A revolutionary new memory device that combines the features of DRAM and NAND flash memory is being developed by a group of researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).
Led by Professor Shinhyun Choi of the School of Electrical Engineering, the team’s breakthrough promises cheaper, power-efficient solutions that could potentially replace existing memory solutions or be used to implement neuromorphic computing for the next-generation of AI hardware.
According to KAIST, the new device utilizes next-generation phase change memory with ultra-low power consumption, capable of replacing both DRAM and NAND flash memory.
Taking a novel approach
Typically, DRAM offers high-speed performance but is volatile, resulting in data loss when power is shut down. NAND flash memory offers a solution by preserving data even when the power is off, but it does not match the speed of DRAM. This new phase change memory provides a non-volatile, high-speed solution combining the best of both worlds.
Previous versions of phase change memory have had a problem – high power consumption. Despite attempts to reduce consumption by decreasing the physical size of such devices using state-of-the-art lithography technologies, the reductions were minimal, while costs soared.
To overcome this, Professor Choi’s team have established a way to electrically form phase change materials in an extremely small area, successfully developing an ultra-low-power phase change memory device. Notably, this consumes 15 times less power than previous phase change memory models which used expensive lithography tools, a significant breakthrough in the quest for cost and energy efficient memory development.
“The phase change memory device we have developed is significant as it offers a novel approach to solve the lingering problems in producing a memory device at a greatly improved manufacturing cost and energy efficiency, “ said Professor Choi. He went onto to say that he expects this new research to become the basis for future electronic engineering, paving the path for high-density three-dimensional vertical memory and neuromorphic computing systems.
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This isn’t the only neuromorphic computing solution being worked on at KAIST. Last month scientists there unveiled an AI chip that they claimed can match the speed of Nvidia‘s A100 GPU but with a smaller size and significantly lower power consumption.
A consortium of Japanese technology behemoths, including NTT DOCOMO, NTT, NEC, and Fujitsu, have revealed the results of their real-world 6G speed tests.
The ground-breaking achievement shows the group’s ability to achieve ultra-high-speed 100Gb/s data transmission, marking a pivotal moment in the advent of the 6G wireless communication era.
The four firms, which have been working together on the project since 2021, jointly developed a sub-terahertz 6G device and demonstrated its proficiency in 100Gb/s transmissions in the 100GHz and 300GHz bands over distances of up to 100 meters. The achievement is exceptionally noteworthy as it is approximately 20 times faster than the current 5G maximum data rate of 4.9Gb/s.
(Image credit: Fujitsu)
Setting the 6G standard
Each of the four companies brings a particular expertise to the project: DOCOMO developed the wireless equipment capable of handling these enormous data rates, NTT developed a device capable of transmitting 100Gb/s per channel, NEC contributed a multi-element active phased array antenna, and Fujitsu showcased world-leading efficiency in a high-output power amplifier.
Despite the hurdles associated with the higher frequencies of the sub-terahertz band, the companies believe high-capacity wireless communication is obtainable. Leveraging each company’s strengths, they pledge to continue their collaborative R&D efforts to set the standard for 6G telecommunications.
When 6G eventually becomes mainstream, it is predicted to support diverse applications such as ultra-HD video streaming and real-time control in autonomous vehicles. 6G technology like this could see 100Gb/s transmission speeds potentially becoming the new norm.
The key assumption for these findings is uncontested achievement in 100Gbps transmission over a distance of 100 meters in the 100GHz and 300GHz bands, and the attainment of an equivalent isotropic radiation power of 50 dBm. It’s important to note that the actual data rates may vary based on the communication environment and network congestion.
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It seems that the e-waste issue is more widespread and harmful than we thought — even bigger than Windows 10’s end of service — as several reports showcase the issue on a greater scope.
A new study from CNET found that a staggering 75% of adults either don’t have a plan in place for disposing of old devices or only have a vague but not definite one.
This supports a new report from the UN that states e-waste is on the rise, with devices being thrown away at five times the rate of being recycled. As a result, manufacturers have been pressured into making products that last longer and are more accessible in terms of repairs (often known as Right-to-Repair), as well as building devices using recycled material.
However, once your device is completely inoperable, it needs to be properly disposed of. While there are several ways of doing so, only a few can be counted as the best options that will have the least amount of environmental impact.
Sell or trade-in your used devices
(Image credit: Shutterstock/bodnar.photo)
Most phone carriers and manufacturers offer promotions that let you sell or trade-in older phones for money or credit towards a new device. Not only is this an excellent way to dispose of unwanted tech, but said tech will then either be repaired and sold as refurbished or recycled by said company.
It also has the benefit of said device being disposed of properly, and not contributing to toxic runoff which continues to be a widespread e-waste issue.
Use a recycling service
(Image credit: ready made / Pexels)
Both in-house and third-party recycling services will take your old devices off your hands, either through drop-off or pick-up services. Some of them even offer bulk services if you have a large amount that needs recycling.
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Not only is recycling much better for the environment, but those parts can be used to create new things whether it’s technology or a different item altogether.
Donate them to others/charity
(Image credit: Pixabay)
While you may no longer have a use for your old tech, someone out there just might, which is why donating either to those you know or to charities is also a solid option.
Plenty of people can’t afford the tech they need to function in the modern world, and donating to them greatly extends the lifespan of a device, especially when you repair the item beforehand.
Microsoft and OpenAI are reportedly in the process of planning a groundbreaking data center project which would include an AI supercomputer named “Stargate”.
A report by Anissa Gardizy and Amir Efrati in The Information claims the goal of the project, which would be financed by Microsoft to the tune of over $100 billion, and which reportedly has a launch date set for 2028, is to reduce the two companies’ reliance on Nvidia, something that a lot of the tech giants involved in AI are increasingly looking to try to do.
Microsoft and OpenAI’s plan reportedly involves five phases, with Stargate being the fifth and most ambitious one.
The data center will be the supercomputer
The cost of the project is attributed to the age-old “sources familiar with the plans” (The Information says these are “a person who spoke to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman about it and a person who has viewed some of Microsoft’s initial cost estimates”), but neither Microsoft nor OpenAI have yet commented on the specifics of the project.
The new data center project is expected to push the boundaries of AI capability and could potentially exceed $115 billion in expenses. This is more than triple the amount Microsoft spent on capital expenditures for servers and equipment last year. Microsoft is currently working on a smaller, fourth-phase supercomputer for OpenAI that is expected to launch around 2026, The Information claims.
Shedding more light on the report, The Next Platform says, “The first thing to note about the rumored “Stargate” system that Microsoft is planning to build to support the computational needs of its large language model partner, OpenAI, is that the people doing the talking – reportedly OpenAI chief executive officer Sam Altman – are talking about a data center, not a supercomputer. And that is because the data center – and perhaps multiple data centers within a region with perhaps as many as 1 million XPU computational devices – will be the supercomputer.”
The Next Platform also says if Stargate does come to fruition it will be “based on future generations of Cobalt Arm server processors and Maia XPUs, with Ethernet scaling to hundreds of thousands to 1 million XPUs in a single machine,” and it definitely won’t be based on Nvidia GPUs and interconnects, which seems like a safe bet if the rumors are to be believed.
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It was expected that Intel‘s LGA1851 socket would house the tech giant’s next-gen Arrow Lake chips, but for now it seems the company might have another use for it.
At the recent Embedded World conference, Intel unveiled its Meteor Lake-PS architecture for edge systems, the first Core Ultra processor on an LGA socket.
The new SoC design, which integrates the Intel Arc GPU and a neural processing unit, is aimed at enabling generative AI and handling demanding graphics workloads for sectors such as retail, education, smart cities, and industry.
Ultra low TDP
Intel says its Core Ultra processors offer up to 5.02x superior image classification inference performance compared to the 14th Gen Core desktop processors. Applications for the PS series include GenAI-enabled kiosks and smart point-of-sale systems in physical retail stores, interactive whiteboards for advanced classroom experiences, and AI vision-enhanced industrial devices for manufacturing and roadside units.
The new chips are designed with low-power, always-on usage scenarios in mind. This is evident from the fact that none of these chips have a Thermal Design Power higher than 65W. There’s even a low-power version with a 15W rating (12-28 configurable TDP).
Intel says “Moving away from the conventional setup where Intel Core desktop processors are combined with discrete GPUs, the PS series of Intel Core Ultra processors introduce an innovative integration of GPU and AI Boost functionalities directly within the processors, alongside the flexible LGA socket configuration. Offering four times the number of graphics execution units (EUs) compared to their predecessors in the S or desktop series, these processors deliver a powerful alternative for handling AI and graphics-heavy tasks. This design not only negates the necessity for an additional discrete GPU, thereby lowering costs and simplifying the overall design process, it also positions these processors as the go-to solution for those prioritizing efficiency alongside enhanced performance.”
The desktop LGA1851 socket can support 5600MHz DDR5 memory, two PCIe Gen4 SSDs, and four Thunderbolt 4 devices. There is a notable absence of chipset support for Thunderbolt 5, Wi-Fi 7, and PCIe Gen5, however.
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The new desktop Intel Meteor Lake chips are not expected to be available until the fourth quarter of 2024. This timeline also coincides with the expected launch of Arrow Lake desktop CPUs, according to the latest industry rumors.
Another week is coming to a close, which means it’s time for another roundup of good discounts on good tech. This week’s highlights include the return of the best price we’ve seen for Apple’s M2 MacBook Air, which is down to $849. No, this isn’t the latest and greatest MacBook, and yes, a Bloomberg report this week said that Apple may debut a new M4 chip later in 2024. If you need a new laptop right now, though, the M2 model gets you most of the way to the newer M3 version for a good bit less cash. Beyond that, we’ve also found all-time lows for the 10th-gen iPad, Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K and a Nintendo Switch Lite bundle, among others. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still buy today.
Photo by Devindra Hardawar / Engadget
The 13-inch version of Apple’s MacBook Air with an M2 chip is back down to $849 at Amazon, Best Buy and B&H. That matches the lowest price we’ve tracked for the entry-level configuration, which includes 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. Apple normally sells this model for $999. Just note that Amazon’s listing includes a shipping delay as of this writing.
The M2 Air is a generation old, but it remains a good value when it’s discounted to this extent. The performance gap between the M2 and the M3 chip found in the newest Air isn’t huge, and the design of the two laptops is largely the same, so you still get a great screen, comfortable keyboard and thin aluminum chassis. You do lose the ability to use two external monitors, and the M3 Air technically has faster storage, though the latter shouldn’t be a major issue unless you often deal with large files. In general, the limited memory and storage in this config means it’s not a great fit for media editing and more involved work. But if you only need a notebook for the essentials and really want to save a couple hundred bucks, this is a nice price. We gave the M2 Air a score of 96 back in 2022.
The 10th-gen Apple iPad is on sale for $349 at Amazon and Best Buy, which matches the lowest price we’ve seen from major retailers. Apple sells the 10.9-inch tablet for $449, though we often see it drop between $350 and $429 on Amazon. This deal is for the base model with 64GB of storage; if you need more space, the 256GB model is also $100 off its MSRP at $499.
Before you pull the trigger, note that Apple reportedly plans to release new iPad Airs and iPad Pros in early May. If you don’t need a new tablet right this second, it’s probably best to wait a few weeks. However, a refresh to the base iPad isn’t expected until later in 2024, so this should remain a decent deal if you must buy a slate today and want to stay under $400.
We gave the 10th-gen iPad a review score of 85 in late 2022. Its aluminum design feels premium, it gets a solid 10+ hours of battery life and its A14 Bionic chip is still plenty fast for media consumption. Because its webcam is located on its landscape edge, it’s also a bit more convenient for video calls than other iPads. That said, it doesn’t support the highest-end Apple Pencil or Magic Keyboard, and its lack of an M-series chip means it can’t work with some high-endgames. Its display isn’t laminated, either, so there’s a small but noticeable air gap between the display and cover glass. Still, it’s an iPad, and it’s a noticeable upgrade over the cheaper 9th-gen model if you just want a nice tablet for reading and streaming.
Walmart is selling a bundle that pairs an Animal Crossing-themed Nintendo Switch Lite with a digital copy of Animal Crossing: New Horizons for $179. That’s $20 below the bundle’s usual price and an all-time low.
It’s a tricky time to buy a Switch: The console is seven years old now, and murmurs of a next-gen follow-up have circulated for months, with the most recent reports suggesting that it’ll arrive early next year. If you’ve waited this long to pick one up, it’s probably worth holding out a little longer. But if you want to start catching up today, or if you just want something appropriate for a kid, the Lite is the smallest and most affordable route into Nintendo’s excellent library. As a reminder, this is the only Switch that can’t hook up to a TV, but it can run all the same games with no performance drop-off. New Horizons, meanwhile, remains one of the device’s most relaxing games, a cozy sim about developing your own personal island. It normally costs around $50 on its own.
The JLab Go Air Pop is a good buy for those who just want dirt-cheap wireless earphones that aren’t horrible. Right now the pair is on sale for $15 at Amazon and Best Buy, which isn’t quite an all-time low but still takes roughly $5 off the set’s usual street price. As we note in our budget earbuds buying guide, the Go Air Pop feels light in the ear, lasts a solid eight to nine hours per charge and has touch controls that actually work (which is far from a given in this price range). It’s also water-resistant with an IPX4 rating, so it can survive light workouts. Its bass-heavy sound isn’t exactly balanced, and it does lack any sort of app support. But again, we’re talking about $15 earbuds. As a cheap backup pair, the Go Air Pop is a great value.
Best Buy has the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus on sale for $389, which is $110 off Lenovo’s list price and only $10 more than the all-time low we saw around Black Friday. This is the top pick in our Chromebook buying guide. It’s fast enough for everyday emailing and web browsing, its 14-inch touchscreen is solid for the money and it has a better keyboard and trackpad than most cheap laptops we’ve tested. The IPS display has a tall 16:10 aspect ratio, so it’s well-suited for reading and writing. There are still trade-offs: The webcam isn’t great, battery life is mediocre, and the plastic design is a bit hefty at 3.6 pounds. But for a sub-$500 laptop, it gets more right than wrong. This configuration includes an Intel Core i3-1315U processor, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of eMMC storage, two USB-C ports, one USB-A port and a microSD slot.
The black version of 8BitDo’s Ultimate Bluetooth Controller has dropped to $59.49 for Amazon Prime members. Though we’ve seen the device go for less in the past, steeper discounts aren’t super common, and this deal still takes about $10 off 8BitDo’s usual selling price.
This is a wireless gamepad for Switch and PC whose praises I’ve sung in the past. The main advantage it has over standard controllers is its Hall effect joysticks, which use magnets to read inputs instead of contact-based potentiometers. In plain English, this means the sticks should be much less susceptible to annoying “drift” over time. The rest of the design feels sturdy, too, with responsive buttons and an accurate d-pad. It may be a smidge too small for those with especially large hands, but its Xbox-style design should feel natural for everyone else. It’s also fairly customizable, with a set of programmable back buttons and a clean app that lets you assign macros and remap inputs as you see fit, plus it comes with a dedicated charging dock.
The top pick in our guide to the best Bluetooth trackers, the Chipolo One, is down to $20 at Amazon via Chipolo direct. That’s $5 off the device’s usual street price and an all-time low. The deal is technically available at Best Buy, too, though it doesn’t include free shipping there. The One doesn’t have the giant crowd-finding network or Apple-friendly features of an AirTag, so it won’t be as helpful for finding an item you’ve misplaced very far away. But for simply making sure you don’t forget your keys or wallet when leaving a house or restaurant, it’s great. It rings loud, and it’s consistently quick to alert you when you’ve left a tagged item behind. It also has a built-in keyring hole, unlike AirTags, and it plays nicely with both iOS and Android. If you need multiple trackers, a four-pack is on sale for $60, though that deal has been live for almost all of the past month.
The 55-inch Hisense U6K TV is down to an all-time low of $350 at Walmart and Best Buy, while the 65-inch version is down to a low of $500. Each deal is roughly $50 below the average street price we’ve seen over the last few months. The U6K is a budget-level TV from 2023 that’s received almostuniversallyhighmarks from reviewers we trust. It’s one of the only TVs in its price range with quantum-dot color, a mini-LED backlight and full-array local dimming, so it should provide better contrast and color volume than most cheap sets. It’s still not ideal for gaming, as it lacks HDMI 2.1 features and is limited to a 60Hz refresh rate. Its brightness levels won’t blow anyone away, either. But at this price, it looks to be a great value.
It’s worth noting that this TV’s successor, the U6N, recently went on sale and promises even better brightness and contrast. However, that one currently costs $600 for a 55-inch set. For now, the older model should remain the better value for most people.
The USB-C AirPods Pro are back down to $189, which is $10 more than the all-time low we saw last month but $10 less than their usual street price on Amazon and $60 less than buying from Apple direct. Best Buy has the pair for a dollar more. The AirPods Pro continue to offer a host of conveniences for iPhone users, from faster pairing and integrated controls to hands-free Siri and Find My device tracking. Their active noise cancellation isn’t quite best-in-class, but it’s still above-average, and their warm sound profile plays well across musical genres. Call quality and battery life are just OK, though. We gave the second-gen AirPods Pro a score of 88 back in 2022. It’s worth noting that Apple is expected to launch new noise-canceling AirPods later this year, according to Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman, but new AirPods Pro reportedly aren’t on tap until 2025.
The newest Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max is once again on sale for $40, tying the lowest price we’ve tracked. We’ve seen this deal pop up a number of times over the last three months, but it’s still about $10 below the streamer’s average street price over that period. The 4K Max is Amazon’s fastest and most featured streaming stick, with support for all the major apps and HDR formats, Dolby Atmos audio and WiFi 6E (with a compatible router). Its software isn’t as pleasant to use as rival devices from Roku and Google, however — voice search is fast, but there are prominent ads on the home screen, and Amazon likes to promote its own Prime Video app across the UI. Still, those other sticks aren’t on sale as of this writing, so this is a decent deal if you just want a fast way to put apps on a TV.
The standard Fire TV Stick 4K is also back on sale for $30. That’s not an all-time low, but the only time it’s been cheaper was during Black Friday. This model has a slightly slower chipset than the Max and lacks that device’s Ambient Experience mode, which displays artwork and other info when your TV is idle. It also stops at WiFi 6 instead of 6E. But it isn’t that far off the Max if you really want to save another $10.
The GoPro Hero 12 Black is on sale for $350 at Amazon, Best Buy and GoPro.com. While this isn’t the first time we’ve seen this $50 discount, it still ties the lowest price we’ve seen. The Hero 12 Black is GoPro’s latest flagship action camera. You can read our review from last September for a fuller breakdown, but in short, it continues to offer excellent image quality, top-notch video stabilization, a rugged design, a variety of shooting modes and a robust ecosystem of accessories. It makes it easy to shoot vertical videos for platforms like TikTok or Instagram, and now its battery life is a bit better than its predecessor. This model lacks GPS functionality, and all action cameras can have issues in very dark settings, but this is a good bet whether you’re new to action cams or looking to upgrade from a years-old model. A Creator Edition bundle that includes a battery grip, video light and Media Mod frame is also on sale for $499, another all-time low.
The Eufy RoboVac 11S Max is the most affordable robot vacuum we recommend in our budget robovac buying guide, and it’s now down to $140 at Amazon and Newegg via Eufy direct. This is another deal we’ve seen a few times in recent months: It’s not quite an all-time low, but the device usually goes for $250 otherwise. The 11S Max is an older and largely basic model with no Wi-Fi, but it’s slim, durable and relatively quiet, and it cleans well enough across surfaces. Eufy says its battery can last up to 100 minutes on hard floors, and the fact that it lacks Wi-Fi might actually be a plus to those conscious of their privacy. You can still do better, but this is a solid deal if you just want a decent robovac on a tight budget.
As another week winds to a close, it’s time for Engadget’s roundup of the best deals we spotted this week. There’s no giant sale happening right now, but we still found a few decent discounts on some of our recommended tech, including 40 percent off a year’s subscription to Max’s streaming service, $130 off our favorite Android tablet and a new low price on our top mouse for gaming. If you’ve been considering a foldable phone but have been (understandably) turned off by the high prices, a both Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Google’s Pixel Fold are currently on sale and going for $400 and $500 off, respectively. Here are the best tech deals from this week that you can still get today.
Max
Max will run its 40-percent-off promotion until Tuesday, April 9. If you think you’ll watch the streaming service a fair amount in the next twelve months, you may want to take advantage. Any new subscriber can get the deal, but some returning and existing customers are eligible too. If you previously had a plan through the Apple App Store or Google Play, and are returning, you can save. If you’re a current member and signed up for your subscription through Max’s site, you’re eligible.
All three tiers are seeing the discount, including the top-tier, ad-free plan with 4K support, which is now $140 annually instead of $240. The mid-level plan is also ad-free but doesn’t support 4K content and that one is $105 for the year, instead of $192. The cheapest plan is ad-supported and down to $70 yearly, instead of $120.
If you need extra storage for a device that takes microSD cards, here’s a good price on a terabyte. The 1TB version of Lexar’s Professional 1066x card is now down to $76.49 on Amazon which is a 47 percent discount off the list price (though it regularly goes for $85) and the lowest price we’ve tracked.
The Professional 1066x is not a formal pick in our microSD card guide, as it’s a bit slower than our top choices, though not drastically. Those top picks are Samsung’s Pro Plus and Pro Ultimate, but neither are seeing much of a discount right now. Other storage that is on sale includes sales on more Lexar gear, Seagate cards and Crucial RAM.
The entry-level, second-generation Apple AirPods from 2019 are down to $89 from their full price of $129 at Amazon and Walmart (note they regularly sell for $99). The sale isn’t an all-time low, but beats the lowest we’ve seen this year by a dollar. These don’t have active noise cancellation or transparency mode, have an older chip and the audio isn’t as good as the later generations. But if you’re just looking for a pair of buds that work well with Siri at a sub-$100 price, this could be the way to go.
For upgraded sound, check out the third-generation Apple AirPods which are 13 percent of making them $149 from their $169 list price. In addition to better sound, these add an hour of battery life and Spatial Audio support.
Apple’s top-of-the-line second-gen AirPods Pro are marked down to $199 from $249 at Amazon and down to $200 at Target — a 20 percent discount that they’ve seen for many months now. They are our top pick for earbuds for iOS and deliver active noise canceling, great sound with an H2 chip and a MagSafe USB-C charging case.
The top gaming mouse in our buyer’s guide is down to $40 after a 43 percent discount which matches the all-time low. The Razer Basilisk V3 offers a complete blend of price, performance, build quality and comfort. We liked its sturdy body and textured matte finish. Plus the grip is comfortable and likely will be for most people, though perhaps not for those with the smallest hands. Also the buttons are relatively quiet and not tiring to press repeatedly, an important consideration in a gaming mouse.
Our top Android tablet is now on sale. Currently, Amazon, Best Buy and Samsung’s own site are selling the base-model Galaxy Tab S9 for $670. That’s $130 off the list price and the lowest price we’ve seen yet, beating the previous low it hit a few weeks ago. The Tab S9 family is our top choice for Android tablets, thanks to their multitasking abilities, aided by DeX mode that adds PC-like function and a speedy Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor. The OLED displays are gorgeous and the included S Pen makes note taking and drawing rather pleasant. Add accessories like a keyboard case and you’re getting a tablet that acts a lot like a PC.
Samsung’s Galaxy Tab A9+ is also on sale and down to $170 instead of $220 at Amazon, Walmart and Best Buy. That’s the lowest priced we’ve tracked, though the discount has been around for a few weeks now. The deal applies to the base model in either Graphite or Sliver with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, which is expandable with a microSD card. If you want a little more RAM for gaming and heavier use, you may want to go for the model with 8GB of memory. That model is down to $220 after a $50 discount.
We named the Tb A9+ the budget pick in our Android tablet buying guide because it covers the basics well. It has an 11-inch LCD display with a 90Hz refresh rate. The battery is decent but the charging rate is rather slow at 15W.
A decent key light can improve how you look on camera and now Logitech’s Litra Beam is $10 off and down to $90, which is only $5 more than the lowest price we’ve seen.
It’s a stylish-looking accessory with a three-way adjustable stand, allowing you to adjust the height, tilt and rotation. It can run on either USB or AC power so you can put it wherever makes sense for your setup. The device uses TrueSoft tech, which, according to Logitech, provides “balanced, full-spectrum LED light with cinematic color accuracy for a natural, radiant look across all skin tones.” The frameless diffuser should mitigate harsh shadows, too.
The JBL Charge 5 is back down to $130 at Amazon and directly from JBL. That’s not an all-time low, but still $30 or so less than it’s been selling for lately. The Charge 5 is a mid-range pick in our guide to the best Bluetooth speakers. It packs a big sound for its roughly two-pound size and it’s IP67-rated, so it can survive a dunk in water. The battery is big enough to supply up to 20 hours of listening and can even lend a little refill to your phone if you need it. The new low price may have something to do with the release of the Wi-Fi-enabled version — this one just connects via Bluetooth only.
A robot vacuum can be a low-effort way to start your spring cleaning, which makes this sale on Shark robovacs particularly timely. One notable deal is a 44 percent discount on Shark’s AI Robot Vacuum and Mop. That brings it down to $270 from $480, which is just $20 more than its all-time low price. It’s pretty similar to one of the top picks in our guide to robot vacuums, Shark’s $700 Ultra 2-in-1 Robot Vacuum and Mop, except the discounted model doesn’t have a self emptying base.
If you’ve been thinking of getting a folding phone, now might be a good time to shop. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 is $400 off the list price at Amazon, dropping the base model with 256GB of storage down to $1,400 instead of $1,800 — that’s still not cheap for a phone, but the savings does take out some of the sting.
It’s a solid phone though we do wish Samsung was doing more to take advantage of its head start in the foldable space — or at least brought down the price. Amazon is also selling Google’s entry in the foldable race, the Pixel Fold for $500 off.
If you have Wi-Fi dead spots in your home and aren’t ready to pony up for a mesh system, you may want to look into an extender. The RE700X model of TP-Link’s AX300 Wi-Fi extender is on sale for $90 after a 25 percent discount. That’s within a dollar of the all-time low it hit last year as part of Black Friday sales. This is a variation of the extender we named the best overall in our guide and lacks adjustable antennae, but the other specs are the same.
We liked the AX3000 for its their coverage range, Wi-Fi 6 support and a high max speed of up to 2402 Mbps on the 5GHz band and 574 Mbps on 2.4GHz band.
One of our favorite ereaders, the Kobo Libra 2, is down to $170 directly from Kobo. That’s a $20 discount, though not an all-time low. We recommend the Libra 2 in our ereader buying guide as the best model with buttons. It has a premium feel, a waterproof design and an ergonomic build that’s a pleasure to hold for long periods of time.
The 7-inch, 300 dpi display is crisp and the built-in integration with Overdrive makes it easy to borrow, download and read ebooks from your local library. Plus the Kobo store has a selection that’s nearly as vast as Kindle — it’s just missing the self-published and Amazon-published titles.
Smartphones don’t have to cost as much as the rent on a Santa Monica studio apartment — you can easily find one at Cleveland rental prices. The OnePlus Nord N30 5G is our pick for the best cheap phone you can buy and right now it’s $50 off, making that recommendation even more relevant. That isn’t a record low price, but its close. The discount comes as part of a larger sale on OnePlus phones and earbuds.
The Nord N30 5G offers has a relatively speedy Snapdragon 695 5G processor, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. There’s also a 16MP front-facing camera and, a 108MP main and 2MP macro lens on the back.
According to Sony’s PS5 landing page, this deal should have expired at the end of March, but here we are nearly a week into April and it’s still live as of this writing. A bundle pairing the PlayStation 5 with a digital copy of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is still $50 off, bringing the standard console down to $449 and the disc-drive-less version down to $399.
There are rumors of a “PS5 Pro” but the current model can still play many games at 4K and/or 60fps, and its library has steadily improved over time. Spider-Man 2 is of the system’s more acclaimed exclusives; we called it “perfectly balanced” in our review. The game normally goes for $70 on its own.
The Meta Quest 2 VR headset is $199 at Amazon and Walmart, a $50 discount, but sadly, the sweeter deal that included a Meta Quest store credit in addition to the discount has expired.
The Quest 2 is the budget pick in our guide to VR headsets. It’s not as sharp, fast or feature-rich as the newer Meta Quest 3, but it can still run just about all the platform’s best games and apps and serves as a good introduction to VR.
The base model, 256GB Pixel Fold is $500 off and down to $1,299 at Amazon and the Google Store. The 512GB version is also $500 off and down to $1,419. The previous low for both versions was $100 more.
The Pixel Fold is the runner up in our foldable phone buying guide and we gave it a score of 85 in our review last year. It has a 5.8-inch cover display and a 7.6-inch interior display. We found it takes better pictures than the Samsung Galaxy Fold 5, and the wider shape makes it easier to use the exterior screen than the Galaxy’s thinner design. However Samsung’s foldable phone has a brighter screen and faster performance. The Galaxy Fold 5 is on sale for $1,400.
If you’re looking for an air fryer that could very well replace your oven, you’d do well to check out the Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro. Right now it’s down for $320, which is an $80 discount that matches the best price we’ve seen. You can get the same deal at Amazon, Best Buy and Williams Sonoma. This made the list in our guide to the best air fryers as an option that can toast, broil, roast and bake in addition to air frying. It’s big enough to cook a 14-pound turkey or fit a five-quart dutch oven just keep in mind that it’s rather large, taking up a cubic foot of space with its 40-pound girth.
There’s still time to get a free TV from Samsung when you pre-order one of their new models for 2024. Until April 11, Samsung will throw in a 65-inch 4K TV when you pre-order a new OLED, 8K, 4K or Frame TVs for 2024. We hesitate to call this a great deal: Many of the better Samsung TVs from last year are now available for much cheaper, and we can’t say how much of an upgrade the new models will be until we see more reviews drop. On paper, they don’t look to be huge leaps, though the top-end S95D OLED TV may be notable for its new anti-glare panel. The freebie TV is also a basic entry-level model from 2022, the Samsung TU690T.
Still, this is a decent sweetener if you’re willing to pay for one of the latest models and could use any sort of large screen for a secondary room around the house. The offer may be particularly appealing if you want a new Frame TV, as the previous version is currently going for the same price as the 2024 model. You can read more about this discount here.
One of the Anker chargers from last month’s sale is still on sale, though it’s $2 more than the low it hit in March. The 735 Nano 2 65W wall charger goes for $56 at full price but now, thanks to a 29 percent discount and an additional 15 percent, on-page coupon, it’s down to $34. It has three ports, including two USB-C connections and one standard USB-A connection.
We didn’t know Apple offered this product, but thanks to Woot!, now we do. Photo: Apple
Amazon bargain site Woot! is known for its bargain-basement sales on tech items, but Tuesday’s Best of Tech sale digs up some oddities, including an offbeat selection of Apple products. An international travel-adapter kit, for example. The much-maligned FineWoven iPhone cases (also silicone). And an AirTag keychain with a carabiner clip.
Not to mention gear from Belkin, Victrola and others — everything from chargers to solar panels.
The Best of Tech sale runs through April 9. See below for some of the most interesting items on sale.
Woot Best of Tech sale includes unusual picks from Apple, Belkin, Victrola and others
Woot! runs a lot of sales on technology items, including great Apple gear. (A Woot! sale on iMacs, MacBooks and iPads is ongoing.) But today’s sale is an interesting hodgepodge when it comes to Apple as well as the other picks. You can get a good deal on Apple Watch Series 8 with choices of size and model. And there’s not one but two portable record players.
Six items sold out on the first day of the sale, which ends April 9. Among those was a Pelican Protector AirTag Holder. But you can still get the keychain — see below.
Apple Watch
Apple Watch Series 8 Smart Watch [GPS + Cellular] Fitness Tracker, Blood Oxygen and ECG apps, Always-On Retina Display, water-resistant (Apple Certified Reconditioned) – $284.99–$374.99
Pelican Voyager iPhone 15/Pro/Max Case – Compatible with MagSafe, Anti-Yellow, Magnetic Charging Phone Case with Belt Clip Holster Kickstand (18ft Military Grade Drop Protection) – $9.99
Pelican Marine Waterproof AirTag Keychain with Carabiner Clip – Protective Apple Air Tag Case for Dog Collar, Backpack, Keys, Luggage – $24.99 $9.99 (60% off)
Other cool stuff
This is a high-resolution audio player for your devices. It features a touchscreen and an iOS app.
Victrola Vintage 3-Speed Bluetooth Portable Suitcase Record Player with Built-in Speakers – $69.99 $29.99 (57% off)
Nebo Reliance Foldable Solar Panel (22% sunlight-to-energy conversion) – Keeps phones, tablets, power stations and other devices fully charged – $89.99 to $149.99
To cope with the demand for international bandwidth almost doubling every two years, Japanese corporations NEC and NTT have successfully trialed a revolutionary submarine cable technology set to drastically enhance internet speeds under the sea.
The transoceanic-class experiment transmitted hundreds of terabits across a staggering 7,280km, a feat made possible through a sophisticated algorithm.
NEC and NTT’s innovative solution uses a 12-core multicore fiber, comprising of 12 optical signal transmission paths within a standard outer diameter optical fiber, a significant enhancement from existing single-core fiber used in submarine cables.
(Image credit: NEC/NTT)
MIMO technology
However, the addition of more cores to an optical fiber presents its own challenges. Interference, or crosstalk, occurs when optical signals leak from one core to another, leading to a degradation in communication quality. This is amplified in long-distance transmission where non-uniformity of delay and loss between signals makes accurate reception difficult.
To overcome these issues, NEC developed an algorithm for demodulating received signals using MIMO technology. This enabled accurate separation and demodulation of high-speed received signals. Concurrently, NTT developed the coupled 12-core multicore fiber optical transmission line which mitigates the effects of non-uniformity in signal delay and loss.
Moving forward, NEC and NTT say they aim to commercialize their research, potentially contributing to the realization of a high-capacity optical submarine cable system and terrestrial core network.
The research team, which recently presented its findings as a highly scored paper at the Technical Conference of OFC 2024 in San Diego, estimates that such systems could operate at hundreds of terabits per second, depending on specific cable designs, potentially heralding the advent of petabit per second class submarine cables.
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Horizon Forbidden Westhas come to PC, and it’s given me another reason not to buy a PS5. I’ve bought every generation of PlayStation console since the OG model, but with Sony‘s shift to (belatedly) porting most of its exclusives to PC, it just doesn’t seem worth splashing out on a new console when I can just wait for the games I want to play to come to me.
So, I was very happy to hear that Horizon Forbidden West was going to be ported to PC. As a big fan of the original game, which I played on PS4, I’d been looking forward to playing it.
Of course, as a visually-impressive first-party game from Sony, I was also keen to see how it performed on our 8K rig. As you can see in the specs box on the right, our rig has remained largely unchanged for over a year. This is because it remains a formidable machine – and, crucially, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 graphics card that does the bulk of the work when gaming has yet to be beaten. It remains the best graphics card money can buy.
With rumors swirling that Sony is planning on releasing a more powerful PS5 Pro console in the near future that could target 8K resolutions through a mix of more powerful hardware and upscaling technology, Horizon Forbidden West at 8K on PC may give us an idea of the kind of visuals future PlayStation games may offer.
It also suggests what obstacles Sony will face if the PS5 Pro will indeed target 8K resolutions. Despite being almost two years old, the RTX 4090 GPU still costs more than its original launch price, hovering around $2,000/£2,000. While the PS5 Pro will likely be more expensive than the standard PS5, there’s no way it’ll be even half the price of Nvidia’s GPU – and that’s before you add in the cost of the other PC components required. Basically, you can’t currently buy an affordable 8K gaming machine that is priced for mainstream success. That’s the scale of the challenge Sony faces.
(Image credit: Future)
Spoilt for choice
One of the best things about Sony’s initiative to bring its games to PC, apart from giving me an excuse not to spend money I don’t have on a PS5, is that they usually come with an excellent choice of PC-centric options, including support for upscaling technology from Nvidia and support for ultrawide monitors.
Horizon Forbidden West continues this streak, and the PC port has been handled by Nixxes Software, which has handled many previous PlayStation to PC ports.
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This latest release is particularly noteworthy as not only does it support DLSS 3 for Nvidia RTX graphics, but it also supports competing upscaling tech in the form of AMD FSR 2.2 and Intel XeSS.
All three of these features allow the game to run at a lower resolution, with the images upscaled so that the game appears at a higher resolution, but without the additional strain on your PC’s graphics card.
This mainly allows less powerful GPUs to hit resolutions with graphical effects enabled that they usually wouldn’t be able to handle. It also allows the mighty RTX 4090 to reach the demanding 8K resolution (7680 × 4320) in certain games while maintaining a playable framerate.
By supporting the three major upscaling tools, Horizon Forbidden West gives users much more choice (both FSR and XeSS work for a range of GPUs, while DLSS is exclusive to recent Nvidia GPUs) – and it also gives me a chance to see which upscaling tech performs the best.
(Image credit: Sony)
First up: DLSS
First, I played Horizon Forbidden West at the 8K resolution of 7680 × 4320 and the graphics preset at ‘Very High’ – which is the highest quality on offer. With DLSS turned off (so the game is running at native 8K), my 8K test rig managed to run Horizon Forbidden West at an average of 32 frames per second (fps).
Considering that this is a graphically-intensive game and running at the highest graphics and at a resolution that’s pushing around 33 million pixels, this is very impressive, and is a testament to the raw power of the RTX 4090, the rest of the components inside the rig built by Stormforce Gaming, and the talents of Guerrilla Games (developers of the game) and Nixxes Software.
I feel that 30fps is the minimum frame rate for a playable game, so if you wanted to play Horizon Forbidden West at a native 8K resolution, that’s certainly possible. If you drop the graphics preset, then the frame rate will go up – though at the cost of graphical fidelity.
Of course, you don’t spend around $2,000 on a GPU to get 32fps in a game, so I turned on DLSS and set it to ‘Quality’, which minimizes the amount of upscaling performed to preserve image quality as much as possible. This led the average framerate to jump to 45fps, with a maximum frames per second of 60.7fps.
One thing to note with my results, which you can view in the chart above, is that because Horizon Forbidden West doesn’t have a built-in benchmark tool, I had to play the same section over and over again, using MSI Afterburner to record my framerate. I chose a section of the game with large open spaces, water effects and a combat encounter, and I tried to make each playthrough, lasting around eight minutes, as similar as possible. However, my playthroughs weren’t identical, as some things, such as enemy attacks, would change, and this explains why there are some discrepancies between results. Still, it should give you a good idea of the difference each setting makes.
Next, I turned ‘Frame Generation’ on. This is a new feature exclusive to DLSS 3 and Nvidia’s RTX 4000 series of cards. It uses AI to generate and insert frames between normal frames rendered by the GPU. The goal is to make games feel even smoother with higher, more consistent framerates while maintaining image quality.
As the chart shows, this gave the game another bump in frames per second. I then tested the other DLSS settings with Frame Generation left on.
With DLSS set to Ultra Performance, I hit 59.3fps at 8K – basically the 60fps goal I aim for in these tests, which offers a balance of image quality and performance. With Ultra Performance, the RTX 4090 is rendering the game at a much lower resolution, then using DLSS to upscale to 8K, and this reliance on upscaling can lead to an image quality that can suffer from a lack of sharpness and detail, and graphical artifacts. The good news is that DLSS 3 is a big improvement over previous versions, and the hit to graphic quality is far less noticeable these days.
So, thanks to DLSS, you can indeed play Horizon Forbidden West at 8K. But how does AMD and Intel’s rival technologies cope?
(Image credit: Sony Interactive Entertainment)
AMD FSR 2.2 tested
AMD’s FSR 2.2 technology isn’t as mature as Nvidia’s DLSS 3, but it has a noteworthy feature that DLSS lacks: it’s open source and doesn’t just work with AMD graphics cards – Nvidia and Intel GPUs can make use of it as well.
This makes it far more accessible than DLSS, which is exclusive to new and expensive Nvidia GPUs, and for many people this flexibility makes up for any shortfall in performance.
As you can see from my results above, FSR 2.2 provides a decent jump in frame rates compared to running Horizon Forbidden West natively at 8K, though at each quality setting, it doesn’t quite keep up with DLSS 3’s results.
The best results I managed was with FSR set to ‘Ultra Performance’, where it hit 55.2fps on average. Below DLSS 3’s best results, but certainly not bad, and close to doubling the performance of the game compared with playing it natively.
As well as being unable to hit the same highs as DLSS 3, AMD FSR 2.2’s image quality at Ultra Performance isn’t quite as good as DLSS 3 at similar settings, with a few instances of shimmering and ghosting becoming noticeable during my playthrough.
(Image credit: Sony)
Intel XeSS results
Finally, I tested out Intel’s XeSS technology. While there is a version of XeSS designed to run with Intel Arc graphics cards, as with FSR you can use XeSS with various GPU brands, so there is yet another upscaling tool that gamers can try out. As with most things, the more choice there is for consumers, the better.
XeSS hasn’t been around for as long as DLSS or FSR, and as you can see from the results above, it wasn’t able to match either of Nvidia or AMD’s solutions. There’s no ‘Ultra Performance’ mode either, so XeSS hits its highest framerates with XeSS set to ‘Performance’, with an average of 50.6fps. This leads to a perfectly playable experience at 8K, but it’s noticeably more sluggish than when playing with DLSS at Ultra Performance.
However, it still gives you a decent fps bump over native 8K, and with Intel being one of the biggest proponents of artificial intelligence, I’m pretty confident that XeSS performance will improve as the technology matures. The fact that you can use it with GPUs from Intel’s rivals is also a big plus.
(Image credit: Sony)
Conclusion: DLSS for the win (again)
Once again, DLSS 3 has proved to be the best way of getting a game to run at 8K and 60fps with minimal compromises.
Not only did it allow the RTX 4090 to hit 59.3fps on average while playing Horizon Forbidden West, but it also looked the best with minimal impact to image quality.
This may not come as too much of a surprise – DLSS has been around for quite a while now, and Nvidia has been putting a lot of work into improving the technology with each release.
Also, while Nvidia’s preference for proprietary tech means you need the latest RTX 4000 series of GPUs to get the most out of it, this does at least mean Team Green can make use of exclusive features of its GPUs such as Tensor Cores. With AMD and Intel’s more open implementations, they are unable to target specific hardware as easily – though FSR and XeSS are available to a much wider range of PC gamers.
And, while FSR doesn’t quite match DLSS performance with Horizon Forbidden West, it comes close, and if you don’t have an Nvidia GPU, this is a fine alternative. As for XeSS, it shows plenty of promise.
So, upscaling tech has made gaming at 8K on PC achievable, and it’s great to see increased choices for users. So, if Sony is indeed working on a PS5 Pro that aims to run games like Horizon Forbidden West at 8K, it’s going to have to come up with its own upscaling tech (or adapt FSR or XeSS) if it wants to compete.
