It'll still be another week until we start seeing some bigger game releases, which means we have another fairly slow week of new games ahead of use. This week's biggest release involves you working as a TSA agent of sorts, except you'll be screening for zombies. If that's not your thing, how about a game about getting turned green and using your tongue to get around? Still not it? What about an RPG with Minecraft style graphics? Maybe being a train conductor is more your style? How about an action JRPG? Regardless, we're ending this week with a psychological horror game, for those of you that are into that kind of thing.

Quarantine Zone: The Last Check / This week's major release / Monday 12 January
Armed with advanced screening tools and your own instincts, you must decide who gets through and who stays behind. One wrong choice could let the infection slip past your post. But holding the line is only the beginning. You'll need to manage scarce resources, reinforce defenses, and keep your camp alive as chaos intensifies with each passing day. Steam link

As the Consumer Electronics Show of 2026 comes to an end, our field crew has done of a lot of work to keep readers updated. However, pre-CES expectations were high for several product launches, that sadly didn't happen. In today's piece we are ranking the top five things we didn't get at CES 2026, even with hopes of a product launch occurring during the show.

1) First on our non-weighted ranking is NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 50-series "Blackwell" SUPER refresh. This mid-cycle was originally planned for late Q1 to early Q2 2026, with a possible announcement at CES 2026. The "SUPER" treatment was planned with denser GDDR7 memory modules with 3 GB of capacity per chip, increasing the memory configuration of the standard GeForce RTX 5070, RTX 5070 Ti, and RTX 5080. Initially, the RTX 5070 SUPER was planned with an upgrade to offer 18 GB, while the RTX 5070 Ti SUPER and RTX 5080 SUPER would each provide 24 GB of GDDR7 memory.

Intel's "Panther Lake" chips, built on the 18A node, debuted at CES 2026, featuring Arc B390 integrated graphics. This launch shows that Intel is now commited to delivering some of the best-in-class iGPU performance. Digital Foundry has reported impressive performance claims from Intel. In Cyberpunk 2077, at 1080p resolution with the game set to "Ultra" and with ray-traced shadows and reflections enabled, Intel's top-tier Core Ultra X9 388H SKU achieves 28 FPS. While this may not seem remarkable at first glance, under the same settings, AMD's "Strix Point" Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 with Radeon 890M graphics manages only 14 FPS. This suggests that the "Panther Lake" chip performs twice as fast in early game results. In Intel's own testing, the "Panther Lake" chip is 73% faster with upscaling technologies and 82% faster at native resolution compared to AMD's "Strix Point," indicating an average across multiple titles. This also means there are instances where the Arc B390 outputs 100% more frames compared to the Radeon 890M.

Regarding desktop GPU performance, Intel is now comparable to the AMD Radeon RX 6600 discrete GPU, which scored 27 FPS in the same Cyberpunk 2077 game settings. Intel is collaborating with developers to integrate its latest XeSS3 multi-frame generation upscaling technology into numerous titles from the start. Cyberpunk 2077 is supported from day one, resulting in about a 3x increase in frame rates compared to XeSS2. In comparison to NVIDIA, Intel also claims to surpass NVIDIA's DLSS with the RTX 4050, particularly since XeSS3 supports multi-frame generation, which the RTX 4050 does not.

Over the past couple of years, we've seen a lot of new entries into the NAS market and another new player is Zettlab. The company ran a successful Kickstarter campaign, raising over US$1.48 million from 1820 backers. The company brought base tier D4 and D6 models to CES and these models have started to arrive with its backers about six months late, whereas the more powerful Ultra models seem to have ended up stuck in development hell, partially due to increased DRAM prices.

The D4 and D6 are based on the Rockchip RK3588 Arm SoC with four Cortex-A76 and four Cortex-A55 CPU cores, a 6 TOPS NPU and an Arm Mali G610 MC4 GPU. Zettlab has paired the RK3588 with 16 GB of LPDDR4x memory and 32 GB eMMC for the OS. Both SKUs have a 1 Gbps and a 2.5 Gbps Ethernet port, one NVMe slot, and HDMI port, one Type-C and one Type-A USB 3.0 port, two USB 2.0 ports, one full-size SD card slot and one microSD card slot, as well as a 3.49-inch information display around the front. As the model name suggests, the D4 has four 3.5-inch drive bays and the D6 has six. Zettlab provides its own ZettOS which is said to be an AI first OS and the company was demoing its ZettAI at CES, but outside of that, it seems like ZettOS is a fairly basic NAS OS at the moment.

j5create dedicated its CES 2026 booth to high-end connectivity solutions that enhance modern IT infrastructure, particularly in video streaming at high resolutions and refresh rates. All new products are based on the Thunderbolt 5 series, offering 120 Gbps bandwidth, which is three times the capacity of the previous generation. The JTP5172 Triple 8K60 Docking Station supports 8K at 144 Hz and delivers 140 W of power. For those in need of an eGPU, the JTD5175 enclosure is compatible with NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5090 for gaming and AI applications. Real-time monitoring is featured in two products: the JCD3195 Dashboard Dock and JCDP3140 Powerbase Docking Station, both equipped with built-in displays for performance and power status checks.

At the CES 2026 International Show, Acemagic was one of the few companies to showcase mini PCs with the newly announced AMD "Gorgon Point" and Intel "Panther Lake" chips. In a Board 3 Dual-C mini PC inspired by the old retro aesthetic, Acemagic has crammed an AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 470 chip with 12 cores and 24 threads, featuring an embedded Radeon 890M GPU with 16 compute units. With up to 64 GB of system memory, the Board 3 supports up to two 4 TB M.2 PCIe 5.0 NVMe drives, packing quite the punch in a body smaller than an ITX motherboard. At just 140x128x40.8 mm in size, the system is 0.73 liters in volume.

Iqunix is known for its Hall effect and mechanical keyboards, many of which have a unique aesthetics or some sort of neat feature like the magnetic dongle storage and custom mounting style of the Magi65 Pro. The brand appears to be bringing these design touches to a new lightweight gaming mouse soon enough. At CES 2026, the peripherals brand showed off a new gaming mouse called the Q101, which it bills as "coming soon." Not much is known about the Q101, although Iqunix has confirmed that it will be made from an aluminium alloy.

The new mouse, which has a symmetrical shape, foregoes the typical hole pattern often used to make gaming mice lighter, instead opting for an almost chaotic asymmetrical lattice structure. The shell itself will be made of a lightweight magnesium alloy, but part of the magnesium shell can be removed by the user and replaced with a translucent plastic window, giving the mouse a solid back and an interesting visual look. Not much is known about what sensor or MCU will be used, but Iqunix claims that the mouse will have 24,000 DPI and an "ultra-lightweight body," although again no weight specs were provided.

When you think of Keychron, you immediately associate them with premium keyboards. But before we got to the keyboards, their CES booth this year caught our attention with a truly unique product: the Keychron Nape Pro Wireless Trackball Mouse. This compact device is designed to sit alongside keyboards or function as a standalone trackball with macro pad capabilities. The "mouse" measures 35.2 x 34.7 mm and features a 25 mm thumb trackball, six buttons, and a scroll wheel. It uses a Realtek chip with 1 kHz polling rate and a PixArt PAW3222 sensor for tracking, Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz wireless dongle, or USB-C wired connection. The device runs the ZMK open-source keyboard firmware, enabling extensive customization with multiple layers, shortcuts, and programmable macros.

However, the key innovation is Keychron OctaShift system, which detects the device orientation and automatically remaps button functions accordingly. Whether positioned horizontally next to a keyboard like a laptop pointing system or vertically as a standalone trackball, the M1 and M2 buttons at each end adapt to serve as primary clicks (or whatever functions have been assigned). This allows the Nape Pro to switch between a precision input device and a full macro pad depending on placement.

Minisforum had a quite a presence at CES 2026 with mini PCs ranging from Intel to AMD solutions, even with a mix of Arm-based SoCs. Interestingly, the systems come in various shapes and sizes, but our focus starts with the M2 Pro mini PC. Shaped like a NUC, the mini PC is powered by top-of-the-line Intel Core Ultra X9 388H "Panther Lake" processor with 16 cores, and Arc B390 integrated GPU for new gaming performance tier in the iGPU space. The system is equipped with a maximum of 96 GB of LPDDR5X memory, which runs at the 9,600 MT/s transfer rate, making the system run incredibly fast and feeding the powerful CPU+iGPU configuration.

Thunderobot is well known in the Chinese market and in recent years seems to be determined to make its way worldwide with products that stand out from the usual ones. At CES 2026, Thunderobot officially unveiled its ZERO Air gaming laptop series, something the company had already teased in the weeks leading up to the show. The new lineup focuses on thin-and-light gaming systems built around Intel Core Ultra Series 3 "Panther Lake" processors and NVIDIA RTX 50 Laptop GPUs. Measuring just 15.9 mm thick and weighing around 1.58 kg, the ZERO Air is clearly a lightweight gaming laptop. It is powered by an Intel Core Ultra 9 386H (16-core, 16-thread) CPU with boost clocks up to 4.9 GHz. For graphics, it sports the GeForce RTX 5070 GPU. As for cooling, it features a dual-fan cooling system and a vapor chamber. The laptop has a 15.3-inch QHD+ OLED display with a 165 Hz refresh rate. Memory support goes up to 32 GB of DDR5, alongside dual PCIe Gen 4 SSD slots for storage expansion.

Alongside the ZERO Air, Thunderobot also showed the ZERO 18 Pro, its high-end flagship model. This larger system uses Intel Core Ultra HX Series processors and can be configured with up to a GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop GPU. It features an 18-inch QHD display running at 240 Hz, supports up to 64 GB of DDR5 memory, PCIe Gen 5 storage up to 2 TB, and includes RGB lighting and a 99 Wh battery.More pictures follow.

Huion has surprised digital artists at CES 2026 with Kamvas Pro 27 and Kamvas 22, built on Huion's Gen 3 display technology. The "smaller" 22-inch Kamvas display comes with 2560x1440 resolution in 16:9 aspect ratio with 90 Hz refresh rate. The panel features 16,384 pressure levels and comes with PenTech 4.0 technology. The tablet also includes 12-color ambient lighting to make your creative work immersive. The screen has anti-glare etched glass screen. For the larger Pro 27 model, Huion bumps the screen size to 27 inches while also bumping the resolution to 4K with 144 Hz refresh rate. Finally, these tablets also have feet that help adjust the angle and point the screen toward the artists, so it becomes much easier to do drawing work at an angled screen. To help with precision drawing, Huion PenTech 4.0 delivers ergonomic hold and precise pointing.

GPD, a well-known manufacturer of mini PCs with unique form factors, showcased its entire lineup of systems powered by AMD "Strix Halo" and "Strix Point" at CES 2026. Leading the lineup is the GPD WIN 5, a handheld device featuring the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 processor. It offers up to 128 GB of LPDDR5X system memory running at 8,000 MT/s, supporting the 16-core/32-thread CPU and Radeon 8060S integrated graphics. The system provides up to 4 TB of SSD storage, with ports including USB4, USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, and slots for microSD and Mini SSD for additional storage. It features a 7-inch 1080p display and an 80 Wh battery.

Tianma, a leading global manufacturer of flat panel displays, is introducing a 27-inch Oxide TFT-LCD display with QHD resolution (2560×1440) and an industry-leading 610 Hz refresh rate for ultra-smooth motion in competitive gaming. Leveraging advanced Oxide technology, this Tianma display reaches its ultra-high refresh rate through three core panel enhancements: positive-mode liquid crystal material; an optimized alignment layer; and a refined TFT structure.

Tianma's 27" QHD 610 Hz Oxide Display delivers 1 ms GTG response time to minimize motion blur and an anti-glare, anti-reflection design for visual comfort during extended use. This panel offers 350 nits brightness, a 1200:1 contrast ratio, and 100% DCI-P3 wide color gamut, ensuring vivid color and sharp detail for high-performance gaming.

GL.iNet, a leading developer specializing in OpenWrt-based networking and remote access solutions, unveiled its latest product lineup scheduled for release at Spring 2026 at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2026 in Las Vegas.

"GL.iNet strives to develop innovation that solves our users' biggest challenges, and that mission guides our way forward," said GL.iNet CEO Mason Zhao. "We are constantly thinking of new ways to deliver a premium user experience, our ultimate goal is to create an ecosystem of products that will improve everyone's lives."

KTC started out as a discount gaming display upstart from Shenzhen, but has, over the years, grown to become a major player in the space. The company now has wide market presence in the US, and brought their latest gaming monitors to the 2026 International CES. The star attraction in the booth is the Q4966REC, an ultrawide format curved display with 49-inch diagonal size, an insane 32:9 aspect ratio, along with 5120 x 1440 pixels native resolution. The display has a steep curvature of 1000R, and uses a fast VA panel that offers 240 Hz refresh rate, 1 ms response time, 3000:1 static contrast ratio, and 178°/178° viewing angles. Also on offer are DisplayHDR 400 and 95% DCI-P3 wide color gamut.

The KTC Q2783SXC is a fast 27-inch planar monitor with WQHD resolution (2560 x 1440 pixels), and up to 400 Hz refresh rate, with 1 ms response time. The Q2717RDC is a 27-inch, 16:9 aspect ratio monitor with 1500R curvature. It offers 2560 x 1440 pixels resolution with 200 Hz refresh rate, and uses a fast VA panel. The KTC U2720SUQ is a premium 27-inch planar monitor with 4K Ultra HD resolution (3840 x 2160 pixels), and 160 Hz refresh rate. You can use this to beam Full HD at 360 Hz. The U2767SC is a more conventional 27-inch planar monitor with 4K Ultra HD resolution at 60 Hz. Signing things off from the KTC booth is the U3282SEL, a high-end 32-inch planar monitor with 4K Ultra HD at 240 Hz, which can also be used for Full HD at 480 Hz.

The arcade era may be long gone, however, My Arcade continues to lean into nostalgia. At CES 2026 we visited My Arcade colorful booth filled with retro-inspired hardware aimed at collectors and fans of classic games. The new Gamestation Retro Go is a handheld console with over 200 built-in games. It features a refreshed color option and slightly revised controls compared to the original Atari Gamestation Go released in September 2025. Pricing is expected to be around $199. Also on display was the Gamestation Retro Pro, a home console variant that also comes preloaded with more than 200 games. Unlike the original version, this model drops the arcade sticks in favor of two standard console controllers, outputs at 1080p, and is expected to retail for about $149.

For those who prefer a physical arcade feel, My Arcade showed the Gamestation Retro Mega, a compact tabletop arcade cabinet featuring Bandai Namco titles and other retro games. It uses mechanical joysticks and buttons and is expected to cost $299. My Arcade also showcased its upcoming SEGA-themed mini cabinets, first announced last year. The lineup includes titles such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Street Fighter II, and a Pac-Man with a special 45th Anniversary edition. These come in several cabinet formats, ranging from compact joystick-based units to more unusual designs such as the Sonic cabinet variant that features a longer control deck with full-size buttons and a full-size joystick. My Arcade rounded out its CES 2026 booth with its full range of retro gaming hardware, including compact handhelds designed for quick nostalgia hits.More images follow.

Hisense at CES 2026 showcased its most advanced home cinema solutions, hoping to satisfy even the most demanding users. Hisense a new flagship laser projectors called the XR10. The XR10 SKU runs an LPU 3.0 Digital Laser Engine with a pure RGB triple laser light source to output 6,000 ANSI lumens. It uses a 16-element all-glass lens system and an IRIS system that automatically adjusts aperture to achieve 6,000:1 contrast. Color coverage hits the BT.2020 gamut with speckle suppressed to 6 percent. The optical zoom spans 0.84x to 2.0x, projecting screens from 65 to 300 inches, while a 4-camera plus dual TOF sensor array enables lossless correction of side-projected images up to ±15°. The unit also features lens-shift positioning and a sealed microchannel liquid cooling system.

bHaptics is a gaming peripherals designer specializing in vests and gloves that provide haptic feedback (force feedback) . The company showcased its latest TactSuit and TactGlove products at the 2026 International CES. TactSuit is a vest that you wear over your clothing. It has no wires, but a control module and high-density battery that lines the back. The vest has multiple haptic feedback points. When connected to an optimized game, such as a racing sim or an FPS, the vest can provide haptic feedback to your torso to add a little more realism to your gameplay. In racing sims, you feel the rumble of your vehicle all across your body. TactGlove is a pair of gloves that do not just haptic feedback, but also double up as human interface devices, thanks to a network of gyroscopes and sensors.

GEEKOM showcased its range of laptops and mini PCs with a focus on its updated 2026 lineup here at CES. During our visit to GEEKOM booth, we got our hands on the new GeekBook X14 Pro and X16 Pro laptops, alongside the A9 Max and IT15 mini PCs. The GeekBook X14 Pro is an ultra-light, all-metal laptop that weighs just 999 grams and has a thickness of just 6 mm. It features a 14-inch 2.8K OLED display in a 16:10 aspect ratio with a 120 Hz refresh rate. It is powered by a 72 Wh battery, rated for up to 16 hours of use. Configurations include Intel Core Ultra 9 185H at $1,299 MSRP and Core Ultra 5 185H at $999. For users who want a larger screen, GEEKOM also showed the GeekBook X16 Pro. This model uses an Intel Core Ultra 5 125H processor, weighs 1,299 g, and keeps the same slim 6 mm profile. It comes with a 16-inch 2.5K IPS display with 100% sRGB coverage and a 120 Hz refresh rate, paired with a 77 Wh battery rated for up to 17 hours. MSRP is set at $1,099.

On the mini PC side, GEEKOM presented several 2026 updates. The A9 Max 2026 Edition is based on the AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 465, while the IT15 2026 Edition uses newly launched Intel Core Ultra 9 386H "Panther Lake" processor. The IT13 Max 2026 Edition was also shown, notable as the first mini PC to feature the Core Ultra 7 366H "Panther Lake."

Bolt Graphics is a new computer graphics hardware startup based out of Sunnyvale, California. This company wants to shake things up in the consumer graphics hardware market with a brand-new, grounds-up graphics architecture for graphics rendering, gaming, and HPC. What makes this startup unique and refreshing is that its architecture, or at least the marketing material of it, doesn't use the most uttered two-letter acronym in human history.

Called ZEUS by Bolt Graphics, the architecture offers a contemporary raster 3D graphics, ray tracing, and path tracing hardware pipeline, using an in-house designed SIMD architecture that's controlled by a RISC-V command processor that doubles up as a CPU. The prototype graphics card features a PCI-Express 5.0 x16 host interface, and LPDDR5X as its graphics memory, with additional DDR5 SODIMM slots for the RISC-V command processor. Together, the board can have up to 384 GB of memory to deal with large data sets. The card also features a 400 Gbps or 800 Gbps enterprise network interface, and a fully-fledged BMC/IPMI circuit on board, so you can manage large clusters of the card in a rackmount render server or workstation. The most surprising aspect of the card is power, and it only features an 8-pin PCIe power input, for a total of 225 W of power draw.

Does your external graphics card have to be completely enclosed? Can it be a dock so you could revel upon the card, and it can ventilate itself better? Good Way has a possible answer to this solution, with its new DBF7059 Thunderbolt 5 eGPU Dock. This dock features a Thunderbolt 5 upstream link, including the ability to segment the interconnect such that the host-to-GPU transfers operate at 120 Gbps, and GPU-to-host at 40 Gbps, ensuring the best possible bandwidth for the GPU in an eGPU configuration.

The dock features a PCI-Express 4.0 x16 slot, and a bridge chip that converts this to Thunderbolt 5. It also integrates a 700 W power supply, so it can supply a modern graphics card with a 600 W-capable 12V-2x6, besides 75 W from the slot, and the remaining power for its bridge chip and other dock features to function. The dock has been extensively stress-tested by its designers using high-end graphics cards to ensure endurance in a professional and enterprise environment, where its target users are trying to expand their commercial laptop's graphics capabilities with a high-end GPU. Lastly, Good Way also threw in some downstream connectivity, including stereo USB audio, an SD Express card reader, a 10 Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2 type-A, a 10 Gbps type-C, and a Thunderbolt 5 downstream port, so you can daisy-chain the dock to additional devices.

At TCL's CES 2026 booth, one of the more unusual products on display was CyboPal ONE, an active-tracking AI robotic monitor. TCL supplies the 4K display while the CyboPal system handles the robotics and software. The monitor uses a 6-DOF motorized base and arm that physically moves to keep the screen aligned as the user changes position. To control the monitor users can use voice commands, hand gestures, and an air-cursor system. Judging by the demo at CES, the idea of this monitor with a robotic arm that actively adjusts to the user's position may be successful, especially for those who spend many hours in front of the screen.

Alongside CyboPal ONE, TCL showcased several monitors from its existing and upcoming lineup. The new TCL 32X3A flagship OLED features a borderless design on all four sides and a dual-mode that can switch between 4K at 240 Hz and 1080p at 480 Hz. It offers a 0.03 ms response time and includes integrated audio tuned by Bang & Olufsen, powered by a dedicated DSP. The TCL 57R94 was also on display, a large curved (1000R) dual-4K QD-Mini LED monitor with a 32:9 aspect ratio, 2,304 local dimming zones, and VESA HDR1000 certification. For esports users, TCL showed the 25G64, a QD-Mini LED Fast IPS monitor with a 300 Hz refresh rate, 1 ms GtG response time, support for AMD FreeSync Premium and NVIDIA G-Sync, and TCL's T-Dynamic Tuning for reduced motion blur.

Razer made an appearance at CES 2026 with a headset prototype that resembles more of a sci-fi research project than a finished product. "Project Motoko" is a wireless headset that the company describes as a "full-time AI assistant." It features two eye-level cameras and an array of microphones designed to capture what you see and hear throughout the day. The device operates on Qualcomm's Snapdragon platform and integrates with various AI services from OpenAI and xAI, learning your habits and schedules to respond proactively. Unlike typical AR headsets that overlay graphics onto your view, Motoko is aimed at contextual understanding. The cameras can recognize objects, translate text on signs, or summarize documents you're reading, while the microphones capture both your voice and ambient sounds. Razer also suggests that the point-of-view footage could assist robotics researchers in training humanoid machines to perceive spaces more naturally. The company emphasizes that this is currently just a concept, with no pricing or release date announced.

darkFlash brought a slick new lineup of cases, CPU coolers, and gaming keyboards to the 2026 International CES. Starting things off, we have the TH285 Plus, a fascinating panoramic mid-tower with glass along three surfaces, a recessed side-facing radiator mount, a trio of bottom intakes, and not one but two 120 mm rear exhausts. The DS900W is a value ATX mid-tower with a conventional layout, and a slatted mesh front intake with an aged wood side accent. There's plenty of room for long and tall graphics cards. The DS900G is essentially the same case in terms of internal layout, but with a curved, pillarless tempered glass panel. The DS950V is get another case built on this internal layout, but with a non-curved pair of tempered glass panels that meet along a pillarless front-left edge, and a small display located along the front portion of the bottom compartment.

The darkFlash F1 "Floatron" is a CES Innovation award-winning case, which features the bottom compartment in an apparently-detached portion of the case, with the upper compartment given a floating effect, like a wine glass. This has the advantage of the upper compartment drawing fresh air that doesn't pass through the bottom compartment and its hot components, such as drives and PSU. The DY460 is a fascinating pillarless edge ATX tower featuring a somewhat trapezoid top shape that holds a top-mounted radiator at an angle. The expansion card area can be rotated if all you have is a graphics card and want to orient it vertically. The bottom compartment has a large 7-inch display.

CPS PCCooler brought a large selection of new cases, PSUs, AIO and air type CPU coolers, to the 2026 International CES. Starting things off, we've come across their KN-series, YS-series, and YT-series premium ATX 3.1 PSU series, each with modern 12V-2x6 connectors, and differentiated by features such as idle fan-stop, Cybenetics acoustics ratings, body depth, and fan sizes. The SU1650 is a Cybenetics Titanium-rated 1650 W PSU (probably the most efficient PSU in its wattage-class), and puts out two 600 W 12V-2x6 connectors.

Next up, are the DA Max line of AIO CPU coolers, a revision of the DA line of coolers introduced last year, with improvements made to the pump and fan performance. The GT-M series of AIO CLCs come with rectangular true-color displays framed by large, cuboidal pump-block designs. The RZ820 Display is perhaps the first and only air CPU cooler we've come across that features a true-color display. It comes with a 5-inch IPS LCD in landscape layout, arranged along the top-plate of this dual fin-stack CPU cooler. There are two fans included, which are arranged in push-pull configuration.

Razer entered the AI development space at CES 2026 with the Forge AI Dev Workstation, a powerful computer built to handle AI tasks locally instead of relying on cloud services. The system supports up to four professional graphics cards, either AMD or NVIDIA, alongside workstation processors from AMD or Intel, with room for eight DDR5 memory modules and multiple high-speed SSDs. After twenty years of making gaming hardware, the company is now targeting AI developers who want to avoid subscription fees and keep sensitive data on their own machines. The workstation comes with a 2000 W power supply or even dual PSUs for quad-GPU setups and industrial-grade cooling to manage demanding multi-GPU workloads.

The launch also includes AIKit, an open-source toolkit that works with over 280,000 large language models, plus a partnership with Tenstorrent on a portable Thunderbolt AI accelerator for laptop-based development. Users can daisy-chain multiple accelerator units for more performance when needed. The Forge workstation works as a standalone tower or can be rack-mounted for larger setups, letting teams scale their computing resources locally. Additionally, for smaller local AI development, Tenstorrent's Wormhole accelerator is more than enough to run LLMs with a smaller size, but for bigger work the Forge AI Dev is needed.

At CES 2026, Razer's star of the booth was its new project for more immersive gaming experience. Called "Project Madison," it is a gaming chair designed for additional "feel" coming from the system into your body. Razer achieves that by implementing haptic feedback directly into the chair made possible by six motor actuators that respond in real time to what is happening in the game. To aid the senses, Razer even integrated speakers that can output 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound to fully immerse the gamer into the scene. For additional visual help, there is Razer Chroma RGB lighting strips along the headrest which also match with the scenes from the monitor, so the immersive experience goes up a notch.

While pricing and availability is unknown, Razer's website has a form you can submit to be notified when the chair becomes available, so it is already in production with availability nearby. Below you can see some of the photos we took.

At the Netac booth at CES 2026, we saw a fleet of memory and storage solutions that the company has prepared for the consumer market. Starting with its Basic memory lineup, it includes DDR5 memory running up to 4,800 MT/s with capacities of up to 32 GB per DIMM. On the other hand, its older DDR4 tops out at 3,200 MT/s with the same 32 GB max capacity (per kit). However, the company has prepared even more advanced DDR5 and DDR4 DIMMs that can reach much higher clock speeds. The Shadows series includes DDR5 running up to 6,400 MT/s, while DDR4 equivalents top out at 3,600 MT/s. Netac's highest-performing DDR5 kits come in the form of Z RGB series with 8,000 MT/s out-of-the-box speeds.

ATK Gear is known for its affordable gaming peripherals that still deliver a decent gaming experience. The latest to join that line-up of peripherals is the ATK Gear Ghost mouse, which is slated to launch on January 14, 2026. While at CES 2026, the TechPowerUp team visited the ATK Gear stand, where the new mouse was being exhibited. The Ghost units being shown off at CES 2026 came in four color variants, all of which had a metallic sheen to them, likely at least partially as a result of the forged carbon fiber.

The ATK Gear Ghost is a lightweight, wireless, carbon fiber gaming mouse that will supposedly weigh as little as 49 g and feature a fairly conventional symmetrical shape. Given the release date, it's safe to assume the units shown on the CES show floor were pretty much production units. In the photos the team managed to grab during the show, you can see the large white skates on the bottom of the Ghost. Exact specifications have not been officially released yet, but given the hardware in the most recent launches from the company, like the Dragonfly A9 Ultimate and the Blazing Sky Duckbill, it's safe to say we'll see some combination of a PAW 3950 sensor and a Nordic 54 series MCU. Despite the carbon fiber shell, which is often touted as being stronger and lighter than regular ABS, the Ghost still has holes both in the top and bottom of the mouse.

Acer revealed its Nitro Blaze 8 and 11 Windows gaming handhelds almost exactly a year ago, at CES 2025, but the 8- and 11-inch gaming handhelds have yet to materialize as purchasable products, nor have they shown up at CES 2026. According to recent reporting by Windows Central, Acer has put those gaming handheld ambitions on hold, with a representative from the company telling the publication that while the handhelds are still part of the launch roadmap for the US, "launch plans are TBD." The representative goes on to effectively blame the US tariff situation for the delayed launch, saying that Acer is "focused on our core products."

While the Acer Nitro Blaze family has not yet been cancelled, although the devices were slated to launch in Q2 2025, its continued delays could result in diminished success, especially if Acer doesn't upgrade the internals before launch. After all, while 16 GB of RAM is certainly still enough for many games, especially when running at lower resolutions and frame rates as is common on gaming handhelds, premium devices like the ASUS ROG Ally X, Lenovo Legion Go 2, and the OneXPlayer OneXFly at the very high end, have already stepped up to 32 GB and beyond. The AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS that would have originally powered the Acer Nitro Blaze devices will also soon start to show its age.

FL Esports, a gaming peripherals brand mostly known for making retro-inspired gaming keyboards, made an appearance at CES 2026 to show off a bunch of new gaming gear, both from the main FL Esports brand and its TNT sub-brand. At the show, FL Esports showed off a slew of new carbon fiber gaming peripherals, including a new mouse and several carbon fiber gaming keyboards. FL Esports also showed off two new gaming mouse designs at CES 2026, both featuring carbon fiber shells. Both mice featured symmetrical right-handed designs, and one mouse matched the orange and forged carbon fiber look of the T60 HE keyboard. The other mouse seems to have a regular injection molded plastic shell and a carbon fiber outer shell with a more conventional fiber layup aesthetic. Not much else is known about the new gaming mice, but you can check out photos below for a look at what's to come.

The three new TNT keyboards shown off at CES 2026, which have been previously teased but not yet launched, are the T60 HE, T68 HE, and the T87 HE—HE keyboards with 60%, 65%, and TKL layouts, respectively. According to the information presented on the showroom floor, the T60 HE, T68, and T87 HE are all tray mount keyboards, although they ship with silicone and Poron foam sound deadening material, and they are made from injection-molded, carbon fiber-impregnated plastic. The exact resin is unclear, but the combination results in a smoky translucent look with the carbon fiber striations typical of forged carbon fiber. The keycaps on both keyboards are also translucent, but the T87 HE's keycaps are similar to the typical translucent smoky set seen on keyboards like the Iqunix EZ80 Dark Side RS or the QwertyKeys Sonic65 HE. The smaller T60 HE and T68 HE, on the other hand, have the same carbon fiber look on the keycaps as it has on the chassis. All of the new carbon fiber HE keyboards boast 8 kHz polling with a 0.1 ms input delay, as well as 0.005 mm Rapid Trigger sensitivity and 0.005-3.4 mm key travel with adjustable actuation.

OneXPlayer first announced the OneXPlayer Super X, a 14-inch AMOLED gaming tablet powered by AMD's Strix Halo APUs, in early December 2025, with a Kickstarter campaign making some bold claims about 120 W sustained performance. At CES 2026, the TechPowerUp team stopped by the OneXPlayer booth and managed to take a look at the hardware in person. The brand also revealed that the gaming tablet will be available with the newly released Intel Panther Lake Core Ultra X7 358H CPU, which should also put up almost the same GPU performance as the Radeon 8060S, thanks to the included Intel Arc B390 iGPU, but perhaps better efficiency, which will be key for a mobile gaming device.

Gigabyte, the world's leading computer brand, announces a breakthrough introduction of the world's first CQDIMM (Clocked Unbuffered Dual In-Line Memory Module) technology at CES 2026. By leveraging the CQDIMM-supported motherboard, Z890 AORUS Tachyon ICE CQDIMM Edition, and BIOS tuning technology, Gigabyte achieves the industry-first record DDR5-7200 without compromise at full capacity with two 128 GB memory modules.

Traditionally, increasing DDR5 memory capacity has required significant trade-offs in frequency and stability. Inherent in Gigabyte's expertise in hardware and firmware design, this critical compromise is conquered. On the hardware side, Gigabyte has optimized motherboard circuit layouts to significantly reduce memory channel loading, improving signal integrity and ensuring stable operation even under heavy workloads. Complementing the hardware advancements is Gigabyte's sophisticated BIOS tuning technology. Through an optimized clock driver architecture, Gigabyte's BIOS intelligently manages timing, signal synchronization, and voltage behavior to unleash extreme performance.

Witness Ork brutality and the loud and relentless ferocity that comes with it in our first in-game faction CGI sequence as Gorgutz, Ork Warboss of the Bad Moons unleashes a surprise attack against the Blood Ravens as they orbit the world of Kronus.

A grimdark universe of eternal conflict
Return to the RTS series' roots with deeply satisfying strategy gameplay. Take command of four unique Warhammer 40,000 factions, including the Adeptus Mechanicus in their series debut! Fight through 70+ epic campaign missions, as well as the replayable Last Stand, Skirmish and multiplayer modes.

At CES 2026, GameSir debuted its G7 Pro 8K PC controller. Developed in partnership with Aimlabs, this is the Chinese gaming brand's first go at releasing a product that features a maximum 8000 MHz polling rate via a wired connection. TechPowerUp visited the company's booth earlier today, where two variants of the flagship G7 Pro 8K PC model were on prominent display. The fairly standard black Aimlabs Edition was positioned next to a gaudier Champion sample.

Nearby specification sheets list 2.4G wireless polling rates, proprietary Mag-Res TMR sticks, clicky hall effect micro-switch trigger stops, optical micro switch ABXY face buttons, four remappable macro buttons, and the selection of esports-grade materials. The G7 Pro controller range launched last year, in white/gray Xbox-licensed form. The latest additions do not carry any official Microsoft gaming credentials—as a result of being competitive multiplayer PC title-centric input devices.

CAN YOU HEAR THE CROWD ROAR? We are pleased to announce Speedball will exit Steam Early Access on January 27 on January 27, following its initial launch in October 2024. Additionally, the game will launch on Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 on the same day. Speedball is the revival of the iconic Bitmap Brothers franchise, first launched in 1988.

Set in the grim future of 2138, Speedball is a no-holds-barred future sport that is used by mega-corporations to distract the downtrodden masses from their miserable lives. It is the only sport that allows two cybernetically augmented teams to go head-to-head at levels of speed and violence beyond human limitations. Matches are fast-paced, explosive and unpredictable, and you will need to master high-speed passing, coordination and shooting.

An elevation of computer memory prices—throughout late 2025 and early 2026—has prompted revisits of older generation hardware. After all, cheaper DDR4 memory offers an alternative route in the current climate. Prime examples turned up last week, when Gigabyte unveiled and launched four new AM4 socket-based motherboard models. At the end of December, ASUS was reportedly engaged in a bolstering of its AM4 motherboard production lines. Pleasingly, AMD seems to considering similar steps with its compatible Ryzen desktop processor families. Tom's Hardware gathered relevant information during a pre-CES 2026 round-table discussion.

During an interview session, David McAfee—Team Red's VP and GM of client channel business—reportedly dropped a hint about potential revivals of AM4 CPU products. In the recent past, AMD has continued to roll out (sort of) new chips based on "Zen 3" architecture. Conversely, supplies of popular SKUs—like the gaming-centric Ryzen 7 5700X3D model—have dried up. When asked about a possible older generation re-release strategy, McAfee stated that the Red Team: "(is) certainly looking at everything that (it) can do to bring more supply and kind of reintroduce products back into the (AM4) ecosystem to satisfy the demands of gamers that maybe want that significant upgrade in their AM4 platform, without having to rebuild their entire system." Elaborating a tad more, he said: "(it is) definitely something (AMD is) very actively working on." According to the TechPowerUp news archive and GPU database, Team Red's most recent new "Zen 3" desktop releases include the Ryzen 5 5600F (last September) and Ryzen 5 5500X3D (mid-2025) SKUs.

Code Vein II, launching on January 30, is the newest entry in the dramatic exploration action RPG series, Code Vein. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, it depicts the drama of Revenants and humans who fight to defy their doomed fate. Players confront relentless foes and treacherous locations alongside a trusted partner, while their choices rewrite history and shape the destinies of both the world and its characters.

The PlayStation Blog team got a chance to go hands-on with the upcoming title, and have a chat with the game's producer, Keita Iizuka, and the director, Hiroshi Yoshimura.

A sizeable gap—not occupied by NVIDIA's heavily rumored, and possibly tenuous GeForce RTX 50 SUPER-series—has been noticed at this week's CES trade show. During kick-off hours, the North American giant's GeForce social media quietly declared that "no new GPUs will be announced" within the four-day-long event. Graphics card industry observers have seemingly become tired of pursuing mid-generation product refreshments, and have set their sights further along Team Green's timeline. Yesterday, kopite7kimi fielded a number of queries regarding a futuristic GeForce RTX 6000 graphics lineup. Logically, these next-gen designs could leverage "Rubin" GPU architecture—already previewed as a well-known property in enterprise fields.

Speculation from last September—hinging on NVIDIA's official unveiling of their "Rubin CPX" GPU, that sports CUDA cores—lead to a theory that "GR10x" dies would form the basis of truly next-wave gaming graphics cards. In early 2026, kopite7kimi has proposed the utilization of a different set of GPU dies—identified as the "GR20x" group (or "GR200" family). Specifically, the PC hardware sleuth has pinpointed an alleged "GR212" model. They surmise that NVIDIA's "Rubin" architecture-based GeForce RTX 60-series will arrive within a second half of 2027 launch window.

At the 2026 International CES, we went hands on with a new crop of ultra-premium custom-design GeForce RTX 5090 graphics cards that launched in quick succession of each other this year, exactly 1 year following the RTX 5090's original launch. Earlier today, we also held the Inno3D iChill RTX 5090 Frostbite PRO, another such recently announced premium RTX 5090 custom-design. The GIGABYTE RTX 5090 AORUS Infinity and ASUS RTX 5090 ProArt stand out as being the first custom design implementations of NVIDIA's Dual Flow-Through cooler design that it introduced with the RTX 5090 Founders Edition graphics card, the company's de facto reference design.

This design involves placing the main PCB of the card with the GPU, memory, and VRM, as a separate, centrally located component, with heat drawn from these hot components projecting along the length of the card, and fans located at both ends, push air through the cooler and out of the backplate, through cutouts. The PCB relies on additional breakout PCBs for the PCI-Express gold fingers, and the display I/O. GIGABYTE's design sees two large 120 mm fans pump air through the heatsink, with some of it being guided through the central region of the cooler. GIGABYTE has used a similar two-tone color scheme as NVIDIA Founders Edition. We can't wait to get our hands on this card to see how the cooler fares against rival custom designs.

We're sharing the first look at our Hyperpop Collection, featuring three new striking designs for DualSense wireless controllers and PS5 console covers. With glossy blacks shifting into vivid neons, each finish introduces an all-new aesthetic into your gaming setup. With the vibrant Hyperpop Collection, players can choose their track between Techno, Remix, or Rhythm.

To share more about the Hyperpop Collection's design and creative process, here's Leo Cardoso and Sae Kobayashi from our Color, Material, and Finish design team. Leo Cardoso: "we're cranking the volume all the way up with a collection that doesn't just stand out, it takes over the room. Inspired by the glow of the RGB lights of your impressive gaming setups, these new colors go LOUD in the best possible way."

Not long after AMD's alleged confirmation of the "Granite Ridge" flagship 16-core Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 CPU's existence, web sleuths noticed that the not-yet-launched SKU being included in marketing material and new product descriptions. Most tellingly, Alienware China's Weibo account inadvertently mentioned a new Area-51 desktop system powered by Team Red's Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 processor. An accompanying short video was tagged with a "CES 2026" banner. As it turns out—to some online community disappointment—AMD only presented its 8-core Ryzen 7 9850X3D model during this week's North American trade show.

Sytronix, a UK-based PC workstation and server specialist, has advertised an "all-new" NexStation product, arriving soon through pre-ordering—apparently "powered by AMD's Radeon AI PRO 9700 (GPU) and Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 (CPU)." Elaborating on the chip's vaunted dual CCD setup, Sytronix's product page states that the design: "stacks massive L3 cache directly on the CPU, boosting memory bandwidth and cutting latency. Perfect for simulation, CAD, data science, and AI inferencing; anything that needs fast access to large datasets." Slightly older leaks show preview samples of the Ryzen 9 9950X3D2 being benchmarked—this pre-launch activity probably signals a rollout in the near-ish future; potentially months after the release of its 8-core sibling.

NVIDIA is wrapping up a big week at the CES trade show with a set of GeForce NOW announcements that are bringing more ways to play and more games to the cloud. From new native apps for Linux and Amazon Fire TV streaming sticks to hands-on throttle-and-stick (HOTAS) support for simulation fans and a new single sign-on option, GeForce NOW is expanding across devices and making it easier to jump straight into gameplay.

Topping it off, a new wave of AAA titles—including IO Interactive's 007 First Light, Capcom's Resident Evil Requiem and Pearl Abyss' Crimson Desert—is gearing up to join the GeForce NOW library for high-fidelity, low-latency streaming across the globe. Get ready with the six new games available to stream this week.

Intel did not include coverage of its lesser known "Wildcat Lake" mobile processor family during a main stage presentation of new-gen Core Ultra Series products. Despite talk of various "Ultra Low Power" solutions, the main focus on day one was "Panther Lake." Following the conclusion of Team Blue's big conference, a few news outlets noticed an interesting Core Series 3 "Die Package Configuration" slide; seemingly not deemed worthy of being placed alongside nearby larger "Panther Lake" chip designs (consisting of three configs). According to the loose slide, Intel's smaller "Wildcat Lake" package makes do with six processor cores (2P+4LPE) and two Xe3 iGPU cores. This information matches leaks from last year; with a next-gen chip design destined for eventual deployment in entry-level notebooks.

Surprisingly, a physical sample was handed over to HardwareLuxx.de on the Las Vegas showroom floor. Photos show a tile layout that does not completely align with the chipmaker's official product render. According to Andreas Schilling's news article, Intel representatives have confirmed the existence of their "Wildcat Lake" family—going under "Core Series 3" guises. The Blue Team anticipates a second quarter launch, with "Wildcat Lake" heading to edge systems and embedded platforms. In a separate report, Abhishek Yadav claims that the upcoming "Core Series 3" processor series will replace "older Alder Lake-N lineup." Going into further detail, HardwareLuxx was informed about specific "Core Ultra 5 332" and "Core Ultra 5 322" SKUs being designated as the smallest of "Panther Lake" packages (4P+4LPE & 4 Xe3 cores). Very late last year, rumors of refreshed "Wildcat Lake" products turned up on the internet—finalized examples are likely some distance from release.

Phanteks has unveiled its next-generation EXO 626 open-air concept PC case at CES 2026. Although the company did not reveal the official product in person, we managed to get a glimpse of the CyberPowerPC-tuned chassis. At the CyberPowerPC booth, we found a customized EXO 626s case in black, highlighting CyberPowerPC's design for a high-end open-air PC. This design centers around an exoskeleton concept, where the PC itself becomes part of the aesthetic, maintaining a minimal and clean look without unnecessary embellishments. Inside, the GPU, power supply, and AIO cooler each have their own dedicated space, with the airflow design favoring passive cooling to ensure quiet operation without relying on numerous fans running at full speed.

The mesh panels allow air to flow naturally while keeping the overall appearance streamlined. The case accommodates larger GPUs and AIO setups easily, enabling the creation of a powerful yet cohesive build. There are no extra styling elements or gimmicks, just a straightforward approach to showcasing the hardware and managing temperatures. Details on pricing, availability, and the final design are not yet available. Since Phanteks customized this case for CyberPowerPC, the official retail version will differ.

2026 is going to be an incredible year for Xbox players—you might even call it a… fabled year. To celebrate, we're kicking it off with the fourth installment of our Developer_Direct broadcast on January 22, bringing you news, new gameplay, and insights directly from the incredible teams working on titles coming this year. Presented by the game creators themselves, Developer_Direct will once again give you an inside look at not just the games, but the studios working to bring them to life. Fittingly for Xbox's 25th anniversary year, that includes the return of some of our most legendary franchises, which rub shoulders with a brand-new title from one of Japan's most beloved studios.

The show includes not one but two titles from Playground Games, with the UK studio bringing us a first extended look at Fable, as well as the debut of gameplay for Forza Horizon 6. We'll also be taking a trip to Tokyo to visit the legendary Game Freak, offering a first in-depth look at Beast of Reincarnation, which we revealed at Xbox Games Showcase last year.

AMD officially unveiled its new 8-core Ryzen 7 9850X3D desktop gaming processor earlier in the week; in virtual and specification form. A day later, select members of the press have inspected physical examples at CES 2026. Lately, PCGamesHardware Germany and Club386 have presented photos of OEM hardware—as evidenced by a visible OPN code, reading as "100-000001973." A few e-tailers have started listing the retail version—web searches of the related "100-100001973WOF" designation bring up Team Red's boxed product. It is not clear whether AMD reps presented physical units behind closed doors, or an in-person preview session was organized by a manufacturing partner.

The PCGH.de report contains shots of a delidded example, with a gory view of the emerging Ryzen 7 9850X3D's innards on full display. As expected, a lone CCD is positioned just below the central I/O die—corresponding to the layout present within readily available Ryzen 7 9800X3D CPUs. Additionally, analysis of the markings on AMD's heat spreader point to this particular Ryzen 7 9850X3D sample bearing a mid-September 2025 production window. Like other "Granite Ridge" models, it was made in Malaysia—and tagged with a "PGY" manufacturing location reference.

EXO 626 is a premium concept chassis that blends the freedom of open-frame architecture with the refinement of a fully enclosed system. Inspired by exoskeletal design, it presents the PC as an architectural object that is minimal, intentional, and visually striking.

The chassis features separated compartments for GPU, PSU, and AIO cooling, combined with passive-focused airflow for quiet, efficient performance. Mesh panels support optimal airflow while maintaining a clean, streamlined form. EXO 626 supports large, high-end GPUs and AIO solutions, offering a layout that balances performance with visual impact.

Lian Li thundered into 2026 CES with its exhaustive line of PC cases, furniture that double up as cases, PC cooling products, and power supplies. The DK-07 Wood is a height-adjustable computer desk with an enclosure PC chassis for up to two workstation builds, with two E-ATX motherboard trays, room for two high-end PSUs, and a plethora of drive/fan mounts. The whole build slides out as a drawer. The desk has a premium wood table-top. There are other smart features such as Qi charging pads for your smart devices, and a feature-packed front panel. Available toward the end of Q1 2026, the DK-07 is priced at $1,400. The DK-B is a continuation of this concept, but is meant for a single high-end PC built. Its enclosure is located toward the rear end, and is oriented vertically. There are many cool features, such as a feature-packed front-panel, a retractable true-color display that can serve as a HUD, motorized height adjustments, and Qi charging pads.

Lian Li also showed off its latest UniFan line of compound fans in newer styles and designs, including one with clear acrylic outer frames that convert to ARGB diffusers. Next up are Uni Fan TL FLEX line of individual 120 mm fans that daisy chain with cable-free interlocks that share PWM and ARGB connections among up to 4 fans. A 3-pack of these should cost $100. Meanwhile, the UniFan SL Flex should go for $69.99. Both should be available some time in mid-2026. The Uni Fan TL LCD Flex feature true-color circular LCDs on the fan hubs, which can display real-time system monitoring info. Each of the three fanlets in a daisy-chain can be programmed to display a different piece of information. A 3-pack of these costs about $135. Meanwhile, the UniFan SL INF LCD Flex, which comes with impeller-hub LCDs + infinity reflection ornaments on the frames, come in 3-packs priced at $145.

ASRock Industrial has announced the launch of its NUC(S) Ultra 300 BOX Series, powered by Intel Core Ultra Series 3 processors. Built to unlock every dimension of AI performance, the new series takes compact computing to the next level, delivering up to 180 TOPS of AI inferencing power with up to 16 CPU cores, advanced Xe3 graphics, and NPU 5.0 for AI acceleration.

Featuring up to dual 2.5G LAN, support for 8K quad displays, high-speed DDR5 7200 MHz memory, and Wi-Fi 7, the NUC(S) Ultra 300 BOX Series delivers exceptional responsiveness for AI-enhanced work environments, digital creation and immersive visual experiences. With its compact form factor and advanced AI capabilities, it empowers users across industries from commercial operations and development to gaming and prosumer innovation to expand what's possible with AI.