Feature Index Page 12

  • Nvidia Ampere vs. AMD RDNA 2: Battle of the Architectures

    For GPU enthusiasts, it's been a long two year wait. But now that Nvidia's Ampere RTX 3000 GPUs are out, as are AMD's Radeon RX 6000 series, it's time to take a deep look at how these chips work. Is one of them fundamentally better than the other?
    By Nick Evanson on
  • History of the Modern Graphics Processor, Part 2

    Voodoo Graphics revolutionized the PC nearly. The 3D landscape in 1996 favored S3 with 50% of the market. That completely changed as it was estimated that 3Dfx accounted for over 80% of the 3D market during the heyday of Voodoo's reign.
    By Graham Singer on
  • How to Optimize Your Internet Connection for Gaming

    You can have a super fast gaming PC with an RTX 3080 onboard and other speedy components. And yet, if you have a slow connection, your online gaming capabilities will be severely limited. Here are a few things you can try that can improve your existing connection.
    By Grzegorz Kubera on
  • Weird Keyboard Layouts: A Showcase

    It's safe to say many of us don't know much about what lies beyond the standard QWERTY keyboard. Well, there's so much more. Let's take a look at some popular and regional keyboard layouts.
    By Devin Kate Pope on
  • What's New in DirectX 12? Understanding DirectML, DirectX Raytracing and DirectStorage

    DirectX 12 has been expanding to cover ray tracing, machine learning and faster storage. Learn how next-gen titles like Cyberpunk 2077 are using some of these extras, and how they'll make games better for us all.
    By Nick Evanson on
  • Explainer: What is Arduino?

    When it comes to computing devices, the headlines tend to go to biggest and fastest, but not always. Say hello to Arduino, a project that has inspired millions around the world to get into the vast ocean of electronics and programming.
    By Nick Evanson on
  • How to Customize the Windows 10 Context Menu: Add, Remove Items and More

    Left unchecked, it won't take long for the Windows context menu to become cluttered, and we bet there's at least one program on your context menus that you never use.
    By Mark Turner on
  • How to Remove the "3D Objects" Folder and Other Useless Shortcuts From Windows' File Explorer

    At some point, Windows 10 introduced a "3D Objects" File Explorer shortcut that takes up unnecessary space by default. This article will show you how to remove that annoyance and various other such shortcuts (Music, Videos, etc), so you can personalize as you want.
    By Mark Turner on
  • 17 Years of Call of Duty

    Call of Duty has made everlasting memories for millions of players around the world, including an entire generation of gamers that spent their adolescent years with the franchise and continue to stick with it to this day.
    By Humza Aamir on
  • Against All Odds: How Netflix Made It

    Home video rentals were a $16 billion industry when Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph decided to get involved in 1997. Netflix's million-dollar idea was to build an online video rental service in the image of Amazon, an up-and-coming e-commerce player that was in the business of selling books.
    By Shawn Knight on
  • AMD Ryzen 5000 IPC Performance Tested

    IPC performance is a good indicator of a CPU's architecture efficiency, so we're checking out how Zen 3 compares against Intel's 10th-gen Core and AMD's progress with Ryzen over the past three years.
    By Steven Walton on
  • Ryzen 5000 Memory Performance Guide

    In this article we'll be searching for Zen 3's memory sweet spot and looking at DDR4 memory performance with the new Ryzen 5000 CPU series, and a brief explanation of why 4 RAM sticks are faster than 2.
    By Steven Walton on
  • Display Panel Technology: TN vs. VA vs. IPS

    By far the most common types of display panels used on PC monitors are TN, IPS and VA. We're sure you've heard these terms before if you've researched monitors to purchase, and to be clear, the type of panel is a key piece of information that reveals a lot about how the monitor will behave and perform.
    By Tim Schiesser on
  • Here's Why the Unreal Engine is Coming to Your Car

    For the first time, the Unreal Engine will be used in a consumer automobile, as all displays in the new GMC Hummer EV are powered by the very same software that enables some of the most popular and visually stunning video games on the market.
    By Sami Haj-Assaad on
  • Everything You Need to Know About SFF PCs

    Small form factor PCs are a niche corner of the PC market that's becoming more accessible than ever. Many SFF PCs are similar in size to the latest gaming consoles, but there's more to do than just game on a PC.
    By Sami Haj-Assaad on
  • TechSpot's Quick Guide to Sockets and Ports

    The average desktop PC has over 10 different types of connections and often sports over 30 individual sockets. Whether you're wanting to sort out SATA from M.2, or DVI-D from DisplayPort, welcome to our quick guide to sockets and ports.
    By Nick Evanson on
  • 25 Great Games You Can Play on Laptops and Budget PCs

    We often talk about the latest and greatest graphics cards and playing games at the highest settings, but there are times when that's simply not an option. In times like these, it's nice to have a library of fun games that won't melt our processors. That's why we've compiled this list of 25 great (but less demanding) games we can wholeheartedly recommend.
    By Cal Jeffrey on
  • The Last Time Intel Tried to Make a Graphics Card

    Will history repeat itself? Intel's setting out to make a name for itself in the discrete GPU space with its upcoming Xe-HP GPU lineup. We look at Project Larrabee - the last time Intel tried making a graphics card - to understand how things might turn out.
    By Arjun Krishna Lal on
  • How to Find Your Original Windows 10 Product Key

    Microsoft has been changing and improving the way it handles Windows licenses. We'll cover all you need to know in this article, from old school ways to retrieve keys, to the more modern approaches to make good use of your licenses and what restrictions may apply depending on your type of license.
    By Mark Turner on
  • Nvidia Reflex Tested: Low Latency Revolution?

    Nvidia is making concerted efforts to expand their GeForce feature set beyond raw performance. Features like DLSS and ray tracing are heavily pushed, and today we'll be checking out whether Reflex is something you should care about.
    By Tim Schiesser on
  • Intel Rocket Lake Preview: A New Architecture

    After years of wallowing in the mud left by Intel's wake, AMD has risen back up to reconquer the processor market. Ryzen 5000 is meant to put the final nail in Intel's coffin. But such a challenge cannot go unanswered.
    By Isaiah Mayersen on
  • Find Your Motherboard Brand and Model

    There are many reasons why you might need to find your motherboard's brand and model number. Looking to update drivers or the BIOS is most common, but you may also want to check compatibility, discover specs, or look for a replacement. And with OEM PCs and laptops, it's not always as straightforward as checking the box of your motherboard's box.
    By Rob Thubron on
  • AMD B450 or B550 Motherboard for Ryzen 5000 CPUs?

    With the announcement of AMD's Ryzen 5000 desktop CPU series, many prospective buyers aren't clear on the differences between AMD B450 and B550 motherboards, if they should upgrade or which one to buy.
    By Steven Walton on
  • Using a PlayStation 4 Controller with Your PC

    Microsoft's Xbox controller has been the default gamepad for PC gamers for some time now, but you may prefer Sony's competing --- and also quite good --- DualShock 4 controller. The good news is, you can easily configure it to work on Windows or macOS.
    By Cal Jeffrey on
  • Ryzen 5 3600 + RTX 3080: Killer Combo or Not?

    Today we're taking a look back at AMD's value king, the Ryzen 5 3600, but this time running games with the GeForce RTX 3080. Bad or brilliant idea?
    By Steven Walton on
  • Sinclair Computers: Gone But Not Forgotten

    For many, the 1980s was the golden era in home computing. Fighting among new companies was Sinclair who made cheap and basic computers, but helped give rise to the world of bedroom programming and some very familiar game developers.
    By Nick Evanson on
  • A Guide to Shopping for a New PC Case

    The perfect PC chassis is a bit of a misnomer. Plenty of cases over the years have been highly regarded as being great, trend-setting or iconic, but one size does not fit all. This article aims to help you construct that shortlist of options and steer your search in the right direction.
    By Shawn Knight on
  • Ray Tracing & DLSS with the GeForce RTX 3080

    With Nvidia's GeForce RTX 3080 out the door, it's time we take a deep dive into ray tracing and DLSS performance to show you just how fast the RTX 3080 is for these special effects in a wider range of games.
    By Tim Schiesser on
  • The History of the Microprocessor and the Personal Computer

    The PC business as we know it owes itself to an environment of enthusiasts, entrepreneurs and happenstance. The invention of the microprocessor, DRAM, and EPROM integrated circuits would help bring computing to the mainstream. This 5-part series explores the history of personal computing, from the invention of the transistor to modern day chips powering our connected devices.
    By Graham Singer on
  • Wi-Fi 6 vs. Wi-Fi 5 Benchmarked: How Does the New Generation Perform?

    We're starting to see more Wi-Fi 6 capable devices hit the market, so naturally, the big question is: should you upgrade? Today we are taking a look at how some of these systems perform compared to those from the previous generation.
    By William Gayde on