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Remember that massive Diablo II patch Blizzard Entertainment told us about at the end of 2021? It’s finally ready, and it looks to be a doozy. The Diablo II: Resurrected Patch 2.4 marks the first time in over a decade that Blizzard has rolled out significant changes to its classic dungeon crawler. The patch includes a range of updates for each class as well as new Rune Words, Mercenary reworks and of course, fresh Horadric Cube recipes to experiment with....

Controller = JMicron JMF616 Cache = Hynix HY5PS1G1631C-FPS6 (128MB) Memory = Intel 29F32G08AAMDB (32GB 34nm MLC) Read/Write = 220MB/s - 60MB/s (32GB model) The S596 Turbo 32GB model is the only drive in this round-up to feature the newly released JMicron JMF616 controller, which is fitting given that ADATA was the first manufacturer to adopt the controller. Backing up the JMicron JMF616 controller is a 128MB DDR2 memory chip from Hynix (H5PS1G63EFR-25C) designed to work at 400MHz....

The Excel 2013 workload was completed in just 1.6 seconds which, while faster than both the 6950X and dual E5-2670 processors, there wasn’t exactly a great deal in it. The 7-Zip 32MB Dictionary compression/decompression result was impressive. Here the dual Xeon E5-2630 v4 processors delivered 66698 MIPS, 9% more than the dual E5-2670 processors and 31% more than the 6950X. Finally, we have Photoshop CC which doesn’t do a great job of utilizing all those extra cores, but we do see a slight advantage when adding the second Xeon E5-2630 v4 processor....

Removing the right side panel is the first step in gaining full access to the internal workings of the DS380. To advance you have to remove another four screws – the ones holding the huge hot-swappable drive cage into place. With the drive cage out of the way, the DS380 becomes a largely empty box that is ready for a motherboard and other components. The DS380 supports DTX and Mini-ITX boards, which was to be expected in such a small enclosure....

In 2021, CD Projekt Red restructured its studios to enable it to work on multiple titles simultaneously. It dubbed the plan “RED 2.0” and promised that it would have teams working in tandem on its two biggest franchises — the long-established Witcher and the newly launched Cyberpunk 2077 worlds. At the time, the announcement seemed implausible, considering CDPR was still reeling from the less-than-warm reviews the bug-riddled Cyberpunk 2077 launch earned....

According to a statement from China’s National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center (CNCERT/CC), the NSA’s Office of Tailored Access Operations (TAO) sent phishing emails to teachers and students at Northwestern Polytechnical University in an attempt to steal data and personal information. As with other phishing campaigns, the goal was to trick targets into clicking malicious links that would allow the TAO to steal login details. The messages’ themes included scientific evaluation, thesis defense, and information on foreign travel....

Kommersant business daily (via Tom’s Hardware), citing sources close to Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development and in the electronics market, writes that the Chinese government has banned the supply of Loongson processors based on its own LoongArch architecture to the Russian Federation and other countries. The reasons for banning the chip exports to Russia aren’t the same as other countries; it’s because they are used in China’s military-industrial complex....

DX11 graphics cards received small gains, too. The Radeon HD 5670 witnessed a 29% increase while the Radeon HD 5870 became 11% quicker. Changing the Tessellation quality did little to improve the GeForce GTX 400 series graphics cards. The GTX 460 for example gained just 5% more performance.

The Radeon HD 5850 averaged 32fps while the 5870 provided 37fps. The GeForce GTX 460 still broke the 40fps barrier with 43fps, while the GTX 470 and 480 averaged 47 and 49 frames, respectively. Previous generation AMD and Nvidia graphics cards failed to provide playable performance when using high quality in-game settings and the GeForce GTX 200 series was unusually slow.

We reviewed the first revision of the Das Keyboard back in 2008 and we still have that same device working perfectly in one of our office’s computers. With that kind of reputation, Das built a following and many other players started to notice. However as competition has cropped up and the playing field has leveled with reputable manufacturers relying on trusty switches from the likes of Cherry MX, the industry feels a bit stagnant....

Blizzard hasn’t been more specific than “sometime in 2023” when it comes to Diablo 4’s release date. According to Windows Central and the XboxEra podcast, the game will officially land in April. Those who can’t wait for the action RPG might be able to pre-order it in December, which will also grant access to the open beta in February 2023. Rumors claim that a segment of the Game Awards, taking place on December 8, will be dedicated to Diablo 4....

College Board conducted a pilot program in November 2021 in the US and overseas. Four out of five students found the process to be less stressful than the standard written test, while 100 percent of educators reported a positive experience. Tests will be administered in schools or test centers with a proctor present, not remotely. Students will be able to use their own device or a school issued unit. The test will still be scores on a 1600 scale, and scores will be returned in days rather than weeks, we’re told....

That silence was finally partially broken today. Just a few hours ago, Bioware announced some important news: Dragon Age 4 has been officially dubbed “Dragon Age: Dreadwolf.” Though I’m not overly familiar with Dragon Age’s lore (I only played Origins), Bioware claims the “Dread Wolf” moniker refers to Solas, a former party member in Dragon Age inquisition. This time around, he won’t be helping the protagonist along their journey – he’ll be hindering them....

The GeForce GTX 580 managed 67fps with the latest drivers, which is a large improvement from the 56fps it scored before the fix. Dragon Age II fans will be happy to know that the game can be played using relatively low-end hardware with the high quality settings as the Radeon HD 5770 averaged 41fps. Increasing the resolution reduced performance as to be expected, though not by a great deal. Most graphics cards were still able to provide playable performance....

Many Madden NFL 23 players will not be happy to find that their Connected Franchise Mode (CFM) saves permanently lost. Fans widely consider franchise mode to be the best part of the Madden series, particularly Madden 23, which is a hot mess. Deadspin’s Jon Hoefling notes, “If I can’t play connected franchise mode, I’m not playing their terrible game.” The problem began on December 26. Players reported having trouble logging on to their CFM leagues....

It appears as though we’re just now arriving to that sweet spot where fewer compromises can be made to build fast and svelte machines that are budget-friendly, all at the same time. Intel has recognized this trend and is investing heavily to make sure they become the platform of choice to build ‘ultrabooks’ (they own that trademark). However, it’s easy to miss what a true next-generation ultraportable notebook should be....

Musk made his offer to buy Twitter yesterday following a series of events, including turning down a seat on the board, that suggested he had been planning the move since becoming its largest shareholder. Musk revealed some of his plans for Twitter at a TED event in Vancouver. “A top priority I would have is eliminating the spam and spambots and bot armies that are on Twitter,” he said. “If I had a Dogecoin for every crypto scam I saw....

The Wall Street Journal writes that from the middle of March through early April, Equifax sent out inaccurate scores on consumers applying for auto loans, mortgages, and credit cards with banks and other lenders of varying sizes. The WSJ adds that millions of people in the US were impacted by Equifax’s mistake, with some scores off by as much as 20 points in either direction. Credit scores generally range from 300 to 850; a score of 670 to 739 is considered good, 740 to 799 is very good, and 800 and over is excellent....

After pushing for a universal charging solution for over a decade, the European Commission in October voted overwhelmingly in favor of legislation that would see all phones, tablets, and other small electronics sold in the region feature USB-C ports by 2024. The European Council approved the mandate a few weeks later. Now, the USB-C legislation has just been published in the EU’s official journal, revealing the December 28, 2024, deadline....