LAB NOTES

GAMER’S DELIGHT

Guy Cocker © GETTY IMAGES WE’VE BEEN A

THE NEWS

© INTEL Intel’s Raptor refresh New world’s fastest desktop

Samsung GDDR7 Heads for 32Gbps

Jarred Walton Samsung already has GDDR7 memory modules

THE LIST

THE BEST GAMING MONITORS

Why does GPU pricing have to be so infuriating?

I NOTED A WHILE BACK that prices of pretty much everything had normalized with the pandemic receding and other supply chain abnormalities subsiding. The one exception were GPUs. Several months later, while graphics cards are cheaper, they still haven’t returned to historical trends. But what’s even more frustrating is that pricing just doesn’t make sense.

DOCTOR

THIS MONTH THE DOCTOR TACKLES...

THE BUILDS

THIS MONTH’S STREET PRICES...

BEST VALUE GAMING PC

The best new mid-range AMD system?

UPGRADING YOUR STEAM DECK STORAGE

2TB and 1TB M.2 2230 SSDs are readily available, and Jarred Walton shows you how to do it

ARM VERSUS X86

THE END OF AN ERA

GAME OVER

FOR GAMING PCs?

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?

The world’s biggest PC maker says it can achieve net-zero by 2050. Barry Collins visits Lenovo’s US headquarters to get his hands on plant-based PCs, bamboo packaging, and vegan leather covers

HOW TO STEP-BY-STEP GUIDES TO IMPROVING YOUR PC

TIP OF THE MONTH COLOR HUNT If you’re

Record your family history with Gramps

YOU’LL NEED THIS

Master three great Thunderbird add-ons

YOU’LL NEED THIS MOZILLA THUNDERBIRD (Free, Windows/Mac/Linux) Version

Use Generative Fill in Photoshop Beta

YOU’LL NEED THIS

Use tab islands in Opera

YOU’LL NEED THIS

AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT

The best $500 GPU around

Samsung Galax y Book3 Ultra

Watch out MacBook Pro; Samsung has you in its sights

OneXPlayer OneXFly

Lighter, smaller, faster, stronger

Asus Vivobook Pro 16X

A creative laptop with a playful side

WD Blue SN580

WD Blue Electric Boogaloo

XGIMI Horizon Ultra

A truly outstanding 4K projector with Dolby Vision

Asus ROG Strix Scope II 96 Wireless

The best new gaming keyboard in years

Razer Cobra Pro

An excellent all-rounder that performs admirably

Lies of P

Even with strings attached, Lies of P holds its own

VirtualBox vs VMware Workstation Player

What’s best for running virtual machines for free?

THE BUILDS

THIS MONTH’S STREET PRICES...