GPU Archives

BetaBeacon

May 16, 2025

Samsung Game Booster Plus lets you remap controllers and enhance game graphics

The Game Booster Plus module is now available for download on One UI 7 devices via the Galaxy Store. Some features of the module are not accessible on older devices. The module offers three menus for controller remapping, GPU settings for games, and game categorization. The GPU settings menu introduces new options for adjusting performance modes and settings on a per-game basis, but it requires a more modern Samsung phone. The game category settings allow users to designate any app as a game in the system, enhancing the quality and performance of emulated games.

Winsage

May 15, 2025

Microsoft Surface PCs with Arm-based AMD chip could arrive in 2026

Microsoft is set to introduce a new line of Surface PCs in 2026 featuring AMD's Arm-based chip, codenamed Sound Wave. The Sound Wave chip is expected to be an APU with six CPU cores (two for performance and four for efficiency) and an integrated GPU with four compute units based on the RDNA 3.5 architecture, designed for a thermal envelope of 5-10W. This suggests a strategy for low-powered Surface PCs, potentially refreshing the Surface Go or Surface Hub models. This will be the first time since the Surface Laptop 4 that Microsoft incorporates an AMD processor into its Surface lineup. Recently, Microsoft launched new models, including a 12-inch Surface Pro and a 13-inch Surface Laptop, powered by the Snapdragon X Plus, which may outperform the upcoming AMD Sound Wave chip.

Winsage

May 15, 2025

Windows 11 starts giving custom advice based on your PC hardware

A new hardware assessment feature for Windows 11 has entered the testing phase for Windows Insiders and will soon be available to all Windows 11 24H2 users. This feature can be found in the Settings app under a dedicated FAQ section on the About page. It includes expandable questions related to system performance, such as RAM capacity and GPU requirements for gaming and video editing. Users will receive tailored answers based on their specific hardware configurations, helping them determine if their setup is adequate for various tasks.

Winsage

May 15, 2025

3 reasons Windows 11 is the best advertisement Linux ever had

Windows 11 requires TPM 2.0 support for installation, creating compatibility issues for users with older hardware, even if the hardware is otherwise capable of running the OS. Many users are still on Windows 10 as the support deadline approaches, with some considering Linux as an alternative since it does not impose TPM 2.0 restrictions. Linux distributions can be installed on machines lacking TPM 2.0, allowing users to retain their existing hardware. Older CPUs, typically from Intel's 7th generation or earlier, are often incompatible with Windows 11 but can run Linux efficiently, sometimes improving application performance. Linux offers more customization and less bloat compared to Windows, appealing to users frustrated with Windows 11's limitations. The shift to Windows 11 has prompted some users to explore Linux as a viable alternative.

Winsage

May 14, 2025

WSL is the best feature added to Windows in the last decade

Microsoft introduced the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) in the Windows 10 Anniversary Update in August 2016, initially as a tool for developers. WSL debuted as a beta version with a native-kernel translation layer, allowing Windows to run unmodified Linux ELF binaries. Its early performance was limited, leading users to prefer Linux virtual machines for full compatibility. The launch of WSL2 in May 2020 replaced the translation layer with a lightweight, real Linux kernel running in a Hyper-V utility VM, providing near-native performance and comprehensive syscall coverage. WSL2 has since seen continuous improvements, including GPU-compute and CUDA support in 2021, full GUI support for X11 and Wayland applications in 2022, and systemd support in September 2022. WSL2 approaches the performance of bare-metal Linux while integrating seamlessly with Windows, allowing users to launch a Linux shell easily. It enables developers to access the C drive and interact between Windows and Linux environments without dual-booting. WSL2 enhances productivity for data science workflows, allowing the use of tools like PyTorch with CUDA. It also offers features for non-developers, such as creating aliases for launching Windows applications and running Linux GUI applications. WSL's integration into Windows represents a significant shift, providing opportunities for users across various domains to explore Linux functionalities.

Winsage

May 13, 2025

How to install and use Ollama to run AI LLMs on your Windows 11 PC

The current landscape of artificial intelligence interactions includes cloud-based tools like ChatGPT and Copilot, but some users, especially developers, prefer running large language models (LLMs) locally. Ollama provides a solution for this preference. To run LLMs effectively, hardware requirements include a GPU, with larger models needing more computational power. For example, Google's Gemma 3 has a 1 billion parameter model requiring 2.3GB of VRAM and a 4 billion parameter version needing over 9GB. Meta's Llama 3.2 has similar requirements. A modern PC with at least 8GB of RAM and a dedicated GPU can utilize Ollama. To install Ollama on Windows 11, users download the installer from the official website or GitHub and follow the installation process. Once installed, it operates in the background, indicated by an icon in the taskbar, and can be accessed via localhost:11434 in a web browser. Ollama primarily uses a command-line interface (CLI), requiring users to use PowerShell or WSL. Key commands include "ollama pull" to install LLMs and "ollama run" to execute them. For instance, to install the 1 billion parameter Google Gemma 3 LLM, users would enter "ollama pull gemma3:1b". Running the models opens a chatbot interface for user interaction, and exiting can be done by typing "/bye". Setting up Ollama is user-friendly and requires minimal technical expertise.

AppWizard

May 11, 2025

I just tested Doom: The Dark Ages on an RTX 5090 PC — and I’m still in shock

Doom: The Dark Ages was tested on an Alienware Area-51 gaming PC with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090, achieving 155 frames per second at Ultra Nightmare settings and 4K resolution without DLSS. With DLSS 4 x4 activated, the frame rate increased to 344 fps. The Alienware setup included an Intel Ultra Core 9 285K CPU, 64GB of RAM, and a 2TB SSD. Testing with other RTX 50 series cards showed the RTX 5060 Ti reached 153 fps at 4K with DLSS 4, while the RTX 5070 Ti achieved 185 fps with DLSS 4. Performance results for various RTX 50 cards at different settings were provided, highlighting their capabilities.

AppWizard

May 10, 2025

What to do if Steam games won’t launch

Steam, the most popular gaming platform on PC, sometimes experiences issues where games do not launch. To address this, users should check that their PC meets the game's minimum requirements, ensure the operating system and graphics drivers are updated, verify the integrity of game files through Steam, relocate games to the primary drive if necessary, and manage background applications that may cause conflicts. Additionally, installing specific Visual C++ redistributables from the game’s folder can resolve startup crashes. If problems persist, uninstalling and reinstalling Steam after cleaning the Windows registry may be necessary.

Winsage

May 5, 2025

Microsoft silently fixes Start menu bug affecting Windows 10 PCs

Microsoft has resolved a problem that disrupted the functionality of Start Menu jump lists on Windows 10, version 22H2. The issue originated from a Controlled Feature Rollout (CFR) initiated in March 2025, which aimed to enhance account control but led to complications. Microsoft paused the rollout in late April 2025 after receiving user feedback about the inability to view jump lists for apps. The problematic rollout was halted on April 25, 2025, preventing new devices from encountering the glitch. The issue mainly affected users of Windows 10 Home and Pro editions. Affected users are advised to ensure their devices are connected to the internet and to restart their systems to apply the fix.

AppWizard

May 4, 2025

Nvidia’s DLSS is a game-changer for PC gaming – here’s how it works

Nvidia's Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) was introduced in 2018 with the GeForce RTX 20-series graphics cards and has evolved into its fourth iteration, becoming a standard expectation for modern PC games. DLSS enhances gameplay by upscaling lower-resolution images, improving frame rates, and enabling advanced graphical effects without sacrificing performance. The latest version, DLSS 4, debuted with the GeForce RTX 50-series in 2025 and features a new transformer model to enhance image quality. DLSS includes Frame Generation, which creates additional frames to improve gameplay fluidity, and Multi-Frame Generation, which can produce up to three additional frames per real frame. DLSS significantly reduces the performance impact of ray tracing, allowing gamers to enjoy high-quality graphics without compromising frame rates. Over 500 games and applications currently support DLSS technology.