1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:06,160 The name's news, tech news, and just like Bond's new video game, today's 2 00:00:04,240 --> 00:00:10,080 stories require hardware that doesn't exist. Let's get into it. In a 3 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:15,440 refreshing bout of corporate honesty, Dell showed up to CES 2026 and basically 4 00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:20,320 said, "Our bad." First, head of product Kevin Turwigle 5 00:00:18,160 --> 00:00:24,320 Kevin admitted that people don't actually care about AI PCs, stating that 6 00:00:22,560 --> 00:00:29,599 it's become clear that consumers are not buying based on AI. After a solid year 7 00:00:26,720 --> 00:00:32,800 of every tech company screaming AIP PC at us like a pack of seagulls fighting 8 00:00:31,439 --> 00:00:37,280 over French fries in a McDonald's dumpster, Dell just stopped. Their CES 9 00:00:36,160 --> 00:00:44,640 briefing was described [music] as the most pleasingly unai presentation in 5 10 00:00:41,360 --> 00:00:47,039 years. Imagine that. A hardware company 11 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:51,520 talking about actual hardware instead of chat bots. Second, remember when Dell 12 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:56,079 killed the XPS brand last year and renamed everything Dell Premium? Well, 13 00:00:54,079 --> 00:01:01,199 everyone hated that. Sales tanked and the COO openly admitted the rebrand was 14 00:00:58,480 --> 00:01:08,240 a mistake. So now XPS is back with a full redesign. The new XPS 14 and 16 are 15 00:01:04,960 --> 00:01:10,640 Dell's thinnest laptops to date at 14.6 16 00:01:08,240 --> 00:01:15,439 mm, [music] sporting the Intel Panther Lake chips, and they've gone allin on 17 00:01:12,960 --> 00:01:20,960 Intel Arc integrated [music] graphics. No discrete GPU options at all. The 18 00:01:18,479 --> 00:01:25,439 displays can drop to 1 hertz during static [music] content, which lets them 19 00:01:22,320 --> 00:01:28,240 achieve a reported 27 hours of battery 20 00:01:25,439 --> 00:01:33,360 life, and they've shaved almost a full pound off the XPS 16. Prices for these 21 00:01:30,720 --> 00:01:38,320 new laptops are starting at $2,49 with the XPS 13 returning later this year at 22 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:44,240 a lower price point. They also dropped a huge 52-in 6K ultrawide monitor for 23 00:01:42,320 --> 00:01:47,600 $2,900 for when you need to look at every 24 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:52,240 single spreadsheet. all the spreadsheets. Wi-Fi 8 is apparently 25 00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:56,880 already here. While it won't technically be fully released until 2028, companies 26 00:01:55,119 --> 00:02:01,360 are already showing off products using the new standard before everyone has 27 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:05,920 even had the chance to adopt Wi-Fi 7. Leading the charge is ASUS with their 28 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:10,000 new ROG Neoore router concept. This weird D20-shaped AI router will 29 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:13,760 apparently improve range and latency for gamers using Wi-Fi on their battle 30 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:17,760 stations, and it boasts twice the data throughput recorded with Wi-Fi 7. Can 31 00:02:15,840 --> 00:02:22,720 the AI part help me hit a NAT 20 on a fumble rule? Let's hope. Meanwhile, 32 00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:27,440 Zixel is already pitching Wi-Fi 8 to carriers and enterprise customers with 33 00:02:24,480 --> 00:02:31,520 its AI ready connectivity gear with the goal of future proofing clients years 34 00:02:29,440 --> 00:02:35,760 ahead of the new rollout. Even the silicon makers are getting on the train 35 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:40,720 early with MediaTek revealing its new Flogic Wi-Fi 8 chips that likely will be 36 00:02:38,720 --> 00:02:44,000 seen in most of the network equipment that comes out in the next few years. 37 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:48,800 While the full benchmarks for these new standards haven't been fully released yet, the big thing all these companies 38 00:02:47,120 --> 00:02:53,200 seem to be pushing is that the new generation is not going to show a 39 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:57,440 massive jump in network speeds. Instead, the focus is on the reliability benefits 40 00:02:55,440 --> 00:03:01,120 of the new spec. And honestly, if you're your family's resident tech expert this 41 00:02:59,200 --> 00:03:05,440 holiday season, you might even trade some speed for increased reliability. At 42 00:03:02,879 --> 00:03:10,959 this point, CES Storage News wasted zero time getting weird. Goner, sorry, 43 00:03:08,400 --> 00:03:14,159 Connor, the long-forgotten '9s hard drive manufacturer, showed up with 44 00:03:12,480 --> 00:03:19,360 products that look nothing like traditional hard drives, including a 45 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:24,400 phone backup drive and a bizarre hybrid gadget that's part external drive and 46 00:03:21,840 --> 00:03:28,959 part 65 watt charger. It's kind of like a second computer that plugs into your 47 00:03:26,560 --> 00:03:34,000 computer to make it compute better, but it's a cube and, you know, not a 48 00:03:31,360 --> 00:03:37,920 computer. Kind of weird. Right next to that, we get a glimpse of where modern 49 00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:42,400 SSD design is heading, and it's surprisingly minimal. Micron unveiled 50 00:03:39,920 --> 00:03:49,360 the 3610, making the industry's first PCIe 5.0 QLC SSD, 51 00:03:46,720 --> 00:03:56,159 packing up to 4 TB of storage into a tiny single-sided DRAMless M.2 drive 52 00:03:53,280 --> 00:04:00,799 that can still somehow push about 11 gigabytes per second. It's an OEM only 53 00:03:58,879 --> 00:04:04,480 model for now, but hey, if it's cheaper, then that's a win-win in my books. That 54 00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:09,439 announcement pairs nicely with Fizen's new DRAMless Gen 5 storage controllers, 55 00:04:07,120 --> 00:04:14,319 which reportedly offer big savings in power draw along with an 8 terbte 56 00:04:12,319 --> 00:04:18,239 capacity. And then there's Hoe, the company best known for professional 57 00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:22,560 camera gimbals. Casually dropping one of the most creator focused drives at the 58 00:04:20,239 --> 00:04:26,880 show. Their new SSD 1 offers all the regular things a USB drive normally 59 00:04:24,479 --> 00:04:31,199 would, but comes with an expandability option that the company says marks the 60 00:04:28,960 --> 00:04:35,919 first time you can actually upgrade the storage on an external SSD. Another neat 61 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:39,919 feature is the dedicated microphone input, allowing for direct audio 62 00:04:38,080 --> 00:04:43,600 recording. Clearly, this thing is designed for people on the go. You know 63 00:04:41,759 --> 00:04:46,880 what? Kind of like our sponsor. This holiday season, I was stuck in a home 64 00:04:45,280 --> 00:04:50,639 alone style situation, trying to get home with my kid while juggling flights. 65 00:04:48,800 --> 00:04:55,440 And one thing I didn't need was a disconnected phone, which is why I use 66 00:04:52,880 --> 00:04:59,360 SY. You download the eSIM once. It works in every country you pass through. 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Download the SY 76 00:05:36,400 --> 00:05:43,440 app and use TechLinked. I mean the code TechLinked I check check check check 77 00:05:40,400 --> 00:05:44,960 LINKED THE CHECKOUT KEVIN THE FIRST RULE 78 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:49,039 OF QUICK BITS is that you're not allowed to talk about quick bits the second rule 79 00:05:46,960 --> 00:05:53,440 of quick BITS IS DO NOT TALK ABOUT QUICK bits but here's the quick bits new 80 00:05:51,680 --> 00:05:59,280 rumors suggest NVIDIA is prepping to bring the RTX 3060 back into production 81 00:05:56,240 --> 00:06:01,840 in Q1 of 2026 as memory shortages and 82 00:05:59,280 --> 00:06:05,039 sky-high prices refuse to calm down adding credence to earlier board 83 00:06:03,520 --> 00:06:09,520 channels claims that the company's supply of factory new 3060s were running 84 00:06:07,520 --> 00:06:14,000 below. Funnily enough, this lines up nicely with what NVIDIA CEO Jensen Wong 85 00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:18,800 said when asked by analysts about pricing pressure, floating the idea of 86 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:23,199 resurrecting older GPUs and maybe even backporting newer AI features to them 87 00:06:21,520 --> 00:06:28,639 instead of waiting on bleeding edge silicon. AMD isn't immune either. During 88 00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:31,039 a CES Q&A, Ryzen chief David McCaffy was 89 00:06:28,639 --> 00:06:36,000 asked directly about soaring RAM costs and replied that reintroducing products 90 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:41,120 back into the AM4 ecosystem is something AMD is very actively working on. So, if 91 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:46,639 you missed buying those parts during the 2021 chip shortage, now's your chance. 92 00:06:44,560 --> 00:06:51,199 IO Interactive has unveiled the PC system requirements for their upcoming 93 00:06:48,240 --> 00:06:55,280 James Bond game 007 First Light. The intro makes sense now. and fans were 94 00:06:52,720 --> 00:07:00,960 shaken, not stirred, to discover some of the listed hardware just doesn't exist. 95 00:06:58,479 --> 00:07:07,599 The minimum specs called for an Intel Core i5 9500 K, which Intel just never 96 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:09,680 made. There is an i59500, 97 00:07:07,599 --> 00:07:16,960 sure, but there's no K variant. Meanwhile, the recommended spec demanded 98 00:07:11,759 --> 00:07:19,919 a RTX 3060Ti with 12 GB of VRAM. Except 99 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:25,120 that card only came with 8 gigs. Even setting aside the phantom parts, these 100 00:07:22,240 --> 00:07:31,599 specs are pretty brutal. 32 GB of RAM and 12 GB of VRAM just to hit 1080p 101 00:07:28,800 --> 00:07:35,280 60fps. But at this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if you need to get one of 102 00:07:32,800 --> 00:07:38,720 NVIDIA's new Reuben supercomputers with some of those gooods from the Matrix as 103 00:07:37,199 --> 00:07:42,960 a power supply. Luckily, the game doesn't launch until May 27th. And at 104 00:07:40,720 --> 00:07:46,800 the rate that Tesla, Unitary, and NVIDIA are hurdling us towards Matrix dystopia 105 00:07:45,120 --> 00:07:51,919 territory, we might be getting those pods sooner than you think. Elon Musk's 106 00:07:49,280 --> 00:07:56,960 XAI is having a bit of a week. Governments across the UK, EU, France, 107 00:07:54,639 --> 00:08:00,479 India, Brazil, and Malaysia have all launched investigations after 108 00:07:58,319 --> 00:08:04,800 researchers found Grock was generating thousands of deep fakes an hour, 109 00:08:02,479 --> 00:08:08,960 including images of minors. These governments stated that it was illegal, 110 00:08:06,560 --> 00:08:13,360 appalling, and disgusting, calling for immediate action with regards to 111 00:08:10,639 --> 00:08:17,360 improving safeguards on the chatbot. X's response, it was to threaten their 112 00:08:15,360 --> 00:08:21,680 users. The company released a statement saying that anyone prompting illegal 113 00:08:19,280 --> 00:08:25,360 content will face consequences without giving any details on how they plan to 114 00:08:23,680 --> 00:08:29,520 improve safeguards. As this rolling train wreck continues, Musk announced 115 00:08:27,199 --> 00:08:32,640 that Tesla will build its own 2nm chip fab, claiming that [music] wafer 116 00:08:30,960 --> 00:08:37,519 isolation meant traditional clean rooms were unnecessary and promising to eat a 117 00:08:35,200 --> 00:08:41,279 cheeseburger and smoke a cigar inside of their new facility. We here at Techlink 118 00:08:39,440 --> 00:08:46,160 look forward to witnessing him destroy a $60 billion machine the same way I 119 00:08:43,519 --> 00:08:51,040 destroyed my 1997 Honda Civic back in high school by hotboxing it and dropping 120 00:08:48,160 --> 00:08:54,720 a Big Mac into the transmission. Samsung is in hot water after a Texas court 121 00:08:52,959 --> 00:08:58,800 issued a restraining order blocking the company from allegedly using automated 122 00:08:56,959 --> 00:09:03,519 content recognition to capture screenshots from smart TVs without 123 00:09:01,120 --> 00:09:08,160 proper consent. The lawsuit claims Samsung TVs could grab screenshots 124 00:09:05,760 --> 00:09:12,080 multiple times per second and monetize viewing habits through ads. This comes 125 00:09:10,000 --> 00:09:17,279 after a string of lawsuits towards other major TV brands for spying on Texans. 126 00:09:15,200 --> 00:09:21,279 Although those lawsuits didn't end up with restraining orders, except for 127 00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:25,279 Highense, they got one. Samsung hearing is on the 9th with the actual order 128 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:29,839 expiring on the 19th, meaning that the company has only 2 days to get on up 129 00:09:27,519 --> 00:09:34,399 over to Texas and lawyer up to explain why their TVs are seemingly watching 130 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:40,000 themselves. It's the year of the keyboard turducken at CES because these 131 00:09:37,040 --> 00:09:45,760 cubes are stuffed. Corsair unveiled the Gallion 100 SD edition, a mechanical 132 00:09:42,880 --> 00:09:51,600 keyboard with a full 5 in Stream Deck LCD built right in, plus 8K pulling and 133 00:09:49,200 --> 00:09:57,839 dual rotary dials. Keyron also dropped their Q Ultra series with 660 hours of 134 00:09:54,800 --> 00:09:59,279 battery life and also 8K pulling, cuz 135 00:09:57,839 --> 00:10:03,360 you know, you need a keyboard to be able to play your 9 or 10 consecutive 136 00:10:01,360 --> 00:10:08,240 playthroughs of Balders's Gate 3. HP responded with the Elite board G1A, a 137 00:10:05,680 --> 00:10:13,680 full Windows 11 PC crammed into a keyboard. It's got an AMD Ryzen AI 300 138 00:10:11,279 --> 00:10:18,720 chip, 50 plus tops of MPU performance, upgradeable RAM and storage, and Wi-Fi 139 00:10:15,920 --> 00:10:24,000 7. CES gave it an innovation award for finally making computers portable. Let's 140 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:27,120 ignore the laptops, of course, and mini PCs. And you know what? Ignore the 141 00:10:25,440 --> 00:10:31,040 Raspberry Pies, too. And that's the tech news. If you need me, I'm going to be 142 00:10:28,560 --> 00:10:34,880 hunting down an RTX 3060 Ti with 12 gigs of VRAM. Dr. No. and Goldfinger must 143 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:42,160 have teamed up to steal the world supply. Money penny, start my 1997 Honda 144 00:10:38,320 --> 00:10:42,160 Civic and get me my Big Mac.