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Noctua to launch its flagship AIO cooler in Q2

The Hot Take: With how hot these chips are was only time before they worked with Asetek. Still waiting on the thermo-siphon cooler they've been showing at trade shows. I want that 0 pump sound.

Noctua has confirmed that its long-awaited all-in-one liquid cooler, developed in partnership with Asetek, is almost ready for launch and should be coming in Q2 2026. The cooler has passed Production Validation Testing, meaning it has met both performance and manufacturing targets and is heading into full production. According to Asetek’s announcement, caught by Overclock3d.net, the Austrian-based cooling company is not just going to use its own fans onto an off-the-shelf design, and while the unit is based on Asetek’s G8 V2 platform, Noctua…

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Dell XPS 14 Panther Lake Laptop Hits 43 Hours In Battery Test Beatdown Of M5 MacBook Air

The Hot Take: If this is true, I feel ARM may have serious competition on their hands.

Many believe that Apple makes the most efficient laptop chips and that MacBooks have the best battery life because the Arm ISA supposedly offers superior performance and efficiency over the crufty x86 ISA. But that is not the case. Apple's products are relatively strong because Apple's engineers do an excellent job at designing them for a

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Steam On Linux Use Skyrocketed Above 5% In March

The Hot Take: This is good, as Windows 11 is just a pile of poop these days. I'm waiting on native support from game publishing houses, as I hate abstract/emulation layers. We still need the peripheral companies to publish apps to control all those RGB's on our systems and keyboards too.

Valve's March 2026 Steam Survey shows Linux gaming usage jumping to a record 5.33% share -- more than double macOS's 2.35%. Phoronix reports: Steam on Linux was never above 5% and easily an all-time high for the Linux gaming marketshare, especially in absolute numbers. It was a massive 3.1% spike in March while macOS also jumped surprisingly by 1.19% to 2.35%. The Steam Survey numbers show Windows losing 4.28%, down to 92.33%. Part of the jump at least appears to be explained by Valve correcting again the Steam China numbers. Month…

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TSMC plots an Arizona gigafab land grab

The Hot Take: The Fab competition is heating up states side from the look of it.

A new report claims TSMC wants an Arizona “GigaFab” cluster that can rival what it produces in Taiwan. DigiTimes says TSMC’s US plans have already “exceeded expectations” and the outfit is now eyeing a total of 12 fabs. The idea is to mirror the kind of fab network it runs in Hsinchu, Taiwan, only with more cactus and less typhoon risk. The report reckons TSMC’s and Taiwan’s combined US investment could hit half a trillion dollars, with the spending framed as groundwork for something bigger than a couple of token plants. That is a lot of…

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Samsung ramps Texas fab as engineers gather for 2nm push

The Hot Take: So USA looks to be having 3 foundries that will be able to produce 2nm chips. This is great news.

Samsung Electronics has reportedly moved into the equipment installation and testing phase at its foundry in Taylor, Texas, transitioning from construction to operational setup for 2nm production. More than 3,000 engineers from Samsung and global equipment suppliers have begun gathering at the site, according to ET News, signaling the start of large-scale ramp-up activities.

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Intel buyback signals shift beyond austerity as chipmaker regains confidence

The Hot Take: This is GREAT indication that Intel is clawing its way back.

Intel's US$14.2 billion buyback of its Ireland fab stake signals a shift beyond austerity, reflecting improved finances, renewed confidence in AI-driven CPU demand, and a strategic move to regain full control of key manufacturing capacity amid persistent global semiconductor supply constraints.

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