I hope Essential’s demise isn’t a canary in a PC reminiscence coal mine

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I didn't have “Micron kills its client enterprise” on my 2025 bingo card.

The corporate introduced the shuttering of its Essential model on Wednesday morning in unexpectedly easy, clear language. The quick model: Micron is concentrating on their enterprise clients, the place the demand has “surged” for reminiscence and storage—because of knowledge facilities and their scaling up for AI.

(Translation: ‘We are able to make far more cash by enterprise clients, so we'll.’)

As famous on this similar submit, this determination ends 29 years of the Essential model. I can’t say I’m utterly shocked. However I'm shocked by what this transfer partially implies. Specifically, enterprise’s starvation for reminiscence and storage lasting for years and years.

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Am I nervous for shoppers? Not simply but. However I'm questioning if the somber estimate of RAM shortages lasting past this decade finally ends up proving true.

I’m additionally questioning which different firms will again off client gross sales. And perhaps extra importantly, how such choices will have an effect on the event cycles and price of latest merchandise.

I don’t imply solely RAM kits and SSD drives, although I might see any firm producing reminiscence or storage modules abandoning direct-to-consumer efforts. No, I imply something that accommodates them, too—like graphics playing cards. For instance, rumor has it that Nvidia could begin anticipating board companions to supply their very own reminiscence. Individually, these smaller firms have much less energy to barter. That would then affect the pricing and portions they get, which in flip would lead to larger prices for shoppers…and certain slower releases and fewer choices, too.

Equally, I might see prebuilt PCs change into much less bleeding edge with their specs, both staying stagnant and even regressing.

Sounds unhealthy, proper? So why am I not nervous? Let’s say shoppers are confronted with larger costs and sluggish innovation. Let’s assume too that on a regular basis folks will push off tech upgrades for longer stretches. The market should adapt—and I'm curious what that will appear like.

<img decoding="async" data-wp-class--hide="state.isContentHidden" data-wp-class--show="state.isContentVisible" data-wp-init="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async--click="actions.showLightbox" data-wp-on-async--load="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async-window--resize="callbacks.setButtonStyles" src="https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/image_c6027d.png?w=1200" alt="Acer Chromebook 516 GE GeForce Now" class="wp-image-2979890" width="1200" height="800" loading="lazy" /> Chromebooks and GeForce Now have expanded what’s potential for individuals with low budgets or restricted {hardware}. However I don’t need that strategy to PCs to change into the default. Matt Smith/Foundry

To make up for lagging client {hardware} efficiency, does the shift to cloud computing speed up quicker? Or will software program improvements make up for older, much less performant client PCs and telephones? Corporations need everybody on a subscription mannequin, however nobody can afford all that exist.

I would like the second situation as our future, if we've to endure a {hardware} apocalypse. How can we make that occur? Customers can vote with their {dollars}, and we should as issues change into bleaker. Native computing wants to stay a basic a part of client know-how. Chromebooks and GeForce Now are incredible choices, however the ideas they depend on—at all times on-line, absolutely depending on remotely administered servers—can't deal with everybody’s wants. Plus, with on-line safety devolving into a much bigger and greater dumpster hearth, native computing is a protection towards privateness and knowledge leaks.

When PCs first turned mainstream, a primary mannequin price $1,500 to $2,500. Since then, client demand fueled the accessibility and openness of the PC—it’s a core cause for why I’m right here writing these phrases and why you’re studying them. I don’t need to watch that die. So I’m selecting to imagine we shoppers can (and should) stave off such a regression.

On this episode of The Full Nerd

On this episode of The Full Nerd, Adam Patrick Murray, Alaina Yee, and Will Smith dig into my annual checklist of the very best DIY gaming PCs buildable with Black Friday offers, plus our predictions for CES 2026. As gloomy as we sound, it was a enjoyable dialogue—I get pleasure from sifting by all of the offers after which jigsaw-puzzling them into construct lists. Actually cool to have crossed the 10-year mark with this custom!

As for CES, we've determined to not play a ingesting sport primarily based on how typically “AI” is talked about in keynotes and press releases. We’re too outdated to climate the assured huge hangover.

<img decoding="async" data-wp-class--hide="state.isContentHidden" data-wp-class--show="state.isContentVisible" data-wp-init="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async--click="actions.showLightbox" data-wp-on-async--load="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async-window--resize="callbacks.setButtonStyles" src="https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/TFN25_376_TFNep376_CC.00_13_25_17.Still002.png?w=1200" alt="TFN25 376 TFNep376 CC 00 13 25 17 Still002" class="wp-image-3001191" width="1200" height="675" loading="lazy" /> I lived my greatest streamer-beanie life throughout this episode. (Gordon’s takes on life have been so hilarious.) Willis Lai / Foundry

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And in case you want extra {hardware} speak throughout the remainder of the week, come be a part of our Discord group—it’s stuffed with cool, laid-back nerds.

This week’s packed nerd information

I got here again from our vacation weekend feeling as if I hadn’t heard a lot information. However a lot nonetheless occurred behind the noise of AI and its have an effect on on {hardware}, even when it wasn’t notably cheery.

So on theme with Thanksgiving, I’m grateful to all of the splendidly loopy weirdos who do issues like play Minecraft on a receipt printer—I discover it nice for morale as a {hardware} fanatic. And a lover of doing dumb, innocent issues for leisure.

<img decoding="async" data-wp-class--hide="state.isContentHidden" data-wp-class--show="state.isContentVisible" data-wp-init="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async--click="actions.showLightbox" data-wp-on-async--load="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async-window--resize="callbacks.setButtonStyles" src="https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Micron-Crucial-SSD-on-a-laptop.jpg?quality=50&strip=all&w=1200" alt="Micron Crucial SSD on a laptop" class="wp-image-2998034" width="1200" height="900" loading="lazy" /> That drive is fairly tiny. Mark Hachman / Foundry

Lengthy stay emoticons: I’m within the minority of oldsters who nonetheless use emoticons, fairly than emoji, for conversations. Studying up on emoticon historical past (as cataloged by former PCWorld contributor Benj Edwards) put an actual smile on my face. It was easier instances then. Although people have been nonetheless very human.

Am I outdated now? No, it’s the youngsters who're incorrect: I recognized strongly with this rant from my colleague Mark Hachman, in regards to the bodily dimension of contemporary exterior SSDs. (I've too many issues to trace nowadays…)

So…12 months of Linux for actual? In accordance with the Zorin OS builders, the newest launch of their distro hit an all-time excessive of 1 million downloads in simply 5 weeks.

Steve benchmarked a bunch of Linux video games, btw: Our pal Steve Burke & crew over at Avid gamers Nexus dove deep into Linux gaming efficiency. If you happen to’ve been interested by how a swap off Home windows would go, undoubtedly try this video.

Microsoft’s new ugly vacation sweaters are sort of… cute? Besides that Zune one. Burn it with hearth. Additionally, it’s a no for me on the Copilot brand blended in with ’90s nostalgia. And the Xbox one is okay provided that you’re an enormous model fanatic. …Okay, yeah, let’s simply skip all of those.

An costly slice of Pi: Sadly, RAM pricing impacts our favourite price range single-board laptop, too.

Oh no: I don’t need Google Gemini on my telephone. I additionally rely closely on Google Assistant to set reminders for me. If this goes past simply Android Auto, March 2026 will be the month the place everybody finds out simply how really unhealthy I'm at conserving observe of issues by myself. ð

<img decoding="async" data-wp-class--hide="state.isContentHidden" data-wp-class--show="state.isContentVisible" data-wp-init="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async--click="actions.showLightbox" data-wp-on-async--load="callbacks.setButtonStyles" data-wp-on-async-window--resize="callbacks.setButtonStyles" src="https://b2c-contenthub.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/ceKtKjELVxwmo349sTw9z8-970-80.jpg.webp" alt="Playing Minecraft on a receipt printer" class="wp-image-3001198" width="970" height="546" loading="lazy" /> Yep, that’s Minecraft on a receipt printout. smilly (YouTube) / Tom’s {Hardware}

Taking part in Minecraft on a receipt printer is a factor? Nicely, it was for a YouTuber who determined to provide a go. Very entertaining idea. Nearly pretty much as good as enjoying video games with bananas or pomegranates.

Mates laughed at my front room PC. However who’s laughing now? I imply, actually nobody, as a result of Netflix killing casting assist is only a crappy bit of stories. However I do really feel vindicated in regards to the little buddy connected to my TV.

My sort of moral hacking: Organizers at Kawaiicon in New Zealand constructed a system to watch CO2 ranges within the air, as a proxy for viral an infection threat. Fairly dang neat little bit of hacking. (It’s a hacker convention although, so I assume the digital variety went wild and free, for science and enjoyable.) (Sure, a hacker con, not an anime con.) (No, I didn't count on that both.)

On the subject of privateness: Proton simply launched an Excel different for its customers. Together with its Phrase different (Proton Docs), it’s now a potential viable different to Google’s free webapps. Time to roll up my sleeves and provides it a spin, for the sake of reporting.

Japan invents ‘human washer’: However fails to think about what is not going to get washed if a human sits in a recliner the entire time whereas being (gently) hosed down. (Ew.) I anticipated extra from the land that gave us high-tech bidets.

Uh oh. Cherry is having large monetary issues: To remain afloat, components of their enterprise will likely be offered—and manufacturing of their well-known switches will shift from Germany to China and Slovakia. Feels just like the Cherry we knew is not going to be the one which survives.

RAM is so costly, Samsung gained’t even promote it to Samsung: My colleague Mike Crider has a means with headlines—and this one’s so good I needed to embody it right here, although everybody’s saturated with memory-related information. It's fairly the signal of the instances.

I've a dilemma: As talked about on the present, I've an inadequate amount of vacation sweaters for our December episodes. Ought to go together with a cultured vacation sweater to spherical out my assortment? Or ought to I lean even tougher into the ugly vacation sweater theme? Choices, choices.