REGULARS: PC AUDIO

摘要

With new Intel CPUs and a Windows 8 update on the horizon, should you stick or twist? Haswell is the codename for the next generation of Intel's Core processor range, and its official unveiling will take place at the Computex computer expo in Taiwan on June 4th, 2013. This fourth generation range is the successor to the popular Ivy Bridge, and this time promises significant improvements in processing performance, as well as significantly lower power consumption. Those of us buying Haswell ultrabooks and tablets are likely to get nearly double the battery life compared with similarly-speced Ivy Bridge-based machines, with Intel claiming 10 hours as a realistic possibility, while on-board graphics performance is also likely to be double that of the previous range. Moreover, entry-level Ultrabook systems featuring Haswell CPUs are expected to drop to $599 by the end of Q3, and NEC has already announced their first model (the LaVie L, with 15.6-inch touchscreen, 8GB of RAM, 1TB HDD and 32GB SSD). Ultrabook pricing has thus far been the main stumbling block to higher sales, so a flurry of new Haswell laptop, convertible, detachable and tablet models may just reverse the current sales slump. PC builders certainly hope so!