Asus announced the company’s first ROG-branded gaming headset with planar magnetic drivers at CES 2026. Developed in conjunction with HiFiMAN, the ROG Kithara is an open-backed design built for gamers who care about sound quality as much as gaming performance. This headset is firmly in audiophile grade territory with similar functionality to the much-heralded Audeze Maxwell gaming headset. While most gaming headsets feature neodymium drivers, this one features large 100mm planar magnetic drivers for a better audio fidelity. It also has an ultra wide frequency response, a full band MEMS boom microphone, and balanced connectivity. The ROG Kithara is designed like a high-end headphone rather than a gaming headset. The 100mm planar magnetic drivers are considered huge even for the audiophile space let alone for a gaming headset. Asus says this allows the Kithara to move air with very low distortion while maintaining speed and control. The frequency response is between 8Hz to 55KHz. Asus The open-backed design is a deliberate sound-enhancing feature that allows audio to pass through freely. This concept is designed to prevent sound reverberating around the headset. While an enclosed earcup causes different frequencies to overlap, Asus claims the Kithara has excellent sound separation, allowing better sound definition. The headset also takes a serious view of gaming chat. Instead of a narrowband gaming mic, the Kithara uses a full-band MEMS boom microphone with a 20Hz to 20KHz response and a high-grade signal to noise ratio. Crosstalk is reduced via separate signal paths for the microphone and headphone audio, keeping voices clear and intelligible during multiplayer chat. In the connectivity department, Kithara differentiates itself again. Rather than locking users into a proprietary wireless system or single connector, Asus has opted for a fully analog modular approach. The supplied cable supports swappable 4.4mm, 3.5mm, and 6.3mm single-ended plugs, allowing the headset to be used with most DACs, amplifiers, PCs, Macs, mobile devices, and gaming consoles. Asus promises the Kithara will also have a lightweight metal frame for a robust but comfortable feel while keeping the weight to a respectable 14.8 oz (420-grams), which is suitable for long gaming stints. The headset will feature an 8-way adjustable headband and memory foam padding. The inclusion of leatherette with fabric as well as velour ear cushions allows users to customize the headset’s feel based on their comfort preferences. Asus ROG Kithara will be available in Q1 2026 with pricing to be announced. Read...

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Segway is taking its robot lawn mowers to a space they’ve never been before—the commercial market—as it tees up its updated Navimow-brand models at CES in Las Vegas this week.  Segway’s new Terranox series will be the first of the company’s commercial-oriented robot mowers, capable of covering up to six acres of grass, while the flagship X4 residential mower will arrive with four-wheel drive, improved navigation, and the ability to tackle steeper slopes.  In all, Segway is showing off five new lines of its Navimow robot lawn mowers, from the budget i2 series with LiDAR navigation to the commercial-grade Terranox Series, which boasts network RTK (real-time kinematic) positioning, a 360-degree VSLAM camera, and turf-safe Xero-Turn technology.  Slated to arrive later this year (Segway hasn’t revealed pricing yet), the Terranox Series comes in two models: the CM120M1, which can cover up to three acres of lawn, and the CM240M1, which will tackle up to six acres of territory, or roughly the size of a football field.  Both Terranox mowers will offer four-wheel drive as well as a suite of drop-and-mow navigations technologies, including tri-frequency network RTK, a 360-degree VSLAM camera, and VIO (visual-inertial odometry), good for pinpointing its position within centimeters and without the need for perimeter wires or antenna reference stations  The flagship X4 ($2,499 for the 1-acre X430, $2,999 for the 1.5-acre X450) takes the Terranox’s four-wheel drive and navigational features while also adding Segway’s MowMentum Cutting System, which boasts a dual-cutting deck, 12 thickened cutting blades, and twin 180-watt cutting mowers, all combined with a smart cutting algorithm and the brand’s EdgeSense technology.   Segway The IPX6-rated X4 (meaning the robot is resistant to rain, lawn sprinklers, water splashes, and wet grass) will have an 84-percent slope capability, good for climbing slopes up to 40 degrees, and it’s also designed to scale steps up to 2.8 inches high. VisionFence 2.0 tech will allow the X4 to detect and avoid roughly 200 types of objects, from pets to swings, while its turf-safe Xeno-Turn functionality helps the mower to make tight turns without tearing up the grass.  Available in 0.25- and 0.5-acre models, the three-wheel drive H2 Series (no pricing details yet) employs a combination of LiDAR, network RTK, and RGB vision technology for navigation, allowing the unit to find its way under trees or through narrow passages even at night, while the LiDAR-powered Terrain Adapt and Electronic Stability Control functionality keep the mower balanced on inclines as steep as 24 degrees.  Segway Next up is the i2 AWD Series, which is getting the X2’s Xero-Turn capabilities as well as the ability to climb 24-degree slopes and 1.6-inch steps. The robot’s adaptive drive technology, which only engages the unit’s third wheel when the additional traction is  needed, is designed to boost battery life by up to 30 percent, while LiDAR and network RTK are also on board. Segway The i206 AWD model ($999) will offer a coverage area of 0.15 acres, while the i210 AWD ($1,299) expands that coverage range to 0.25 acres.  Finally, the two-wheel drive i2 LiDAR (pricing is TBD) navigates and avoids obstacles via a combination of solid-state LiDAR and AI-powered vision, and it promises a range of up to 0.37 acres.  All the new Navimow robot lawn mowers will support GeoSketch, a mapping feature on the Navimow app that allows users to customize mowing areas on a 3D interactive map, while Find My functionality will let Apple users locate the robots.  This article is part of TechHive’s coverage of the best robot lawn mowers. Read...

Chamberlain, best known for its smart garage door openers, is making its most ambitious move into home security with the launch of its first smart lock. Unveiled at CES, the myQ Secure View 3-in-1 Smart Lock combines a smart lock, a 2K HDR video doorbell, and a camera into a single device, expanding the company’s home-access ambitions from the garage to the front door. The $279.99 device offers five methods of entry: fingerprint recognition, facial recognition, a PIN code, smartphone app control, and a physical key. It’s designed to work within the myQ ecosystem, which includes garage door controllers, indoor and outdoor cameras, and accessories like the myQ Smart Garage Video Keypad. The company hasn’t disclosed a BHMA or ANSI grade for he lock. According to Chamberlain, the lock is among the fastest on the market, with an unlock time of just two seconds. It also includes AI-powered detection that identifies people, vehicles, packages, and animals, and can trigger automatic actions like locking or unlocking the door based on whether a recognized individual is detected. The myQ Secure View 3-in-1 Smart Lock combines a smart lock, a 2K HDR video doorbell, and a camera into a single device, Chamberlain The device operates in temperatures ranging from -4°F to 140°F and is powered by a rechargeable lithium battery that lasts up to six months. A fully charged backup battery (sold separately) can be swapped in to avoid downtime. For homes without a wired chime, Chamberlain also offers an optional myQ Chime accessory. The lock is available to myQ users starting January 6, with general availability on January 13 via myQ.com and select retailers. While the product represents a significant step forward for Chamberlain’s home security lineup, it arrives against the backdrop of growing consumer skepticism about the company’s business practices. In recent years, Chamberlain has been criticized for locking key features behind subscription paywalls after product launch, and for disabling support for popular third-party platforms. In late 2023, the company blocked access to its API for Homebridge and Home Assistant, effectively cutting off users who had relied on those platforms to integrate Chamberlain devices with Apple HomeKit and other smart home ecosystems. Chamberlain framed the move as a necessary step to protect performance and security, but it left many users frustrated and without the integrations they had come to depend on. Even before that, the company had phased out Google Assistant integration and stopped selling its own HomeKit-enabling accessory, the myQ Home Bridge, though it still supports devices that are already in use. Chamberlain has not said whether the new Secure View Smart Lock will require a subscription to access features like video storage or advanced automation. That detail may be crucial for consumers already wary of the company’s history of rolling out fees post-purchase. Whether the Secure View lock will overcome that history remains to be seen. But with deep integration into Chamberlain’s expanding myQ ecosystem, it may appeal to existing users looking for a unified approach to home access control. This story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best smart locks. Read...

With the Core Ultra Series 3 “Panther Lake” laptop chips, Intel says it’s largely eliminating the “alphabet soup” of obtuse product suffixes that only nerds truly enjoyed — with one twist. Now, the only truly weird aspect of Intel’s Core Ultra Series 3 processor lineup is a new “X” designation, so that what once was a Core Ultra 9 chip is now a “Core Ultra X9” chip. It’s all tied to the specific chip architecture that the new Panther Lake chips include, Intel explained. For years, Intel has attached suffixes to its microprocessors that signal different attributes: a “Y” chip, for example, was an extremely low-power mobile chip, whatever that means. It’s so bad that Intel has even dedicated a page to the chip suffixes, which it’s maintained right through to the end of 2025. Intel In this new lineup of fourteen mobile Intel processors, listed above, Intel has kept just the “H” suffix (“high performance optimized for mobile”) and eliminated everything else. The majority of chips Intel listed lack a suffix altogether. What stands out are the Core Ultra X9 388H, the Core Ultra X7 368H, and the Core Ultra X7 358H. Look closely at the chip matrix above, though, and they all share a common attribute: 12 Xe3 Arc graphics cores. When a dozen Xe3 cores are combined, Intel calls that the Intel Arc B390. In one case, it uses ten instead: the B370. Nish Neelalojanan, senior director of product management, client for Intel, said that retailers asked for the additional descriptor. “In some retail feedback, there was strong retail feedback that our 12Xe [chip] is so good that they needed a easy way for customers walking in to be able to identify that…” Neelalojanan said. “So that is an easy way to identify that.” Intel originally broke up Panther Lake in to 8- and 16-core chips, but Intel isn’t actually saying which cores are performance, efficiency, or low-power efficiency cores. It’s sort of the same reason why the suffixes have largely disappeared, too; all of these new Core Ultra Series 3 chips all run at the same 25W base thermal design power. The “H”-series chips elevate the max TDP, however, offering more performance: 65 or 80 watts in some cases. We still expect Intel to ship a Core Ultra Series 3 chip for gaming, however. That will return the “HX” suffix to the product lineup once again. Read...

One of the most exciting PC trends overall this decade is the rise of gorgeous OLED monitors. They’ve steadily improved year after year, delivering ever-more-luscious visuals at ever-increasing speeds, and during CES 2026, LG revealed a slew of new OLED panels designed to drive gaming fidelity even further. Note that I said panels, not monitors; as a panel supplier, these LG displays will wind up in monitors from other vendors as well as LG’s own goodies. And as a panel supplier, LG is doubling down on OLED. OLED has been under attack from the rise of RGB mini-LED panels that build upon existing LCD technology, for better or worse. LCD and OLED behave in very different ways, and LG’s new Tandem WOLED and Tandem OLED technologies (its first new OLED brands in 13 years!) push the advantage even further. Tandem WOLED will appear in larger displays, like TVs and PC monitors, while Tandem OLED targets smaller devices like laptops, tablets, and automotive displays. I’m a thirsty, disgusting gamer so for this article, let’s focus on Tandem WOLED. Officially called “Primary RGB Tandem 2.0,” Tandem WOLED can hit up to a whopping 4,500 nits in peak form, or 1,500 nits in PC monitors. A nit is equivalent to the brightness of a single candle, and we prefer that laptops hit 250 to 300 nits (or more) for optimal viewing, so that 1,500 nits is a big number — and one you can instantly feel and appreciate witnessing the technology in action. New “Perfect Black Anti-Reflection” tech “offers the world’s lowest reflectance of 0.3%,” ensuring a crisp picture even in bright conditions. Even better, Tandem WOLED supports 99.5% DCI-P3 coverage, an industry term that means its color accuracy is indeed insanely color accurate. The ”WOLED” comes from an additional white light source, joining the usual RGB trio. “By precisely stacking RGB light sources in tandem, it creates pure white light and picture quality that nears perfection — blacks deepen, colors stay naturally true in any environment,” LG says. After seeing it in action, I have to say I agree! OLED vs. Mini LED LG drove home the point in several discrete demos comparing an “affordable” OLED TV against a rival mini LED television. Mini LED uses standard LCD technology, with roughly 1,500 “block-dimming” chunks spread across the screen; OLED can turn each of the 33 million+ pixels in a 4K display on and off independently. It makes a huge difference. The mini LED still looked a lot better than most people’s TVs, but it suffered from color inaccuracy and other issues next to LG’s Tandem WOLED. Since mini LED (and all LCD panels) only dim colors in blocks, images can be affected by surrounding colors; you can witness “bloom” lightening effects around fireworks, and nearby colors affecting the look of people’s skin or supposedly white areas. None of those appeared in LG’s Tandem WOLED panels. To be fair, these were mostly canned test demos to show extremes, but those extremes do happen, and the results largely aligned with my prior experiences with mini LED and LCD displays. Sadly, I wasn’t able to capture convincing pictures of the comparison, since the visual nitpicks on the display can’t be captured by my camera. But trust me: You have to see it to believe it. LG’s boundary-pushing OLED panels At CES 2026, LG announced three boundary-pushing new Tandem WOLED panels to push the advantage. First, there’s a 27-inch gaming OLED capable of hitting a blistering 720HZ at 1080p resolution, or 540HZ at 1440p resolution — ludicrous speeds. This isn’t actually “new” though — the panel already debuted in Asus’ ROG Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W (pictured above) late last year, which knocked our socks off in our review. It earned 4.5 (out of 5) stars and an Editors’ Choice award. “The Asus ROG Swift OLED PG27AQWP-W pulls out all the stops to deliver best-in-class motion performance and a long list of bonus features,” our synopsis says. Enough said! Well, not really — read our full review for a deeper look at the underlying tech, and how it handles in the ROG Swift. World’s first OLED with a 240Hz RGB stripe pixel structure LG also showed off an OLED panel with the world’s first 240Hz RGB stripe pixel structure. “RGB stripe structure arranges the three primary color subpixels in a straight line, significantly reducing the visual distortions that can happen at close viewing distances,” LG’s press deck states. It “enables highly detailed and crisp graphic reproduction at 160 pixels per inch.” That’s a lot of geek talk. Let me break it down for you. OLED panels have a flaw that’s not always talked about. Yes, the deep blacks and vivid colors look amazing while gaming or watching videos — but the technology often reproduces on-screen text less precisely. Called “fringing,” text on OLED monitors can sometimes appear somewhat blurry and distorted depending on the implementation. I covered this in-depth in my review of the Corsair Xeneon Flex (which used an LG OLED panel) in 2023, and you can see an example of text fringing from that very monitor below. All those nerd words LG used to describe what “240Hz RGB stripe pixel structure” does basically say that text looks way less sucky. LG says this panel is “Optimized for operating systems such as Windows as well as font-rendering engines, ensuring excellent text readability and high color accuracy.” LG showed off the monitor using a world-building game with lots of text, complete with a magnifier hooked up to the display to show how the RGB subpixel display looks IRL. Fortunately, I was able to get a glimpse of a real world monitor with this panel over at Asus’ booth. Considering that Asus also helped debut those 720Hz/540Hz OLED monitors late last year, I guess Asus and LG are BFFs! Here’s a picture of the just-announced Asus ROG Swift OLED PG27UCWM, using LG’s new panel. The system was fairly locked down but I was able to summon the right-click context menu to get a peek at the text fringing advancements, and welp, it looked significantly better than most rival OLEDs. The panel uses LG’s Dynamic Frequency and Resolution (DFR) tech to run at 240Hz at 4K or 480Hz at 1080p. Look for monitors with this new panel to arrive sometime in Q2. LG’s 39-inch ‘5K2K’ gaming OLED 4K? Ha! That’s so yesterday. Acer and LG are making 5K gaming monitors the hot new flex at CES 2026. For LG, that means the introduction of the world’s first 39-inch 5K gaming OLED, with a standard 21:9 aspect ratio and 1500R curvature. There’s not really much more to say beyond that, but hot damn did it look luscious in real life — huge, wide, and utterly packed with high-quality OLED pixels galore. Once these monitors launch in Q2, you’ll want to head down to a Best Buy or Microcenter to check them out with your own eyes — they’re that damned gorgeous. I’m willing to review one of these, just sayin’ LG. Stay tuned to PCWorld (and our live blog) for all the hottest CES 2026 news all week long! Read...

Travis Head scores 163 and Steve Smith ends unbeaten on 129 as Australia close on 518-7 in their first innings, leading England by 134 runs at stumps on day three of the fifth and final Ashes Test in Sydney. Read...

Steve Smith`s ruthless unbeaten century and Travis Head’s majestic 163 on day three put Australia in total control of the fifth Ashes Test against England. Read...

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