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AMD announces the Radeon RX 6000M series with RDNA 2 architecture

AMD has announced its long-awaited Radeon RX 6000M series of mobile GPUs, featuring its RDNA 2 architecture.

Today’s release consists of three chips: the RX 6800M (configurable at 145W and above), the RX 6700M (up to 135W), and the RX 6600M (up to 100W). AMD says the flagship 6800M delivers the fastest AMD graphics for laptops yet; it claims the 6800M will run modern AAA games at frame rates that are comparable to or better than those of Nvidia’s mobile RTX 3080. It’s also purported to outperform Nvidia’s chip while gaming on battery.

AMD says the RX 6700M will deliver up to 100fps “in popular games” at 1440p resolution. The 6600M is better for “epic 1080p gaming.” Keep an eye out for independent reviews of these chips in the coming weeks for better idea of the performance you can expect from each one.

The 6000M series will be available starting on June 1st.

Radeon RX 6000M series

GPU	Power target	Compute units / ray accelerators	Game clock (MHz)	Memory (GDDR6)	Infinity cache
GPU	Power target	Compute units / ray accelerators	Game clock (MHz)	Memory (GDDR6)	Infinity cache
Radeon RX 6800M	145W and above	40	2300	12GB	96MB
Radeon RX 6700M	Up to 135W	36	2300	10GB	80MB
Radeon RX 6600M	Up to 100W	28	2177	8GB	32MB

AMD also announced AMD Advantage, a new “design framework initiative” meant to encourage OEMs to include certain features on their AMD-powered systems, and to indicate to consumers which Ryzen- and Radeon-powered laptops AMD thinks are the best. It appears to be a similar idea to Intel’s Evo program, but it’s just for gaming laptops, and the standards look much more stringent. It AMD Advantage laptops are expected to include the following:

AMD Ryzen 5000 mobile processors, Radeon 6000 graphics and Radeon software
Support for AMD’s Smart Acess Memory and Smart Shift technology
A display that reaches at least 300 nits of brightness, covers either 100 percent of the sRGB gamut or 72 percent of the NTSC gamut, has at least a 144Hz refresh rate and low latency, and supports AMD Freesync
At least one NVME PCIE Express Gen 3 SSD
The ability to maintain a surface temperature under 40 degrees Celsius on the WASD keys
Over 10 hours of video playback on battery

It’s unclear how many laptops will actually meet all of these standards. Forty degrees Celsius is close to as hot as keyboards commonly get in the center. But there aren’t too many gaming rigs that reliably break 10 hours of video playback on battery, and plenty of the best gaming laptops out there max out below 300 nits of brightness. That said, all kinds of Intel Evo-certified laptops also don’t meet all the Evo requirements in my testing — units and methodologies can vary.

The first AMD Advantage laptop to be announced is Asus’ new ROG Strix G15. This can be configured with up to a Ryzen 9 5900Hx, a Radeon RX 6800M, and a 15-inch WQHD 165Hz display with 3ms response time. The G15 will be available at Best Buy in June.

Short on Memory? TeamGroup Announces 256GB RAM Kit

T-Force Xtreem ARGB
(Image credit: TeamGroup)

TeamGroup’s Xtreem ARGB memory, which holds a spot on our list of best RAM, now arrives with a kit capacity up to 256GB. Conscious that not everyone chases speed, the memory vendor has cooked up a big memory kit for Intel and AMD HEDT owners that want to maximize the memory on their systems.

The Xtreem ARGB 256GB memory kit is comprised of eight memory modules that are 32GB each. Therefore, you’ll need a motherboard that has eight DDR4 memory slots to leverage this new kit. TeamGroup is playing it safe and binned the memory kit for DDR4-3600, which is the sweet spot for AMD’s Ryzen processors. The memory modules have their timings configured to 18-22-22-42.

Admittedly, DDR4-3600 at C18 isn’t the best of what TeamGroup has to offer. The brand sells the Xtreem ARGB DDR4-3600 in both 16GB (2x8GB) and 32GB (2x16GB) flavors with 14-15-15-35 timings. A 256GB memory kit is already expensive as it is. TeamGroup probably chose a lower bin to help reduce the final cost of the memory kit.

Although the manufacturer didn’t specify the operating voltage, we suspect that the Xtreem ARGB DDR4-3600 C18 memory modules only pull 1.35V so there is headroom for optimizing the timings. However, your mileage will depend on what kind of integrated circuits TeamGroup is utilizing for the DDR4-3600 C18 variants. If it’s not Samsung B-die, there’s less chance of getting these down to C14.

TeamGroup didn’t reveal the availability or pricing for the Xtreem ARGB DDR4-3600 C18 256GB (8x32GB) memory kit. Similarly-specced offerings start at $1,499.99 so that’s basically the baseline for a memory kit of this caliber.

ASRock’s AMD X300TM Thin Mini-ITX Motherboard Has USB-C & COM Ports

(Image credit: ASRock)

In a world where the vast majority of all-in-one and small form-factor PCs rely on proprietary motherboards, the Thin Mini-ITX form-factor is not particularly widespread, making it difficult for PC shops and DIY enthusiasts to build AIO and SFF computers. However, Thin-Mini-ITX motherboards are not going the way of the dodo, and ASRock’s recently announced AM4 X300TM-ITX is a good example of continued interest in the platform.

The ASRock X300TM-ITX platform combines compatibility with AMD’s Ryzen APUs (up to Zen 2-based Ryzen 4000-series) with an expansive feature set, including a USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C connector, a COM port, and an LVDS header, all of which are rather exotic for what are typically inexpensive Thin Mini-ITX motherboards.

Furthermore, the COM port and LVDS header make this platform useful for commercial systems that actually need these types of connectivity. ASRock doesn’t officially position the motherboard for business or commercial PCs, but it does support AMD Ryzen Pro APUs, so you can certainly use it to build a PC with Pro-class features.

As the name suggests, ASRock’s X300TM-ITX motherboard is based on a rather dated AMD X300 chipset that was originally designed for entry-level systems aimed at overlockers, but it still supports the vast majority of AMD’s APUs with an (up to) 65W TDP (except the upcoming Ryzen 5000-series processors). The board also supports up to 64GB of DDR4-3200 memory across two SO-DIMM memory modules, an M.2-2280 slot for SSDs with a PCIe 3.0x or a SATA interface, and one SATA connector.

(Image credit: ASRock)

ASRock aims the X300TM-ITX motherboard at thin entry-level systems that don’t typically use discrete graphics cards, so it doesn’t have a PCIe x16 slot for an add-in card. Instead, the platform uses AMD’s integrated Radeon Vega GPUs. Meanwhile, the LVDS header supports resolutions of up to 1920×1080 at 60Hz, whereas the HDMI 2.1 connector supports HDCP 2.3. There is no word about DisplayPort support over the USB Type-C connector, and you should be aware that HDMI-to-DisplayPort adapters may not work with all displays.

ASRock’s X300TM-ITX has an M.2-2230 slot for a Wi-Fi card along with a GbE port. It also has USB Type-A connectors as well as a 3.5-mm audio input and output.

The platform is already mentioned on the manufacturer’s website, so it should be available for purchase soon. Unfortunately, ASRock didn’t touch on pricing in its press release.

AMD Zen 4 ‘Raphael’ CPU Renders Show Fascinating Design

AMD Zen 4 CPU
(Image credit: ExecutableFix/Twitter)

ExecutableFix, the leaker with an excellent track record that brought us the first news of AMD’s Zen 4 chips, has shared some homemade renders of how the processors may look based on his knowledge of the silicon. Because these are unofficial renders, and even the author admitted that some aspects may be inaccurate or not to scale, take them with a grain of salt.

The hardware leaker previously stated that the AM5 socket measures 40 x 40mm, the same size as the current AM4 socket. This implies that existing AM4 cooling solutions should work for AMD’s upcoming socket. According to ExecutableFix, Zen 4 processors are roughly 1mm taller than current Ryzen chips. Therefore, a mounting converter kit will likely be required for AM4 coolers to support AM5.

It could just be the perspective from which the renders were made, but the IHS (integrated heat spreader) looks pretty thick compared to AMD’s Zen 3 chips. More importantly, the purported Zen 4 design doesn’t have a full-cover IHS. Instead, the processors reportedly feature a radical new design with multiple cutouts on each side. For the time being, we don’t know the motivation for the cutouts. These could be for unique capacitor or SMD placements, but we don’t know whether this will affect heat transfer.

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AMD Zen 4 CPU (Image credit: ExecutableFix/Twitter)

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AMD Zen 4 CPU (Image credit: ExecutableFix/Twitter)

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AMD Zen 4 CPU (Image credit: ExecutableFix/Twitter)

The most substantial change with Zen 4 doesn’t reside within the IHS itself, but rather with what’s underneath the processor die. The AM5 socket reportedly marks AMD’s departure from a Pin Grid Array (PGA) design to a Land Grid Array (LGA). This basically means that the pins are no longer on the processor, so consumers don’t have to worry about bending any pins during installation. However, they still have to be careful since there are other ways to ruin a processor.

Zen 4 processors are rumored to arrive with 1,718 contacts, representing a 29.1% increase over Zen 3. The additional contacts will come in handy for AMD to offer new features, such as dual-channel DDR5 support and improved connectivity. That reportedly includes 28 high-speed PCIe 4.0 lanes, four more than Zen 3. There is also talk of Zen 4 chips maxing out with a 120W TDP and stretching up to 170W for a special edition part. Thus, the extra contacts could also help with power delivery.

Raphael is the codename that’s being thrown around to refer to AMD’s Zen 4 processors. It’s still up in the air on how the chipmaker will market its future processors. Some think that AMD will follow through with the Ryzen 6000, which makes sense in a chronological sense since current Ryzen products carry the Ryzen 5000 moniker. Others claim that AMD will jump to Ryzen 7000, which also wouldn’t be unheard of given the company’s Ryzen 4000/5000 branding shenanigans. In any event, Zen 4 should be another remarkable microarchitecture for the company.

Intel at Computex 2021: New Tiger Lake Processors, Beast Canyon NUC, 5G Chips

(Image credit: Intel)

Intel kicked off Computex 2021 by adding two new flagship 11th-Gen Tiger Lake U-series chips to its stable, including a new Core i7 model that’s the first laptop chip for the thin-and-light segment that boasts a 5.0 GHz boost speed. As you would expect, Intel also provided plenty of benchmarks to show off its latest silicon.

Intel also teased its upcoming Beast Canyon NUCs that are the first to accept full-size graphics cards, making them more akin to a small form factor PC than a NUC. These new machines will come with Tiger Lake processors. Additionally, the company shared a few details around its 5G Solution 5000, its new 5G silicon for Always Connected PCs that it developed in partnership with MediaTek and Fibocom. Let’s jump right in.

Intel 11th-Gen Tiger Lake U-Series Core i7-1195G7 and i5-1155G7

Intel’s two new U-series Tiger Lake chips, the Core i7-1195G7 and Core i5-1155G7, slot in as the new flagships for the Core i7 and Core i5 families. These two processors are UP3 models, meaning they operate in the 12-28W TDP range. These two new chips come with all the standard features of the Tiger Lake family, like the 10nm SuperFin process, Willow Cove cores, the Iris Xe graphics engine, and support for LPDDR4x-4266, PCIe 4.0, Thunderbolt 4 and Wi-Fi 6/6E.

Intel expects the full breadth of its Tiger Lake portfolio to span 250 designs by the holidays from the usual suspects, like Lenovo MSI, Acer and ASUS, with 60 of those designs with the new 1195G7 and 1155G7 chips.

Intel Tiger Lake UP3 Processors
PROCESSOR	CORES/THREADS	GRAPHICS (EUs)	OPERATING RANGE (W)	BASE CLOCK (GHZ)	SINGLE CORE TURBO FREQ (GHZ)	MAXIMUM ALL CORE FREQ (GHZ)	Cache (MB)	GRAPHICS MAX FREQ (GHZ)	MEMORY
Core i7-1195G7	4C / 8T	96	12 -28W	2.9	5.0	4.6	12	1.40	DDR4-3200, LPDDR4x-4266
Core i7-1185G7	4C / 8T	96	12 – 28W	3.0	4.8	4.3	12	1.35	DDR4-3200, LPDDR4x-4266
Core i7-1165G7	4C / 8T	96	12 – 28W	2.8	4.7	4.1	12	1.30	DDR4-3200, LPDDR4x-4266
Core i5-1155G7	4C / 8T	80	12 – 28W	2.5	4.5	4.3	8	1.35	DDR4-3200, LPDDR4x-4266
Core i5-1145G7	4C / 8T	80	12 – 28W	2.6	4.4	4.0	8	1.30	DDR4-3200, LPDDR4x-4266
Core i5-1135G7	4C / 8T	80	12 – 28W	2.4	4.2	3.8	8	1.30	DDR4-3200, LPDDR4x-4266
Core i3-1125G4*	4C / 8T	48	12 – 28W	2.0	3.7	3.3	8	1.25	DDR4-3200, LPDDR4x-3733

The four-core eight-thread Core i7-1195G7 brings the Tiger Lake UP3 chips up to a 5.0 GHz single-core boost, which Intel says is a first for the thin-and-light segment. Intel has also increased the maximum all-core boost rate up to 4.6 GHz, a 300 MHz improvement.

Intel points to additional tuning for the 10nm SuperFin process and tweaked platform design as driving the higher boost clock rates. Notably, the 1195G7’s base frequency declines by 100 MHz to 2.9 GHz, likely to keep the chip within the 12 to 28W threshold. As with the other G7 models, the chip comes with the Iris Xe graphics engine with 96 EUs, but those units operate at 1.4 GHz, a slight boost over the 1165G7’s 1.35 GHz.

The 1195G7’s 5.0 GHz boost clock rate also comes courtesy of Intel’s Turbo Boost Max Technology 3.0. This boosting tech works in tandem with the operating system scheduler to target the fastest core on the chip (‘favored core’) with single-threaded workloads, thus allowing most single-threaded work to operate 200 MHz faster than we see with the 1185G7. Notably, the new 1195G7 is the only Tiger Lake UP3 model to support this technology.

Surprisingly, Intel says the 1195G7 will ship in higher volumes than the lower-spec’d Core i7-1185G7. That runs counter to our normal expectations that faster processors fall higher on the binning distribution curve — faster chips are typically harder to produce and thus ship in lower volumes. The 1195G7’s obviously more forgiving binning could be the result of a combination of the lower base frequency, which loosens binning requirements, and the addition of Turbo Boost Max 3.0, which only requires a single physical core to hit the rated boost speed. Typically all cores are required to hit the boost clock speed, which makes binning more challenging.

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(Image credit: Intel)

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(Image credit: Intel)

The four-core eight-thread Core i5-1155G7 sees more modest improvements over its predecessor, with boost clocks jumping an additional 100 MHz to 4.5 GHz, and all-core clock rates improving by 300 MHz to 4.3 GHz. We also see the same 100 MHz decline in base clocks that we see with the 1195G7. This chip comes with the Iris Xe graphics engine with 80 EUs that operate at 1.35 GHz.

Intel’s Tiger Lake Core i7-1195G7 Gaming Benchmarks

Intel shared its own gaming benchmarks for the Core i7-1195G7, but as with all vendor-provided benchmarks, you should view them with skepticism. Intel didn’t share benchmarks for the new Core i5 model.

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(Image credit: Intel)

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(Image credit: Intel)

Intel put its Core i7-1195G7 up against the AMD Ryzen 7 5800U, but the chart lists an important caveat here — Intel’s system operates between 28 and 35W during these benchmarks, while AMD’s system runs at 15 to 25W. Intel conducted these tests on the integrated graphics for both chips, so we’re looking at Iris Xe with 96 EUs versus AMD’s Vega architecture with eight CUs.

Naturally, Intel’s higher power consumption leads to higher performance, thus giving the company the lead across a broad spate of triple-A 1080p games. However, this extra performance comes at the cost of higher power consumption and thus more heat generation. Intel also tested using its Reference Validation Platform with unknown cooling capabilities (we assume they are virtually unlimited) while testing the Ryzen 7 5800U in the HP Probook 455.

Intel also provided benchmarks with DirectX 12 Ultimate’s new Sampler Feedback feature. This new DX12 feature reduces memory usage while boosting performance, but it requires GPU hardware-based support in tandem with specific game engine optimizations. That means this new feature will not be widely available in leading triple-A titles for quite some time.

Intel was keen to point out that its Xe graphics architecture supports the feature, whereas AMD’s Vega graphics engine does not. ULMark has a new 3DMark Sampler Feedback benchmark under development, and Intel used the test release candidate to show that Iris Xe graphics offers up to 2.34X the performance of AMD’s Vega graphics with the feature enabled.

Intel’s Tiger Lake Core i7-1195G7 Application Benchmarks

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(Image credit: Intel)

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(Image credit: Intel)

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(Image credit: Intel)

Here we can see Intel’s benchmarks for applications, too, but the same rules apply — we’ll need to see these benchmarks in our own test suite before we’re ready to claim any victors. Again, you’ll notice that Intel’s system operates at a much higher 28 to 35W power range on a validation platform while AMD’s system sips 15 to 25W in the HP Probook 455 G8.

As we’ve noticed lately, Intel now restricts its application benchmarks to features that it alone supports at the hardware level. That includes AVX-512 based benchmarks that leverage the company’s DL Boost suite that has extremely limited software support.

Intel’s benchmarks paint convincing wins across the board. However, be aware that the AI-accelerated workloads on the right side of the chart aren’t indicative of what you’ll see with the majority of productivity software. At least not yet. For now, unless you use these specific pieces of software very frequently in these specific tasks, these benchmarks aren’t very representative of the overall performance deltas you can expect in most software.

In contrast, the Intel QSV benchmarks do have some value. Intel’s Quick Sync Video is broadly supported, and the Iris Xe graphics engine supports hardware-accelerated 10-bit video encoding. That’s a feature that Intel rightly points out also isn’t supported with MX-series GPUs, either.

Intel’s support for hardware-accelerated 10-bit encoding does yield impressive results, at least in its benchmarks, showing a drastic ~8X reduction in a Handbrake 4K 10-bit HEVC to 1080P HEVC transcode. Again, bear in mind that this is with the Intel chip running at a much higher power level. Intel also shared a chart highlighting its broad support for various encoding/decoding options that AMD doesn’t support.

Intel Beast Canyon NUC

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(Image credit: Intel)

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(Image credit: Intel)

Intel briefly showed off its upcoming Beast Canyon NUC that will sport 65W H-Series Tiger Lake processors and be the first NUC to support full-length graphics cards (up to 12 inches long).

The eight-litre Beast Canyon certainly looks more like a small form factor system than what we would expect from the traditional definition of a NUC, and as you would expect, it comes bearing the Intel skull logo. Intel’s Chief Performance Strategist Ryan Shrout divulged that the system will come with an internal power supply. Given the size of the unit, that means there will likely be power restrictions for the GPU. We also know the system uses standard air cooling.

Intel is certainly finding plenty of new uses for its Tiger Lake silicon. The company recently listed new 10nm Tiger Lake chips for desktop PCs, including a 65W Core i9-11900KB and Core i7-11700KB, and told us that these chips would debut in small form factor enthusiast systems. Given that Intel specifically lists the H-series processors for Beast Canyon, it doesn’t appear these chips will come in the latest NUC. We’ll learn more about Beast Canyon as it works its way to release later this year.

Intel Always Connected PCs Update – Intel 5G Solution 5000

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(Image credit: Intel)

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(Image credit: Intel)

Intel sold its modem business to Apple back in 2019, leaving a gap in its Always Connected PC (ACPC) initiative. In the interim, Intel has worked with MediaTek to design and certify new 5G modems with carriers around the world. The M.2 modules are ultimately produced by Fibocom. The resulting Intel 5G Solution 5000 is a 5G M.2 device that delivers up to five times the speed of the company’s Gigabit LTE solutions. The solution is compatible with both Tiger and Alder Lake platforms.

Intel claims that it leads the ACPC space with three out of four ACPCs shipping with LTE (more than five million units thus far). Intel’s 5G Solution 5000 is designed to extend that to the 5G arena with six designs from three OEMs (Acer, ASUS and HP) coming to market in 2021. The company says it will ramp to more than 30 designs next year.

Intel says that while it will not be the first to come to market with a 5G PC solution, it will be the first to deliver them in volume, but we’ll have to see how that plays out in the face of continued supply disruptions due to the pandemic.

Sabrent’s Plotripper Chia Plotting SSD Will Outlive Many Of Us

Sabrent Plotripper Pro
(Image credit: Sabrent)

Sabrent has prepared a new line of SSDs that’s designed for hardcore Chia coin (XCH) plotting. The details are still pretty slim, but the Plotripper SSDs should make any Chia farmer very happy.

Plotting Chia can kill even the best SSDs in a matter of weeks, depending on how serious you take your Chia farming business. That’s where the Plotripper and Plotripper Pro SSDs come in. Sabrent is keeping a tight lip on the recipe that the company is utilizing for the SSDs. We suspect that the vendor may be using the Phison E18 controller. One thing’s for sure, though. Plotripper and Plotripper drives boast phenomenal endurance.

Sabrent rates the Plotripper and Plotripper Pro 2TB SSDs for 10,000 TBW and 54,000 TBW, respectively. Those figures would put the drives in the same ballpark as enterprise and Intel Optane SSDs. For comparison, a typical 2TB consumer TLC drive is good for around 3,000 TBW. That’s 233% higher endurance on the Plotripper and 1,700% on the Plotripper Pro.

Sabrent Plotripper, Plotripper Pro Specifications

SSD	Capacity	TBW
Plotripper Pro 2TB	2TB	54,000
Plotripper Pro 1TB	1TB	27,000
Plotripper 2TB	2TB	10,000

Write performance is just as important as the drive’s endurance when it comes to plotting Chia. However, the manufacturer hasn’t exposed the complete specification sheet for the Plotripper or Plotripper Pro SSDs yet.

If the drives do end up using the Phison E18 controller, we could expect PCIe 4.0-grade speeds out of Sabrent’s new offerings. Sadly, that means you’ll need a Rocket Lake or Ryzen 3000 platform to fully exploit the Plotripper and Plotripper Pro SSDs without crossing into the enterprise side.

With enterprise-level endurance, we don’t expect the Plotripper or Plotripper Pro to cost anything less than an arm and a leg. Sabrent, however, claims that its latest product line offers the “best unit cost for plotting.” While we wait for further details about the SSD’s pricing and availability, we’ll take Sabrent’s word for now.

Intel Secretly Launches 65W B-Series Tiger Lake Desktop CPUs (Updated)

Intel Tiger Lake Processor
(Image credit: Intel)

Update 28/05/2021 3:13 pm PT: Intel has provided us with the following statement that sheds more light on the latest Tiger Lake desktop processors:

“Intel has partnered with customers interested in expanding their product portfolio with enthusiast, small form-factor desktop designs. The Intel Core i9-11900KB processor is a BGA solution built with unique specifications and performance specifically for these designs.”

Update 28/05/2021 11:13 am PT: Intel has updated the product pages for the Tiger Lake B-series processors to confirm that they are indeed desktop processors. We’ve amended the article to reflect the change.

Original Article:

If you think Intel was done with Tiger Lake, then you have another thing coming. The chipmaker has unceremoniously posted four new Tiger Lake chips (via momomo_us) in its ARK database. Apparently, the processors are already launched.

The quartet of new processors are listed under the Tiger Lake family, with the 11th Generation moniker. However, they carry the “B” suffix, which is a designation that Intel hasn’t used until now. We’re unsure of what the letter stands for. The product pages for the Core i9-11900KB, Core i5-11500B, Core i7-11700B and Core i3-11100B have the aforementioned processors as desktop chips. Nevertheless, the “B” is rumored to BGA (Ball Grid Array), which makes sense since Intel doesn’t specify a type of socket for the B-series parts. There’s a possibility that these processors are soldered to the motherboard via the BGA package.

The core configurations for the listed Tiger Lake processors stick to Intel’s guidelines. The Core i9 and Core i7 are equipped with eight cores and 16 threads, but with clock speeds as the main differentiating factor. The Core i5 and Core i3 SKUs arrive with six-core, 12-thread and four-core, eight-thread setups, respectively. It would appear that the Tiger Lake B-series processors benefit from Thermal Velocity Boost (TVB), though.

Intel Tiger Lake B-Series Specifications

Processor	Cores / Threads	Base / Boost / TVB Clocks (GHz)	L3 Cache (MB)	TDP (W)	Graphics	Graphics Base / Boost Clocks (MHz)	RCP
Core i9-11900KB	8 / 16	3.3 / 4.9 / 5.3	24	65	Intel UHD Graphics	350 / 1,450	$417
Core i7-11700B	8 / 16	3.2 / 4.8 / 5.3	24	65	Intel UHD Graphics	350 / 1,450	?
Core i5-11500B	6 / 12	3.3 / 4.6 / 5.3	12	65	Intel UHD Graphics	350 / 1,450	?
Core i3-11100B	4 / 8	3.6 / 4.4 / 5.3	12	65	Intel UHD Graphics	350 / 1,400	?

Since the B-series all enjoy a 65W TDP, it’s common sense that they are faster than Intel’s recently announced Tiger Lake-H 45W processors. The 20W margin allows the B-series access to TVB after all, which can be a difference maker in certain workloads. According to the Intel’s specification sheets, only the Core i9-11900KB and Core i7-11700B can be configured down to 55W. The Core i5-11500B and Core i3-11100B have a fixed 65W TDP.

The Core i9-11900KB is the only chip out of the lot that comes with an unlocked multiplier. The octa-core processor appears to feature a 3.3 GHz base clock, 4.9 GHz boost clock and 5.3 GHz TVB boost clock. Despite the Core i9-11900KB and the Core i9-11980HK having the same maximum 65W TDP, the first leverages TVB to boost to 5.3 GHz, 300 MHz higher than the latter.

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Core i9-11900KB (Image credit: Intel)

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Core i7-11700B (Image credit: Intel)

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Core i5-11500B (Image credit: Intel)

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Core i3-11100B (Image credit: Intel)

Comparing from tier to tier, we’re noticing higher base clocks on the B-series SKUs. The difference is between 400 MHz to 700 MHz, depending on which models you’re looking at. Obviously, TVB gives the B-series higher boost clocks on paper. If we don’t take TVB into consideration, the improvement is very little. For example, the Core i7-11700B has a 4.8 GHz boost clock speed, only 200 MHz higher than the Core i7-11800H. The Core i5-11500B is rated for 4.6 GHz boost clock, 100 MHz faster than a Core i5-11400H.

It seems that Intel only made improvements to the processing aspect of the B-series. The iGPU and Tiger Lake’s other features look untouched. Like Tiger Lake-H, the B-series also comes with native support for DDR4-3200 memory and a maximum capacity of 128GB. However, the B-series seems to offer less memory bandwidth. For comparison, Tiger Lake-H delivers up to 51.2 GBps of maximum memory bandwidth, while the B-series tops out at 45.8 GBps.

It’s unknown what Intel’s intentions are for the Tiger Lake B-series lineup. Given the 65W TDP, it’s reasonable to think that Intel launched the new processors to compete with AMD’s Ryzen 5000G (codename Cezanne) desktop APUs that will eventually make their way to the DIY market.

AMD’s Zen 5 CPUs, APUs Will Likely Tap TSMC’s 3nm Process Node

AMD Ryzen Processor
(Image credit: AMD)

AMD’s Zen 4 processors haven’t even launched yet, and rumors are already emerging about the chipmaker’s future Zen 5 chips. Given the time frame that we expect for the Zen 5 chips to debut, the information from the leaks makes sense. Nevertheless, we still recommend you approach all rumors with caution.

The partial AMD roadmap, which originated from China, claims that AMD will market its Zen 5 processors under the Ryzen 8000 branding, with both mainstream Ryzen processors and APUs reportedly uniting under the Ryzen 8000 branding umbrella. The rumored codenames for Ryzen 8000 chips and APUs are Granite Ridge and Strix Point, respectively.

ExecutableFix, a hardware leaker with a solid record, believes that Zen 5 is based on the 3nm process node. Given AMD’s long-lasting relationship with TSMC, it’s very likely that Zen 5 will tap into the foundry’s 3nm (N3) manufacturing process. Then again, Samsung also has its own 3nm process node, so it’ll be interesting to see whether the South Korean giant can woo AMD away from TSMC.

Granite Ridge is the successor to Raphael (Zen 4), so it should be compatible with the AM5 socket, which is allegedly making a transition from a Pin Grid Array (PGA) design over to a Land Grid Array (LGA) design. The general speculation for Zen 4’s debut is sometime next year, meaning we shouldn’t see Zen 5 until 2023.

AMD Granite Ridge, Strix Point (Image credit: 剧毒术士马文/Weibo)

Strix Point is rumored to feature a hybrid microarchitecture, similar to what Intel will do with its impending 12th Generation Alder Lake processors. In AMD’s case, Ryzen 8000 APUs could leverage the Zen 5 and Zen 4 cores, implying that AMD’s APUs may finally switch to a multi-chip module (MCM) approach.

Apparently, the little cores inside Strix Point, if you want to put it that way, are called Zen 4D. The only problem we have with this leak is the discrepancy between manufacturing processes. Zen 4 is expected to feature the 5nm process node, while Zen 5 is presumably based on the 3nm process node. However, we don’t discard the possibility that AMD could refresh the Zen 4 cores to put them on the 3nm process node.

On the server side, the speculation says the EPYC 7005 (purportedly codenamed Turin) lineup will replace the EPYC 7004 (Genoa) family in 2023. Logically, Turing will also be on Zen 5 cores and the 3nm process node. Threadripper’s fate, on the other hand, continues to be a mystery for all.

Acer Swift X initial review: Enter the fast lane

(Pocket-lint) – Acer is entering the fast lane with its Swift line, by introducing the discreet looking Swift X – but it packs a punch, as it includes discrete graphics in the form of Nvidia’s RTX 3050 or 3050Ti under the hood.

It’s not the first time we’ve seen Acer step towards a more graphically powerful Swift laptop – the Swift 3X dabbled in that area with Intel Iris Xe graphics – but the Swift X really looks to step things up a notch. So does it all add up?

Design & Display

14-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) IPS LCD panel
- 300 nits brightness, 100% sRGB gamut
Aluminium chassis: Blue, Gold, Pink colours
Integrated fingerprint scanner
Weight: 1.4kgs (3lbs)
Thickness: 17.9mm

It’s worth noting that the Acer Swift X isn’t a crazy-expensive laptop, with the entry model starting at under four figures (it’s £899 in the UK, due for July launch). That’s important to consider when weighing up the overall aesthetics and build of this laptop.

Pocket-lint

Visually speaking we think the Swift X has got the X factor – especially with the soft blue finish of the aluminium lid, as you can see in our pictures – with some nice flourishes ensuring it looks the part.

But in terms of actual build, it’s fairly typical of what we’ve often said about the Swift series: there are some details that lack the same veracity. The screen bezel, for example, has a plasticky look and feel to it.

So you’re not getting full-on rigid metal build throughout, as you would in, say, a MacBook Air. But the Acer is less money. And it’s much, much more powerful. Which establishes its whole point really.

Pocket-lint

There’s plenty of other features, too, including a Windows Hello camera for face unlock, or you can use the integrated fingerprint scanner for that instead. The scanner’s position is a little out on its own, but at least it doesn’t use up any of the trackpad space.

Typing is comfortable, there’s backlighting, while the trackpad is well coated for finger gliding motion. No qualms here.

As for the screen, it’s a 14-inch panel, which in 2021 is the current go-to scale that many makers – and, indeed, customers – are reaching out to buy. It’s a good balance of scale and portability – given the whole laptop is under 18mm thick with that discrete GPU inside is impressive – without going to especially high-end levels in terms of specification.

Pocket-lint

The resolution, at Full HD, is ample and should help assist battery life to push that bit further too. Brightness is cited at 300 nits, which is hardly going to rock your world, but should be enough to counter reflections whether inside or outside.

Performance

Nvidia RTX 3050 / 3050Ti discrete graphics // AMD Ryzen 5000 / 7000 processors
Ports: 1x USB-C, 2x USB-A, 1x HDMI, 1x 3.5mm headphons jack
Thermal system: Fans (0.3mm blades), dual copper heat pipes
Cited battery life: Up to 14 hours
Wi-Fi 6 connectivity

But the real reason to consider the Swift X is the power within. This is a discreet looking creators laptop, really, that you could use for work, design, gaming – all manner of things.

Pocket-lint

Under the hood there’s AMD’s Ryzen 5000 processor paired with Nvidia’s RTX 3050 GPU at the entry point. For under four-figures that’s decent. The step-up model brings AMD Ryzen 7000 and Nvidia RTX 3050Ti into play, pushing the price over the four-figure mark (£1199 in the UK), but still being a very reasonable purchase all considered.

Because there’s a discrete GPU under the hood, cooling is necessary, with rear fan vents tucked away enough as to not be overtly prominent, yet still functional enough to kick in when needed. There’s a whole fan and copper pipe thermal cooling system to aid keeping everything in check too.

Best laptop 2021: Top general and premium notebooks for working from home and more

By Dan Grabham
·
27 May 2021

In terms of ports the Swift X has quite a number – including USB-A, USB-C and even HDMI out – but it’s here where this laptop is a little lacking. We’re surprised there’s just the one USB-C port, for example, and there’s no nod to Thunderbolt speeds from what we can see either.

Pocket-lint

Connectivity wise there’s Wi-Fi 6 for decent speeds while on a network, but don’t anticipate a mobile 5G option within this range. It’s more about desk surfing than it is connected on-the-go use.

First Impressions

The Swift X helps Acer’s middle-range laptops enter the fast lane thanks to discrete graphics being on board. The entry-level model bags Nvidia RTX 3050 for under a four-figure asking price.

It’s a shame there’s not more ports (or more diverse ones) – it’s just the one USB-C here – and some aspects of the build, such as the plastic screen bezel, could be a little better. But, elsewhere, the colourful lid options and aluminium frame ensure an overall quality.

So if you’re looking for a portable yet discreet-looking laptop with big power but without a big price tag, the Acer Swift X ought to have plenty to offer.

Writing by Mike Lowe.

Acer Laptops Get RTX 3000, Tiger Lake H-Series

(Image credit: Acer)

Acer’s bringing Intel’s new high-powered 11th Gen Tiger Lake chips to its gaming laptops, alongside new mobile RTX 3000 GPU options and a new design for one laptop in particular. New, more budget-friendly RTX 3000 gaming desktops are also joining those mobile options, giving gamers who haven’t been able to try Ampere yet another avenue to buy an RTX 3000 series GPU.

Specs

	Predator Triton 500 SE	Predator Helios 500	Predator Orion 3000	Acer Nitro 50
CPU	Up to 11th Gen Intel Core i9 H-series	Up to 11th Gen Intel Core i9 HK-series	11th Gen Intel Core i7	Up to AMD Ryzen 9 5900 or 11th Gen Intel Core i7
GPU	Up to RTX 3080	Up to RTX 3080	RTX 3070	RTX 3060 Ti
Memory	Up to 64GB DDR4-3200	Up to 64GB DDR4-3200	Up to 64GB DDR4-3200	Up to 64GB DDR4-3200
Storage	Up to 4TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD	2x Up to 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs with 1x Up to 2TB SATA HDD	Up to 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVMe and 3TB HDD	Up to 1TB PCIe NVMe and 3TB HDD
Display	16 inches, 16:10: FHD @ 165 Hz, Mini LED or 165 Hz LCD or 240 Hz IPS	17.3 inches: 4K @ 120 Hz, Mini LED with HDR or FHD @ 360 Hz	N/A	N/A
Starting Price	$1,749	$2,499	$1,199	$949
NA Release Date	June	August	July	July

Acer Predator Triton 500 SE

Aesthetically, the star of the show here is the new Acer Predator Triton 500 SE. This model brings the general look and feel of the silvery Predator Triton 300 SE to a larger laptop. Based on photos Acer shared, the chassis seems to be somewhat darker without being fully black. We praised the Triton 300 SE for its power-to-size ratio, but the new Predator Triton 500 SE is likely to focus more on power.

(Image credit: Acer)

Speaking of power, the Predator Triton 500 SE packs up to an 11th Gen Intel Core i9 H-series processor (so no overclocking), plus up to an RTX 3080 mobile GPU and up to 64GB of 3,200 MHz DDR4 RAM. Storage is all PCIe NVMe and can go up to 4TB, while the 16 inch display embraces the new 16:10 trend with an FHD screen that can reach up to 240 Hz. That high refresh rate is only available on the IPS model, not the 165 Hz LCD and Mini LED models. Acer also hasn’t commented on what type of LCD its LCD screen uses.

Acer Predator Helios 500 Refresh

(Image credit: Acer)

If you want something a little larger and with a very premium display (especially for a laptop), you may want to opt for the refreshed Predator Helios 500. We got to spend some time with a configuration of the Acer Predator Helios 500, and what stood out most for us was its Mini LED display option. You can read about our experience in our Acer Predator Helios 500 hands-on article.

But long story short, this model maintains the same look as the current Predator Helios 500, but upgrades the internals to bring them up to line with Intel and Nvidia’s latest offerings: up to an 11th Gen Intel Core i9 HK series (overclocking is a go!) CPU with up to an RTX 3080 mobile GPU.

Besides Mini LED, you can also get the laptop with a FHD panel with your typical LED backlight and a 360 Hz refresh rate, the fastest refresh rate displays carry these days.

New Acer Predator Gaming Desktops

(Image credit: Acer)

Acer’s new attempts at the best gaming PCs in desktop form are a bit more constrained. The Predator Orion 3000 is limited to an 11th Gen Intel Core i7 with an RTX 3070 but does let you customize your storage and memory capacities. The former maxes out at up to 1TB of PCIe NVMe storage with up to 3TB of HDD storage supplementing it, while the latter can go up to 64GB of DDR4-3200 RAM.

(Image credit: Acer)

The Acer Nitro 50 series carries the sole AMD gaming machine (the N50-120) Acer announced today, as well as an Intel model (the N50-620).

The AMD model has up to AMD Ryzen 9 5900, while the Intel model has up to an 11th Gen Intel Core i7 CPU. Either way, you’ll get an RTX 3060 Ti for your GPU. Storage and memory options are the same as what’s available on the Predator Orion 3000.

Prices and Release Dates

The Predator Triton 500 SE will be the first of these laptops to hit U.S. store shelves. It launches today at Best Buy (and in June everywhere else) for a starting price of $1,749. The desktops will both follow in July, with the Predator Orion 3000 starting at $1,199 and the Intel Nitro 50 model starting at $949.

Finally, the Predator Helios 500 will launch in August for a starting price of $2,499.

We don’t yet have a release date or starting price for the Nitro 50 AMD model.

Acer’s Swift X Crams Ryzen 5000 and RTX 3050 Ti Into Thin Chassis for Creators

(Image credit: Acer)

Acer announced the Swift X, its first laptop in the Swift line to use discrete graphics, during a virtual event today. The laptop will use AMD Ryzen 5000 series processors and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti when it launches in June starting for $899.99.

The laptop, which Acer says is meant for creators, editors and streamers, has a 14-inch, 1920 x 1080 IPS display and what the company says is an 85.7% screen-to-body ratio. It comes with up to 16GB of RAM and 2TB of SSD storage.

CPU	Up to AMD Ryzen 7 5800U
GPU	Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti
Display	14-inch, 1920 x 1080, IPS
RAM	Up to 16GB
Storage	Up to 2TB SSD
Battery	59 WHr
Starting Price	$899.99

The laptop weighs 3.06 pounds and is housed in a 0.7-inch metal chassis. Acer is showing off a handful of colors, including blue, pink and a sort of off-yellow, but that’s just on the lid. The rest of each laptop is the same silver color.

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(Image credit: Acer)

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(Image credit: Acer)

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(Image credit: Acer)

Other features include USB Type-C for data and charging, Wi-Fi 6 and a fingerprint reader. The company also claims its BlueLightShield (yes, one word) tech will prevent eye strain.

To cool the thin laptop, Acer claims that air inlets in the keyboard will let it expel 8-10% more heat than other laptops (hopefully without overheating your fingers).Other cooling efficiencies include more and thinner heatpipes.

This seems like a slight pivot for the Swift line, which Acer previously used to prioritize thinness and lightness above all else. In the past it’s gone as far as

removing any click mechanism from the touchpad

and adjusting the keyboard layout to remove the function row to keep things light and compact.

Beyond a U.S. release, we’ll see the Swift X launch later in the summer in Europe, the Middle East and Africa starting at €899 and In China in the third quarter of this year beginning at ¥6,499.

Acer’s other announcements at its event include refreshes of its Concept D line of creator workstations, new Predator gaming laptops, monitors and peripherals as well as an update to new CPUs and GPUs in its existing gaming desktops.

Acer Joins the Polling Rate Race With 2,000 Hz Predator Cestus 335 Gaming Mouse

(Image credit: Acer)

Acer is joining the likes of Razer and Corsair in pushing gaming peripherals that changes the rate at which your mouse sends data to your PC. Most gaming mice offer polling rates of 1,000 Hz max, meaning it sends a report to your PC telling it of your mouse’s position 1,000 times per second. But the Acer Predator Cestus 335 announced today goes up to 2,000 Hz. While most gamers are still happy with 1,000 Hz, the Predator Cestus 335 may be introducing a happy middle ground for extreme gamers.

Let’s do some (painless) math. When a mouse has a 1,000 Hz polling rate, it can take as little as 0.001 second — or 1ms — to send a report. 1 second divided by 1,000 reports equals 0.001 second per report. With 2,000 Hz, the Cestus 335’s expected delay decreases to 0.5ms (1 second divided by 2,000 reports equals 0.0005 second).

(Image credit: Acer)

The Predator Cestus 335 is extreme in its attempt to deliver twice the number of reports per second than most of the best gaming mouse options today. But there are already more extreme options. This year, the Razer Viper 8K Hz and Corsair Sabre RGB Pro mice came out, as well as the Corsair K70 RGB TKL and Corsair K65 RGB Mini keyboards. Each has an 8,000 Hz polling rate (yes, some of the best gaming keyboards are getting pulled into the trend too) and, therefore, have input delays as low as 0.125ms compared to the Cestus 335’s 0.5ms.

Of course, the question becomes do you really need those extra Hz? In action, I did find the Viper 8K Hz to bring an improvement in tracking. For example, when I moved my mouse around in an oval, I saw more instances of the pointer with the 8,000 Hz mice compared to when using a couple 1,000 Hz mice. I also fared slightly better in anecdotal tests such as the Human Benchmark reaction time test, although mouse comfort and buttons are also a factor. When gaming, however, there was so much going on that I didn’t notice any obvious visual gains or gaming advantages.

According to Razer, the increased polling rate might have been more effective if I had a more powerful PC and a display with a faster refresh rate. Acer hasn’t confirmed yet, but it’s possible that the Predator Cestus 335 will also come with recommended PC and/or monitor specs.

That will be a big factor in if the polling rate race takes off among gamers. When we tested the Corsair Sabre RGB Pro, we noticed a roughly 6-10% spike in CPU usage when using an AMD Ryzen 7 3700X. But we’d expect the 2,000 Hz Predator Cestus 335 to be less taxing than an 8,000 Hz mouse.

Besides a high polling rate, the Predator Cestus 335 is packing a PixArt 3370 sensor with the ability to hit up to 19,000 CPI sensitivity.

(Image credit: Acer)

The mouse should also make it easy to toggle through 5 preset CPI levels and profiles, all customizable via Acer’s QuarterMaster software. That’s also where gamers will be able to program the mouse’s 10 programmable buttons. Photos Acer shared with the press show three side buttons, dedicated macro, CPI and profile buttons and a scroll wheel that can also move left and right. Of course, there’s also a fair amount of RGB here.

(Image credit: Acer)

Ultimately, the Predator Cestus 335 seems to have a decent featureset here, and eSports-level players may jump at the opportunity at cutting input delay — even if by a hair. 2,000 Hz should, hopefully, call for less extreme PC specs, but we’ll have to wait until testing the mouse to know for sure.

Acer doesn’t have a price or release date for the Predator Cestus 335 yet.

Epic Optimizes Unreal Engine 5 Compilation For AMD’s Threadripper CPUs

(Image credit: AMD)

In a recent blog post by AMD, the company announced that Epic Game’s Unreal Engine 5, which is now in early access mode and will power a new generation of games, is now fully optimized for compilation work with Ryzen Threadripper CPUs. Epic Games VP Nick Penwarden notes that using Threadripper CPUs has allowed developers to compile code in Unreal Engine 5 much quicker than ever before.

“Using Threadripper CPUs, we’re able to compile the engine much more quickly than we could previously. That’s a huge efficiency boost for all the engineers on the team. The less time they’re spending compiling code, the more time they can spend actually developing features, testing functionality, and improving Unreal Engine 5.” – Nick Penwarden, VP of Engineering at Epic Games.

It’s good to remember that Epic refers to compilation performance alone, which is completely different from actual core utilization in real gameplay. For example, Unreal Engine 4 can already utilize far more than 8-12 cores for compilation tasks, but most games running on Unreal Engine 4 can only use eight cores when it comes to actual gameplay performance.

AMD is a direct partner with Epic Games, so it isn’t surprising that the company has helped enable the full Ryzen Threadripper optimizations for Unreal Engine 5 code compilation tasks. These optimizations could include CCX awareness or spanning processor groups with the Threadripper 3990X, the latter of which has caused quite the challenge with existing software that doesn’t fully utilize all 64 threads.

Perhaps we could even see Unreal Engine 5 supporting core counts a full 64 cores for real gameplay. For instance, space sim Star Citizen is already being developed to utilize more than eight CPU cores. The developers of Star Citizen, CIG, have stated that the game will utilize “all available cores” once the game has been updated to a new render engine (codenamed ‘Gen12’) and swapped to the Vulkan API. The game already utilizes eight cores to the max in certain areas (on the rather old DX11 API).

In conjunction with lower-level APIs such as DX12 and Vulkan becoming widely adopted, there is a lot of opportunity for higher core count support in real gameplay. Still, AMD and Epic haven’t shared that level of detail about the new engine yet.

Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL DDR4-3600 C18 2x8GB Review: Short On Height, High On AMD Performance

Our Verdict

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.

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Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL DDR4-3600 C18 (Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

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Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL DDR4-3600 C18 (Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

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Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL DDR4-3600 C18 (Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

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.

Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro SL DDR4-3600 C18 (Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)

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.