In early February, Intel finally updated its HEDT sector with the latest "Granite Rapids-WS" Xeon 600 Series processors for workstations. The company has now published a detailed table of turbo frequencies that provides specifics on each core's boost frequency in workloads like SSE, AVX2, AVX-512, and AMX, showing how much these workloads allow the CPU cores to boost. This means that during a continuous workload like AMX, these CPUs can only run at a sustained frequency defined in the tables below. At the very top of the new "Granite Rapids-WS" stack is the Xeon 698X, featuring 86 cores and 172 threads, backed by 336 MB of L3 cache. The chip runs at a 2.0 GHz base clock, boosting up to 4.8 GHz with Turbo Boost Max 3.0, or 4.6 GHz under Turbo Boost 2.0. This CPU is fully unlocked, allowing overclocking, which is still relatively rare in the Xeon workstation space.

In non-AVX workloads, this CPU can boost up to 4.8 GHz, while its lowest-performing core, numbered 86, sits at 3.0 GHz. However, AVX2 turbo frequencies cause a significant frequency downgrade, as the base frequency drops to 1.7 GHz, and the slowest core drops to 2.9 GHz when boosting across its 86-core design. Following this are the AVX-512 turbo frequencies, which see this flagship SKU running at a base clock speed of only 1.3 GHz and only 2.5 GHz across its 86 cores. Perhaps the most demanding turbo frequency testing occurs when AMX is enabled, resulting in a base frequency of only 1.1 GHz and only 2.0 GHz across all cores at once. This significant reduction comes from the demanding scenarios of these vector and matrix instruction processing, which are very heavy on the CPU.More information about other SKUs and details in AVX2, AVX-512, and AMX turbo frequencies follow.

Intel's flagship "Bartlett Lake-S" processor—Core 9 273 PQE—has reached enthusiasts who are testing whether any consumer motherboard can boot the CPU and utilize its 12 P-Core gaming performance. According to Overclock.net user "Talon2016," who managed to obtain a sample of the LGA-1700 flagship CPU SKU, the processor won't boot using a consumer ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Apex motherboard. These CPUs are designed for edge and embedded deployments with specialized platforms that lie outside the consumer sector. This high-TDP PQE variant has a base power of 125 W, powering a 12 P-Core variant with 24 threads and a base frequency of 3.4 GHz. This model can boost all 12 cores to 5.3 GHz, while a single thread can reach up to 5.9 GHz independently for tasks requiring intensive single-threaded performance. It is equipped with 36 MB of L3 cache and an integrated GPU with 32 EUs of Xe-LP graphics.

Unfortunately, regardless of the SKU or consumer motherboard choice, the platform will not work, and the CPU will not boot, as Intel has restricted "Bartlett Lake-S" to keep it away from consumers. Companies like ASRock have confirmed that the "Bartlett Lake-S" Core 200E will not be available for consumer motherboards and will only be used in the embedded and edge computer sector. This means you can technically buy and use this CPU for any Windows or Linux task, including gaming, but you will have to go through a process of acquiring an industrial-grade motherboard or a mini-PC that suits this platform. This means gaming support will be limited, as Intel explicitly will not bring any optimizations like APO/IPO to the platform for gaming. Instead, it will be treated as a generic x86-64 Intel CPU, just like any other processor. Extracting the maximum gaming performance could also be problematic, as there could be compatibility issues, given that Intel has envisioned other applications for this platform.

NVIDIA has officially pulled its latest GeForce 595.59 WHQL Game Ready driver from the downloads page as user reports of stability issues continue to pile up. Reportedly, users are experiencing fan detection issues on their GPU coolers, with only a single fan working. Some issues like clock stability have also occurred. On NVIDIA's official GeForce Forums, users have been complaining about driver stability, and the company has advised users to roll back the driver version to the previously stable 591.86 WHQL driver if they are experiencing any symptoms. The GeForce 595.59 WHQL Game Ready driver was launched as an optimization package to get Resident Evil Requiem and Marathon games running smoothly, which turned into a disaster that the community has reported.

NVIDIAFebruary 26th, 11am PT Update: We have discovered a bug in the Game Ready and Studio 595.59 WHQL drivers and have removed the downloads temporarily while our team investigates. For users that have already installed this driver, and are experiencing issues with fan control, please roll back to 591.86 WHQL. NVIDIA app users can reinstall their previous driver by clicking the three dots in the Drivers tab.

Update 06:57 UTC: We have removed the broken driver version from our downloads section.

Early access to AMD Radeon Software's "Vanguard" driver testing program has reportedly revealed a new Radeon FSR 4.1 DLL file, which is the next update for AMD's FSR 4 technology. According to the latest leak, AMD is preparing the FSR 4.1 update, which should bring some visual or performance enhancements, or both. Some Reddit PC enthusiasts are applying workarounds to run the file on RDNA 3 hardware, even though AMD officially doesn't support FSR 4 on the RDNA 3 generation due to some missing instructions on the older microarchitecture. Running these files can produce visible quality gains but are experimental, varying widely by title and system setup. Even when a leaked DLL carries a digital signature, running unofficial binaries can trigger instability, break driver integrity checks, or conflict with future official updates.

However, the enthusiast community has run the experiment and confirms that early side-by-side comparisons show small improvements in fine detail and edge definition when the leaked FSR 4.1 binary is forced into titles that previously used FSR 4.0.3. Testers describe sharper foliage and fabric textures and less ghosting. Other users report inconsistent results and artifacts, suggesting that the update is still a work in progress. We could have expected the update to land alongside AMD Software Adrenalin 26.2.2 WHQL drivers that launched today, as the DLL file was found in the beta test of the 26.2.2 driver, but since the update is still experimental, maybe the next Adrenalin update will bring the FSR 4.1 update as an official package.

NVIDIA CFO Colette Kress confirmed that the gaming sector may struggle during the company's latest Q4 earnings call. In a short but very important note, she stated, "Looking ahead, while end demand for our products remains strong and channel inventory levels are healthy, we expect supply constraints to be the headwind to Gaming in Q1 and beyond." This sentence is rather vague but conveys the message that supply constraints will definitely impact the GeForce RTX 50 series lineup in the current quarter and possibly beyond. NVIDIA's current product inventory is in good shape, meaning that both silicon from TSMC and secured GDDR7 memory are sufficient for the time being, but once the inventory levels start to deplete, availability will become a problem.

Team Green has massive capacity secured at TSMC's facilities for manufacturing "Blackwell" GPUs, meaning that no production issues stem from that end. However, memory makers, with whom NVIDIA collaborates, are supply constrained in delivering their GDDR7 memory solutions, leaving NVIDIA with little to work with outside its high-margin server sector. As NVIDIA supplies its AIC partners with both memory and GPU dies, having no memory modules to bundle with the GPUs becomes a supply bottleneck, leaving the company waiting for weeks without a fresh inventory of memory modules. Hence, NVIDIA now expects that demand will continue to be strong among gamers, but the situation may be getting slightly worse as inventory levels start to deplete.

Intel has released its latest 101.8531 Non-WHQL Arc GPU graphics drivers, offering day-one game support for titles like Marathon, Resident Evil Requiem, and the World of Warcraft: Midnight DLC expansion pack. Intel notes that with this driver version, users of Intel Arc "Battlemage" and Arc "Alchemist" integrated and discrete GPUs will experience support and some performance improvements across other games, which are now being further optimized. For example, for "Panther Lake," this beta driver delivers a 35% FPS increase in Witcher 3 at 1080p with high settings, while Arc "Alchemist" sees a Resident Evil Requiem FPS boost of up to 40% on average at 1080p with ultra settings. Interestingly, Intel is optimizing new games for its older products, which is a promising sign for anyone considering purchasing the newer "Panther Lake" chips for gaming. With Intel planning to launch Core Ultra G3 SoCs for handhelds in a few months, consistent driver optimization is quite noteworthy.

DOWNLOAD: Intel Arc Graphics Driver 101.8531 Beta.

NVIDIA reported its full-year 2025 results with massive revenue of $215.9 billion, with $68.1 billion coming in the fourth quarter. The company's earnings call after the results were published contained some interesting information and confirmed that the first "Vera Rubin" VR200 racks are shipping to customers as samples, with volume shipping to commence in the second half of 2026. NVIDIA confirmed that the upcoming platform, which includes the Vera CPU, Rubin GPU, NVLink 6 switch, ConnectX-9 SuperNIC, BlueField-4 DPU, and Spectrum-6 Ethernet switch, will be powering the next-generation trillion-parameter models with only one-fourth of the GPUs compared to the previous-generation "Blackwell" and will reduce inference costs by up to 10 times.

NVIDIA CFO Colette KressWe shipped our first Vera Rubin samples to customers earlier this week, and we remain on track to commence production shipments in the second half of the year. Based on its modular, cable-free tray design, Rubin will deliver improved resiliency and serviceability relative to Blackwell. We expect every cloud model builder to deploy Vera Rubin.

A few days ago, we reported that AMD is seemingly ending driver support for its Ryzen Z1 Extreme SoC, just two and a half years after its launch. Since Lenovo issued product guidance that the company will no longer provide updates, and ASUS's own ROG Ally handheld console had not received an update in over six months, the situation was dire. However, ASUS today released a new driver update for its ROG Ally handheld console, which had been stuck with six-month-old SoC drivers from August 2025. This changes the situation from the platform being completely abandoned for half a year to a periodic update window that will likely continue unless gamers encounter a surprise change.

Initially, we couldn't determine the "blame" for this irregular driver update cycle, as it could have been either AMD or OEMs being slow with the driver updates. As AMD offers configurable TDP (cTDP) for the Z1 Extreme with values ranging from 9 to 30 W, this means that OEMs can get SoCs in various configurations, each needing to be tested and verified before distributing an official driver. To add more to the mess, Lenovo Korea has confirmed that their own driver update plan for the product has stopped, leaving users to switch to other platforms or use Linux-based operating systems that carry their own drivers for these platforms to extract maximum longevity. Hence, the entire situation is now more complicated.

Samsung is officially ending the production of its 2D NAND flash storage this year, and the company will be repurposing its old production lines to better fit the AI-driven demand. According to The Elec Korea, Samsung plans to officially stop 2D NAND production at its Hwaseong site, with Line 12 being the one carrying this aging technology. Instead of completely abandoning this facility, which houses plenty of chip-making tools, Samsung will repurpose them for DRAM metallization, which is the process of applying actual pathways within the DRAM itself to connect memory cells. Interestingly, the Hwaseong Line 12 holds a monthly wafer production capacity of 80,000 to 100,000 12-inch wafers. This is a significant number of wafers, which are now only used for 2D NAND Flash, a technology that is no longer needed in the wake of 3D NAND Flash technology.

Continuing the Line 12 legacy will be Samsung's 6th-generation 10 nm-class 1c DRAM, a technology used for HBM4, and Samsung expects the total wafer capacity for 1c DRAM to reach about 200,000 wafers per month in the second half of the year. Adapting the old 2D NAND Flash production site will definitely help, and Samsung will run this production along with Pyeongtaek Line 3 and Line 4.

The popular hardware diagnostics utility HWiNFO launched its latest v8.42 version on February 24th. Interestingly, one of the main features of this release is the improved support for Intel "Nova Lake" processors, despite this CPU generation being months away from commercial launch. This means that the tool can now distinguish between different Intel processors and even run diagnostics on engineering samples of "Nova Lake-S," despite the processor not being commercially available for another few quarters. It is possible that the utility is now raising a flag when detecting "Nova Lake," which has its own unique processor ID, and this could be found in some early compiler patches for GCC and LLVM that are enabling these processors before launch. With the launch of v8.42, the tool also gains NPU stress testing, but only in the Pro version.Below is the complete changelog.

Apple is preparing a massive refresh cycle for its 2026 MacBook Pro laptops, with the major redesign being at the very center of the laptop. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, one of the most reliable sources of Apple news, the company is preparing to implement its Dynamic Island feature on its MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16 versions, both of which will carry the new feature. Alongside Dynamic Island, which is replacing the traditional notch we have on MacBooks today, Apple is also implementing OLED display technology that will replace the current Mini LED display found on the current generation of MacBooks.

For the Dynamic Island, Apple will bring over much of the functionality from its iPhone models, which includes status updates and a front camera cutout, but in a different shape. As the iPhone uses the Dynamic Island to host Face ID sensors, the MacBook Pro version should only include a camera sensor cutout with software support from the OS. However, the most interesting part of the announcement should be the touchscreen ability with OLED panels. Apple is reportedly optimizing its new operating system to unlock new gestures for touch, where each touch will invoke a new panel or a new interface. This design will reportedly not be similar to the iPad, but just another sensory aid to the current input method with a keyboard and a mouse.

NVIDIA has posted multiple job openings, which give us several hints about the company's plans for gaming on Linux and what the possible plan could look like. According to the now-removed listing, NVIDIA is hiring engineers to diagnose CPU and GPU performance bottlenecks on Linux when running the Proton compatibility layer and Vulkan graphics API. This suggests that NVIDIA is either refining its product support for the massive wave of gamers transitioning to Linux or preparing for an entirely new platform. For example, as NVIDIA is currently preparing N1/N1X SoCs for laptops, the company could create dedicated handheld chips for devices like Valve's Steam Deck, which currently runs on AMD's SoC. There are multiple handheld vendors now, and NVIDIA could be powering a new handheld with its laptop N1/N1X chips under Linux.

The job descriptions clearly indicate that the work will cover everything from the game engine and translation layers, such as Proton, to drivers and hardware interaction. This focus suggests that efforts will not be limited to profiling but will also include proposing API usage changes, building repeatable test cases, and collaborating with translation-layer and distribution maintainers to implement fixes. Anyone using NVIDIA graphics under Linux will also be impacted, as the company's polishing of the software stack will bring a definitive quality of life improvement to games. This can include fewer stutters, better frame pacing, and reduced CPU overhead in titles that rely on Vulkan or run under Proton, which translates Windows-specific API calls and optimizes games to run on Linux.

Retail DDR5 prices in Germany have finally shown a small sign of cooling down after the steep climb in the past months. The decline is small and not yet uniform across models, but it is the first sustained easing many DIY PC enthusiasts and small shops have noticed since prices began to spike in late 2025 and reached astronomical levels recently. A widely shared community chart tracking an average 32 GB DDR5 kit across the European Union captured the climb from autumn into early February and then a late-period dip. That chart is useful as a broad signal, but it leaves open important details such as the exact kit measured, which countries were included, and whether listed prices include taxes.

To add more context, independent checks of historical listings on Amazon Germany using CamelCamelCamel show that several mainstream 32 GB DDR5 kits have dropped from their highs. Two of the larger declines were visible on popular models from Corsair and Kingston, while other brands recorded smaller pullbacks. There are a few likely reasons for the softening. Buyers may be pausing upgrades after a period of rapid price increases. Some retailers could be cutting prices to move stock and reduce inventory risk. It is also possible that a small amount of additional supply has filtered through the distribution chain, away from the AI supply chain. However, any of these explanations still need more substance. For a complete return to normal pricing, we will probably need to see clearer improvements in production capacity or a sustained drop in demand, and this improvement could only be a short term correction.

Samsung Foundry has struck gold as its utilization rate has jumped to an impressive 80% this quarter. This comes after many years of struggling to achieve a good utilization rate, while competitors like TSMC have consistently led the adoption of newer nodes and gained a massive customer base. However, the situation has now changed, and Samsung's foundries are now operating at about 80% of total capacity, consistently producing silicon, with the Pyeongtaek Campus P2 and P3 leading the charge. Previously, these lines were only achieving a 50% booking rate last year and even struggled with insufficient production volume in the second half of 2024. Samsung uses these sites to manufacture 4 nm, 5 nm, and 7 nm nodes, which are now considered "mature," as the leading edge shifts to sub-3 nm production.

Part of the foundry revival is attributed to the strong demand for its 6th-generation HBM, coming in the form of HBM4 with a custom base die manufactured on the 4 nm node. While competitors are making HBM4 base dies on older nodes, Samsung is using a 4 nm custom base die that provides higher design density for any logic that ASIC makers want to implement. This can include some data processing that will aid the main accelerator in AI workloads. This has translated into high demand for Samsung Foundry products from external customers, who are now keeping production at high capacity.

According to the latest job listings, we learn that Intel is planning the return of a unified core architecture, something we haven't been accustomed to in the last few years. Starting with the 12th Generation "Alder Lake" processors, Intel began selling hybrid core processors that combine "Golden Cove" performance cores and "Gracemont" efficient cores. These became commonly known as P and E-Cores, which are now being used across Intel products in hybrid designs or P/E-core-only Xeon processors, of course, with the latest designs and iterations. However, as the new job listings suggest, Intel is assembling a team of engineers for its "Unified Core" design group that will deliver the new microarchitecture to power the next generation of processors.

Separating the core design into P-Cores and E-Cores has yielded Intel the desired results that the company hoped for. This includes product separation and many goals across platforms. For example, in the consumer sector, E-Cores run a lot of side and background tasks in the operating system, while P-Cores power main applications like games. To extract maximum performance, Intel has a dedicated Thread Director that makes the entire process work and dictates just what application goes to which core, in tandem with the operating system. Intel also provides P-Core-only and E-Core-only Xeon server processors that serve either performance sectors like HPC and AI or the cloud sector that needs many cores with somewhat lower performance, but in a dense 100-core+ package.

AMD has reportedly stopped driver updates for its Ryzen Z1 Extreme APU solution for handheld consoles, according to the latest Lenovo Korea update. This means that only after 2 and a half years, AMD is pulling support for its SoC, leaving many enthusiasts in a difficult spot. Confirmation from multiple sources are piling up as Reddit users and customers of other handheld consoles are stating that support for their specific devices, based on the Ryzen Z1 Extreme SoC, are also stuck using drivers that are several months old. For example, a user has commented that his ASUS ROG Ally non-X version based on the Ryzen Z1 Extreme SoC has been stuck with six-month-old SoC drivers from August 2025. This means that AMD has effectively placed the Ryzen Z1 and Ryzen Z1 Extreme chips into a periodic update window, with no latest driver support coming to this 2023 SoC.

However, the situation is quite complex. OEMs like Lenovo and ASUS receive drivers from AMD and test them for their specific configurations. AMD offers configurable TDP (cTDP) for the Z1 Extreme with values ranging from 9 to 30 W. This means that OEMs can get a SoC with reduced clocks and power settings to match their desired handheld designs, or simply run the most aggressive 30 W configuration that will sacrifice some battery life but deliver overall higher CPU and GPU clocks. Hence, drivers must be tested to ensure they work properly on the specific TDP configuration by the OEM before they are installed by the user. Finding the "blame" is proving to be difficult, as it could be that AMD is not bothering with new updates, or OEMs are not eager to test their specific configurations.

In a new letter to channel partners, Lenovo has stated that the company expects PC price hikes in March amid the memory crunch affecting the industry. The letter, obtained by CRN, notes that Lenovo's North America channel chief, Wade McFarland, mentioned there will be some pricing changes to certain products and configurations that Lenovo offers, which will be communicated later with the exact specification changes. In the letter, Wade McFarland noted that there have been some changes to the ordering policy for the Intelligent Devices Group (IDG), responsible for PCs like desktops, notebooks, and tablets, while the Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG) unit responsible for server solutions is also experiencing the same changes. Lenovo's North American president, Ryan McCurdy, noted that "we've absolutely had to adjust and continue to adjust [pricing]. There's no way around it."

However, the company has advised its partners to submit orders while it is still February, as that will lock in the pricing at which Lenovo can supply PCs before the price hike expected in March. "Pricing is influenced by both order timing and fulfillment timing, and Lenovo reviews pricing periodically in response to evolving market conditions," notes Wade McFarland, adding that Lenovo's memory suppliers have been good and that the company has been informed of every pricing change in advance so that it can effectively communicate with its clients and warn them before any changes happen. That way, clients don't experience pricing shocks that may impact their purchasing decisions, as Lenovo sells millions of PCs every month. A slight, unexpected price change may result in a significant change in purchasing decisions, so communication with clients is key.

The name synonymous with Xbox—Phil Spencer—is leaving Microsoft after nearly 40 years at the company. He started as an intern back in 1988 and has been with the Xbox team since 2001, helping the project thrive in the following decades. According to the announcement, Microsoft is overhauling its Gaming division with some new names, while the old executive team has left the company. In addition to Phil Spencer, Xbox president Sarah Bond has also left the company. From now on, Asha Sharma, who currently serves as the company chief for the CoreAI product, will be taking on the new role as the CEO of Microsoft Gaming. Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella shared a memo with all Microsoft employees about the status of this update.

Satya NadellaLast year, Phil Spencer made the decision to retire from the company, and since then we've been talking about succession planning. I want to thank Phil for his extraordinary leadership and partnership. Over 38 years at Microsoft, including 12 years leading Gaming, Phil helped transform what we do and how we do it.

Thanks to a new table specification matrix published by a known leaker Jaykihn on X, we are seeing the final specifications of Intel's long-rumored "Bartlett Lake-S" Core 200E family of CPUs with P-Cores only. This platform is designed to fit inside Intel's LGA-1700 socket, but from a consumer standpoint represents a non-existent product that will not reach their hands, as Intel has abandoned the plan to launch this highly anticipated gamer CPU. Instead, Intel will only offer it for its edge and embedded products. At the top of the stack is the Core 9 273 PQE SKU, which is a 12 P-Core variant with 24 threads and a base frequency of 3.4 GHz. This model can boost all of its 12 cores to 5.3 GHz, while a single thread can go up to 5.9 GHz independently for tasks that require intensive single-threaded performance. It is equipped with 36 MB of L3 cache and an integrated GPU with 32 EUs of Xe-LP graphics.

Interestingly, the entire lineup is separated into three categories. One is a high-TDP PQE with a base power of 125 W, while the middle PE models are 65 W designs with lower clocks. The weakest models are the PTE SKUs that have a TDP of 45 W, which are more ideal for edge deployments where power/efficiency is the most important factor. Across the lineup, there are versions with 8, 10, and 12 cores, all with Hyper-Threading for 16, 20, and 24 threads. Some SKUs from the PE and PTE lineups do not enjoy Intel vPro and ECC memory support, while the PQE high-power SKUs are all equipped with vPro and ECC memory support. You can check out the complete table comparison and product segmentation below for more specific information on different models.