Seagate Technology Holdings plc, a mass-capacity data storage leader, today introduced the Seagate FireCuda Forge drive, representing the first Seagate hard drive powered by the Alkemi intelligent storage platform. With Alkemi, the FireCuda Forge combines solid-state drive (SSD) responsiveness and hard disk drive (HDD) capacity in a single drive, using adaptive intelligence to give gamers and creators the speed and space they need without added complexity.

A new platform for a new reality
From massive game libraries and 4K video to AI-powered animation, people are creating, working with, and keeping more data than ever. IDC projects annual global data generation will more than triple, from 218 zettabytes in 2025 to more than 718 zettabytes by 2030. As digital libraries expand, consumers need fast access to active content and the capacity to preserve growing collections.

ASUS today announced the XG Core Radeon RX 9060 XT LP 16 GB GDDR6, a compact external graphics solution that adds discrete graphics to compatible laptops, gaming handhelds and mini PCs through USB4 connectivity. Powered by AMD RDNA 4 architecture, it pairs 16 GB of GDDR6 memory with support for gaming, creative applications and compatible AI workloads. With the XG Core, users do not need to make any internal hardware modifications to their device to access the power of discrete graphics.

Discrete graphics for more demanding workloads
Thin laptops and compact PCs make everyday computing convenient, but users may need additional graphics power as their games and applications become more demanding. XG Core offers a way to extend the capabilities of a compatible device without replacing the entire system. Its external design adds a dedicated GPU when needed, giving users the flexibility to keep the device they already use for work, travel or play.

Satechi has introduced the ExtendView USB4 Dual HDMI Multiport Adapter. This is a compact, seven-port hub that connects two 4K displays at 60 Hz through a USB4 cable. The adapter works with Mac and Windows laptops without additional drivers or DisplayLink software. Besides the two HDMI 2.0 outputs, the adapter features two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 and two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports, all supporting up to 10 Gbps of data transfer speeds. The dedicated USB-C power delivery port accepts up to 140 W from an external charger and delivers up to 125 W to the connected laptop. The USB-C data ports do not support video output, while the power delivery port is limited to charging.

The adapter connects to the host through an integrated 20.1 cm long braided USB4 cable with a bandwidth of up to 40 Gbps. It also features a built-in cable storage slot and an LED power indicator. The aluminium enclosure has an anodized Space Black finish and measures 140 x 59 x 20 mm, with a weight of 168.5 g.

Targus, a global leader in laptop cases and mobile computing accessories and the number one third-party docking station brand in the U.S., today launched the USB-C Alt. Mode Single Video 8K Mobile Dock with Built-In GaN Charger (DOCK402TT). Designed for portable power and connectivity, the new dock combines laptop power, display output, peripheral connections, and wired networking in one travel-ready, sustainable design.

David Dorantes, Director of Product Marketing, Targus"Mobile professionals shouldn't have to carry a separate dock and charger to stay productive when they are away from their usual workspace. DOCK402TT combines both in one travel-ready device, delivering the power and connectivity they need with less gear to pack, carry, and manage."

Colorful has just released its latest overclocking motherboard, the X870E Ultra-S V14, a new E-ATX unit with 16+2+1 power phases, five M.2 slots, and plenty of high-speed I/O. The new motherboard, as shared by IT Home, is priced at 1,899 CNY, which comes out to around $284 at the time of writing, although it only seems to be available in China for the time being. The iGame X870E Ultra-S V14 is explicitly marketed to overclockers on AMD's AM5 platform, bearing XMP/EXPO memory overclocking and asynchronous BCLK CPU overclocking, a digital debug display, EZ Debug diagnosis, and easily accessible rear I/O buttons for both clear CMOS and BIOS updates.

The motherboard also features Wi-Fi 7 and 5 GbE networking built-in, alongside expansive rear I/O that includes: 4× USB Type-A 5 Gbps, 3× USB Type-A 10 Gbps, 2× USB Type-A 2.0, 2× USB4 40 Gbps, and both 3.5 mm line in/out ports and SPDIF out for audio. Colorful claims that its 16+2+1 VRMs are capable of 80 A, and the VRMs are covered by beefy aluminium heat sinks. It also has five M.2 slots for expanded storage, each with its own heat sink. The Colorful iGame X870E Ultra-S V14 is available on JD.com at the time of writing.

MINISFORUM today announced the S5, a fanless 5-bay all-flash Agent NAS. Powered by the Intel Core 3 304 processor, the S5 features 5 cores and a maximum clock speed of 4.3 GHz. It supports five M.2 NVMe SSDs for up to 40 TB of storage and is equipped with one 10GbE and one 2.5GbE LAN port with Wi-Fi and dual USB4 ports with speeds of up to 40 Gbps. By combining all-flash storage with fanless passive cooling, the S5 brings high-speed storage, quiet operation and low power consumption together in a compact chassis. It also supports an edge-cloud collaborative Agent architecture for always-on local Agent execution.

Compared with traditional HDDs, the S5 delivers up to 6x faster sequential read speeds and up to 100x faster random read speeds. For 4K/8K video projects, RAW photo libraries and large creative assets, higher read performance helps reduce waiting time when importing, browsing and accessing files. All-flash storage is also well suited to creative workflows that require frequent access to large project files.

The ever-growing list of mini PCs powered by AMD's Gorgon Halo APUs has just received its latest addition in the TOPC TXA2, a new workstation built around AMD's Ryzen AI Max+ Pro 495 APU and its powerful Radeon 8065S iGPU. The TOPC TXA2 is available in two configurations, with either 2 TB of storage for $6,399 or 4 TB of storage for $6,699 on TOPC's online store—even though the price is high, it's still a solid $900 cheaper than AMD's in-house Ryzen AI Halo Developer platform.

The TXA2 also packs 192 GB of LPDDR5X-8533 unified memory, with up to 160 GB shared with the iGPU for workstation use. Despite the 180 ×180 × 78 mm, or ~2.5 L chassis, TOPC claims that the TXA2 is capable of a 120 W TDP. It's also no slouch in the I/O department, with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 for wireless networking and connectivity, and it has a healthy port selection, to boot.

HP revealed the EliteBoard G2a keyboard PC at CES 2026, promising "next-generation local AI power in a keyboard-sized form factor." Now, 10 months later, HP has released the updated EliteBoard G2a, revealing pricing and some of the keyboard and underlying PC specs, in the process. The G2a features either the updated AMD Ryzen AI 7 Pro 450 APU or its smaller Ryzen AI 5 Pro 435 counterpart. The cheapest version of the HP EliteBoard G2a, which packs a Ryzen AI 5 Pro, 16 GB of DDR5-5600 memory, and 512 GB of PCIe Gen 5 SSD storage, comes in at $3,028, while the SKU with the Ryzen AI 7 Pro 450 APU paired with 32 GB of memory and a 512 GB SSD, comes in at $4,167.

The small form factor PC is capable of drawing 65 W over USB Power Delivery, and the only I/O it features is a single USB4 port and a single USB Type-C 10 Gbps port. The EliteBoard G2a also features built-in dual speakers and comes bundled with an HP 675M wireless mouse. The keyboard component of the mini PC is a membrane keyboard, not mechanical, and it follows what appears to be an 1800 layout, and it has white backlighting. Fortunately, the EliteBoard G2a uses SODIMM RAM, so it's upgradeable in the event that you want 32 GB of RAM but don't want to pay HP's upgrade cost.

Dell Technologies announces an expanded portfolio of Windows PCs and workstations built for the age of agentic AI. Together with NVIDIA and Microsoft, Dell delivers agentic AI across every stage of the creative and development journey, spanning a premium creator laptop, compact creator desktop and an AI workstation within the Windows environment.

NVIDIA RTX Spark comes to the XPS and Dell lineup for the first time, powering the new XPS 16 Creator Edition laptop and Dell Creator Edition Desktop. Paired with Windows, RTX Spark brings advanced AI, creative and gaming workloads together on a platform optimized for its performance. Dell Pro Precision with GB300 will be available on Windows, bringing always-on AI compute into the environment enterprise teams already depend on.

ASUS has already shown off its upcoming ProArt 16 creator laptop powered by the NVIDIA RTX Spark N1X Arm SoC at IFA 2026, but there was no exact launch date attached to the new laptops when we published our hands-on coverage on the show floor. Now, thanks to a new Weibo post by the official ASUS account, it has been revealed that ASUS will launch the ProArt P16 H7607BA (or a similar variant) on October 8, 2026—at least in China. It's not clear if this will be a simultaneous international launch, but, even if it isn't, an international launch shouldn't be too far behind.

ASUS on Weibo (machine translation)Smooth local AI agent response, creative workflows no longer reliant on the cloud
World's first AI agent PC | ASUS ProArt 16
Equipped with NVIDIA RTX Spark N1X super chip
Reconstructing the boundaries of professional creation, local computing power accelerates the implementation of the entire workflow
Coming October 8th

Sonnet, a US-based provider of connectivity solutions, has silently launched the Solo10G T5, a Thunderbolt 5 adapter that adds 10 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity to computers with Thunderbolt or USB4 ports. This follows the Thunderbolt 5 docking stations with 10 GbE connectivity released in April. The adapter uses a single RJ45 connector, offering 10 GbE over Cat 6 / Cat 6A cables for up to 55 / 100 meters, respectively. The device is compatible with Thunderbolt 5, Thunderbolt 4, USB4, and Thunderbolt 3 systems, and works with Mac, Windows, and Linux. Also, it can support 2.5 Gbps and 5 Gbps connections if paired with a compatible multi-gigabit switch, router, or NAS.

The adapter is bus-powered and rated at 7.5 W. It uses a fanless aluminium enclosure measuring 79.5 x 114 x 27.2 mm and weighs 260 g. The 0.3-meter Thunderbolt 5 cable can be replaced if necessary, while the adapter also supports AVB on Mac systems. Sonnet includes hardware-based firmware authentication, encrypted firmware and authenticated updates. The Solo10G T5 comes with a two-year warranty and lifetime technical support. The SonnetTech Solo10G T5 Thunderbolt 5 adapter is available for $199.99 on the company's website.

Intel's Core Ultra 400-series "Nova Lake" CPUs are reportedly nearing launch as Intel has successfully passed USB and PCIe compliance testing. This means the platform has officially passed testing with the two organizations, and all the advertised specifications are working correctly. Starting with the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), a governing body of the USB standard, there are two "Nova Lake-H" device IDs certified for compliance with USB4. These include devices with IDs D331 and D333. Additionally, USB-IF lists ID 6E6E for the "Nova Lake" PCH-S chipset for desktop motherboards, compliant with USB 3.2 Gen 2. Intel likely chose a desktop chipset and a laptop CPU to achieve Qualification by Similarity, where testing one product can earn certification for other products easily. To avoid revealing too much before the launch, Intel opted for this strategy instead of testing a full flagship desktop CPU.

For the PCI-SIG, a governing body for PCIe compliance, Intel's 900-series chipset has long been present with the IDs 6E38-6E3F, 6E30-6E35, and 6E40-6E47. These were added back in April, but in August, another set of entries for CPUs specifically appeared. Certifying the PCIe 5.0 x16 root complex were device IDs D461, D465, and D467-D46A, which are likely "Nova Lake-S" CPUs or some mobile variation. Regardless, the verification process is the final stage that a platform and the CPU usually go through before the launch is finalized.

Cable Matters introduces its 40 Gbps USB4 KVM Switch for two laptops, model 201342, designed to simplify workspaces shared by two computers. Users can switch a compatible USB-C monitor or docking station between laptops, giving the selected computer access to the connected display and peripherals without repeatedly moving cables.

Jeff Jiang, President of Cable Matters Inc."Switching between a work laptop and a personal computer should be simple. The new USB4 KVM switch lets users share a compatible monitor or docking station at the press of a button, making it easier to use both computers in one organized workspace."

StarTech.com has launched a new Universal Thunderbolt 5 Docking Station (206N-TB5USB4DOCK) built for power users who need more display space, more charging power, and fewer compromises at the desk. The dock supports up to four 4K 60 Hz monitors on Windows, giving IT teams a driverless way to equip demanding workstations for engineering, finance, development, content creation, and other multi-display workflows.

The dock delivers up to 140 W Power Delivery to the host laptop, supporting high-performance systems through the same connection used for displays, networking, storage, and peripherals. Its downstream Thunderbolt 5 port also provides up to 45 W of charging for compatible devices, adding another source of power for connected hardware.

Sonnet, the US-based accessory maker who previously launched the Echo 20 and 21 Thunderbolt 5 docking stations with 10 GbE, has officially released the Breakaway Box 850 T5, a Thunderbolt 5-based eGPU box with an industrial aesthetic and a built-in 850 W PSU. The Breakaway Box 850 T5 is available from Sonnet for $599.99.

The Breakaway Box 850 T5 is designed to accept triple-slot GPUs with dimensions up to 345 × 155 × 70 mm, and the included PSU features three 8-pin connectors that can be adapted to a 12v-2×6 connector in the case of the latest NVIDIA and certain AMD Radeon GPUs. The enclosure itself weighs 6.4 kg and measures 210 × 400 × 250 mm, and it is backwards-compatible with Thunderbolt 4 and USB4 in addition to Thunderbolt 5.

QNAP Systems, Inc., a leading innovator in storage, networking, and computing solutions, today announced the TS-h966TX, a compact and reliable 9-bay hybrid Thunderbolt 4 10GbE NAS designed to accelerate modern content creation workflows. Featuring a unique 5+4 hybrid drive design, the 9-bay TS-h966TX combines large-capacity SATA HDD storage with high-performance U.2 NVMe SSD acceleration—helping creators and small studios achieve both cost efficiency and fast project turnaround.

Compared to QNAP's previous HDD-based 6-bay Thunderbolt 4 NAS models, the TS-h966TX is physically 36% smaller, enabling more efficient workspace deployment without compromising performance. With four dedicated U.2 NVMe SSD bays (which support installing M.2 NVMe SSDs via the QDA-UMP4A adapter), users can build ultra-fast storage pools or enable SSD cache to boost IOPS for demanding editing, VFX, and multi-user production environments.

Other World Computing (OWC), a trusted leader in high-performance storage, memory, connectivity, software, and accessories that empower creative and business professionals to maximize performance, enhance reliability, and streamline workflows, today announced the expansion of its USB4 product portfolio with the addition of the OWC USB4 Hub and USB4 40 Gb/s Active Optical Cables in 3-Meter and 5-Meter Lengths.

The OWC USB4 Hub is designed for creative professionals, heavy storage users, and hybrid workers, as well as anyone using a modern laptop as their primary computer who wants full desktop connectivity without the clutter. With up to 40 Gb/s of total bandwidth, one USB4 cable connects their laptop to fast external storage, accessories, and an HDMI 2.1 display while delivering up to 81 W of charging - eliminating the constant juggling of ports, adapters, dongles, and chargers. In short, it gives users the portability of a laptop without connectivity compromises when they sit down to work.

At IFA 2026, GEEKOM revealed that the company has successfully interconnected multiple miniature PCs into a single local supercomputer capable of running inference with ease. At the company booth, GEEKOM demonstrated how it linked four of its A9 Mega mini PCs into a local inference cluster. The GEEKOM Private AI setup uses USB4 to connect these four mini PCs directly, eliminating the need for a dedicated rack or proprietary networking hardware. The result is essentially a miniature supercomputer that can sit on a desk, keeping AI workloads and data entirely local.

Each node is based on AMD's Ryzen AI Max+ 395, featuring 16 "Zen 5" CPU cores with integrated Radeon 8060S graphics and up to 128 GB of unified LPDDR5X memory running at 8,000 MT/s. Storage is provided by two PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 slots, supporting drives up to 4 TB. The compact 171 x 171.1 x 70.1 mm system also includes dual 2.5 GbE, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, USB4, and HDMI 2.1 connectivity. The processor has a 140 W TDP and an NPU rated at up to 50 TOPS, which means the total mini rack system will draw less than 1,000 W at peak load, making this setup extremely power efficient.

Club 3D, a Dutch technology innovator specializing in advanced computer connectivity solutions since 1997, released their products for August. Introducing the CAC-2510, an ultra-fast 40 Gbps USB4 NVMe enclosure engineered to deliver maximum data transfer speeds and high-performance external storage. We also introduced the CAC-1935, a compact fast charger designed to fit effortlessly into tight spaces while delivering reliable, high-speed power delivery.

Meet our 40 Gbps USB4 NVMe enclosure
High-performance external storage shouldn't force you to settle for thermal throttling or data transfer bottlenecks. The Club 3D CAC-2510 M.2 SSD Enclosure bridges the gap between pocket-sized mobility and blazing-fast desktop performance over a single, high-speed connection.

The Asahi Linux project development team has long been working on bringing Linux to Apple Silicon MacBooks and desktops, going so far as to show off games on the Arm-powered laptops. The latest patches to Asahi add proper support for USB4 and Thunderbolt on MacBooks with the M1, M2, and M3 SoCs, and that support is now making its way to the mainline Linux kernel, as per an upstream patch by prominent Asahi developer, Sven Peter.

This series adds initial USB4/Thunderbolt support for Apple Silicon M1, M2 and M3 SoCs. Each USB4 capable Type-C port comes with an ACIO ("Apple Converged I/O") block which contains a Cortex-M3 coprocessor and the hardware implementing the USB4 router.

AMD's update to the Strix Halo Ryzen AI Max+ 395 is the Gorgon Halo Ryzen AI Max+ Pro 495, which launched with 16 Zen 5 cores, a total of 32 threads, and AMD's Radeon 8065S iGPU. So far, Framework has been the biggest OEM to tease the new Halo APU, but it seems as though GMKtec will soon launch a new Gorgon Halo mini PC in the Evo-X5 Pro.

GMKtec's official X account teased the new mini PC, which the brand says will launch at IFA Berlin 2026, on September 5. Aside from this, not much is known about the mini PC itself, however, the GMKtec Evo-X3 launched not too long ago, stacked to the gills with pro-tier ports, a beefy cooling solution with a 140 W peak TDP, and triple cooling fans. If the Evo-X5 doesn't stray too far from its predecessor, we can expect an OCuLink port, HDMI 2.1, at least one USB4 port, and 2.5 G LAN—or faster—packed into an aluminium chassis. We can also expect to see the price of the mini PC climb to the $4,000-range, especially for the top-end variant with 192 GB of RAM.

Samsung Electronics a global leader in advanced memory technology, today unveiled the P9 and P7, its next-generation portable solid-state drives (SSDs) featuring USB4 connectivity. The company introduced the new P Series at Gamescom 2026, the world's largest gaming event, held in Cologne, Germany from Aug. 26-30.

Designed to meet rapidly growing storage demands driven by ultra-high-resolution video, AI content, and large-scale games, the P Series includes the flagship P9, which delivers high-end performance for professional users, and the P7, designed for fast and convenient storage across everyday use cases.

Minisforum is apparently continuing its ongoing attempt to flood the mini PC market with as many models as possible, with the M2 Pro being the latest entry into its Intel Panther Lake-powered mini PC line-up. The Minisforum M2 Pro packs Intel's latest Core Ultra X7 358H, with its powerful Arc B390 iGPU in tow, into an aluminium chassis measuring just 195 × 195 × 47.5 mm, or 1.8 L. Minisforum claims that the Intel Core X7 Ultra CPU inside the M2 Pro can sustain TDP of up to 65 W thanks to a dual heat pipe cooling solution and a flow-through cooling design.

Minisforum seems to also be positioning the M2 Pro as something of a do-it-all machine, since it features built-in HDMI CEC, making it a solid, if somewhat expensive HTPC and living room console. The Minisforum M2 Pro also packs a 134.9 W PSU into the tiny chassis, meaning there is no need to hide a power brick behind a TV console or on a desk. The M2 Pro only comes in one variant, with the Intel Core Ultra X7 358H, 32 GB of LPDDR5X-7467 memory, and a 1 TB NVMe SSD, all for an MSRP of $1,799, with a launch discount bringing that down to $1,439. At that price, it's certainly not cheap, but it also has an impressive specs and features list to back up that price, including upgradeable and expandable storage and triple USB4 ports.

GEEKOM, a leading innovator in high-performance Mini PCs, has deployed DeepSeek V4 Flash across four GEEKOM A9 Mega systems. The achievement shows how GEEKOM is extending its compact-computing expertise into practical enterprise AI. Rather than relying on a data-center server, the cluster connects four A9 Mega mini PCs through USB4 as one distributed platform. Each A9 Mega is powered by the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395, combining 16 Zen 5 CPU cores, Radeon 8060S graphics, and unified memory in a compact chassis.

Ubuntu, ROCm, and DwarfStar distribute an optimized DeepSeek V4 Flash model across the machines. An OpenAI-compatible API connects applications and AI agents, while USB4 eliminates the need for a proprietary high-speed switch or server rack.

Club 3D, a Dutch technology innovator specializing in advanced computer connectivity solutions since 1997, released their newest products for August. Introducing the CAC-2509 the first fully passive 9 m USB4 cable, delivering full-featured 20 Gbps performance for video, data, and power over a single long-distance connection. We also introduced the CAC-2507 a new compact USB-C female-to-female coupler that allows you to connect two USB-C cables together.

Long-distance connectivity shouldn't force you to rely on bulky active electronics or external power sources. The Club 3D CAC-2509 9 m USB-C Cable bridges the gap between ultra-long reach and full-featured desktop performance over a single, clean connection. As the first fully passive 9-meter USB4 cable, it delivers uncompromised 20 Gbps bandwidth, high-resolution video output, and robust power delivery without signal boosters. Designed for demanding environments, it supports up to 8K60Hz or 4K240Hz video while supplying up to 100 W Power Delivery. It pairs perfectly with laptops connected to monitors with a built-in KVM feature.