Articles about Intel

The whir of a fan. This is a sound many computer enthusiasts know all too well. Whether it is a single fan in a laptop, or 12 fans in a gaming desktop, the noise can be distracting. While some folks learn to tune out fan noise (and some even end up liking it!), let's be honest, a silent PC is preferable for most. Unfortunately, passively cooled computers are often under-powered, meaning you must decide between performance and silence.

But what if you didn't have to pick? What if I told you a company is selling a mini computer with a passively cooled Intel Core i9 9900K? Yeah, you would probably think I am telling lies, but actually, it is the truth! The Compulab "Airtop3," as it is called, features that high-end processor (plus others) and does not have a fan! In addition, the edge server can be configured with an NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 (or GeForce GTX 1660 Ti) and is loaded to the gills with connectivity options. Not to mention, the diminutive computer looks very beautiful too. Best of all, it can be configured to ship with Linux Mint!

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Intel has announced that it is to leave the 5G smartphone modem business and will assess the opportunities for 4G and 5G modems in PCs, as well as data-centric and IoT devices.

While Intel has not indicated a link between the two announcements, the news comes just after Apple and Qualcomm said they are bringing their legal battles to an end. It means that Intel will not supply the modem for the 5G iPhone, but the company says it will continue to invest in its 5G network infrastructure business.

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With precisely zero fanfare, Microsoft has added a new mid-range Surface Book 2 to the existing line-up. Priced at $1,499, the 13.5-inch model is now available with the new i5-8350U processor.

The addition of an 8th generation Intel quad-core Core i5 processor was something we'd heard rumoured, and this new model not only opens up the range of options available to buyers, it also means that other prices have been reduced.

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Intel's NUC computers are impressively little, but they are hardly the smallest personal computers. There are PCs shoved into HDMI dongles, for instance, that look like USB flash drives.

ECS has long been making diminutive desktop computers with its "LIVA" line, and today, it announces the latest model. Called "LIVA Q2," this tiny desktop computer is shockingly small, with very few ports -- two USB-A, one HDMI, one Ethernet, and a micro SD port. Plug in a wired mouse and keyboard, for example, and you now cannot plug in a USB flash drive without a hub. While ECS only lists Windows 10 as being supported, it should make an excellent Linux machine too.

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Intel's Thunderbolt 3 uses the USB-C connector, which is sort of confusing. Basically, all TB3 ports can also handle USB, but standard USB Type C ports cannot work with Thunderbolt 3. This can lead to confusion for consumers. Intel's standard is much faster, meaning Thunderbolt 3 accessories are often superior to regular USB-C models. Of course, TB3-related things are usually more expensive too.

In an effort to make Thunderbolt ubiquitous, Intel is sharing its TB protocol with the USB Promoter Group. What does this mean? Well, the future of the Universal Serial Bus, USB4, will not only work with USB 2.0 and 3.x devices, but Thunderbolt 3 too. In other words, by having a USB4 port on your computer, you also have TB3.

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The latest feature update of Windows 10, the October 2018 Update, or Windows 10 1809 if you prefer, has been something of a disaster for Microsoft, and even more so for some early adopters.

The list of problems users have encountered with it -- so far -- include data loss, file association issues, Apple iCloud not working, mapped drives not reconnecting, Edge problems, and much more. Microsoft pulled the update for a considerable amount of time to fix a bunch of problems, but even more new ones are emerging on a regular basis.

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Next year, you are gong to hear a lot about 5G. No, seriously, you will be bombarded by both news and marketing surrounding the upcoming wireless internet standard. Quite frankly, I expect to be physically nauseated by all the 5G talk. With that said, 5G is worthy of all the hype. It will make current LTE internet seem downright slow. Make no mistake, 5G is not just a mobile data thing, either -- many homes will get internet with 5G, removing the stranglehold current cable-dependent ISPs have on the market.

Of course, before we can enjoy 5G, we need hardware, such as towers and modems. Rumors suggest Apple will use Intel modems for the iPhone in 2020, and today, we get some strong evidence of this. You see, Intel is promising to release its upcoming XMM 8160 5G modem earlier than expected -- in the second half of 2019. Consumer devices that contain the modem won't be available until 2020, however.

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Chip-maker Qualcomm has today accused Apple of stealing trade secrets and sharing them with Intel. The company alleges that Apple wanted Intel to be able to improve its own chips so it could move away from using Qualcomm's.

Qualcomm and Apple are already engaged in a legal battle, and with its latest accusations, the chip-maker wants the court to amend its existing lawsuit against the company. Apple stands accused of engaging in a "multi-year campaign of sloppy, inappropriate and deceitful conduct".

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I am a huge fan of TP-Link routers. While not the most popular brand with the mainstream, in-the-know consumers choose the company's products as a way to save money without sacrificing quality. These budget-friendly routers offer very respectable performance and many useful features. Hell, you can score a really nice TP-Link router with Amazon Alexa support for less than $80!

Today, TP-Link announces a higher-end router powered by the Intel Home Wi-Fi Chipset. The "Archer C2700," as it is called, is an AC2600 (1733Mbps 5GHz band, 800Mbps 2.4GHz) Dual-Band Wi-Fi router with four Gigabit LAN ports. Two of those LAN ports can be aggregated for a combined 2 Gbps -- great for a compatible NAS. It also features two USB Type-A ports -- one is 2.0, while the other is 3.0. And yes, it has Amazon Alexa support!

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It seems that the Spectre and Meltdown vulnerabilities saga is never-ending, and now there are two new related CPU flaws to add to the mix. Dubbed Spectre 1.1 and Spectre 1.2, the vulnerabilities (CVE-2018-3693) exploit speculative execution and can modify data and bypass sandboxes.

Two security researchers have disclosed details of the new vulnerabilities, both of which have the potential to leak sensitive data. By tinkering with the speculative execution processes of Intel and ARM CPUs, it would be possible to use malicious code to extract information such as passwords and crypto keys.

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Brian Krzanich, the CEO of Intel, has resigned after it came to light that he was in a relationship with an employee. Shares in the company dropped 1.3 percent at the news.

Although the relationship was entirely consensual, it was deemed to be a violation of Intel's non-fraternization policy which managers must abide by, and it has been brought to light in the context of the #MeToo movement. The current chief financial officer, Robert Swan, is to become interim CEO until a full-time replacement can be found.

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There has been something of a spate of chip vulnerability discoveries recently, and now another one has emerged. Known as Floating Point Lazy State Save/Restore, the security flaw (CVE-2018-3665) is found in Intel Core and Xeon processors and it is another speculative execution vulnerability in a similar vein to Spectre.

The security flaw takes advantage of one of the ways the Linux kernel saves and restores the state of the Floating Point Unit (FPU) when switching tasks -- specifically the Lazy FPU Restore scheme. Malware or malicious users can take advantage of the vulnerability to grab encryption keys. Linux kernel from version 4.9 and upwards, as well as modern versions of Windows and Windows Server are not affected.

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Just when you thought you could forget about the Spectre and Meltdown chip vulnerabilities, yet another variant has been discovered. Known as Speculative Store Bypass, the vulnerability affects chips from AMD and Intel, as well as Power 8, Power 9 and System z processors.

The vulnerability has been assigned CVE-2018-3639, and successful exploitation would mean that an attacker could gain access to data. The attack can be carried out through a "language-based runtime environment" such as JavaScript. Some patches exist while others are in development, and they include the same performance hit associated with patches for the previous vulnerabilities.

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If you have an Intel SSD installed, there's a chance that you won't be able to upgrade to Windows 10 April 2018 Update for the time being.

Computers with Intel SSD 600p Series or Intel SSD Pro 6000p Series ended up crashing after the installation of the most recent major update to Windows 10, but users have been able to roll back their system to a usable state. To prevent further problems Microsoft has opted to block the April 2018 Update to such systems.

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I have some friends who own, and regularly use, a 1920s wind up gramophone. It’s a great piece of audio equipment and there’s something very satisfying about lifting the arm and dropping the needle down on a 78 record and enjoying the tinny sound it produces.

Getting use out of a similar-era radio isn’t as easy, which is why Derek Traxler, the owner of a computer store and repair shop in Uptown Minneapolis, decided to go to rather extreme measures to breathe new life into his 1920’s battery-powered Claratone tube radio.

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