2019, though, the SEC asked a judge to hold Musk in contempt of court for violating the original settlement. Musk tweeted an estimate for how many cars Tesla would make that year that was higher than the company’s official guidance. The SEC discovered that Tesla’s lawyers had not approved the tweet, and took Musk and his company back to court. The two sides ultimately agreed to more specific vetting of Musk’s tweets about Tesla, especially around production, sales, or delivery numbers.
The SEC wrote Tesla in August 2019 about the solar roof tweet, arguing it was a clear violation of the amended settlement terms. But Tesla said in response that Musk’s estimate was “wholly aspirational.”
“Tesla has abdicated the duties required of it by the court’s order,” Steven Buchholz, one of the SEC’s enforcement officials, wrote to Tesla in May 2020 in the letters the WSJ obtained. It was in response to the stock price tweet. Tesla responded that the tweet was simply Musk’s opinion.
Musk went on 60 Minutes in late 2018 to say that no one has been approving his tweets despite the settlement. His public attitude toward the agency hasn’t changed much from the open scorn Musk expressed on 60 Minutes. Last July, he tweeted, “SEC, three letter acronym, middle word is Elon’s.”
High performance memory kits have evolved over the last few years, both in styling and technology. Styling has shifted to heavier heat sinks, LED light bars, and fancy RGB control software. The technology has done what it inevitably will by producing greater speeds and densities at generally lower cost as DDR4 has matured. The latest processors and graphics cards have been nearly impossible to get over the last six months, but memory pricing and availability has remained steady. With no end to the global shortages in sight, let’s dig into a product you can actually buy at MSRP!
Neo Forza started out as an I/C design house that then became an OEM for a variety of international brands over the past 15 years. Neo Forza possesses strong resources focusing on core technologies. From research and design to specific production to exceed the testing benchmark, Neo Forza keeps pushing over technical boundaries, providing top-notch performance and quality.
Neo Forza has leveraged that extensive experience to streamline their wafer screening process. Each Neo Forza design focuses on a single timing bin for each frequency step across the entire product stack. A Neo Forza 3200 MHz kit will offer the same timings and performance regardless of the naming convention or external appearance of the kit.
The Neo Forza Mars kit I have for testing today is one of their middle spec kits: 16 GB (2x 8 GB) at 3600 MHz, 18-19-19-39 timings, and 1.35 V. 3600 MHz has become the new gold standard for Ryzen builds, driving new focus into memory kits targeting a previously obscure specification. Let’s see how the Neo Forza Mars holds up in this ultra-competitive segment!
(Pocket-lint) – It can be a little difficult to stand out from the crowd in the wireless earbuds world at the moment, whether you’re an established presence or a newcomer.
Best true wireless earbuds rated: Wire-free Bluetooth audio
Having a big name attached to your ‘buds could be a help though, and music producer Kygo has been making some waves with his headphones brand over the last couple of years.
The earbuds, called Xellence, are a creditable addition to his oeuvre. But in this bustling market are they particularly memorable?
Design
Plastic case and build
60g weight (including case)
Touch-sensitive controls
Unlike other audio brands named for or endorsed by celebrities, these earbuds from Kygo really don’t look too glaringly brash. Yes, there’s a repeated ‘X’ blazoned on both the case and each earbud, but it’s a logo subtle enough to blend in nicely, and aside from that these ‘buds look pretty normal – in a good way!
The best Lightning headphones 2021 for your iPhone or iPad
By Dan Grabham
·
The case is small and lightweight, built from plastic, and easy to pocket. It’s got indicator lights to let you know its charge level, and the earbuds clip in easily with the help of magnets. The case charges by USB Type-C – we’d have liked to see wireless charging, too, but that’s life.
One slight worry on our end is that the case’s lid, while sturdily hinged, is pretty thin – if there’s a potential point for breakages, this could be it. However, it’s satisfying to open and shut, so doesn’t feel fragile in the hands.
Moving to the earbuds, each has a round exterior that corkscrews in toward a silicone tip (with multiple sizes included). A twist gets each into your ear canal and we found them comfortable enough to wear for long periods. That said, those with smaller outer ears could find them a little chafey.
In terms of controls, the whole flat outside surface of each ‘bud is touch-sensitive. A tap on the left or right earbud will alter the volume of playback, while double-taps can pause (and unpause), while triple-taps can change noise-cancellation mode (or ‘ANC’ as it’s often called).
Each earbud also has a small button to its rear so that can activate your chosen voice assistant, but this is so awkwardly placed and hard to press when the ‘buds are in your ears that you’ll doubtless almost never use it.
That ‘X’ on each Kygo ‘bud has a backlit LED which looks fairly classy, but you can turn the lighting off easily if it doesn’t suit your style.
Overall this is a solid showing in design terms – there’s nothing here to redraw the lines for all wireless earbuds, but Xellence looks nice and feels good to use.
Sound quality
10mm drivers
Personalised sound with Mimi
When it comes to actually listening to music, Kygo’s Xellence ‘buds offer a fairly similar picture: it’s a solid performance, not that it rehapes the mould of sound potential. The sound stage here is entirely decent, with a richness that makes plenty of different genres sound warm and natural.
If you use the optional Bass Boost setting, you’ll get a welcome added oomph on the low-end, and while we didn’t find that highs got particularly defined, it’s still more than capable of punching through whatever playlist you throw at these ‘buds.
One nice twist on this is that the earbuds use sound personalisation in partnership with audio engineers Mimi. In the companion app, you can take a hearing test that takes a couple of minutes. It assesses how each of your ears receives different frequencies, then creates a custom EQ (equaliser) to make music as natural sounding as possible. It works nicely and you can really hear the difference if you toggle it on and off.
That’s further enhanced by decent ANC. There are three settings for Xellence – noise cancellation, ambient mode, and no cancellation. With cancellation on you’ll unsurprisingly get a more isolated sound, and we found that it did a very decent job of drowning out external sound without impacting our music.
Ambient mode boosts the volume of sounds around you using the included microphones. As is often the case, it works fine but is eerie and too distracting for prolonged use. With both turned off, meanwhile, the in-ear shape still gives solid passive isolation and you’ll save some battery life.
Best noise-cancelling (ANC) headphones for blocking out noise when you’re working from home
Earbuds aren’t just for music in modern life, though. Call quality is a key factor, and Kygo’s Xellence doesn’t excel here. Your voice will come through slightly muffled and echoey, sadly, meaning these aren’t a great pick for conference calls or long catch-ups.
Software and battery
10-hour battery life, 20 further hours in case
X by Kygo companion app
Bluetooth pairing
The aforementioned X by Kygo app is where you’ll get a bit of added control over these earbuds, and it’s a fairly slick affair. It’s easy to pair new earbuds through it (although this is also straightforward in your phone’s settings) and you can toggle between a bunch of settings.
This includes the Mimi sound personalisation test, changing the earbuds’ lights, turning the Bass Booster on, and adjusting ANC. You won’t necessarily find yourself opening it up all too often, but it’s a useful hub.
We found our connections over Bluetooth to be pretty strong and reliable, meanwhile, although leaving the room that your phone’s in can still be a risky affair.
On the battery front, meanwhile, you get a stated 10 hours of battery life that shrinks to 8 hours if you’re using ANC. The case adds 20 more hours to make for 30 total before you need to plug it in again – and those numbers line-up with our testing. That makes for battery life that isn’t the best in the industry but is solid enough to see you through most working days or journeys.
Verdict
Xellence delivers good sound quality, the sound personalisation is a bonus for those who use it, while active noise-cancellation does well enough in blocking out ambient sounds. The design is equally fine without standing out to excess – except maybe for those lights.
X by Kygo’s Xellence is a dead solid pair of wireless in-ears, then, but you’re unlikely to be blown away by any one particular element. Which isn’t deep criticism, but it does feel like something ‘X-tra’ would be needed for these ‘buds to really stand out in what’s a hugely crowded market.
Also consider
Apple AirPods Pro
If you don’t mind spending a bit more, and especially if you’re on iOS, Apple’s own in-ears are simply superb, offering all the software conveniences you could want, alongside extremely impressive sound and some of the best active noise-cancelling (ANC) you can find.
Read our full review
squirrel_widget_168834
Klipsch T5 II True Wireless
Alternatively, to keep the cost down, a slightly better-priced pair of earbuds can be found here from Klipsch. These don’t have active noise-cancellation (ANC), but they don’t really need it too badly. That feature absence explains their simply superb sound quality for the price.
Read our full review
squirrel_widget_3812552
Writing by Max Freeman-Mills. Editing by Mike Lowe.
Samsung could enable HDR10+ for gaming, according to a German blog post spotted by HDTVtest. The article claims Samsung executives are working with ‘various unnamed studios’ to set up a steady supply of HDR10+ titles.
The HDR10+ format was created by Samsung and is a competitor to Dolby Vision. Like Dolby Vision, HDR10+ is all about adding dynamic metadata to the HDR signal to deliver more detail. Unlike Dolby Vision, companies don’t need to pay a fee to license HDR10+.
The report doesn’t reveal whether Samsung is planning to bring the technology to games consoles or reserve it for mobile devices such as the HDR10+- supporting Samsung Galaxy S21.
However, it’s interesting to note that Dolby Vision is supposed to be exclusive for the Xbox Series X and S for the next two years. Could Samsung be working with Sony to bring HDR10+ gaming to the PS5? It’s certainly a possibility.
The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S systems have supported Dolby Atmos since launch, with Dolby Vision support expected later this year. Microsoft recently announced a Dolby Vision HDR test program for Alpha Ring members ahead of ‘general availability’.
Only a handful of titles make use of Dolby Vision HDR (Gears 5, Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Borderlands 3 are the biggies) but last month Microsoft revealed plans for a major push into Dolby Vision gaming.
If the rumours are true, HDR10+ for gaming could bring better contrast and more vibrant colours to your favourite titles, although you’ll still need a compatible 4K TV.
(Pocket-lint) – When it comes to small cars, there’s one model that’s always really stood out: the Fiat 500.
Relaunched in 2007 – and revised in 2015 – the Fiat 500 has secured its position as something of an icon. Alongside the Mini, it’s perhaps one of the most distinctive and commonly sighted small cars on the road.
Now with an electric powertrain, there’s a brand new design that harks back to the original 1957 model, wanting to race into a new generation of small car motoring. Say hello to the Fiat 500e.
Perfectly cute design
The new Fiat 500e will run in parallel to the combustion version that’s already on the road in the short term, but it has had a design refresh that’s fairly radical. It’s larger – longer, with a wider track and bigger wheels – but you’ll recognise this diminutive model at a glance, as it retains much the same profile.
This 500e drops the Fiat badge from the front, instead carrying 500 branding on its nose, with a new bonnet lid that’s reminiscent of the 1957 model. On the previous version the bonnet curved around the top of the headlights, now the lights are split, with the top section like an eyebrow on the hood.
The creases down the side of the car meet this bonnet line perfectly, to give a much stronger sense of visual design, while the wider track means there’s a little more freedom at the rear of the car for a larger wheel arch, which adds a strength to the hind quarters.
With the wheels planted firmly on the corners, there’s still a toy-like aesthetic to the Fiat 500. It’s fun to look at; a car that makes you think about youthfulness and vibrancy – although perhaps not in the black version which reminds us of a tiny London taxi.
Pocket-lint
This is also one of the only electric cars you can get as a convertible. That’s right, the Fiat 500e holds on to the ragtop which is also powered, sliding open to let in the sunshine like a giant sunroof, or retracting down the back for more of a convertible result. The convertible is available on all but the entry-level trim.
That hood blocks the rear view when it’s all the way down, but it’s fairly quick to open and close with the press of a button – a really distinctive feature. Bear in mind that you then lose the hatchback, instead getting a small opening into the fairly small 185 litre boot.
Across this design, it’s all about the little details, but there’s no escaping the fact that this is a small car, smaller than the Mini Electric, smaller than the Vauxhall Corsa-e and smaller than the Honda e too – but perhaps just as cute as that Honda.
Pocket-lint
There’s also only four seats in the Fiat – just as in the Mini and the Honda e – and it’s a three door design, so very much designed around the two in the front. The rear seats are small, with negligible legroom, so forget about transporting people in the back on a regular basis, it’s just not that car.
A refreshing interior
The interior is more conventional, more mature, ditching the “everything must be round” approach of the previous model and giving a more spacious finish as a result. There’s a natural advantage here: with no transmission tunnel, Fiat has made sure to remove that floor-line obstruction, so there’s more space around your feet.
There’s still a bump for the driver display and the centre display still sits on the top of the dash, but the big round buttons of old have now gone, with increased touch controls on the display, and rows of buttons for important climate controls.
You’ll also spot that there’s no gear selector, instead just a line of buttons to press. In the age of electric cars, poking the ‘D’ button because you’re about to drive is all you need.
The Fiat 500 has been characterised for its body-colour dash on previous models and there’s a number of options here. The Action (entry-level) gets a black dash (the same as pictured); the Passion will let you have black or white; the Icon is body colour, or Technowood; while the La Prima edition gives you the option of a fabric finish- so there’s no lack of character.
Pocket-lint
Much of the interior uses harder plastics, although we feel it’s more sympathetically done than in the Vauxhall Corsa-e. Fiat’s focus, instead, is on pushing other elements, particularly the Seaqual fabric, which is 100 per cent recycled plastic, of which at least 10 per cent of which has been reclaimed from the sea.
The options available to you are very much dictated by the trim level, with Fiat saying that the Icon is likely to be the biggest seller – and also having the widest range of options.
Those who follow the car world will know that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles merged with PSA to form the Stellantis Group from which we’ve seen a range of electric cars from Vauxhall, Peugeot, Citroën and DS Automobiles. While all those brands share the same platform (so are all very similar) the Fiat 500e doesn’t: this is a platform that was developed by Fiat – so this car is different in many ways and that’s evident from the interior design and specification.
Pocket-lint
We like the sophistication of this new model and again there are little details that shine through. Take, for example, the subtle silhouette of the Turin skyline in that dashboard cubby hole – which houses the Qi wireless charging pad – or the electric door handles and indoor release buttons.
There’s so much that just jumps out as unique about the Fiat 500e that it’s only really the Honda e that compares. The Mini Electric, by comparison, is much like every other Mini on the road, while the Corsa-e is the same as its combustion siblings – and shares many parts with those other Stellantis Group cars.
A practical technology story
The Fiat 500e feels technologically advanced, although there are decisions to be made because they have an impact on the interior tech that you’ll get. The entry-level model in Action trim doesn’t have a central display, instead getting a smartphone mount on the dash so you can slip your phone into it.
This obviously helps keep the price down and for many, but you’ll then need to have a smartphone to run the Fiat GOe Live app. We haven’t tested this, but we can imagine that you could run Android Auto for phone screens and get access to most things you want. As Apple CarPlay needs a display in the car and won’t run standalone, Apple users would have to find another solution. You can have it as an option on the Action for £850, if you prefer.
However, move up to the Passion trim and you get a 7-inch display, while Icon and La Prime get a 10.25-inch display. We think most people will likely buy a trim level that has a display as it means you can have proper Android Auto or Apple CarPlay – and the good news is that both can be wireless too. There’s USB ports for charging, or on some models a wireless charging pad so you can just drop your phone into the cubby hole and have it charge as you drive.
Fiat’s infotainment system has a lot going for it. It’s better than some small car rivals and we prefer it to the Mini and the Corsa-e, although you don’t get the wow factor here that you get from the Honda e’s wall of displays. There’s customisation, it’s responsive, and it’s easy to click through and get to what you want. We normally prefer physical buttons for major segments, but Fiat has them permanently showing down one side of the built-in display, so it’s easy to navigate.
Every trim gets the 7-inch driver display – and this offers a lot of flexibility, which is why you might be happy to forego a central display at a push, because this will let you move through a whole range of screens to access a wide range of information. Again, it’s a lot more flexible than some models, with controls on the steering wheel making for easy navigation.
The steering wheel itself is great, the bi-spoke design another retro touch, but there’s one thing you might take some time to find: the volume control. This is between the front seats, alongside the electric handbrake and drive selector switches. It’s easy enough once you know it’s there, but we’d much rather Fiat had found somewhere on the dash or wheel for it.
Cruise control comes in from Passion trim upwards; La Prima offers intelligent adaptive cruise control and lane centring (level 2 autonomous driving) as standard – this is also an (expensive) option for Passion and Icon models too – along with some other fancy features, like the rear parking camera.
Pocket-lint
For a car that’s harking back to its 1957 relative and wanting to be one of the smallest on the road, there’s certainly a lot on offer.
Driving, range and charging
Regardless of the model you choose, you’ll get keyless entry and a start button, but there are two different battery capacities. Again, this is to offer a version that’s as affordable as it can be, with a 24kWh battery for the Action – if you want any other trim level, you move up to a larger battery (42kW) and more powerful powertrain too.
We’ve not driven the entry-level option, but to outline the differences, you get a 24kWh battery, 70kW motor producing about 95hp, and the top charging rate is 50kW – which is what you’ll find in many fast-chargers around the UK.
Pocket-lint
This configuration is going to be best suited to city drivers, with a shorter range of 118 miles / 190km (WLTP standard), which is going to be limiting if you have ambitions of driving longer distances.
All other models get that larger 42kW battery and 87kW motor, which produces around 118hp. All models do 0-62mph / 0-100kmph in about 9 seconds – so none are hugely fast, but the initial speed is what you feel, regardless of whatever model you’re driving. As with all electric cars, it’s as peppy as you could want it to be, but it won’t win any drag races.
Obviously, a higher capacity battery means a longer range – and Fiat officially rates it at 199 miles / 320km (WLTP). In our own testing, we were able to average about 4 miles per kWh on the motorway, which comes out at about 168 miles; in more careful driving around urban environments with plenty of braking we got over 5.5 miles per kWh – which would return about 230 miles, which isn’t too bad at all.
Pocket-lint
With a bigger battery, longer practical range is within your grasp from the Fiat 500e too. The car’s economy is still better than you’ll get from rivals like the Honda e or the Mini Electric.
There are three driving modes – Normal, Range, Sherpa – which is an interesting twist on things. Range is the eco mode, while Sherpa is the ‘limp home’ mode, limiting speed to 50mph / 800kmph maximum – meant to be use to get you to a charger. There’s no sport mode and we can’t say that really matters here.
The Fiat 500e drives like a city car, the controls are lighter than light, and the ride is a little bouncy – certainly less forgiving than some larger models – but not too noisy. Road noise will come into the cabin, more so if you have the convertible, but generally speaking, it’s smooth enough.
Pocket-lint
Speaking of noise, the Fiat 500e has its own AVAS (acoustic vehicle alerting system) which plays Nino Rota’s Amarcord when you’re doing under 12mph to make sure that pedestrians know they’re about to be hit by an Italian car. You’ll catch snippets of this if manoeuvring slowly and you can’t help but smile.
The best electric cars 2021: Top battery-powered vehicles available on UK roads
By Chris Hall
·
Of course the best thing about small-car driving is all the practical benefits that come with it – you can actually park it, it will nip through traffic and negotiate congested streets – further reinforcing its position as a great car for busy roads.
Verdict
The Fiat 500e is dripping in style, bringing plenty of style and character to a refreshed design. At one extreme it’s one of the most affordable electric cars around, at the other it’s a highly personalised offering that’s filled with the latest creature comforts.
The design alone will win it fans, although those jumping over from the older combustion version will have to swallow the electric price bump that comes with it.
It’s clearly a car that’s designed for two people, with the rear seats more likely to be used for an overflow of shopping – but the same can be said of the previous Fiat 500. Or all Fiat 500s, really.
As electric cars go, the Fiat 500e is fun, considered and currently unique. We’re sure it will be as popular with young drivers as it is for those wanting a second car for commuting.
Also consider
Pocket-lint
Honda e
The Honda e’s appeal lies in its refreshing retro take. There’s nothing like it on the road and it’s well appointed too, with digital wing mirrors as one example. But in like-for-like pricing, the range is shorter than the Fiat 500e.
Read our review
Pocket-lint
Mini Electric
The natural small-car rival, the Mini Electric is more powerful, so a little more sporty to drive, but has a smaller battery so offers less range. While it has plenty of character, we think the interior design could do with an update.
Alienware is keen on giving Razer a run for its money when it comes to making a super-thin gaming laptop. Two of the configurations of Alienware’s new X15 flagship model are actually 15.9mm thick, almost the same as Razer’s just-refreshed 15.8mm-thick Blade 15 Advanced. That’s impressively thin, especially considering that Alienware doesn’t usually try to compete in this realm.
What’s also noteworthy is that, despite its thin build, the X15 looks like it will be a capable machine. Alienware is also announcing a bigger and thicker 17-inch X17 laptop that’s even more powerful. We’ll go into detail on both below.
Let’s start with the X15, which will cost $1,999 for the base model, available starting today. Packed into that entry model is Intel’s 11th Gen Core i7-11800H processor (eight cores and a boost clock speed of up to 4.6GHz), 16GB of RAM clocked at 3,200MHz (but not user-upgradeable due to size constraints), 256GB of fast NVMe storage (which is user-upgradeable, with two slots that support either M.2 2230 or 2280-sized SSDs), and Nvidia’s RTX 3060 graphics chip (90W maximum graphics power, and a base clock speed of 1,050MHz and boost clock of 1,402MHz). A 15.6-inch FHD display with a 165Hz refresh rate, 3ms response time, and up to 300 nits of brightness with 100-percent sRGB color gamut support comes standard.
The X17 sits to the left of the X15 in this image.
Alienware hasn’t shared pricing for spec increases, but you can load the X15 with up to an Intel Core i9-11900H processor, a 2TB NVMe M.2 SSD (with a maximum 4TB of dual storage supported via RAID 0), and 32GB of RAM. To top it off, you can put in an RTX 3080 graphics card (the 8GB version, with 110W maximum graphics power, a base clock speed of 930MHz and a boost clock speed of 1,365MHz). The display can be upgraded to a 400-nit QHD G-Sync panel with a 240Hz refresh rate, 2ms response time, and 99-percent coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut. The X15 has a 87Wh battery and includes a 240W “small form factor” adapter. At its lowest weight, the X15 comes in at five pounds, but it goes up to 5.2 pounds depending on the specs.
All of the X15’s ports, aside from a headphone jack and power input, are located on its back. There’s a USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 port, one USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port, one Thunderbolt 4 port, a microSD card slot, and an HDMI 2.1 port that will allow the X15 to output a 4K signal at up to 120Hz.
If you’re all about getting a 17.3-inch screen, the X17 starts at $2,099 and has similar starting specs. It has a thicker chassis than the X15 at 20.9mm, and it’s heavier, starting at 6.65 pounds. But that extra heft apparently allows for more graphical and processing power, if you’re willing to pay for it. For example, its RTX 3060 card has a higher maximum graphics power of 130W. This pattern is seen for more pricey GPU upgrades, too, especially the RTX 3080 (16GB) that can sail with 165W of max graphics power at a boost clock speed of 1,710MHz. In the processor department, you can go up to an Intel Core i9-11900HK. Additionally, you can spec this one with up to 64GB of XMP RAM clocked at 3,466MHz.
As for the screen, there’s an upgrade option to get a 300-nit FHD G-Sync panel with a 360Hz refresh rate and 1ms response time, but you can go all the way up to a 500-nit 4K display with a 120Hz refresh rate and 4ms response time. Like the X15, the X17 has an 87Wh battery, but whether you get a 240W or 330W power supply will depend on the configuration that you buy.
The X17 has all of the same ports as the X15, along with one extra USB-A port, a Mini DisplayPort jack, and a 2.5G ethernet port (the X15 includes a USB-C to ethernet adapter).
The X15 on top is almost as thin as Razer’s new Blade 15 Advanced. The X17 beneath it is considerably thicker and heavier.
Generally speaking, thinner laptops struggle with heat management. But Alienware’s Quad Fan claims to move a lot of air, and in X15 and X17 models that have the RTX 3070 or 3080 chips, it touts a new “Element 31 thermal interface material” that apparently provides a boost in the thermal resistance of its internals compared to previous Alienware laptops. We’ll have to see how this fares when we try out a review unit. I’m curious how loud they might get in order to stay cool.
If you’re an Alienware enthusiast, be aware that the company’s mainstay graphics amplifier port is missing. We asked Alienware about this, and it provided this statement to The Verge:
Today’s latest flagship desktop graphics cards achieve graphical power beyond what the Alienware Graphics Amplifiers (as well as other external graphics amplifiers) can successfully port back through PCI (and Thunderbolt) connections. For Alienware customers who are already purchasing high-end graphics configurations, the performance improvements from our Alienware Graphics Amplifier would be limited. While improvements would be noticeable, in many cases it wouldn’t be enough to justify purchasing an external amplifier and flagship graphics card. So instead, we are using that additional space to offer extra ports and thermal headroom which provides a better experience for all gamers purchasing this product.
This is what the rear of the X15 looks like. The X17 has one extra USB-A port, a Mini DisplayPort, and an ethernet jack.
Wrapping up this boatload of specs, the X15 and X17 each have a 720p Windows Hello webcam, and configurations with the RTX 3080 have an illuminated trackpad that can be customized within Alienware’s pre-installed software. These laptops come standard with Alienware’s X-Series keyboard that has per-key lighting, n-key rollover, anti-ghosting, and 1.5mm of key travel. In the X17, you have the option to upgrade to Alienware’s Cherry MX ultra low-profile mechanical switches, which have a longer 1.8mm key travel.
Lastly, both laptops are available in the “Lunar Light” colorway, which is white on the outside shell and black on the inside.
AMD CEO Lisa Su revealed two key new processors during the company’s Computex 2021 keynote. The $359 Ryzen 7 5700G and $259 Ryzen 5 5600G APU, both of which come to market August 5, 2021, will plug two glaring gaps in the company’s Ryzen 5000 product stack that currently leads our list of Best CPUs.
The new Cezanne chips mark the first new APUs for desktop PCs that you’ll be able to buy at retail since AMD launched the Zen+ “Picasso” models back in 2019. AMD did bring a refresh of those chips to market as the oft-maligned Ryzen Pro “Renoir” series, but in a disappointment to enthusiasts, those chips were destined for professional users and thus not available at retail.
In fact, AMD actually brought the very chips it’s announcing today to OEM systems a few months ago, meaning we already know most of the details about the silicon. The Cezanne APUs, which come with Zen 3 execution cores paired with the Radeon Vega graphics engine, feel like they’re a bit late to retail. The company’s first salvo of Ryzen 5000 processors delivered a stunning blow to Intel as it took the unequivocal lead in desktop PCs, but AMD’s pivot to premium pricing left it exposed with two massive gaps in its product stack. Unfortunately for AMD, Intel’s Rocket Lake blasted in a few months ago and plugged those gaps.
Now AMD’s retort comes as retail availability of a few of the Cezanne chips, though it’s noteworthy the company is still holding back several of its lower-end models from the retail market. Given the ongoing graphics card shortages, these newly revamped APUs are a welcome sight for the gaming market and serve as AMD’s “non-X” chips that traditionally offer more attractive price points at a given core count. That is if AMD can keep them in stock, of course. Let’s take a closer look.
AMD Ryzen 5000 ‘Cezanne’ G-Series Specifications
The Ryzen 5000G lineup spans from four to eight cores, but AMD is only bringing the eight-core 16-thread Ryzen 7 5700G and six-core 12-thread Ryzen 5 5600G to retail, while the Ryzen 3 5300G remains relegated to the OEM-only market (at least for now). AMD also isn’t bringing the 35W GE-Series models to retail, either, as it continues to focus on premium chips during the ongoing global semiconductor shortage.
AMD Ryzen 5000 G-Series 65W Cezanne APUs
CPU
Price
Cores/Threads
Base / Boost Freq.
Graphics Cores
Graphics Frequency
TDP
Cache
Ryzen 7 5800X
$449
8 / 16
3.8 / 4.7 GHz
N/a
N/a
105W
32MB (1×32)
Core i7-11700K (KF)
$374 – $349
8 / 16
3.6 / 5.0
UHD Graphics 750 Xe 32EU
125W
16MB
Ryzen 7 5700G
$359
8 / 16
3.8 / 4.6
RX Vega 8
2100 MHz
65W
20 MB
Ryzen 5 5600X
$299
6 / 12
3.7 / 4.6 GHz
N/a
N/a
65W
32MB (1×32)
Core i5-11600K (KF)
$262 (K) – $237(KF)
6 / 12
3.9 / 4.9
UHD Graphics 750 Xe 32EU
125W
12MB
Ryzen 5 5600G
$259
6 / 12
3.9 / 4.4
RX Vega 7
1900 MHz
65W
19 MB
Ryzen 5 3600
$200
6 / 12
Core i5-11400 (F)
$182 – $157
6 / 12
2.6 / 4.2
UHD Graphics 750 Xe 24EU
65W
12MB
Ryzen 3 5300G
N/a
4 / 8
4.0 / 4.2
RX Vega 6
1700 MHz
65W
10 MB
The 65W eight-core 16-thread Ryzen 7 5700G comes with a 3.8 GHz base, 4.6 GHz boost, and eight Radeon Vega CUs that operate at 2.0 GHz.
The Ryzen 7 5700G addresses the ~$350 price point to plug the sizeable gap between the $449 Ryzen 9 5800X and $299 Ryzen 5 5600X. That big gap left Intel’s Core i7-11700K with plenty of room to operate, but AMD says the new 5700G will plug that gap with CPU performance that slots in perfectly between the other Ryzen 5000 parts, not to mention the strengths borne of the integrated Vega graphics engine.
The 65W six-core 12-thread Ryzen 5 5600G comes with a 3.9 GHz base, 4.4 GHz boost, and seven Radeon Vega CUs that operate at 1.9 GHz.
The 5600G slots in at $259 to plug the gap between the $299 Ryzen 5 5600X and, well, the remainder of AMD’s sub-$299 product stack. AMD’s Ryzen 5 3600 is the only real relevant contender in this price range, and it launched two years ago with the Zen 2 architecture. The 3600 isn’t competitive with Intel’s Rocket Lake Core i5-11600K or -11400, leaving Intel plenty of room to roam uncontested in the budget market (as you can see in our Core i5-11400 review).
Based on suggested pricing, the 5600G contends with the Core i5-11600K and doesn’t do much to address the current value budget champ, the Intel Core i5-11400. That’s largely because AMD has decided not to include the 65W Ryzen 3 5300G, which it ships into the OEM market, in this round of chip releases. It also has yet to release the GE-series chips listed in the table below. AMD hasn’t indicated when the Ryzen 3 or GE-Series Cezanne chips will come to market.
AMD Ryzen 5000 GE-Series 35W Cezanne APUs
CPU
Cores/Threads
Frequency (Up to) Boost / Base
Graphics Cores
Graphics Frequency
TDP
Cache
Ryzen 7 5700GE
8 / 16
3.2 / 4.6
RX Vega 8
2000 MHz
35W
20 MB
Ryzen 5 5600GE
6 / 12
3.4 / 4.4
RX Vega 7
1900 MHz
35W
19 MB
Ryzen 3 5300GE
4 / 8
3.6 / 4.2
RX Vega 6
1700 MHz
35W
10 MB
Of course, integrated graphics are the big attraction for APUs. AMD continues to pair its APUs with the Vega graphics architecture, just as it did with the 4000-series APUs. AMD reworked the architecture for its last go-round — the revamped RX Vega graphics delivered up to ~60% percent more performance per compute unit (CU) than its predecessors, which equated to more graphics performance from fewer CU. We aren’t sure if AMD has made a similar adjustment this time around, but we’re sure to learn more as we get closer to launch.
As with all Ryzen 5000 processors, Cezanne fully supports overclocking, which includes memory, graphics and CPU cores. AMD also says that the auto-overclocking Precision Boost Overdrive (PBO) and adaptive offset features are also supported. The Cezanne chips drop into the same motherboards as the current-gen Ryzen 5000 processors, so X570, B550, X470 and B450 are all supported. As with the other Ryzen models, memory support weighs in at DDR4-3200, though that does vary by DIMM population rules.
(Image credit: AMD)
The new APUs hail from the Ryzen 5000 Mobile family (deep dive here), so they have physically identical silicon that has been transitioned from the FP6 BGA-mounted arrangement found in laptops to the AM4 socket on desktop PC motherboards. AMD then simply tunes the silicon for the more forgiving power limits and thermal conditions of the desktop, meaning that it can uncork the power settings and be more aggressive with boosting activity while being less aggressive with power-sharing/shifting between the CPU and GPU units.
The Zen 3 architecture grants higher L3 cache capacities than we’ve seen with AMD’s past APUs. For instance, the eight-core 16-thread Ryzen 7 5700G now has 20MB of L3 cache compared to its eight-core predecessor that came with 12MB. These are the natural byproducts of the Zen 3 architecture and should benefit general iGPU performance, too.
However, in contrast to the existing Ryzen 5000 chips for the PC, the APUs come as a single monolithic die. That results in a less cache than we see with the chips without integrated graphics, like the eight-core Ryzen 5 5600X. The 5600X comes with 32MB of L3 cache, which is significantly more than the 16MB of L3 cache found on the eight-core Ryzen 7 5700G. We’ll be sure to poke and prod at the cache when the silicon lands in our labs.
Additionally, the 5000G chips have the same I/O controller on the SoC as the mobile parts, so the chips are limited to 24 lanes of PCIe 3.0, as opposed to the 24 lanes of PCIe 4.0 found on the other Ryzen 5000 parts. This comes as the tradeoff of bringing the mobile architecture to the desktop PC, with AMD’s initial decision to stick with PCIe 3.0 for its mobile parts largely being driven by battery life concerns.
AMD Ryzen 5 5700G Gaming and Productivity Benchmarks
(Image credit: AMD)
AMD shared a surprisingly slim selection of its own benchmarks to compare the Ryzen 5 5700G with Intel’s Core i7-11700. AMD’s test notes are also lacking. As with all vendor-provided benchmarks, you should view these with the requisite amount of skepticism.
As expected, AMD’s benchmarks show notable performance advantages across the board, especially when gaming on the 5700G’s Radeon Vega 8 graphics compared to the -11700’s UHD Graphics 650 with the Xe architecture. AMD’s last batch of 5000G comparative benchmarks were much more expansive when it compared Cezanne to the Comet Lake chips, but the Rocket Lake comparisons are far more limited. We’ll suss all that out in the review.
Ryzen 5000G Pro Series Desktop Processors
Image 1 of 4
(Image credit: AMD)
Image 2 of 4
(Image credit: AMD)
Image 3 of 4
(Image credit: AMD)
Image 4 of 4
(Image credit: AMD)
AMD also released its Ryzen 5000G Pro series today. As you can see in the slides above, aside from a few extra professional features, they’re identical to the client chips.
Thoughts
Overall the Cezanne desktop APUs look promising, and AMD’s pricing goes a long way to addressing the notable price gaps that come from its lack of value “non-X” chips with the Ryzen 5000 generation, an exclusion that has received plenty of criticism from the enthusiast community.
AMD’s timing for desktop APUs could be a bit better — Intel’s value Rocket Lake chips have been on the market for several months, and the continuing chip shortage coupled with cryptomining has destroyed any chance of scoring a reasonably priced GPU, at least for now. That means a chip with competitive 1080p gaming performance will be a hit with enthusiasts looking to wait out the current GPU crisis.
That said, we’re still seeing a complete lack of AMD’s cheap chips on the market, so the company’s decision to keep the Ryzen 3 and 35W GE-Series models off the retail market is disappointing. It makes good business sense given the state of the market (AMD sells every single high-end chip it punches out), but we’d like to see some improvement on the lower end of the market.
The Ryzen 5000G chips come to market on August 5, 2021. As you can imagine, we’ll have the full story when reviews arrive near that same time.
Biomutant is a fantasy open-world action adventure where you control a sentient animal-like character that is working to free the Tree of Life, which breathes life into the world, from dark forces that have taken over its roots. The story isn’t linear and can branch out in many ways. The world is filled with mutated animals, some from friendly factions, others not. As a mutant, you can modify not just your weapons, but also physical abilities, through body mods. These include robotic limbs, wings, claws, etc.
The branching story-lines mechanic is particularly interesting, where completing missions for one faction unravels more of the world and plot-lines related to them. The story is mostly narrated, but fades away as you progress and are able to figure things out for yourself. Much of the gameplay is third-person action, using melee and projectile weapons. The world of Biomutant may not be a visual masterpiece as it is a little too cartoonish at times, but studio Experiment 101 tried to introduce many new elements to the action-RPG genre that are better experienced than explained.
Biomutant is powered by Unreal Engine 4 and offers decent graphics, with a bright-colored cartoonish art style. The game only needs DirectX 11 and is designed to be moderately taxing on today’s gaming PCs. In this article, we take a closer look at both the gameplay and performance of the game across our suite of graphics cards.
I would like to thank ssupd for supplying the review sample.
ssupd is a sister brand of Lian Li, and their first case, which we get to review here, is the Meshlicious. ssupd stands for “sunny side updesign” because “nothing beats the feeling of cooking the perfect sunny side up egg and the warm feeling and satisfaction you feel after eating it. We hope building PCs will bring the same warm feeling”.
This case doesn’t hide its core functional design aspiration as it comes with fine mesh panels on all but a side, which allows for a compact ITX case with excellent cooling potential while still offering as much dust filtration as possible. You may pick from either white or black, and ssupd also offers the black variant in a bundle with a PCIe 4.0 riser cable.
Specifications
ssupd Meshlicious
Case Type:
SFF ITX Chassis
Material:
Steel, fine mesh and tempered glass
Weight:
N/A
Slots:
3 (up to 4 wide)
Drive Bays:
3x 2.5″ SSD (2x with full-ATX PSU) 2x 3.5″ HDD or 4x 2.5″ SSD (with Small Form Factor GPU)
Motherboard Form Factors:
Mini-ITX
Dimensions:
245 mm x 166.4 mm x 360 mm, 14.67 L
Front Door/Cover:
N/A
Front Fans:
2x 120 or 2x 140 mm (1x 120 mm fan pre-installed)
Rear Fans:
N/A
Top Fans:
N/A
Bottom Fans:
N/A
Side Fans:
N/A
Front Radiator:
up to 280 mm
Rear Radiator:
N/A
Top Radiator:
N/A
Bottom Radiator:
N/A
Side Radiator:
N/A
I/O:
1x USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C 1x USB 3.0
Fan/LED Controller:
N/A
Compatibility:
CPU Cooler: Up to 73 mm height with 3-slot GPU / 53 mm height with 4-slot GPU Full length GPU: Up to 334 mm length & 155 mm tall Small Form Factor GPU : Up to 211 mm length PSU: 170 mm SFX, SFX-L or ATX PSU (with front fans) / Up to 160 mm ATX PSU (with traditional AIO position)
The Razer Kraken V3 X will keep you satisfied with an excellent microphone and solid rich audio reproduction.
For
+ Lightweight
+ Solid audio reproduction and thump
+ Great, microphone
+ Succulently soft ear cups
Against
– ll-plastic design
Designed to compete with the best gaming headsets, without breaking the bank, Razer’s Kraken V3 X combines a comfortable ear cup design with strong audio output, an excellent microphone and software that greatly enhances the experience. This $69 set of USB cans are thumpy thanks to Razer’s patented Triforce 40mm drivers while offering a dash of RGB style in-the-ear cups.
Razer Kraken V3 X Specs
Driver Type
40mm neodymium magnet
Impedance
32 Ohms
Frequency Response
12 Hz – 28kHz
Microphone Type
Cardioid Hyperclear Unidirectional
Connectivity
USB Type-A (PC)
Weight
0.6 pounds (285g)
Cord Length
USB Type-A cable: 6 feet
Lighting
RGB on Earcups
Software
Razer Synapse and 7.1 Surround Sound
Design and Comfort of Razer Kraken V3 X
Image 1 of 4
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Image 2 of 4
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Image 3 of 4
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Image 4 of 4
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Though it’s made from lightweight plastic, the Razer Kraken V3 X feels very sturdy. The unit’s Hybrid-Fabric memory foam ear cups are succulently soft and the headband is highly adjustable, fitting comfortably on my obnoxiously large head. When I plugged it in, the three-headed snake logo on each ear cup illuminated in RGB.
On the left earcup, you will find the flexible Razer Hyper Clear cardioid microphone, which is quite bendy, with a volume knob and a mute button. The Razer Kraken V3 X is fine to wear for long periods of time as they do not tend to get very hot or warm with long usage, unlike many other over-the-ear styled gaming headphones I have previously reviewed.
Audio Performance of Razer Kraken V3 X
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
The headset uses a pair of 40mm Triforce drivers that are designed by Razer and they pump out thunderous distortion-free bass and sweet sound throughout the audio spectrum. From sweet, warm, throaty lows, to angelic highs, the rich sound on the Razer Kraken V3 X surprised me.
First, I went to Youtube to listen to Busta Rhymes’ “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See,” because the thick bold bassline would be an excellent test of the Kraken V3 X’s capabilities. The unit came through with flying colors as they pushed out clear, loud, thunderous bass that Thor Odinson would be proud of.
My favorite moment came while listening to Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September.” At the beginning of the song, the Razer Kraken V3 X reproduced the softer tones of the finger snaps and guitar melody sweetly. When the horn section takes over with its powerful rhythm, the Krakens proved they were audio titans.
The Razer Kraken V3 X also has plenty of gaming prowess. While playing Borderlands 2, the 7.1 spatial surround sound helped me hear some creeps off to my right and I was able to turn around swiftly with my sniper’s rifle and blow a villain’s head off before he could roast me with a flamethrower. The sound of explosions was exquisite when I shot out a barrel filled with chemicals, taking out three enemies.
After I was done with Borderlands 2, I decided to knock some heads and so I launched Batman Arkham Knight and again the spatial sound software helped me as I heard footsteps to my left and I bataranged a would-be attacker. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing the bone-crunching punches, and then my favorite sound, the thruster on the Batmobile firing, was bombastically reproduced, as it launched me across off a bridge and onto a rooftop.
To test the movie viewing experience, I watched Avengers Infinity War via Disney Plus. The audio captured the thunderous bass and every nuance so well that it sounded like it did when I watched this film in an IMAX theater.
During the scene where Starlord is feeling insecure about Thor’s presence and starts deepening his voice, I picked up the subtle difference in tone from the moment when Chris Pratt starts his impression. Every fight scene and explosion was so realistic. When Iron Man is battling Thanos and he roots his armor’s feet and then double punches Thanos and he slams against the debris, I literally could hear individual rocks fling off and land elsewhere.
Microphone on Razer Kraken V3 X
The Razer Kraken V3 X comes with Razer’s HyperClear cardioid microphone, which has a rated frequency response that ranges from 100Hz-10Hz with a sensitivity of -42dB. It’s very flexible and bendy and really does a nice job when recording audio.
I took part in an afternoon Google Meet, and everyone said that my voice came in loud and clear, my natural deep timbre was nicely picked up by the microphone and when I made an appearance on my friend’s baseball podcast, he commented that the mic had an excellent pickup and recorded very nicely.
Features and Software of Razer Kraken V3 X
Image 1 of 3
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Image 2 of 3
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Image 3 of 3
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
The Razer Kraken V3 X is a solid performer on its own but, I highly, recommend you download Razer’s Synapse software which will allow you to configure the RGB lighting effects, create lighting profiles, and adjust the volume.
The real winner here is Razer’s 7.1 Surround Sound download; it is the game changer and takes the sound quality up many notches. The normal audio performance as previously mentioned is solid. However, the truly thunderous, high-quality audio that makes these cans worth their weight, is when the unit is paired with the software. They go from sounding like $69 headphones to sounding like a pair of $200 headphones.
Bottom Line
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
For $69.99 you get an excellent pair of sounding headphones, especially if you remember to download Razer’s 7.1 surround sound software. Yes, they’re plastic, but they’re very stylish with the RGB lighting adding a little panache and flair. The Kraken V3 X is also super lightweight, the hybrid cloth and memory foam cups will cradle your ears in soft comfort.
With the excellent microphone performance, you will be able to bark orders out to your friends during games or even host a podcast with crystal clear audio. If you don’t mind spending a bit more money and want a headset with a 3.5mm jack, you should consider the HyperX Cloud Alpha, but if you want a high-quality, affordable USB gaming headset, the Razer Kraken V3 X is a great choice.
(Pocket-lint) – Xiaomi’s expertise when it comes to affordable fitness trackers is no longer a matter for debate. This is the sixth iteration of its impressive Mi Band tracker, after all, and practice does tend to make (closer to) perfect.
Best fitness trackers 2021: Top activity bands to buy today
We’ve been wearing it for a couple of weeks, day in and day out, to stack it up against the competition as well as its own previous versions, and we’ve come away without much surprise. This is a really solid band, with only minor drawbacks.
Design
1.56-inch AMOLED display, 152 x 486 resolution
5ATM water resistant
Weighs 62g
The Mi Band 6 isn’t exactly a revolution when it comes to the design side of things – it looks much like the Mi Band 5, with some telling changes. That means that you still have a vertically-oriented display in a silicone housing and a band fastened by a punch-hole.
It’s super light and comfortable to wear, making it one of the easiest bands we’ve tried for overnight use, and there are plenty of holes in the strap to let you adjust the tightness of the fit when needed.
Pocket-lint
The tracker is only available in one colour – black – although you can swap out coloured bands if you like.
The Band 6 charges with a small included cable that magnetically clips onto its underside. Nice and simple.
Where things have changed slightly is the screen, although the body of the tracker is only different by a matter of millimetres. Gone is the Mi Band 5’s display, replaced with a new bigger AMOLED option that squeezes in an extra 50 per cent of real estate.
We’re impressed by the change, too. The bezels around its edge are pretty tiny and the 450nit maximum brightness is impressive when cranked up, with a resolution of that’s crisp enough.
Pocket-lint
The tracker is still nice and thin, too, so it won’t jut out from your wrist too far at all, further contributing to its comfort factor. Water resistance means you can feel free to keep it on in the shower, which also means it’s fine for a swim if you’re feeling more ambitious.
The band might not be a real redesign, but more display on a similar-sized body is always a good equation from our point of view, and the Mi Band 6 is easy to wear for long periods, which is all it really needs to do.
Tracking
SpO2 blood oxygen monitor
Heart rate monitoring
30 sports modes
Sleep tracking
The Mi Band 6 isn’t going to set the world alight with its design, then, but its tracking is the real reason you’ll be picking one up. It’s here that Xiaomi once again demonstrates that it has chops in this price bracket.
Pocket-lint
You get heart rate tracking that you can trust to maintain solid accuracy, alongside an SpO2 blood oxygenisation monitor that, while a little finnicky when it comes to taking readings, is absent from many more expensive devices.
Blood oxygen monitoring: Apple Watch Series 6’s biggest feature explained
There’s also sleep tracking if you’re happy to wear it during the night, and passive stress monitoring if you want your tracker to tell you how you’re feeling (no, it doesn’t speak soothingly to you). The extent to which these last two features are constructive and useful might vary from person to person.
You get a whole bundle of exercise modes to pick from as well, when you decide to get a bit more active. There are 30 included, covering mainstream options like outdoor jogging and more niche choices like rowing.
Pocket-lint
These are easy to select and control while you’re on the go, although when we left the Band 6 to its own devices and relied on auto-detection for our activities things weren’t always quite as responsive as we’d want.
Overall, though, the picture is impresive and easy to use – with data collected in week-long retrospectives and available through the companion app for more detailed assessment.
Best fitness trackers 2021: Top activity bands to buy today
By Britta O’Boyle
·
Our guide to the top fitness trackers available, helping you count steps, track calories, monitor your heart rate, sleep patterns and more.
Software
Mi Fit companion app
14-day battery life
Tethered GPS
The software side of things is right down the middle of the road on the Mi Band 6. It’s not exactly the smoothest and most responsive system you’ll ever use, but it more than gets the job done.
Responsiveness on the touch screen is decent, while menus are fairly easy to swipe through and navigate around. A swipe in any direction from the home screen might bring up the settings menu, swipe you through more features, or bring up the main menu of options.
Pocket-lint
It’s all easy to learn, and you thankfully also don’t need to worry too much about battery life. Xiaomi’s stated 14-day battery life matches up to our testing, and even when we ramped up the screen’s brightness there wasn’t too much of a battery hit.
You’ll need the Mi Fit app to connect to your phone for tethered GPS and synced health records, which is pretty easy to accomplish. The app itself is very much fine.
Accessing your heart rate history or step counts is pretty simple, as is adding more home screen options for your band, but its layout is hardly the most intuitive, and seems to assume that you might have multiple Xiaomi products to control, muddying things a bit.
Xiaomi also takes pains to again highlight its PAI system, a collated score to give you an idea of whether you’re being active enough to maintain a healthy pattern of life.
It’s a little bit opaque in terms of how the score is designated, but simple enough to provide no-frills motivation if you’re in a rut, and it’s satisfying to watch the numbers rise as you take the time to get a bit sweaty more often. Still, you can pretty easily ignore it, as it’s far from a training plan or anything.
Verdict
The Mi Band 6 shows that experience counts as far as fitness trackers go – and Xiaomi has plenty of it to go around. It hasn’t reinvented the wheel in the Mi Band 6, but it’s a solid improvement thanks to its better display.
Still, there’s nothing here to force an upgrade if you’ve already got an older Mi Band and you’re happy with it – and the slight hike in price that comes with the higher-quality screen does mean that the Band’s previously stellar value is merely ‘good’, now.
If you want a simple fitness tracker to start watching your lifestyle more carefully, the Xiaomi Mi Band 6 is a solid choice, much like those that came before it – but with a bigger, better screen to help everything along.
Also consider
Pocket-lint
Fitbit Inspire 2
It’s a little pricier, but if you want something similarly slim and light but with a better companion app, this Fitbit makes a solid case. You get top-class tracking, but the display is far less vibrant than the Xiaomi’s – so it might come down to taste!
Read our review
squirrel_widget_338177
Writing by Max Freeman-Mills. Editing by Mike Lowe.
THX’s debut product is nicely made and well-featured, but it lets itself down in the sound department
For
Neat, versatile design
MQA support
Adds power, clarity and cleanliness
Against
Sonically basic
Outclassed by cheaper rivals
Next time you’re in a cinema, take a moment to appreciate THX. After all, the US firm will be in some way to thank for the audio presentation you’re experiencing.
THX was born out of George Lucas’s disappointment at the quality of audio systems in theatres showing his Star Wars movies. Members of his Lucasfilm team, including sound engineer Tomlinson Holman, were tasked with developing a certification program for audio standards, and the first film to meet those specifications was the 1983 release of Star Wars Episode VI: Return Of The Jedi.
Almost 20 years after becoming a separate company, THX is celebrating another milestone, with its first crack at the consumer electronics market in the THX Onyx, a DAC/headphone amplifier. The company’s Achromatic Audio Amplifier (THX AAA) technology sits at the heart of the THX Onyx, a compact, portable device designed to enhance the sound between your source device and wired headphones.
Features
(Image credit: THX)
The THX Onyx is one of the most discreet portable DACs we’ve seen. It has a thin metal body, longer and narrower than the average USB stick, at the end of a short, thick USB-C cable.
THX Onyx tech specs
(Image credit: THX)
3.5mm output Yes
USB-C output Yes
USB-A adapter Yes
With that connection, and the USB-A adapter supplied in the box, the Onyx works with any Windows 10 PC, Mac or Android device via either of those output sockets. iPhone and iPads require the slim Apple Lightning to USB Camera Adapter (not supplied), although it’s worth noting that, in this case, your headphones’ in-line remote functionality won’t work.
Neither method requires specific drivers or installation – simply stick it into your chosen device, select it as your device’s sound output (if necessary) and plug your wired headphones into the 3.5mm socket at the other end of the DAC.
THX says the Onyx produces a power output comparable to that of entry-level desktop headphone amps, or five times more powerful than similar USB DACs. The claim is that its feed-back and feed-forward error correction method reduces distortion and noise levels up to 40dB lower than conventional power amps.
This amplification design works alongside an ESS ES9281PRO DAC chip, which can handle files up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM and DSD128, as well as a Master Quality Authenticated (MQA) renderer for fully decoding and playing back MQA hard files and (MQA-encoded) Tidal Masters in their native quality – handy for Tidal HiFi subscribers who can access hi-res tracks in the Tidal catalogue.
Build
(Image credit: THX)
The Onyx’s metal casework doesn’t just house the amplifier, DAC chip and MQA renderer: it also has LED lights that indicate the file type and size being played. Blue denotes 44.1kHz or 48kHz PCM files and yellow signifies sample rates above that, while red and pink shine respectively when DSD and MQA signals are played. It’s a neat function, providing reassurance for those with hi-res music collections, and adding some visual interest to the design.
Apart from the LED lights and THX logo, the Onyx is as smart and discreet as the category demands, with both the casing and rubber cable feeling sturdy. THX has magnetised part of the casing and cable so that they can clasp together. It can be a balancing act when connected to the bottom of a phone, but a helpful method of cable management on a laptop or computer.
Sound
(Image credit: THX)
Whatever way you arrange the Onyx, it delivers sound much more powerfully than your source device – it’s cleaner and clearer, too. We use a range of earbuds and over-ear headphones, from reference models to more price-appropriate pairs, and various source devices, including Android phones and Apple MacBooks. Compared with the sound coming straight from the devices’ outputs, the THX amplifies the music, making it much bigger, more direct and more involving to listen to. A noisy and compressed sound, this is not.
There’s a hefty dose of clarity and degree of polish to the presentation that wasn’t there before as the THX certainly improves on the typically paltry output of such portable or desktop devices. However, we have concerns about its inability to enhance the source’s sound in every aspect – and as well as other similarly priced portable DACs can.
The five-star Audioquest DragonFly Red (£169, $200, AU$280) – the class-leading portable DAC at this price – provides a much wider window into a song, bringing musical details and instrumental textures to the surface that the THX overlooks.
The THX is second best when it comes to communicating the dynamics and timing, and therefore the rhythm and musicality of a track. Even the five-star Astell & Kern AK USB-C Dual DAC Cable and Audioquest DragonFly Black v1.5, both around half the Onyx’s price, fare better on these fronts.
We play Destroyer’s Savage Night At The Opera and, while the Onyx delivers Dan Bejar’s vocals with clarity and solidity, the DragonFly Red gets under his deadpan delivery more convincingly, while revealing more insight into, and tighter interplay between, the starry haze instrumentation. It’s a more mature presentation that makes the Onyx sound rather crude. And it’s this lack of transparency that makes its laudable efforts to support hi-res formats and MQA seem pretty futile.
Verdict
The THX Onyx has a logical design to serve a logical purpose, but the sonic execution lets down what is an otherwise well-considered product. It clears the first hurdle in amplifying device sound and bringing more clarity and cleanliness, but fails the all-important second by not delivering the level of detail or rhythmic quality required at this price. Suffice to say, you can do better.
Soon after my quick look at the Philips PH805 headphones was published, news came of the company releasing a successor to the wildly successful Fidelio X2/X2HR in the form of the new Fidelio X3. My local contact sought to make sure I covered the product here, and we all know what happened next. Months of limbo later, yours truly is settled in again for reviews, and it just so happened that the UK arm of Philips had the same idea. So here we are with our first full review of a Philips product on TechPowerUp, and thanks again to the company for loaning a review unit to TechPowerUp!
The Fidelio X2HR is one of my go-to headphones, so much so that I have actively been using it for listening to audio and quick changeovers to online meetings with an Antlion ModMic USB, which works so well with the magnetic mesh lining on the headphones that you don’t need any sticky pads for permanent installation. It is one of the most comfortable and neutral-sounding headphones I have in my possession currently, and there is added warmth with some bass boost that I was not expecting either. It is not the most accurate set of cans, however, and when Philips mentioned that the Fidelio X3 was designed with accuracy in mind foremost my interest was piqued. Let’s see how these sound as we begin the review with a look at the product specifications in the table below.
Specifications
Philips Fidelio X3 Headphones
Distortion:
Diaphragm:
LMC
Speaker Diameter:
50 mm
Sensitivity:
100 dB @ 1mW
Maximum Power Input:
500 mW
Impedance:
32 Ω
Frequency Response:
5–40,000 Hz
Magnet Type:
Neodymium
Acoustic System:
Open
Type:
Dynamic
Dimensions:
11 (L) x 19 (W) x 23 (H) mm
Weight:
380 g / 0.84 lbs.
Cables:
Split 3.5 mm (L/R) to 3.5 mm TRS, split 3.5 mm (L/R) to balanced 2.5 mm TRRS, and 3.5 mm to 6.3 mm adapter plug
Enermax is well known in the DIY PC world, having gotten its start way back in 1990. Since then, they have looked to provide the highest-quality products possible, offering a diverse portfolio that includes everything from cases, coolers, fans, power supplies, and more, which has firmly established them as a recognizable brand. That being said, it was the company’s success with power supplies, such as the Revolution85+, Galaxy EVO, MAXREVO, and Platimax series of units, that truly propelled them to prominence.
Enermax looks to capitalize on the affordable ARGB cooler craze with the ETS-F40-FS ARGB series available in white or black. This asymmetrical, 154 mm tall four-heatpipe heatsink is rated to handle up to 200 watts of heat, and with its 140 mm fan with a maximum RPM of just 1200, it should make for a potent combination that keeps your CPU cool and noise levels in check. Still, it will face stiff competition at its $50 price point, so let’s move on and take a closer look at what the company has to offer with this new cooler series.
Specifications
Manufacturer:
Enermax
Model:
ETS-F40-FS ARGB
Socket Support:
Intel: LGA1200, LGA1150, LGA1151, LGA1155, LGA1156, LGA1366, LGA2011, and LGA2066 AMD: AM4, AM3+, AM3, AM2+, AM2, FM2+, FM2, and FM1
Heatsink:
Material: Aluminium (fins) Copper (heat pipes) Dimensions: 140 x 93 x 158 mm (with fan) Heat pipes: Ø6 mm – 4 pcs Weight: 800 g
Fan:
Model: AFS40ARGB-14 Dimensions: 140 x 140 x 25 mm Fan Speed: 300–1200 RPM Fan Airflow: 74.33 CFM (maximum) Fan Noise: 10–23 dBA
Features:
Offset design for maximum compatibility Heatpipe Direct Touch (HDT) base ARGB-illuminated fan and top plate
Twitter relaunched its verification program last week, allowing anyone to apply for a blue check mark, but the company is pausing accepting new applications because of the volume of applications it has already received.
“We’re rolling in verification requests,” the company said in a tweet. “So we gotta hit pause on accepting any more for now while we review the ones that have been submitted. We’ll reopen requests soon! (we pinky swear)”
When it officially opened the program for applications on May 20th, the company cautioned that the timeline for requests could stretch out. “Once you submit your application, you can expect an emailed response from us within a few days, but this could take up to a few weeks depending on how many open applications are in our queue,” Twitter said in a blog. But it seems that the volume of applications has already become so large that Twitter has made the choice to pause applications entirely, just eight days after the program reopened.
With the new program (when it’s open, that is), anyone can apply to receive the coveted blue check, so it’s not altogether surprising that there have been an overwhelming number of applications. Under the new guidelines, six categories of accounts can qualify for verification: government; companies, brands, and organizations; news organizations and journalists; entertainment; sports and gaming; and activists, organizers, and other influential individuals.
Twitter previously suspended the verification in 2017 after it verified the account of a white supremacist. The company went back to the drawing board on its verification policies, introducing the new ones in January.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
