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Chief got some
Product Reviews

If you missed Master Chief having sex on Paramount+ now you can see Master Chief having sex on Netflix

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Did you miss the Halo TV show when it first came out because it was on Paramount+ and, like, who even subscribes to Paramount+, right?

Well, now you can catch the Halo TV show on Netflix because it’s on Netflix, and if you’re like me, you probably still subscribe to Netflix even though there’s less and less of a reason to still subscribe to Netflix. Right?

The Halo series began in March of 2022, with a second season following in February 2024 and a third season following never because it was canceled. The show didn’t really do all that well critically, as far as I can recall: I don’t remember anyone saying they liked it much, though I also didn’t hear that it was absolutely terrible. Former Halo art director Marcos Lehto stated that he didn’t hate the show, but said it was “Not the Halo I made.”


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The general consensus about the Halo show seemed to be just sort of… eh. But a show being eh is sometimes just the sort of thing I’m in the mood for, and since it’s on Netflix, the one subscription I doggedly forget to cancel, it sounds like the perfect thing to stream on a rainy weekend while only half paying attention because I’m also playing Super Video Golf on my Steam Deck.

Besides, I want to see Master Chief have sex because I missed it the first time around.

That was just one of the show’s controversies. First, Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 took his helmet off, something that never happened in the game, and then he showed his naked butt. Then he just went and straight-up boned someone. None of that went over all that well among the fandom.

There was so much backlash that Pablo Schreiber, who plays Master Chief, threw the production under the bus by saying he argued against the sex scene, calling it a “huge mistake.” Way to have your coworkers’ backs, dude. What you could have said was nothing.

The second season was better received than the first, which seemed promising for the future of the show, but Halo was canceled in July of 2024—just at the point that an actual Halo finally appeared on the show called Halo. Will it gain new life on Netflix, maybe even enough that it’ll get picked up for more seasons? I doubt it, but you never know: I’ll certainly be watching, at least when I look up intermittently from my Steam Deck.



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Logitech’s MX Master 4 adds haptic feedback, mostly just for fun
Gaming Gear

Logitech’s MX Master 4 adds haptic feedback, mostly just for fun

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If you saw the leaks, you probably already know that haptics are the big, new thing in Logitech’s $119.99 MX Master 4 wireless mouse, coming in October. No, it’s not adding rumble effects to YouTube videos or to your favorite websites (on second thought, I’d like to try that). And, it’s different from Logitech’s haptics-based click system in its Pro X2 Superstrike gaming mouse coming in 2026.

The Haptic Sense Panel embedded in its grippy thumb rest vibrates when pressed, opening Logitech’s Action Ring overlay. That overlay can be filled with whatever app- and system-level shortcuts you want. You can even nest multiple Action Rings within one, if you want, letting you drill down to extremely specific commands. The haptics is a hardware feature that, unsurprisingly, requires you to engage pretty heavily with the company’s software, Logi Options Plus.

The haptics punctuate every engagement you make with Logitech’s features, from gestures and Action Rings to its Smart Actions (pre-made or custom macros to automate certain tasks). My favorite use case for the haptics was one that’s switched off by default; you can enable a setting that provides a small jolt of haptic feedback when you move between screens, reducing the amount of “where on earth is my cursor?” moments each day.

Image: Logitech via The Verge

Before digging into the app integration, it’s worth sharing what’s new about the MX Master 4 itself. It has frosted, semi-transparent main buttons that add in a dash of elegance. Some people might be happy to hear that this model includes a USB-C Bolt transmitter, which the other compatible Logitech products (including the new Signature Slim Solar Plus keyboard) can connect to as well.

In terms of battery life, Logitech claims it can last up to 70 days on a full charge (although, setting haptics to “high” intensity in the app will yield a shorter lifespan per charge).

Lastly, its gesture button has moved from the thumb grip, where it was in the MX Master 3S from 2022, to a dedicated button next to the other two thumb buttons, just below the horizontal scroll wheel. When held, you then move the mouse in a cardinal direction to execute a desired action.

Back to the app, Logitech bills the Action Ring as a time-saving feature, an alternative to keyboard shortcuts and moving your cursor across the screen to click something. You don’t have to be a power user to get a lot out of this functionality. For instance, I programmed an Action Ring with a button that auto-launches The Verge, and one that opens WordPress, where we produce articles. There are plugins within Logitech’s app for many third-party apps. Affinity Photo has a version of the Action Ring that appears when I press the Haptic Sense Panel while using the app. It shows some commands that I’m likely to take advantage of, like showing line guides to properly align objects, or simpler stuff like copying and pasting assets.

To be clear, Action Rings aren’t new. The haptic sensations derived from navigating them, on the other hand, are. Clicking the haptics button makes it jolt, as does moving the cursor between the Action Ring’s bubbles. It’s a small, but delightful touch that I appreciate — that is, when I use Action Rings, which I still haven’t trained my brain to rely on when I’m in a flow state at work. I’m sorry to my employer, Vox Media, for all of the time I wasted at work when I could have used Action Rings to enhance my productivity!

With haptics being the main new hardware feature in the MX Master 4, I don’t necessarily think it’s worth upgrading to if you have the MX Master 3S, as it’s similar in many ways. But it’s certainly worth getting instead of the 3S if you’re shopping for a mouse, since the 4 is launching at the same $119.99 price that its predecessor sells for. And, as for those who haven’t used an MX Master-series mouse before, it’s hard to overstate the value of an ergonomically-friendly mouse with a stellar scroll wheel, quiet clicks, and solid battery life. Haptics are just a nice add-on.

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Gaming Gear

The Logitech MX Master 4 is here with haptic feedback, less rubber and the same shape

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If you’ve shopped around for a wireless mouse at any point in the past decade, you’ve probably seen lots of people recommending a Logitech MX Master. There’s good reason for that: They aren’t cheap, but they’re usually comfortable, versatile and loaded with features designed to make working in front of a monitor all day a little less annoying. The current MX Master 3S has sat at the top of our own wireless mouse buying guide for some time now.

Now, three years after releasing the 3S, Logitech is rolling out the new MX Master 4, which costs $120 and will ship in October. I’ve been able to test it out for the past few weeks.

For the most part, this is an iterative update, with the same general shape, battery life, 8K DPI sensor and ultra-quiet clicks as the MX Master 3S before it. It is a touch heavier (150 grams vs. 141g), wider (3.48 inches vs 3.32 in.) and taller (5.05 inches vs. 4.92 in.) than the last model, but if you found the 3S or older MX Master 3 comfortable, you should have few issues here. That said, it’s still a hefty mouse designed for palm grippers and right-handed users: Its gentle contours, generous hump, ample thumb rest and large buttons will fit like a glove if that describes you, but lefties and those with especially petite hands won’t agree.

The flashiest change here is the addition of haptic feedback, which is built into a small panel within the mouse’s thumb rest. You can customize the intensity of this effect through Logitech’s Options+ software — or turn it off entirely — but it essentially brings a modicum of smartphone-style feedback to your desktop. When you first pair the mouse, for one, you’ll feel a little bump. The same goes if you move between devices using Logitech’s “Flow” feature. When battery is low, it’ll vibrate. If you’re trying to precisely line up a graphic in an app like Photoshop, you’ll get a little buzz when you’ve moved it to the exact right spot.

You’ll also feel it when you hover over options in the Actions Ring, a customizable overlay that presents different shortcuts depending on the app you’re using. This pops up when you click the side panel; you could use it quickly access the screenshot tool while in Chrome, for instance, or the brightness and contrast sliders in Photoshop.

If all of this sounds like a gimmick, well, yeah it kind of is. It’s not the kind of thing anyone needs. But the effect is surprisingly subtle on the default “medium” setting, and there’s a level of reassurance that comes with feeling a confirmed action instead of just seeing it. I found it more pleasant than distracting. The catch is that only a few apps will natively support the MX Master 4’s haptics at launch: Photoshop, Lightroom and Zoom, with Adobe Premiere Pro to follow soon after. You’ll still be able to utilize the haptic feedback on a system level on Windows and macOS, and Logitech is releasing an SDK for more developers to integrate the functionality, but we’ll have to see how many do so.

Customizing the Actions Ring in Logitech’s Options+ app.

(Logitech/Jeff Dunn for Engadget)

Another change is with the mouse’s coating, which trades the 3S’ rubbery finish for a lightly textured plastic around the top. (The thumb rest and right side still use rubber.) Some users have complained about older MX Master mice peeling and wearing down after extended use; time will tell how well the new model holds up, but it should avoid the same sort of sweat-induced degradation. Either way, I’ve found it smooth to the touch without being slippery. I also haven’t been able to replicate the accuracy issues some 3S buyers have had with that mouse’s electromagnetic scroll wheel, which is still made of a high-quality metal and lets you conveniently swap between a notched and free-spin scroll on the fly.

There are other minor tweaks and improvements. The receiver included with the Windows model is now USB-C instead of USB-A. The horizontal scroll wheel on the side — which remains a blessing for navigating spreadsheets — extends a little farther with each spin. The PTFE feet on the bottom are a bit larger for a smoother glide. The dedicated gesture button is no longer awkwardly integrated into the thumb rest; instead, it’s been pulled out ahead of the two programmable side buttons. Logitech says there’s a more powerful chip inside the mouse to improve connection quality. The edges around the main click buttons are now translucent: nothing major, but a bit more stylish. The screws on the bottom are now exposed, too, which Logitech says should be helpful for recycling purposes down the road.

The rest is largely the same as before, which isn’t a bad thing. The best feature here is still the virtually silent main buttons, which keep a pleasing level of travel but will never bother anyone around you. Battery life is still rated at a solid 70 days, which seems about right — I haven’t charged the mouse in about a month and the Options+ app says I still have about 50 percent juice left. The design still feels super sturdy, with no flexing or creaking. The side buttons feel firm and tactile. Options+ is resource-heavy but still intuitive enough for reprogramming buttons and customizing app-specific settings. It can still track on a variety of surfaces, including glass or the fabric of my couch. You can still connect to three devices simultaneously and switch between them with a button on the bottom, too.

On the downside, there’s no USB-C cable included in the box anymore, and the polling rate is still set at a basic 125Hz, which means tracking isn’t quite as buttery smooth as it could be. The Mac version doesn’t come with a USB receiver, and there’s still no built-in storage compartment for the dongle with either model. You also need to keep Options+ open to feel the haptic feedback, which is annoying. Some of those complaints have been issues for a while, so it’s frustrating to see them three years later. Still, they’re probably not dealbreakers. The MX Master 4 may not be a essential upgrade if you’re happy with an older MX Master mouse, and if those didn’t work for you before, this one probably won’t work for you now. But if you’re a power user in the market for a new productivity mouse, we’d expect this newest iteration to be as popular as its predecessors.



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Logitech MX Master 4 Review: Productivity Pro
Product Reviews

Logitech MX Master 4 Review: Productivity Pro

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The loss of soft-touch plastics may seem like a downgrade at first, but I vastly prefer uncoated plastics for long-term use: My MX Master 2S developed unsightly smooth spots on both mouse buttons where the soft-touch coating wore down, and other long-term users have reported the coatings becoming tacky over time.

Photograph: Henri Robbins

The two primary mouse buttons and the scroll wheel are nearly dead-silent. Despite this, they still have clear feedback with a distinct bump and no mushy feeling. In the ratcheting mode, the mouse wheel has a noticeable bump between each scroll. In the smooth mode, the wheel has just enough resistance to be controlled easily, while still spinning freely.

The horizontal scroll wheel on the side permanently scrolls smoothly and has significantly more resistance than the primary scroll wheel. This allows for greater control of the wheel and helps protect against accidental scrolling when moving your thumb. Scrolling is incredibly smooth, without any catching or scratchiness, and the ridged texture of the aluminum wheel feels comfortable and easy to manipulate. Clicking the wheel is still fairly loud, like any mouse. The three side buttons and the top button have a muted click, and it’s not disruptive.

Despite weighing 150 grams, this mouse is easy to glide around a surface. The feet are smooth, sliding easily while still having enough friction for precise control, and the sculpted shape makes it easy to move and lift. While the high weight means it won’t be ideal for competitive, high-intensity gaming, the shape is preferable for longer sessions, whether you’re grinding out dungeons or slogging through spreadsheets.

The sensor is capable of up to 8,000 dots per inch, but most people will likely leave the sensitivity well below that. I didn’t have any issues with input registration, skipping, or shaking, and the sensor felt incredibly precise on all surfaces, even frosted and transparent glass.

Gesture Controls and Haptics

Photograph: Henri Robbins

The MX Master 4’s gesture controls are one of its most prominent features. These have been featured on every generation of the MX Master line, with only small changes across generations. The gesture control button was previously located on the bottom of the thumb rest, hidden underneath the rubber surface, but has now been moved to a standard button on the side, which I found more comfortable and natural to use.



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Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 2 Is Still Coming, But What's In It?
Game Updates

Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 2 Is Still Coming, But What’s In It?

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In late 2023, Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 brought most of the early games in the franchise to modern consoles. Since then, fans have clamored for Konami to complete the collection of games with Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2. Now, the producer behind Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater has confirmed that Vol. 2 is still in the works, but declined to confirm any titles included in it.

During a presentation at the Tokyo Game Show, Metal Gear Solid producer Noriaki Okamura fielded a question about the next installment of the MGS Master Collection. X user Kuwabara357 shared a fan translation (via Video Games Chronicle), which essentially said that Vol. 2 is moving forward, but the team isn’t ready to share any information about it yet.

SCOOP MGSVOL.2❗️ : On the METAL GEAR PRODUCTION HOTLINE, Noriaki Okamura briefly mentioned MGS Master Collection Vol.2. and according to him, it will take a little more time.
Here is a translation of his statement: “It has certainly taken quite a while now. Since we called the… pic.twitter.com/JUccwXkJJ2

— Outsider Snake (@Kuwabara357) September 25, 2025

The most-anticipated possibility for the collection is Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, which has never been released outside of the PS3. The first Master Collection excluded Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, a 2010 PlayStation Portable game that had previously been remastered in 2011 for the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection. One of the series’ other portable games, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, was also excluded from the Master Collection Vol. 1.

It’s possible that the Master Collection Vol. 2 could include those games and both parts of Metal Gear Solid 5, Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain. But without confirmation from Konami, we can only speculate.

In the meantime, Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater’s Fox Hunt multiplayer mode will launch on October 30. MGS Delta producer Yuji Korekado has previously hinted that there may be more remakes in the franchise’s future. But if there are new MGS games being made, Okamura and Korekado expressed a desire to step aside and let a new generation of developers make the title.





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After Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail, gacha master HoYoverse set its sights on the Animal Crossing-like cosy sim genre
Game Reviews

After Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail, gacha master HoYoverse set its sights on the Animal Crossing-like cosy sim genre

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Petit Planet – a new cosy life sim from the creators of Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail – has been announced.

The game currently has PC and mobile versions confirmed, with “additional platforms” in development according to the official press release alongside the reveal. Petit Planet has you build up and develop your own tiny planet, eventually venturing out into a galaxy filled with other planets owned by cutesy NPCs.

A reveal trailer (which you can watch below) showcases what the game will look like, with a character building up a nice little home, meeting various animal friends, before hopping in a car and taking to the stars to meet a cast of other furry fellows on their own home planets.

Here’s the Petit Planet reveal trailer!Watch on YouTube

Those interested can pre-register for the game right now on the official website, as well as sign up for upcoming beta tests. There’s no word as to when these beta tests will occur or when the sign ups will close as of writing.

Rumours around a HoYoverse life sim have been circulating for a while, with the internal name Astaweave Haven known thanks to early leaks. However, this recent reveal marks the first official word on the game as well as the first peak we’ve been able to get of polished gameplay.

There is no information on how monetisation will work for Petit Planet, though given this is a HoYoverse game the expectation is that the game will feature gacha mechanics as found in Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail, and Zenless Zone Zero.

This isn’t the only game HoYoverse has in the works. The developer revealed Honkai: Nexus Anima earlier this year, a Pokemon-style creature collector and auto-battler. Petit Planet has entered a somewhat contested genre, interestingly enough. Both Pocket Pair and Nintendo have announced their own cosy farm sims in Palfarm and Pokémon Pokopia.



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Master And Commander Limited Edition 4K Steelbook Restocked At Amazon
Game Updates

Master And Commander Limited Edition 4K Steelbook Restocked At Amazon

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Back in 2003, audiences were introduced to oceanic battlefields with the release of Master and Commander: Far Side of the World. Featuring an ensemble cast led by Russell Crowe, the film was a big hit thanks its depiction of naval battles during the Napoleonic Wars and strong performances. Last month, Master and Commander finally launched on 4K Blu-ray in the US, but many fans were unable to preorder a copy due to how fast Amazon sold through its stock. If you’re still interested in picking it up, Amazon is once again taking orders for Master and Commander’s Limited Edition Steelbook.

Amazon is “temporarily out of stock” of the recently released Steelbook Edition, but you can place an order and Amazon will deliver it as soon as it replenishes its inventory.

The Steelbook Edition is the only 4K Blu-ray edition available in the US. A region-free standard edition with a slipcover released in Europe, but this version is only sold by third-party sellers in the US and is much more expensive than the $40 Steelbook Edition.

$40 | Available to order on September 25

Master and Commander’s Limited Edition Steelbook features a striking cover of Crowe’s character Captain Jack Aubrey alongside his ship, the HMS Surprise. The back cover has a compass motif, and there’s a subtle cartography influence for the maritime background. The interior artwork shows Aubrey staring out at the ocean.

This is a native 4K remaster (2160p) based on the original camera negative with support for Dolby Vision, HDR10, and Dolby Atmos. The two-disc set includes 4K UHD and 1080p Blu-ray editions of Master and Commander. You’ll also get a voucher to claim the digital edition on Movies Anywhere.

For the extras, there are deleted scenes, a trivia track for history fans, and a pop-up map that tracks Aubrey’s ship across the film.

One thing that’s worth noting here is that the DVD release of Master and Commander offered a greater variety of special features, which never made their way onto previous standard Blu-ray releases of the film. That two-disc DVD edition has been out of print for ages now, and while there are still copies of it available, it can be pricey. Still, if you’re looking to really dive deep into Master and Commander, it makes for a nice companion piece as it has several in-depth documentaries.

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World 4K Steelbook Edition

Master and Commander has held up very well in the decades since it was first released. The movie is a loose adaptation of the epic historical fiction series by English author Patrick O’Brien, and it tells the story of Captain Aubrey and his pursuit of a deadly French warship–the privateer ship Acheron–that threatens Britain’s naval supremacy. Torn between duty and his friendship with ship’s surgeon Dr. Stephen Maturin (Paul Bettany), Aubrey chases after the Acheron.

Just like several other historical movies released around the early 2000s, Master and Commander had an air of authenticity that helped elevate it. Naval warfare movies were relatively rare back then, and this movie featured period-accurate costumes and language. Filming took place on an actual ship–the HMS Rose–and a specially built full-scale replica that floated inside of a massive tank at Baja Studios in Mexico.

Speaking of Russell Crowe, an Amazon-exclusive Gladiator 2-Movie Steelbook Collection released in May and is in stock for $68. Crowe starred in the original Gladiator (2000), and Paul Mescal took on the lead role in the long-awaited 2024 sequel. Ridley Scott directed both films. Here’s a quick rundown of the 4K Blu-ray editions of Gladiator and Gladiator II that are in stock at Amazon.

Gladiator 4K Blu-rays

Gladiator 2-Movie Steelbook Collection

Another great Ridley Scott film to check out is Kingdom of Heaven, as it recently got a 4K restoration, too. This is the Director’s Cut that includes a ton of extra content, greatly fleshing out several scenes that never made it into the theatrical version. Sadly, the Steelbook Edition of Kingdom of Heaven’s Director’s Cut has been hard to find in stock, but you can get a region-free 4K standard edition.

Set during the Crusades, Kingdom of Heaven follows Balian (Orlando Bloom) as he joins his father, Baron Godfrey (Liam Neeson), on their journey to Jerusalem to reclaim it from the forces of the Ayyubid Sultan Saladin.



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A Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 on a desk
Product Reviews

Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 review: fantastic 1440p gaming

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We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Cooler Master Tempest GP2711: Two-minute review

Between various budget and more premium gaming monitor offerings within the 27-inch 1440p market, the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 could serve as a fine middle-ground.

Its $499 / UK £429 / AU $999 price point and capabilities are good enough to please anyone on both sides of the spectrum, while image quality looks fantastic thanks to the display’s quantum dot technology.

When viewing content or gaming in SDR or HDR, the high 600 nits brightness makes colors pop, especially thanks to the 99% sRGB and 95% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage. Once you add nice contrast and deep blacks into the mix, the GP2711 has so much going for it.

Gaming performance is more than enough to satisfy enthusiasts and aspiring e-sports gamers as well. Having a max 165Hz refresh rate alongside 1ms response time should be more than enough for intense sessions of Fortnite or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III.

For its variable refresh rate solution, the GP2711 is compatible with AMD FreeSync to prevent screen tearing. Then there are other features like an on-screen crosshair and other types of overlays.

Though it lacks a few contemporary features of the very best gaming monitors, the GP2711 offers some solid extras. Gamers and streamers will be happy to know that it has KVM capabilities, which allow users to use the same keyboard and mouse to control two different devices without the need for an extra monitor.

While having built-in speakers are always a plus, the ones in the GP2711 offer fairly disappointing audio quality but are good enough for looking at YouTube videos or social content in a quiet room from time to time.

Taken all together, then, the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 should be on any gamer’s shortlist if they want to pick up one of the best 1440p monitors on the market right now.

Cooler Master Tempest GP2711: Price & availability

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

  • How much is it? $499 / UK £429 / AU $999
  • When is it available? It is available now
  • Where can you buy it? You can buy it in the US, UK, and Australia

The Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 is currently available across the U.S., UK, and AU for $499 / UK £429 / AU $999, respectively. Outside of the usual online retailers like Amazon and Newegg, the gaming monitor can be purchased through various links on the Cooler Master website in various territories.

At its price, the GP2711 serves as the best bang-for-buck purchase for anyone on a budget looking for a 27-inch 1440p gaming monitor.

Cooler Master Tempest GP2711: Specs

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)Swipe to scroll horizontallyCooler Master Tempest GP2711 specifications

Screen size

27-inch

Row 0 – Cell 3

Aspect ratio

16:9

Row 1 – Cell 3

Resolution

2560×1440

Row 2 – Cell 3

Brightness

600 nits (Typical)

Row 3 – Cell 3

Response time

4ms (GtG), 1ms (MPRT)

Row 4 – Cell 3

Viewing angle

178°/178°

Row 5 – Cell 3

Contrast ratio

3000:1 (Typ.), 3,000,000:1 (HDR)

Row 6 – Cell 3

Color support

DCI-P3 95%, Adobe RGB 93.5%, sRGB 99%, 130% Area Ratio

Row 7 – Cell 3

Inputs

2X HDMI 2.0 / 1X DisplayPort 1.4 / 1X USB-B/ 2X USB-A / 1X USB-C / 3.5mm headset jack

Row 8 – Cell 3

Weight

14lbs

Row 9 – Cell 3

Cooler Master Tempest GP2711: Design

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

  • Easy setup
  • Spins into portrait mode
  • Fairly plain looking

From putting it together to using it day-to-day, the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 blends ease of use with functionality. All users have to do is connect the base to the neck and both clip onto the back panel.

At 14lbs, it’s pretty easy to lug around as well. It’s fairly adjustable with swivel, height, and pivot poseability. In addition, you can also spin the display 90 degrees to put it into portrait mode.

To power the GP2711, there’s a small brick adapter that doesn’t feel long enough, but it gets the job done in connecting to the power port on the back panel.

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Other ports include two HDMI 2.0 ports, one DisplayPort 1.4 port, one upstream USB-B port, two USB-A ports, one USB-C, and a 3.5mm headset jack. This is a good enough port setup for multiplatform gamers with additional consoles or streamers due to KVM, which is accessible through the power button.

The small thumbstick on the back allows navigation of the in-display menu. Here, users can change various settings like color, HDR, volume control for the built-in speakers, features like adaptive sync, and more. Moving around in the menu feels good between the speedy software and the thumbstick.

The overall black design is fairly boring but works well enough. Don’t expect any fancy RGB lighting or the like. The actual display screen features thin right, left, and top bezels alongside the larger logo chin. The back is slightly bulky, but that’s due to a unique heatsink and thermal back cover that reduces the need for fans.

Cooler Master Tempest GP2711: Features

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

  • KVM capabilities
  • No genre-specific color presets
  • Built-in speakers aren’t great

Don’t expect a ton of features on the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711, but there are some noteworthy extras.

The built-in speakers are nothing special, as they don’t get really loud and aren’t sonically nuanced for finer audio. The speakers have a hollow sound that’s good enough to watch an occasional YouTube video and the like in a quiet room, but even on a casual level, most PC gamers will have some type of gaming headset, so this isn’t really a dealbreaker.

If your audio setup isn’t already connected to their desktop, the GP2711 has a 3.5mm headphone jack for audio output.

KVM allows users to use a keyboard and mouse across two devices, and this is a huge deal for streamers. It works pretty well, and users can hit the thumbstick right for various ways to utilize the feature, including USB-B and USB-C.

The thumbstick also reveals various overlay modes you can use, including different crosshairs for better aiming when playing shooters, a frames-per-second monitor, and a timer for speedruns.

Don’t expect anything outside of that, though. There aren’t any genre-specific color settings or modes, so gamers who have particular color settings when playing League of Legends compared to Call of Duty: Warzone are going to manually make in-display adjustments for each game, which could be problematic.

Cooler Master Tempest GP2711: Performance

(Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

If the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 doesn’t knock everything out of the park, its highlight is both image quality and gaming performance.

When Cooler Master called this gaming monitor a “Play-Work-Movie Solution,” they weren’t playing. Off the rip, the 600 nits brightness goes a long way in providing remarkable image quality for both SDR and HDR. Colors are bold, crisp, and the contrast is just right.

Playing visually arresting games with great art design like Alan Wake II, The Legend of Kenzera: ZAU, and Children of the Sun, among others, look stunning, and these visuals do a lot to help immersion.

Most importantly, having a high brightness allows the GP2711 to look phenomenal regardless of lighting conditions in a room. As mentioned previously, the gaming monitor doesn’t have any genre-specific settings, which means color correction will have to be done before playing a particular game, but thankfully, the default settings are more than good enough for a wide range of genres.

Gamers who are also content creators will also like the GP2711’s 99% sRGB and 95% DCI-P3 color gamut coverage. This means color accuracy is pretty nice when using Adobe Suite software like Photoshop and Premiere Pro. Meanwhile, watching video content on the GP2711 was a great experience with deep blacks and sharp contrast.

Gaming performance is impressive with its 165Hz refresh rate alongside response time that sits between 4ms (GtG) and 1ms (MPRT). The GP2711 is good enough of a display to play more competitive games like Fortnite or Marvel Rivals. Using a controller or keyboard and mouse for various games felt buttery smooth without any noticeable latency.

When it comes to games pushing image quality and performance, even games like Forza Motorsport handle both well. Having AMD FreeSync compatibility also does a fine job in preventing screen tearing, too. For its very accessible price point, the GP2711 means absolute business.

Should I buy the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711?

Swipe to scroll horizontallyCooler Master Tempest GP2711 ScorecardHeader Cell – Column 0

Notes

Rating

Value

$499 is a good sweet spot for the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 while having just enough extras.

4.5/ 5

Design

Design is fairly boring but set-up is easy, has plenty of ports and navigating the in-display menu is nice.

4/ 5

Features

The GP2711 isn’t as feature rich as many other monitors, but it has some great features that streamers will love.

4 / 5

Performance

Image quality in SDR and HDR is pretty respectable for its price. Meanwhile, performance works splendidly thanks to a 165Hz refresh rate.

4.5/ 5

Final score

The Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 plays a good middle ground between price and functionality making it a serious recommendation.

4.25 / 5

  Buy the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711 if… 

 Don’t buy it if… 

Also Consider

How I tested the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711:

During the two weeks I used the Cooler Master Tempest GP2711, it was my day-to-day monitor for daily activities like browsing with Google Chrome and using Slack for communication purposes. I also used it for work purposes, editing documents with Google Docs, managing projects via Asana, and coordinating social media activities using tools like Hootsuite.

To assess the overall image quality, I played visually rich games like Alan Wake II, The Legend of Kenzera: ZAU, and Children of the Sun. To test performance and gaming enhancement features I relied mostly on titles like Fortnite and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III.

I’ve spent the past several years covering monitors alongside other PC components for Techradar, among many other publications, so I am very well equipped to assess the strengths and weaknesses of a gaming monitor like this.

  • First reviewed September 2025



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Tesla’s new ‘Master Plan’ sounds like AI slop
Gaming Gear

Tesla’s new ‘Master Plan’ sounds like AI slop

by admin


Tesla’s latest “Master Plan” makes a few things clear right out of the gate: the company that was once known for accelerating the push toward a brighter future by popularizing electric vehicles and renewable energy is no longer interested in that quotidian stuff. Now, it’s all about artificial intelligence, humanoid robots, self-driving cars, and the new buzzy catchphrase that is currently lighting up the tech world: “sustainable abundance.”

At a breezy 983 words, Master Plan 4 is the shortest entry in the company’s ongoing series of mission statements. It’s the first one to be posted on X, Elon Musk’s social media platform, rather than on Tesla’s website. And it reads like it was written by the platform’s chatbot, Grok, with repeated use of em dashes and a suspiciously utopian tone about the future of AI and robotics.

But is it actually AI generated? It hardly matters, because the substance of the Master Plan is so vague, so empty, and so devoid of concrete proposals that it barely casts a shadow.

Making technologically advanced products that are affordable and available at scale is required to build a flourishing and unconstrained society. It serves to further democratize society while raising everyone’s quality of life in the process. The hallmark of meritocracy is creating opportunities that enable each person to use their skills to accomplish whatever they imagine.

Compare that to the first Master Plan, published in 2006, which outlined the company’s desire to build an electric sports car, then use the revenue generated to build successively more affordable electric vehicles. Or Master Plan 2, published in 2016, which calls for building electric semi trucks and buses, developing self-driving vehicles, and then allowing customers to use those vehicles as profit-generating robotaxis. Or Master Plan 3, published in 2023, which positioned Tesla to lead the global effort to eliminate fossil fuels and convert the world to sustainable energy.

This is big, heady stuff! Sure, Tesla has barely touched the goals it listed in the second Master Plan, but at least they were goals in the traditional sense. This latest iteration is pure fluff. It risks floating away on a current of its own self-regard.

To be fair, a lot has happened between the third Master Plan and today. Elon Musk bought Twitter and transformed it into X. He founded xAI to compete in the global race to develop generative AI tools. He launched the Cybertruck, which subsequently flopped. He poured $300 million into the election of Donald Trump and then oversaw the slashing of billions of dollars from the federal government in the name of “efficiency.”

The damage to Tesla’s brand was staggering. The company’s sales are in decline in all major markets across the world, thanks to growing competition and Musk’s political affiliations. Tesla’s attempts to recapture some of that old magic, with robots and robotaxis, have been largely unsuccessful. This new plan is the latest effort to rekindle some sort of vision.

This latest iteration is pure fluff. It risks floating away on a current of its own self-regard.

If you’re confused about what Tesla is promising, you’re not alone. X users commented that the plan “reads more like a glorified TED Talk than a Gannt Chart with deadlines and KPIs.” Instead, we get philosophical talk about “infinite growth, AI solving scarcity, and robots freeing up your time.” The previous Master Plans were visionary documents, too, but with more of an emphasis on deliverable products and action items, rather than amorphous platitudes and buzzword salad.

To be sure, Elon Musk seems to regret some of the things that were included in the previous plans. In a recent post on X, he admitted that second plan remains unfinished, but promises that it will be complete by “next year.” Master Plan 3 was “too complex for almost anyone to understand,” he said, touting the fourth plan as “concise.”

The focus on “sustainable abundance” is telling. We’ve been hearing a lot about abundance these days, mostly from the eponymous book by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson that outlines a plan for more housing, more clean energy, and more prosperity — as achieved through deregulation and higher productivity. There’s also the Abundance Institute, a think tank focused on innovation and prosperity with a heavy focus on AI policy.

But the idea of “abundance” has since achieved escape velocity and now seems to be an umbrella term for libertarians and centrist Democrats to push back against leftists and democratic socialists calling for universal healthcare and higher taxes on the rich.

To me, the more telling word choice in Master Plan 4 is “infinite.” The document declares that “growth is infinite,” suggesting that traditional barriers like labor, real estate, finances, or natural resources should not stand in the way of Tesla’s upward trajectory.

It’s one of Musk’s favorite rhetorical devices. He has described customer demand in Tesla’s vehicles as “infinite.” The Cybertruck’s towing capacity is also “infinite.” (It’s actually rated for 11,000 lbs, which last I checked is a long way off from infinite.)

What it really is — to borrow another phrase from the Tesla playbook — is ludicrous. The company’s self-driving cars don’t really drive themselves, solar roofs are on the back burner, the mythical $25,000 “Model 2” got canceled, and your Tesla won’t make you money while you sleep. Its robots can’t even serve a bucket of popcorn without some heavy human involvement.

Musk is high on his own supply, and this latest Master Plan is evidence of that.

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