You can find this review in full at GBAtemp.net:
https://gbatemp.net/review/asus-rog-strix-xg16ahp-portable-monitor.1999/

I’ve had some good fun covering some of ASUS’ recent hardware releases. Having previously looked at their ZenScreen and enjoying the additional versatility a portable monitor could provide, I kept an eye out for the perfect match. The monitor that would surpass what I had previously tried and slot perfectly into my on the go setup. This is that monitor.

It’s no secret that I’m not the most technically-minded reviewer with this kind of things, and as ever I hold my hands up to that. As usual though, I will try my best with the hand I have been dealt to show you what I like so much about this thing. At a glance you have a 1920 by 1080 panel that’s capable of 144 Hz and supports variable refresh rates. At 15.6 inches diagonally, it strikes a great balance of portability and screen space, and comes packed with a whopper 7800 mAh battery to boot, enabling you to use it on the go with no wall plug to tether you down. Looking at the ports available, you have a USB C for charging, a USB C for display input, as well as a more traditional micro HDMI port. Everything on offer is a significant step up from the ZenScreen I looked at last year from ASUS.

With the ZenScreen coming in at around £220 at the time of writing, and the Strix being almost double that, you would expect a certain difference in feature sets. The flashiest upgrade is in the monitor refresh rate, letting you push your mobile setup to its absolute limits. At first I did think 144 Hz was somewhat overkill in a product where you might want to prioritise play time over pushing the most frames, but it didn’t take long for me to appreciate it. To my surprise, my GPD Win 3 was capable of playing games like Monster Hunter Rise above 100 FPS, which gave me a really enjoyable time when I went to visit my friend for the game’s launch. With VRR enabled, the gameplay felt smooth despite not actually hitting that 144 Hz cap. You can naturally play at lower refresh rates if you want to get a longer play session out of your charge though. 

Much like the ZenScreen, I found myself incredibly impressed with the colours on offer in the display. With every ASUS display I’ve tried to date, it’s a constant I’m glad to see upheld in the Strix. A bit of a surprise to me, all of the specific gaming features found in the larger VG28U were available here too. This means I had a great array of colour settings to play with, as well as a few game enhancing and fun features like a zoomed-in sniper spot in the middle of the screen. It’s fun to pretend I could definitely make an insane pistol shot from across the map in Hitman. Maybe one day I’ll do it without the training wheels. 

With this being a gaming-centric monitor, my biggest point of relief was the 3ms response time from the IPS panel. On paper the difference between 5ms in the ZenScreen and 3ms here doesn’t seem all that noteworthy, but it’s night and day in terms of usability. You do get used to 5ms if all you’re wanting is a monitor for watching videos and a bit of additional productivity, which is exactly the audience the ZenScreen is targeting. For any more than that though you’ll likely be left wanting. The Strix on the other hand slotted right into my setup. When I’m at home, it sits on my oh so cluttered desk, and when I head out to play games with friends, it comes with me in my bag. It’s effortless. It doesn’t feel like a portable monitor. It feels like a monitor that I can just put in my bag, and while that might sound like meaningless semantics, to me it’s a testament to its quality in surpassing the flaws of what I’ve seen in portable monitors. It even comes with an adjustable tripod you can mount it to, on top of the built-in kickstand. With me never really coming to terms with the folio case of the ZenScreen, both of these options proved to be great. The kickstand being diagonally oriented across the back of the display, it’s able to accommodate both the traditional landscape and ever-useful portrait layouts. Even at home it’s become my favourite option for playing Groove Coaster on the Switch with how easy it is to just pick up and turn on its side. 

The built in speakers go a long way in completing the gaming on the go package. While you’re naturally not going to find the same volume or depth of sound as a standalone speaker, I’ve found them more than adequate for what I need. Those wanting something better do have access to a 3.5mm jack on the side of the monitor though, so you’re free to use something a bit beefier if your setup demands it.  

This monitor was originally offered to me on loan like the ZenScreen was, but on seeing its specs, I just went out to buy one before the lovely PR folks had a chance to send it my way. A little over a month later I can say I have absolutely no regrets in this choice. While it is an expensive piece of kit, it does a lot to justify its premium price point. This is the creme de la creme of portable monitors, and an asset to any on the go setups, which might be more significant with the Steam Deck right around the corner. If you have the budget, I can’t recommend it enough.

You can find this review in full at GBAtemp.net:
https://gbatemp.net/review/intel-i5-12600k-cpu.1987/

Intel is a name that needs no introduction. For many years the de facto choice for your PC’s CPU, they’ve since found themselves fiercely competing with AMD in both power and affordability. Hoping to be back on top once more, the 12th generation is here in three forms: the i9 12900, the i7 12700, and the i5 12600 we have on hand for review today. Each CPU comes in both a K and KF model, including and not including integrated graphics respectively, giving you a small saving if you’re going to be using a graphics card either way.

You can find an overview of the specs below:

	i5 12600K	i5 12600KF
RRP	$289	$264
Processor Graphics	Intel UHD Graphics 770	N/A
Cores/Threads	10/16	10/16
P-Cores	6	6
E-Cores	4	4
Max Turbo Frequency	4.90 GHz	4.90 GHz
P-Core Max Turbo Frequency	4.90 GHz	4.90 GHz
E-Core Max Turbo Frequency	3.60 GHz	3.60 GHz
P-Core Base Frequency	3.70 GHz	3.70 GHz
E-Core Base Frequency	2.80 GHz	2.80 GHz
Cache	20 MB Intel Smart Cache	20 MB Intel Smart Cache
Total L2 Cache	9.5 MB	9.5 MB
Processor Base Power	125 W	150 W

So to jump to the point, what exactly makes the 12th generation of Intel CPU any different to the 11th? They have a higher performance ceiling, that much can be assumed. The real point of interest here is in the hybrid architecture, taking a page out of Arm’s book with its big-little design. Instead of having each core operate at the same level, the CPUs on offer here have two types: performance and efficiency. Performance cores are the heavy lifters, while efficiency cores are designed to operate, as the name suggests, as efficiently as possible. Where in mobile computing this is particularly useful in battery preservation, only bringing out the performance cores when necessary, there are other aspects that also benefit the battery-less desktop design. Frankly, not every app you run on your PC is going to need its full power. The efficiency cores can be used to handle tasks that are perhaps non-time critical, or that simply don’t need everything being thrown at it. I’ve simplified this a fair bit, but if you are interested in the architecture, there’s a ton of information on big-little floating around.

It isn’t without its flaws, though the biggest kinks have been worked out since the chips launched late last year. Due to the hybrid design, certain DRM detected the efficiency cores as a separate system, causing crashes at startup or randomly during gameplay. Bravely Default 2, Mortal Kombat 11, and Far Cry Primal were among a list of more than 50 titles known to have issues. Though this has since been resolved through patches to games and Windows updates, it does shine an interesting light on the issues that come with this kind of change, at least for early adopters. With some luck, this is the last we’ll hear of it.

Looking to the actual performance of the 12600 you’re unlikely to be disappointed. I only have two CPUs at my disposal at the moment, the 12600 itself and a more budget Ryzen 5 3600 in my main desktop setup. It’s worth noting the 3600 is more than a year old now and it’s not an even comparison. Our local mag staffer Tom also pitched in with the benchmarks, contributing his scores from a more comparable Ryzen 7 5800X. If you want to look up more CPU benchmarks to get a better idea of where this lands, check out a site like cpubenchmark.net.

The benchmarking tool I had handy was Cinebench R23, a free utility designed to push a CPU to its limits. I had originally installed this when isolating an issue on my personal PC build that caused it to crash, this ultimately leading to me upgrading my cooling solution when I found out the stock fan was causing my CPU to peak at 110 degrees Celsius. As well as this, you can find the scores from Geekbench 5 in the table below.

	Ryzen 5 3600	Ryzen 7 5800X	Intel i5 12600K
Cinebench Multi Core	8792 pts	15363 pts	16648 pts
Cinebench Single Core	1146 pts	1594 pts	1817 pts
Geekbench Multi Core	6998	10800	12300
Geekbench Single Core	1185	1705	1794

Beyond raw performance, the 12600K does a good job in future proofing itself in its compatibility for both DDR5 and PCIe 5.0, whilst still retaining compatibility with DDR4 RAM for those not looking to completely overhaul their setup at the moment. This is particularly important with the high costs of DDR5 at the moment though you’ll be needing to buy a new motherboard for the LGA1700 socket either way, and at the time of writing at least, they don’t come cheap. With the CPU also not including a stock fan, you’ll also need to go out of your way to get something that supports this new socket, though it should be noted companies like Noctua already have kits available to fit their existing range.

For those curious, you can find the full build used in the review below:

• Motherboard: ROG Strix Z690-E Gaming WiFi
• GPU: TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 3070 Ti
• RAM: Polaris RGB 32 GB (2×16 GB) @ 4800 MHz

All in all, the 12600 stands out as the current primo pick for any budding new gaming PC build, but whether it’s worth upgrading for might be a more difficult question. It’s a money sink no matter which way you look at it, but the performance on offer paired with the DDR5 and PCIe 5.0 support make it a fine choice if you know you’ll be putting money down either way.

You can find this review in full at GBAtemp.net:
https://gbatemp.net/review/retroflag-gpi-case-2.1991/

In this modern age you can emulate your entire retro library on everything from your phone to your fridge. Despite its significant accessibility, many retro fans are left longing for the perfect way to play. Some want an all in one console to leave hooked up to their TV. Others want something they can pull out of their bag and play for ten minutes at a time. And there are those who just want a blast of nostalgia. Aiming to please all three of these crowds Retroflag is back to iterate on its popular GPi Case, now compatible with the more powerful Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4.

For those completely out of the loop, Raspberry Pi systems have long-been an affordable and effective means of retro emulation. With popular Linux distributions such as RetroPie and Lakka making the playing of these titles seamless and really quite stylish once setup, it’s easy to see why so many turn to them to fill this niche role. So where does Retroflag fit into this equation? In order to make Raspberry Pi gaming portable, they’re back with an almost-all-in-one solution wrapped in the image of Nintendo’s own first handheld. At a glance, it’s magnificent.

Though a bit smaller than the original Game Boy, coming in at a size closer to the Game Boy Pocket, I think Retroflag have absolutely nailed the look and feel of this classic console. The plastic, the buttons, the D-Pad, even the rubber start and select buttons. They’re all here and they feel so brilliantly close to the real deal, even matching up the volume slider, contrast slider, headphone jack, and physical power switch to their proper locations. The screen is, as you might expect, a notable improvement on the original Game Boy, coming in at 3 inches from corner to corner. As well as this, you have two bonus buttons hidden in plain sight at the front of the device for turbo and home functionality, as well as an X and Y button for additional retro compatibility. Hidden quite out of plain sight however are the L and R buttons, built into the case itself and being the only real questionable standout. They’re just a bit awkward. I understand wanting to keep the integrity of the original Game Boy form factor to an extent, but I still think I’d have preferred something closer to Anbernic’s RG351V, where there’s a ridge on the back for your fingers to rest on. If you’re playing games that only make light use of the shoulder buttons though, they do fine. You need to get into the habit of pressing on the front of the case as you press them in to maintain a grip on the device, but if you’re just, for example, changing boxes in a Pokemon game, you’ll get by.

Installation of the board into the case is as simple as popping off the top of the case and slotting it into where the cartridge would sit. It’s quick and easy, with access to this area not requiring a screwdriver. Having said that, with just five Phillips head screws holding the back of the case together, it’s incredibly easy to remove if you’d prefer to have more space to work with. Though I had no issues removing the board and putting it back in, it should be noted there really isn’t much room where the board actually fits into the device, meaning your options for heat dissipation are really quite limited. This unit being sent to me by Shaun after he finished his first impressions post, it had a small heat sync installed already. I haven’t run into any heat-related issues in the time I’ve been using it myself at least. You will need to take care when inserting and removing the Micro SD card, with the case opting for a bit of an awkward latch in oppose to a more common spring-based eject system. It’s awkward but you do get used to it after so many removals.

The screen is really quite nice. At 3 inches with a 4:3 aspect ratio, you’re set for some sharp gaming on a good chunk of common retro consoles. Outside of this though, I found the borders on the 3:2 GBA games and 10:9 GB games to be perfectly fine when playing. You can of course have these games stretch to the full size of the screen when playing, but this is a particularly hairy point of contention among retro fanatics. You have nice control of screen brightness via a physical slider where the contrast slider once sat, which is analogue in nature. At least I think that’s the correct terminology. If you scroll it all the way down, you’ll hit a limit and you can’t scroll it anymore. I like it a lot. 

When comparing this to the original GPi Case, the most significant upgrade will naturally be in the performance. Where the original case could only house a Pi Zero, and later a Pi Zero 2, this model comes sporting support for the latest and greatest in ultra portable Raspberry Pi boards: the Compute Module 4. This is ultimately a Raspberry Pi 4 stripped down to the essentials, and boy does it show.

All your usual retro giants run as expected. As a Nintendo junkie myself, I’ve enjoyed NES, SNES, and all the Game Boys in this compact bundle of nostalgia. Looking past that though, it is capable of more, even if the controls available aren’t exactly tailored to it. What this handheld lacks is an analogue stick, and while the lack of stick contributes to the original Game Boy aesthetic, it puts a lot of the additional power on offer to waste. Sure you can remap controls in RetroArch to have your D Pad act as an analogue stick; this does work fine for the most part. Especially with N64 games where they’re largely designed to use one of the stick or D-Pad, but it isn’t ideal. It’s worth mentioning here that I also never managed to get this to work. Though I tried to play Sonic Adventure 1 and 2 on the system, and they seemed to run well, I couldn’t move, and I couldn’t figure out what was wrong in the settings. In all likelihood this is me not finding one specific thing that should or shouldn’t be enabled, but it does take away from the larger ease of use.

Though you can’t comfortably play these games on the go, the GPi Case 2 does put this power to use in other ways thanks to a dock that comes with the deluxe edition. It’s not exactly as seamless as the Switch’s hybrid capabilities, but it’s an interesting offering on a device like this. First and foremost, there’s no quick switch between handheld and docked play. To dock the system, you need to turn it off, and turn it back on in the dock. The same is true when going from docked to handheld. I do like the idea of the dock, but the lack of ability to fluidly switch from playing on the go to on the big screen is a bit of a disappointment. Having said that, it does enable you to utilise the fullest potential of the CM4 that the limited controls of the case would struggle to accommodate. It’s less of a hybrid system, and more of two standalone devices in how I view it. It does beg the question though: would you just be better off with two standalone devices?

It’s difficult to say. With Linux-based handhelds only getting more competitive and even older PCs that you may just have lying around being able to match this kind of performance when hooked up to a display, there’s certainly a case to be made for going down that kind of route. Devices like the GPi Case 2 are what I would call an extravagance. Make no mistake, it does achieve what it sets out to comfortably, but it’s overspecced for the things it does best. The real allure of this device to me is in its portability and faithful recreation of the Game Boy’s original design but in this faithfulness, or more precisely its lack of analogue stick, it finds itself unable to live up to its fullest potential.

I still do recommend it though. If you’re wanting a plenty powerful device that looks and feels like a slightly more compact Game Boy this is an absolute dream. Just make sure you can source a CM4 board beforehand, since it’s not included in the kit.