r/RigBuild

Samsung is continuing to raise memory chip prices in 2026, with commodity DRAM prices expected to increase by up to 20% in the third quarter. Prices for LPDDR memory used in mobile devices and servers are also projected to rise by more than 20%, following increases of 90% in the first quarter and 50–60% in the second quarter.

The sustained price growth is driven by supply constraints and strong demand, particularly for memory used in artificial intelligence and data center applications. While long-term supply agreements are becoming more common and are helping stabilize pricing, they also establish minimum price levels that limit the possibility of near-term reductions.

LPDDR5X contract prices have nearly tripled since early 2025, reaching approximately $145 per 12GB module. Although Samsung and SK hynix plan significant long-term investments to expand memory production capacity, these projects are not expected to provide immediate relief from elevated prices.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

The ASUS ROG Astral RTX 5090 Edition 20 has been listed by a European retailer for €6,499 (approximately US$7,435), making it one of the most expensive GeForce RTX 5090 graphics cards currently available.

The Edition 20 model was introduced to commemorate ASUS's 20th anniversary of the ROG brand and is positioned as a limited premium product. Its listed price exceeds that of the ASUS ROG Matrix RTX 5090, which launched at around US$4,000 and is currently sold by some retailers for between US$6,000 and US$8,000.

High-end GPU prices have increased in recent months due to rising memory and component costs, contributing to elevated retail pricing across the market. However, it remains unclear whether the European listing reflects ASUS's official suggested retail price or a retailer-specific markup.

Comparable flagship RTX 5090 models from other manufacturers are available at lower prices.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

UBS has significantly increased its forecast for DRAM and NAND memory prices, citing persistent supply constraints and demand that is expected to exceed supply through at least the second quarter of 2028.

The bank now expects DDR memory contract prices to rise 32% in the third quarter of 2026 and 18% in the fourth quarter, while NAND prices are projected to increase 30% and 12% over the same periods. Price changes may vary by product and manufacturer.

UBS estimates memory demand will grow by 36.2% in 2027, compared with supply growth of 19.3%, contributing to continued market shortages. The bank expects these conditions to drive higher industry revenue and increase capital funding needs for large cloud infrastructure providers.

TrendForce also forecasts continued DRAM and NAND price increases, although it expects slower growth due to weaker consumer demand, higher base prices, and limited buyer capacity to absorb further price increases.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

Intel has officially increased the recommended prices of three Core Ultra 200S Plus desktop processors by $30 to $50. The company attributed the adjustment to rising supply chain costs and strong market demand, stating that similar pricing changes have affected other Intel product families.

The affected models include the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus, Core Ultra 5 250K Plus, and Core Ultra 5 250KF Plus. The Core Ultra 7 270K Plus now carries a recommended price of $349, while the two Core Ultra 5 models are priced at $229 and $214, respectively.

The price increase currently applies only to the Core Ultra 200S Plus series, with no announced changes for the standard Core Ultra 200S processors.

Retail prices were already exceeding Intel’s recommended pricing before the adjustment, and further increases are expected as the updated prices take effect. Despite strong demand for these processors, Intel continues to face intense competition in the desktop CPU market.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

AMD EXPO ULL DDR5 memory kits for the AM5 platform have begun appearing at major retailers with significantly higher prices than standard AMD EXPO memory. Some 32 GB (2×16 GB) kits are listed between $549 and $1,099, while comparable standard EXPO versions are available for hundreds of dollars less.

The largest price differences are found in models with tighter memory timings, where EXPO ULL variants can cost up to approximately $500 more than equivalent standard kits.

EXPO ULL memory is designed to operate at lower voltages, improving power efficiency, reducing heat output, providing greater overclocking headroom, and offering enhanced factory tuning for performance.

Despite these technical improvements, the substantial price premium has raised concerns about overall value, as the performance benefits may not justify the significantly higher cost compared with standard EXPO memory kits.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

A shortage of high-purity carbon dioxide (CO2), a key material used in advanced semiconductor manufacturing, is raising concerns about future chip production. CO2 is essential for cleaning semiconductor wafers by removing residues and contaminants during fabrication.

The supply decline is linked to reduced operating rates at South Korean oil refineries and petrochemical facilities, which produce raw CO2 as a by-product. Uncertainty in crude oil supply caused by ongoing tensions in the Middle East has further constrained production, limiting the ability of gas suppliers to increase output.

Major semiconductor manufacturers, including Samsung and SK Hynix, continue normal operations but have seen their CO2 inventories fall below previous levels. If shortages persist, advanced chip packaging production could be disrupted.

A prolonged reduction in CO2 supply may tighten the availability of advanced semiconductors, particularly for AI-related applications, potentially increasing chip prices and affecting the broader technology industry.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

Memory prices are projected to increase significantly through 2026 and 2027 due to persistent global supply shortages, strong demand from artificial intelligence and high-performance computing, and limited production capacity.

Industry forecasts indicate memory prices could rise by 40–50% in the third quarter of 2026, followed by an additional 30–40% increase in the fourth quarter. Prices are also expected to remain elevated throughout 2027, with meaningful relief not anticipated until 2028 as new manufacturing capacity gradually enters the market.

Long-term supply agreements between major memory manufacturers and large technology companies are expected to reserve a growing share of production, reducing availability for consumer devices such as PCs, laptops, smartphones, and gaming consoles.

Chinese memory manufacturers are not expected to significantly affect global pricing in the near term, as most production remains focused on domestic demand. Their expanding manufacturing capacity may have a greater impact on international markets beginning around 2028.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

Memory prices are expected to rise significantly through 2026 and 2027 due to ongoing global supply shortages, strong demand driven by artificial intelligence, and limited production capacity. Industry forecasts project price increases of 40–50% in the third quarter of 2026, followed by a further 30–40% increase in the fourth quarter, with elevated pricing expected to continue into 2027.

Long-term supply agreements between major memory manufacturers and large technology companies are expected to reduce the amount of memory available for consumer products, contributing to higher prices for PCs, laptops, smartphones, and gaming consoles.

Additional manufacturing capacity expected in 2028 may provide some price relief, but demand is projected to remain strong. Chinese memory producers are not expected to significantly affect global pricing in the near term, as their production is largely focused on domestic markets, although expanded capacity could increase their international presence after 2028.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

Memory shortages and sustained demand driven by artificial intelligence are expected to keep DRAM and NAND memory prices significantly higher through at least 2030. Major manufacturers, including Micron, Samsung, and SK Hynix, have indicated that current production cannot fully meet demand, even for key customers.

Lenovo stated that although memory manufacturers are expanding production capacity and investing in new fabrication facilities, these efforts are unlikely to restore prices to the lower levels seen in early 2025. Higher memory costs are expected to become the long-term market standard.

As a result, consumers may face permanently higher prices for memory modules, SSDs, and devices that rely on them, including personal computers, gaming consoles, smartphones, and other electronics.

SK Hynix plans to accelerate capacity expansion and substantially increase memory output by 2030, but it remains uncertain whether future production growth will be sufficient to match rising global demand.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

A class-action lawsuit has been filed in the United States against Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron, alleging that the companies restricted DRAM supply to artificially increase memory prices. The case, filed on June 25, 2026, is being heard in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California under antitrust claims, with plaintiffs seeking financial compensation.

The lawsuit comes as DRAM prices have reached record highs amid persistent supply shortages and strong demand, particularly from the artificial intelligence sector. The manufacturers maintain that they are expanding production capacity through new fabrication facilities and production lines to improve supply.

The filing also references Samsung’s previous involvement in a 2005 U.S. price-fixing case related to DRAM sales between 1999 and 2002, although the current market conditions differ due to genuine supply constraints. Memory shortages and long-term supply agreements with major customers continue to limit availability for the broader consumer market, contributing to sustained high prices.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

ZLUDA v6 has introduced experimental support for 32-bit NVIDIA PhysX on non-NVIDIA GPUs, allowing compatible AMD Radeon graphics cards to run older PhysX-enabled games with improved performance and visual effects.

In testing with Mafia II, performance increased from approximately 26 FPS to over 80 FPS, while advanced PhysX effects such as debris and flames were also enabled. Previously, similar results typically required a secondary GPU with PhysX support.

The release also includes improvements for Windows compatibility, enhanced machine learning support through compiler and performance library updates, and new texture support.

The implementation remains a work in progress, with known issues including fluid simulation glitches and limited compatibility when loading ZLUDA into some Steam games. Development of the open-source project is expected to continue, although future updates will be released less frequently as development shifts to a slower pace.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

IBM has introduced a 0.7-nanometer chip manufacturing technology based on its new Nanostack architecture, making it the first announced process below the 1-nanometer node. The technology is designed to fit up to 100 billion transistors into an area the size of a fingernail.

Nanostack builds on nanosheet transistor technology by vertically stacking and staggering transistors to enable higher-density 3D integration. The approach also uses a new wafer-bonding technique with precise alignment to create multilayer transistor structures.

Compared with IBM’s 2-nanometer technology introduced in 2021, the new process is projected to deliver up to 70% greater power efficiency or 50% higher performance.

IBM also estimates that AI chips produced with the 0.7-nanometer process could reach 9,000 trillion operations per second (TOPS), potentially reducing AI model training times from several months to a few weeks while enabling more advanced next-generation computing systems.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

High-end graphics cards using 16-pin power connectors continue to experience connector failures, including melting, burning, and severe electrical damage. Reports indicate that these issues affect some NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 and RTX 4090 models, as well as certain AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT cards that use the same connector standard.

A recent repair case involved two RTX 5090 graphics cards. One was successfully repaired after previous modifications had caused power and memory-related issues. The second suffered catastrophic damage, with its 16-pin connector completely destroyed and extensive damage to the printed circuit board, GPU, and VRAM, making the card irreparable.

Despite the introduction of updated 12V-2x6 connectors and ATX 3.1 power supplies designed to improve safety, connector failures continue to be reported. Manufacturers generally offer replacements for affected products, although availability may vary depending on the region and retailer.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

SK Hynix plans to increase production of general-purpose DRAM, particularly DDR5, after achieving strong revenue growth from High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) products driven by artificial intelligence demand.

HBM currently represents a significant portion of the company’s revenue, and SK Hynix has secured a strong position in the AI memory market through its HBM offerings. As a result, the company is reportedly slowing the conversion of some HBM3E production lines to newer HBM4 technology, judging that current HBM capacity is sufficient to meet near-term demand.

The shift comes as the general-purpose DRAM market faces supply shortages and rising profitability. SK Hynix aims to capitalize on stronger margins in products such as DDR5 and LPDDR5X while maintaining its leadership in the HBM sector.

Increased DDR5 production may improve memory availability for OEM, ODM, and server markets, although significant price reductions are not expected. The company is expected to balance investment between AI-focused memory and conventional DRAM products based on market profitability and demand trends.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

NV9 raygun MKII

If anyone has any ideas for cool, really creative Halloween decor vibes please leave them below.

Don't ask, I just want to go all out this Halloween. I'd spend whatever for any props, effects or whatever to make this a spectacle. Now you may think that's stupid and im mental, and you'd be half right.

Typical ideas i see at professional shows are: A smoke machine and cob webs, along with "professional" looking shots.

But id like to go another step further.

My old case with most of the same specs seen here: https://pcpartpicker.com/b/rLyKHx

Samsung has outlined a roadmap to develop ultra-high-layer NAND flash memory for future solid-state drives (SSDs), targeting more than 1,000 layers by around 2030.

The company plans to increase NAND density through stacked designs, progressing from approximately 420 layers by 2029 to more than 560 layers by 2030. Beyond that, Samsung aims to combine two 450-layer NAND structures into a single package using Cell-Multi Bonding (CMB), creating storage solutions exceeding 900 layers.

Key technical challenges, including wafer warping and layer alignment errors, are being addressed through new manufacturing techniques such as advanced chuck designs and overlay correction technologies.

Higher-layer NAND is expected to significantly increase SSD capacities. Industry estimates suggest that storage devices currently offering 8 TB could potentially reach 32 TB using future 900+ layer NAND technology.

Samsung faces competition from rivals including SK Hynix and YMTC, both of which are advancing their own high-layer NAND technologies. While Samsung’s 900+ layer approach remains at the prototype stage, it represents a major step toward next-generation high-capacity storage solutions.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

SteamOS is being expanded to support a wider range of PC hardware. Recent updates in SteamOS 3.8.10 have improved compatibility with modern Intel and AMD platforms, allowing users to build and run SteamOS on custom PC configurations more easily.

Valve has also confirmed ongoing collaboration with NVIDIA to improve support for NVIDIA graphics cards. While full compatibility may not arrive immediately, development is continuing in the background as part of Valve’s broader effort to make SteamOS accessible across more hardware.

The initiative aims to reduce hardware limitations and make SteamOS a viable alternative operating system for PC gaming. Greater compatibility could benefit desktop PCs, compact gaming systems, and handheld devices.

Expanded hardware support may also strengthen Linux gaming adoption. As Valve’s official gaming platform, SteamOS has the potential to bring a more mainstream Linux gaming experience to users with diverse hardware configurations, increasing competition with traditional Windows-based gaming environments.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com

AMD’s FSR 4.1 upscaling technology has been reported to deliver substantial performance improvements on the Radeon RX 7000 series graphics cards. Early user benchmarks indicate that the Radeon RX 7900 XTX can achieve nearly double its frame rate in Cyberpunk 2077 when running at 4K resolution with the RT Ultra preset enabled.

At native 4K settings, the RX 7900 XTX reportedly averages around 24 FPS. Enabling FSR 4.1 on the Balanced preset increases performance to approximately 50 FPS, while the Performance preset can exceed 60 FPS. The Quality preset is reported to deliver more than 40 FPS.

FSR 4.1 support for the RX 7000 series was recently introduced. Although FSR 4.1 is more demanding than FSR 3.1, it is designed to provide improved image quality and visual fidelity alongside higher performance.

The RX 7000 series uses an INT8-based FSR 4.1 model, while the newer RX 9000 series uses an FP8-based version. AMD states that both implementations are intended to provide comparable visual quality despite the different underlying models.

▮[Source]: wccftech.com