What’s on TV: ‘The Carmichael Show’ and ‘Orphan Black’ finales

This week we’re saying goodbye to several notable shows. BBC America’s Orphan Black tops the list with its series finale Saturday night, but we’ll also take a look at series enders for The Carmichael Show, Turn and Doubt. There are also season finales for shows including I’m Dying Up Here, World of Dance, Claws and Unsung. For movie fans there’s a Fargo re-release on Blu-ray, while Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is available (in 4K!) on video on-demand services before its Ultra HD Blu-ray release in a few weeks. Big videogame releases include Cliff Bleszinski’s latest effort LawBreakers, and the latest episodic effort from Telltale Games Batman: The Enemy Within. Look after the break to check out each day’s highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).

Blu-ray & Games & Streaming

• Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (VOD)
• King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (4K, 3D)
• Fargo (20th Anniversary Edition)
• Teen Wolf (Collector’s Edition)
• Teen Wolf Too
• Snatched
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul
• The Dinner
• Blindspot (S2)
• 2017 NBA Champions: Golden State Warriors
• Bowfinger
• The Breaking Point (Criterion)
• For the Love of the Game
• EdTV
• Problem Child
• Graceful Explosion Machine (PS4, PC)
• Mega Man Legacy Collection 2 (PS4, Xbox One)
• Blackhole: Complete Edition (Xbox One, PS4)
• Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (PS4, PC)
• Batman: The Enemy Within – The Telltale Series – Episode 1 (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
• Cat Quest (PC)
• Icey (PS4)
• Comet Crash 2: The Kronkoid Wars (PS4)
• LawBreakers (PC, PS4)
• Sine Mora EX (PC, Xbox One, PS4)
• Masquerada: Songs and Shadows (PS4, Xbox One)
• Neon Drive (PS4)
• Neptune Flux (PS VR)
• Ironcast (Switch)
• Hearthstone: Knights of the Frozen Throne (PC)
• Phantom Trigger (PC, Switch)
• Law Mower (PC)
• Sudden Strike 4 (PC)
• Jump, Step, Step (Xbox One)
• Armello Deluxe Edition (PS4)

Monday

• Deuces, BET, 7:55 PM
• American Ninja Warrior, NBC, 8 PM
• So You Think You Can Dance, Fox, 8 PM
• WWE Raw, USA, 8 PM
• Preacher, AMC, 9 PM
• Will, TNT, 9 PM
• Stitchers, Freeform, 9 PM
• CBSN: On Assignment, CBS, 10 PM
• Carspotting, Discovery, 10 PM
• American Dad, TBS, 10 PM
• Midnight, Texas, NBC, 10 PM
• American Greed, CNBC, 10 PM
• Siesta Key, MTV, 10 PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11 PM

Tuesday

• Difficult People (season premiere), Hulu, 3 AM
• WWE Smackdown, USA, 8 PM
• America’s Got Talent, NBC, 8 PM
• The Fosters, Freeform, 8 PM
• The Challenge MTV, 9 PM
• Animal Kingdom, TNT, 9 PM
• The Bold Type, Freeform, 9 PM
• Face Off, Syfy, 9 PM
• Fantomworks, Velocity, 9 PM
• Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (season premiere), HBO, 10PM
• Somewhere Between, ABC, 10 PM
• Shooter, USA, 10 PM
• American Ripper, History, 10 PM
• Fear Factor, MTV, 10 PM
• Adam Ruins Everything, TruTV, 10 PM
• The Profit, CNBC, 10 PM
• Tosh.0, Comedy Central, 10 PM
• World of Dance (season finale), NBC, 10 PM
• Wrecked, TBS, 10:30 PM
• The Therapist (season premiere), Viceland, 10:30 PM
• The Jim Jefferies Show, Comedy Central, 10:30 PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11 PM

Wednesday

• Big Brother, CBS, 8 PM
• Lucha Underground, El Rey, 8 PM
• Suits, USA, 9 PM
• Salvation, CBS, 9 PM
• Hood Adjacent with James Davis, Comedy Central, 9 PM
• The Carmichael Show (series finale), NBC, 10 & 10:30 PM
• Sinner, USA, 10 PM
• I’m Sorry, TruTV, 10 PM
• Snowfall FX, 10 PM
• The Auto Firm with Alex Vega, Velocity, 10 PM
• Blood Drive, Syfy, 10 PM
• Younger, TV Land, 10 PM
• Broadchurch, BBC America, 10 PM
• Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, TBS, 10:30 PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11 PM

Thursday

• Penn & Teller: Fool Us, CW, 8 PM
• Boy Band, ABC, 8 PM
• Beat Shazam, Fox, 8 PM
• The Wall, NBC, 8 PM
• The Story of Diana Pt 2, ABC, 9 PM
• Whose Line is it Anyway, CW, 9 PM
• Big Brother, CBS, 9 PM
• Saturday Night Live: Weekend Update Summer Edition, NBC, 9 PM
• Zoo, CBS, 10 PM
• The Mist, Spike TV, 10 PM
• The Night Shift, NBC, 10 PM
• Queen of the South, USA, 10 PM
• The Guest Book, TBS, 10:30 PM
• What Would Diplo Do?, Viceland, 10 PM
• Nuts + Bolts, Viceland, 10:30 PM
• The Chris Gethard Show, TruTV, 11 PM
• Desus & Mero, Viceland, 11 PM

Friday

• Atypical (S1), Netflix, 3 AM
• Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh (S3), Netflix, 3 AM
• Naked, Netflix, 3 AM
• White Gold, Netflix, 3 AM
• True & the Rainbow Kingdom (S1), Netflix, 3 AM
• Killjoys, Syfy, 8 PM
• Masters of Illusion, CW, 8 PM
• Dark Matter, Syfy, 9 PM
• ELeague: Road to the Internationa Dota 2 Championships, TBS, 10 PM
• Son of Sam: The Killer Speaks, CBS, 10 PM
• All Access: Mayweather vs. McGregor, Showtime 10 PM
• Wynonna Earp, Syfy, 10 PM
• Room 104, HBO, 11:30 PM

Saturday

• Doubt (series finale), CBS, 8 & 9 PM
• Turn (series finale), AMC, 9 PM
• Orphan Black (series finale), BBC America, 10 PM

Sunday

• Twin Peaks, Showtime, 8 PM
• Teen Choice Awards 2017, Fox, 8 PM
• Teen Wolf, MTV, 8 PM
• Top Gear America, BBC America, 8 PM
• Big Brother, CBS, 8 PM
• Sunday Night Baseball, ESPN, 8 PM
• Ray Donovan, Starz, 9 PM
• Game of Thrones, HBO, 9 PM
• Candy Crush, CBS, 9 PM
• Power, Starz, 9 PM
• Claws (season finale), TNT, 9PM
• The Nineties, CNN, 9 PM
• Steve Harvey’s Funderdome, ABC, 9 PM
• Get Shorty (series premiere), Epix, 10 PM
• Ballers, HBO, 10 PM
• $100,000 Pyramid, ABC, 10 PM
• The Strain, FX, 10 PM
• The History of Comedy (season finale), CNN, 10 PM
• I’m Dying Up Here (season finale), Showtime, 10 PM
• Unsung (season finale), TV One, 10 PM
• Insecure, HBO, 10:30 PM
• Talking with Chris Hardwick, AMC, 11 PM
• Legends of Chamberlain Heights, Comedy Central, 11:30 PM
• Rick & Morty, Cartoon Network, 11:30 PM

What’s New in iOS 11 Beta 5: iCloud Messages Delayed, New Icons, Control Center Music Changes and More

Apple seeded the fifth beta of iOS 11 to developers this morning, fixing existing bugs, introducing new bugs, and adding some tweaks to various features and design choices.

We’ve outlined all of the changes Apple has made to iOS 11 in the fifth update in the video and the post below.

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– Messages in iCloud – Apple’s iCloud Messages feature, which allows iMessages to be stored in iCloud to free up space on an iOS or Mac device, has been removed in iOS 11 beta 5. Apple says the feature will be re-released in a future update to iOS 11, suggesting there are no plans to add it back to the version of iOS 11 that will launch in September alongside new iOS devices. It’s not clear why the iCloud Messages feature has been removed or exactly when it’ll come back.

– Control Center Music Icon – The Music app in the Control Center has been redesigned with a new pulsating indicator that lists nearby audio sources like AirPods, speakers, and AirPlay devices. When the indicator is tapped, it opens up a list of sources that can be quickly selected, making it easier to connect to audio devices or AirPlay content to a television.

– Settings – The icon for the Settings app has been tweaked. Instead of a gray background, it has a black background, making the gears more prominent.

– Camera – The icon for the Camera app has also been subtly tweaked, introducing a simpler design that does away with the two lines that used to be present.

– Screen Recording – When recording your iPhone or iPad screen, the indicator bar that lets you know recording is taking place is now red instead of blue, making it more prominent.

iOS 11 beta 5 is limited to developers at the current time, but Apple will likely introduce the changes in a fourth public beta that we expect to see later this week.

Related Roundup: iOS 11
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New ‘T-Mobile Unlimited 55+’ Plan for Seniors Offers 2 Lines for $60 a Month

T-Mobile today announced the launch of a new T-Mobile ONE Unlimited 55+ plan, which is designed for seniors that are over the age 55.

Starting on August 9, T-Mobile subscribers that are 55 or older can purchase two lines of T-Mobile ONE unlimited service for $60, with all taxes and fees included. T-Mobile’s standard two line price is $100 per month ($50 per line), so this is a significant discount for seniors.

“For years, the carriers have been patronizing the generation that invented wireless. They thank these mobile pioneers by selling dumbed down ‘senior’ plans with exactly zero data and — get this — night and weekend minutes! That’s not just idiotic — it’s insulting!” said Legere. “Today, the Un-carrier ends this ridiculousness with T-Mobile ONE Unlimited 55+ — an offer that recognizes how Boomers and beyond actually use their smartphones!”

To get the $60 price, customers must be over 55, and must enable Autopay using a debit card or bank account. It’s $50 for the first line, $10 for the second line, and unlimited everything with a $5 per line Autopay discount.

T-Mobile’s new plans will be available starting on Wednesday, August 9. New customers can sign up by visiting a T-Mobile store, while existing customers can get the new plan by calling T-Mobile, visiting the website, or heading to a T-Mobile store.

Tag: T-Mobile
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France and Germany want Apple and Google to pay their taxes

France and Germany are looking to make major tech companies like Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon begin paying their fair share of taxes. The move comes as many European leaders have expressed frustration at how these companies focus their profits and costs in countries that tax them at the lowest rates. “Europe must learn to defend its economic interest much more firmly — China does it, the U.S. does it,” French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told Bloomberg. “You cannot take the benefit of doing business in France or in Europe without paying the taxes that other companies — French or European companies — are paying.”

Taxes have been an ongoing issue in Europe when it comes to these companies. Because countries like Ireland and Luxembourg have set attractively low corporate tax rates, major companies have tended to establish their European headquarters there and take advantage of loopholes that allow them to minimize the amount of taxes they pay elsewhere in Europe. But that hasn’t stopped countries like France, Italy and the UK from seeking what they feel is owed to them. Last year, the European Commission ordered Apple to pay billions of dollars in back taxes.

Germany and France discussed these corporate tax problems last month and French officials plan to propose new tax regulations for tech companies at an EU meeting in September. President Emmanuel Macron has set out to lower French corporate taxes to 25 percent within five years and is urging other EU member states to align theirs with France’s and Germany’s rates. Le Maire believes that if France and Germany set their rates together, other EU states will follow suit. He said France was making “a considerable effort.” “We’re asking other member states of the euro zone to make a similar effort in the other direction.”

Source: Bloomberg

The minimalist, credit card-sized Light Phone is designed to help you disconnect

Why it matters to you

Smartphones are addictive, but the Light Phone is a different kind of device that aims to keep your attention focused on the world around you.

If you are hopelessly addicted to your smartphone but really don’t want to be, the Light Phone may be the device to sort you out.

The credit card-sized handset that launched a Kickstarter campaign more than two years ago exclusively makes and takes calls. The goal is to encourage users to better engage with their immediate environment and free themselves from all the temptations smartphones present.

It’s a phone with so little functionality that hanging out with friends may actually result in distraction-free encounters featuring eye contact and other direct interactions (if they are not buried in their own smartphones, that is).

Since production began at the end of 2016, Light has shipped about 9,000 devices and raised more than $3 million. The company is now filling orders in the United States as well as internationally. It is also attempting to secure carrier support and even planning a new version for 2018.

If the mere thought of switching to a bare-bones phone causes a bead of sweat to form on your brow, fear not. The Light Phone does not mean you will have to give up your favorite smartphone — the makers understand that would be one step too far for most users. Instead, you can easily forward calls from your main handset on the occasions when you dare to leave the house without it, although the Light Phone does also come with its own number should you take the bold step to use it as your main mobile.

Created by designers Kaiwei Tang and Joe Hollier, the elegant-looking Light Phone is only 4mm thick and weighs just 38.5 grams. It can hold up to nine-speed dial numbers and incorporates a SIM card slot, micro USB port, and very little else. Better yet, rather than coming in a box, it ships in a charming photography book.

The device’s minimal functionality means it can last for up to three days on a single charge — though Light is hoping to improve standby time with the next model. Interestingly, the FAQ page says the handset runs a “stripped down” version of Android, which allows the designers to adapt the feature set going forward

“Technology should help us appreciate life more. It should serve, not enslave, us,” Light’s About page reads. “We don’t want to buy more stuff, to be told we’re not enough by our feeds, to be tracked or reduced to some data point. We are not anti-technology, we are humans and we’re taking our lives back.”

The Light Phone runs $150 and comes in two colors: black and white. It arrives with its own SIM card, which costs $5 per month to keep active. There are separate models for U.S. and international use, though the former is currently sold out. If you are interested, you can reserve a unit in the next batch for free right now.

Update: Added pricing and availability information.

Early benchmarks pit AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X against Intel Core i9-7900K

Why it matters to you

Here’s an early look at how AMD’s 12-core Ryzen Threadripper 1950X processor stacks up against an equivalently priced Intel chip.

LinusTechTips scored a pre-NDA (non-disclosure agreement) deal with Dell to review the new Alienware Area-51 desktop before the review embargo lifts for AMD’s Ryzen Threadripper desktop processors. As previously reported, Dell’s new monster hexagonal desktops span two base models: one with Intel’s latest Core i9 X-Series processor, and one with AMD’s new Ryzen Threadripper 1950X chip. The Intel-based desktop may not arrive until the end of August while AMD’s two Ryzen Threadripper chips launch on August 10.

In its review, LinusTechTips pitted the 12-core Ryzen Threadripper 1950X against a stock ten-core Intel Core i9-7900X processor because they’re similar in price. That said, the benchmarks won’t be a fair 12-core to 12-core chip comparison, and LinuxTechTips also threw in stock mainstream desktop processors into the benchmarking mix as well, including the four-core Intel Core i7-7700K, and the eight-core AMD Ryzen 7 1800X.

First, we have the chips’ performance with Rise of the Tomb Raider (higher is better):

DirectX 11
DirectX 12
Intel Core i9-7900K (X299)
68FPS
67FPS
Intel Core i7-7700K (Z270)
68FPS
65FPS
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X (X399)
68FPS
63FPS
AMD Ryzen 7 1800X (X370)
67FPS
62FPS

Overall, the scores here range from 62 to 68 frames per second, and only vary when DirectX 12 is in play. The site doesn’t state the resolution and graphics level they were using during the benchmark testing, as the benchmark itself doesn’t provide any adjustable settings, but instead relies on whatever you set in the game’s main Options menu. This benchmark spans three test scenarios – Geothermal Valley, Syria, and Mountain Peak – and provides an overall average generated from the three.

For the record, we benchmarked the GTX 1080 GPU and Intel’s Core i7-6820HK CPU in an Alienware 17 R4 laptop, and got an average of 59.29 fps at a 2,560 x 1,440 resolution, high/very high settings, and using DirectX 12. The results in the chart above rely on Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1080 Ti graphics card, so we suspect the results are based on a 3,840 x 2,160 resolution, and the same maximum graphics settings.

Now here are the 3DMark numbers (higher is better):

Fire Strike Ultra
Time Spy
Time Spy (CPU)
Intel Core i9-7900K (X299)
6,896
9,586
11,081
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X (X399)
6,857
9,297
8,822
AMD Ryzen 7 1800X (X370)
6,709
8,876
7,725
Intel Core i7-7700K (Z270)
6,728
8,494
5,759

Next is Cinebench Release 15 using the multi-threaded workload benchmark (higher is better):

AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X (X399)
2,876
Intel Core i9-7900K (X299)
2,146
AMD Ryzen 7 1800X (X370)
1,616
Intel Core i7-7700K (Z270)
975

Finally, the review used Blender 2.78c to test Ryzen Threadripper’s time to render 3D objects and environments (lower is better):

BMW
Classroom
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X (X399)
2:50.59
9:21.54
Intel Core i9-7900K (X299)
3:28.16
11:29.47
AMD Ryzen 7 1800X (X370)
4:59.27
16:32.30
Intel Core i7-7700K (Z270)
7:19.58
25:07.67

Ultimately, PC gamers wanting to dump loads of cash into a new desktop can purchase the Alienware Area-51 Threadripper Edition model right now. Here are the starting points:

$3,000
$3,200
$3,550
$4,400
Processor
AMD 1950X
AMD 1950X
AMD 1950X
AMD 1950X
Graphics
GTX 1060
GTX 1060
GTX 1070
GTX 1080 Ti
Memory
8GB DDR4
@ 2,667MHz
16GB DDR4
@ 2,667MHz
16GB DDR4
@ 2,667MHz
32GB DDR4
@ 2,667MHz
Storage
2TB HDD
128GB M.2 SATA SSD
2TB HDD
512GB M.2 PCIe SSD
2TB HDD
1TB M.2 PCIe SSD
2TB HDD

Let Siri control your lights with the Sylvania Smart+ light bulbs

Why it matters to you

Want smart lights without the hassle of all that extra equipment? Sylvania’s smart bulbs can help.

Bringing light into your life may have gotten a bit easier with the introduction of the Sylvania Smart+ light bulbs. After much anticipation, the smart home company has announced that its A19 Full Color Light Bulbs are now available for pre-order, with delivery anticipated for September. So if you are looking to get into the fall mood with the right mood lighting, this may be the right bulb for you.

The Sylvania Smart bulb claims to be the first light bulb capable of being controlled directly by way of Siri and Apple’s Home app, without the need for a separate hub or smart socket, or even a Wi-Fi router. Simply screw the Bluetooth-enabled bulb into any light fixture in your room, sync it with your iPhone’s Home app, and take control.

“We are proud to break new ground with Apple to bring to market this first of its kind product,” said Aaron Ganick, head of Smart Business Americas, for Ledvance, Sylvania’s parent company. “Apple is known for innovative products that are simple and intuitive to use, while making our lives better. HomeKit is no exception. Our new HomeKit-enabled Sylvania Smart+ products are perfect for those who have heard how great it is to have a Smart Home but aren’t yet ready to tackle the installation and maintenance responsibilities of a larger system.”

Like other smart bulbs and smart hubs, the Sylvania Smart bulbs can be controlled individually or in groups as part of scenes. Using Siri or the Home app, you can turn the bulb on or off, dim it, adjust it from a cool white to a warm white, or to a slew of other colors as well. Plus, you can set the smart bulbs to certain schedules, so your home is bright and cheerful when you come home from a long day at work, and knows to turn things down as bedtime approaches. You can even tell Siri, “I’m on my way home” to set your lights to a certain brightness.

HomeKit-enabled Sylvani Smart+ lightbulbs will be available online and in stores later this year and are currently available to pre-order for $45.

Massive solar plant in the Sahara could help keep the EU powered

Why it matters to you

Giant solar farm in the Sahara could help provide Europe with a massive source of renewable energy.

In the global race to ditch fossil fuel reliance for more renewable energy sources, Europe is already making some impressive strides. That is likely to ramp up considerably thanks to a new European Union plan to build a large solar plant in the Sahara desert — with the ability to generate enough power to keep much of Europe juiced up. In all, the enormous solar farm aims to produce 4.5 gigawatts of power, which can then be transmitted across the Mediterranean from Tunisia to mainland Europe.

“We are opening a new energy corridor to allow Europe to import cheap solar power from the Sahara on a massive scale,” Daniel Rich, Chief Operating Officer of TuNur, the company behind the project, told Digital Trends. “This will help Europe meet its Paris Climate Agreement emissions reduction commitments quickly and cost effectively. It also will give a much-needed boost to the Tunisia economy through significant investment into the country, creation of thousands of jobs, new tax revenues, and the establishment of a new solar industry that can help support their future domestic demand.”

At present, Europe imports more than half of its energy in the form of fossil fuels. As Rich points out, should this project go ahead it will provide the continent with access to a permanent source of clean fuel. This will only become more important as technologies like electric vehicles become more prevalent.

TuNur’s proposed solar farm utilizes an enormous quantity of mirrors to reflect sunlight onto a central collector, which uses molten salt to store the energy as heat. Three HVDC submarine cables will then transport the power to Europe. The first cable will link Tunisia and Malta, the second will link Tunisia to central Italy, and a third will link Tunisia to the south of France.

“The project is in development and [currently in the permission phase],” Rich said. “We have completed all the feasibility work and lined up the partners needed to complete the project. To complete it, we have now requested full authorization from the Tunisian government, and once we have this we can receive the final permits in Europe, enter into EPC contracts, and start construction.”

Fossil Q Venture, Q Explorist smartwatches now available for pre-order

Why it matters to you

Fossil’s new smartwatches are hip, stylish, thin, and pack Google’s Android Wear 2.0 operating system.

Fossil is no stranger to smartwatches. Last September, the American fashion brand that makes wearables for Armani, DKNY, Michael Kors, Kagen, Kate Spade, and others teamed up with chipmaker Qualcomm to launch the Fossil Q Wander and Fossil Q Marshall. And at this year’s Baselworld 2017 Conference in Switzerland, it debuted new faces to its existing lineup: The Q Accomplice, Q Activist, Q Venture, and Q Explorist — the last two of which are now available for pre-order.

“Almost two years after our initial launch, it is abundantly clear why we entered this market: As creatives, we felt there was a void of beautifully designed smartwatches where users could customize technology to their unique lifestyle,” Jill Elliot, Fossil’s chief creative officer, said in a press release. “We are aware that our customers want more than just an exceptional product — they want an exceptional experience.”

Touchscreen watches

For watch wearers who want a more technological fashion statement, there’s the new Q Venture and Q Explorist. The Venture sports a 11.5mm case — compared to the Explorist’s 12.6mm case — the thinnest of Fossil’s smartwatches to date.

The watches feature round touchscreens with improved brightness and clarity over last year’s models, as well as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor paired with 4GB of memory.

They also ship running the latest version of Google’s smartwatch operating system, Android Wear 2.0, which is almost worth the price of admission alone. The new Android Wear boasts greater watch face customization, a stand-alone app store that doesn’t require a phone, improved fitness tracking, and Google’s voice-activated, AI-powered Google Assistant. It’s a big deal.

That’s not all the Q Venture and Q Explorist pack. Both come with freebies like a “vintage arcade-inspired” game, interchangeable straps, and a fast magnetic charger. As mentioned, the two devices are now up for pre-order, and they both start at $255. You can get the Q Venture here, and the Q Explorist here. There’s no word yet on when the watches will be available in stores, though Fossil says they’ll hit stores in “early fall.”

Fossil has also announced new watches from Diesel, Emporio Armani, and Michael Kors. The details are forthcoming, but the company said they’ll launch later this year.

New hybrid smartwatches

Not everyone wants to deal with the hassle of full-blown smartwatches. That’s where Fossil’s coin battery-powered hybrid line comes in. The Q Accomplice and Q Activist are the slimmest of the company’s hybrid watches to date, and boast design details that “highlight the goal to create the most functionally beautiful and elevated hybrid smartwatches on the market.”

The Q Accomplice and Q Activist ship with three customizable “pushers,” a new hybrid model that replaces the the previous generation’s mode selector. Those pushers can be programmed through the Fossil Q app to trigger a selfie, skip to the next music track in a playlist, set a unique ring tone to help find a missing phone, and more.

Just like Fossil’s other hybrid watches, the Q Accomplice and Q Activist deliver email alerts, activity reminders, call notifications, and more with haptic vibration motors. And the Q Activist, which is based on Fossil’s Vintage 54, uniquely features a double-layer dial that tracks calendar dates and a tachymeter scale for stopwatch functionality.

The Q Accomplice and Q Venture will launch in stores later this year for $155 to $175.

Update: The Fossil Q Venture and Q Explorist are now available for pre-order.

Intel’s fastest X-Series chips will challenge AMD’s Threadripper in September

Why it matters to you

We compiled all the Intel Extreme Edition news you need into one post for when you begin building your next high-end PC gaming desktop.

In the desktop processor space, Intel addresses four markets: entry-level, mainstream, performance, and enthusiast. The latter two would seemingly fit into the same category, but Intel typically lets is hair fall down and goes all out with the enthusiast market, cramming in as many unlocked cores as possible for prices reaching up into four digits. Here’s all the Intel X-Series news  you need.

Intel’s current crop of X-Series processors contains 12 models dating back to the third quarter of 2014. Another Core i9 model is slated to arrive on August 28, followed by three more Core i9 chips on September 25.

The motherboard manufacturers supporting these chips haven’t held back. Gigabyte has around 26 models, the biggest third-party X Series component supplier we’ve seen thus far. So, to make building an X Series desktop easy, we’ve thrown all the Intel X Series news and information we could find in a single post.

Big seats for big performance

Currently, the Core X-Series desktop processor family relies on two different motherboard “seats,” or sockets, created by Intel. The LGA 2066 socket is the latest version to accommodate the seventh-generation chips, and replaces the LGA 2011-v3 motherboard seat used by Intel’s sixth and fifth-generation X-Series processors. As a brief explanation, LGA is short for land grid array, which describes the grid of contacts located on the belly of an Intel processor. The socket’s number corresponds to the number of contacts on the actual CPU.

That said, these two processor seats are used by specific processors based on specific CPU designs, and are compatible with specific motherboard chipsets created by Intel. The newer LGA 2066 socket supports the seventh-generation Intel Core i5-7640X chip to the upcoming Core i9-7980XE, and the X299 motherboard chipset. The LGA 2011-v3 socket supports the fifth-generation i7-5820K to the sixth-generation i7-6950X, and the X99 motherboard chipset.

Here’s an easier way to see the X-Series landscape:

Processors
Generation
Socket
Chipset
i5-7640X to
i9-7980XE
7
LGA 2066
X299
i7-6800K to
i7-6950X
6
LGA 2011-v3
X99
i7-5820K to
i7-5960X
5
LGA 2011-v3
X99

Notice in the chart that the processor number corresponds with its generational design. For example, the first number after the hyphen for the i7-5820K is “5,” which means it’s a fifth-generation chip. All generational processor designs have code-names too, with the fifth generation code-named “Broadwell,” the sixth generation named “Skylake,” and the seventh generation named “Kaby Lake.”

A confusing family tree

But Intel will take a generational chip design, revamp it for better processing and added features, and launch products alongside the current-generation portfolio. Thus, you’ll find new X-Series processors released this year that are based on last-year’s chip design, only enhanced and now considered as a current-generation solution.

For instance, Intel launched its “Skylake” sixth-generation processor family in August of 2015. But Intel’s seven new X-Series chips ranging from the i7-7800X to the i9-7980XE are based on an enhanced version code-named “Skylake-X” that provides extra internal work space for the chip to use during its calculations, and the largest core count thus far. This processor design also increases the number of supported PCI Express 3.0 lanes to 44, supports quad-channel DDR4 memory up to 2,666MHz, and disables the integrated graphics.

Next are two X-Series chips that are based on Intel’s “Kaby Lake-X” architecture, the i5-7640X and the i7-7740X. This enhancement to the current processor design disables the integrated graphics, and increases the chip’s total power draw so it can receive extra voltage for higher speeds. And like the Skylake-X models, these processors are unlocked, enabling users to push the chips beyond their out-of-the-box limits.

Further down the X-Series totem pole are four sixth-generation processors based on a revised fifth-generation design called “Broadwell.” The revision is dubbed as “Broadwell-E,” and introduced support for mainstream enthusiast processors with ten cores. The original Broadwell design is actually a smaller version of Intel’s previous fifth-generation processor design called “Haswell.”

To make matters even more confusing, Intel redesigned the original Haswell architecture and dubbed it as “Haswell-E” for its fifth-generation processor lineup. This design increased the supported core count to eight for the enthusiast mainstream processor market. Intel sells three X-Series desktop processors based on the Haswell-E architecture.

If all of this code-name and generational talk is a little confusing, perhaps this chart will provide a better visual reference for all the lakes and wells in play:

Generation 7
Generation 6
Generation 5
Skylake-X (Q2/Q4 2017)
Kaby Lake-X (Q2 2017)
Kaby Lake (Q1 2017)
Broadwell-E (Q2 2016)
Skylake (Q3 2015)
Broadwell (Q1 2015)
Haswell-E (Q3 2014)
Haswell (Q2 2013)

Intel Core X-Series’ current line-up

Lastly, here are the actual X-Series processors, their prices, speeds, and launch dates. Keep in mind that the four chips arriving in late August and September don Intel’s new Core i9 branding, and follow the first Core i9-branded chip released in the second quarter of 2017. The current Core i9 chip hits the $1,000 barrier, while the 18-core i9-7980XE monster will cost the enthusiast crowd twice that amount.

Remember: this is just for a single processor. Adding all the other components like the case, motherboard, graphics card, and whatnot are in addition to those four-digit price tags. Eventually all of the new technology will trickle down into the mainstream markets, such as having more than four cores, and more than two speeds. But for the latest processor technology from Intel, you’re going to shell out bags of cash.

Generation/
Architecture
Cores/
Threads
Base Speed
Turbo Speed
Max Speed
Available
Price
i9-7980XE
7
Skylake-X
18 / 36
2.60GHz
4.20GHz
4.40GHz
Sept. 25
$1,999
i9-7960X
7
Skylake-X
16 / 32
2.8GHz
4.20GHz
4.40GHz
Sept. 25
$1,699
i9-7940X
7
Skylake-X
14 / 28
3.10GHz
4.30GHz
4.40GHz
Sept. 25
$1,399
i9-7920X
7
Skylake-X
12 / 24
2.90GHz
4.30GHz
4.40GHz
August 28
$1,199
i9-7900X
7
Skylake-X
10 / 20
3.30GHz
4.30GHz
4.50GHz
Q2 2017
$999
i7-7820X
7
Skylake-X
8 / 16
3.60GHz
4.30GHz
4.50GHz
Q2 2017
$599
i7-7800X
7
Skylake-X
6 / 12
3.50GHz
4.00GHz
N/A
Q2 2017
$389
i7-7740X
7
Kaby Lake-X
4 / 8
4.30GHz
4.50GHz
N/A
Q2 2017
$339
i5-7640X
7
Kaby Lake-X
4 / 4
4.00GHz
4.20GHz
N/A
Q2 2017
$242
i7-6950X
6
Broadwell-E
10 / 20
3.00GHz
3.50GHz
N/A
Q2 2016
$1,399
i7-6900K
6
Broadwell-E
8 / 16
3.20GHz
3.70GHz
N/A
Q2 2016
$889
i7-6850K
6
Broadwell-E
8 / 16
3.60GHz
3.80GHz
N/A
Q2 2016
$359
i7-6800K
6
Broadwell-E
6 / 12
3.40GHz
3.60GHz
N/A
Q2 2016
$319
i7-5960X
5
Haswell-E
8 / 16
3.00GHz
3.50GHz
N/A
Q3 2014
$1,072
i7-5930K
5
Haswell-E
6 / 12
3.50GHz
3.70GHz
N/A
Q3 2014
$480
i7-5820K
5
Haswell-E
6 / 12
3.30GHz
3.60GHz
N/A
Q3 2014
$374

What’s next for the X-Series?

Once the last four X-Series processors based on the Skylake-X design hit the market, Intel will mainly focus on getting its eighth-generation processors to the market based on its “Coffee Lake” design. Yes, we are well aware of all the lakes flowing out of Intel. Even more, the next X-Series chips will likely be based on Kaby Lake-X and Coffee Lake-X in the second half of 2018, staying true to Intel’s liquid code names.

That said, keep checking back for more Intel Extreme Edition news right here as all related products hit the street.