The Sundance Film Festival was gearing up for an ambitious hybrid event later this month, but those plans are now squashed thanks to the Omicron COVID-19 surge. Sundance is instead planning for a completely virtual event starting on January 20th, along with a handful of screenings in local markets. While disappointing, the festival's investment in a better digital platform last year puts it in a better position than other major events. (Looking at you, CES.) And of course, you'll still be able to check out the Sundance New Frontiers experiences in VR. Based on our experience last year, it'll be well worth it.
"While it is a deep loss to not have the in-person experience in Utah, we do not believe it is safe nor feasible to gather thousands of artists, audiences, employees, volunteers, and partners from around the world, for an eleven-day festival while overwhelmed communities are already struggling to provide essential services," Sundance Film Festival director Tabitha Jackson wrote in an e-mail to attendees.
After introducing a six-person self-driving box and a frickin' ridable drone concept last year, GM's latest luxury self-driving EV idea is much more grounded. The InnerSpace concept looks like a futuristic car from the outside—but inside, there's a two-seat loveseat surrounded by one of the widest screens we've ever seen. There's no steering wheel or pedals, of course. Instead, there's a built-in ottoman and a compartment for slippers and a blanket. Where GM's going, you won't need any sort of manual control.
Even stepping into the car seems like something from science fiction: the doors pop out, while the large windshield/sunroof rises up. As usual, concepts like the InnerSpace are a way for car designers to flex their muscles and imagine what future vehicles could actually be like. While it certainly seems out of reach for most people, perhaps Cadillac's more affluent clientele would be intrigued by owning a personal spaceship. At least it's better for the environment than full-sized luxury SUVs.
“Electrification and autonomous driving will fundamentally change the role of vehicles and the experiences customers have with them,” Bryan Nesbitt, GM's executive director of Global Advanced Design, said in a statement. “We’re exploring where that will go with these innovative concepts, envisioning mobility as an ally of wellness, giving customers the ultimate luxury, more personal time rather than taking it.”
As someone who hates the act of driving, but lives in a place where I can't avoid it, it'll be interesting to see how car makers turn these self-driving concept vehicles into a reality. And maybe after getting these wild designs through their systems, they'll show us more concepts for self-driving family EVs.
After delivering an ambitious gaming convertible notebook last year, the svelte ROG Flow X13, ASUS is taking that concept even further with the Flow Z13 tablet. Think of it like a souped-up Surface Pro: the Z13 packs in Intel's new 12th-gen processors and up to NVIDIA's RTX 3050 Ti all in a sleek slate. Weighing in at 2.43 pounds, it's clearly not meant to replace smaller tablets like the iPad. Instead, ASUS sees it as a way to bring your PC games everywhere — say a cramped airplane tray table — without the bulk of a laptop.
Like the ROG Flow X13, the Z13 can connect to the ASUS XG Mobile external GPU, which supports up to AMD's Radeon RX 6850M in addition to NVIDIA's mobile RTX 30-series lineup. That eGPU still relies on a custom PCIe connection, which can reach up to 63 Gbps of graphics bandwidth, making it more capable than Thunderbolt 4's 40 Gbps. I was wary of the XG Mobile last year, given just how expensive and flaky similar eGPUs have been. And that was before we learned it would cost $1,500 with the 3080, and that it wasn't nearly as fast as reviewers would have liked. At the very least, the Z13 promises to be a better performer than the X13 with its built-in hardware, so maybe an eGPU would be unnecessary.
In person, the Z13 is exactly what you'd expect from an ROG gaming laptop to look like. The preview unit ASUS sent for me to borrow felt dense and sturdy, surprisingly so for its 12 millimeter thickness. Unlike iPads and other tablets, it feels strong enough to survive a backpack commute without a protective case. From the front, you could easily mistake it for a notebook. From the sides and back though, it's more like a Super Surface, with a flexible kickstand and keyboard cover.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
I wasn't able to run any games and benchmarks on the ROG Z13, unfortunately. (I'd wager ASUS's software and drivers aren't ready for serious testing yet.) But I could see why it could be compelling: An RTX 3050 Ti in a machine this size would be a dream for travel (at least, when that's safe again). And its 4K 13-inch display was perfectly fine for productivity tasks (there's also a 1080p 120Hz option). Given its size, though, the Z13 felt too heavy to use as a standard tablet. It's also not nearly as "lappable" as the Surface Pro devices; it's just too heavy to stay put while you're typing.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
ASUS deserves credit for actually including the keyboard case with the Z13, something Microsoft still refuses to do with the Surface Pro. And the typing experience actually feels pretty decent, so long as the Z13 is planted firmly on a flat surface. I could see it being a solid option for casual gaming, but the WASD inputs don't feel nearly as responsive as a basic desktop gaming keyboard. Basically, if you're expecting to compete while using the Z13, plan to bring along a separate keyboard.
You'll likely be able to connect most of your accessories to the Z13 as well, since it includes both a USB 2.0 Type-A connection, as well two USB 3.2 Type-C ports (one is hidden under the XG Mobile connection. There's also a microSD card slot, which is useful for throwing in additional storage or offloading media.
Without knowing the ROG Z13's price and testing it properly, it's hard to make any final judgements. Personally, I think most consumers would be better off investing in a gaming notebook, which would have bigger screens, faster hardware and more capable keyboards. But ASUS already makes plenty of those, including our beloved Zephyrus G14 and G15. The Z13, which is expected to land in the first half of 2022, is clearly meant for gamers who prioritize portability more than anything else. For them, this might be the tablet of their dreams.
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Intel is seriously planning to crank things up with its 12th-generation KS-series desktop CPUs. On stage at the company's CES press event today, Intel's Client Computing head Gregory Bryant revealed that the KS chips will reach a whopping 5.5GHz on a single core. Of course, that's while the chip is being stressed to reach a Max Turbo speed, so don't expect that to be sustained for long.
Even better, Bryant said that the KS chips will also be able to go beyond 5GHz across multiple cores when they arrive this spring. That'll be particularly useful for rendering and other demanding work, but both milestones should deliver some impressive gaming performance too.
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Intel hasn't forgotten about Evo, its premium branding for PCs that meet its array of performance benchmarks. Now in its third iteration (remember it was originally called Project Athena), the company says it's also adding a foldable specification for Evo PCs this year, along with new requirements around "intelligent collaboration" and support for faster H-series 12th-gen chips. So, in addition to guaranteeing long battery life and instant wake, new Evo PCs will also need to include WiFi 6E support, tap into the company's AI noise cancellation capabilities as well as Intel's Connectivity Performance Suite. The goal, as always, is to make sure consumers get the best experience possible when they're buying an "Intel Evo" branded PC.
Intel
Intel also offered more details around its plans for Screenovate, a recent acquisition that gained notoriety for integrating iPhones and Android devices with Windows PCs. (It also powers Dell's Mobile Connect tool, which allows you to send files to your phone and control its screen remotely.) According to Josh Newman, Intel's VP of Mobile Innovation, the company plans to bring Screenovate's technology to Evo PCs in the 2022 holiday season. The goal, naturally, is to offer it to more PCs eventually, but Newman says Intel wants to ensure that it's a high quality experience before that. The company plans to work with partners, including Apple, to make that happen.
While Intel's specialized Project Athena/Evo PC branding seemed more like a marketing stunt at first, it's actually pushing PC makers to build better hardware. Newman says that partners are building off of Intel's foldable PC design, while also adding their own twists. The specification also gives Intel a bit more leverage: for example, it's requiring partners to design keyboard accessories for their foldables. While Intel can't force them to include keyboards in the box, company representatives tells us they're being "encouraged" to do so.
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After debuting its hybrid 12th-gen CPUs for desktops in October, Intel is ready to bring them to notebooks. To recap, the company's new CPUs (previously codenamed Alder lake) combine performance cores (P-cores) and efficient cores (E-cores) on a single chip. The idea is that they'll be able to better handle the demands of real-world computing, like juggling gaming on the faster cores while the slower ones power your livestream. In addition to faster performance, that tag-team approach could also lead to better battery for laptops.
Intel's 12th-gen laptop CPUs will top out at 14 cores, consisting of six P-cores and eight E-cores (that's two fewer P-cores than the desktop versions). At this point, Intel is mainly focusing on its powerful H-series 12th-gen chips, which are meant for 14-inch ultraportables, gaming notebooks and other beefy machines. The company also unveiled specs for its its U and P-series chips, which it'll discuss further in the first quarter. Those will be aimed at smaller ultraportables, as well as "performance thin and light" machines (like Dell's new XPS 13 Plus), respectively.
As for other new features, Intel's 12th-gen mobile hardware will also support DDR5-4800 and low-power LPDDR5-5200 RAM. Expect to pay a premium for DDR5-equipped machines, though, as PC makers predict stock will be limited throughout 2022. Wi-Fi 6E is also baked in, just in time to hop onto the new 6GHz bands from last year's 6E routers. And of course, Thunderbolt 4 is back to deliver 40Gbps of bandwidth goodness.
Intel
While we haven't been able to test out Intel's 12th-gen desktop chips, early reviews have praised their multitasking performance, especially with the increased bandwidth from DDR5 RAM. We'd expect a similar upgrade on the notebook front. For now, though, all we have to go on are Intel's numbers: the company claims 12th-gen is up to 40 percent faster than 11th-gen chips overall. The top-end Core-i9 12900HK is also up to 28 percent faster in gaming, and it has a commanding lead over the Ryzen 9 5900X across many titles.
In Hitman 3, a notoriously CPU-heavy game, the 12th-gen chips saw an 8 percent FPS bump through better workload prioritization. The P-cores handled rendering and more demanding tasks, while the E-core focused on background audio. As for productivity tasks, the 12900HK was 44 percent faster than 11th-gen hardware in the Premiere Pro PugetBench test, as well as 30 percent quicker when it came to Blender rendering. Intel's own benchmarks also showed Apple's M1 Pro and M1 Max, as well as the Ryzen 5900HX, trouncing the Core i9-11980HK in Blender. In many ways, the 12th-gen hardware feels like an apology for last year's chips.
Intel
More so than the fastest 12th-gen hardware, it'd be interesting to see what sort of performance gains Intel can eke out from its more accessible Core i5 and i7 chips. The i5-12450H features 8 cores (4P and 4E) with a max Turbo speed of 4.4GHz, whereas last year's 11500H had six cores that maxed out at 4.6Hz on a single core. Both chips have 12 threads (only P-cores support Hyperthreading, so their thread number is doubled), but the 12th-gen chip should be able to use its power more wisely. That could be good news for mainstream PC buyers who can't quite justify a core i9 machine.
Intel's new hybrid architecture also leads to some interesting configurations for its other mobile processors. The fastest U-series model, the Core i7-1265U, is equipped with 2 performance cores and 8 efficient cores. That technically makes it a 10-core chip, whereas the previous U-series hardware topped out at four cores. The P-series performance notebook chips, meanwhile, sport up to 6 P-cores and 8 E-cores in the i7-1280p. Each mobile CPU line also has up to 96 graphics EUs (execution units), just like the 11th-gen chips.
In addition to new mobile CPUs, Intel also unveiled the rest of its 12th-gen desktop lineup. It starts with the Celeron G6900, which has just two performance cores, and tops out with the 16-core i9-12900. (Overclockers are better off with the unlocked 12900K that debuted in October.) Surprisingly, Intel isn't including any efficient-cores in its mainstream i3 and i5 chips; they're all P-cores, so they're not actually hybrid CPUs at all. System builders can buy unlocked i5 CPUs with four E-cores, but I'd wager that could make things confusing for shoppers. Why is the i5-12600 a six-core chip when the i5-12600K (thanks to the addition of four E-cores) has 10?
Intel is still lagging behind AMD and Apple when it comes to node size — the 12th-gen chips are a refined version of its 10nm process, while AMD has been building 7nm chips since 2019 and is eyeing 5nm this year — but the company's hybrid design shows plenty of promise. Just like with its recent desktop chips, though, the real question is how Alder Lake will compete with what AMD and Apple have in store for 2022.
We've practically run out of superlatives for Dell's XPS 13, the company's flagship ultraportable that sparked the slim bezel trend and has remained one of our favorite notebooks for years. So where does Dell go from here? Say hello to the XPS 13 Plus, a more powerful and ambitiously designed notebook with a lattice-less keyboard (read: no space between the keys) and a glass haptic touchpad that blends right into the palm rest. It's a laptop that looks so sleek, it practically begs to be touched. It's just a shame that in its frenzy to create a modern masterpiece, Dell also removed the headphone jack. Sigh.
But before we dive into the many problems with that, let's take a look at what's good: The XPS 13 Plus pushes Dell's design capabilities to new heights. There's a focus on clean lines and minimalism, as if Dell carved a computer directly out of a slab of polished metal. In addition to that attractive new keyboard (which also sports larger key caps), the XPS 13 Plus is also powered by Intel's 28-watt 12th-gen processors. That's a healthy jump from the standard XPS 13's 15-watt chips, and it means you can expect a lot more performance from its 2.73-pound frame.
There's also a row of capacitive touch function buttons above the keyboard, which look as if they're embedded right into the computer's metal case. I'm sure some may prefer sticking with physical function buttons, but losing the extra row of keys adds to the air of simplicity Dell is striving for.
But of course, minimalism also means cutting out extraneous design elements, which in this case means the headphone jack and mini-SD card slot from the standard XPS 13. It's not too surprising to see Dell cleaning up its port situation, but losing the headphone jack seems particularly egregious for a machine that's meant to be a super-powered XPS 13.
When we pressed Dell representatives on the issue, they noted that plenty of smartphones are also losing the nifty 3.5mm jack. While that's true, phones are also a very different use case. It makes more sense to wireless buds or headphones on the go, but I'd wager many people have a nice pair of wired headphones by their computers. Part of me also wonders if the Dell reps have ever tried to connect random Bluetooth headphones Windows. It's not nearly as simple as it is on phones.
During our brief hands-on time with the XPS 13 Plus, I also noticed that its new haptic touchpad could lead to some usability issues. You can't actually feel where the touchpad begins and ends, which led to some missed clicks while I was browsing the web and poking around Windows. I also occasionally had trouble differentiating between left and right clicks, since it was hard to judge where the center of the touchpad was. I'd wager you'd get used to it over time, but that's not exactly user friendly. Dell may have been better off using a thin Apple-esque border around the touchpads, which still looks pretty sleek on MacBooks.
Devindra Hardawar/Engadget
Despite my reservations around some of Dell's design choices, the XPS 13 Plus still looks and feels like an upgrade from the standard XPS 13. (That laptop isn't going anywhere either, but Dell isn't announcing any updates for CES.) The large borderless keyboard is a touch-typist's dream, and the Infinity Edge display still looks fantastic. You'll also be able to choose between OLED and LCD screen options, as you'd expect. Dell managed to squeeze four speakers into the XPS 13 Plus as well, a first for its 13-inch ultraportables.
Dell says it's targeting a $1,200 starting price for the XPS 13 Plus — a bit more than the XPS 13 — and that it's planning to ship the notebook this spring.
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AMD is finally ready to bring 3D V-Cache to its desktop chips. That technology, which essentially lets AMD stack more cache on top of its CPUs, will debut with the Ryzen 7 5800X3D. While the original version of that CPU sported 36MB of L2 and L3 cache, this new edition has a whopping 100MB of combined cache. AMD claims it offers 5 percent better performance in 1080p gaming compared to Intel 12900K, and it's around 15 percent faster than the Ryzen 9 5900X.
AMD
That may not sound like much, but this chip is basically just a proof of concept. AMD likely needs to prove that its V-cache technology can actually ship to consumers before it starts integrating it into future lineups. The company says the 5800X3D will be available later this spring.
And if that's not intriguing enough for you, AMD also revealed that its next-generation Zen 4 Ryzen 7000 processors will arrive in the second half of 2022. Built on a 5nm process, the Zen 4 chips will also be powered by a new AMD Socket AM5 platform. On stage at CES, AMD CEO Lisa Su noted that AM5 will be an LGA socket, placing delicate pins on the motherboard instead of the CPU. Ryzen 7000 chips will also support DDR5 and PCIE5, as expected. During a brief demonstration, Su showed Halo Infinite running smoothly on a Zen 4 chip, and she noted that every core was running at 5GHz.
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AMD cemented itself as a serious competitor to Intel's modern Core lineup with its Ryzen 4000 CPUs, and proved it could also offer much more than the Pentium-maker with its Ryzen 5000 Zen 3 chips. So what's next? Today at CES, AMD is introducing its Ryzen 6000 mobile CPUs, which are built on a 6nm Zen 3+ process and sport a significant upgrade: RDNA 2 graphics. The company claims these new chips will be able to handle most AAA games in 1080p, with gaming performance more than twice as fast as the previous generation's Radeon graphics.
You can also expect more than just the usual speed upgrade. AMD claims its Zen 3+ core can achieve better deep sleeping states to save juice, and it includes better adaptive power management features. You can expect the Ryzen 6000 chips to consume around 30 percent less energy while video conferencing. Even better, AMD says they'll offer up to 24 hours of movie playback. On the security side, Ryzen 6000 is the first platform to integrate Microsoft's new Pluton security chip.
Overall, the Ryzen 6000 mobile chips will be around 11 percent faster than Ryzen 5000 hardware when it comes to single threaded tasks, and it'll be up to 28 percent faster for multithreaded work. The new processor family will be spearheaded by the 8-core/16-thread Ryzen 9 6980HX, which can reach up to 5GHz clock speeds. Given that this is an entirely new CPU platform, it also packs in other upgrades like faster DDR5 RAM, which AMD says will dramatically improve performance of the integrated GPU, alongside Wi-Fi 6E integration and better support for PCIe 4.0 and USB 4 devices.
AMD
For most shoppers, we'd wager the integrated RDNA 2 graphics will be the biggest draw for many systems. Just a few years ago, you'd need a dedicated GPU to handle decent 1080p gaming. Being able to tackle that with onboard graphics is a major accomplishment for AMD. The RDNA 2 graphics also supports the company's FreeSync technology to smooth out gameplay, as well as Dynamic HDR displays. AMD claims it'll also be around 70 percent faster than Intel's Xe graphics on its 11th generation CPUs.
AMD isn't saying much about its Ryzen 6000 U-series chips, which are meant for ultraportables, but they'll likely benefit from many of the platform's upgrades. The fastest U-series chip, the Ryzen 7 6800U, will offer eight cores and speeds up to 4.7GHz.
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What if you could could start playing Halo Infinite on your TV, continue mowing down grunts during a bathroom break, and finish your session on a laptop when you're supposed to be working? That's the basic idea behind Alienware's Concept Nyx, a server that's powerful enough to run all of your games throughout your home network. Think of it like Plex for gaming, but instead of opening up your video library, it's all about bringing your games to all of your devices.
Given the push towards game streaming from Google Stadia and Xbox, Alienware may have stumbled on an interesting solution for multi-gamer homes. You could conceivably run two games at once on your television, as we saw during a recent demo in NYC. Or you could play Cyberpunk while someone else perfects their Rocket League skills on another device. Since all of the rendering and network processing is happening in your home, Nyx would also be a lower latency experience than traditional cloud gaming, which relies on servers hundreds of miles away.
Concept is the key word here, though. Alienware representatives wouldn't tell us what's powering the mysterious Nyx server, which looked like an enormous gaming desktop. And while Engadget's Cherlynn Low and I were able to play Cyberpunk 2077 and Rocket League simultaneously on a single TV, the games were running in tiny windows. It wasn't anywhere near the sleek half-screen experience Dell is showing off in promotional pictures.
Much like Alienware's Concept UFO, a Switch-like portable gaming PC that was first demoed two years ago, Nyx may never see the light of day. But we could see elements of it in future products, much like the way the UFO controller is being used demonstrate Nyx. The game server concept could eventually simplify streaming from your rig. That's something we can already do with Steam's Remote Play feature, but perhaps Dell could make it a bit easier to play all of your titles throughout your home. The company says it's also exploring ways to run four games at once, as well as methods of collecting all of your titles, no matter where you installed them.
