Computers
Acer’s Predator Orion 5000 gaming PC can house GTX 1080 Ti in SLI
While the Predator Orion 3000 is your midrange option
Building a gaming PC is fairly straightforward, but it isn’t for everyone. For mainstream folks, pre-built gaming desktops are the way to go. Although that usually means settling for hardware that’s mainstream as well, that isn’t always the case. Just ask Acer.
Its Predator sub-brand has a new 5000 series of Orion gaming desktops, and it’s quite the beast. If you recall, the Orion 9000 blew us away last year with its massive size and all-powerful specifications. While the Orion 5000 doesn’t have as big a number, it may actually be more appealing.
The Orion 5000 can be decked out with Intel’s 8th-generation Core i7-8700K processor on a high-end Z370 chipset. To make load times even faster, up to 32GB of Intel Optane memory may be installed on top of the usual RAM and storage configurations. Finally, and this is the best part, two NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti graphics cards can fit at the same time for two-way SLI, meaning they’ll work together to push intense rendering during gaming and video editing.
Of course, it needs a worthy case to house all this hardware. Acer is equipping it with a transparent side panel to monitor (and show off) all the internals. That’s just for aesthetics, however; for cooling, IceTunnel 2.0 tech is on board for smart airflow management for every section of the case. It’s easy to open up too, in case you want to upgrade the components.
The Predator Orion 5000 will become available in North America in July with a starting price of US$ 1,499, while EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa) will get it in June for EUR 1,699 and China in June as well for CNY 15,999.
If that pricing is too much for you, you can also go for the more affordable Orion 3000 series.
The Predator Orion 3000 isn’t as aggressive as its higher-end sibling, but offers a lot of the same power. You also get 8th-gen Intel Core i7 processors and up to 32GB of Optane memory to complement up to 64GB of RAM. The only real downgrade is the limit of a single GTX 1080 card, but that’s still enough for 4K gaming.
This one starts at US$ 999 in North America beginning October, EUR 1,299 in EMEA starting July, and CNY 6,999 in China in July as well.
Acer is expanding its storage lineup with the PA100 Portable SSD. It’s a compact external drive designed for users who need faster storage across multiple devices.
The PA100 uses USB 3.2 Gen 1 connectivity. It reaches sequential read speeds of up to 560MB/s and write speeds of up to 430MB/s. This makes it suited for everyday tasks such as transferring large files, backing up content, managing documents, and moving media between devices.
Up to 2TB of portable storage
The PA100 comes in three capacities: 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB. This gives users options depending on whether they need extra space for documents and schoolwork or larger collections of photos, videos, and project files.
Acer also designed the drive with mobility in mind. The PA100 has a slim 9mm profile and a lightweight build, while its reinforced construction is designed to withstand everyday travel and handling.
The drive comes with a 2-in-1 USB-C to USB-C and USB-A cable. This allows it to connect to compatible PCs, tablets, smartphones, and other devices without requiring a separate adapter. It also supports major operating systems and USB-C mobile platforms.
Designed for everyday use
Power efficiency is another focus. Acer says the PA100 uses less than 3W during operation, while idle power consumption can drop to as low as 0.62W.
The drive also features an optimized thermal design to help maintain stable performance during extended transfers and daily workloads.
The Acer PA100 Portable SSD is backed by a three-year limited warranty. Pricing and availability may vary by market.
Computers
New Mac mini starts at a whopping $899, only 256GB of storage
It comes with the M6 or the M5 Pro.
Almost two decades ago, Apple was infamous for being an anti-gamer brand. Though the company’s devices touted superior protection against viruses, they couldn’t play video games, alienating a significant chunk of the population and forcing them onto PCs. For a while now, the Mac has changed the status quo, bringing in more powerful hardware that can play games. Today, Apple is championing that cause further through the newly launched Mac mini.
Compared to the chunkier Macs, the Mac mini has a lithe 5” x 5” profile, emphasizing the “mini” in its name. Despite the size, the new mini will tout two flavors of Apple silicon: the M6 and the M5 Pro.
The M6 variant delivers with up to two times faster gaming performance with ray tracing when running Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, compared to the previous M4 version. Meanwhile, the M5 Pro version touts up to 4.5 times faster rendering performance with ray tracing in Blender, compared to the M2 Pro. It will come with macOS 27 Golden Gate out of the box.
You won’t have to worry about connectivity, either. The Mac mini comes with compatibility for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and 2.5Gb Ethernet (going up to 10Gb in upgraded versions). It will also have two USB-C ports, three Thunderbolt 5 ports (but only Thunderbolt 4 for the M6 version), and HDMI port, an Ethernet port, and a headphone jack.
Unfortunately, price seems to be another thing that it’s getting from PCs. The new Mac mini has an increased starting price. Specifically, the M6 version starts at US$ 899 (with only 256GB of storage), and the M5 Pro version starts at US$ 1,699 (for 512GB of storage). Preorders are open now, but they ship out on September 22.
SEE ALSO: Apple raises the prices of iPad and MacBook lineups
ASUS has announced the arrival of its latest TUF Gaming desktop lineup models: the TUF Gaming T700 and TUF Gaming T700 Mini.
These new offerings bring heavy-duty performance and military-grade durability to gamers, engineered to endure extreme operational demands while delivering rock-solid stability.
The new ASUS TUF Gaming T700, in particular, is engineered to take on modern AAA titles with its uncompromising performance.
It has an aggressive mecha-inspired MIL-STD chassis, including a transparent side panel to put powerful components on display. Vibrant orange ambient lighting also adds a bold finishing touch.
Inside is an AMD Ryzen 7 8700F processor and up to an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 Ti GPU for high-frame rate gaming.
The T700 also features a robust thermal solution equipped with quad 65 CFM fans and a 240mm liquid cooler.
Meanwhile, the TUF Gaming T700 Mini is tailored for competitive gamers while maintaining a compact, battle-tested chassis.
It has an Intel Core Ultra 5 225F desktop processor, paired with with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 graphics.
This combination provides seamless multitasking, crisp visuals, and reliable frame rates across today’s popular titles.
The internal hardware is cooled by a custom thermal matrix featuring dedicated copper heat pipes and a heavy-duty 90mm cooling fan.
True to the TUF Gaming legacy, the T700 Mini is likewise MIL-STD tested to endure extreme operational demands.
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