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General: Goblinworks: Looking Back

Posted: 04 Sep 2015 02:19 AM PDT

Goblinworks: Looking Back

Goblinworks went through a major transformation this week. It's been on a slow descent for the past year and finally crash landed the other day. Read on for Rob Lashley's take on what went wrong and what we hope to see for the Pathfinder IP going forward.

Gigantic: A Gigantically Good Time… See What We Did There?

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 01:54 PM PDT

A Gigantically Good TimeĀ… See What We Did There?

We've been covering Motiga's Gigantic for what seems an age, and yet I've never been fortunate enough to play the thing. This year's PAX Prime changed that, and I am really glad it did. With my Player Coaches over my shoulder (I wish I'd gotten their names!) I charged into battle with Lord Knossos and never looked back.

Pathfinder Online: New CEO Lisa Stevens Posts Community Address

Posted: 02 Sep 2015 05:54 PM PDT

New CEO Lisa Stevens Posts Community Address

After the Mumble chat with the Pathfinder Online community last night, much has been speculated about what all the changes mean. With Ryan Dancey and all but three employees removed from the development team, the future of the game is in question. In a new post today, new CEO Lisa Stevens has written a very frank letter to the community. We present it here in its entirety and invite your analysis.

Champions Online: Sixth Anniversary to be Celebrated with Month-Long Party

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 03:06 PM PDT

Sixth Anniversary to be Celebrated with Month-Long Party

The Champions Online site has been updated with a special post to let players know that a big sixth anniversary party is in the works throughout September. Players can look forward to special events and lots of free items as well.

General: PAX Prime 2015 Indie Round-Up Part One

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 06:09 AM PDT

PAX Prime 2015 Indie Round-Up Part One

In a three part series, our staff writer Carolyn Koh takes a look at some of the many Indie games to be found at PAX. Starting with two very different RPGS, Dragon Fin Soup and Guild of Dungeoneering.

Guild Wars 2: Borderlands Stress Test, Deep Dive on Guild Objectives

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 11:39 AM PDT

Borderlands Stress Test, Deep Dive on Guild Objectives

The third in a series of Guild Wars 2 World v World Borderland stress tests has been announced for Tuesday, September 8th and set to run through Thursday, September 10th. The number of included players has been significantly increased and potential testers are urged to check email to see if an invitation has arrived.

Sword Coast Legends: To Be the DM

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 06:02 AM PDT

To Be the DM

In the meeting halls of the Grand Sheraton Hotel in downtown Seattle last weekend Rob Lashley sat down to play Sword Coast Legends for the first time. He was limited in time, only 20 minutes, but these are his first impressions as playing as the DM.

General: Master of Orion - Not So MMO, But Big on Roleplaying the Galaxy

Posted: 02 Sep 2015 02:41 PM PDT

Master of Orion - Not So MMO, But Big on Roleplaying the Galaxy

Nope, Master of Orion is not an MMO. It's even less of one than the mega-popular World of Tanks from Wargaming. But when the founder of Wargaming wins a bidding war to secure the MOO franchise because he's a dyed in the wool fan, you want to see what will come of such a nostalgia grab. And so it was with trepidation that we stepped into Wargaming's booth this year to see how the reboot of one of PC Gaming's most vaunted series was coming along...

Devilian: Friends & Family + Obsidian Founders Alpha Begins

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 08:57 AM PDT

Friends & Family + Obsidian Founders Alpha Begins

As announced to our own Bill Murphy during last weekend's PAX Prime, the Friends & Family alpha for Devilian has started today. Included in that number are founders of the "Obsidian" level as well.

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing III: Final Cut Release Date Slated for September 23rd

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 08:18 AM PDT

Final Cut Release Date Slated for September 23rd

NeoCore Games has announced the release date for Van Helsing: Final Cut, a new iteration of the trilogy packed into one for $44.99. The all-in-one game version can be picked up on September 23rd. Players who already own all three titles in the series will receive the Final Cut for free.

MMOGaming News

MMOGaming News


WildStar Free-to-Play to Launch on September 29

Posted:

WildStar Free-to-Play to Launch on September 29


NCSOFT and Carbine Studios announced today that sci-fi MMO WildStar's free-to-play launch will be September 29, 2015. Additionally, the second phase of the closed beta test is set to begin today, focusing on fine-tuning the update's changes prior to release.

Devilian Online Coming To NA Soon

Posted:

Devilian Online Coming To NA Soon


Just a little relook at Devilian Online. It will soon be coming into beta on North American shores. So I just wanted to remind people and give you a little taste of the fun.

Black Desert Kunoichi Guide and Gameplay

Posted:

Black Desert Kunoichi Guide and Gameplay


Yo guys its been a while since ive posted any guides/gameplay on this website. Decided to wait till something awesome came along. I I will be updating this page with more videos as i get more footage!

MMORPG Reviews

MMORPG Reviews


WildStar F2P Launches this Month

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 11:16 AM PDT

Carbine Studios and NCSoft has announced that on September 29 WildStar will officially become Free-to-Play. The Free-to-Play model comes with new contents and improvements to the game systems. In addition the veteran players and the players with active subscriptions will receive exclusive rewards at the time of the free-to-play transition. Also tomorrow will begin the second phase of […]

The post WildStar F2P Launches this Month appeared first on MMORPG Reviews.

New Update for Heroes & Generals: Xylander

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 09:54 AM PDT

Heroes & Generals has received today a new update called Xylander that adds to the game a new knife and an automatic rifle (The AVS-36 or Avtomaticheskaya Vintovka Simonova 1936 model) for the Soviet faction, a new algorithm called “Battle Director“, a new model to earn credits, new skins for weapons, new camouflage uniforms, and more experience bonuses […]

The post New Update for Heroes & Generals: Xylander appeared first on MMORPG Reviews.

World of Warships Official Launch Date Announced

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 08:29 AM PDT

Wargaming has announced that the official launch date of World of Warships: September 17. After conquering the earth with World of Tanks, and the air with World of Warplanes, now is the time to conquer the seas and oceans of the world controlling impressive warships. When the game is released, players can control four classes of warships, among them […]

The post World of Warships Official Launch Date Announced appeared first on MMORPG Reviews.

Interviewing Alexander Hendler, Producer of Asterix & Friends

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 07:23 AM PDT

We’ve recently had the chance to do an interview to Alexander Hendler, Producer of Asterix & Friends. Here are his interesting answers to our questions about the game’s main features. Check it out! First of all, thanks a lot for granting us the opportunity to talk with you about Asterix & Friends. Could you, please, introduce […]

The post Interviewing Alexander Hendler, Producer of Asterix & Friends appeared first on MMORPG Reviews.



General Gaming Article

General Gaming Article


Newegg Daily Deals: GeForce GTX 950 Graphics Cards Galore Edition!

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 11:22 AM PDT

GeForce GTX 950

Top Deal:

Uh oh, it's back-school-season. That means it's time to stock up on supplies -- little Billy needs a new backpack and Suzie could use a laptop. Don't forget new clothes, shoes for gym class, pencils, paper, pens, and...well, sometimes it seems like an endless list. It also doesn't leave much for gaming amenities, though with cards like the GeForce GTX 950, you don't need a big budget. Take for example today's top deal -- Zotac GeForce GTX 950 Graphics Card for $160 with free shipping (normally $180; free 16GB USB 3.0 flash drive w/ purchase, while supplies last). It's one of the least expensive GTX 950 graphics cards around, it doesn't requires a mail-in-rebate, and you knock "USB flash drive" off your shopping list of back-to-school items!

Other Deals:

MSI GeForce GTX 950 GTX 950 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 SLI Video Card for $170 with free shipping (normally $175; additional $10 Mail-in rebate; Free Game Final Fantasy Type Zero w/ purchase, limited offer)

Asus GeForce GTX 950 S 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 Video Card for $170 with free shipping (normally $180; additional $10 Mail-in rebate)

EVGA GeForce GTX 950 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 SLI Video Card for $170 with free shipping (normally $195; +170 Eggpoints)

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 Video Card for $170 with free shipping (normally $177; additional $10 Mail-in rebate)

Batman: Arkham Knight Patch for PC Impresses in Brief Appearance

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 11:09 AM PDT

Positive first impression

Batman Arkham Knight

It looks like the developers working frantically to fix various issues in the PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight have made some good progress. How do we know? Someone at WB Games screwed up and made the patch available on Steam to those who opted into the game's beta. Oops!

Several players were able to download and apply the patch before WB Games realized its mistake and removed it. Another patch took its place, which essentially wiped out the original one and caused some crashing issues for users, though some were able to continue using the original patch.

Here's what some of them had to say about it.

  • Running butter-smooth for me.
  • OMG thanks! It worked.
  • Holy...wow. Just opted into the beta patch. EVERYTHING maxed, all Gameworks settings on. 4GB used out of 6GB (980 Ti). Constant 60fps. I think I might've dropped to 55 once when driving but it's butter smooth.
  • This gave me awesome performance. I'm getting 60fps 95 percent of the time, and CrossFire is even enabled with this patch and the 15.8 drivers (though some strange flickering with AA on).

After much hype and anticipation, the PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight was met with much criticism over performance problems, even on high-end machines. Not everyone was affected, but enough were that WB Games yanked the game from Steam and tasked developers with working on a patch.

WB Games said in mid-August that testing had begun on an interim patch and that it would roll out "in the next few weeks" if things continued to go well. Judging by the accidental release on Steam and generally positive response, it appears the patch is nearly ready for prime time.

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Lenovo Announces Yoga Tab 3 Pro with Built-In 70-Inch Projector

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 09:40 AM PDT

A tablet for Netflix junkies

Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro

Lenovo this week added a couple of new tablets to its Yoga line, the Yoga Tab 3 Pro and Yoga Tab 3. Both are aimed at video enthusiasts, though it's the Pro model that stands out with a built-in 70-inch projector that's supposedly optimized for Netflix.

The Yoga Tab 3 Pro comes pre-loaded with the Netflix app for Android, which you can view on the tablet's 10.1-inch (down from 13 inches on last year's model) QHD (2560x1600) display or beamed to a wall with the aforementioned (and 180-degree rotating) projector. Sound chores are handled by four front-facing JBL speakers with virtualized Dolby Atmos audio.

Other hardware and features include an Intel Atom x5-Z8500 processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB or 32GB of internal eMMC storage, microSD card slot, 5MP front-facing camera, 13MP rear-facing camera, and a 10,200 mAh battery.

Lenovo also introduced 8-inch and 10.1-inch non-Pro versions, both with a 1280x800 resolution. Both also sport a quad-core 1.3GHz Qualcomm processor, 1GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage. The 8-inch model has a 6,200 mAh battery while the 10.1-inch version comes with an 8,400 mAh power pack.

The Yoga Tab 3 will be available next month with pricing set at $169 for the 8-inch model and $199 for the 10-inch SKU. Lenovo's Yoga Tab 3 Pro will hit retail in November starting at $499.

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​Dream Machine 2020 Predictions

Posted: 03 Sep 2015 12:00 AM PDT

The Maximum PC crew predicts what we'll see in Dream Machine 2020

Back in 2011,  we made predictions for how Dream Machine 2015 would turn out. With Dream Machine 2015 now launched, it was fun looking back at what we got right (along with what we got terribly wrong). Having said that, we wanted to give our future selves something to reflect back on in five years. That's why we're giving you our predictions for how we think Dream Machine 2020 will turn out.

Dream Machine 2020

Have a prediction of your own? Let us know in the comments below!

Jimmy Thang-17961-short

Jimmy Thang, Online Managing Editor:

By 2020, you'll be able to squeeze more power out of Mini-ITX boxes than this year's current Dream Machine, but because you can always get more power in a bigger box, we're going to still be using a Full Tower setup.

For the CPU, we'll be able to push the clocks over 5GHz, maybe around 5.5GHz. Of course, we'll be using a high-end custom loop cooler. I also think we'll see more cores with Intel's latest CPU, and if I had to guess, I'd say we'll get 12 physical cores.

For the graphics, I think we'll finally be able to push the four GPU barrier and we'll be able to squeeze in five or more graphics cards. We will, of course, still be limited by a 1,600-watt PSU, however, considering US wall sockets will still only really be able to provide 1,600 watts of power. With hardware becoming more power-efficient every year, however, I think we'll be able to accommodate the load.

For the display, UHD resolutions will be as commonplace as 1080p is today, so I think we'll see something in the realm of an 8K display for Dream Machine 2020. Speaking of displays, I think by 2020, we'll also include a VR headset as an accessory, sort of like how we include peripherals like mouse and keyboard into the Dream Machine. The VR headset will support 144Hz and support 4K or higher resolution.

For storage, I think Intel and Micron's work in  3D XPoint technology will be fruitful over the years, with the companies saying that the new non-volitile memory solution is 1,000x faster than modern NAND technology. This cutting-edge technology also purports to replace traditional system RAM, so I think we'll also see 3D XPoint technology be used there as well. In terms of storage, I think we'll see over 32TB of this 3D XPoint storage and 256GB of system RAM (that number is absurdly crazy, but hey, this is Dream Machine). I think we will finally move away from traditional spinning hard drives.

How will you be able to use up all that 3D XPoint storage space, you ask? I think fiber Internet will be much more common by 2020, at least in the San Francisco Bay Area. Toto, we're not just in Kansas anymore.

Other than that, I think we'll see USB type C be as commonplace on the motherboard as much as USB 3.0 is on mobos today.

As long as the personal computer has been around, I've never ceased being amazed by the level of detail and innovation that goes into PC technology. I won't be surprised if something new, however small, completely catches me off guard for Dream Machine 2020.

Jarred Walton

Jarred Walton, Senior Editor:

Hardware updates have been stuck at a major plateau for a while, as evidenced by the slowing down of clock speeds and even the lack of increased core counts. Five years ago, the latest and greatest Intel CPUs were Lynnfield i7-875K running 4/8 cores/threads at up to 3.6GHz (stock), or you were on the enthusiast LGA1366 platform running 6/12 cores/threads with Gulftown i7-980X, again at up to 3.6GHz stock. Without going to the Xeon parts, we've added just two cores and less than 800MHz in five years. It would be fun to predict we'll all be running 40-core processors at 8GHz in five years, but it's not happening. Moderate progress is the new standard for processors, so while the model names may not be accurate, in some areas the actual hardware in 2020 won't be all that radical compared to our present day.

But screw moderation! Other technologies stand ready to shake things up, with XPoint being a major driving force: 1,000X the performance of NAND, 1,000X the endurance, and 10X the capacity? Can you imagine what that might mean for the coming years? We'll see XPoint in storage, memory, and even CPUs/GPUs. Or else we'll have a good laugh at how far off the mark I was in five years; either way, let's have some fun!

By 2020, Intel will have rolled out their 7nm process technology, and they will finally offer eight cores in their mainstream parts, codenamed Hotmagma. These will still top out at a relatively modest 4.6GHz stock with a 75W TDP, but overclocking on air to 5GHz and more is no longer a pipe dream, and liquid cooling will routinely hit 5.5GHz (at 150W TDP). Perhaps more impressive is that we'll be at 10 billion transistors in a mainstream i7-22700K, and with all those transistors Intel will have processor graphics at a level equal to our present day GTX 970. Intel's Xpoint Technology will have made its way into CPUs, and Hotmagma will ship with 16GB XPR (XPoint RAM) as part of the package—only users that need more than 16GB will even bother with additional memory. This will be in addition to the 512MB XPoint-based L3 cache.

Of course, this is Dream Machine 2020, so we don't even care about the mainstream Z570 platform. For enthusiasts, Intel will have their Lavarocket-E processors on the X490 chipset, with the i7-22990X running 20 cores. Intel will have Hyper-Threading 3.0 by then, providing a virtual three threads per core, yielding a 20-core/60-thread processor. This we'll overclock to 5.5GHz with liquid cooling, naturally. The 16GB XPR will still be part of the package, functioning as an L4 cache similar to the current eDRAM, except with 4TB/s of low latency bandwidth; the XPoint-based L3 cache meanwhile will be a whopping 1GB. For those that need more memory, X490 will have a high-speed serial interface that allows the use of off-package XPR-DIMMs. We'll have 192GB spread across six 32GB modules in a triple-channel configuration, delivering a staggering 384GB/s of system memory bandwidth.

Graphics isn't standing still either. Using 10nm FinFET technology, we'll have two of Nvidia's GeForce GTX Titan Z4 cards sitting in the two dedicated graphics ports. The limitations of the PCI Express interface required some changes, but the result has been a massive increase in bandwidth, from today's 16GB/s of x16 PCIe 3.0 to 128GB/s per XGP slot. DX12 and Vulkan have also provided game developers with new ways to utilize multiple GPUs, so each of the Titan Z4 cards actually contains four separate GPUs. We'd add more, but we're limited to two XGP slots. We're also power constrained at 500W per XGP slot, and our 1600W PSU is similarly limited by our 15A power outlets. All eight GPU cores will be needed to push pixels to our dual 46-inch 8K displays—we figured it would be a nice match to the latest Oculus Rift 16K VR headsets.

Storage, of course, had a major revolution with XPoint several years back, to the point where few if any consumer-level applications even care about having the fastest SSD. Besides, the link between the CPU and the chipset is still the limiting factor on storage performance, though we'd hardly call the six 20TB XSSDs running in RAID 6 a bottleneck. They're fully capable of saturating the 32GB/s link between the X490 chipset and the CPU, with peak IO of nearly 8 million random IOPS. The only thing slowing down application load times and OS boot times now is the CPU, but most systems now run 24/7 with a pseudo-sleep mode that allows them to wake instantly and respond to user input.

The problem of software lagging farther and farther behind has also been addressed. Windows 10 is now simply called Windows, with regular updates delivered as Microsoft sees fit. There's a VR GUI that looks cool, and machine learning has made interacting with the OS far more natural, with virtual personalized assistants keeping tabs on their users and helping them through the day. The uber-nerds walk around with glasses derived from Hololens that talk to the home PC, providing real-time assistance. The compute power required at home has reinvigorated the desktop PC market, and high-speed 5G connectivity and altered-reality glasses mean most people are now constantly linked up with their home system.

Of course, there's a dark side, and many couples have broken up due to "virtual relationships" that have developed between users and their digital assistants. Jobs have been lost as well and there's currently a trial with an employer suing to block a former employee's access to his "old" assistant. Privacy has become increasingly problematic, and a growing movement is urging users to "opt out" of the Internet in protest. It makes little difference, however, as monitoring and surveillance keeps tabs on these dissidents. It may not be Skynet, but Big Brother is most definitely watching, and he's ready to help should you need him.

Alex 5225

Alex Campbell, Associate Editor:

If there's one thing that's been at the core of modern computing, it's the element silicon (Si). Silicon is one of the most common elements found on earth. It's in sand, glass, and processors. Without silicon semiconductors, we don't have i7s, Titan Xs, or motherboard chipsets. There are other compounds that are showing promise in semiconductor applications though.

You've probably heard of graphene, unless you've been living under a rock for the last couple of years. Graphene is exciting because it flexible, can be used as a semiconductor and is thin. When we say thin, we mean really, really thin: We're talking one atom thick. Graphene's minuscule thickness and flexibility means that, in theory, engineers will be able to create really small and flexible integrated circuits. The  Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) published a story last year about how IBM tested graphene integrated circuits that could are compete head-to-head with their silicon-based counterparts. All hail carbon.

This is exciting for form factors, and leaves the door open for custom designs from manufacturers. However, I think most of the form factor innovations will be in displays and wearables, not necessarily motherboards and graphics cards (and certainly not by 2020). I don't think we'll see too much of a departure from the ATX or ITX form factors due to legacy support, but the material opens the gates for engineers when it comes to form.

Another  material I found on IEEE's website that's being tested is molybdenum ditelluride (MoTe2). According to the IEEE article, researchers found that when they shot a laser at a MoTe2 sample, the sample thinned and formed two layers: a top metallic layer, and a bottom semiconductive layer. While this doesn't sound as impressive as graphene's sexy, flexy slimness, it is interesting: It allows MoTe2 to be closer to a drop-in replacement for silicon. Since the top layer is metallic, it allows for gold or aluminum connections to the metals on the PCB, the article said. That metallic layer is seamlessly blended into the semiconducting layer of the material, meaning that there is a smoother path for electrons to flow. In short, that means faster communication (the IEEE report said it was 10 to 50 times faster than silicon) between the semiconductor and the metal. The report also said that the voltage requirement for MoTe2 1 eV is on par with silicon's 1.1 eV.

So, while silicon will maintain its position for some time, we may start to see chips made from other materials like graphene or MoTe2. Whether they make it into consumer CPUs and parts by 2020 is up in the air, but I'm hoping for it, because I'd want to see them in the Dream Machine for sure.

When it comes to software, I lean far more into the ring of the free and open-source camp. I'd love to see Dream Machine 2020 rocking a Linux distribution. (Arch Linux running a 6.0 kernel?) If Steam machines take off and don't flop, there will be a clear incentive for developers to write engines using OpenGL and other open APIs, instead of DirectX. After all, when it comes to gamers, DirectX is the only real thing (in my mind) keeping them on the Windows platform. If that happens, we'll likely see a vast improvement in graphics driver binaries available to Linux.

As for storage, I'm betting NVMe will overtake SATA. (By the way, how many SATA express drives have you ever seen in person?) The real trick is to find a form factor that takes NVMe away from the PCIe slots. As we're talking about a Dream Machine, we'll have all of the physical space in the PCI region of the mobo taken up by graphics cards. There's no room for RAID or NVMe cards when you've got a block of four (or six?) graphics cards.

We're also likely to see solid state drives over the terabyte mark get cheaper and cheaper, meaning the eventual death of the spinning HDD in desktop systems. Even though NAND flash memory in desktop applications is much younger than the spinning hard drive technology, storage capacity has jumped up in far less time than it took spinning platters. Samsung unveiled a 16TB SSD in August, and that's in a 2.5-inch package. Just imagine what you could pack into a 3.5-inch form factor. There's little doubt that prices will come down for high-density SSDs as competitors crowd the field over the next few years. I think that Dream Machine 2020 will lose the need for HDDs completely, but there may still be an application as a cheap archival medium for data. That said, the only moving parts we're likely to see in 2020 will be the fans and pumps. The HDD's desktop days are numbered.

And optical drives? I consider those mostly dead now. But you can bet your ass Microsoft will offer the retail version of Windows on a DVD or BluRay in 2020, meaning that you'll still need a $20 drive.

Tuan

Tuan Nguyen, Editor-in-Chief:

Let's first consider where we are now: Consumer CPUs are squarely focused on power efficiency. Consider too that the mobile market is dominating the desktop PC market in terms of units moved. Unlike the fantastical predictions of our other editors, mine is likely going to be a bit more tame. CPUs will likely hit a 12-core standard for high-performance desktop configurations, and likely eight cores for average consumer machines. Meaning, you're not going to get access to 12 cores unless you're willing to spend $1,500 or more—which by standards of a few short years ago, is quite astonishing.

What about frequency? Well, considering that there's a huge focus on making CPUs more mobile friendly, ramping up frequencies isn't going to be a priority. For desktops, we'll likely stay around the 4GHz ceiling. Instead of raw performance, I suspect that the CPU guys will continue to upgrade and add features. For example, a next-generation interconnect for storage devices. More PCIe lanes will also be added, and I reckon that we may see PCIe 4.0 or even something totally new.

On the graphics side, I'm going to go out on a limb and say we're going to see DirectX 13 with new features and increased bare-metal access. AMD and Nvidia are still duking it out, of course. GPUs will have roughly double their current transistor count, hitting almost 16 billion transistors. As with the CPU, frequencies will continue to pose a problem simply because there just isn't enough room for big heatsinks on a graphics card without consuming more expansion slots. For enthusiast-level graphics, both AMD and Nvidia will likely go to some form of closed-loop liquid cooling, but not necessarily in the same manner as how AMD did it with the Fury X. The Fury X essentially came in two parts, which made it difficult for customers to install. Some customers had to play Tetris with the innards of their enclosures, while others had to upgrade to larger enclosures altogether.

Expect graphics cards to support multiple 4K displays all around. We may see hints of 8K support, but that isn't going to be likely, as 4K displays are just hitting mainstream and content is still not widely available. Sometimes though, technology does a leap-frog jump and we may see all the 4K content skipped entirely.

The part of the computer that will see the most dramatic improvement going into 2020 is the storage subsystem. SSDs will finally reach the point of an even playing field with HDDs in terms of storage capacity. We're actually moving along really quickly, considering that Samsung just announced a 2.5-inch 16TB SSD. On the other side, Intel recently announced its Point memory technology, aimed at increasing performance by a thousand-fold. Sounds insane, yes? I agree. We will likely see XPoint come to fruition in 2020 in Intel SSDs. Samsung and others will have similar technologies, too. As of today, you can get a 8TB HDD and go to even 10TB for special-use cases. By 2020, we'll see 4TB to 8TB SSDs available—of course we're hoping they'll all be on some insanely fast interface. Oh yeah, and SATA might be dead.

On the display side of things, most displays will still be flat, and many high-end displays will be based on OLED. What about curved displays, you ask? That's a fad. In 2020, I may not even have a traditional display. I may be wearing a high-resolution VR headset that has ultra-high PPI. In the headset, my display can be as big as I want. I can have a virtual display in front of me that stays stationary no matter how I move my head thanks to incredibly high-performance 3D head tracking. A virtual 28-inch display in VR will behave like a real one in front of me, at a "real" virtual distance away from my eyes. And if I wanted to upgrade, well, that's just a matter of dialing in a bigger size in software.

Networking technologies will finally see a boost in 2020. Motherboards today all have 1Gb Ethernet built in, but I think we'll finally start seeing 10GbE solutions at more affordable price points. Motherboards with integrated 10GbE will be available but at a price premium. Considering that Comcast recently announced 2Gb fiber service to the home for consumers, Google Fiber and others like Verizon FIOS won't be far behind. And at these "consumer" speeds, 1Gb Ethernet won't cut it anymore.

Everything else in and around the CPU will remain largely the same.

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