According to both IDC and Gartner Q3 2014 PC shipments show improvement over previous quarters-- the numbers are still on the decline, but by -1.7% Y-o-Y according to IDC and -0.5% Y-o-Y according to Gartner, better than previously expected.

Interestingly IDC reports Apple has overtaken Asus to the 5th place in the global Q3 2014 PC vendor rankings, a first for the company since the historic days of the Apple II. For the curious, Apple PC shipments total nearly 5 million on the quarter, leading to 6.3% market share.

Overall Q3 2014 PC shipments according to the analyst reach 78.5m units with a -1.7% Y-o-Y decline, a "sizable" improvement over previous IDC forecasts of a -4.1% Y-o-Y decline.

Asus launches the VivoMini-- a range of Intel MUC-style mini PCs in a barebones form factor handling a variety of operating system, such as Windows or Linux.

VivoMini PCs feature either Intel Celeron 2957U CPU, Core i30-4030U or i5-4210U CPUs, as well as Intel HD graphics, full or half PCIe card slots and an m.SATA connector. Ports include 4 USB 3.0, HDMI, DisplayPort and ethernet.

The Video Electronics Standards Association joins the USB 3.0 Promoter Group to add DisplayPort Alternate Mode (aka "Alt Mode") to the upcoming USB Type-C standard.

Essentially, Alt Mode adds DisplayPort capabilities to USB Type-C connectors and cables, allowing them the carrying of video signals (up to 4K), SuperSpeed USB (USB 3.1) data and up to 100W of power. It will also feature adapters to support existing DisplayPort, HDMI, DVI and VGA displays.

For the technically curious, VESA says Alt Mode "repurposes some or all of the four existing SuperSpeed USB lanes to deliver full DisplayPort performance, and uses other signaling available in the USB Type-C connector for DisplayPort’s AUX channel and HPD (Hot Plug Detection) function. This enables computers, tablets, smartphones, displays, and docking stations to implement the new USB Type-C connector at both ends while using the DisplayPort Standard over USB Type-C to transmit high-resolution A/V along with USB data and power."

Intel reveals further details of its 8-core desktop processor, the Core i7-5960X Extreme Edition (aka Haswell-E), the first CPU from the company with support for 16 computing threads and DDR4 memory.

"We're thrilled to unveil the next phase in our 'reinvention of the desktop' we outlined earlier this year," the company says. "This product family is aimed squarely at those enthusiasts who push their systems further than anyone, and we're offering the speed, cores, overclocking and platform capabilities they have asked us for."

Shown off at Penny Arcade Expo (PAX), the CPU features an enhanced X99 chipset built using a 22nm process squeezing 2.6 billion tri-gate transistors on a single die.

Feature-wise it carries a 20MB Smart Cache shared between all cores, Hyper-Threading, Turbo Boost 2.0, 6 USB 3.0 ports, 10 SATA 3.0 ports, Thunderbolt 2 and optional Intel Rapid Storage Technology support.

Alienware brings back the Area-51 gaming desktop PC with an admittedly interesting "Triad" chassis design packing the latest Intel Haswell-E processors and support for up to 3 graphics cards.

According to the company the triangular-shaped chassis provides "maximum thermal performance," as it pulls fresh air from the front and exhausts warm air diagonally from the rear. It also allows easy access to both front and rear ports, with a tilt of the chassis providing access to the rear I/O panel.

The chassis also features 9 LED lighting zones with 20 colours, which users can customise using the included Alienware Command Center 4.0. The software also allows hardware monitoring and performance profile configuration complete with with overclocking, CPU clock, voltage and memory timing controls.

Alienware takes on living room gaming PCs with the Alpha-- a console-style number running not on Steam OS but on regular Windows 8.1, if with a custom-designed "Alpha UI".

Like a Steam Machine or other similar living room PCs the Alpha features an HDMI-out port, as well as an HDMI-in with pass-through support. As mentioned earlier it runs on Windows 8.1, with the Alpha UI's "Console Mode" promising users can navigate through all core features using just a gamepad and the Steam client's Big Picture mode.

A "Desktop Mode" allows use as a regular PC via the addition of a mouse.

The USB 3.0 Promoter Group completes the USB Type-C specification, meaning the next generation of USB connector is all but ready to enter production following transfer to the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF).

USB Type-C is a modified version of the 10 Gbps USB 3.1 standard, with a slimmer connector promising to be robust enough for laptop and tablet use while being slim enough for smartphones.

The connector is reversible, bringing an end to mis-plugging issues, while USB Power Delivery support allows it to carry up to 100W, enough to power a laptop.

The one catch-- or advantage, depending on how one sees it-- with USB Type-C? It is not compatible with the current USB standard, demanding a need for convertors (as defined in the specification).

Club 3D launches what it claims is the first USB 3.0 graphics adapter able to output 4K/UHD (3840 x 2160 resolution) video with the USB 3.0 to DisplayPort 4K Graphics Adapter (CSV-2302).

Part of the SenseVision product family, the adapter pushes display signals via USB 3.0 to DisplayPort-enabled 4K displays at a refresh rate of 30Hz. It carries a DisplayLink DL-5500 adapter and is backwards compatible with QHD and HD monitors via DisplayPort 1.2 interface.

Also included are HDCP 2.0 (for protected video playback) and integrated audio.