The UK’s Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), a counterpart to the U.S.’s National Security Agency (NSA), just launched SilentGlass through the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC). This little gadget was announced during CYBERUK, a government-sponsored cyber security conference, and is designed to block malicious traffic traveling between a display and a PC. According to the NCSC, it built and designed this plug-and-play device to protect government estates and has been “approved for use in the most high-threat environments.”

The government has since licensed the design to Goldilock Labs, a UK-based cybersecurity firm that specializes in hardware that automatically cuts physical connections during a cyberattack, limiting potential damage to a network. It has partnered with Sony UK Technology Center to make the product available globally, although the firm has yet to put the product publicly available on the market.

“Display screens and monitors are everywhere in modern business environments, and the SilentGlass device will help protect previously vulnerable IT infrastructure with unprecedented ease,” NCSC Chief Technology Officer Ollie Whitehouse said, “Its development and commercialization show the impact that the NCSC can have, alongside industry partners, with an affordable and effective product now globally available.” Goldilock Labs co-founder Stephen Kines also said, “SilentGlass addresses a gap that has been widely overlooked. The hardware interfaces people rely on every day have rarely been treated as security boundaries, despite being exposed to risk through supply chains, third-party servicing, and direct physical access.”

While SilentGlass is an interesting security device, some information security experts question the actual need for it. Cybersecurity expert Scott McGready said on X, “Can anyone genuinely tell me what risk this is addressing or is it a solution in search of a problem?” After all, most common cyberattacks do not use video signals as an attack vector. Nevertheless, that does not mean that it’s impossible to take advantage of HDMI and DisplayPort to exfiltrate information.

Way back in 2020, a research paper revealed a technique which subtly changed monitor brightness to steal data from air-gapped PCs, while a more recent study showed that AI can use signals leaking from HDMI cables to reconstruct what the target computer is displaying. These aren’t likely problems for the billions of home and office computers around the globe, as these techniques are complicated and would often cost more to deploy than the potential data they can gather from the average civilian.

However, these vulnerabilities could be potential weak links in the security of government agencies and defense companies that deal with sensitive information. This makes them targets for nation-states who have the means and resources to use these attack vectors. The UK government has reportedly deployed this little gadget in some of its computers, and it’s now making it available for anyone else to purchase. We don’t have pricing for SilentGlass yet, but this likely won’t interest the average PC user. But for users who deal with state secrets and confidential technologies, this gadget could potentially protect their systems from a potential vulnerability that will most likely be used by technically advanced adversaries.

Ultra-expensive cables positioned as a miracle cure have been around forever. Most of these are obviously shams, but some are actually really worth the price, such as those that use fiber optics. Cables ditching copper wires to improve signal integrity are not exactly rare, but they were a new discovery for this Twitter user, who got their hands on an $116 fiber-optic HDMI cable from Ruipro with detachable ends.

The X post below went viral, garnering almost a million views for what seems like a perfectly ordinary product. Be that as it may, most people don’t actually care for, or even know, tech specs off the top of their head, especially when it comes to confusing standards like HDMI. What we’re looking at here is an active optical cable (AOC), which carries its signal over fiber optics instead of traditional copper wiring.

It’s called “active” because there’s a signal conversion taking place inside the cable, where electrical HDMI signals are converted into optical signals between the two ends. The cable isn’t entirely devoid of copper wires; some are still used for low-priority communication and power, but the majority of the signal is carried via fiber optic strands. This allows for significantly longer cables that can travel long distances without degradation.

Because this is an HDMI 2.1 cable in the post, it's capable of 8K output at 60 Hz, or 4K at 120 Hz without DSC, and supports 10-bit HDR. It's a full-fat 48 Gbps cable, which isn't always guaranteed, given how loose the HDMI Forum is with its branding. In fact, this is why people often buy overpriced cables: to circumvent the marketing red tape and get the best possible option that'll cover all their needs.

Now, these specs aren't special in a vacuum, but the fact that the cable can enable them over (up to) 990 feet — that's the impressive bit. The "entry-level" $116 version is only 3 feet long, and for that, it's quite expensive because you don't need fiber optic for this length. The best deal here is probably the 100-foot cable priced at $150, so only about $30 more for an extra 97 feet of fiber-optic goodness.

Ruipro has made the HDMI connectors on both ends removable, so you won't have to replace the entire cable if a plug breaks. When removed, the end of the cable can slot into keystone jacks and wall plates as well for easy storage. The cable itself is relatively thin for its size, and the connectors are made entirely of metal to ensure durability.

Another benefit of fiber optic is its resistance to electromagnetic interference, though that's not a huge issue to begin with for HDMI, and EMI is notoriously used as the bait to sell those aforementioned miracle cures. Regardless, this is still a solid HDMI 2.1 cable for those who value signal integrity, and even though the starting price is certainly not enticing, the subsequent options are priced rather fairly.

The HDMI Forum has officially finalized HDMI 2.2, the next generation of the video standard, rolling out to devices throughout the rest of this year. We already saw a bunch of key announcements at CES in January, but now that the full spec is here, it's confirmed that HDMI 2.2 will eclipse DisplayPort in maximum bandwidth support thanks to the new Ultra96 cables.

What the heck is an "Ultra96" cable?

The key improvement with HDMI 2.2 over its predecessor, HDMI 2.1, is the bump in bandwidth from 48 GB/s to 96 GB/s. In order to ensure a consistent experience across all HDMI 2.2 devices, you'll be seeing new HDMI cables with an "Ultra96" label denoting the aforementioned transfer rate capability. These cables will be certified by the HDMI Forum with clear branding that should make them easy to identify.

This new bandwidth unlocks 16K resolution support at 60 Hz and 12K at 120 Hz, but with chroma subsampling. That being said, you can expect 4K 240 Hz at up to 12-bit color depth without any compression. DisplayPort 2.1b UHBR 20 was the first to do this with some monitors already available on the market, but that standard is limited to only 80 GB/s and HDMI 2.2 edges it by just a bit, which allows for even uncompressed 8K at 60 Hz.

It's important to keep in mind that only cables explicitly labeled Ultra96 can allow for all this video goodness. As always, the HDMI Forum will allow manufacturers to make the claim that their devices are HDMI 2.2 compliant, but without actually enforcing the bandwidth rule. Therefore, it's important to look for the Ultra96 label so you know you're getting the real deal.

Thankfully, though, if you don't care about the super high resolutions or frame rates, HDMI 2.2 will be backwards compatible. That means you can use the new cables with older ports (or new ports with older cables) and get the lowest common denominator experience. For instance, if you plug an HDMI 2.2 Ultra96 cable in a TV with only HDMI 2.1 support, you should still get HDMI 2.1 features and speeds without any issues.

Apart from backwards compatibility, HDMI 2.2 will bring another comfort feature called "Latency Indication Protocol" (LIP) that will help with syncing audio and video together. This only really matters for large, complicated home theater setups incorporating a lot of speaker channels with receivers and projectors (or screens). If you're part of the crowd, expect reduced lip-sync issues across the board.

AMD Might Be the First to Adopt HDMI 2.2

The first HDMI 2.2 devices will likely start to roll around toward the last quarter of the year, with AMD's upcoming UDNA GPUs rumored to be among the first to adopt the standard. Little is known about the next-gen Radeon cards, but an earlier leak pointed to limited HDMI 2.2 support for UDNA that would restrict the maximum bandwidth on most models.

As it stands right now, AMD's Radeon Pro cards are the only ones that support the full DisplayPort 2.1b UHBR20 standard, with the RX 9000 series being limited to only 54 GB/s (down from the 80 GB/s maximum). It remains to be seen if AMD pulls something similar with UDNA and only offers the full HDMI 2.2 bandwidth with their workstation GPUs.

The Shenzhen 8K UHD Video Industry Cooperation Alliance, a group made up of more than 50 Chinese companies, just released a new wired media communication standard called the General Purpose Media Interface or GPMI. This standard was developed to support 8K and reduce the number of cables required to stream data and power from one device to another. According to HKEPC, the GPMI cable comes in two flavors — a Type-B that seems to have a proprietary connector and a Type-C that is compatible with the USB-C standard.

Because 8K has four times the number of pixels of 4K and 16 times more pixels than 1080p resolution, it means that GPMI is built to carry a lot more data than other current standards. There are other variables that can impact required bandwidth, of course, such as color depth and refresh rate. The GPMI Type-C connector is set to have a maximum bandwidth of 96 Gbps and deliver 240 watts of power. This is more than double the 40 Gbps data limit of USB4 and Thunderbolt 4, allowing you to transmit more data on the cable. However, it has the same power limit as that of the latest USB Type-C connector using the Extended Power Range (EPR) standard.

GPMI Type-B beats all other cables, though, with its maximum bandwidth of 192 Gbps and power delivery of up to 480 watts. While still not a level where you can use it to power your RTX 5090 gaming PC through your 8K monitor, it’s still more than enough for many gaming laptops with a high-end discrete graphics. This will simplify the desk setup of people who prefer a portable gaming computer, since you can use one cable for both power and data. Aside from that, the standard also supports a universal control standard like HDMI-CEC, meaning you can use one remote control for all appliances that connect via GPMI and use this feature.

The only widely used video transmission standards that also deliver power right now are USB Type-C (Alt DP/Alt HDMI) and Thunderbolt connections. However, this is mostly limited to monitors, with many TVs still using HDMI. If GPMI becomes widely available, we’ll soon be able to use just one cable to build our TV and streaming setup, making things much simpler.

A developer could hack into the Apple Lightning to HDMI dongle and run Doom directly on the accessory. According to nyan_satan’s comments in the YouTube video (h/t MacRumors), the $49 Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter features a custom Samsung SoC with a 400MHz ARM Cortex-A5 core and 256 MiB of DRAM.

The dongle should be enough to run Doom, which requires a 386 processor and 4MB of RAM. Apple put an SoC inside the dongle because the USB 2.0 protocol that Lightning used did not have the bandwidth required to run HDMI. So, it compressed the data from the Lightning device and then used the chip inside the adapter to decompress it for viewing on HDMI displays.

The adapter runs a simplified version of iOS, but since it doesn’t have persistent storage, the developer used their MacBook to load firmware with a file system. They also use the laptop's connection for controls, but aside from that, everything runs directly on the dongle.

Although Doom runs well already, nyan_satan said the game has yet to hit 60 FPS on the dongle with proper resolution. However, reimplementing the function that populates frames into the framebuffer can vastly improve performance, allowing the game to reach the desired quality on the Apple accessory.

The developer said he plans to release the software behind this Doom project as a package in the future, allowing anyone with a jailbroken iOS device to run it and try it for themselves. In the meantime, he plans to improve it further, like introducing sound output and finding a way to attach a controller to the dongle so you can play Doom without needing a Mac.

Doom is popular among many enthusiasts and developers, with the “But can it run Doom?” becoming a fun challenge to port the old game from 1993 to just about anything. And with the increasing power of chips, even the ones found in adapters and accessories, many people are finding ways to do just that. We’ve seen the game run on the Nintendo smart alarm clock and on a neural chip that uses just one mw, and we’ve also encountered ports of the game on the most unexpected of places, like a Microsoft Word document, a PDF file, and even a Captcha.

Today marks a significant milestone in display interface technology as two major advancements were announced at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. The HDMI Forum introduced HDMI 2.2, offering improved performance and greater bandwidth for high-resolution and data-intensive applications. Simultaneously, the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) announced updates to the DisplayPort 2.1 specification, upgrading it to DisplayPort 2.1b, with notable enhancements for cable length and flexibility.

HDMI 2.2 is a substantial upgrade over its predecessor, HDMI 2.1. While it retains the same connector design, the standout feature is the increase in bandwidth to 96 Gbps, facilitated by the new "Ultra96" HDMI cables. This expanded bandwidth supports higher resolutions and refresh rates, including 4K at up to 480 Hz, 8K at up to 240 Hz, and even 10K at 120 Hz.

Although no current monitors or displays achieve these extreme specifications, the extra bandwidth of HDMI 2.2 will primarily benefit demanding, data-intensive applications. These include AR/VR/MR, spatial reality, light field displays, and commercial uses such as large-scale digital signage, medical imaging, and machine vision.

In addition to its support for higher resolutions, HDMI 2.2 addresses longstanding audio-visual synchronization issues by introducing the Latency Indication Protocol (LIP). This protocol improves the alignment of audio and video signals, especially in complex setups involving multiple devices such as AV receivers or soundbars. The result is the elimination of frustrating audio-video lag, ensuring a more seamless entertainment experience—a feature particularly appealing to home theater enthusiasts.

To ensure the authenticity and quality of Ultra96 cables, the HDMI Forum has implemented an extensive certification program, including anti-counterfeit measures. This initiative addresses potential issues related to tariffs and counterfeit products, ensuring consumers receive genuine, high-performance cables.

HDMI 2.2 should roll out in the first half of the year, though devices supporting the new standard are unlikely to hit the market in significant numbers until next year. Notably, the standard is backward compatible, meaning it will seamlessly work with devices featuring HDMI 2.1 or older ports.

Updates to the DisplayPort 2.1 specification, while not as groundbreaking as HDMI 2.2, are still noteworthy. VESA announced new DP80LL ("low loss") active cables that support up to four-lane UHBR20 link rates, achieving a maximum throughput of 80 Gbps over lengths of up to three meters. This enhancement effectively triples the cable length for UHBR20 connections compared to existing DP80 passive cables, offering greater flexibility in device placement and setup configurations.

These updates have been made possible through VESA’s collaboration with industry leaders like Nvidia, ensuring optimal performance and compatibility between GPUs and the upcoming DisplayPort 2.1b technologies. Certified DP80LL cables should hit the market in the coming months.

While the advancements in HDMI 2.2 and DisplayPort 2.1b highlight the industry's dedication to delivering higher-quality visual experiences, most consumers will not feel an immediate impact. Current HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 2.0 standards are more than sufficient for driving everyday devices, and it may be years before these new standards become mainstream.

Nevertheless, these innovations set the stage for the next generation of display technology, paving the way for immersive visuals, seamless audio-video synchronization, and enhanced flexibility in professional and consumer applications. As these technologies mature, they promise to redefine how we experience and interact with visual media.

Commodore 64 devotee Side Projects Lab has released a video teaser showcasing a "true Full-HD HDMI" adaptor for the iconic 8-bit home computer. Apparently, the development of this slick HDMI solution with stereo sound routed through the HDMI cable has taken a full year. If you are interested in the new HD-64, there is still some wait time though, as the first production batch won't be ready until later in Q1.

Side Projects Lab (SPL) thanks fellow C64 video aficionado c0pperdragon early on in the video, as you will see the new FHD HDMI adaptor is built on that impressive prior work (which featured RCA YPbPr video outputs). SPL bought c0pperdragon's drop-in RF modulator replacement daughterboard about a year ago and while pleased with the RCA video output, felt the desire for a crisp HDMI option, with 1080p upscaling, and stereo audio via a single cable.

The C64's VIC-II graphics chip doesn't have a digital video output, and its analog video "is often noisy and distorted beyond repair," according to SPL. In other words, this is a GIGO situation that can't be fixed with filters or other image processing tech - after the fact. c0pperdragon knew this too, so made an interleaver that grabbed digital video signals before they got to the VIC-II graphics chip.

However, SPL wanted to output to the ubiquitous HDMI connector at true FHD. Moreover, for the utmost convenience, they decided to direct SID audio through the same HDMI port. This became the HD-64 project, now claimed to be "the definitive HDMI solution for the Commodore 64." You can read through the above-linked GitHub pages for deeper details on how all the necessary video frame and audio data was acquired and fed to a VIC-II emulator in the FPGA – with just <1ms latency added.

As well as its thoroughly modern convenience, the new HD-64 comes with some retro gaming niceties like scanlines, anti-aliasing, color tweaking, and aspect ratio adjustments in C64 software. Moreover, the developer promises to add adjustable overscan support in due course.

Pure retro vs modern convenience

Owning, cherishing, and making use of old computers comes with a convenience penalty, and that notion applies to the 1982 classic Commodore 64 as much as its contemporaries and 16-bit successors. This HDMI solution makes using the C64 with modern HDMI TVs and monitors so simple.

Ancient supporting hardware and peripherals like CRTs, tapes, floppies, and so on are simply wearing out or breaking with less and less hope for repair or service as we emerge halfway through the 2020s. Meanwhile, convenient and accurate emulation software for PCs, Macs, and consoles continues to be refined. This seems to be why Retro gamers have recently been observed to be backing away from overtly purist tendencies.

A portable monitor can provide an extra screen for your laptop when you travel, serve as a compact display for a Raspberry Pi project, help you test a desktop that's still on your workbench, or even connect to a game console when you take it on vacation. When it comes to the best portable monitors, we prioritize good image quality, a lightweight chassis, strong usability, and versatile connectivity options.

There is a lot of variety in this space, with prices ranging from around $50 to well over $700 and screen sizes measuring from 10.5 inches to 18.5+ inches and beyond. You can find portable monitors with a 4K resolution, 240Hz+ refresh rates, touch input, and even wireless connectivity.

No matter what kind of user you are, I'm sure you can find a portable monitor that suits your needs at a price you're comfortable with. With this in mind, I've tested a range of brands and models to help you find the best portable monitor for your needs.

Below are our top choices, followed by some portable monitor shopping tips and details on how we benchmark. If you're looking for a screen that stays on your desk, check out our list of the best gaming monitors.

Prime Day Exceptional Portable Monitor Deal

Here is a standout deal from the current Prime Day event. Our list of best overall picks continues below.

The Best Portable Monitors You Can Buy Today

Best Overall Portable Monitor

The ViewSonic TD1656-2K is the sweet spot when it comes to portable monitors. Not only does it have a large 16-inch IPS panel, but it also boasts a generous 2K (2560 x 1600) display. At this price point, you’re usually stuck with 1080p or 1200p panels, so the TD1656-2K is a cut above the rest.

The TD1656-2K also has multi-touch, which is natively supported in Windows 11. However, that support also extends to macOS thanks to ViewSonic’s vTouch software package. An active stylus pen is also included in the box to assist in taking notes or drawing images in macOS or Windows.

Beyond the excellent hardware features (including a premium-feeling aluminum chassis), the TD1656-2K was near the top of the class in DCI-P3 and sRGB coverage and topped all competitors in brightness (363 nits).

More: ViewSonic TD1656-2K Review

Best Budget Portable Monitor

Over the past few years, we’ve seen a race to the bottom with respect to portable monitor pricing. However, the steep decline in street prices doesn’t mean that you have to contend with extremely poor quality (as was once the case in this segment).

Enter the Arzopa A1, which is a value-priced, no-frills 15.6-inch portable monitor. It has a 1080p resolution, which is standard for this class, and an integrated kickstand (which we absolutely love for portable monitors).

The A1 features two USB-C ports and even includes a mini-HDMI port (which is sometimes left out to reach a lower price point). I was even surprised at the dual 1-watt speakers, which offer good clarity and output. This is almost unheard of in a portable monitor that costs well under $100.

You can’t have it all regarding a budget monitor, and the A1 does fall behind the competition in color performance. In addition, its maximum brightness (which we measured at 228 nits) was vastly outperformed by its competitors. However, the current street price for the A1 is $70, making it an easy pick for value-conscious consumers.

More: Arzopa A1 review

Best Portable Monitor for Productivity

We’ve previously been impressed with the Espresso Displays 17 Pro, a 17-inch portable monitor that offers a remarkable picture, a high-quality chassis, and a trick magnetic stand. Now, the company has delivered a slightly smaller counterpart that still has all of those perks with a lower price tag.

The new 15 Pro features a 15.6-inch IPS panel (down from 17.3 inches), but still retains a 4K (3840 x 2160) resolution. Espresso Displays also managed to improve upon the 17 Pro by boosting the maximum brightness by over 50 percent in our testing.

The monitor ships with the Stand+, which is a versatile articulating stand that magnetically attaches to the back. Because of the magnets, you can easily transition the 15 Pro from landscape to portrait mode. Likewise, you can adjust the height and tilt to suit your viewing preferences. There’s also an extra hinged “leg” at the bottom of the stand that allows you to position the 15 Pro above your laptop’s integrated display.

But the perks don’t end there. The 15 Pro also has multi-touch support, which works natively in Windows 11. However, that support extends to macOS when you install the free EspressFlow software. EspressoFlow also lets you configure virtual desktops for the 15 Pro.

With a price tag of $699, the 15 Pro isn’t cheap, but it offers a complete package for productivity warriors who crave some extra display resolution, flexibility with viewing modes, and a well-integrated software experience.

More: Espresso Displays 15 Pro Review

Best Portable Gaming Monitor

The Nexigo NG17FGQ achieves a feat that we don't often see in the portable monitor realm: it offers a tantalizing 300Hz refresh rate in a 17.3-inch form factor and connects to a laptop or desktop via HDMI or USB-C (DisplayPort Alt-Mode).

However, you'll need to connect the monitor to a PC with a USB-C cable to reach that 300Hz threshold. Connecting via an HDMI cable limits you to 240Hz, which is still not bad for a portable monitor.

Thanks to its good build quality, excellent color representation, and great performance while gaming, the NG17FGQ is hard to beat for mobile gamers looking for a step up in performance. If that wasn't enough, a remote is included in the box to make it easier to navigate the OSD (instead of fumbling with sometimes poorly-placed physical buttons on the actual monitor) along with built-in speakers.

More: Nexigo NG17FGQ Review

Best Portable Wireless Monitor

ViewSonic has a vast portfolio of portable monitors, many of which I’ve reviewed for Tom’s Hardware. However, one of the company’s most impressive entries is the VG1656N, a feature-packed entry retailing for less than $300.

The monitor measures a relatively large 16 inches across with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 (16:10). If you’re looking for HDMI connectivity, you won’t find it here. However, the VG1656N does include two USB-C ports with DisplayPort Alt Mode support. More importantly, the VG1656N also supports wireless connectivity via the ViewSonic VG19948 USB-C dongle.

You can use the dongle with smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other computing devices. For example, the VG1656N shows up as an AirPlay display on Apple devices, allowing me to enjoy iOS games on the 16-inch display instead of my iPhone 16 Pro’s built-in 6.3-inch display. Bolstering this wireless support is a built-in battery for true “wireless” connectivity.

From a performance perspective, the VG1656N is among the top performers in terms of color but is mid-pack in brightness.

With a price tag of $299, the VG1656N isn’t an impulse buy for a portable monitor. However, it offers plenty of enticing features that make it a perfect fit for mobile warriors.

More: ViewSonic VG1656N review

FAQs for Best Portable Monitors

Shopping Tips for Best Portable Monitors

Discounts on the Best Portable Monitors

Whether you're shopping for one of the screens that made our list of best portable monitors above or something else, you may find savings by checking out our best monitor deals page, along with our lists of Dell coupon codes, Lenovo coupon codes, LG coupon codes, HP coupon codes, Monoprice coupon codes and Newegg promo codes.

MORE: Best Gaming Monitors

MORE: How We Test Monitors

MORE: All Monitor Content

MORE: HDMI vs. DisplayPort: Which Is Better For Gaming?

One of the main drawbacks of thin and light laptops, as well as tablets, is their limited number of I/O ports. This often requires you to carry extra adapters or docking stations, which can be inconvenient for travel or daily use. To address this issue, Sanwa Supply has introduced a wireless mouse with a receiver that doubles as a compact docking station. The mouse is available in two models: the 400-MAWBT209BK in black and silver and the 400-MAWBT209BK2 in black and blue.

The key feature of this device is its USB Type-C receiver, which goes beyond simply connecting the mouse wirelessly. The receiver integrates additional functionality, serving as a mini docking station. It includes an HDMI output that supports external displays with resolutions up to 4K at 60Hz, making it easy to connect to monitors or projectors.

Additionally, the receiver has a USB Type-C port compatible with USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps), allowing users to connect peripherals such as USB hard drives, memory sticks, and keyboards. However, Sanwa notes that devices using USB 3.2 Gen 1 may interfere with the 2.4GHz wireless network, which could cause occasional connectivity issues. The same port also supports USB Power Delivery (PD) up to 100W, with 10W used by the mouse itself, leaving up to 90W available for charging a connected PC or other devices.

The mouse supports dual wireless connectivity modes: Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless. A slide switch on the bottom allows users to toggle between the two modes. For portability, the USB Type-C receiver can be conveniently stored in a compartment on the underside of the mouse.

In terms of functionality, the mouse features five buttons, a blue LED optical sensor, and an adjustable resolution of 800, 1,200, and 1,600 DPI to suit different usage preferences. It is powered by a rechargeable battery that can be fully charged in approximately three hours.

The device supports a communication range of about 10 meters on non-magnetic surfaces and 2 meters on magnetic surfaces. The mouse itself measures 61 x 121 x 38 mm and weighs approximately 75 grams, while the receiver is compact at 47.4 x 23 x 9 mm, weighing around 10 grams.

Currently, there is no word on international availability, but the mouse is being sold on Amazon Japan for ¥5,980 (approximately $39 USD)

A new HDMI standard is set to launch at CES 2025 in January. According to a report, the HDMI Licensing Administrator, Inc. (HDMI LA) has already notified media outlets about a significant announcement scheduled during the trade fair in Las Vegas. The new standard, rumored to be named HDMI 2.2, is expected to deliver higher bandwidths and resolutions than its predecessor.

The HDMI Forum, which developed this widely adopted standard for video and audio transmissions, has confirmed a press conference for January 6, 2025. This event will probably reveal technical specifications and details about the new standard and its anticipated impact on the consumer electronics landscape.

Some speculation suggests that HDMI 2.2 might be compatible with Nvidia’s upcoming GeForce RTX 50-series and AMD’s Radeon RX 8000 series GPUs. Both companies have scheduled CES press events on January 6, coinciding with the HDMI Forum’s announcement. If confirmed, this would align the new HDMI standard with the latest DisplayPort 2.1 technologies, offering consumers expanded options for ultra-high-definition media and gaming experiences.

While the exact specifications of the upcoming standard are still being developed, HDMI LA has confirmed that the new version will introduce next-generation HDMI technology capable of supporting higher resolutions, refresh rates, and enhanced transmission quality. The announcement also hints at the need for a new cable to harness these advancements, marking a critical update for content producers and consumers alike.

HDMI 2.2 may enable uncompressed support for higher resolutions, such as 8K at 120 Hz and 10K at higher frame rates. The latest standard, HDMI 2.1b, currently supports a gross transfer rate of 48 Gbps and resolutions like 8K60 with compression via Display Stream Compression (DSC). HDMI 2.2 could either eliminate the need for DSC or improve upon its implementation, delivering seamless, high-quality content.

The thrill of playing on a mobile console can be significantly enhanced by connecting it to a large screen HDTV.

Utilizing an HDMI cable offers a seamless way to enjoy high-resolution video and theater-quality sound, transforming your gaming experience into something truly immersive. It also allows for others to see the game play.

Sometimes the TV can display a great image and even upscale, and sometimes the mobile console might limit the picture quality on a TV – so take care to check the settings. But for the price of an HDMI^® Cable there is not much to invest to find out.

High-Quality Audio and Video

HDMI technology provides the best way to transmit a secure and stable video and audio signal. By connecting your mobile gaming console to your HDTV with an HDMI cable, you can enjoy sharp visuals and rich colors, resulting in improved visual quality. With modern TVs that upscale to 4K and even 8K resolutions, you can take full advantage of your display’s capabilities. Additionally, if you have an eARC-enabled soundbar or AVR surround speaker system connected to your TV, the audio quality will be exceptional, adding depth to your gameplay.

Benefits of a Larger Screen

A larger screen size not only enhances the visual experience but also allows for a more immersive gaming environment. Games with detailed graphics and fast-paced action can be enjoyed on a bigger scale, making it easier to lose yourself in the virtual world. Whether you’re racing against friends or exploring expansive landscapes, a larger display heightens every gaming moment.

Connecting Various Mobile Consoles

Different mobile consoles offer various methods for connecting to your HDTV. Here are some guidelines for popular models:

1. Mobile Phones: To connect a mobile phone, use a USB-C to HDMI adapter that plugs into the phone’s charging port, linking it to an HDMI Cable. Simply connect the other end of the HDMI Cable to your TV’s HDMI port and switch your TV input to the appropriate HDMI source.
2. Steam Deck™: The Steam Deck Docking Station enables easy connectivity. Simply connect the HDMI Cable from the dock to your TV for an enhanced gaming setup.
3. Nintendo Switch: For both the standard and OLED models, connect the USB plug from the AC adapter to the dock’s "AC ADAPTER" port, then connect an HDMI Cable from the dock’s "HDMI OUT" to your TV.
4. Asus ROG Ally: Use an official ASUS ROG Gaming Charger Dock to connect your Ally to your TV via HDMI Cable. This dock also charges your device, ensuring you’re always ready to play.
5. Lenovo Legion Go: The USB-C dock provides multiple connectivity options, including an HDMI port that supports up to 4K at 60 Hz for stunning visuals.
6. Retroid Pocket 4 Pro: Use a micro-HDMI-to-HDMI-Type-A Cable and ensure you adjust the settings to connect to your TV properly.
7. AYN Odin 2: This system features a 3D-printed dock that connects via a micro-HDMI adapter for 1080p output.
8. Analogue Pocket: The Analogue Dock connects to the Pocket's USB Type-C port, allowing HDMI output to the TV.

Connecting your mobile gaming console to an HDTV using an HDMI Cable not only enhances your gameplay experience with better visuals and sound but also brings friends and family together for multiplayer sessions on the big screen. With these simple steps, you can elevate your gaming to a whole new level.

It is recommended to use a certified Premium High Speed HDMI^® Cable or Ultra High Speed HDMI^® Cable to ensure you get the best signal quality for your HDTV. Look for the official Premium High Speed or Ultra High Speed Certification Labels to make sure they are verified for compliance with the HDMI Specifications.

For more info visit www.hdmi.org.

The terms HDMI, HDMI High-Definition Multimedia Interface, HDMI Trade Dress, and the HDMI Logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of HDMI Licensing Administrator, Inc. All other trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks are the property of their respective owners in the United States and/or other countries.

Researchers in Uruguay have uncovered a way for hackers to use AI to snoop on what’s shown on your display by intercepting leaked electromagnetic radiation from the cable between your computer and monitor. They say such attacks are probably already happening, but home PC users don’t have much to worry about. The attacks can be done through multiple methods, including by using antennas placed outside a building to intercept signals from HDMI cables.

The spying is done by intercepting the electromagnetic radiation that leaks from your computer’s HDMI cable. Such snooping was much easier in the days of analog video signals, they say, because the digital transmission used for high-definition video is much more complex.

More complex, but that doesn’t mean the task is impossible. According to Federico Larroca at the University of the Republic in Uruguay, he and his team have developed an AI model that can reconstruct digital signals from leaked signals several meters away.

The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and NATO call these sorts of attacks TEMPEST attacks. The NSA’s TEMPEST standards (PDF) mandate protections to prevent electromagnetic radiation that hackers might intercept and interpret.

Using a method similar to the one Larroca’s team developed, hackers could snoop on a screen as the user entered encrypted messages, banking log-ins, or other personal information. The hackers could, the team says, intercept the signals even standing outside the building with an antenna. They could also plant a small device that captures the signals and either transmits the data or someone recovers it physically.

The researchers trained the AI model using a set of matching original and intercepted signals. Then, they used text recognition software on the recovered image and compared it to the original screen Image. In their testing, the eavesdropping process misinterpreted approximately 30% of the characters. The team says that the error rate is low enough that humans could still read most of the text accurately.

What’s concerning is that such attacks are growing more successful. The previous state-of-the-art attack method was about 60% more prone to errors than the one Larroca’s team has devised. The silver lining is that Larroca doubts the average home or small business computer user needs to worry about it.

Instead, Larroca believes such attacks are already happening, but only in highly sensitive industrial or government settings. In these cases, entire buildings are often shielded from electromagnet signals to prevent such security breaches. “Governments are worried about this, but I wouldn’t say that the normal user should be too concerned,” Larroca said. “But if you really care about your security, whatever your reasons are, this could be a problem.”

If you want sharp image quality, 4K resolution is an excellent place to be in 2025. Sure, there are 8K screens and even more modest 6K ones making the rounds these days, but they cost a pretty penny. On the other hand, lower resolutions deliver higher frame rates while using the best graphics cards. However, 3840 x 2160 sits at the head of the table regarding premium viewing experiences for what our eyes can perceive.

For years, the 4K resolution was a luxury not achievable for reasonably priced PC monitors. However, as these high-resolution screens have become more commonplace and the bleeding edge has turned to high refresh rates and full-array local dimming, a relatively large assortment of budget 4K monitors allows you to take the plunge without breaking the bank.

Below are the best budget 4K monitors we've tested. Thankfully, most of these monitors sell for under $400, allowing you to devote funds to other critical gaming components.

The Quick List

Best Budget 4K Monitors You Can Buy Today

Best Budget 4K Computing Monitor

The Samsung UR59C is the best budget 4K monitor, offering a 32-inch VA panel with accuracy and curves. Image quality is superb, with bold, accurate colors and clear text after calibration. When we tested in sRGB mode, we recorded a color error of 4.3dE with visible errors, but our calibration (see our recommended settings on page 1 of the review) got it down to 0.9dE. So your web and games should look as intended. The UR59C also offers fantastic contrast, as expected from a VA panel, hitting an impressive 2,590.5:1 after calibration.

Ultrawide screens typically offer more noticeable curves, but despite its 16:9 aspect ratio, the UR59C's1500R curve is pronounced and beneficial, allowing us to keep more windows in view.

This monitor isn't fit for serious gaming, but casual players can make it work. The UR59C has a 60 Hz refresh rate, 4ms response time, and no FreeSync or G-Sync to fight screen tears. You'd get noticeably better response times and input lag scores from a 75 Hz screen. But games didn't look bad with its high contrast and the pixel density of a 32-inch, 4K screen. So if you're games that aren't graphically intense or at lower settings and you have a speed enough graphics card that can consistently hit 60 frames per second (fps), you can enjoy blur-free gaming on the UR59C.

More: Samsung UR59C review

Best Budget 4K Gaming Monitor

You’ll have to pay a hefty price for a monitor that can push 8.3 million pixels at a 144 Hz refresh rate. The best budget 4K gaming monitor, the Asus TUF Gaming VG289Q, is a slower 60 Hz but fights screen tears with FreeSync. Yes, input lag is significantly larger than what you’ll find on a 144 Hz monitor, as is response time. But this is an excellent option if you’re working with a budget graphics card and want your games to look detailed and realistic. SDR games looked extra colorful on the VG289Q, and dynamic contrast brought subtle visual benefits, like added dimension. However, there are screens on this page with better contrast.

HDR isn’t as fantastic as you’ll find on a monitor with a full-array local dimming (FALD) backlight or an edge array backlight, but shadows and highlights looked more distinct, and we enjoyed the color boost.

For more premium high-res gaming screens, check out our Best 4K Gaming Monitors round-up.

More: Asus TUF Gaming VG289Q review

Best 32-inch Budget 4K Monitor

If the best budget 4K monitor for you is in the 32-inch range, check out the LG 32UN500-W Contrast is a top consideration for image quality, and the 32UN500-W’s VA panel didn’t disappoint in our benchmarks, hitting 2,353.9:1 out of the box. In addition, the 32UN500-W’s native color gamut is DCI-P3, and it covers that color space accurately without any visible errors.

Again, as a budget 4K monitor, the 32UN500-W isn’t winning any HDR prizes. Color lacks the expected pop, and overall the image doesn’t provide a noticeable boost over SDR.

But the 32UN500-W also thoughtfully includes two 5W speakers and even AMD FreeSync to fight screen tears during casual gaming. In general, it delivered popping colors with deep blacks, making it a great fit for your favorite 4K movie and the like.

More: LG 32UN500-W review

Best 27-inch Budget 4K Monitor

If you’re looking for high pixel density for not a lot of money, you’ve come to the right place. Take a gander at the Asus Rog Strix XG27UCS, which is a 27-inch 4K (3840 x 2160) IPS gaming monitor with a speedy 160 Hz refresh rate.

As you would expect from a ROG Strix gaming monitor, the XG27UCS comes packed with features, including a feature-packed OSD (including GamePlus options), FreeSync and G-Sync compatibility, nearly 100 percent coverage of DCI-P3, and HDR10 support — we even managed to hit close to 500 nits of HDR brightness.

We measured near-pro-level accuracy straight out of the box, with a grayscale error of 0.58dE (although it wasn’t quite able to match the segment leader). The color error score was also impressive at 1.06dE.

If there’s one glaring flaw that we could point out with the XG27UCS, it would be with its measured contrast. We measured 900:1 (versus a rated 1,000:1), which is near the bottom of the pack in this segment.

More: Asus Rog Strix XG27UCS Gaming Monitor Review

Best Budget 4K Monitor for Creatives

You should probably opt for a professional monitor if you're doing professional work. Pro monitors are known for offering exceptional accuracy for a premium price. But with monitors continuously improving, we’re at a point where you can find monitors with pro-level accuracy in key areas, like color, just without the pro-level price tag.

The HP U28 is one such screen and the best budget 4K monitor for creatives. Of course, none of the monitors on this page are color slouches, but the U28 stands out with its ability to accurately cover both the sRGB and P3 color spaces with just a switch in the OSD and no calibration. You also get an adjustable stand that allows height and swivel adjustments and the ability to flip into portrait mode, offering plenty of flexibility for creative work.

However, HP’s U28 comes at a cost premium. While not as pricey as professional monitors, the U28 is the most expensive monitor on this list as of this writing.

Still, with a USB-C port letting you charge laptops (or other devices), you may be able to reduce cable clutter, and there are many other ports here too. With that bonus in mind and creative-level accuracy, the U28 is great for feeding your hobby or even career.

More: HP U28 review

Best Budget 4K Monitor With USB-C

The Samsung 27” S80UA is a little more expensive than the other monitors on this page, but you won’t have to worry about image quality. It’s super colorful for a budget screen, covering 95% of DCI-P3, according to our testing, and accurately. You can also opt for sRGB mode, which also offers a low color gamut error of just 2.8dE.

Great for productivity, the S80UA has a great port selection, plus a USB hub. You can add three USB-A ports to your PC by connecting the monitor via USB-C. It can also charge devices via USB-C at up to 100W, so you may be able to ditch your ultraportable laptop’s charger.

You also have DisplayPort and HDMI options, and even a headphone jack. But there are no speakers, and like many budget 4K screens, HDR is a bust. You’re better off watching your HDR movies in the monitor’s SDR modes, but color will still look great. On top of that, the stand is reliable, even in portrait mode, but is a little low, despite height adjustment.

More: Samsung 27-inch S80UA review

Quick Shopping Tips

When looking for the best budget 4K monitor, keep this in mind:

• What size do you need? For a budget monitor, 32 inches is a nice sweet spot, providing ample screen space while still fitting atop a desk. If you don't need to share the screen, consider 28-inch and 27-inch screens. They're common in this price range and generally less expensive.

• Decide the monitor’s main purpose. For gaming, higher refresh rates and Adaptive-Sync (AMD FreeSync or Nvidia G-Sync) are priorities, alongside a beefy graphics card. You should have a minimum of a GTX 1070 Ti or RX Vega 64 for medium settings at 4K or, for high or better settings, an RTX-series or Radeon VII. For general productivity or entertainment, look for high contrast for high image quality. Creatives should strive for accuracy. For more, see How to Buy a PC Monitor, plus our Best Gaming Monitors list.

• Errors under 3 Delta E (dE) are generally invisible to the naked eye. A monitor with a 5dE color error, for example, probably has colors that look visibly off. Accuracy is a bigger priority for creative work.

• Do you need HDR? A 4K monitor with the right HDR implementation makes 4K/HDR content look much better than it would on a regular, SDR monitor. While many 4K monitors support HDR, few budget ones deliver it with noticeable impact. If you want a monitor that makes the HDR upgrade worth it, consider increasing your budget or opting for a lower resolution to save money. Read How to Choose the Best HDR Monitor for more.

• Consider ports and other features. Do you need HDMI 2.1 and/or the latest DisplayPort (1.4)? How important are USB Type-A ports to you? Do you want USB-C for charging or a single-cable setup? Speakers and the stand’s ability to tilt, swivel or rise are also considerations.

Finding Discounts on the Best Budget 4K Monitors

Whether you're shopping for one of the screens that made our list of best budget 4K monitors above or something else, you may find savings by checking out our best monitor deals page, along with our lists of Dell coupon codes, Lenovo coupon codes, LG coupon codes, HP coupon codes, Monoprice coupon codes and Newegg promo codes.

Earlier this week, we covered the decade-old Xi3 Piston Mini PC being tested by a YouTuber, Bringus Studios. Today, we'll also highlight one of the Piston's most unique, slept-on features: a DisplayPort that can also take HDMI. This information is also sourced from Bringus Studios, though the close-up on the video ports is from a short side-channel video, not the main channel. We've embedded this video below.

In addition to Bringus Studios' coverage, we'll also refer to the PC Watch writeup on the unique DP/HDMI hybrid port, which discusses in a little more detail how this is executed. For now, let's review the original source material, which highlights the true video output versatility of the Xi3 Piston.

So, following Bringus Studios' main Xi3 Piston coverage, a former Xi3 employee reached out on their Discord to clarify the purpose of the combo DP and HDMI port since everyone was under the impression it was a DP port with support for an HDMI signal, not full pin-compatibility.

While Bringus tests the device's video output switching capabilities by changing a BIOS setting and picking HDMI or DisplayPort, he's convinced that the default BIOS option will auto-detect which one happens to be plugged in.

So, what's the takeaway? Obviously, this remarkable, innovative feature doesn't suddenly redeem the name of the Xi3 Piston, which failed for several reasons. While known as one of the first potential "Steam Machines" (or "Steam Boxes") due to getting comfy with Valve, that partnership did not last long following Xi3's decision to support Windows instead of Steam OS.

However, the Xi3 Piston's failure has nothing to do with its genuinely unique video port. The PC Watch analysis looks closer at the connector Bringus believed was used for this—REGO Electronics' HDMI/DisplayPort 2-in-1 Connectors. It utilizes a 21st pin, which is not the original display standard. When "open," HDMI is inserted and operates as HDMI, while DisplayPort actually "closes" that 21st pin, enabling DP operation.

As noted by Bringus, this doesn't feel nearly as tacky as it should. There is no real downside: HDMI and DP output work fine off this specific port and fit snugly as if they're both intended for it. Regular HDMI and DP ports are quite blatantly incompatible with each other's standards, particularly with DP's bracket-shape " [ " internal connector versus HDMI's " | ".

But by adding an extra pin and cutting the down-hanging pieces of the original DP connector, you can engineer a DisplayPort that takes HDMI input just as well. Considering the modern status quo of GPUs with 3:1 DP: HDMI and monitors that (for some reason) are often the opposite configuration, more motherboards and GPUs could benefit from adopting this combined connector.

Although the HDMI Forum last week rejected AMD's proposal to implement HDMI 2.1+ features in open-source drivers, it looks like the open-source Nouveau driver for Nvidia's GPU will receive a warm reception by the standard-setting organization, reports Phoronix. As a result, advanced HDMI capabilities will work on Nvidia-based graphics cards under Linux. There is a catch though. 

Nouveau is an open-source graphics device driver for Nvidia graphics cards, which provides an open-source alternative to Nvidia's own driver. Nouveau supports a wide range of Nvidia GPUs and fully supports 2D and 3D acceleration, video playback, and power management, which allows to take full advantage of some of the best graphics cards around. However, when it comes to HDMI and some other features, Nouveau relies closed-source firmware. 

As a result, Karol Herbst, a long-time contributor to the Nouveau project, believes that since Nvidia's closed-source driver already supports HDMI 2.1, there is no reason to believe that Nouveau cannot achieve similar support as much of the display functionality handling in Nouveau is managed by Nvidia's closed-source firmware binaries. 

"Even though AMD might not be able to add support for HDMI 2.1 [to open-source Linux drivers], Nouveau certainly will as Nvidia's open source driver also supports HDMI 2.1 so there is no reason to believe that at least some drivers can't support HDMI 2.1," Herbs wrote at Mastodon. "It is quite backwards, but apparently having all the logic inside firmware (like Nvidia does) will probably help us implementing support for HDMI 2.1." 

It should be noted that the integration of HDMI 2.1+ functionality has yet to occur in Nouveau. Nvidia's own kernel driver implements HDMI 2.1 functionality through the use of GSP firmware blobs. This approach allows for a separation of proprietary and open-source components, enabling the Nouveau driver to potentially adopt a similar method for HDMI 2.1 support. The integration of HDMI 2.1 functionality into Nouveau would depend on the ability to utilize these firmware blobs effectively though. 

AMD has been trying for three years to enable support for 4K@120Hz and 5K@240Hz through HDMI 2.1 for Linux users. The HDMI Forum limits public access to its specifications, allowing only authorized manufacturers and developers to access the technical details needed to implement HDMI features in their products (and pay royalties to the developers of these technologies). While this decision ensures the quality and consistency of the HDMI experience, it significantly impedes the support for open-source drivers. Nvidia has a different approach to Linux drivers by essentially closing details of HDMI 2.1 features implementation from the open-source community.

AMD's open-source Linux graphics driver has hit a roadblock in adding HDMI 2.1+ due to the HDMI Forum's legal requirements. Despite lengthy attempts to find a solution, the HDMI Forum has rejected AMD's proposal, leaving users of some of the best graphics cards without the ability to use advanced features like 4K@120Hz and 5K@240Hz via HDMI 2.1. As a result, AMD recommends Linux users to switch to DisplayPort instead.

"The HDMI Forum has rejected our proposal unfortunately" said AMD Linux engineer Alex Deucher in a statement published in the bug report. "At this time an open source HDMI 2.1 implementation is not possible without running afoul of the HDMI Forum requirements." 

For three years, AMD has been grappling with a bug report indicating the absence of 4K@120Hz and 5K @ 240Hz support through HDMI 2.1for Linux users. This occurred because in 2021 the HDMI Forum restricted public access to its specifications. This move was to ensure that only authorized manufacturers and developers can access the technical details required to implement HDMI features in their products (and pay royalties to developers of respective technologies). On the one hand, this move ensures the quality and consistency of HDMI experience. But on the other hand, this greatly hindered open-source driver support. 

In response, AMD and the X.Org Foundation engaged with the HDMI Forum to devise a solution that would allow open-source implementations of the now-private HDMI specifications. AMD's Linux engineers, in collaboration with the company's legal team, dedicated months to evaluating all of the HDMI features to determine if they could be exposed in the open-source Radeon driver. They have reportedly developed internal code and awaited approval from the HDMI Forum. 

Unfortunately, the HDMI Forum ultimately denied AMD's request for open-source driver support. The rejection is especially frustrating considering the months AMD spent engineering and prototyping code for HDMI 2.1+ features within its internal open-source AMDGPU codebase, notes Phoronix. This effort, aimed at showcasing HDMI 2.1+ capabilities for review by the HDMI Forum, now appears to be a largely wasted investment of significant resources. 

In light of these challenges, AMD may need to explore alternative solutions, such as incorporating more features into its closed-source firmware or utilizing their PSP IP block to protect certain aspects of the HDMI specification. However, for the time being, the lack of HDMI 2.1+ feature support in open-source drivers remains reality. Consequently, open-source supporters are advised to use DisplayPort for the best experience.

Counterfeit HDMI cables seem to be a big problem in high-tech Taiwan. Public service broadcaster PTS and the Liberty Times both published reports on Wednesday, sharing news of a police raid that netted 3,037 counterfeit HDMI cables from online sellers based in several major cities. According to reports, the seized goods had an “infringement market value” of over TWD$80 million (USD$2.6 million).

While the PTS reports characterize online sellers of counterfeit HDMI products as “unscrupulous operators,” the Police Department’s view seems to be less judgmental. For example, a police captain is quoted as saying that both the public and online sellers misunderstand HDMI. They typically think it is just the name of a connector or wire, and don’t know it is a registered trademark, reasoned the law enforcement official. However, products using the HDMI standard technology and / or trademark need to come from license fee-paying companies.

To try and raise awareness that HDMI isn’t just a cable name that can be used by anybody, the HDMI Association had a presence at Computex this summer, where a second-generation anti-counterfeiting certification label was launched. Customers are supposed to look for official labels, which integrate anti-counterfeiting measures such as patterns, holographic elements, and QR codes.

So, how big is the scale of the counterfeit HDMI cable problem in Taiwan? We've already mentioned that counterfeit HDMI goods were seized to an “infringement market value” of approximately USD$2.6 million in just one day this week. That seems a lot of money for 3,037 seized goods, and would indicate a value of USD$850 per item… We wonder if the sum includes licensing fines and / or damages. The Taiwanese reports also cite statistics that suggest that between 2022 and August 2023 counterfeit HDMI products worth nearly TWD$4 billion (USD$128 million) were sold on the island.

The HDMI Association will be filing lawsuits against the counterfeiters. However, the reports emphasize that police action should also protect consumers from cables that are of poor quality. It was warned that cables that have been manufactured without following HDMI standards and guidelines might not provide a good or consistent signals and might be poorly made. They might also have the potential to cause electrical fires.

In the meantime, we had a quick check through Shopee online marketplace listings in Taiwan and there still seems to be a plethora of suspicious HDMI cables for sale. For reference, NTD$100 is just USD$3.20.

A retro-computing enthusiast was inspired to create a heady mix of old and new, crafting an 8-bit ISA graphics card with an HDMI output. Yeo Kheng Meng detailed his ISA HDMI card shenanigans on his blog. Meng based his work largely on a prior ISA card dubbed the Graphics Gremlin (GG), by Eric Schlaepfer, which delivered Monochrome Display Adapter (MDA) and Color Graphics Adapter (CGA) compatibility to monitors via composite out and VGA ports.

A problem often faced by retro-computing enthusiasts is when and how to mix their old, lovingly cared for hardware with new components. Some purists insist on using only period-correct components and peripherals, but most don't mind sprinkling a little modernity into the mix, usually for the sake of performance and / or convenience.

Meng began his work on the Graphics Gremlin modifications at least two years ago, possibly more. He faced a common problem for users of the IBM 5155 and similarly vintage PCs: These old PCs have a tricky time connecting to the luscious and expansive monitors we now have available in 2023.

It's not just the physical connection that needs to be worked out. The old MDA and CGA standards also used techniques like scan doubling and some refresh rates that aren't compatible with more modern monitors, including VGA.

The Graphics Gremlin was a good starting point for an MDA and CGA compatible ISA graphics card with HDMI, as it had already brought those standards in line with VGA several years earlier. However, Meng had a couple of other modifications on his wish list. He wanted to be able to use both ports on the card simultaneously, and he wanted to avoid putting a video quality sapping VGA to HDMI converter in the chain.

If you want to dig deep into the electronics and software work required to modify the Graphics Gremlin into an HDMI connected card, you can reference both the maker's blog post and open-sourced GitHub repository.

Above you can see the original Graphics Gremlin design (left) and the new model with HDMI and other improvements (right). Meng seems to be pleased overall with his adapted card, based around a Lattice iCE40HX4K FPGA and 512KB of VRAM. Specifically, the HDMI is as clear as can be with its direct digital TTL signal feed from a TI TFP410 DVI transmitter. Also the analog composite output can now work at the same time as the other output.

Other goodies that Meng managed to work into his Graphics Gremlin HDMI redesign include:

• Added LED power indicators
• Selectable MDA colors
• Added a CGA 70 Hz mode
• Modified scan doubler code for better compatibility

Despite his headlining success, a few issues remain with Meng's modified Graphics Gremlin card. Probably the most noticeable wrinkle is with CGA brown being "displayed incorrectly as dark yellow." This is clearly manifested on the IBM 5155 running the CGA Compatibility Tester color palette check.

Meng appears to indicate fixing the adaptor's handling of palette value “I:0 R:1 G:1 B:0” would need a different FPGA, one with more pins. We don't know if a subsequent tweaked design will be made to address this coloring issue.

Every dollar counts in the best gaming laptops under $1,000, where Acer’s Nitro 16 ($999.99 as tested) stands out as one of the best values. Its AMD Ryzen 5 CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 are a potent combo, and games really come to life on its bright 1920 x 1200, 165 Hz screen.

The Nitro 16 also doesn’t miss out on creature comforts with its four-zone RGB keyboard, USB 4 Type-C port, quiet fans, and long battery life. The few areas where it doesn’t do well, namely its tinny speakers and preloaded bloatware, aren’t as significant in the bigger picture. For under $1,000, this Acer is the real deal.

Design of the Acer Nitro 16

Acer’s bread-and-butter Nitro series sits below its premium Predator line. The Nitro 16 we’re looking at is a revamp of the Nitro 5, doing away with the old 16:9 screen standard for the more modern (or retro, depending on how long you’ve been paying attention to display tech) 16:10 aspect ratio.

The laptop’s all-plastic shell isn’t a surprise given its entry-level status, but it’s well made and doesn’t feel fragile. Its surfaces were resisten to flex even when I pressed hard with my fingertips.

The lid received a makeover with flashy graphics and Acer’s “N” (for Nitro) logo, which looks backlit in photos but isn’t. The N logo also found its way into the bottom screen bezel. I think the lid graphics rescue this laptop from looking boring; it would otherwise have only its backlit keyboard to catch the eye. The lines are simple and, as a Miami Vice fan, pink and blue are a perfect pairing in my eyes.

I have mixed thoughts on the Nitro logo. It’s something new since the Nitro 5 didn’t have it, so Acer is clearly making efforts to build the brand. My issue is that it didn’t immediately look like an “N”, so initially I didn’t know what it meant, and I’m still not convinced that this logo is memorable. I wonder why Acer didn’t just spell out “Nitro” in the same crystalized font.

The Nitro 16 is 14.8 x 11.02 x 1.1 inches and 5.95 pounds. The MSI Katana 15 is trimmer at 14.13 x 10.20 x 0.98 inches and 4.96 pounds, but it has a 16:9 screen. That’s also true of HP’s Victus 16 (14.53 x 10.21 x 0.90 inches and 5.15 pounds.) Pricier 16-inch 16:10 laptops, such as the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i Gen 8 (14.3 x 10.25 x 1.05 inches and 5.6 pounds) tend to be trimmer as well.

The Nitro 16’s highly usable port selection starts on its left with a Killer E2600 Ethernet jack, a USB 2.0 port, a MicroSD card reader, and a 3.5 mm headphone/microphone jack.

On its right are two 10 Gbps USB-A ports, a Kensington cable lock slot, and LED status lights.

The back edge has the barrel-style power connector, an HDMI 2.1 video output, a USB 4 Type-C port, and a 10 Gbps USB-C port. The laptop also has built-in Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2 wireless. The USB 4 port is quite an inclusion on an entry-level gaming laptop; there are plenty of far more expensive laptops that don't have those yet.

Acer Nitro 16 Specifications

Gaming and Graphics on the Acer Nitro 16

We’re testing an Acer Nitro 16 with an AMD Ryzen 5 7640HS processor, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 6GB graphics, and 16GB of RAM. The GeForce RTX 4050 is rated for an unusually high 140 watts (W) of total graphics power.

Playing Cyberpunk 2077 at 1920 x 1200 with the High detail preset and DLSS frame generation, I saw a smooth 85-95 fps from the Nitro 16 in most scenes, with a slight dip during firefights. Enabling the least-demanding Ray Tracing preset dropped framerates down to 60-70 fps or even lower in action scenes. So while the RTX 4050 is competent, it doesn’t have a lot of horsepower to spare for advanced graphics features. It’s nonetheless good to see that it has 6GB of video memory, which many modern games will use completely. 

I compared the Nitro 16 to two other entry-level gamers, the HP Victus 16 (Core i7-13700H, 115W RTX 4050) and the MSI Katana 15 (Core i7-13620H, 105W RTX 4050), and I also included the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i Gen 8 (Core i7-13700HX, 140W RTX 4060) to show what the next tier up offers.

In Shadow of the Tomb Raider (highest settings), the Nitro 16 took second place at 1080p with 75 fps, just ahead of the Katana 15 (73 fps) but behind the Victus 16 (79 fps). None of those RTX 4050 laptops could touch the Lenovo and its RTX 4060 (107 fps). The Nitro 16 dropped a few frames to 69 fps at its native 1920 x 1200, while the Lenovo saw a more severe drop-off (to 62 fps) since it has a 2560 x 1600 native screen.

Moving on to Grand Theft Auto V (Very High preset), the Nitro 16 produced 73 fps at 1080p, the highest number among the RTX 4050 laptops, and fell just slightly to 67 fps at 1200p.

Next, the Nitro 16 saw a slight reversal in Far Cry 6 (Ultra), achieving 73 fps at 1080p, to trail the Victus 16 (77 fps) and the Katana 15 (81 fps). The Lenovo maintained its commanding lead (94 fps).

In the most demanding title we test, Red Dead Redemption 2 (Medium), the Nitro 16 managed 49 fps at 1080p, with the Victus 16 (53 fps) and the Katana 15 (52 fps) not doing much better. This is a game where the Lenovo’s RTX 4060 is more important since it was the only laptop to vault over the 60 fps mark.

Last is Borderlands 3 (“Badass” settings), where the Nitro 16’s 63 fps at 1080p was last place in the group; it fell to 59 fps at 1080p.

Overall, the Nitro 16’s gaming performance mixed in with that of the Victus 16 and Katana 15. We expected it to perform slightly better than those two because of its higher wattage RTX 4050, but the other variable is the Ryzen 5 7640HS CPU, which may not be as game-capable Intel chips in the others. Either way, the Nitro 16 seems to have plenty of oomph for today’s games at 1920 x 1200.

For thermal stress testing, we run the Metro Exodus benchmark at RTX settings 15 times to simulate half an hour of gaming. The Nitro 16 averaged 58.26 fps and deviated usually just a few tenths of an fps between runs. The Ryzen 5 7640HS had an average temperature of 76.6 degrees Celsius and an average core clock of 4,326.8 MHz. The RTX 4050’s average temperature was 75.71 degrees and its boost clock averaged 2,232.53 MHz.

Productivity Performance on the Acer Nitro 16

The Acer Nitro 16 tested here has an AMD Ryzen 5 7640HS CPU, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. There’s ample performance for everyday usage. The RAM and SSD are upgradeable, and a second SSD can be added. (See the Upgradeability section below.)

The Ryzen 5 7640HS is an intriguing chip in the sense it tries to maintain a lower power profile (its thermal design power is configurable from 35 to 54 watts, according to AMD) yet is rated for a 5.0 GHz boost clock.

In Geekbench 6, a synthetic CPU-focused benchmark, the Nitro 16’s 2,482 points in the single-core test blew away the others; the next closest was the Victus 16, with 1,913 points. The Ryzen 5 fell well behind in the multi-core test, though, scoring 10,221 points versus the Victus 16’s 12,024 points and the almost identical 12,017 points from the Katana 15. Meanwhile, the Lenovo’s stronger Core HX-class chip scored 14,967 multi-core points.

Our file transfer test, which copies 25GB of files, saw the Nitro 16 in last place at 763.3 MBps. The next-slowest Katana 15 easily outpaced it (1,045.33 MBps) and the others were well above it.

The relative weakness of the Nitro 16’s CPU also showed itself in our Handbrake test, where it transcoded a 4K video to 1080p in 5 minutes and 48 seconds, far off the pace set by the Victus 16 (4 minutes and 40 seconds) and nowhere near the Lenovo’s 3 minutes and 39 seconds.

Display on the Acer Nitro 16

The 16-inch 1920 x 1200 screen on the Nitro 16 we testedn is what most Nitro 16 models come with. Easily one of this laptop’s best features, its bright, vibrant picture would be at home on a considerably more expensive machine. It also has an anti-glare surface to kill reflections.

Nvidia G-Sync is a real asset; as we saw in our gaming tests, the Nitro 16’s RTX 4050 likely won’t push close to the display’s 165 Hz refresh rate in modern titles (perhaps excepting esports with the settings dialed down), so this technology can help make the action look smoother by eliminating tearing.

Everything I put on the Nitro 16’s screen was enjoyable. In Marvel’s “The Marvels” trailer, I was able to appreciate the film’s rich colors, and the screen’s high contrast made space scenes especially immersive. The black levels were deep enough that I hardly noticed the black bars running along the top and bottom edges. I also had a grand time in Cyberpunk 2077; the screen’s high brightness made muzzle flashes and explosions almost squint-worthy. I even bought extra colorful clothing for my character to enjoy the screen’s color coverage. 

For gaming, I noticed no ghosting or frame tearing, thanks to the screen’s rated 3ms response time and G-Sync support. I also didn’t notice any input lag; this laptop features Nvidia Advanced Optimus, so it can completely switch to the Nvidia GPU while gaming and to integrated graphics for less intense workloads.

The Nitro 16’s display has the best brightness and color coverage in this group, and not by small margins. Its 91% coverage of the DCI-P3 gamut (the colorspace typically used in motion pictures) is outstanding and puts the Katana 15’s 49% to shame. Even the pricier Lenovo couldn’t match it (82.8%). Its 371-nit brightness also beat the next-brightest Lenovo (349 nits). The Katana 15’s screen registered just 250 nits.

Keyboard and Touchpad on the Acer Nitro 16

The Nitro 16 comes with a four-zone RGB backlit keyboard with a number pad. The white key symbols in Acer’s familiar gaming-centric font starkly contrast with the black keycaps. The backlighting is plenty visible in the daytime, and I like that Acer highlighted the WASD key cluster with an extra thick border.

I hit 118 words per minute with 99% accuracy in the Monkeytype typing test, which is excellent for me. The keys’ short throw helped me reach that speed, though I was disappointed by the lack of tactile feel; these keys simply don’t feel like much to press down. At least the keyboard deck shows little flex.

Acer just managed to squeeze in the number pad using two-thirds-size keys. The arrow keys are full-size but unfortunately aren’t separated out, so the right Shift and number pad ‘0’ key are truncated. The power button is at the top right of the number pad; next to it are convenient media playback controls. There’s also a button to launch the Nitro Sense app. (See the Software section.)

Meanwhile, the Nitro 16’s touchpad works well, offering plenty of space and quiet physical clicks. It can be disabled (or re-enabled) with the keyboard shortcut Fn + F10.

Audio on the Acer Nitro 16

The Nitro 16’s built-in speakers aren’t one of its assets. I noticed a near-complete lack of bass listening to Kacey Musgraves’ “Lonely Weekend”; having the Bass Booster feature enabled (or any of the other EQ presets) in the DTS:X Ultra app didn’t improve things. The vocals also seemed like the treble was turned up too high, but it seems to be the nature of these speakers. Everything sounded hollow. Games are playable with them – I survived many firefights in Cyberpunk 2077 – but the absence of bass translates to a less-than-immersive experience. Grenades and heavy-caliber guns don’t have much of an impact.

The other included audio app is DTS Sound Unbound, which seems to be geared towards headphones. It’s also used to activate the included DTS:X Headphone license.

Upgradeability of the Acer Nitro 16

The Nitro 16’s bottom panel comes off after undoing 11 same-length Phillips screws and enduring a little frustration. Like on most laptops, the panel is still held on by clips after the screws are out. But finding a spot where I could wedge in my plastic trim tool was a challenge. The palm rest corner where I ended up making my entry required more force than I wanted to use.

Upgrade possibilities include the battery, two DDR5-5600 SO-DIMM slots, two M.2 2280 Gen 4 SSD slots, and the M.2 2230 wireless card. Having a second storage drive slot is always a bonus, as games keep getting bigger.

Battery Life on the Acer Nitro 16

Our battery life test consists of web browsing, video streaming, and OpenGL graphics tests at 150 nits of screen brightness. The Nitro 16 lasted an impressive 8 hours and 24 minutes here, easily outrunning the HP Victus 16’s 7 hours and 3 minutes. The MSI Katana 15 eked out just 2 hours and 39 minutes.

Heat on the Acer Nitro 16

We take gaming laptop surface temperature measurements while running the Metro Exodus stress test. During the test, the center of the Nitro 16’s keyboard reached 94 degrees Fahrenheit (34.4 degrees Celsius) between the G and H keys and hit a cooler 83 F (28.3 C) on the touchpad. The maximum temperature on the bottom of the laptop was 139 F (59.4 C) towards center-back, around the heat exhaust vents. Using this laptop on a solid surface while gaming will be important for airflow. Overall, though, the surfaces where you’d place your hands while gaming weren’t too far off room temperature.

The fans ramped up quickly while gaming, but I was pleasantly surprised at their quietness and lack of whine and motor noise.

Webcam on the Acer Nitro 16

Centered over the screen, the Nitro 16’s webcam sits tall enough that I could almost look at it at eye level. Unfortunately, its lowball 720p resolution lets it down, with obviously pixelated image quality and a lack of sharpness. It also tends to blow out highlights like most small-sensor cams, though colors come through without looking washed out.

The webcam also doesn’t have a privacy shutter or electronic means of disabling it. Check out our best webcams if you intend to look your best.

Software and Warranty on the Acer Nitro 16

The Nitro 16’s most useful included app is NitroSense, which lets you set performance modes. Balanced is the default; Quiet keeps the fans lower at the expense of performance, while Performance and Turbo modes aim to boost performance at the expense of fan noise.

I ran the Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark to test Turbo. Using the Highest settings at a 1920 x 1200 resolution, I saw 69 fps without Turbo and 72 fps with Turbo, a small gain that, to me, certainly isn’t worth the much louder fans.

NitroSense’s other claim to fame is control over the four-zone keyboard backlighting. Colors can be changed, and there are limited animations available, such as breathing and wave. Some effects, such as meteor, illuminate one zone of the keyboard at a time. All the app’s settings can be saved to profiles and, in a feature I especially like, can be automatically enabled depending on the scenario. The App Center section in the app lets you add programs and bind them to profiles; every time you open PowerPoint, for instance, the Quiet performance profile could be enabled. Games can also be bound to their own profiles.

I already mentioned the DTS:X Ultra app for sound settings and DTS Sound Unbound for accessing the DTS:X Headphone license. (The two apps really ought to be combined.) There’s also Acer Purified Voice Console, which’s supposed to help reduce microphone background noise, and an Acer Care app for system updates and maintenance utilities.

As the Nitro 16 has both a Killer Ethernet jack and Wi-Fi 6E, it includes the Killer Intelligence Center app. It automatically prioritizes game traffic but also provides manual controls. It furthermore supports Killer Doubleshot Pro for simultaneous network connections; game traffic goes over Ethernet while Wi-Fi is for everything else. This is another impressive feature for a budget gaming laptop.

Unfortunately, Acer committed a cardinal sin by preloading the Nitro 16 with plenty of junk apps. The usual Windows 11 freebies are there, such as Spotify and TikTok, but there’s also an ExpressVPN trial, Forge of Empires, and an annoying Dropbox Promotion. Some of Acer’s apps also appear to be almost without value, such as the Acer Product Registration which merely opens a link to Acer’s website. The worst one is Acer Jumpstart, which seems to do nothing but produce ads in the form of Windows notifications. These are all easily uninstalled, but ideally, they wouldn’t have been there at all.

The Nitro 16 has a standard one-year warranty, like most budget gaming laptops.

Acer Nitro 16 Configurations

We tested the Acer Nitro 16 model AN16-41-R3ZV, with an AMD Ryzen 5 7640HS processor, Nvidia RTX 4050 6GB graphics, 16GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. It retails for $1,199.99 in the Acer Store, but it was discounted to $999.99 at the time of this review.

Our configuration is a step up from the $999.99 base model (AN16-41-R148), which has a Ryzen 5 7535HS CPU and 8GB of RAM. There’s also a step-up $1,399.99 model (AN16-41-R4CY) with a Ryzen 7 7840HS, an RTX 4060 graphics card, and a 1TB SSD. There’s even a $1,799.99 version (AN16-41-R5KC) with a Ryzen 9 7940HS, an RTX 4070, and a 2560 x 1600 screen. All the other models I saw, including ours, used a 1920 x 1200 screen.

Bottom Line

Acer’s Nitro exemplifies what a 16-inch budget gaming laptop should be like. This laptop delivers the gaming performance we expect in this class, with ample extras, including a four-zone RGB keyboard, G-Sync, and lots of ports. Its outstanding screen and long battery life elevate its appeal over the HP Victus 16 and the MSI Katana 15.

Areas where the Nitro 16 could improve include its speakers, webcam (though 720p is still the norm in this class), and by including less preloaded bloatware. It’s also noteworthy that its Ryzen 5 HS-class processor isn’t as strong as Intel’s Core i7 H-class chips we had in our test pool, though it was still competitive in our gaming tests.

Overall, the Nitro 16 is among our top picks for a budget gaming laptop and is a great buy at around $1,000.

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16-inch laptops are all the rage in the Windows realm, so it’s not shocking to see that size class invade the portable monitor space. Asus is throwing its weight behind 16-inch monitors with the new ZenScreen MB16QHG, priced at $399.

The ZenScreen MB16QHG features a 2560 x 1600 resolution (16:10) IPS panel and doubles the refresh rate of typical portable monitors to 120Hz. Throw in good color performance, a robust stand and one of the brightest panels we’ve seen for a portable monitor, and the MB16QHG has a lot going for it. However, is it impressive enough to be classified as one of the best portable monitors? Let’s dive in. 

Asus ZenScreen MB16QHG Specifications

Design of the Asus ZenScreen MB16QHG

The ZenScreen MB16QHG is on the larger side for a portable, although obviously smaller than the 23.8-inch ZenScreen MB249C. I could fit it inside a bag designed for a 15.4-inch laptop.

Like some other ZenScreen monitors, the MB16QHG featured a hinged base rather than a kickstand or detachable/magnetic stand. This makes the unit a bit heavier, but it is solid and provides easy access to the ports. I also like this design arrangement because the cables connect low-down at desktop level and behind the screen. This way, the cables are largely out of sight and out of mind when using the monitor. Some monitors position the ports along the right and left edges of the display panel, making them an eyesore.

The hinge for the display allows it to sit completely vertical or lay down flat against the base (and any angle in between). However, do note that while reclining the display can be performed with one hand, the base is not heavy enough to do the same bringing the display back into the fully upright position. You will need to place one hand on top of the base and use your other hand to adjust the viewing angle. A tripod socket is also integrated into the bottom of the base, which can be used with standard tripods to suit your needs.

Speaking of the base, you’ll find a single full-size HDMI port and a full-function USB-C port on the right. The left side is home to a second USB-C port and a 3.5mm headphone jack. I used the included USB-C cable for my testing, as it’s a simple one-cable affair for power, video, and audio. In addition, the OSD joystick and a power button are located on the back of the monitor.

Build quality for the MB16QHG is very similar to other members of the ZenScreen family, meaning it is constructed primarily of plastic to keep costs in check and weight down. However, the plastic construction is not a detriment, as it doesn’t feel cheap, and the graining on the plastic feels premium. However, one oddity is the bottom bezel with an Asus logo in the center. Asus uses a circular milling pattern that cascades out from the logo. While the pattern is meant to bring some visual interest to the design, it reflected light into my eyes as I tried to use the monitor.

Image Quality and Performance of the Asus ZenScreen MB16QHG

The MB16QHG uses a 16-inch IPS display with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 (WQXGA). 2560 x 1600 is becoming a more common resolution for laptop displays, so it’s not surprising that it would also find its way to portable monitors – after all, they’re using the same panels in most cases.

I used the MB16QHG in conjunction with an Acer Swift Edge 16 laptop. It also features a 16-inch 2560 x 1600 panel, albeit using OLED technology. The two sit nicely beside each other, although the greater contrast of the OLED panel on the Swift Edge 16 was immediately noticeable. However, most folks will use the MB16QHG as a secondary screen; not their primary focus point.

To that end, I used the MB16QHG to add a few additional Microsoft Edge tabs, making it easier to scroll and research information as I wrote documents in Microsoft Word. I also used the monitor to edit Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and greatly appreciated the 2560 x 1600 resolution over similar panels with a 1920 x 1080 resolution.

It should also be noted that the MB16QHG rocks a 120Hz refresh rate, which is a nice upgrade from the run-of-the-mill 60Hz panels that we usually see in the portable monitor space. While 120Hz is nice in fast-paced games, I also appreciated it for more mundane tasks like fast-scrolling in Edge and Google Chrome. Text and images looked crisp while scrolling and lacked the typical hint of blur that usually accompanies scrolling with 60Hz monitors. Even though the MB16QHG boasts a 120Hz refresh rate, it is not Adaptive Sync compliant, meaning that there’s no AMD FreeSync or Nvidia G-Sync support.

The MB16QHG stood out in our brightness testing, delivering 417 nits compared to 373.6 nits for the second-place InnoCN 15AF. However, that performance was still well short of the 500 nits that Asus claims the MB16QHG can achieve. To achieve 100% brightness, plug the monitor in with the included wall adapter. Relying on a single USB-C cable to handle all the heavy lifting for power and video limits you to a maximum of 60 percent brightness.

Our instrumented testing also showed that the MB16QHG achieved 116.3 percent of the DCI-P3 color gamut and 163.2 percent of sRGB, which was excellent performance for an IPS panel. Only the InnoCN 15AF with its OLED panel delivered better results.

Panel uniformity was good, and I didn’t notice any backlight bleeding on the monitor.

I used the MB16QHG to watch The Incredibles 2, a favorite in the Hill household, while working on the Acer laptop. Colors looked excellent, and contrast was good in most situations. However, in some of the nighttime scenes, it was readily apparent that the MB16QHG is no match for OLED panels regarding black levels. What looked like true black on OLED panels looked more like a very dark grey on the MB16QHG.

On-Screen Display for the Asus ZenScreen MB16QHG

The MB16QHG’s on-screen display (OSD) is visually like other ZenScreen monitors. However, Asus has various methods with its monitors for navigating the OSD. While some ZenScreens use a row of buttons for navigation and executing commands, the MB16QHG uses a 5-way joystick.

Pressing on the joystick brings up the menu. You scroll up or down the available menus using the up/down buttons while pressing in on the center of the joystick serves as the action button. Moving the joystick right activates the next sub-menu, while moving it left acts as a "back" command.

The usual Asus OSD staples include picture modes, blue light filter, color settings, image settings, input select, system setup, menu shortcuts, and a user-customizable favorites menu. The model of the monitor, the current picture mode, resolution, current input and refresh rate are always present at the top of the OSD.

Bottom Line

The Asus ZenScreen MB16QHG is a good all-around portable monitor for those needing extra real estate at their desk or when travelling. The 2560 x 1600 resolution affords some extra vertical resolution over QHD panels, and the 16-inch screen size is the perfect match for the growing army of 16-inch laptops arriving in the marketplace.

Although our measured brightness levels came up short of the manufacturer’s claims, it still easily bettered the other monitors gathered in this test. Its color performance was also good, making it suitable for photographers in the field (that’s where the tripod mount comes in handy).

With a price tag of $399, the MB16QHG is by no means cheap. That’s the same price as the ZenScreen MQ16AH (15.6-inch, 1080p, OLED), and $100 more expensive than the ZenScreen MB14AHD (14-inch, 1080p, IPS). However, the MB16QHG offers a slightly bigger screen with a higher resolution. Things get a bit more dicey when you look at some lesser-known competition, like the InnoCN 15A1F, which gives you a punchy 15.6-inch 1080p OLED panel for $169. Sure, you’re giving up quite a bit regarding resolution, but you could buy two 15A1F’s for the price of one MB16QHG and still have money left over.

However, if you’re looking for some additional resolution over 1080p and bumping up to 4K resolution in a portable form factor is overkill for needs, the MB16QHG is worth considering. We just wish it was priced more competitively in the fast-growing portable monitor segment.

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Today at Newegg, you can pick up one of the best 4K gaming monitors, the Gigabyte M28U, at its lowest price to date. This gaming monitor usually goes for around $529, but right now you can get it for $449. Using the included $20 rebate card will take the final price down to $429.

The Gigabyte M28U is AMD FreeSync Premium Pro certified, which guarantees a high refresh rate, dense resolution, and low framerate compensation (LFC) support. It also ensures low latency for HDR and SDR, along with a meticulous color and luminance certification.

The Gigabyte M28U features a 28-inch super speed IPS panel with a 4K UHD resolution that measures up to 3840 x 2160. This gaming monitor has a short response time of 1ms and can reach a maximum refresh rate of 144 Hz. It also supports VESA Display HDR400.

It covers 94% of the DCI-P3 color gamut and is illuminated by a brightness of 300 nits. It has two 3W speakers integrated for audio ouput as well as a 3.5mm jack for external audio peripherals. A USB hub is included with three USB ports alongside a DisplayPort input and two HDMI ports for video input.

Visit the Gigabyte M28U gaming monitor product page at Newegg for more details and purchase options. Don’t forget to use the rebate card to redeem the offer.

The Asus ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi ($444.99) is aimed at creators of all levels. It comes with dual 40 Gbps USB 4 ports, fast networking capabilities up to 10 GbE, capable power delivery to support the latest AMD Ryzen 7000 series processors, four SATA ports, and four M.2 sockets for ultra-fast storage speeds. There’s not much missing on this board, but its >$400 price will be high for consumers who won’t utilize the creator-focused hardware.

The X670E-Creator includes three full-length PCIe slots, four SATA ports, and four M.2 sockets, each sporting M.2 Q-latches (screwless, for easy mounting). The configuration should be enough for users who have already moved most of their storage to M.2. For those with LAN-attached storage, the 10 GbE port allows the fastest access available for home PC hardware. The 40 Gbps ports also double as a video output for any USB4/Thunderbolt-based devices for additional flexibility. If audio is important, the board includes a last-gen flagship-class codec that should offer plenty of fidelity.

Our performance testing went well with this board; our ProArt sample performed as well or better than most of the competition. It excelled in the Procyon Office suite, especially in the Photo and Video editing portion. If you need a break from your busy workday, the ProArt also proved to be a competent gaming machine, too. Overall, this is a well-rounded, well-performing solution with the right feature set for creators.

To see if the board earns a spot on our best motherboards list, we’ll need to fully examine its impressive hardware and performance capabilities. But before we get into all the details, here is a complete list of specs for the ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi, direct from Asus.

Specifications: Asus ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi

Inside the Box

The ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi comes with a set of accessories to help get you going on your build. It even includes a short DisplayPort cable to use with its DP-input functionality and USB 4 ports. Like many boards these days, it doesn’t come with a driver disk, so you’ll have to download them from the Asus website. Below is a complete list of the included accessories:

• (4) SATA 6Gb/s cables
• Wi-Fi antennas
• M.2 Q-Latch
• Rubber spacers for M.2 drives
• M.2 screws
• Asus Control Center Express download
• User guide

Design of the ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi 

The ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi sits on a matte-black PCB, with heatsinks flanking the power delivery and covering the M.2 sockets and chipset. The heatsinks are all black and infused with metallic gold accents, which yields a conservative yet elegant appearance. There’s ProArt branding on the translucent I/O cover and the chipset heatsink, along with the “power up your imagination” tagline for the brand in the middle heatsink/shroud. 

If RGB LEDs are your thing, you’ll have to add your own, as the X670E-Creator doesn’t have any integrated. Any RGB devices you purchase will connect through the RGB and ARGB headers (1x and 3x, respectively) and are controlled through the Armory Crate and the Aura Sync software. The board won’t stand out in your chassis, but many creators aren’t looking for a lot of bling anyway.

In the top left corner, we spy two 8-pin EPS connectors (one required) to power the CPU. Here we also get a better look at the gold ProArt branding on the see-through I/O cover. The VRM heatsinks have enough mass and surface area to keep the power delivery bits below running well within specification, even with a flagship-class processor like the Ryzen 9 7950X we use to test.

Moving focus past the socket area, we find four unreinforced memory slots with a single locking mechanism on top. Asus lists support up to 128 GB of DDR5 RAM, with speeds listed to DDR4-6400. We did have issues with our base GSkill kit (it would not work and wasn’t on the QVL list), but the faster Kingston set worked fine. You probably want to stick with the QVL list on this board to ensure compatibility.

Above the RAM slots are the first three (of seven) 4-pin fan headers. Here you’ll find a CPU_FAN, CPU_OPT, and AIO_PUMP. Each header supports PWM and DC-controlled devices. Each header outputs up to 1A/12W, which isn’t a lot. But there are seven total headers, so you shouldn’t have an issue. Control over these devices is handled through the Armory Crate or within the BIOS.

Continuing right, you’ll find a CPU Overvolt jumper that allows you to set a higher CPU voltage for those really pushing the limits. But you’ll want some kind of sub-ambient cooling to utilize that additional headroom, as what it gives you without the increase is enough to overcome a custom water loop with a high-powered processor like our Ryzen 9 7950X.

Round the corner and starting our way down the right edge, the first thing we find is the Q-LED feature that checks key components during the POST process. If it finds an error, the critical component’s LED (either CPU, DRAM, VGA, or Boot) stays lit, identifying the problem area. Next, along the edge, is a 24-pin ATX connector to power the board, along with a supplemental 6-pin PCIe connector to enable 60W charging (PD/QC4+) capability through the front USB Type-C port (otherwise, it’s 27W). Last on this half of the board is the front panel USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps) connector.

Power delivery on our X670E-Creator is set up in a 16+2 configuration. For Vcore, power comes down from the EPS connector(s) and onto the Digi+ VRM (ASP2206) controller. From there, it heads down to the 16x MPS (Monolithic Power Systems) 70A MOSFETs in a Teamed configuration. The 1,120A available for the processor can handle flagship-class processors like our 16-core/32-thread 7950X. The power delivery won’t hinder performance or any overclocking adventures. You’ll run into cooling issues for the CPU well before the VRMs get in the way.

On the bottom half of the board, hidden under a translucent shroud, is the Realtek ALC S1220A codec. You won’t find any amps or DACs here, but the codec used is a premium option from the last generation. Control over the audio comes from the Realtek software you can download at the Asus website (Microsoft Store these days).

In the middle are three full-length PCIe slots, with the two PCIe 5.0 slots (top) using reinforcement to prevent shearing from heavy video cards. The top slot connects through the CPU and runs up to PCIe 5.0 x16, with the middle slot also sharing CPU bandwidth running up to PCIe 5.0 x8 speeds. Notable on the top slot is the PCIe Q-Release button to unlock the card from the slot with ease. With both slots in use, the top slots break down to PCIe 5.0 x8/x8. The bottom full-length slot connects through the chipset and runs at PCIe 4.0 x2, which should be enough for most add-in cards. 

Mixed in among the PCIe slots are four M.2 sockets. The top two sockets, M.2_1 and M.2 _2, are the PCIe 5.0 x4 (128 Gbps) sockets that connect through the CPU. M.2_3 and M.2_4 run across the bottom and source their bandwidth through the chipset running at PCIe 4.0 x4 (64 Gbps) speeds. All M.2 sockets support up to 80mm modules except for the M.2_4, which supports up to 110mm devices. If you’d like to increase speed or add redundancy, the Creator supports RAID0/1/10 modes for NVMe.

Past the chipset heatsink to the right edge are two (of four) horizontally oriented SATA ports. The other two  ports are located across the bottom edge of the board. If you’d like to RAID these drives, the board supports RAID0/1/10 modes here, too.

Across the bottom of the board are several exposed headers. You’ll find the typical stuff here, including additional USB, RGB, 4-pin fan headers, and more. Below is a complete list from left to right:

• Front panel audio
• COM port
• 4-pin chassis fan header
• (2) 3-pin ARGB headers
• (2) USB 2.0 headers
• (2) SATA ports
• Clear CMOS jumper
• Thermal sensor
• Front Panel

The rear IO on our Creator board, like most others that step up above budget range, comes with the shroud pre-installed to the motherboard. Like the board, the ProArt’s simple black design with gold finds its way to the I/O plate. There are 11 total USB ports, with two USB 4 (40 Gbps) Type-C (also doubles as the DisplayPort outputs), a 20 Gbps Type-C port, seven 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) ports, and a single USB 2.0 used for the BIOS Flashback feature. Above that are the 10 GbE and 2.5 GbE LAN ports and the Wi-Fi 6E antenna connections. There’s a DisplayPort INPUT (the USB 4 Type-C ports output) and HDMI output for video. The audio section forgoes the SPDIF/optical and uses three 3.5mm analog plugs. Finally, there’s a small BIOS Flashback button to initiate a BIOS update without a processor.

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Firmware

Asus’ BIOS on the ProArt uses a black background with blue highlights and white/gray writing. Asus starts in an Easy Mode that displays high-level information, including CPU and memory clock speeds, temperatures, fan speeds, storage information, etc. Advanced Mode has several headers across the top that drop down additional options. The BIOS is one of my favorites, as almost everything you need isn’t buried deep within menus, and the options are typically plentiful as they are here. 

Software

Asus’ software suite for the ProArt is similar to others in the lineup but adds the Asus Control Center Express along with the Armory Crate. The latter uses a ProArt-inspired theme. There are several applications for various functions, ranging from RGB lighting control, audio, system monitoring, overclocking, etc. We’ve captured several screenshots of the applications below. Here’s a look at Ai Suite 3, Armoury Crate, Sonic studio and the Realtek Audio application. 

ProArt series boards also offer access to advanced security management functions through Asus Control Center Express. The software allows users to lock USB ports, remotely disable the registry editor on remote devices and provides a software blacklist to prevent using high-risk applications.

Test System / Comparison Products

We’ve updated our test system to Windows 11 64-bit OS with all updates applied. We kept the same Asus TUF RTX 3070 video card from our previous testing platforms but updated the driver. Additionally, we updated to F1 22 in our games suite and kept Far Cry 6. We use the latest non-beta motherboard BIOS available to the public unless otherwise noted. The hardware we used is as follows:

Test System Components

EVGA supplied our Supernova 850W P6 power supply (appropriately sized and more efficient than the 1.2KW monster we used previously) for our test systems, and G.Skill sent us a DDR5-5600 (F5-5600U3636C16GX2-TZ5RK) memory kit for testing.

Benchmark Settings

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Benchmark Results

Our standard benchmarks and power tests are performed using the CPU’s stock frequencies (including any default boost/turbo), with all power-saving features enabled. We set optimized defaults in the BIOS and the memory by enabling the XMP profile. For this baseline testing, the Windows power scheme is set to Balanced (default) so the PC idles appropriately.

Synthetic Benchmarks

Synthetics provide a great way to determine how a board runs, as identical settings should produce similar performance results. Turbo boost wattage and advanced memory timings are places where motherboard makers can still optimize for either stability or performance, though, and those settings can impact some testing.

Results from this set of benchmarks show our ProArt board as average to slightly above average across several tests. It did well in the Procyon Office and Photo and Video editing tests. The latter is good for creators. That said, you wouldn’t be able to pick it out of a crowd as too slow or too fast. As usual, performance differences between most boards are quite minimal. 

Timed Applications

In the timed applications, the ProArt did well in the LAME test, anding in second place, and was average in the Corona 1.4 benchmark for ray tracing. Handbrake results also hovered right around average. So far, it’s a performant board across various applications. 

3D Games and 3DMark

Starting with the launch of Ryzen 7000, we’ve updated one of our games, F1 21, to the latest version, F1 22. We're keeping Far Cry 6. We run the games at 1920 x 1080 resolution using the Ultra preset (details listed above). As the resolution goes up, the CPU tends to have less impact. The goal with these settings is to determine if there are differences in performance at the most commonly used (and CPU/system bound) resolution with settings most people use or strive for (Ultra). We expect the difference between boards in these tests to be minor, with most differences falling within the margin of error. We’ve also added a minimum FPS value, affecting your gameplay and immersion experience.

Our gaming tests showed that although the ProArt is designed for creators, it was a competent gaming machine out of the box as well. In short, there’s nothing to worry about performance-wise as Asus has the BIOS tuned well, as they should at this point in the life cycle.

Power Consumption / VRM Temperatures

We used AIDA64’s System Stability Test with Stress CPU, FPU, Cache and Memory enabled for power testing, using the peak power consumption value. The wattage reading is from the wall via a Kill-A-Watt meter to capture the entire PC (minus the monitor). The only variable that changes is the motherboard; all other parts remain the same.

Power consumption for the Asus was average among our tested boards. It idled around 81W, with a peak of 274W. This averages out to 178W, which is almost exactly the average among our tested boards.

During our testing, VRM temperatures on the ProArt Creator reached around 50 degrees Celsius at stock and nearly 60 degrees Celsius when overclocked. While warmer than some other boards, the power delivery was easily kept within specification. The board will not get in the way of overclocking adventures, even using our high-power Ryzen 9 7950X processor.

Overclocking

Over the last few CPU generations, overclocking headroom has been shrinking (at least on the AMD side) while the out-of-box potential has increased. For overclockers, this means there’s less fun to have. For the average consumer, it means you’re getting the most out of the processor without manual tweaking. Our goal in this section is to increase the load on the VRMs and see if they can handle the additional stress. Overclocking AMD CPUs can be done in several ways (all-core or adjust PBO values). But for simplicity’s sake, we just went with an all-core overclock of 5.4 GHz with 1.30V to increase the power output.

Since our approach is to add power through all cores, we simply raised the CPU multiplier to 54x, manually set the voltage to 1.30V, and adjusted LLC to minimize vdroop. On the memory side, AMD states the sweet spot is around DDR5-6000, so we used the Kingston Fury kit, set the AMD EXPO profile and checked for stability.

After setting the CPU multiplier, Vcore and adjusting LLC to mitigate vdroop (minimal in the first place), off we went onto a stable, overclocked system throughout our stress test.

On the memory side, we had a bit of work to do. First, our GSkill kit that we’ve used on AMD boards since launch doesn’t work on this board. For base/performance testing, we used the Kingston Fury Beast DDR5-6000 kit with manually adjusted speed and primary timings to gather the data. The kit isn’t on the QVL list, so that’s not surprising. But still, this is the first board they won’t work with our main ki out of the box.

That out of the way, we set the Kingston Fury Beast DDR5-6000 kit, enabled EXPO, and things were stable. Just be sure to get a kit off the approved list if you want to ensure compatibility. That’s good advice for any board, really.

Bottom Line

If you’re a creator looking to get the latest and greatest connectivity for your workflows out of a motherboard, the Asus ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi is THE option in the upper-midrange space. Priced just under $450, It’s one of the least-expensive optionis with USB 4 (40 Gbps) support and the DisplayPort input. There’s also plenty of fast storage, with two PCIe 5.0 x4 (128 Gbps) sockets and two others running at PCIe 4.0 x4. There’s plenty of USB connectivity on the rear IO and front panel options to connect your peripherals. The board is also one of – if not the – least expensive Ryzen 7000 board with a native 10 GbE port for even snappier transfers over a LAN.

That said, it’s not all fairy tales and unicorns. If your storage consists of more than four SATA devices, you must add an expansion card to the bottom PCIe slot or look elsewhere. There is a level of simple elegance to the black-on-gold aesthetic. However, those who want a centerpiece to show off in their build will need to add RGBs or other bling to stand out.

As far as competition, anything designed for creators seems to be on the less expensive side (ASRock X670E Pro RS at $280, for example) and doesn’t add too much in the way of helpful hardware (such as USB 4, DP passthrough functionality, and 10 GbE). But you won’t find that on any board for that price either. If you compare at this board’s price point, things get a bit more interesting. ASRock’s X670E Taichi ($499.99) is the closest competitor hardware-wise, missing only the 10 GbE. MSI’s X670E Carbon WI-Fi ($479.99) is also in the ballpark but missing native USB 4 and 10 GbE. 

Ultimately, if you’re a creator (or any type of user) requiring many USB ports, the fastest ethernet available, and USB 4 with video pass-through, the ProArt X670E-Creator Wi-Fi is one of the only options under $500. The rest are flagship-class motherboards that fetch a significant premium. Less expensive options are available, but you’ll sacrifice quite a bit in terms of features. While it isn’t the best-looking motherboard at the price point, the ProArt X670E-Creator does offer a wide-ranging feature set that creatives can utilize, at a fair price.

MORE: Best Motherboards

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Asus has just announced a new curved ultrawide ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDM that offers a unique combination of a high refresh rate, ultra-low response time, and very high luminance. The combination should make this a hot product to watch among the best ultrawide gaming monitors and best curved gaming monitors.

The ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDM is a 34-inch curved ultrawide monitor offering a 3440x1440 resolution and an 800R curvature. It also offers a variable refresh rate of up to 240 Hz with Nvidia's G-Sync technology and a 0.03 ms response time — which is extremely low, even for OLED panels. Furthermore, the monitor boasts a peak brightness of 1300 nits (albeit on only 3% of the screen), which is higher than most LCDs on the market and unique for a gaming OLED monitor.

An interesting peculiarity of the display is that it comes equipped with a special custom heatsink to keep the operating temperatures of the panel lower and reduce the risk of burn-in.

For those seeking versatile connectivity, the ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDM is equipped with a wide array of ports, including DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.1, and a USB Type-C port, which not only serves as an additional display input but also delivers up to 90W to the host supporting USB Power Delivery. This diverse range of ports makes it possible to connect the monitor to desktop PCs, laptops, gaming consoles, smartphones, and other compatible devices.

To make it easier to use multiple devices connected to a single display, it fully supports picture-in-picture (PIP) or picture-by-picture (PBP) modes. To make things more comfortable, the ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDM comes with Smart KVM that now only allows users to control multiple devices using a single set of peripherals but also allows swift file transfers between the two connected devices using USB 3.2 connectivity — eliminating the need for extra hardware or specialized software. 

For now, Asus has not disclosed the price or availability of the ROG Swift OLED PG34WCDM. But given the unique capabilities of the display, we expect it to be priced accordingly.

Today, Philips launched the Evnia 49M2C8900. This monitor is the newest addition to the Evina 8000 gaming monitor series. It promises a host of features such as a 48.9-inch 32:9 aspect ratio QD-OLED display, a 240 Hz refresh rate, a response time of 0.03 ms GtG, a built-in 30W DTS speaker system, and immersive Ambiglow surround lighting.

Philips characterizes the Evnia 49M2C8900 as a premium gaming monitor but says it is also an excellent display for work. It backs up its statement by highlighting its comprehensive USB-C docking station, which offers 90W power delivery, the integrated KVM switch, a VESA mounting option, and included ergonomic stand. Users with their eyes glued to the screen for extended periods will also benefit from OLED's true blacks and a LowBlue mode.

Gaming is, of course, where the Evnia 49M2C8900 excels. Its resolution of Double-QHD (5210x1440) delivers plenty of detail (remember to buy one of the best graphics cards for gaming). Gamers will appreciate the 240 Hz refresh rate, a response time of 0.03 ms GtG, and VESA ClearMR (Clear Motion Ratio) 13000 certification to ensure blur-free gaming.

Helping provide a good overall and integrated immersive experience, this 1800R curved Evnia also features built-in DTS Sound with 30 W output (via 4x 7.5W speakers). Ambiglow lighting is also built-in to extend the on-screen action to the surrounding periphery.

The display's great color stats will benefit both games and more serious work. Philips says the true 10-bit QD-OLED panel used is certified for DisplayHDR True Black 400, and offers up to 450 nits peak brightness. The monitor's color gamut covers 99% DCI-P3, equivalent to 153.1% sRGB. Factory calibrated, users should find the display's sRGB mode offers a <2 delta E.

Connectivity is provided by the monitor's 1x DisplayPort 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.1, 1x USB type-C (with DP-Alt mode, and 90W power delivery), and an audio jack. The aforementioned USB-C hub provides four USB data ports.

Philips mentions mid-September availability for the Philips Evnia 49M2C8900. We don't have US pricing yet, but the UK MSRP is £1,650, and buyers in mainland Europe will be asked to spend €1,950. Depending on the finalized price and test performance, the Evnia 49M2C8900 might find a place in our Best Ultrawide Gaming Monitors 2023 feature.

Samsung's Cheaper Challenger (Same Panel)

If you like the look of the above monitor, you might also be tempted by the Samsung Odyssey OLED G9 DQHD gaming monitor, now available for $1,799 at Best Buy. Both monitors are based upon the same Samsung QD-OLED panel; however, the Evnia's supporting features like DTS Sound and Ambiglow might give it the edge.

At an event in China earlier this week Lenovo took the wraps off its latest Legion series gaming laptop. The new Lenovo Legion 9i's claim to fame is that it includes the "thinnest water cooling in the industry." It will also be on many portable PC gaming enthusiast wish lists due to other premium components such as the Core i9-13980HX CPU and GeForce RTX 4090 GPU. 

Tech site MSPowerUser shared rendered images of the laptop in its coverage of this announcement, but VideoCardz helped make the announcement more interesting by confirming the presence of a water cooling system in this upcoming flagship, as well as unearthing a tech specs list.

According to some of the supporting presentation slides at the Lenovo Legion 9i unveiling event, the cooling system is one of the slimmest water cooling implementations yet. In some official renders we see the liquid cooling loop, various heatsinks and the position of a trio of cooling fans. It is explained that the liquid cooling isn't necessary until the GPU temperature hits 84+ degrees Celsius. After this threshold "the liquid pump starts to work quickly to reduce the GPU temperature," says a translated slide. An AI-based system is claimed to optimize the cooling / performance of this laptop.

So, the text confirms the liquid cooling and twin fans on the GPU side of the motherboard are all to keep the GPU cool, while the fan on the right will be there for the CPU. Some other information from the source asserts that Lenovo has used '3D blades' in its cooling fans and used liquid metal for its hard to beat thermal interface properties. All of this is housed in a slim 18.9mm profile, with a distinctive finish to the laptop provided by a carbon fiber material.

This new flagship gaming laptop is claimed to be destined for a fuller reveal at IFA 2023 (Sept 1 to Sept 5, in Berlin). We don't have details about pricing or release dates as yet. We hope it will be released in time to be a contender for our regularly updated Best gaming laptops of 2023 feature.

In the unending quest for more desktop monitor real estate, users have turned to several methods to increase their multi-tasking ability. Large screens are one way to solve the problem. A 32-inch 16:9 display is a starting point, and many desks have a small television sitting on them. A good number of 42-inch and larger panels are available in both LCD and OLED forms.

Another method is to line up two or three screens together. Two 27s is common, or three 24s. But then you have that pesky line between screens. No matter how much companies tout their bezel-free designs, there is actually no such thing. There is always a line when it comes to selecting the best gaming monitors.

Now that 21:9 and 32:9 screens exist, there’s a way to get that width without vertical lines. Starting at 32 inches and going all the way to 49, many ultra and mega-wide displays are conveniently curved to keep as much of your work within peripheral vision.

An ideal balance between screen area and physical footprint is the 38-inch 21:9 category. Surprisingly, there aren’t as many choices as you might think, but Dell has had one in its UltraSharp line for a few years. The latest version is the U3824DW, and I’ll be testing it here.

 Dell UltraSharp U3824DW Specs

The U3824DW is a premium enterprise screen with 3840x1600 pixel resolution and a new form of screen technology Dell calls IPS Black. Black refers to lower black levels, and my tests revealed that the U3824DW does indeed have lower black levels and greater contrast than other IPS monitors. Dell claims 2,000:1, which I couldn’t quite reach. But I did record 1,923:1 in the Custom Color mode. That’s a record for IPS native contrast in my experience.

Pixel density is in the sweet spot at 111ppi. That’s a tiny bit more than a 27-inch 16:9 QHD screen. The U3824DW is bigger than two of those though. It’s nearly the equivalent of one-and-a-half 32-inch 16:9 monitors. That’s a lot of uninterrupted screen for sure. The curve radius is a gentle 2300R, meaning a circle of U3824DWs will be 4.6 meters (15 feet) across. There’s no visible image distortion, but the curve is enough that you won’t be constantly swiveling your head to see everything.

Dell sets a high image quality and accuracy standard with all its UltraSharp monitors. The U3824DW is color accurate right out of the box with close conformity to industry standards for white point, gamma and color. Gamut coverage is over 96% of DCI-P3 which puts it in a small group of high-end gaming and professional displays. The only thing missing here is support for HDR10 content.

With so much screen comes a lot of connectivity. There are four total video inputs, two HDMI, one DisplayPort and a USB-C. A KVM feature lets you connect multiple systems to be controlled by a single set of input devices. For that, you get three more USB-C and five USB-A downstream ports. Two internal speakers pump out nine watts of sound each and there’s a headphone jack. Extra enterprise integration comes in the form of an ethernet port that streams up to 2.5GbE for wake-on-LAN and other system convenience features.

The U3824DW is packed with everything needed to get work done and easily multi-task. It’s a premium display selling for $1530 at this writing. It could be considered a good value because it can function as multiple monitors and connectivity hubs. How does it perform? Let’s take a look.

Assembly and Accessories

Kudos to Dell for its continuing use of recyclable packaging. With molded cardboard and almost no plastic inside, the U3824DW is well protected. A large and heavy base keeps the package stable. Bolt on the upright and snap on the panel and you have a nearly 30-pound display built for years of daily use. An IEC cord feeds the internal power supply. You also get one each of HDMI and DisplayPort. The two USB cables are C/C and C/A. The wires are of premium quality, with rugged connectors and thick insulation. A pictorial guide shows you how to set everything up. 

Product 360

The photos don’t really tell the story of how big the U3824DW is. It will demand a full three feet of width with a base that is 15 by 10 inches. The styling is modern and minimalist, with a thin black frame around the image and a silver finish everywhere else. The back of the panel, upright and base are featureless, with only smooth surfaces that blend into their environment. A Dell logo is highlighted in polished chrome in back, but otherwise, there isn’t much else going on.

The stand looks slender but is super solid with firm ergonomics. A 120mm (4.7 inches) height adjustment puts the screen right at the ideal eyepoint at its highest setting, where you can keep the panel vertical. I prefer curved monitors because it puts all parts of the image in the same horizontal plane. You can swivel the U3824DW 30 degrees to either side and there is 5/21 degrees of tilt. If you’d rather use a monitor arm (you’ll need a beefy one), a 100 VESA mount with fasteners hides under the stand’s attachment point.

The input panel takes a large portion of the underside behind the stand. There are two HDMI 2.1 and a single DisplayPort 1.4. One of the USB-Cs also supports video and 90 watts of power for laptops. There are three more USB-Cs plus five USB-A ports (15 watts each). You can also see the aforementioned RJ-45, which IT managers will likely find handy. Three of the USBs are closer to the front of the panel for easy access. You can plug in a phone along with your input devices without reaching up and behind.

OSD Features

The U3824DW has a power button and a joystick for OSD control. Clicking it in any direction summons a quick menu which the user can program. An up-click opens the fully stocked OSD.

The input selector doesn’t just change inputs; it also has USB-C options and can rename the inputs to more useful terms like “PC” or “Laptop.”

The Color menu has six picture modes available. Standard is good enough by default not to require calibration. In Color Temp, you can specify the white point by Kelvin value. Color Space lets you choose from sRGB, Rec.709, DCI-P3 and Display P3. DCI-P3 has a gamma and white point meant to match commercial digital projectors. This is a handy feature for video post-production. Display P3 will give you the U3824DW’s full native gamut. The sRGB mode is also very accurate and can be used for photography or grading in SDR color spaces.

Custom Color includes gain and offset sliders for setting the white point plus hue and saturation controls for all six colors. It uses the native P3 gamut as a starting point. I discovered in testing that it couldn’t improve upon the U3824DW’s already dialed-in color, which is unusual for Dell monitors, but in a good way.

The Display menu has a uniformity compensation feature that my U3824DW sample didn’t require. While it does improve screen uniformity, it also reduces contrast, so I don’t recommend it. Dell power button sync is a slick feature that can turn on USB-connected devices when you turn on the monitor. This is something I haven’t seen before.

The PIP/PBP feature has many options for displaying two video sources simultaneously. There are three different side-by-side modes plus windowed options for all four corners in two sizes.

The USB menu has all the KVM options with a setup guide that works like a wizard to bind USB and video ports for multi-system control. The Ethernet Switch can bind to the KVM feature for automatic, prompted or manual switching between connected systems.

The joystick’s four directions can be programmed to a variety of monitor functions like picture modes, brightness/contrast, input selector and more. You can turn off the power LED if you wish. You can also set the USB ports to stay on when the monitor is in standby to charge devices when you’re away from the desk. The final sub-menu, Others, has LCD conditioning functions and signal information.

Dell U3824DW Calibration Settings

Most Dell monitors I test benefit from calibration in the Custom Color mode, but the U3824DW was an exception. There were no visible color, grayscale or gamma errors in the default Standard mode. Working the RGB gain sliders did not affect any improvement, so I returned to Standard and simply adjusted the brightness to 200 nits. Custom Color increases maximum output by about 30%, so it is useful if you need extra brightness. I also determined that sRGB in the Color Space mode is very accurate. Below are the settings I used for testing. Stick with Standard and find your preferred brightness level for the best image.

Hands-on and Daily Use

I’ll get one thing out of the way up front: the U3824DW is neither a gaming monitor nor meant to be. I played a few rounds of Doom Eternal’s horde mode, just to be sure. On the upside, the audio is superb. I could hear the nine-watt internal speakers' superior dynamic range and frequency response. They will play quite loud without audible distortion. And the sound stage is very wide, which is appropriate for the U3824DW’s prodigious physical width.

But for fast action, it isn’t a great choice. Motion resolution suffers from breakup and jitteriness as one moves the mouse quickly during battle. I adapted to aiming with more input lag than I’m used to, but the blurring of fine detail, especially at a distance, made gameplay difficult. However, if you were to play more static titles, you could appreciate the U3824DW’s excellent contrast and color saturation. It is a good choice for casual games.

It's also a great screen for movies and videos. Sitting three to four feet back fills your peripheral vision and creates a truly immersive feel. I could easily enjoy the U3824DW as a personal home theater display in a small media room or office. My only wish is for HDR support. There is a lot of streamed content out there in HDR10. The U3824DW would be greatly enhanced with that capability.

Image quality in all areas was exemplary. Dell’s IPS Black technology is a real enhancement for the IPS category. I could almost be fooled into thinking that the U3824DW is a VA panel. Black levels are superb, and that extra depth really adds to color saturation. The gamut volume is prodigious and is made more perceptible by that extra dynamic range.

Productivity is what the U3824DW is all about, and there it excels. The PIP/PBP function is super easy to use and automatically sizes different resolutions correctly. It had no problem showing a 1920x1080 pixel secondary window with the correct shape, free of distortion. And this worked in both side-by-side and windowed configurations.

For multitasking, the U3824DW will quickly help you forget about multi-screen setups. There is a ton of flexibility for document organization and management here. The curve is just enough to bring the user into the workspace but not enough to distort things like spreadsheets. I had no trouble working in Word, Excel and Photoshop with three open document windows. With so much screen area, I could leave everything sized large, positioned where I only needed to turn my head slightly to change focus. This was aided by the excellent stand, which puts the screen at just the right height for vertical placement.

Takeaway: The U3824DW isn’t a gaming monitor, but it’s great at everything else one would do with a large computer monitor. It easily takes the place of two, or dare I say, three smaller screens.

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I didn’t have any other 38-inch ultra-wides to compare the U3824DW to, so I created a group that mixes gaming and enterprise products. There’s no reason one can’t use a gaming monitor for everyday tasks. And you get a speedy screen. Those three are Corsair’s Xeneon Flex OLED, Philips’ 34M2C7600 and ViewSonic’s XG341C-2K. The 60 Hz monitors are BenQ’s PD2706UA and Dell’s U3224KB 6K display.

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

The quickest monitor here is also the largest, Corsair’s 45-inch Xeneon Flex. It’s also an OLED, so it has a significant advantage for gaming. But if productivity is your only metric, the U3824DW is a better enterprise screen with its KVM and networking features. However, at 60 Hz, it is limited in how smooth it can be. 26ms is the average response time for any 60 Hz monitor, meaning motion resolution is much lower than the faster displays. Dell includes an overdrive which helps a little. It works without visible artifacts, but there’s only so much it can do to mitigate blur. When total control lag is added to the mix, the U3824DW remains average when compared to other 60 Hz monitors.

Test Takeaway: If fast-paced action games are part of your workday, you should buy a gaming monitor. But if you’re all business, the U3824DW has extra features that make it a more useful tool for productivity.

Viewing Angles

The U3824DW’s IPS Black panel retains all the advantages of traditional IPS panels while delivering greater contrast. Off-axis viewing is something a 38-inch ultra-wide needs to do well and the U3824DW certainly does. You can see a slight green shift to the sides, but light output only drops by 10% and gamma stays the same, meaning there is no loss of fine highlight or shadow detail. The top view is about 40% dimmer, and the darkest steps are all but invisible. The U3824DW is very shareable by two or three users, making it well-suited for presentation.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

When I set up the U3824DW, its uniformity compensation was turned on by default. That resulted in a slightly lower 5.34% score but also raised black levels, which reduced contrast. Turning the option off made no visible difference in uniformity but upped contrast by almost 40%. Given the excellent quality control I’ve seen in all Dell UltraSharp monitors, you won’t need the compensation feature. My sample was free from visible flaws.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

Finding the U3824DW’s maximum output level requires changing the picture mode from Standard to Custom Color. By default, I measured 253.2859 nits peak, .1479 nit black and 1712.2:1 contrast. Custom Color with no adjustments gave me the numbers shown above. If you need more than 250 nits, Custom Color can deliver, but you’ll need to calibrate as its white point is visibly green.

In every case, the U3824DW has more contrast than traditional IPS panels. Though not quite in VA territory, Dell’s IPS Black technology makes a visible improvement in image quality thanks to a greater depth of field and color saturation.

After Calibration to 200 nits

I calibrated the Custom Color mode and lost a little contrast. As I’ll show later, the Standard mode has no visible color errors, so there’s little point in calibrating the U3824DW.

You’ve likely already noticed that both Dell monitors in the group have superb contrast numbers. The U3224KB also has an IPS Black panel with a clear advantage over traditional IPS technology. We’re seeing an evolution here, for sure. The U3824DW has one of the best ANSI scores I’ve yet recorded for an IPS monitor.

Test Takeaway: You can almost hit Dell’s claim of 2,000:1 contrast by choosing the Custom Color mode. But without calibration, the image has a slight green tint. Calibration reduces contrast to 1609.6:1, so the best choice is to leave the U3824DW in its Standard mode, which has 1712.2:1 contrast, with no calibration required. It’s a compromise that ensures the best possible color accuracy. 

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The U3824DW includes Dell’s usual picture mode suite that lets you choose between color gamuts or calibration. But unlike most Dells, this monitor performs best when left in its default Standard preset. 

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

The U3824DW tells a pretty simple tale about its grayscale and gamma accuracy. There is no benefit to calibrating the Custom Color mode unless you really need another 100 nits of light output. Standard delivers 253 nits peak, which is plenty. It also delivers a visually perfect grayscale and reasonably tight gamma. The tiny green error at the 50% step will be nearly impossible to detect in content.

In the Color Space mode, you can opt for the smaller sRGB gamut. It comes with super accurate grayscale tracking with all errors below 1dE. Gamma tracks similarly to the Standard mode except for a light reading at the 10% step. This is a minor error. Professionals can use the U3824DW’s for color-critical applications without issue.

Comparisons

The U3824DW takes the top spot in the out-of-box grayscale test, even edging out the premium-priced U3224KB. It also beats the gaming monitors here. Of those, only the Philips can get away with no calibration.

After adjustment, the U3824DW falls to fifth place, but visually, it will be hard to discern any issues between any monitors that average lower than 3dE in this test.

The U3824DW’s gamma tracking is nice and tight, just like all the other screens. All six conform closely to the 2.2 standard as well. This renders the comparison a wash, as these monitors exhibit very similar performance in the gamma tests.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

Dell promises color accuracy from the U3824DW and clearly, it delivers. Not only is every saturation and hue point on target, but the gamut volume is also very large. There’s a bit of bonus red, not enough to cause a problem, and green is almost fully covered. That is unusual among wide gamut displays, in a good way. If you’re wondering about calibration, that process raised the gamut average error to 2.17dE. That’s the result that sold me on the Standard picture mode.

The sRGB gamut from the U3824DW’s Color Space mode measured very well too. Though there is some over-saturation in the red and blue primaries, the overall error still averages below the visible level. The U3824DW is completely qualified for pro-level color work.

Comparisons

It doesn’t get much better than the U3824DW’s 1.44dE color gamut error, which is an impressive out-of-box result. Any professional monitor would be proud to post numbers this good. Note that the other Dell, the U3224KB, posted a similar out-of-box result but could be calibrated to the higher level of 1.14dE. These are fine differences seen only by the color meter, not by the naked eye. Visually, all the monitors have perfect color.

An enterprise monitor benefits from a large color volume, even if it isn’t strictly accurate in the SDR realm. The U3824DW has a very large gamut with over 96% coverage of DCI-P3. The other Dell takes the prize here, but in fairness, all six screens are close. Anything between 95 and 100% coverage is hard to spot in a visual comparison. It’s also a good thing that sRGB coverage is so close to 100%. The best professional displays go for 100%, no more and no less. The U3824DW clearly achieves that.

Test Takeaway: The U3824DW delivers professional-grade color accuracy and volume right out of the box in its Standard picture mode. Though its design intent is geared toward presentation and productivity, it is fully qualified as a professional display for video and graphics production. 

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Since I mostly review gaming monitors, my recommendations are slanted in that direction. Many good examples can serve admirably for enterprise-grade productivity, or even as a professional screen. But if you also want the convenience and flexibility of KVM, network integration and lots of USB ports, the Dell U3824DW provides those things along with a stunning image. 

Aside from its lack of support for HDR, the U3824DW’s picture is superb. Contrast is approaching VA quality with over 1,700:1 available right out of the box. It isn’t the brightest monitor out there, but with just over 250 nits of peak output, it provides enough light for any indoor environment.

Color is exemplary, with correct rendering of the DCI-P3 gamut and nearly 100% coverage. Accuracy is well within the professional realm. The U3824DW is closer to the reference mark than many of the professional, and more expensive displays I’ve tested. You can just unpack and install it, and do nothing else besides set brightness to taste. Dell’s IPS Black technology is a real enhancement to the IPS genre, adding both depth and color saturation.

The army of USB ports and RJ-45 jack is a real value add for enterprise use. You can hook up as many as four video sources and with eight additional USB ports available, the U3824DW becomes a hub for just about anything you can think of to connect. With a well-designed KVM system and flexible PBP/PIP functions, presentations can be managed with ease.

Aside from action gaming and HDR content, there is nothing beyond the U3824DW’s capabilities. Since it can easily take the place of two or three smaller screens, while adding a wealth of convenience and flexibility, it’s even a decent value. If you need power in your enterprise monitor, the Dell U3824DW delivers it along with a stunning image. Definitely check it out.

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As RISC-V continues to develop, so does the plethora of products around the open source processor. Unlike the Raspberry Pi which uses proprietary ARM processors, the new Lichee Pi 4A uses open source RISC-V C910 architecture. This small desktop SBC is manufacturered by Sipeed and comes in a variety of configurations. Today we’re happy to get a close look at the edition with 8GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard memory thanks to Christopher Barnatt with ExplainingComputers in his recent unboxing video over at YouTube.

Overall, Barnatt reported the out-of-the-box experience as generally positive. It comes with Debian pre-installed so very little had to be done in the way of first-time setup beyond connecting all the hardware and necessary peripherals. Although it comes with Debian preloaded, you can customize it entirely from the inside out.

The most glowing praise came after testing the unit for several hours. After observing no crashes, Barnatt said he considered this to be the most stable Linux experience he’s has so far with RISC-V. It has quality graphics processing showing excellent results with 720p video playback albeit less so with 1080p.

It comes with a selection of preinstalled tools that most average users will find handy to have readily available—such as LibreOffice. Overall the unit is very user friendly making it a great platform for RISC-V development as well as casual use.

You can find more information about the Lichee Pi 4A on the official Sipeed website. For an in depth look at its performance, check out the full unboxing and demo test video from ExplainingComputers over at YouTube.

Sabrent has released a refined and expanded update to its first Steam Deck Dock (the DS-SD6P) in the shape of the new DS-SDNV, available now on Amazon. Also described as the ‘Sabrent 7-in-1 Steam Deck Dock with M.2 SSD Slot’, this device packs quite a lot of features into a familiar-looking device stand form-factor.

The Sabrent DS-SDNV isn’t restricted to use with the Steam Deck. It is claimed to be equally happy docking with a ROG Ally or other USB Type-C devices with DisplayPort Alternate (DP Alt) Mode support for output through HDMI 2.0 (HDCP 1.4). Linux, Windows, and macOS are supported.

If you have a compatible device/OS, there is quite a lot of convenient expandability offered here. The following ports are all easily accessible on this USB-C dock:

• HDMI 2.0
• USB 2.0
• Two USB 3.2
• USB Type-C PD 3.0
• Gigabit Ethernet RJ45

The slower USB port might be ideal for a mouse/keyboard, while the faster ports can be used for data transfer or other high-speed peripheral usage. Having a wired gigabit network port might also be appealing, with typically improved reliability, speed, and latency compared to wireless connectivity.

Moving on to what might be the Sabrent DS-SDNV’s raison d’être – it can fit an M.2 SSD inside. Under the device’s base, users can remove a cover panel and fit in their choice of M.2 drive. It looks like it can accept any size drive up to 80mm in length (M.2 2280), and Sabrent shows it with a roomy 8TB in place.

The dock's M.2 slot is equally happy with an M.2 SATA or NVMe drive. Its quoted maximum speed is 5 Gbps, so it sounds like there would be no speed advantage offered by the NVMe option here. If you need more storage and must keep it portable and as fast as possible, you may be better off replacing the Steam Deck's internal M.2 2230 SSD.

Finally, Sabrent has some words about its dock's build quality. It says it is rugged, yet minimalist to blend in with your décor. Additionally, non-slip anti-scratch pads are present on the device's base, and within its docking cradle.

The Sabrent 7-in-1 Steam Deck Dock with M.2 SSD Slot DS-SDNV is currently listed at $84 on Amazon, with four in stock. That's a lot more expensive than the first Sabrent Steam Deck Dock was pitched at (with no M.2 slot). However, it is roughly the same price as the official Valve Steam Deck Dock, which we thought was both uninspiring and a poor value.

Capture card manufacturer Magewell has unveiled two new highly-capable 4K capture cards sporting a highly unusual M.2 form factor. The new card's are known as the Eco Capture HDMI 4K Plus M.2 and Eco Capture 12G SDI 4K Plus M.2. As the names suggest, one model is designed to work with HDMI connectors while the other is designed to work with SDI ports, which is a video connector used by the professional video production industry.

M.2 capture cards are not something you often hear about, but the ultra-compact form factor has many advantages. One of the biggest advantages is integration with newer motherboards that sacrifice most of their smaller PCie x8, x4, and x1 slots for M.2 slots. In these cases, having an M.2 capture card instead of a traditional half-height or full-height PCIe card can be really effective, especially if a system is already using the remaining one or two standard PCIe slots for graphics cards, audio cards, and/or ethernet cards.

Another use is with Mini-ITX motherboards which have even fewer PCIe slots than ATX and micro-ATX motherboards. In cases where the primary and only PCIe x16 slot is being used, M.2 is the only way to add additional PCIe devices to the system. Lots of Mini-ITX boards have more than one M.2 slot as well, which will allow users to build a full Mini-ITX system without sacrificing M.2 storage.

With these capture cards, streamers, video enthusiasts, and professionals can re-route all their video encoding and video processing to the capture card. This offloads work from the CPU and GPU, freeing up resources and improving image quality in some cases (depending on how slow or old the CPU or GPU is). Most people will find the built-in encoders found in the best GPUs and best CPUs to be more than adequate. But, a dedicated capture card can still be beneficial for highly-demanding setups that require more processing power than what a built-in CPU/GPU encoder can provide.

The M.2 card's themselves come in a 22 x 80 mm form factor, similar to that of 2280-sized M.2 SSDs. Both cards come with a green PCB and feature a large black cooling solution on top, with a very tiny fan actively cooling the encoding chip underneath. Since the M.2 standard does not feature any external ports, the cards need to be used with a special adapter that connects the card to a full-sized HDMI or SDI connector.

According to Magewell, these two new cards offer double the frame rate of their previous versions, featuring 60FPS playback at resolutions of up to 4096x2160 (ie. 4K resolution). Both cards are compatible with Windows and Linux operating systems and support native video APIs like DirectShow, DirectKS, V4L2, and ALSA. Plus, they also support high-quality upscaling, downscaling, cross-scaling, and color space conversion.

Pricing has not been unveiled just yet, but the Eco Capture HDMI 4K Plus M.2 is reportedly now shipping, and the Eco Capture 12G SDI 4K Plus M.2 will be available in the next two months.

One of the most extraordinary things about today’s gaming laptops is that it’s hard to find an absolute dud. OEMs have stepped up their game in recent years, and we’re seeing laptops that deliver higher frame rates, last longer per charge, and have better screens than we could have imagined just a few years ago. And more importantly, gamers don’t have to spend an arm and a leg to get decent performance these days.

That is the case with the Lenovo Legion Slim 5, a 16-inch gaming laptop sporting a QHD+ display, an AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS processor, 16GB of RAM and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU. The laptop has an MSRP of $1,529.99, but it sells for as low as $1,149.99 on sale, making it an excellent bargain among the best gaming laptops. 

Lenovo Legion Slim 5 Specifications

Design of the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

The design of the Legion Slim 5 is similar to others in Lenovo's gaming line, like the Legion Pro 5i. In other words, you’ll find a plastic chassis finished in onyx grey and an understated aesthetic. It is a gaming machine, but it wouldn’t look out of place sitting on a desk in an office.

Thin bezels surround the display, although a slightly larger protrusion at the center of the top bezel houses the 1080p webcam. The webcam doesn’t have a physical privacy shutter like some other gaming laptops, but a physical switch on the right side of the chassis turns off the webcam when it is not needed. The only other port residing on the right side of the chassis is the full-size memory card reader. Switching to the left side, there are two USB-C ports and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. The back panel features two USB 3.2 (Type-A) ports, gigabit Ethernet, and a proprietary jack for the power adapter.

The Legion Slim 5 measures 14.16 x 10.25 x 0.99 inches, which is similar in footprint to the Legion Pro 5i, although the former is slightly lighter (5.29 versus 5.6 pounds). The Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 is also within spitting distance for size and weight (5.79 pounds), while the Razer Blade 14 has a much smaller footprint due to its 14-inch display and is over a pound lighter than the other three laptops (4.05 pounds).

Lenovo Legion Slim 5 Gaming Performance

The Legion Slim 5 uses an AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS, an 8-core/16-thread processor. The base clock in this laptop is 3.8 GHz, while the maximum boost clock is 5.1 GHz. The processor is paired with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 and 16GB of DDR5-5600 memory (2 x 8GB).

The competitors I have lined up for the Legion Slim 5 match closely in specs, apart from the Razer Blade 14 (Ryzen 9 7940HS, RTX 4070, 1600p), which has a smaller display and more powerful GPU. The other two competitors are a more even match, including the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i (i7-13700HX, RTX 4060, 1600p) and the Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 (i7-13700HX, RTX 4060, 1600p).

I played Cyberpunk 2077 on high settings with ray tracing enabled, DLSS Balanced, and DLSS frame generation enabled, averaging 94 frames per second (fps) at 1200p. Increasing the resolution to 1600p saw the performance dip to around 62 fps.

Kicking off our gaming benchmark suite, I turned my attention to Shadow of the Tomb Raider (highest settings). The Legion Slim 5 hit 96 frames per second (fps) at 1080p and 55 fps at 1600p. This performance put it just slightly behind the Predator Helios Neo 16 by 1-2 fps but well behind the similarly-equipped Legion Pro 5i.

Grand Theft Auto V (very high settings) testing saw the Legion Slim 5 slide into second place with 91 fps at 1080p and 52 fps at 1600p. However, the rankings were very tight across the board at 1080p and 1600p for the competitors. Only the Legion Pro 5i ran away from the competition at 1080p resolution at 97 fps.

Far Cry 6 (ultra settings) also saw a tight grouping of the laptops. While the Legion Slim 5 technically came in last place at 1080p with 83 fps, we wouldn’t exactly call that a poor showing versus the 85 fps for the Blade 14 and 88 fps for the Predator Helio Neo 16. The Legion Slim 5 put up a respectable 62 fps at 1600p.

Moving on to Red Dead Redemption 2 (medium settings), the Legion Slim 5 tied the Predator Helio Neo 16 for third place, achieving 65 fps at 1080p and 39 fps at 1600p. However, the Blade 14 led the field with 73 fps at 1080p and 45 fps at 1600p.

Borderlands 3 again showed how evenly matched the Legion Slim 5 and Predator Helio Neo 16 are, with each garnering around 80 fps at 1080p and just over 50 fps at 1600p. The Blade 14 again showed its muscle, delivering 98 fps at 1080p and 64 fps at 1600p.

Rounding testing out with the Metro Exodus Benchmark (RTX settings), the Legion Slim 5 ran through 15 loops at 1600p resolution. The Legion Slim 5 hit 49.96 fps averaged across the 15 runs. During the run, the Ryzen 9 7940HS averaged 3.93 GHz at 70.67 degrees Celsius (159.2 degrees Fahrenheit). The GeForce RTX 4070 GPU ran at an average of 2.12 GHz and measured 70.53 C (158.95 F).

Lenovo Legion Slim 5 Productivity Performance

The Legion Slim 5 features an AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS processor, 16GB of DDR5-5600 memory and a 512GB SSD.

The Geekbench 5 synthetic CPU benchmark saw the Legion Slim 5 running neck and neck with the Raptor Lake-based competitors in single-core performance (1,893) and slightly behind the Blade 14, which uses the same Ryzen 9 7940HS processor. However, both the Legion Slim 5 and the Blade 14 were clobbered in the multi-core benchmark, with the latter delivering a score of 11,046 compared to 14,967 for the first-place Legion Pro 5i.

Moving to the file transfer test, which involves shuttling 25GB of files, the Legion Slim 5 garnered 1,733.97 MBps, putting it just shy of the first-place Legion Pro 5i.

In the Handbrake test, where we transcode a 4K video to 1080p, the Legion Slim 5 completed the task in 4 minutes and 34 seconds, nipping the Blade 14 by 11 seconds. However, neither matched the Legion Pro 5i, which completed the task in just 3 minutes and 39 seconds.

Display on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

The Legion Slim 5 comes standard with a 16-inch FHD+ (1920 x 1200) IPS display, but our review sample arrived with an upgraded QHD+ (2560 x 1600) IPS panel with a 165 Hz refresh rate.

I spent a lot of time playing Overwatch 2 and Cyberpunk 2077. Given that this is an IPS panel (with an anti-reflective coating applied), the display had excellent viewing angles, and the colors were reasonably vibrant. However, you won’t find OLED levels of color here, and darkened areas in Cyberpunk 2077 looked more like a dark grey as the LED backlight shined through.

For video performance, I turned my attention to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which was recently released on Disney Plus. As was the case when I watched the movie in theaters, I fought back tears during the gut-wrenching scenes detailing Rocket’s origins. It also gave me a chance to scope out the generally good color performance of the display, particularly when the Guardians arrive at Orgocorp headquarters in their brightly-colored spacesuits (yellow, red, orange, blue and green). While there was a noticeable drop-off in color compared to the Mini-LED display on my daily driver laptop, the performance here for a laptop retailing below $1,500 was admirable.

In our tests, the Legion Slim 5 fell behind its Legion Pro 5i stablemate across the board. Based on our colorimeter, it hit 78.1 percent of the DCI-P3 and 110 percent of the sRGB color space. The display was also the least bright in this field at 318 nits, compared to 349 nits for the Legion Pro 5i and 499 nits for the Predator Helios Neo 16.

Keyboard and Touchpad on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

The keyboard on the Legion Slim 5 was instantly recognizable to me, as it is essentially the same unit found in the Legion Pro 5i that I reviewed earlier this year. The keys are all in the same place, the handy number pad remains, and even the centrally-positioned power button (right above the F9 and F10 keys) is unchanged.

As always, I visited keyhero.com to measure my typing speed and managed 85 words per minute with 95 percent accuracy. This essentially mirrored my performance on the Legion Pro 5i. (What a shocker!)

The keyboard features four-zone RGB lighting, which is controlled via the Lenovo Vantage software. You’ll find the settings under Lenovo Spectrum, where you’ll find several effects to choose from, along with options for changing the speed and brightness of the RGBs. However, you won’t find per-key controls on the Legion Slim 5.

The plastic touchpad, while not as large as some of the behemoth control surfaces in the laptop world, was easy to use and had a nice “click” sensation. With that said, I spent most of my time with the laptop using a Razer Atheris mouse wirelessly connected via Bluetooth.

Audio on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

The Legion Slim 5 uses a pair of 2-watt speakers with Nahimic audio. Nahimic audio software allows you to tweak settings to dial in sounds to your tastes. However, after playing around the presets, I didn’t notice enough of a difference to change my mind about the audio quality.

Voices in Cyberpunk 2077 sounded a bit muffled, which was a bit of a disappointment given the dialog-heavy nature of the game. Gunfire, explosions and vehicle engines sounded slightly better, but I’d stick with headphones while gaming anyway.

When listening to music, I turned to “Stranger” by Hooverphonic, from their The President of the LSD Golf Club album. Geike Amaert’s ghoulish vocals landed flat with the Legion Slim 5’s speakers, as did the bass guitar. The keyboard was the only part of the track that survived unscathed, leaving me underwhelmed.

Upgradeability on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

Like most Lenovo laptops, gaining access to the internals is simple. Ten Philips head screws stand between you and access to the Legion Slim 5’s upgradeable bits. In this case, you can see that the battery is replaceable, and there are two SO-DIMM slots for future memory upgrades. However, note that both slots are currently occupied in this 16GB DDR5-5600 configuration.

The Wi-Fi/Bluetooth combo card is also readily accessible, as are the two M.2 slots for SSDs. One M.2 slot is pre-populated by the 512GB SK hynix SSD, and another is free for additional storage if you so choose.

Battery Life on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

The Legion Slim 5 was no slouch in the endurance category. As we saw with the Blade 14, the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HS is a highly efficient chip. In our testing, which involves web browsing, light graphics work and video streaming while connected to Wi-Fi with display brightness set at 150 nits, the Legion Slim 5’s battery lasted for 7 hours and 21 minutes. While that couldn’t top the Blade 14’s performance (8:34), it left the Raptor Lake competition in the dust.

As we saw in the gaming benchmarks, the Legion Pro 5i, with its Core i7-13700HX, led the way in several benchmarks. However, the Legion Slim 5 has a clear advantage regarding battery life.

Heat on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

While running our Metro Exodus stress test, the dual fans in the system kicked into high gear (as we would expect for a gaming laptop). However, the rush of air was not objectionable while gaming. While it was ever-present in the background, it didn’t intrude on my gaming experience once I cranked up the volume to about 40 percent. It would be a non-issue if you’re using a pair of the best gaming headsets.

We measured degrees 22.22 degrees Celsius (72 degrees Fahrenheit) on the touchpad and 39.88 C (103.8 F) between the G and H keys during the Metro Exodus stress test. The hottest spot on the underside of the chassis (near the far-left corner) was 50.11 C (122.2 F).

Webcam on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

Like most new laptops introduced today, the Legion Slim 5 uses a 1080p webcam, a notable step up from the 720p units that have long been standard equipment.

Image quality was on par with other laptops in this class, delivering realistic skin tones, good detail and low noise. I’d happily use this camera for my Google Meet work calls or when chatting with family over Skype. As I mentioned earlier, there is no physical shutter to block the webcam. Instead, a little switch on the right side of the chassis (next to the SDXC slot) quickly enables/disables the camera.

Software and Warranty on the Lenovo Legion Slim 5

Four branded apps are installed from the factory on the Legion Slim 5. Legion Arena allows access to your games across Battle.net, Epic Games, Steam, Xbox, and Ubisoft services. Lenovo Hotkeys gives you a rundown of function shortcuts available on the system and Lenovo Voice provides controls for the microphone and text-to-speech functionality.

The most important of them all, however, is Lenovo Vantage. This is Lenovo’s command center for controlling and monitoring most aspects of the Legion Slim 5’s hardware. You can oversee system vitals for the GPU, CPU and SSD, change power profiles, and overclock the GPU (among other things). You can also access RGB settings for the keyboard within this app and perform system updates (drivers, software, BIOS, etc.).

Other installed apps include Nahimic (audio controls), X-Rite Color Assistant (display color profiles), Dolby Vision and a Lenovo-sponsored Dropbox promo. Of course, you’ll also find Microsoft’s usual smattering of junkware shortcuts to apps like Netflix, and TikTok sprinkled through the Start menu.

The Legion Slim 5 comes backed by a one-year manufacturer’s warranty.

Lenovo Legion Slim 5 Configurations

I’ve only found two configurations for the Legion Slim 5, with the base system available direct from Lenovo. It features an AMD Ryzen 5 7640HS processor, 16GB of DDR6-5600, a 512GB SSD, a GeForce RTX 4050 and a 16-inch 1920 x 1200 display for $1,019.99. That same configuration is $1,349.99 at Best Buy.

Our review unit is available as a Best Buy-exclusive and carries an MSRP of $1,529.99. That price includes a Ryzen 9 7940HS processor, 16GB of DDR5-5600, a 512GB SSD, a GeForce RTX 4060 and a 2560 x 1600 display. However, at this time, the laptop is on sale for $1,149.99 at Best Buy, representing a $380 discount. That is a lot of kit for less than $1,200, making the Legion Slim 5 a knockout bargain. However, if the laptop were priced closer to its $1,529.99 MSRP, the Legion Pro 5i would likely be a better choice.

Bottom Line

The Lenovo Legion Slim 5 didn’t dominate our gaming benchmark suite, but it was in the running or at least mid-pack in all the tests. It turned out solid productivity numbers, including high marks for its storage performance. However, the laptop was a real trooper regarding endurance, lasting over seven hours per charge in our tests. That was nearly two and a half hours longer than the Legion Pro 5i.

I would have liked for the screen to have been a bit brighter, but it is by no means a deal-breaker. The speakers are rubbish, but which is more of a concern if you plan on gaming with headphones. If you want a much brighter display and slightly better audio, the Acer Predator Helio Neo 16 is an option worth considering.

However, what’s most impressive about this laptop is the pricing. While its MSRP of $1,529.99 would give me a bit of pause, considering the generally superior performance of the Legion Pro 5i, the sale price of $1,149.99 makes the Legion Slim 5 a true bargain that can’t be ignored.

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The Raspberry Pi fans at Tom's Hardware love a Cyberdeck build and the pinnacle of this project has yet to be reached, despite the best efforts of makers like  Brian Corteil. Fellow maker Mike Horne (co-founder of Pi Wars) has decided to make their own Cyberdeck using off the shelf components and an old aluminum case.

Bill of Materials (BoM)

• Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W
• 5-Inch HDMI Display (800 x 480 resolution)
• Pimoroni Enviro+ HAT
• Wireless Keyboard and trackpad
• LM2596S DC to DC Buck Converter (with seven segment display)
• 2200mAh LiPo battery
• Aluminum case

We've been following Horne's progress since July and we just had to write about it. The Cyberdeck is currently a work in progress and so things are liable to change. Powering the project is a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W, yes they do exist, but are hard to get hold of. The Pi Zero 2 W appears to be in an injection molded case (that doesn't feature on our list of best cases!). On top of the Pi Zero 2 W is a Pimoroni Enviro+ HAT board. This hat provides a power input from the 2200 mAh LiPo battery (via the LM2596S buck converter) to power the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W. It also provides a slew of environmental sensors.

Pimoroni Enviro+ Sensor List

• BME280 temperature, pressure, humidity sensor
• LTR-559 light and proximity sensor
• MICS6814 analog gas sensor
• ADS1015 analog to digital converter (ADC)
• MEMS microphone
• 0.96-inch color LCD
• Connector for particulate matter (PM) sensor
• Pimoroni breakout-compatible pin header (Stemma QT / QwST / Qwiic)

Horne isn't too happy with the keyboard right now and is awaiting a mini Bluetooth keyboard to reduce the amount of cables squeezed into the case. This keyboard measures around 150 x 80 x 15 mm and also has a handy laser pointer for when we need to get corporate! Horne's original idea involved a folding Bluetooth keyboard / trackpad combo that was a fraction too wide for the aluminum case.

As Horne mentions, the cabling inside the case is a mess. But it affords us a glimpse into the thinking of the project. We can see the HDMI and USB connection for the HDMI screen. We think that the USB connection provides a touch interface as well as power (we have a similar unit). There is another USB port broken out for the keyboard, and there appears to be a push button (top right of the case) and a switch. The switch must be for turning off the connection between the battery and the LM2596, and the push button for soft powering the Pi on / off. 

The aluminum case appears to be Innox branded and could be the Varicase 1 (which is currently selling for $3!). Horne has shoehorned the parts into a small case and was looking for ways to fix the HDMI display to the top lid. After seeking the knowledge of the Pi community (hot glue, epoxy etc), Horne was forced to break out the drill and mount the screen.

We're vicariously enjoying Horne's adventure as they work out the many problems of a build as complex as this. Keep an eye on Horne's Twitter / X account for updates on this interesting project. 

You can find the AOC C27G2Z 27-inch gaming display for one of its best prices yet. This monitor has been going for around $199 lately but today it’s discounted to $179. This is a notable deal given both its price history and specifications that set it apart from other displays in its class.

We reviewed the AOC C27G2Z and appreciated its value which makes today’s discount that much more beneficial. This gaming monitor is AMD FreeSync Premium certified which gives it a little bit of a leg up over other monitors with specs like a minimum FHD resolution and high refresh rate. In this case, the AOC C27G2Z can reach up to 240Hz. It also features low latency as well as support for low framerate compensation (LFC). 

The AOC C27G2Z features a 27-inch curved VA panel with a curvature of 1500R. It has an FHD resolution which measures up to 1920 x 1080px. The refresh rate is notoriously high, reaching up to 240Hz and is accompanies by an MPRT of .5ms.

Users have a couple of input options to take advantage of including one DisplayPort input and two HDMI ports. A 3.5mm jack is included for external audio peripherals. The purchase is supported by a limited 3-year manufacturer’s warranty from AOC alongside Amazon’s 30-day return policy.

Visit the AOC C27G2Z 27-inch curved gaming monitor product page at Amazon for more details and purchase options.

Earlier this year at CES, Samsung pulled the wraps off a stunning 57-inch gaming monitor. The new Odyssey Neo G9 is a towering beast, even eclipsing the stunning, rotating 55-inch Odyssey Ark.

At the time of its announcement, Samsung didn’t reveal pricing or availability for the Odyssey Neo G9. However, the company is now at least giving us the lowdown on when it will hit stores: August 23. The company has revealed the launch date in a teaser video posted to YouTube, but remains mum about pricing.

For some perspective, the Odyssey Ark features a 55-inch Mini-LED panel and a $2,999 MSRP direct from Samsung, but Amazon currently offers it for $2,500. Given its slightly larger size and even loftier specs, we could see the 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9 crossing well over the $3,000 threshold.

According to Samsung, the 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9 uses a Mini-LED panel (with a native contrast of 1,000,000:1) featuring a Dual UHD resolution (7680 x 2160) and VESA Display HDR 1000 certification. In other words, that’s like having two 4K monitors sitting side-by-side, giving you an effective aspect ratio of 32:9. Given how expansive this monitor is, it’s not surprising that Samsung went with a tight 1000R curve to help wrap the display for a more immersive viewing experience.

As you might expect, given its Dual UHD resolution and a fast 240Hz refresh rate, the monitor supports HDMI 2.1 and is the first monitor on the market to adopt DisplayPort 2.1.

When it announced the 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9 in January, Samsung also noted that the screen would adopt its Smart Hub, which provides access to streaming media apps like Netflix, Prime Video, and YouTube. This is hardly surprising, given how massive this monitor is — we expect many will want it to pull double duty as a television. It will also support the Samsung Gaming Hub, with native access to Xbox Cloud Gaming and Nvidia GeForce Now game streaming services.

With the official release of the 57-inch Odyssey Neo G9 less than two weeks away, the only thing left to ponder is how many mortgage payments it will cost.

Today at Amazon, users can find the Asus TUF VG279QL1A gaming monitor for one of its best prices to date. If you’ve been looking for a quality gaming monitor that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg, this offer is very much worth a closer look. It’s been priced around $219 as of late, but right now is marked down to just $175.

This is the lowest price we’ve seen for the monitor since it was first released and is currently the best price for it across multiple vendors. This 27-inch gaming monitor is AMD FreeSync Premium certified and features Display HDR 400 support.

The Asus TUF VG279QL1A gaming monitor features a 27-inch IPS panel with an FHD resolution (1920 x 1080). The AMD FreeSync Premium certification guarantees things like a high refresh rate (in this case, it caps out at 165Hz) and low framerate compensation. This monitor also has a short response time of just 1 ms.

This gaming monitor supports Display HDR 400 and can reach a maximum brightness of 350 nits. Users have one Display Port to take advantage of and two HDMI ports for video input. A 3.5mm audio jack is available for external audio peripherals, but it also has two integrated 2W speakers for audio output.

Visit the Asus TUF VG279QL1A gaming monitor product page at Amazon for more details and purchase options.

Do you miss the days when Microsoft PDAs roamed the Earth, or the more recent Windows Phone era? Then Japan’s Gloture might be able to tempt you with its new NanoPC (h/t PC Watch). This new product is a highly compact PC with a full-cover 5.5-inch touchscreen on one side, built in battery, and Windows 11 Pro.

Compared to smartphones in 2023, the NanoPC doesn’t look very ergonomic with large bezels, sharp-looking edges, and a thick build. On the positive side, you get Windows 11 in your pocket, and this device bristles with connectivity options and ports including Gigabit Ethernet.

With our description above, and the various images shared in this article, some of you might be thinking ‘wow’, but we are sure another sizable contingent will have responded with a ‘why?’ So, let’s look into the specs:

One of the standout features of the Gloture NanoPC is how much connectivity it packs in. In the promotional imagery for its NanoPC, Gloture shows this device used as a pocket desktop with two extra large screens attached. Users get a decent array of (mostly) full-sized industry standard ports in a world where smartphone makers are starting to be tease devices with fewer and fewer ports.

We feel that the Gloture NanoPC, in this iteration, isn’t looking to tread on the toes of phone makers, due to some major design decisions. Firstly, this new pocketable PC device doesn’t have a SIM card slot (or eSIM). Moreover, it has a built in mic, but no camera of any kind. Lastly, even on such a small device with a 10 W Celeron, and a small 5.5-inch screen, we don’t think 2,500 mAh is meant to provide more than a couple of hours portability away from a wall socket.

Gaming monitors are an ever-expanding and exciting category when it comes to computer hardware. Not only are promising panel technologies like Mini-LED and OLED coming to even lower price points, but we’re seeing refresh rates shoot through the roof for the most dedicated enthusiasts. Now, AOC is throwing down the gauntlet with its new Agon Pro AG276QZD, which features a 26.5-inch OLED panel that is certain to be a stunner among the best gaming monitors.

The AG276QZD has a QHD (2560 x 1440) resolution (110.8 pixels per inch) and a heady 240Hz refresh rate. As you might expect from a gaming-centric monitor, that 240Hz refresh rate is backed by Adaptive-Sync and Nvidia G-Sync compatibility. The use of OLED technology ensures incomparable contrast with inky blacks and improved color accuracy versus competing panel technologies (IPS, VA, etc.). AOC says that the AG276QZD can hit 98.5 percent of the DCI-P3 color space and 100 percent of sRGB.

AOC also boasts a 0.03ms GtG response time for the 10-bit panel (1.07 billion colors). For those wondering, the AG276QZD uses an anti-glare coating on the display rather than the glossy finish seen on some OLED monitors.

Regarding connectivity, the AG276QZD features two HDMI 2.0 and two DisplayPort 1.4 ports. There’s also an integrated two-port USB 3.2 (Gen 1) hub and a 3.5mm headphone jack. For those who don’t want to be bothered with adding an external speaker setup, the AG276QZD features two built-in 5-watt speakers. Other features include a Kensington lock and a 100x100 VESA wall mount pattern.

Given that this is a gaming monitor, you won’t be surprised to learn that AOC has integrated Light FX RGB lighting in the AG276QZD. You can sync lighting with other AOC peripherals such as gaming keyboards and mice using AOC's G-Menu software.

The AOC Pro AG276QZD is currently available, priced at $999 from Amazon. That price gets you a 4-year advance replacement and zero dead pixel warranty.

Videocardz reports that Sparkle, one of Intel's AIB partners, is reportedly creating a new lineup of low-profile graphics cards called the Genie series, including low-profile flavors of the Arc A380 and A310. These new cards will target the mainstream consumer market, featuring dual-fan cooler designs.

It might be strange to see new low-profile GPU options in a world where many mini-ITX cases can now support massive triple-slot gaming GPUs. However, many newer and older systems still support the compact PCIe standard. As a result, there is still demand for these low-profile GPUs since these cards provide the only way to increase GPU horsepower with low-profile machines.

Sparkle's new low-profile graphics cards will come with a respectably sized dual-fan, dual-slot cooler design extending to the end of the PCIe connector. The dual-slot design will make the card a bit thicker than single-slot solutions, but the cooler's short length should make it fit in any case that supports a 16-lane device. Once we get these cards in for review, we'll know how well their cooling performance is, but expect good performance anyways since Sparkle's dual-slot cooler design is substantially beefier compared to its industrial low-profile A310 graphics card that is equipped with a much skinnier single-slot single-fan cooling solution.

The new Genie cards also come with three display outputs, including a single HDMI connection and two Mini-DisplayPort connections, making these GPUs an excellent solution for powering several additional monitors.

Don't expect serious gaming performance out of the Arc A380 and A310. Both GPUs are part of Intel's entry-level GPU segment featuring just 8 Xe cores and 6 Xe cores, respectively. We've covered Arc's A380 several times before, but if you haven't heard of the Arc A310, it is a newish entry-level GPU option Intel quietly launched late last year. The A310 is even less powerful than the A380, featuring a cut-down ACM-G11 die with 6 enabled Xe cores, 4GB of GDDR6 memory, and a 64-bit memory bus. It is essentially Intel's version of the GT 1030 but with a much newer GPU architecture and AV1 encode/decode support. (Albeit it is faster as well.)

The only unfortunate news is that Sparkle did not announce any release date for these GPUs. Hopefully, the Intel AIB will release these cards sooner than later, but there's no guarantee.

Enthusiasts know that three of the most important criteria for choosing the best gaming monitors are speed, contrast and resolution. All will affect price, so how can one find the best bang for the buck? Where’s the sweet spot where performance and price are most advantageous?

Of the three major panel technologies, IPS, VA and OLED; VA offers the most contrast for the least money. IPS can provide stunning contrast when paired with a Mini LED backlight, but it is expensive. OLED has the greatest dynamic range of all with its infinite black, but it is also expensive. A VA panel can deliver a great picture for relatively little money.

AOC offers a few VA monitors in its budget line and one of the latest examples is the CQ27G3Z. It’s a 27-inch curved monitor with QHD resolution, 240 Hz, Adaptive-Sync, HDR, wide gamut color and retails for less than $400.

AOC CQ27G3Z Specs

The CQ27G3Z doesn’t have much in the bells and whistles department, but like any good budget screen, it delivers it where it counts. The picture is excellent thanks to a VA panel with around 4,000:1 native contrast. It’s curved tightly at 1000R to create a more immersive effect. I put that in the realm of individual preference when talking about any 16:9 aspect curved monitor. There is some slight image distortion with a tight curve in this screen size. But for games, it delivers an enhanced experience.

Color is wide-gamut, with over 86% coverage of DCI-P3. You can find larger gamuts for a little more money, but the extra color is also an enhancement. Accuracy is decent with calibration and there is a usable sRGB mode.

The most significant value-add is the CQ27G3Z’s 240 Hz refresh rate. There aren’t a plethora of 240 Hz QHD screens out there, and most of them are premium displays. AOC is undercutting the competition with a price of $375 at this writing. You also get Adaptive-Sync with FreeSync from 48 to 240 Hz and G-Sync compatibility, as confirmed by my tests. The CQ27G3Z has not been certified by Nvidia.

Additional features are sparse. You get a frame counter and an aiming point. In addition. blur reduction via backlight strobe can be used in lieu of Adaptive-Sync. The full 240 Hz can be enjoyed over the two DisplayPort 1.4 inputs with HDR at QHD resolution, while two HDMI 2.0 ports support 120 Hz operation with VRR for consoles. There are no USB ports or speakers, nor is there LED lighting. But you get a solid package with everything needed for high-performance gaming for less than $400.

Assembly and Accessories

The CQ27G3Z comes from its crumbly foam in three parts. The panel snaps on after attaching the upright to the base with a captive bolt. The panel mount has a 100mm VESA pattern with fasteners included. The power supply is internal, so you get an IEC cord plus DisplayPort and HDMI cables.

Product 360

The CQ27G3Z is attractively styled with simple molded shapes and a smooth curve across the back. Red trim signals its gaming intent, but no additional LED lighting exists. The front bezel is nearly frameless on three sides, with 7mm borders on the top and sides and 23mm on the bottom. The red trim is also visible from the front, with accent strips and a hole in the upright for cabling.

The stand is lightweight and solid with a 5.1-inch (130mm) height adjustment, 40 degrees swivel to either side and 5/23 degrees of tilt. There is no portrait mode. Movements are firmer than the CQ27G3Z’s light weight suggests. Build quality is definitely above the price point here.

The input panel is well stocked with two HDMI 2.0 and two DisplayPort 1.4. You’ll need the latter for full 240 Hz operation with HDR and Adaptive-Sync. The HDMI ports support 120 Hz with HDR and VRR for consoles like the PS5 and Xbox One. There are no internal speakers, but you can plug headphones or powered speakers into the 3.5mm audio jack.

OSD Features

The CQ27G3Z’s OSD is controlled by four keys which you’ll find across the bottom right part of the panel. They are a bit clunky compared to the joysticks found in many of the latest displays. The ribbon-style menu is the same one I’ve used in AOC monitors for the past ten years. It’s intuitive and divided into seven sub-menus.

The Luminance menu controls brightness and contrast, offers seven picture modes, three gamma presets, a dynamic contrast option and HDR modes that appear when an HDR signal is present. I don’t recommend the dynamic contrast as it clips highlight and shadow detail. The CQ27G3Z has plenty of contrast already. The HDR modes are Display, Game, Movie and Picture. The default and best option is Display. It has the best color accuracy but also presents one downside, edge enhancement. I’ll discuss that more in the hands-on section below and in the HDR tests on page five.

In Color Setup, you can adjust the white point with presets or RGB sliders. Also here is the sRGB mode, which has a fixed grayscale. It correctly renders the sRGB gamut if you want to use it for SDR content or color-critical tasks.

Picture Boost is something unique to AOC monitors. You can create a window on the screen, size and move it, and adjust its brightness and contrast independently of the rest of the image. It’s handy for highlighting areas of the picture.

OSD Setup has the expected options but also includes the DisplayPort version and a break reminder. This is a timer that pops up on the screen when it’s time to stop fragging and get a drink or snack.

The CQ27G3Z adds a PIP option; not all AOC monitors have one. You can size and move the window and swap between two video sources.

In Game Setting, you’ll find additional game modes, which are picture presets. Hint, leave this off lest you become lost in the many possible combinations of picture and game modes. The Standard mode from the Luminance menu is all you need. Also here is a three-level overdrive, FreeSync toggle and the frame rate counter. If you’d rather use a backlight strobe for blur reduction, that’s also here with 20 intensity settings. As you increase the value, the screen gets darker, and motion becomes smoother as the pulse width changes. It works well with almost none of the phasing artifacts common to backlight strobes. It is a viable alternative to Adaptive-Sync and overdrive, especially when speeds exceed 200fps.

In the Extra menu, there is an off timer, factory reset and basic signal information. You can also change inputs here or by pressing the leftmost control key.

AOC CQ27G3Z Calibration Settings 

In the CQ27G3Z’s default Standard picture mode, grayscale is a bit green in tone, with visible errors in the brighter parts of the image. Gamma is slightly dark on its number 1 setting, which is fine for a high-contrast panel like this. I achieved much better grayscale with a few tweaks of the RGB sliders in the Color Setup menu. More importantly, color accuracy and contrast are improved as well. My recommended settings are below.

In HDR mode, the default mode, Display, offers the best color accuracy but also adds visible edge enhancement. You can avoid this by selecting the Game mode, which introduces some clipping in the red primary. I’ll explain this with charts on page five. Ultimately, I preferred the look of the Display HDR mode.

Gaming and Hands-on

When considering the CQ27G3Z for daily productivity, I had expected some image distortion given its 1000mm radius, which is tighter than most curved screens. I was pleasantly surprised that I could barely notice a difference. It helps that the screen is 16:9, so you won’t be moving document windows out to the edge of your peripheral vision. After a few hours of use, I concluded that the CQ27G3Z is as useful for work tasks as any other 27-inch flat screen. So, don’t let the curve dissuade you.

The curve is undoubtedly welcome for gaming. Though I would choose a 21:9 monitor over a 16:9 one for play, the CQ27G3Z’s curve clearly enhances the experience. I had no trouble finding a good position for the screen since the stand has plenty of height. I could keep it vertical and have my eyepoint in the center, the optimal setup for curved display gaming.

Once I had spent a few hours playing Doom Eternal and Call of Duty WWII, I found the CQ27G3Z to have excellent feel and response. 240 Hz is clearly smoother than 165 or 144. And with reasonably low input lag, I could keep my aim true and consistent. Stopping on target was easy, and I had no trouble making out fine detail in distant objects thanks to the 109ppi pixel density.

The HDR experience was average compared to all the monitors I’ve experienced, meaning that contrast and color were very good but not at the level of a premium screen. That’s no surprise given the CQ27G3Z’s $375 price tag. When that is considered, it’s a champ. The HDR image popped nicely with clear detail at all brightness levels and nicely saturated color.

During the SDR tests, I noted that calibration is required for best results. The default image is a bit flat, thanks to grayscale errors. But if you plug in the settings above, you’ll see a much better picture.

Video processing delivered an average experience with one positive exception that I’ll note in a moment. Adaptive-Sync worked perfectly on both FreeSync and G-Sync systems. The overdrive is a bit weak because it doesn’t completely remove black trail artifacts from moving objects. But in most cases, this issue did not distract from gameplay. I also noted a better-than-average use of backlight strobing when I tried the blur reduction. Like most monitors, it requires you to turn off Adaptive-Sync but at 240 Hz, but this isn’t a big deal. The CQ27G3Z’s backlight strobe is much better than average because the phasing artifact common to this feature is almost entirely invisible. AOC’s MBR option is one of the best examples of blur reduction I’ve seen.

Test Takeaway: The CQ27G3Z delivers high frame rates with solid video processing and low input lag. Its HDR image is of average quality for the price, but it’s nice that the support is there. Aside from a weak overdrive, it is a good gaming monitor and well-suited for daily tasks. 

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The QHD 240 Hz category isn’t large, so to compare the CQ27G3Z’s performance, I’ve included 165 and 170 Hz monitors. All are 27-inch QHD panels with IPS technology. The AOC is the only VA monitor here. The group is BenQ’s EX270QM, AOC’s AG274QG, HP’s HyperX Armada 27, Cooler Master’s GP27Q and Gigabyte’s M27QP. 

Pixel Response and Input Lag

Click here to read up on our pixel response and input lag testing procedures.

I was slightly disappointed to see the CQ27G3Z draw a full white screen in 5ms versus 4ms, but in practice, this is a minor point. The top three screens cost more and will be a touch smoother, but their advantage is small. 5ms is still a guarantee of high motion resolution. The CQ27G3Z’s only flaw here is its overdrive which doesn’t quite clean up the black trail artifacts behind moving objects.

The CQ27G3Z’s overall control lag is mid-pack and trails the 170 Hz Gigabyte by 2ms. That difference is also quite small and as you can see, the other 240 Hz screens aren’t much quicker. All the displays are speedy and will deliver a solid gaming experience, but the CQ27G3Z will do it for a lower cost.

Test Takeaway: Input lag is about average for the class, but the CQ27G3Z suffers from an overdrive with undershoot. Luckily, its backlight strobe feature is better than most, so it can help compensate for losses in motion resolution.

Viewing Angles

If off-axis image quality is crucial to you, VA is rarely the best choice. IPS will always have an advantage when viewed from off-center. The CQ27G3Z shows typical performance in this area. At 45 degrees horizontal, light output is reduced by 40% and the screen has a slight green/red tint. Gamma remains constant, so there is no loss of detail. This behavior is amplified in the vertical plane, where the picture is quite dark with the same green/red tint.

Screen Uniformity

To learn how we measure screen uniformity, click here.

My CQ27G3Z sample had slight hotspots in its corner zones that I could see in an all-black field displayed with room lighting off. The artifacts were invisible when the lights were on or there was content on the screen. This is slightly below-average performance but is also sample specific. Other CQ27G3Zs may do better in this test.

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To read about our monitor tests in-depth, please check out Display Testing Explained: How We Test PC Monitors. We cover brightness and contrast testing on page two.

Uncalibrated – Maximum Backlight Level

The CQ27G3Z falls into the “not super bright, but bright enough” category. It’s rated for 300 nits and easily surpasses that with 323. In a super bright environment, it might not excel but for a typical office or media room, there is more than enough light.

In the black level test, it is far darker than any of the IPS screens. Only OLED has more contrast than a VA monitor. Within that category, the CQ27G3Z renders higher than average contrast with nearly 3,900:1 out of the box. That is measured in the Standard mode at default settings.

After Calibration to 200 nits

Calibration manages to increase the CQ27G3Z’s dynamic range by a nice amount. The contrast ratio rises to 4,129.2:1 after adjustments to the RGB sliders. That’s exceptional performance, even among VA panels which rarely crack 4,000:1 in my tests. Good quality control is also demonstrated in the ANSI test with a solid 3,496.2:1 score. Compared to any IPS display, the CQ27G3Z’s image has truer blacks, greater depth and realism. It also has more perceptual clarity. In other words, it looks sharper than an IPS screen of the same size and resolution.

Test Takeaway: The CQ27G3Z delivers a ton of contrast, even compared to other VA monitors. This all-important metric is the key to superior image depth and color saturation, and AOC excels for the price. 

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I tested the CQ27G3Z’s color accuracy in its default Standard picture mode. I left Game mode off as it did not improve performance in any of its presets. 

Grayscale and Gamma Tracking

Our grayscale and gamma tests use Calman calibration software from Portrait Displays. We describe our grayscale and gamma tests in detail here.

The CQ27G3Z’s default grayscale tracking is disappointing with visible errors from 20% and higher. A purple tint can be seen in areas of gray and white which aren’t truly neutral. This makes the image somewhat flat despite solid gamma tracking and high contrast. This monitor’s full potential can only be unlocked with calibration.

Luckily, the RGB sliders offer some relief. Grayscale errors are now reduced to invisible levels and gamma rides closer to the 2.2 reference line. I had to reduce the contrast slider one click, which raised the luminance of the 90% step. This is a minor error but one that should not be there. Though calibration makes an improvement, the CQ27G3Z has some upward potential.

The sRGB preset is slightly warm in tone with red errors in the 30 to 100% steps. Gamma tracks well except for an elevated level at the 10% step. This translates to slightly grayer shadow areas in some content.

Comparisons

The CQ27G3Z is well behind the top three screens for grayscale accuracy, but the other AOC and the Cooler Master aren’t much better when out-of-box performance is compared. All three of the bottom monitors require calibration for the best possible image.

Though the CQ27G3Z is still in last place, calibration has removed any visible grayscale errors from the equation.

The gamma test is a little better. The CQ27G3Z is in the mix for a range of values that are very tight and only spoiled by the 90% error I noted earlier. And its near-perfect average value is a definite plus. I am talking about very fine differences here. Once calibrated, the CQ27G3Z holds its own with the other monitors. This speaks well to the value quotient since it’s the least expensive screen here.

Color Gamut Accuracy

Our color gamut and volume testing use Portrait Displays’ Calman software. For details on our color gamut testing and volume calculations, click here.

The CQ27G3Z’s color gamut performance starts at a decent point with only minor errors in the out-of-box test. The grayscale errors noted above contribute to color points that are slightly off their hue targets. But saturation points are close to the mark, which is a good thing.

With the grayscale calibration complete, color errors become invisible. In fact, only green is a tad under-saturated, typical of all wide-gamut monitors, especially those at lower price points like the CQ27G3Z. This is excellent performance.

AOC usually provides a usable sRGB mode, and that statement includes the CQ27G3Z. The red primary is slightly over-saturated but well within the realm of qualification for color-critical use.

Comparisons

The CQ27G3Z’s 1.96dE color error puts it in the middle of the group. All the screens have invisible gamut errors, but the CQ27G3Z is the least expensive option. It delivers superb results for the price.

In the gamut volume test, the CQ27G3Z falls short of the others only in its green saturation. The Cooler Master is an over-achiever here with its Rec.2020 gamut but the other screens just have a bit more green. The difference is small, and users will find the CQ27G3Z very colorful for both SDR and HDR content. And its near-perfect coverage of sRGB is a nice bonus.

Test Takeaway: The CQ27G3Z is a bit disappointing out of the box, with an image that isn’t up to its full potential. A green push contributes to a flat image and off-hue color. With calibration, these issues are resolved with a significant improvement in picture quality. 

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Our HDR benchmarking uses Portrait Displays’ Calman software. To learn about our HDR testing, see our breakdown of how we test PC monitors.

The CQ27G3Z fully supports HDR10 signals with an automatic switchover to the appropriate mode. There, you’ll find four settings called Display, Game, Movie and Picture. Display is the most color accurate so that is what I used for testing. The caveat is that it has visible edge enhancement, which reduces motion resolution slightly for gaming. You can eliminate this artifact in the Game HDR mode, but then there is significant clipping of red detail. I’ll show you this issue in the color charts below.

HDR Brightness and Contrast 

The CQ27G3Z’s HDR luminance performance is solid. It won’t show you searingly bright highlights like the Mini LED-based GP27Q, but it beats the HyperX and Gigabyte screens for HDR contrast. At 330 nits, it’s the least bright screen of the bunch, but with deep blacks and excellent dynamic range, the HDR image is clear and vivid. You won’t find much better than this for less than $400. The only bummer is there is no dynamic field dimming in HDR mode which would broaden the dynamic range even more.

Grayscale, EOTF and Color

The CQ27G3Z’s Display HDR mode has no grayscale or EOTF tracking issues. The tone is a tad warm but does not negatively impact picture quality. Luminance tracks the reference almost perfectly with a soft transition to tone-mapping at 65%. This is solid performance.

Looking at the color charts, you can see why Display HDR is the preferred mode. Color points are close to targets except for a bit of over-saturation in red. Looking at the DCI-P3 chart in HDR Game reveals a problem. The red points are so over-saturated that 60, 80 and 100% targets are all the same level. This means any red areas past a mid-tone will be lacking in detail. I highly recommend avoiding this mode even though it is the only one free of edge enhancement. For some reason, the Rec.2020 charts are a bit better, so AOC could possibly fix the color issues with DCI-P3 content in the HDR Game mode.

Test Takeaway: The CQ27G3Z doesn’t use a field dimming feature in HDR mode, so there is no more dynamic range. But its VA technology still delivers a decent HDR image that is superior to budget-oriented IPS displays. HDR color is accurate only in the Display HDR mode. The other presets should be avoided. Overall, HDR impact is just OK with an image that looks slightly different than its SDR counterpart.

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Achieving high frame rates at a low price requires some sacrifices. But leaving out the right options means you can get a great gaming monitor for little money. Do you need USB ports or speakers? Do you need perfectly accurate color? Do you need super high brightness or a ginormous color gamut? If the answer to these questions is no, AOC provides a great solution for just $375 at this writing.

The CQ27G3Z doesn’t have any of those things, but it does have a reliable 240 Hz refresh rate, perfect FreeSync and G-Sync operation, decent HDR, color accuracy with calibration, a superb backlight strobe and solid build quality. And its curved screen enhances gameplay. I noted a weak overdrive feature during testing, but in practice, it turned out to be only a minor distraction. Many hours later, after many frags, I was impressed by the performance AOC offers for less than $400.

I noted some visible grayscale errors out of the box. But with calibration, they were eliminated with an improvement in contrast, gamut accuracy and gamma tracking. If you pick up a CQ27G3Z, I recommend using the settings I posted back on page one.

Pixel density is certainly a high point with the ideal 109ppi that every 27-inch QHD panel delivers. That’s a sweet spot for both clarity and frame rates. You can hit 240fps without an expensive video card and the picture is razor-sharp with strong detail and a true three-dimensional look in HDR mode. Though you won’t get the 1000-nit highlights of a Mini LED panel, the CQ27G3Z still makes the image pop.

If you’re in the market for a solid gaming monitor that’s kind to the wallet, the AOC CQ27G3Z is hard to beat for less than $400. Fans of high frame rates and sharp pictures should definitely check it out.

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Right now at Best Buy, you can find the Asus Zenbook 14 Q410 for one of its best prices to date. It has a recommended price of $799 but is currently marked down to $499. It’s not clear for how long the $300 discount will be made available.

This deal is notable for its 13th Gen Intel processor and 2.8K OLED touchscreen display. For a laptop with these specs in this price range, it’s definitely worth a look whether you’re in the market for something casual or a little beefy for media purposes.

Under the hood, you’ll find an Intel Core i5 13500H processor which can reach up to 4.7GHz. It’s accompanied by Intel Iris Xe graphics which outputs to a 14.5-inch touchscreen OLED panel with a resolution of 2880 x 1800px. For storage, users get a 512GB internal SSD to take advantage of which connects using a PCIe 4.0 interface. This is alongside 8GB of LPDDR5-4800 for memory.

The Zenbook 14 Q410 has an integrated mic and 1080p webcam for video conferencing. A 3.5mm jack is also available for audio peripherals. As far as ports go, it has two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two HDMI ports, two Display Ports, a USB Type-A 3.2 port and one USB Type-C port. It’s powered by a 10Hr battery and is supported by Asus with a limited 1-year manufacturer’s warranty.

To get a closer look at this deal, check out the product page for the Zenbook 14 Q410 over at the Best Buy website.

Asus' range of Raspberry Pi alternative boards sees another new model arrive, but this boards eschews the Raspberry Pi form factor used in the previous Tinker Boards for something that looks more like a NUC.

All of the models are based on a Rockchip RK3568 SoC which sees a 64-bit, quad-core Arm v8 CPU. The SoC is cooled using a low-profile heatsink which means that this new board can be dropped into a low-profile case. The form factor is very Nvidia Jetson, with a rotated HDMI connector and ports along one side of the board.

The 100 x 100mm form factor affords a little more space that a Raspberry Pi 4, and dominating the underside of the board is the aforementioned heat sink. Placing this under the board provides more space on top for multiple M.2 slots, one of which appears to come with a Wi-Fi card installed. The other slot can be used with 4/5G radios or an SSD.  But do you need an SSD when the 3N can be specced with a 32 or 64GB eMMC and of course we can use the Micro SD card for booting / additional storage. Two USB 3 ports provide fast access to external storage, or most likely the keyboard and mouse that we will use to work with the board. USB C provides OTG services, with no mention of Power Delivery.

The elephant in the room is the GPIO. Previous Asus Tinker Boards aped the 40 pin GPIO found on the Raspberry Pi, but software support was lacking. For the 3N we see that Asus are using its own layout, a 1 x 12 (it claims in the specifications, but we can see a 2 x 16 layout in the images). While we may not have a glut of GPIO pins, we have all the bases covered (I2C, SPI, UART, PWM, ADC and Digital IO). We just need the software support to be there. Talking of which, the 3N supports Debian, Yocto and Android operating systems. Hopefully one, if not all of the choices provides hardware accelerated desktops and video playback. As for GPIO software, in the past Asus used its own version of RPI.GPIO for Python. The original, created by Ben Croston, rose to fame thanks to its adoption by the Raspberry PI Foundation for its early Python learning resources. It is highly likely that Asus will continue to use its own Python module, and the GPIO should also be accessible via the Linux terminal.

How much does the 3N cost? Well we don't know. We looked around a few Asus resellers, via links found on the Asus site, but to no avail. We have to guess that it will be more expensive than the Asus Tinker Board 2, which can go for around the $200 mark. 

When it comes to revitalizing old hardware, no SBC is quite as versatile as the Raspberry Pi. You can cram a Pi into anything from an old typewriter to a Commodore 64 with some exciting results depending on how far you want to take it. Today, we’re sharing another cool project that revitalizes old hardware with new tech created by Saugat Gamuwa with Maker Sci over at YouTube. In his latest video, Gamuwa shows us how he managed to transform an old CRT TV into a smart TV.

It doesn’t take any special PCB or niche hardware to pull off this project. All you need is a Raspberry Pi capable of streaming video so anything from a Pi 4 to a Pi Zero will suffice and the right adapter to output said video to the CRT. In this case, he’s got an AV to HDMI adapter on hand which is more than capable of giving us the compatibility we need.

There are several different ways you can take advantage of a project like this and it mostly boils down to the software you decide to implement on the Pi. For example, while Gamuwa is using a Pi to make a smart TV, you could easily turn this into a gaming project by setting up an emulator for retro consoles using something like RetroPie or Lakka.

Gamuwa provided a full list of hardware used in this project. Most of it is necessary but some of it is specific to his project because of the model of Pi chosen. Gamuwa is using a Raspberry Pi Zero W which has a mini HDMI port. Because of this, he is using a mini HDMI to HDMI converter to connect the Pi Zero W to an AV to an HDMI adapter. This adapter connects the Pi to the CRT.

For the operating system, Gamuwa is using a tool called OSMC. This is an open-source tool that stands for Open Source Media Center. It provides the smart TV functions we need that let you play videos not just locally on the Pi but from streaming apps and more. OSMC has an app store so you can customize your setup any way you like.

If you want to get a closer look at this Raspberry Pi project, check out the full video shared on YouTube. It’s a relatively simple idea but the results are too cool to ignore if you're a fan of retro hardware.

Earlier this year, at CES 2023, Acer announced two new monitors: the Predator X27U and the X45. While both feature brilliant OLED panels, the larger Predator X45 grabbed the most attention with its expansive display. Now, that monitor is available for sale in the United States as a Newegg exclusive.

The Predator X45 unsurprisingly features a large 45-inch OLED panel with a UWQHD (3440 x 1440) resolution and a maximum refresh rate of 240 Hz with AMD FreeSync Premium support. That 240Hz figure is only achievable using DisplayPort or USB-C. If you opt for an HDMI connection, you’re limited to 144Hz at UWQHD resolution.

As with most of these large-format monitors, the panel is curved to help reduce eye strain and provide a more immersive gaming experience. In this case, there’s a tight 800R curvature. The panel features an 800R curvature, and peak HDR brightness tops out at 1,000 nits. Other specifications of note include a 1,500,000:1 contrast ratio, a 0.01 ms response time, and 99 percent coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut.

Despite the OLED panel, Acer opted for an anti-glare coating with the Predator X45. This should reduce clarity compared to a glossy finish, but the upside is that reflections should be less prominent when you’re trying to focus on the gaming action on-screen.

The Predator X45 features two HDMI 2.0, one DisplayPort 1.4, a USB-C port (90-watt power delivery), and a two-port USB 3.2 hub. Although hardcore gamers will likely have their own dedicated sound system or a pair of the best gaming headsets, the Predator X45 does include two 5-watt speakers. The monitor is also adjustable for tilt (-5 to 15 degrees), swivel (+/- 15 degrees), and height (110mm). 

You can grab the Predator X45 from Newegg, where it carries a retail price of $1,599. To put that in perspective, the similarly spec’d 45-inch Corsair Xeneon Flex (albeit with a trick bendable OLED panel) carries the same price at Newegg. The Predator X45 looks like a serious contender to join our best curved gaming monitors list, so stay tuned for a full review of this OLED beast.

AMD has announced two brand new RDNA 3 workstation GPUs today known as the Radeon Pro W7600 and Radeon Pro W7500. These new GPUs are aimed at the entry-level market arriving with single-slot cooling solutions. They use the Navi 33 die, with 8GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit interface — just like the Radeon RX 7600. The difference is in the drivers and a few other aspects, as well as the TBP (total board power) and cooling.

Both new workstation GPUs come with AMD's latest feature set from the RDNA 3 architecture. That means AV1 encode and decode, enhancements to the compute units (CUs), and DisplayPort 2.1 outputs. Note that unlike the Radeon Pro W7900 and W7800, the W7600 and W7500 feature up to UHBR10 (ultra hit bitrate 10 Gbps) video outputs. The consumer RX 7000-series has UHBR13.5 support (up to 54 Gbps total), while the top workstation GPUs have UHBR20 support (up to 80 Gbps).

The W7600 is the faster card of the two. Specs include a full Navi 33 die with 32 CUs, 64 AI accelerators, 8GB of 18 Gbps GDDR6 memory, a 128-bit wide memory interface, and a 130W power rating. As previously mentioned this model features a single-slot cooling solution that will make it easy to integrate into any system, no matter how big or small it might be. It has a single 6-pin power connector.

The W7500 is the lowest-level card in AMD's RDNA 3 workstation portfolio right now. It comes with the same Navi 33 die as the W7600 but with fewer cores and a slower memory subsystem. Specs include 28 CUs, 56 AI Accelerators, 8GB of 11 Gbps GDDR6 memory, a 128-bit memory bus, and a 70W power rating. Thanks to its extremely low power rating, the W7500 operates without any supplemental power connectors, which means it can slot into systems with less-capable power supplies. It also comes with a slightly shorter single-slot cooler that will help case compatibility even more.

As mentioned above, both the W7600 and W7500 have DisplayPort 2.1 UHBR 10 support, which enables both GPUs to support extremely high refresh rates and resolutions. Both GPUs are capable of running up to four 8K 120Hz or 10K 60Hz displays with Display Stream Compression, or up to four 6K 60Hz panels without
compression.

Technically, UHBR10 ends up with slightly lower bandwidth than HDMI 2.1 (48 Gbps), but it's a big upgrade over DisplayPort 1.4a's HBR3 (32.4 Gbps). There are different encoding schemes, so UHBR10 has a maximum data rate of 38.79 Gbps with 128b/132b encoding, HBR3 has a maximum data rate of 25.92 Gbps with 8b/10b encoding, and HDMI 2.1 has a max data rate of 42 Gbps with 16b/18b encoding.

Since these cards are also workstation cards, they get access to AMD's pro drivers that are optimized for non-gaming productivity-based applications. You can still run games and other graphics applications on them, but they're primarily for professional content creation — you get less raw performance for a higher price than the consumer Radeon parts.

Radeon Pro W7600 and Radeon Pro W7500 Specifications

Here you can see the specifications for the W7600 and W7500, along with the previous generation W6600. The specs leaked already, but everything is now officially confirmed by AMD, including pricing. AMD also provided some of its own benchmarks, comparing the Radeon Pro cards with their Nvidia counterparts.

According to the AMD-provided benchmarks, the Radeon Pro W7600 offers up to 19% higher performance than the Radeon Pro W6600. The Radeon Pro W7500 is 17% slower than the Radeon Pro W6600.

AMD also compared the latest Navi 33 to their equivalent Nvidia rivals across 3D content creation, animation, 3D CAD, and visualization workloads. According to the chipmaker, the Radeon Pro W7600 provides professionals with better performance than the Nvidia RTX A2000 (Ampere), whereas the Radeon Pro W7500 outperforms the Nvidia T1000 (Turing).

Pricing-wise, the Radeon Pro W7600 will hit the market at $599, $50 less than the Radeon Pro W6600 while offering higher performance. AMD's Radeon Pro W7600 thus outpaces the RTX A2000, is $47 cheaper. Meanwhile, the Radeon Pro W7500 will retail for $429, representing only a $5 saving over the T1000.

While AMD has now officially announced the Radeon Pro W7600 and W7500, the retail availability of the cards is listed as "Q3, 2023." For OEMs and system integrators, you can expect to see options for the new GPUs appear in the coming months, with online sales of just the cards before the end of September.

Here's the rundown of the entire Radeon Pro stack as it currently stands. The W7900 uses Navi 31 with a fully enabled die, while the W7800 drops that down to 70 CUs with a lower power limit. Note that for both of those, UHBR20 support is limited to a single DisplayPort, while the others are UHBR13.5 rated.

AMD's prices have also gone up compared to previous generations, as the hardware has become more capable and competitive, though Nvidia's top RTX 6000 Ada Generation still costs substantially more, with a $6,800 MSRP.

The full slide deck provided by AMD is below, for your reference.

Stock of Raspberry Pi is getting better, with our favorite board, the Raspberry Pi 4, now staying in stock for longer! But one board is still rather elusive — the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W. So if you need a little more power in a smaller form factor, perhaps Geniatech's XPI-3566-ZERO is for you. The catch? You need to buy in bulk. Hat tip to CNX Software for spotting this board.

The Rockchip RK3566 SoC is powered by a quad-core Arm Cortex A55, the successor to the Arm Cortex A53 used in the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and the Raspberry Pi 3. The 1.8GHz CPU is a boost from the 1GHz quad-core Arm A53 found in the Zero 2 W, but that is just part of the story. The Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W comes with just 512MB of RAM. Enough for headless projects, but running a desktop on the Zero 2 W will soon drain your resources. 

The XPI-3566-ZERO comes in configurations between 512MB and a whopping 8GB of RAM; add to that eMMC storage options between 8 and 128GB, and we have a potent and tiny platform. Networking duties fall to an unnamed Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip that provides 2.4 and 5GHz Wi-Fi, along with Bluetooth 5.0. On the underside of the board, there appears to be an external aerial connector. This means that there is no antenna built into the PCB, unlike the Raspberry Pi Zero W range of boards.

Two USB C ports provide power (DC 5V 2A) and USB 2.0 OTG, so no super-speed USB shenanigans, but we have a solid connector for expansion. Mini HDMI provides the only means of video output and emulates the connection found on the Raspberry Pi Zero W. We much prefer Mini over Micro HDMI. The latter feels just too fragile for our clumsy hands.

A MIPI-CSI camera connector is on one side, and it looks to be physically compatible with the official Raspberry Pi cameras, but you will need to use the Zero adapter cable. Talking of compatibility, the big question is, "Is the 40-pin GPIO Raspberry Pi compatible?" A quick check of the datasheet [PDF] shows that the pinouts match. So the best Raspberry Pi HATs can fit on top of the board, but software support will vary between the many add-ons.

Talking of software support, we have the usual operating system selection, Android and Debian Linux. But "Raspberry Pi OS emulator" has us intrigued. Is this a fork of Raspberry Pi OS, a QEMU VM for development, or something else entirely?

How much does Geniatech's XPI-3566-ZERO cost? Well, that is where we draw a blank. Getting a price requires a quotation, and we hazard a guess that they won't be selling these boards in single figures.

E-Ink displays have been around for a long time, and are commonly used in e-readers. But a company by the name of Dasung has been busy porting the technology over to computer monitors. The display manufacturer has launched an Indigogo campaign for its second e-ink monitor to date, which is the first e-ink computer monitor in the world to support color.

The monitor features a 25.3-inch display, with support for 4096 colors, an impressive 3200 x 1800 resolution (which is a very high resolution for any 25' monitor), and a height-adjustable stand that allows the monitor to be vertically oriented. To keep up with computing tasks, the monitor's display comes with an ultra-fast turbo refresh rate that will make the display behave similarly to a traditional LCD screen. The monitor also features five different display connections including HDMI, DisplayPort, USB Type-C, and wireless connectivity support in the form of Miracast and Apple AirPlay.

It may seem crazy that there's a market for e-ink computer displays, but there is a market for this type of technology already. E-ink devices, like e-readers, e-ink tablets and even e-ink laptops have become the de facto display choice for some people over the past few decades due to their paper-like look, which produces less stress on the eyes. E-ink displays achieve their signature look thanks to a special display technology that allows them to display text and images without the aid of a backlight.

Dasung's new monitor is not perfect, however, colors and response times are still well below what an entry-level LCD monitor can support, judging by the specs and advertisement video. The display's refresh rate is also not great and doesn't appear to hit anywhere close to 60Hz, so don't expect to have a great viewing experience watching blockbuster movies or YouTube videos on this display.

But, the e-ink panel should get the job done for basic text-like applications, such as word processing, spreadsheets, emailing, and basic web browsing, while providing a strain-free viewing experience for sensitive people. Dasung has not issued a release date yet for the new monitor, but you can check for updates by signing up for the Indigogo email listing here.

On Monday, Sony rolled out a new PlayStation 5 beta software update that adds support for high-capacity 8TB SSDs and support of its Tempest 3D AudioTech on Dolby Atmos devices, along with new accessibility features. For now, beta access will be limited to invited participants in select countries, but eventually, these features will be added to the final version of the software. 

While Sony's PlayStation 5 console fully supports off-the-shelf PCIe 4.0 SSDs (check out our list of the best PS5 SSDs), Sony has limited the maximum capacity to 4TB. With the new beta software, Sony increases the maximum capacity of PS5 drives to 8TB, which enables owners of its latest consoles to store more games locally. This naturally improves the competitiveness of PS5 compared to Microsoft's Xbox Series X|S since the latter only supports proprietary storage drives with up to 2TB capacity.

Another important addition the new beta release brings is the support of Sony's Tempest 3D AudioTech on compatible Dolby Atmos-enabled HDMI devices such as soundbars, TVs, or home theater systems. Implementing the Tempest 3D AudioTech is specifically designed to cater to Dolby Atmos audio devices, including overhead channels, to enhance the three-dimensional audion of PS5 games. Previously, Sony's Tempest 3D AudioTech was only available on select headphones.

With the new beta release, gamers can now designate a secondary controller to a single account, functioning as an assist controller. This allows two controllers to manage a PS5 console as though there were only one in use. This newly added feature presents an innovative method to engage in games collaboratively or assist a friend or child during difficult game sequences. 

Furthermore, the beta update adds a new setting to enable haptic feedback effects when navigating through PS5 menus. This option is accessible using a DualSense controller, a DualSense Edge controller, or a PS VR2 Sense controller.

The best portable monitors come in all shapes, sizes, and form factors. One of the weirdest designs I reviewed was the Sidetrack Swivel, which is semi-permanently attached to your laptop’s display lid or standalone like a traditional portable monitor (in either portrait or landscape mode).

However, the new Limink LK14 Portable Tri-Screen Monitor takes things one step further. Rather than just one display that attaches to one side of your laptop’s integrated monitor, it has two displays flanking your internal display, hence the “tri-screen” moniker.

This is one of the most well-thought-out portable monitors I’ve tested, and it’s the highest quality, using a sturdy aluminum alloy for all structural components.  With various connectivity options for hooking up to your laptop and a comprehensive mounting system, the only thing standing in the way of the Tri-Screen is its $700 price tag.

Limink LK14 Portable Tri-Screen Monitor Specifications

Design of the Limink LK14 Portable Tri-Screen Monitor

Thanks to its aluminum alloy construction, the LK14 looks right at home attached to an Apple MacBook Pro. The color scheme clashes with most Windows laptops, which typically feature darker palettes for their display lids. When you take the LK14 out of its included book-style case, it is folded with a foam block inserted to protect the two screens.

Next, you need to unfold both displays and the inner flaps that sit behind your laptop’s display. Those inner flaps are spring-loaded and feature two metal hoops you pull with your fingers to extend. Releasing the hoops allows the edges of the inner flaps to firmly “grab” the side of your laptop’s internal display. The clamping force was tight enough that the LK14 easily stayed attached to my 14-inch MacBook Pro. The LK14 supports 13- to 16-inch laptops.

However, for further support, an adjustable kickstand is mounted on the back of the left inner flap to support the added weight of the LK14. The stand folds out from the inner flap and can move up or down an indented track to help you find the perfect angle.

Not only is the kickstand adjustable but the monitors themselves can be positioned flat to match your laptop’s display or angle inward to your liking. The hinge is very stiff, allowing you to find the perfect angle for either of the LK14’s displays.

I’ll take this time to say that the LK14 is extremely well-built. There is no flex to the display panels, and everything is screwed together with a level of precision that you don’t usually see with portable monitors (which are typically constructed of cheap plastic to save weight). In addition, Limink includes rubber pads on the inner flaps so that the LK14 doesn’t scratch your laptop’s lid. There are additional rubber strips along the edges of the inner flaps so that they don’t scratch the edges of your laptop’s lid.

The LK14 features two 60Hz 14-inch IPS panels with an FHD+ (1920 x 1200) resolution. Limink claims 400 nits of brightness and 81 percent of DCI-P3 coverage. The LK14 measures 7.92 x 12.8 x 1.18 inches and weighs just over three pounds.

Connecting the Limink LK14 Portable Tri-Screen Monitor

Connecting the LK14 to my MacBook Pro on the first try took about a minute. It took this long because I was unfamiliar with the process and didn’t want to damage the dual screens. However, once I got used to the process and figured out how to use the hoops to adjust the inner flaps (it’s incredible what you can learn if you actually read the manual), I was able to complete the task in about 20 seconds.

Limink provides multiple ways to connect the LK14 to your laptop, and each monitor comes with two USB-C ports and one mini HDMI port. You can connect one monitor with HDMI + USB-A for power and the other with USB-C. If you have a Thunderbolt 3/4 laptop or one equipped full-function USB-C ports, you can simplify the connection process by using two USB-C cables for video and power.

I took this route, as my MacBook Pro features three Thunderbolt 4 ports. The left display connected to a Thunderbolt 4 port on the left of my MacBook Pro, while the right panel connected to the sole Thunderbolt 4 port on the right of my laptop. There’s no real way to hide the USB-C cables from view while using the LK14, as all the ports are on the sides instead of the back of the panels.

Limink provides two USB-C to USB-C cables, two USB-C to USB-A, and two HDMI to mini HDMI cables in the box.

Given a weight of over three pounds, the LK14 is not suitable for use on your lap. You’ll need a desk or table to place your laptop on and the kickstand to support the weight of the hardware.

On-Screen Display on the Limink LK14 Portable Tri-Screen Monitor

The LK14 is treated as two monitors, each showing up individually in macOS and Windows 11. The same goes for the on-screen display (OSD). Each monitor has its own OSD and physical controls, allowing you to adjust settings for each independently.

Adjusting settings is achieved with a rocker switch that moves left or right to navigate the menu system. Pressing in on the rocker serves as the action button, while a separate round button acts as a “back” command in the OSD or a power button when the OSD is inactive.

The OSD is basic, with settings for brightness, contrast, color, HDR, and controls for adjusting where the OSD appears on the display. While you can change the settings for each monitor individually for specific usage cases, I configured each identically.

Image Quality of the Limink LK14 Portable Tri-Screen Monitor

The LK14 fared well in our testing suite compared to the other portable monitors we tested. However, I must reiterate that the LK14 uses two identical IPS panels, and our testing showed that they performed identically. So, the numbers you see below apply to both panels on our review unit.

The LK14 hit 80.9 percent of the DCI-P3 color space, according to our colorimeter, putting it right on top of the 81 percent claim from the factory. When it came to the sRGB color gamut, it came in at 114.2 percent, putting it in line with the Asus ZenScreen Go MB16AWP. Our light meter showed that the LK14 came up a little short of the factory 400 nits brightness claim, delivering a still impressive 388.6 percent. This was enough to shoot the LK14 to the top of the pack, surpassing the OLED-backed InnoCN 15AF.

Limink bills the LK14 as a productivity-centric device, and I used it mainly for this purpose. I typically used my MacBook Pro’s display for Microsoft Edge (and dozen+ tabs), while I used the LK14’s auxiliary panels for a mix of apps like Word, Excel, Slack, NetNewsWire, and UltiMaker Cura for tinkering with my 3D prints.

I also used the LK14 to watch the final episode of Marvel’s Secret Invasion on the left monitor while I worked on a Word document with my MacBook Pro’s display and input data in an Excel file with the right monitor. The overall image quality looked excellent on both the LK14’s displays, with good color reproduction and contrast (the purple blood splatters of Skrulls succumbing to headshots particularly stood out). However, even the top-notch image quality couldn’t save this trainwreck of a show.

Bottom Line

The Limink LK14 is a versatile product that greatly increased my daily productivity. Most portable monitors sit off your laptop's side at a lower position than your integrated display. This can cause some “eye hunting” as your gaze switches from display to display.

With the LK14, the monitors attach to the back of your laptop’s lid and are adjustable for height to achieve near-perfect positioning. And with the sturdy attachment mechanism and aluminum finish that matches my MacBook Pro, it provides a more integrated look than other portable monitor solutions. The only thing that distracted me from the experience is that the two USB-C cables jut out from the side and hang down, which is a bit of an eyesore.

However, the biggest issue that users may have is with the price, which isn’t cheap. The LK14 has an MSRP of $699 on Amazon, which is easily twice the price of some of the most competitive portable monitors, like the OLED-equipped InnoCN 15AF. However, the LK14 is currently on sale, with a coupon taking the price down to a more palatable $595. That’s still a large sum of money, but you are getting two monitors, and the highly-integrated design and quality justify the price.

MORE: Best Portable Monitors

MORE: Best Budget 4K Monitors

MORE: Best Computer Monitors

The market is awash in gaming laptops that promise to offer good performance for not a lot of money. Today, you can get a gaming laptop for around $1,000 that gives you playable 1080p frame rates in modern games. HP is looking to tap into the low- to mid-range segment with the Victus 16, its latest 16.1-inch gaming notebook that eschews the flashy designs and bold colors that often grace this segment with something more akin to business casual. 

Our review configuration of the Victus 16 plays it safe with a Core i7-13700H processor, GeForce RTX 4050 GPU and a 144Hz 1080p screen. However, some confusing choices regarding configurations, pricing, and store-specific SKUs make this a hard laptop to pin down. However, if you can catch the Victus 15 on sale (as it is currently), it’s worth considering among the best laptops under $1,500. 

HP Victus 16 Specifications

Design of the HP Victus 16

The Victus 16 has an understated, attractive design. The entire chassis is constructed of sturdy, grey plastic, while the keyboard is finished in a slightly lighter shade of grey. There aren’t design embellishments drawing attention to the laptop other than a large chromed “V” that graces the lid. That also means you won’t find any RGB lighting for the keyboard, just simple white LEDs.

At the top of the keyboard are a large grouping of ventilation holes. They are shaped as an alternating set of V (upright and then inverted). A similar pattern is found on the lower front corners of the laptop for the speaker grills, although the V shape is swapped out for triangles.

One thing that I’d like to point out is the obnoxious stickers that HP slaps on the keyboard deck. I get it; this is hard to avoid with Windows laptops. OEMs must satisfy advertising agreements by adorning their laptops with these Intel Core and Nvidia GeForce RTX badges. However, would it kill HP to at least put the stickers on straight? The crooked placement of the stickers is just an insult to injury.

The Victus 16’s port layout is quite robust for a mainstream system. The right side is home to two USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A ports, one USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C port, a HDMI 2.1 port and a proprietary barrel-style jack for power. On the left side, you’ll find a third USB 3.1 Gen 1 port and a Gigabit Ethernet jack that retracts to accept a cable. On the one hand, the retracting mechanism is an obvious point for future failure due to its fragility. However, the fact that HP even includes a full-size LAN port should be applauded.

Nearly half of the bottom part of the chassis is dedicated to a ventilation array that supplies the twin internal fans with cool air. Hot air is then exhausted from vents positioned on the left and rear of the chassis.

The Victus 16 measures 14.53 x 10.21 x 0.90 inches and weighs 5.15 pounds. The assembled competition – the MSI Katana 15, Acer Nitro 5 and Lenovo Legion Pro 5i – are similar in size (roughly an inch thick) and weight (5 to 5.5 pounds).

Gaming Performance on the HP Victus 16

The Victus 16 has an Intel Core i7-13700H processor, 16GB of DDR5-5600 memory and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 discrete GPU.

I started things off by playing a bit of Cyberpunk 2077, which is a notoriously resource-intensive game that delivers a big payoff with its lush graphics. With the resolution set to 1080p, I used the High quality preset with ray tracing (including ray traced lighting), DLSS Balanced, and DLSS frame generation enabled. I averaged around 90 fps under these conditions.

We’ve only tested one other RTX 4050 laptop, the MSI Katana 15 (i7-13620H, RTX 4050), which I’ve included in this roundup. We also brought in a last-gen Acer Nitro 5 (i5-12500H, RTX 3050 Ti) along with the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i (Gen 8) (i7-13700HX, RTX 4060) to give some perspective for the next step up on the graphics performance ladder.

The Victus 16 comes out of the gate strong in Shadow of the Tomb Raider (highest settings), delivering 79 frames per second (fps) at 1080p. The Katana 15, with a less performant Core i7-13260H processor, wasn’t too far behind at 73 fps. The RTX 4050-equipped machines offer a notable increase in performance over the Nitro 5 with its previous generation RTX 3050 Ti.

In the Far Cry 6 (very high settings), the Katana 15 hit 81 fps compared to 77 fps for the Victus 16. Again, the RTX 4050 laptops left the Nitro 5 behind, while the Legion Pro 5i opened up a 13 fps advantage over the Katana 15 thanks to its more powerful RTX 4060 GPU.

Grand Theft Auto V (very high settings) saw the Victus 16 and Katana 15 neck and neck, hitting 71 fps and 70 fps, respectively. This represents a 10 fps advantage over the Nitro 5, while the Legion 5i Pro pulled well ahead at nearly 100 fps.

Borderlands 3 (badass settings) again saw a tight race between the Victus 16 (66 fps) and the Katana 15 (68 fps), while the Nitro 5 (45 fps) and Legion 5i Pro (90 fps) took up their usual positions as bookends for this comparison test.

In Red Dead Redemption 2 (very high settings), the Victus 16 garnered 53 fps compared to 52 for the Katana 15. These two laptops are about as evenly matched as you can get regarding gaming performance at 1080p resolution.

I rounded out the gaming tests with our Metro Exodus (RTX settings) stress test, comprising 15 benchmark loops at 1080p resolution. The benchmark ran at an average of 57.43 fps (consistently ranging between 57.26 to 57.63 fps). During the run, the Core i7-13700H averaged 3.46GHz and 2.32GHz for the performance and efficiency cores, respectively. The CPU package averaged 73.59 degrees Celsius (164.46 degrees Fahrenheit). The GeForce RTX 4050 GPU ran at an average of 2.33 GHz and measured 69.35 C (156.83 F).

Productivity Performance on the HP Victus 16

My Victus 16 review unit arrived with an Intel Core i7-13700H processor, 16GB of DDR5-5600 memory and a 1TB SSD.

Starting with the Geekbench 5 synthetic CPU test, the Victus 16 scores of 1,913 and 12,024 for single-core and multi-core performance, respectively. The Katana 15 with its Core i7-13620H CPU wasn’t too far behind with scores of 1,787 and 12,017, respectively.

Moving on to our file transfer test, which involved copying 25GB of data, the Victus 16 bested all challengers at 1,807.92 MBps. The Legion 5i Pro was the next closest at 1,792.63 MBps, while the Katana 15 pulled up the rear at 1,045.33 MBps.

The Victus 16 fared well in our Handbrake benchmark, which involves transcoding a video from 4K to 1080p. The Victus 16 took four minutes and 40 seconds to accomplish the feat. This was 24 seconds faster than the Nitro 5 and just 13 seconds slower than the Katana 15.

Display on the HP Victus 16

The Victus 16 uses a 16.1-inch 1080p display rated for 300 nits and has a refresh rate of 144Hz. All Victus 16 configurations come with a 1080p display.

Despite the lower resolution on a relatively large display, I had no major issues with the panel. The display is rated for 300 nits by the factory, yet our light meter showed that the Victus 16 hit 313 nits. We rarely see a display exceed the manufacturer’s claim, so I was pleasantly surprised. That figure put it on an even footing with the Nitro 5’s 314 nits and behind the Legion Pro 5i’s 349 nits.

The anti-reflective coating was adept at keeping away reflections, and cranking up the brightness while outdoors (overcast conditions) allowed me to enjoy the display. Our colorimeter showed that the Victus 16’s display covers 75.2 percent of the DCI-P3 color gamut and 106 percent of sRGB, which put it well ahead of the budget panels used in the Katana 15 and Nitro 5.

I sat down and watched Episode 5 of Secret Invasion on the Victus 16 and the image quality looked great. Secret Invasion’s overall color palette is somewhat subdued and somber, which is in keeping with the series's heavy, world-ending subject material. However, one standout during an otherwise humdrum episode was when MI6 agent Sonya Falsworth shot a Skrull posing as her superior, Director Weatherby. Her bright red dress popped on the display and was the perfect counter to the blue suits of Weatherby’s dumbfounded security detail.  

The screen looked equally as good playing Overwatch 2, with its rich, saturated colors beaming on the display, especially on the Paraiso map. The colors weren’t as vibrant as some of the higher-end IPS or OLED panels I’ve seen in high-end gaming laptops, but for a device that starts around $1,000, there’s little to complain about here.

Keyboard and Touchpad on the HP Victus 16

The keyboard on the Victus 16 is quite comfortable, with keys that are quiet and firm in their operation. It reminded me of the latest scissor switch-style keyboards on Apple’s MacBooks. However, unlike MacBook keyboards, you get a full number pad off to the right of the laptop.

I use keyhero.com to test my typing speed and accuracy, and the site pegged me at 80.77 words per minute with an accuracy of 95.92 percent. For comparison, I hit 77.93 wpm with the Katana 13 with 95.54 percent accuracy.

The Victus 16 has a smallish touchpad measuring 5.1 x 3.3 inches. The touchpad is nice and tight, with a firm click response. However, my finger seemed to subtly drag rather than glide over the surface, which was slightly annoying.

Audio on the HP Victus 16

The Victus 16 uses a pair of B&O-tuned speakers mounted at the corner of the palm rest. Like most budget laptops, the bass is lacking, but the overall audio quality was pleasing. I played “Battersea” by Hooverphonic, which is a showpiece for Geike Arnaert’s angelic vocals. The sound was distortion free up through maximum volume levels. And to put a smile on my face at the end of the day, I played “Going the Distance” by Menahan Street Band, a magnificent cover of Bill Conti’s Rocky theme song. The song is pure perfection, and while the lack of bass doesn’t do the drumline any favors, the blaring horns came through loud and clear.

The sound was good in Cyberpunk 2077, with clear vocals and ambient sounds. However, the lack of bass means that explosions landed with a thud. However, the audio shortcoming can be easily rectified by grabbing a pair of the best gaming headsets.

Upgradeability of the HP Victus 16

The Victus 16’s bottom panel is accessible via eight small Philips screws. Once removed, I nearly broke a fingernail trying to pry the panel off – I should have just gone downstairs to get my plastic spudger tool. Once the panel is removed, you’ll find immediate access to the battery, two SO-DIMM slots (both populated on our review unit) and a single M.2 slot for an NVMe SSD.

Unlike some pricier laptops, you won’t find a second M.2 slot to for an additional SSD. However, you can upgrade the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth combo card.

Battery Life on the HP Victus 16

Battery life is one area where the Victus 16 stood head and shoulders above the assembled competition. Our battery test consists of web browsing, light graphics work and video streaming, all while connected to Wi-Fi with the display set to 150 nits of brightness. Under these conditions, the Victus 16 lasted for seven hours and three minutes.

This was nearly three times as long as the Katana 15, which gave up the ghost after 2:39. The next closest competitor was the Nitro 5 (5:33), while the higher-performing Legion Pro 5i called it quits after 4:54.

Heat on the HP Victus 16

The Victus can get toasty when gaming. Like most gaming laptops, keep it on a desk or table.

When running our Metro Exodus stress test (15 consecutive runs), the Victus 16 measured 38.3 Celsius (100.9 degrees Fahrenheit) between the G and H keys. The touchpad measured a relatively cool 22.8 C (73 F), while the hottest part of the laptop was the underside near the rear at 49.3 C (120.7 F).

Webcam on the HP Victus 16

HP uses a 1080p sensor for the Victus 16’s webcam, but it wasn’t up to par with other upgraded webcams we’ve seen on newer laptops. I won’t say that image clarity was down in the 720p doldrums, but it wasn’t as clear and crisp as I would have expected from a 1080p sensor.

Details in objects that came through clearly with other 1080p webcams looked blurred. My facial details (hair, moles, wrinkles) also didn’t transition from real life to digital facsimile unscathed. The camera also had a lot of trouble with my overhead lighting, resulting in lens flare and blooming. This is fine for quick calls, but if you're streaming, you might want to consider one of the best webcams.

Software and Warranty on the HP Victus 16

Like many HP laptops, the Victus comes loaded with factory apps. I noticed HP Documentation, HP PC Hardware Diagnostics, HP Privacy Settings, HP QuickDrop, HP Smart, HP Support Assistant and HP System Event Utility.

However, the utility that most gamers will interact with will be the Omen Gaming Hub. It’s a centralized location to view system vitals, launch your games and share screenshots and wallpapers with other community members.

In addition to the HP bloat, you’ll also find numerous shortcuts for apps like Spotify, WhatsApp, ExpressVPN and Dropbox. McAfee LiveSafe is also installed by default on the system.

The Victus 16 comes with a one-year warranty.

HP Victus 16 Configurations

Our Victus 16 review unit is configured with an Intel Core i7-13700H processor, 16GB of DDR5-5600 memory, a 1TB SSD, an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 and a 16.1-inch 144Hz 1080p display. This configuration typically costs $1,449, exclusive from HP, but is currently on sale at HP.com for $1,199.

HP also sells store-specific versions of the Victus 16. For example, Costco sells a SKU with the Core i7-13700HX, 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD and an RTX 4060 for $1,399. Likewise, a Best Buy exclusive SKU with a Core i7-13700H, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD and an RTX 4060 lists for $1,412.

Bottom Line

The HP Victus 16 is a compelling budget gaming laptop. When I was initially briefed on the laptop, the $1,449 price tag didn’t make much sense. That price includes a Core i7-13700H, 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, a GeForce RTX 4050 and a 16.1-inch 144Hz 1080p display. However, that is the exact same MSRP as the Lenovo Legion Pro 5i (Gen 8) with a Core i7-13700HX, 16GB of RAM, 512GB SSD, an RTX 4060 and a 16-inch 165Hz QHD+ display.

When priced the same, the Legion Pro 5i is the obvious choice over our review unit. However, the Victus 16 makes a stronger case at its $1,199 sale price. But you’ll have to decide if the lower price is worth the drop in screen resolution. On the other hand, the Victus 16 matches the MSI Katana 15 on performance and display resolution, yet the latter costs just $999. However, choosing the latter will result in a heavy penalty for battery life.

Throwing in another wrinkle is Costco’s Victus 16 SKU, which gives you a stronger Core i7-13700HX processor, 32GB of RAM and an RTX 4060 for $1,399. That makes for a solid alternative to the Legion Pro 5i, especially with double the SSD space and RAM – if you have a Costco membership and don’t mind a 1080p display.

With that said, the Victus 16 that we reviewed is right in line regarding gaming performance relative to the competition. It has a bright display, good build quality and a business-like exterior. In addition, its battery life blows away the competition at just over seven hours. If you can find the laptop on sale, it’s worth considering for those seeking a budget 1080p gaming rig.

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Colorful has expanded the company's iGame lineup with two new GeForce RTX 40-series graphics cards. The latest additions included the iGame GeForce RTX 4070 Ultra Z OC and iGame GeForce RTX 4060 Ti Mini OC 8GB-V, based on two of the best graphics cards on the market.

The iGame GeForce RTX 4070 Ultra Z OC is an all-white graphics card with pink accents measuring 12.3 x 4.7 x 2 inches (313.5 x 118.8 x 50.5mm). There's some RGB lighting on the side of the triple-fan graphics card, which you can control via Colorful's iGame Center software. The iGame GeForce RTX 4070 Ultra Z OC's most unique feature is the hidden connector at the rear of the PCB and under the backplate. It's not a new concept, as manufacturers like Inno3D have implemented a similar solution on their GeForce RTX 4070 and GeForce RTX 4060 Ti. It's a more user-friendly alternative in contrast to Asus' proprietary proposition.

The iGame GeForce RTX 4070 Ultra Z OC sticks to a conventional 8-pin PCIe power connector rather than the 16-pin (12VHPWR) power connector found on the Ultra W SKUs. Since the GeForce RTx 4070 employs a compact PCB, it has more than enough spacing for Colorful to place the 8-pin power connector on the rear and route the cable through the graphics card's heatsink. The graphics card features a detachable magnetic backplate to access the 8-pin power connector easily. Colorful also bundles a white extension 8-pin power cable with the graphics card for DIYers that want a full-white build.

The iGame GeForce RTX 4070 Ultra Z OC has the same 2,475 MHz boost clock speed as the reference GeForce RTX 4070. Pushing the small overclock button on the rear I/O of the graphics card will push it to 2,505 MHz, less than a 2% overclock. Display options include three DisplayPort 1.4a outputs and one HDMI 2.1 port.

On the other hand, the iGame GeForce RTX 4060 Ti Mini OC 8GB-V is a tiny version of the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti. Mind you, it's the vanilla version and not the 16GB variant that recently went on sale. With dimensions of 7.4 x 5.1 x 1.8 inches (188 x 130.55 x 45.8mm), this is as small as a GeForce RTX 4060 Ti can get. It features a white exterior with a touch of RGB lighting on the side of the graphics card.

The graphics card only has a 104mm cooling fan and draws power from an 8-pin PCIe power connector. Given the limited landscape, there's no room to hide the power connector on the iGame GeForce RTX 4060 Ti Mini OC 8GB-V.

Again, the iGame GeForce RTX 4060 Ti Mini OC 8GB-V adheres to Nvidia's GeForce RTX 4060 Ti specification, meaning it has the same 2,535 MHz boost clock. The overclock button will get the graphics card to 2,580 MHz, a mere 1.7% overclock. Besides the overclock button, the rear I/O houses the three DisplayPort 1.4a outputs and a single HDMI 2.1 port.

The iGame GeForce RTX 4070 Ultra Z OC and iGame GeForce RTX 4060 Ti Mini OC 8GB-V haven't yet arrived in the U.S. market. The former is currently retailing for $710 in China.

ASRock B650E PG Riptide Wi-Fi is a budget-oriented motherboard ($239.99) that includes a lot of nice features for the price. Sporting a purple-on-black appearance, it fits most build themes and has the bits you’d expect from a mid-range B650E board. You get integrated Wi-Fi 6E and Killer Network-based LAN, PCIe 5.0 slot and M.2 socket, ample SATA storage, a budget audio codec, and plenty of USB ports on the back panel IO.

ASRock’s B650 lineup (at the time of this writing) consists of 13 different motherboards (up from 10 the last time we checked). You’ll find all the standard sizes and wide-ranging prices, with familiar names like the Taichi, PG Riptide, PG Lightning, Pro RS, Livemixer, and our Steel Legend SKU. Prices range from $349.99 (Taichi Carrara) to the ASRock B650M PG Riptide at $169.99. The existing lineup has plenty of options, including Micro ATX and Mini-ITX SKUs. There’s something for everyone in this product stack.

Our PG Riptide review unit did OK in testing and was above average to slightly slower than average across our testing suite – except for gaming, where it was one of the fastest so far. None of the results were significantly out of line. In most instances, you’d need a benchmark or scored test in front of you to notice the difference.

Below, we’ll dig into the details of the board and see whether it deserves a spot on our Best Motherboards list. But before we get into our testing and board details, we’ll start by listing the specifications from ASRock’s website. 

Inside the Box of the ASRock B650E PG Riptide

Inside the retail packaging, ASRock gives you two SATA cables, screws/standoffs for M.2, the user manual, and the most useful item, a graphics card holder to support heavy video cards.

Design of the PG Riptide

The PG Riptide targets the budget user who doesn’t want to spend much money to get into AMD’s Ryzen 7000 platform. While it’s not the least expensive of their platforms, B650E offers users a balance between the more expensive (and generally better equipped) X670/X670E motherboards and the true budget chipsets. The PG Riptide sits on a matte-black 8-layer PCB with black heatsinks and purple highlights on the chipset heatsink and above the IO area. The PCIe 5.0 M.2 socket (top) sports the largest heatsink, while a long bar covers the other two M.2 sockets. There’s a lot of motherboard showing, but that’s to be expected at this price point.

Under the chipset heatsink sporting the PG branding are a few RGB LEDs that light up the logo. The LEDs glow nice and bright, and the colors are saturated and true. If you have a beefy video card, it may cover some of the bling, but it still should still provide a nice glow inside your chassis.

Starting on the top half, we spy two sizeable heatsinks with mitered cutouts to keep the VRMs below cool, while hiding the rather unsightly IO area. On top of the left heatsink is the ASRock name and Riptide branding in a darker polished finish (stenciling) versus the sandblasted look below. Inside a purple border is the “PG” (Phantom Gaming) letters, just south of the heatsink. Between the VRM heatsinks is an 8-pin (required) and 4-pin EPS connectors to power the processor.

Moving right, just before the DRAM slots, is the first (of six) 4-pin fan headers. Each header supports PWM and DC-controlled devices. CPU_FAN1 outputs up to 1A/12W, while the rest double that to 2A/24W. You control the attached fans or pumps through the BIOS and FanTastic Tuning or the PG-Tune application in Windows. There are enough headers and power for your cooling setup, even if it’s a custom water loop.

Next, we run into four unreinforced DRAM slots with locking functions on the top and bottom. ASRock lists support for up to 128GB of DDR5, with speeds to DDR5-6600+(OC). We didn’t run into any issues with our two kits up to DDR5-6000, and the QVL list has plenty of approved kits reaching higher. Much past the 6400 MHz mark, things become less plug-and-play and more out of the sweet spot anyway. Stick to the QVL list and you should be OK.

Passing another fan header above the DRAM slots, we spy two 3-pin ARGB headers. You’ll find another 3-pin header along the bottom edge, as well as a single 4-pin header. You’ll control these devices through the BIOS version of Polychrome Sync or with the same software in Windows. Both versions of the app offer canned patterns and other options to adjust the integrated and attached RGB LEDs.

Continuing down the edge, we run into the EZ debug LEDs for troubleshooting the POST process. If there’s a problem, one of the LEDs (labeled CPU, Boot, DRAM, or VGA) remains lit, giving you an idea of where the issue may be. Past that is the 24-pin ATX power lead to power the board, a front panel USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) port, and the fastest USB port onboard, the front panel USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps) Type-C port.

Power delivery consists of 17 total phases, with 14 dedicated to Vcore. Power comes from the EPS connector(s) onto a Renesas RAA229620 PWM controller. After that, it heads onto 14x 60A Intersil ISL99360 SPS MOSFETs. While the 840A total isn’t a lot, it was plenty for our flagship Ryzen 9 7950X processor without issue at stock and while overclocked.

On the bottom half of the board, starting on the left side, we see a fully exposed audio section. You can see the Realtek ALC897 codec and a few capacitors dedicated to sound. This is a budget codec that would be sufficient for most users; audiophiles will want to install their own sound card or speakers with an external DAC.

In the middle of the board are three PCIe slots and three M.2 sockets. The primary graphics slot is at the top and reinforced to prevent shearing from heavy graphics cards. It sources its lanes from the CPU and is the sole PCIe 5.0 x16 slot. The second full-length slot (bottom) also receives lanes from the CPU and runs at PCIe 3.0 x4. Between them is a small x1 slot attached to the chipset that runs up to PCIe 4.0 x1. If you’re still hanging on to multi-GPU solutions, this board does support Crossfire.

Mixed in among the PCIe slots are three M.2 sockets. The top socket (M2_1) under the larger heatsink is your CPU-connected PCIe 5.0 x4 (128 Gbps) socket that fits up to 80mm devices. The second M.2 socket (M2_2) connects via the chipset and runs SATA- and PCIe-based modules up to PCIe 4.0 x4 (64 Gbps). The last socket (M2_3) also connects through the chipset and runs up to PCIe 4.0 x4 (64 Gbps) modules up to 80mm in length. If you’d like to RAID the NVMe storage, the Riptide supports RAID0/1/10 modes. The latter requires an expansion card for support. 

Moving past the RGB-lit chipset heatsink, we run into four SATA ports. The connectors are mounted horizontally (as  is typical), which allows for better cable management. These ports support RAID0/1 if you need more speed or redundancy. You can run all M.2 and SATA storage concurrently without losing bandwidth or access to other ports.

Across the bottom of the board are several exposed headers. You’ll find the usual, including additional USB ports, RGB headers, and power/reset buttons. Below is a complete list from left to right.

• Front panel audio
• 5-pin Thunderbolt AIC header
• 4-pin RGB header
• 3-pin ARGB header
• System Fan header
• (2) USB 2.0 headers
• System fan header
• Clear CMOS jumper
• Speaker header
• System panel header

The rear IO plate on the B650E SPG Riptide, like many others, comes preinstalled to the motherboard. It sports a black background with white labels on the ports and the PG symbol. There are 10 total USB slots on the rear IO which should be plenty for most users. You get two USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Type-C and Type-A ports, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) Type-A ports (these are the Lightning gaming ports using two different controller interfaces), and six USB 2.0 ports. Video outputs consist of one HDMI port. You’ll also find the Wi-Fi antenna connections for the integrated Wi-Fi 6E, a BIOS flashback button, the Realtek Dragon-based 2.5 GbE port, and last but not least, the audio stack consisting of three analog ports.

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Firmware

ASRock’s firmware for B650 keeps the same general format as we saw in the X670E model. The major changes are the updated options/functions for the Zen4-based processors. The PG Riptide uses a black background with red for the PG theme with white text. You start in Easy Mode, which is mostly informative but lets you change a few options (XMP, profiles, boot order, Fan-Tastic Tuning, etc.).

Advanced mode displays headings across the top, with details below. Here you can tweak everything to your heart’s desire, as ASRock includes every option you can think of. Overclocking is easy, with most options on the same page, although some power options are in a different section. It’s a logical layout. The movement is smooth, and it’s easy to read. No significant complaints from us about the ASRock firmware.

Software

For software, ASRock provides several different options. It has the App Shop to install drivers and software, the Nahimic 3 audio control panel, and the PG-skinned A-Tune application that overclocks your system, controls fans, and more. There’s even a pop-up to install drivers when you first boot the system. ASRock’s software provides everything users need to manage and tweak their system.

Test System / Comparison Products

We’ve updated our test system to Windows 11 64-bit OS with all updates applied. We kept the same Asus TUF RTX 3070 video card from our previous testing platforms but updated the driver. We also updated to F1 22 for our games and kept Far Cry 6. We use the latest non-beta motherboard BIOS available to the public unless otherwise noted. The hardware we used is as follows:

EVGA supplied our Supernova 850W P6 power supply (appropriately sized and more efficient than the 1.2KW monster we used previously) for our test systems, and G.Skill sent us a DDR5-5600 (F5-5600U3636C16GX2-TZ5RK) memory kit for testing.

Benchmark Settings

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Benchmark Results

Our standard benchmarks and power tests are performed using the CPU’s stock frequencies (including any default boost/turbo), with all power-saving features enabled. We set optimized defaults in the BIOS and the memory by enabling the XMP profile. For this baseline testing, the Windows power scheme is set to Balanced (default), so the PC idles appropriately. 

Synthetic Benchmarks

Synthetics provide a great way to determine how a board runs, as identical settings should produce similar performance results. Turbo boost wattage and advanced memory timings are places where motherboard makers can still optimize for stability or performance, though, and those settings can impact some testing.

For our synthetic testing, the B650E PG Riptide was a bit inconsistent and ran around the average or slightly below in most tests. It did well in the Procyon Office suite and the Photo and Video editing portions and overall, there’s nothing to be worried about here.

Timed Applications

For the timed applications, our board was average to just below average in these tests. The LAME test was right around average, while Corona was one of the slower so far. Handbrake testing showed a middling result overall. There’s nothing to worry about here, either, as the results are within an acceptable range.

3D Games and 3DMark 

Starting with the launch of Zen 4, we’ve updated one of our games, F1 21 to F1 22, while keeping Far Cry 6. We run the games at 1920x1080 resolution using the Ultra preset (details listed above). As the resolution goes up, the CPU tends to have less impact. The goal with these settings is to determine if there are differences in performance at the most commonly used (and CPU/system bound) resolution with settings most people use or strive for (Ultra). We expect the difference between boards in these tests to be minor, with most falling within the margin of error differences. We’ve also added a minimum FPS value, which can affect your gameplay and immersion experience.

Games are a completely different story compared to the CPU tests previously. Here the PG Riptide did well across the board, showing above-average scores in the 3DMark tests and some of the fastest results we’ve seen in Far Cry: 6. If you’re a gamer, it’s right up there with the best we’ve tested so far.

Overclocking

Over the last few CPU generations, overclocking headroom has been shrinking (at least on the AMD side) while the out-of-box potential has increased. For overclockers, this means there’s less fun to have. For the average consumer, you’re getting the most out of the processor without manual tweaking. Our goal in this section is to increase the load on the VRMs and see if they can handle the additional stress. Overclocking AMD CPUs can be done in several ways (all-core or adjust PBO values). But for simplicity’s sake, we just went with an all-core overclock of 5.4 GHz with 1.30V to increase the power output.

Since our approach is to add power through all cores, we simply raised the CPU multiplier to 54x, manually set the voltage to 1.30V, and adjusted LLC to minimize vdroop. AMD states the sweet spot is around DDR5-6000 on the memory side, so we used the Kingston Fury kit, set the AMD EXPO profile, and checked for stability.

Overclocking on the B650E PG Riptide was straightforward, as it is with most boards. We could set our voltage (offset), adjust LLC to mitigate vdroop, and off we went on a 30-minute stable stress test. On the memory side, we dropped our Kingston Fury Beast DDR5-6000 kit into the system, enabled XMP, and tested it without issue (pictured above).

Power Consumption / VRM Temperatures

We used AIDA64’s System Stability Test with Stress CPU, FPU, Cache and Memory enabled for power testing, using the peak power consumption value. The wattage reading is from the wall via a Kill-A-Watt meter to capture the entire PC (minus the monitor). The only variable that changes is the motherboard; all other parts remain the same. Please note we moved to use only the stock power use/VRM temperature charts, as this section aims to ensure the power delivery can handle the chip even when overclocked. Since we’re using less power to get more clocks, those datasets are more novel than useful. We’re also temperature-limited on the processor, so adding more power isn’t possible without increased throttling. 

Idle power consumption on our B650E PG Riptide Wi-Fi and our Ryzen 9 7950X sat around 59W, one of the lower values. Load wattage peaked at 256W, also lower compared to other results. Combined, this averages out to the second most efficient board we’ve tested among X670 and B650-class motherboards.

VRM temperatures on the B650E PG Riptide ran warmer than most boards during stress testing, but are still well within the MOSEFTs limits. The system peaked at just under 60 degrees Celsius while using stock settings, and broke 60 degrees Celcius when overclocked. The VRM cooling solution works well overall.

Bottom Line

Priced at $239.99, the B650E PG Riptide Wi-Fi is a well-equipped and neutral-themed option in the higher end of the budget AMD space. You get the Riptide’s distinctive black and purple theme with RGBs, a PCIe 5.0 slot and M.2 socket, integrated Wi-Fi 6E and Killer Network-based LAN, ample (though not abundant) storage options, and some of the best performance we’ve seen in gaming. It does use a dated audio codec, and we’d love to see the EZ Latch on the M.2 sockets, even at this budget price point, but these small qualms won’t be a deal-breaker for most.

There is plenty of competition around this price point, with each major board partner offering a B650E board around this price. MSI has the Pro B650-P Wi-Fi ($219.99), Gigabyte a B650 Aorus Elite AX ($219.99), and Asus the TUF Gaming B650-Plus Wi-Fi ($229.99). MSI’s board falls a bit short with M.2 count (two versus three on the rest) but is the only board of this group with six SATA ports and a 20 Gbps Type-C port on the rear IO. The best audio solution of the group sits with the Asus (Realtek ALC1200). Only the ASRock and Gigabyte boards have your back if your build requires integrated RGB lighting. Outside of these differences, it comes down to price and appearance among the combatants.

Ultimately, the B650E PG Riptide is a capable and typically equipped motherboard that fits in with most build themes. Aside from the budget audio codec, it gives you access to all the platform offers. In short, this is one of the more well-rounded and capable solutions in the sub-$250 space. However, the Gigabyte board is similarly equipped and costs $10 less.

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