Author: batteryforpc

Lenovo no longer lists the AMD Ryzen-powered IdeaPad 5 on its own site, and we don’t know why. Fortunately, the laptop is still available at Walmart – and at a seriously affordable price too.

On paper, the IdeaPad 5 (model numbers 81YM0060US, 81YM005YUS or 81YM0061US) has a lot going for it. With a rock-bottom price, the machine significantly undercuts the previous cheapest AMD Ryzen 8-core laptop.

What do you get for your money? A choice of three colours, a 14-inch full HD IPS display, an AMD Ryzen 7 4700U CPU, 8GB of DDR4 memory (soldered), a 256GB PCIe SSD and a 57WHr battery that should last up to 14 hours.

The processor has eight threads and seven GPU cores with a base clock speed of 2GHz, 12MB cache and a default TDP of only 15W. The graphics subsystem is not too shabby either, thanks to the integrated Vega GPU – great for anyone looking for a business laptop or mobile workstation.

A fingerprint reader is integrated with the power button and there’s a privacy shutter to block the webcam when it’s not in use. Small features like this could be a boon for small businesses and professionals looking for a powerful laptop that takes security seriously.

It is a shame, however, that it doesn’t include Windows 10 Pro, but you can always upgrade from Windows 10 Home (albeit at a cost).

Connectivity and expansion capabilities include an SD card reader, audio connector, HDMI port, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, two USB ports and a USB Type-C that provides power as well.

Intel launches two new Comet Lake-H processors.

Meet Intel Core i7-10870H and Core i5-10200H

There were no official announcements, but Intel has added two SKUs to the Comet Lake-H lineup. A fourth 8-core high-end processor has been launched according to Intel’s own website.

Interestingly, the processor was allegedly launched due to supply issues of the higher-end model, the Core i7-10875H. This processor is very popular among high-end gaming notebooks. After all, this is the fastest Core i7 processor in the lineup.

Compared to the 10875H, the 10870H offers a 100 MHz lower base clock. This does not sound like a huge difference, but it might be something worth considering as many enthusiasts are often encouraged to disable Intel Turbo. This is due to the fact that turbo does not provide significant performance improvement, but it comes at the cost of much higher temperatures.

On Reddit, the Schenker XMG team today announced the upcoming supply issues of the higher-end CPU model (10870H). It’s worth noting that XMG laptops (Neo 15/17) should not see supply issue for the next 2-3 months:

[…] there is a CPU supply bottleneck on i7-10875H on the horizon. This situation is similar to the Desktop space where the Intel Core i9-10900K is out-of-stock everywhere and is being replaced in most sales channels by the new Intel Core i9-10850K which has almost the same performance (same cores, threads, cache etc.) but 0.1GHz lower clock rating. […]

Meanwhile, we seem to have secured enough CPU supply so we can continue to deliver i7-10875H in XMG NEO for the next 2~3 months. Not sure yet what happens after this, we’ll see.

XMG Schenker announcement on Reddit

Additionally, Intel also launched a new quad-core CPU, which is the slowest processor in the ‘H mobile Series’ – the Core i5-10200H. This CPU has a 100 MHz lower base clock than 10300H and a 400 MHz lower turbo clock.

Apple is lining up its next flagship with the upcoming iPhone 12, but despite news of an improved A14 processor giving the innards an overhaul with a 15% boost in performance, and 30% less power draw, the chassis leaves a lot to be desired. 

Still touting the candybar design, and a sizeable notch, not a lot has changed with Apple’s aesthetic, but its classic form factor is beginning to look outdated compared to Android competitors, and Samsung’s plans for its own future flagships will either force Apple to rethink its approach, or see it left in the dust.

Samsung made waves with the Galaxy Fold last year, despite some major teething problems, and followed up with the Galaxy Z Flip clamshell, which did away with the issues that plagued its predecessor. 

The company has just unveiled the Galaxy Z Fold 2, with the foldable ‘Z’ branding taking centre stage, representing Samsung’s “commitment to expanding the category to offer a variety of experiences.” 

But it looks like that commitment will see Samsung’s foldables take precedent as the Korean tech giant’s new flagship, pushing aside the S and Note series. 

Noted Samsung leaker, Ice Universe, has indicated that the Galaxy S21 might not be as powerful as fans anticipate, adding that the Note and S Series won’t see specs on a par with Samsung’s future foldables; the next iteration of the Galaxy S20 and Note 20 won’t be as impressive, with the Z series becoming Samsung’s “true flaghip”.

Combined with some of the more elaborate smartphone designs that are emerging, like the LG Wing, Apple’s rectangular iPhones with their thick bezels and large notches are quickly slipping from iconic to archaic. 

Apple has filed foldable smartphone patents of its own, and may simply be perfecting its tech so it doesn’t run into the same problems Samsung faced; but either way, it needs to catch up soon before its iPhones are abandoned for more radical options from its competition.