Another week has whirred by, meaning the virtual newsstand has had time to change over several times since our last roundup. Over the last week, Anthropic's CEO disagreed with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman about the timeline for AGI, NVIDIA released a new app for gamers and creators, and Microsoft finally shipped ISOs for Windows 11 on Arm. Sprinkle on top discussions of an Xbox gaming handheld by the Xbox CEO, five perfect-score reviews, and a bunch of early Black Friday deals and you have a jam-packed week in the tech world.
Here's everything you need to catch up on from the past week.
AGI debate
Anthropic and OpenAI CEOs disagree on AGI timelines
Tech giants including Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic all continue to race toward AGI (artificial general intelligence) but there is quite a bit of debate surrounding when that threshold will be met. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman believes AGI is five years away.
"I think in 5 years, it looks like we have an unbelievably rapid rate of improvement in technology itself," said Altman. "People are like, man, the AGI moment came and went. The pace of progress is like totally crazy, and we're discovering all this new stuff, both about AI and research and also about all the rest of science."
But Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei believes AGI is only a few years away and will be reached in 2026 or 2027. His thoughts are shaped by the fact that AI models are approaching PhD levels of intelligence, at least when measured in certain ways.
Regardless of when AGI occurs, if it does occur at all, it will be a milestone for artificial intelligence. For a model to be labeled as AGI, it needs to surpass human cognitive abilities in several areas. Currently, AI is better at specialized tasks and lags behind human cognitive ability.
NVIDIA App
New NVIDIA App enhances gaming experience
NVIDIA launched a new app this week to help PC gamers get the most out of their systems. The aptly named "NVIDIA App" has a unified GPU control center, a new in-game overlay for recording, new monitoring overlays, and game enhancing filters. The app brings together many of the features from GeForce Experience and RTX Experience under one umbrella.
"The NVIDIA App is the essential companion for PC gamers and creators. Keep your PC up to date with the latest NVIDIA drivers and technology," explains NVIDIA on its download page for the NVIDIA App. "Optimize games and applications with a new unified GPU control center, capture your favorite moments with powerful recording tools through the in-game overlay, and discover the latest NVIDIA tools and software."
Within the NVIDIA App there are subsections for GeForce Now, NVIDIA Broadcast, NVIDIA Canvas, and several other experiences. The app will soon be optionally bundled with NVIDIA's Game Ready Driver and Studio Ready drivers, though you can install it manually already.
Windows 11 ISOs for Arm
Windows 11 ISOs arrive for Arm PCs
After years of waiting, people can finally download official Windows 11 ISO media for PCs with an Arm64 processor. Microsoft released the official ISOs for Arm64 processors this week, much to the delight of our Senior Editor Zac Bowden and others who love clean installing Windows onto a PC.
ISOs are designed for use with virtual machines, but they can also be used to clean install Windows 11 onto PCs. The new ISOs, which can be downloaded from the official Microsoft website, are a welcome release to many.
Those with a PC running on a Snapdragon X chip should be able to boot the ISOs without any extra work, but if your Arm PC runs on an older chip, you'll have to jump through some extra hoops. If you have a PC with a Snapdragon 8cx Gen3-based Microsoft SQ3 found in the Surface Pro 9 or another older Snapdragon chip, you'll have to integrate drivers into an ISO image.
In addition to being good news for those who like clean installing Windows, the ISOs show that Microsoft treats Windows on Arm in a similar way to other platforms. 2024 has been a big year for Windows on Arm, and this week's news shows how far the platform has come.
Xbox handheld
Xbox CEO discusses future handheld console
The best gaming handhelds, including the ASUS ROG Ally, Steam Deck, and Nintendo Switch, could have some competition from Microsoft but not for a few years. Xbox CEO Phil Spencer discussed handheld consoles in a recent interview and emphasized that Microsoft is taking an analytical approach to the form factor.
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"Longer term, I love us building devices. [...] And I think our team could do some real innovative work, but we want to be informed by learning and what’s happening now." said Spencer. He also specified that a real-world handheld console from Microsoft is "several years out."
I'm sure that an Xbox handheld would turn heads and bring a new dynamic to portable gaming, but it's not like Microsoft is completely absent in the handheld console space. The tech giant lacks its own dedicated hardware, but it has several games that are playable on a range of devices. A new ad campaign focused on the fact that phones, TVs, and laptops are all Xbox devices, at least in a way.
Reviews
Perfect scores highlight this week's reviews
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This 4K gaming handheld docking station offers one-click recording without a computer — yes, really
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This might be the best $ for $ wireless Xbox headset money can buy right now
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ These Ryzen-powered mini-PCs are on another level entirely
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake — Here's why it's the ultimate version for both newcomers and longtime fans
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ASUS ROG Ally X review: It's better than the original gaming handheld, but is that enough?
A rare occurrence happened this week when all five of our most recent reviews were perfect 5 out of 5s. We kicked off the week with a 4K gaming handheld dock that can record gameplay with needing a computer. Shortly after that, we shared our thoughts on the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 (Gen 3), which is arguably the best Xbox headset money can buy. An impressive pair of mini PCs from Geekom, the Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D remake, and the ASUS ROG Ally X round out the impressive list of reviewed items that earned perfect scores.
"With its compact shape and ability to capture 120FPS @ 1080p, the AVerMedia X'TRA GO Charging Dock is a fantastic accessory for handheld owners," said our Rebecca Spear. "Setup can be a bit confusing, and it isn't wide enough to fit the ROG Ally X, but it works well and provides enough power to charge devices up while they're in use."
Our Executive Editor Jez Corden shared high praise for the Turtle Beach Stealth 700. "[I] find myself awe-struck by the high bar the firm has set here. Priced at $199, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 (Gen 3) delivers audio, comfort, features, and build quality on what I would have sooner expected to see on a $299 headset," said Corden. "Absolutely immaculate sound and bass, cavernous soundscape with great pin-point separation, fine fabrics with memory foam cups, durable and dense construction — there's almost nothing to complain about here."
Check out the full reviews of the AVerMedia X'TRA GO Charging Dock, Turtle Beach Stealth 700 (Gen 3), and all our other recent reviews above.
Early Black Friday Deals
Early Black Friday deals are live
Black Friday is less than two weeks away, and retailers are racing to get people through virtual doors. Our team of experts scour the web each day to find the best deals on PCs, games, accessories, and more. Below are our best deal roundups that are updated regularly plus some of the best trending deals.
- 💻BEST WINDOWS PC AND XBOX DEALS
- 🕹️BEST GAMING LAPTOP DEALS
- 🖥️BEST GAMING MONITOR DEALS
- 💻BEST PC DEALS
- 🕹️BEST GAMING HANDHELD DEALS
- 🎮ASUS ROG Ally (Ryzen Z1) | $349.99 at Best Buy (Save $150!)
- 💽Seagate Xbox Series X|S Card (2TB) | $199.99 at Best Buy (Save $160!)
- 📱iPad 9th Generation (64GB) | $199.99 at Best Buy (Save $130!)
- 🎮Xbox Series X (1TB) | $449.99 at Best Buy (Save $50!)
- 🖥️ABS Cyclone Desktop (RTX 4060) | $1,099.99 at Newegg (Save $400!)
- 💽WD_BLACK SSD for Handhelds (2TB) | $181.99 at Best Buy (Save $58!)
- 💻HP Victus 15.6 (RTX 3050) | $449.99 at Best Buy (Save $430!)
- 📺LG OLED Curved Ultrawide (32-inches) | $949 at Amazon (Save $550!)
- 🎮Lenovo Legion Go (Ryzen Z1 Extreme) | $539.99 at Amazon (Save $160!)
- 📺HP Curved Ultrawide (34-inches) | $349.99 at Best Buy (Save $130!)
