HTC Stereo Handsfree with Volume Control
Dragonsteel Mods :: Tuesday, May 27, 2008
USBFever (and it's really three things in one, a mini-USB to 3.5mm jack adapter, volume control and a microphone. This little gadget essentially lets you turn any headphones or earbuds you have into a handsfree setup. There are many choices out there for handsfree sets but really most have sub-par headphones included with them, and it's usually only one earpiece, with this gadget from USBFever you get to use your own headset. Being able to use any headset is very nice indeed, also you can get this for about $15.00 shipped to you from USBFever, so not only is it very useful but very inexpensive and well worth it…
Vizo Mini Ninja Notebook cooler
Dragonsteel Mods :: Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Vizo (Mini Ninja Notebook Cooler, and I've got two notebooks on hand to test with it to see how well it handles the heat. The Mini Ninja is well made and quiet, it even features a pass-through USB power connection so you won't lose a USB port while using it to help cool your laptop. So read on to check out the Mini Ninja and see if it can handle the heat or not?!
FriendFeed Gets Rooms, Nerds Rejoice For a Bit
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Social media hounds have been in a constant orgasmic fit since the day FriendFeed launched. Early adopters have been on board and championing the coolness of FriendFeed. And, indeed, it is a cool social media service. For those not in the cool kids club yet, FriendFeed is a social media site where you can aggregate your […]
Dell Crystal 22-Inch LCD Monitor
PC World :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
If you can afford it, this LCD monitor will look great sitting on your desk–but for the price, its performance should be better.
SpaceNavigator for Notebooks
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
3DConnexion (, a Logitech (subsidiary, have released a portable version of their SpaceNavigator mouse line. The SpaceNavigator for Notebooks ( weighs in at a little over ½ pound and is portable enough to be easily packed in a laptop bag. What makes this 3D mouse different from other mice, is that it allows you to work in the X,Y and Z planes, allowing simplified navigation in a 3D environment. So, if you are a 3D designer or an enthusiast, let’s see if the SpaceNavigator for Notebooks is the right mouse for the job. Let’s get started …….
Dell XPS 630 Gaming Desktop PC
PC World :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Customizable desktop system provides affordable gaming performance in a stylish package.
Where Social Networking Fails
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
[Source: Tame The Web]
iGo powerXtender
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
iGo (…
Does The Mac Need AntiVirus?
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Ever since I personally made the transition to the Apple platform late last year, we have (obviously) had a lot more coverage of Apple here on PCMech. This has helped raise the awareness of Apple products on what used to be a very PC-centric tech site. As a result, I often get asked questions about […]
Roku Netflix Player
PC World :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Inexpensive streaming box makes it simple to access movies in your Netflix Instant Queue.
Google Sites Now Open
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Google announced that their Sites service is now open to anyone who wants to use it. According to what the big G says about it, it’s a thing where you can create a site (duh,) and have the ability to share it, collaborate it and so on and so forth. So I tried it out. This is the […]
Palit GeForce 9600GSO Sonic 768MB
Techgage :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
On a budget and need the best bang for the buck? NVIDIA’s new 9600 GSO might be the answer, despite not being that different from a 9600 GT. We are taking a look at Palit’s Sonic version of the card, which comes pre-overclocked, doubles the memory and includes adapters for both HDMI and VGA.
SQLite Manager Inside Your Browser
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Developers who use database back ends are probably used to having nice graphical environments in which to build and maintain their databases. Many of the popular choices (MySQL, SQL Server, etc.) have readily available environments, but one simple and easy database, SQLite seems to lack in this area. No longer with the SQLite Manager Firefox […]
I Am IronKey, and I Can Encrypt Anything
PC World :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
The $79-and-up IronKey secure USB flash drive takes its task seriously, using hardware encryption, and self-destructing if physical tampering is detected.
SteelSeries Ikari Optical Gaming Mouse
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
SteelSeries (Ikari Laser Gaming Mouse and I found it to be an excellent choice overall, today I've got the optical version of Ikari and I think I actually like it better than the laser Ikari… It offers choices of DPI or CPI settings, but that's about it, it's not as feature packed as the Ikari laser, there's no special LCD screen and you can't change the settings on the fly, but that's ok with me as I never really used any of those features anyway. If you're looking for a great mouse for gaming and everyday use that just is that, a great mouse, then read on to check out the Ikari Optical Gaming Mouse…
Links to Reviews for May 19-21
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Aeneon DDR3-1600 4GB XMP RAM AXH860UD20-16H – “Windows Vista has given the hardware industry a good reason to feed Microsoft’s pig of an Operating System nothing but the finest high-performance hardware. The very first thing I noticed during testing was the incredibly sluggish performance compared to Windows XP. Windows Vista caches start up programs so boot […]
MeBeam Video Conferencing
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Once in a great while something comes along on the internet that’s so unbelievably simple yet works so well. Twitter is one of them. On the video conferencing side, now we have MeBeam. MeBeam is literally so simple it will confuse you. You will probably say “Um.. that’s it? Just go there, create a room and […]
Review: Nintendo Wii Fit
PC World :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Intuitive and downright cute in its presentation, the Wii Fit makes working out in front of your TV a genuinely interactive and fun experience.
Links to Reviews for May 21-23
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Eagle Tech N and I Series HDD Enclosures “You may have seen some Eagle Tech products while shopping the online e-tailers. They certainly offer some attractive prices, especially their power supplies. But Eagle has a fairly wide selection of gear, from chassis to speakers, power supplies to external storage. Today I have for review two of […]
Casual Friday: Wii Fitness and Gaming Rehab
PC World :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
We’re all about being healthy this week. Break a sweat with Wii Fit, learn about some other games designed to overcome your lazy streak, and check out a couple of characters that we placed in a 12-step program.
Coolink GFXChilla Review
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
Coolink’s new low-profile GFXChilla VGA cooler boasts some impressive features and is priced very attractively. Compatible with just about every nVidia and ATI card on the market, we cook it up in the IC labs to see if its performance is as impressive as its price.
Watercooling Radiator Shoot-Out
Bit-Tech Modding :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
With all of the components in watercooling, one always seems to get overlooked – the radiator. So much effort goes into waterblocks that we seldom see a complete “here’s the best” test. Fortunately, we’re fixing that problem today, with the first in a series of radiator shoot-outs.
Slipstream SP3 Into A Windows XP Install CD
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
If you find yourself performing clean installations of Windows XP often, you may want to take the time to build your own installation CD which includes the recently released SP3. This process is called “slipstreaming” and basically creates an install CD which includes SP3 as part of the installation process. This process is very easy to […]
Common Browser Myths
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
As long as the Internet exists (as we know it at least), a browser is simply going to be a requirement. As you probably know, there are several major players in the browser market, each having their own “nuances”. Of course these nuances lead to myths and misconceptions as the infamous “I heard it does […]
XPSP2 vs XPSP3 Performance Comparison
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 24, 2008
So Service Pack 3 for Windows XP has come and gone with not much really said about it, sure there was plenty of talk before it came out but you don't hear much after the fact. Of course I installed it I was curious as to what if any differences there were between them, from what I can recall Microsoft said that the Service Pack didn't include any performance enhancements or anything like that to the core of the OS, and honestly if doesn't feel much different to me. It does actually 'feel' a bit slower though to do things, like load thumbnails for instances, I've got tons or pictures on my computer and they just seem to load much slower now, also I noticed when I click 'My Computer', click a drive to open it or pop in a USB drive it seems slower there as well to react, maybe it's me as I haven't really heard anyone else mention it. So for my own purposes I decided to run a bunch of tests to see if there was any real differences, after all Benchmark and testing software is designed to pick up very small imperceptible differences in things that we normally wouldn't notice. We wouldn't notice a few nanoseconds or milliseconds most likely but the software will as that's what it's for, to measure things like that. So I ran SiSoft Sandra, Cinebench, 3dmark06, SuperPi Mod 1.5 and TmpgeNC before and after the upgrade to SP3, I decided instead of just keeping it all to myself, why not share the results, and well there is a difference between SP2 and SP3 and it's a mixed bag of results really, in some cases SP2 is better and in others SP3 is, but there is obviously something going on, something changed and I'm not sure if it was for the better… So continue on to see the results…
Alienware Hangar18 HD Entertainment Center Review
Think Computers :: Thursday, May 22, 2008
Home theater PC’s have become very popular lately. It seems almost everyone I know has been taking their old computers and turning them into media machines. Well what if you want the best media machine money can buy? The Alienware Hangar18 HD Entertainment Center could be just that. Alienware is mainly known for making gaming machines, so it will be interesting to see how they do on the Hangar18. The Hangar18 is an all-in-one media machine that can play DVD’s or Blu-ray media, watch live TV, watch internet TV, listen to music, and share it all wirelessly. Let’s check it out!”
Sans Digital MOBILSTORE Hard Drive Enclosure Review
Hardware Canucks :: Thursday, May 22, 2008
The subject of today’s review is the Sans Digital RAID MOBILSTORE dual bay external storage enclosure, which has both USB and eSATA connectivity options. This enclosure not only supports the normal range of RAID modes such as Raid 1 and 0 but even has what Sans Digital calls Safe33 and Safe66. We will go into detail about what these new hybrid RAID modes are all about later in this review, but for now it is suffice to say which they have the potential to bring a whole new dimension to your typical external enclosure experience!
Interactive Protein Folding Game
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
If you are a Folding@Home junkie who is looking for a way to challenge your brain and help contribute to protein folding, then check out the Fold It interactive online puzzle game. Fold It is a simple game where you interactively solve protein folding puzzles, the same thing Folding@Home accomplishes, but with a twist: your efforts […]
Roku Arrives And Completely Owns Apple TV
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Said honestly I’m not hot on the idea of little digital boxes to rent movies from. However there are companies who feel there is a market for this. When Apple first released Apple TV it crashed and burned so hard sales-wise it was a wonder they even kept it around for more than six months. […]
Gigabyte GA-X48T-DQ6
Techgage :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Building a new machine and want DDR3 support? Then the X48T-DQ6 should be up for consideration. It offers great performance, very stable high overclocks (500MHz) and lots of connectivity, including a full eight USB ports at the back. The layout is not ideal, but the board still proves good overall.
OOPS! Best Buy Recommends Windows Software For Linux Laptop
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Y’know, you gotta hand it to the crack staff that runs the Best Buy web site. Granted, it’s cool they sell the Asus EeePC.. BUT.. Does it make much sense to recommend Microsoft Office and Norton Anti-Virus for Windows as Linux laptop accessories? Here are screen shots taken from Best Buy’s web site today. Click for large version – […]
Linux is at its best when the user doesn’t even know they are using it
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
The title of this article is a quote from a really good article called Linux is in Bed with Mom. The reason the article is so frickin’ good is because it completely nails what Linux is absolutely best at doing on the consumer end, that being the OS in an embedded system. Part of the whole […]
D-Tek FuZion v2.0 Waterblock
Bit-Tech Modding :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
The original D-Tek FuZion waterblock is one of the best in the business. Now, the guys over at D-Tek Customs have finally revised the old classic. The FuZion v2.0 may be a chip off the old block, but does it do better for the upgrade? Read on to find out.
HyLighter Helps Groups Collaborate on Documents
PC World :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
This new Web service uses sophisticated color coding to highlight areas of contention.
Links to Reviews for May 15-18
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
AcBel Polytech iPower 660 Power Supply – “AcBel Polytech, a traditional OEM manufacturer, is trying to enter the retail market. We made an in-depth review on their iPower 660 model.” Dell UltraSharp 2408WFP – “Whether you’re a corporate chieftain or a gaming guru, the UltraSharp 2408WFP will impress. It has excellent colour reproduction and has almost every modern […]
Secure Your Network
PC World :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
One-stop “security-in-a-box” devices can help you repel numerous threats.
Computer Information As Your Wallpaper
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Another great, yet oh so simple, tool from Sysinternals is the ability to plaster local computer information on your desktop background using BgInfo. BgInfo allows you to select from a couple of dozen system information fields and have them displayed on your desktop background. Additionally, you can capture this information and have it written to a […]
Saitek Cyborg Command Unit Review
Overclockers Club :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Social Networking Will Soon Get More Confusing
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
BusinessWeek dared (gasp) to throw out a Web 1.0 term, portal. The Web 2.0 term is called social network. Before continuing, I’ll attempt to explain the difference between portal and socialnetwork. A portal is an entryway. It is the place where you begin when using the internet. For example, many people use Yahoo as a portal. […]
NES Controller For Apple
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
If there’s one thing Apple does better than anything else, it’s style. However this only counts for new style, not old/retro. A genius (yes, a genius) decided to make an NES controller act as an Apple Remote. Genius, I say. Genius. Sometimes it takes people other than Apple to make cool Apple stuff. Check out the video below […]
Newegg’s Memory “Configurator”
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
I have written in the past about how valuable a system memory selector tool is when you are looking to upgrade the amount of RAM in your system. For the most part, you just find the “type” of RAM you need and then buy it, of course if you do not know what type you […]
MSI P7N Diamond Review
Overclockers Club :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Big Television Making Big Moves With Internet Video
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Cable television was introduced in the early 1980s. Back then it was said that subscriber-based television in no uncertain terms was going to obliterate the over-the-air giants. Almost 3 decades later it’s painfully obvious that cable is and always will be second banana to the affiliate stations. Remember that as you read thru this. In the mid-2000s […]
12 Downloads to Make Your Wi-Fi Life Easier and Fun
PC World :: Tuesday, May 20, 2008
These apps will help you find and connect to networks, set up a virtual private network, and even do some social networking via Wi-Fi.
Alienware Area-51 ALX System Review
Hardware Logic :: Monday, May 19, 2008
As a founding father in what’s still considered a niche market, Alienware offers a range of custom notebooks and PCs, culminating with the Area-51. Built with gaming in mind, Alienware recently overhauled their flagship lineup to keep up with this ever evolving segment and sent us their Area-51 ALX, a water-cooled powerhouse sporting a quad-core processor and dual-GPUs. But it takes more than a spec sheet to impress us, and at $7K, we’re expecting an out-of-this-world ride. Did Alienware oblige?
CoolIT Systems – Interview
Driver Heaven :: Monday, May 19, 2008
he company was founded by Jason Myers, Brydon Gierl and Sandy Scott. The story started when Sandy, an avid PC Gamer, had his NIC continually failing due to the heat generated by a particularly hot graphics card. This is where the creative process began and Sandy came up with the unique and now patented approach of combining TEC’s and Liquid for an extreme liquid cooling system.
Sunbeam SATA/IDE to USB 2.0 Adapter
techPowerUp :: Monday, May 19, 2008
Sunbeam has come out with a nice tool that solves the mystery of how to handle multiple formats of hard drives. The SATA/IDE to USB 2.0 Adapter can use 2.5″ and 3.5″ SATA and IDE drives and easily converts them to a USB 2.0 interface. Its compact size, flexibility and low price make it a nice addition to a tool bag or work bench.
NZXT Tempest
Bjorn 3d :: Sunday, May 18, 2008
For many enthusiasts venturing into the world of PC building, selecting a case can be quite a challenge these days. Important factors to consider include quality, size, functionality, and now more than ever – style. Well-built enclosures with incredible features are important, but without a bit of flash and beauty, they might as well stay sitting on the warehouse shelf (and probably will!). However, there’s also another aspect of case selection that’s very important to many builders, especially those new to the game – price. Being on something of a strict diet myself when it comes to purchasing new hardware, I certainly appreciate a company that can combine all of the above mentioned features in a single product. Enter NZXT and the Tempest midtower case. Did they pull it off and create a budget-friendly winner? Let’s find out.
Lian-Li PC V1010 Case Review
Think Computers :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“I liken Lian-Li to the Mercedes-Benz of the chassis design world. The Taiwan-based company designs its chassis with sleek, conservative style and hand-builds cases out of lightweight, yet durable aluminum. The chassis are generally not flashy, but are very, very conducive for high-performance cooling while overclocking. Lian-Li recently renewed its V series line-up with five new cases: PC-V2110, PC-V2010, PC-V1110, PC-V1000Z, and the focus of this review, the PC-V1010. ThinkComputers goes inside the Lian-Li PC-V1010 chassis in this review.”
Smooth Creations Broodling
Hot Hardware :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Enthusiasts are familiar with the Smooth Creations team as the artists behind the airbrushed gaming rigs from the likes of Falcon Northwest, Alienware, and Maingear. Not as many may be aware, however, that Smooth Creations has recently expanded from the realm of painting cases to that of building and selling painted, customizable systems and laptops as well. These are not your grandfather’s systems–they are all high-end gaming rigs with the specs and price tags to prove it.
For HotHarware’s April sweepstakes, we partnered with Smooth Creations and Diamond Multimedia to create a truly intimidating system; and they delivered. In the pages ahead we’ll take a peek at the system’s design and see what’s revving under its hood. Come on by the site and check it out…
BFG ES-800 800W Power Supply
techPowerUp :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
The ES-800 from BFG is an 800W power supply that comes with everything an enthusiast might want. It has support for up to four PCI-Express power consumers and features an unorthodox internal layout. In our testing we saw an amazing efficiency of 84.9%.
Asus Striker II Extreme DDR-3 board
Hardware Overclock Austria :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Hardwareoverclock Austria has posted another motherboard review. Last week they has take a look at the Asus Striker II Extreme DDR-3 board. This is currently one of the most expensive motherboards, which you can buy. But is the price justified? Hardwareoverclock Austria thinks so. These accessories, the Overclocking features and 550 FSB stable speaks for itself.
Asus show off their latest R.O.G board – the Maximus II Formula
Overclock 3d :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“Asus whip out their latest R.O.G board – the Maximus II Formula. Exclusive pictures inside.”
Kingwin 700 Watt Mach 1 Power Supply
Techware Labs :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Is power as important as good looks? Why not have both? Today, Artiom checks out the Kingwin 700W Mach 1 Power Supply. Can this chrome stallion hold up in testing?
Technic3D/Xigmatek HDT-SD964
Technic 3d :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
The Xigmatek HDT-SD964 CPU Heatsink arrived Technic3D. The CPU Cooler with 92mm PWM Fan, H.D.T. technology and easy installation. See you in the following Review the SD964 with one and two fan compared with Standard Boxed Cooling and more.
Aeneon XTune 2GB DDR2-1142 Dual Channel Memory Kit Review
Big Bruin :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Testing showed that the Aeneon XTune 2GB DDR2-1142 dual channel memory kit could put up some solid numbers, keeping pace with another comparable kit from Kingston. At stock speeds this kit is ready for action above and beyond the JEDEC standard speed grade of PC2-8500, and with some relatively easy overclocking it can soar past PC2-9600 speeds.
NZXT Tempest
Phoronix :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“It’s been a while since last reviewing a computer chassis from NZXT (November 2006 with the NZXT Zero), but today we have our hands on NZXT’s newest chassis, the Tempest. NZXT describes this mid-tower steel chassis as being the “airflow king” with four 120mm fans and two 140mm fans, in addition to being ready for a dual radiator setup for water-cooling. NZXT has also taken this case a step further by accommodating eight hard drive mounts and room for an extended ATX motherboard, all inside this case that measures in at 211 x 512 x 562 mm. We first viewed the Tempest back at CES 2008, and in this review we’ll tell you what we think of this newest NZXT creation.”
Cooler Master Centurion 590 Review
Techgage :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
When the budget is tight and you have to have a quality free flowing case for that next gaming PC you are building, who are you going to give your money to? Once again, Cooler Master has a new release for under $70 that looks to be jam packed with the features you are looking for.
Ultra X3 800Watt Modular Power Supply Review
Tweaknews :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“Testing yielded stable voltages, quiet operation and I won’t have to worry about buying a new power supply when the time comes to upgrade my system. The flat, flexible modular cabling system was great to work with and has spoiled me completely. I can’t imagine going back to regular cables, much less a non-modular design.”
OCZ SATA-II 32GB 2.5-Inch SSD OCZSSD2-1S32G
Benchmark Reviews :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Perhaps Benchmark Reviews like to ride the edge of technology just a little too close, since we’ve tested more DDR3 and SSD’s than almost everyone else on the web, but the bleeding edge is what where most enthusiasts like to live. OCZ allowed us to test their first Solid State Drive product, the OCZSSD64GB, and while the pricing very affordable the performance wasn’t so impressive. Now just a short three months later, OCZ has returned with one of the industries very first SATA-II SSD products, the OCZSSD2. It would be a shame to give away the details, but it appears that the extra time at the design table was very well spent. OCZ’s new Solid State Drive offers industry leading performance matched by ultra-affordable pricing, and sets a new record.
Asus Crosshair II Formula
Neoseeker :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“I liked the little touches – the power and reset switches on the motherboard, the clear CMOS on the back panel – and of course all the solid state caps. While the heatpipes and heatsinks did get hot during the overclocking tests, they did not get to the “burning” stage that the Nvidia 680i and 780i got to – and the board recovered gracefully when I tried to overclock it too high.”
In Win Metal Suit GD Review
OCC :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“When you drop down the black air duct, you are able to reveal the hard drive cage that is completely covered by the large air duct. This is so that the hard drives that you may have installed are able to receive fresh air to be cooled with. When you take a closer look at the hard drive cage, you can see that directly in front of it a fan measuring in at 120mm size and colored bright yellow like the other fans. There is a tab that you are able to lift up that will allow you to rotate the cage a little so that you are able to remove the 120mm front air intake fan, as well as allow for a more convenient way to run any wires you need to hide.”
AcBel Polytech iPower 660 Power Supply Review
Hardware Secrets :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“AcBel Polytech is a very well known OEM manufacturer, producing power supplies for brands such as Cooler Master. Now they seem interested in the retail market and today we are going to completely dissect their iPower 660 model (also known as PS2/660 or PC7016), which should reach the US market pretty soon, to see if it can really deliver its labeled power and what is its internal design.”
PC Power & Cooling Turbo-Cool 860 PSU
Tweak PC :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
PC Power & Cooling is a part of OCZ and we are looking at the Maximum-Performance-Series in form of the Turbo-Cool 860 PSU.
Sapphire PURE CrossFireX 790FX Motherboard on AMD 790FX Chipset (Socket AM2+)
Digit Life :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
“This product has been developed jointly with DFI. As Sapphire’s own PURE Innovation series are always full of original technical solutions, this motherboard might offer something extraordinary. Since its BIOS allows reducing CPU, memory, chipset and bus voltages, we can speak of another bandwagon named “down-clocking”.”
Hypersonic Avenger AG2 12″ Notebook
Techgage :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Hypersonic’s known for building performance PCs, so where did this sub-notebook come from? Don’t worry, it packs a punch, with its 2.5GHz Intel CPU, 4GB of RAM and 200GB 7200RPM hard drive. After taking pricing and feature set into consideration, we have good reason to be impressed.
Google On Board With IPv6
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
About a decade ago I read news stories (on the internet of course) that yes, eventually the internet will simply run out of IP addresses. This is because the internet primarily assigns IPv4 addresses. You know them as four numbers separated by periods, such as 192.168.1.100. The solution to the problem is the assignment of IPv6 […]
Cooler Master Centurion 590
Techgage :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
When the budget is tight and you have to have a quality free flowing case for that next gaming PC you are building, who are you going to give your money to? Once again, Cooler Master has a new release for under $70 that looks to be jam packed with the features you are looking for.
A LAN Triumph – Dungeon Keeper multiplayer on Vista and XP using DOSBOX
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
{IC} gamer Winfrey wanted more out of his LAN party experiences. The usual dose of Team Fortress 2 and the board game “Attack!” was lacking. How’d he solve the problem? Dungeon Keeper to the rescue!
Scan Your Windows Servers For Security Issues
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
As someone who has to keep tabs on several Windows servers, the best way to make sure everything is in order is through consistency and methodology. Basically, what you do to one, do to all (unless, of course, the needs are different for each machine). One tool I have found to be very valuable is the […]
In Win Metal Suit GD Review
Overclockers Club :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
HTC Audio Jack to 3.5mm Plug Adapter
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
USBFever (http://www.usbfever.com) have sent me over the HTC Audio Jack to 3.5mm Plug Adapter. It's a very simple device but yet it's extremely useful and a must-have accessory for your HTC phone if you wish to use your own headphones with your new phone.
Windows Versus OS X Versus Linux. Bring on The Stereotypes!
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
We all know that the OS wars will wage on until the end of time. You’ll have the Windows guys unenthusiastically entering the battlefield in their suits and ties. The Apple guys staggering into the battlefield in rainbow gear smelling like hemp. And the Linux guys will be tripping over their pocket protectors. OK, see, I […]
Krusell Radical Messenger Bag Review
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Krusell (http://www.krusell.se/home.php)is a well-known Swedish company which designs cases for PDAs, Cell Phones and MP3 players and now, laptop bags. Today, we will be looking at one of their new laptop bag line of products, the Radical Messenger Bag. Like most messenger bags, this model from Krusell features plenty of pockets for storage, while maintaining a streamlined profile that is associated with this style, plus this bag accommodates laptops up to 15.4”. Besides plenty of zippered pockets, the Radical Messenger includes a well padded laptop pocket and a padded shoulder strap, which is a nice bonus, especially if you carry around one of the heavier laptop models. So let’s get started ….
Buy Replacement Laptop Batteries Off eBay
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
We recently had a laptop battery go dead (well, it wouldn’t hold a charge for over 10 minutes) on us and needed a replacement. The laptop (a Dell), itself is about 3 year old but running like a champ (knock on wood). So we call up Dell and find out the battery will cost over […]
Windows XP Shortcuts In A Single Location
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
If you are a Windows XP system tweaker, you probably know there are dozens of places you can go to configure or customize your computer. Rather than actually navigate to each one manually, download Windows In A Box to access virtually all common locations appear in a single place. Windows In A Box conveniently places most […]
Simple Upgrades, Complex Helpers
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Make your mouse mighty, tweak Windows massively, and crush cosmic creepy-crawlies.
Thermaltake DuOrb CPU Cooler Review
Overclockers Club :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
AMD Phenom X3 Processors
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
What do you do to stir up the competition in a market saturated in dual-cores? How about offer three cores for the price of two. This is exactly what AMD hopes to accomplish with their aggressively priced, tri-core Phenom X3.
SanDisk Sansa Fuze Flash-Based MP3 Player
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
A low price, a deep feature list, and an ultracompact design make the Sansa Fuze a very worthy Nano competitor.
600 Bucks: So Much Money, So Little Time
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
We ask PC World staffers how they might spend their $600 economic stimulus payment.
Working Offline With Google Docs, Part 2
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Google Docs’ new offline feature is a welcome addition to the free productivity suite, but the apps lag behind Microsoft software in features.
Casual Friday: 17 Sweet Smart-Phone Tweaks and Games
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Hack your phone, play some great games on the go, and, oh yeah, try a couple useful apps as well.
Icrontic’s EPIC Duct Tape Case
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Duct tape is probably one of the most geeky materials known to man. We have a history of working with duct tape that includes some fairly impressive constructs, as well as several contest victories for creating purpose-built structures in a short timeframe. In February of 2007, we decided to put our skills working with DuctTape into a long-term, practical project. We wanted to build something that could really be useful. We decided on a computer case.
Top 5 Inkjet Printers
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
These are the top Inkjet Printers today, but ratings and rankings can change quickly due to pricing and technology changes, so check back frequently for the latest info.
ASUS Shows Faith in Splashtop
Techgage :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
DeviceVM’s Splashtop embedded Linux environment looks to be sticking around a while, thanks to ASUS’ decision to make the technology available on all of their upcoming motherboards. To find out what’s new, we are taking a look at the latest version, as seen on the upcoming P5Q Deluxe.
Boxwave Screen Puff and Replacement Stylus for ATT Tilt / TyTn II
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Boxwave (http://www.boxwave.com) . So you've got a new phone and of course since it's new you really want to take care of it, one of the most annoying things with touchscreens is the fingerprints that get on them from touching it. With a touchscreen you have to be careful not to scratch it so you really can't just use anything to clean it, you need something soft and non-abrasive, that's where Boxwave comes in with their Screen Puff. The Screen Puff resembles a pillow and has a small strap on it to attach to your phone so it's always ready when you need it. The Stylus that comes with your ATT Tilt / TyTn II is adequate for what it needs to do, but if you're like me you're bound to lose it, so you'll need a replacement, but why just get any plain replacement stylus, why not get something better? Most people think that a stylus is just a stylus, but the one I got from Boxwave for review is nice. I've shown it to people that have phones with styli and they were truly impressed with it. It looks similar to other styli out there, but it's much heavier, in fact I could guess that it weighs twice as much as the stock stylus that comes with the phone. Being heavier makes it much easier to use and more comfortable in your hand as well, if you need a replacement stylus then this is what I can recommend you get…
Backup Platinum Review: Nice and Easy
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Any computer user worth their salt will stress the importance of data backup. Too many people either don’t think about it or put it off into the “someday” category, leaving open the possibility that you’ll get burned. Anybody, though, who has been caught with a hosed system and inadequate backups realizes the cold, hard importance […]
Toucan Global Snap Personal Internet Communicator
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Innovative intercom device is limited by its cord; your contacts need to have Snaps, too.
Noctua NH-U9B Heatsink Review
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Only three months after the release of the award winning NH-U12P, Noctua is back with a more compact 92mm version, the NH-U9B. Mike puts the NH-U9B through its paces in the Icrontic lab.
Transcend 4gb microSDHC class 6 Flash card
Dragonsteel Mods :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Transcend (http://www.transcendusa.com/) microSDHC Class 6 Flash Card, it's your standard type microSD card and includes the adapter for regular SD cards as well. I put it up against two other brands of microSD cards I've got on hand, let's see how well it performs…
5 Groovy Sites for Free Music Downloads
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Want to fill up your MP3 player for free without facing the wrong end of an RIAA lawsuit? These five sites offer DRM-free downloads from exciting artists.
CoolIT Freezone Elite
Bit-Tech Modding :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Most of us love the looks and performance of watercooling – but the utter mess and difficulty drives many away. Canada-based CoolIT seems to think it has a solution that beats the pre-boxed watercooling sets hands down while remaining simple. Does it succeed?
Noctua NH-C12P Heatsink Review
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Noctua is back with a down-draft 120mm heatsink dubbed the NH-C12P. Mike puts it through its paces in the Icrontic lab.
Slipstreaming Windows XP
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Through the power of a technique known as “slipstreaming” you can update the contents of your Windows XP CD to include applications, drivers and updates. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to add service pack 3, help XP recognize your SATA hard drive during install, and add your favorite apps to a fresh install.
Foxconn GeForce 9800GTX Review
Overclockers Club :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
How-To: Make a Super-Fast Pie Chart
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
There are times when you need to make a super-quick pie chart (such as to insert in a blog post or quick print-out) but find that doing it in Excel or OpenOffice takes a bit more effort than you’d like. Is there a faster way for quick’n’dirty pie charts? Yes. You can use Create a […]
The Ultimate Startup Process Monitor
PC Mechanic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
As part of normal Windows system maintenance, one thing you should do is check your programs set to automatically start to make sure everything running is legit. Typically, most people just use the “msconfig” utility to accomplish this, but a much more comprehensive utility is Sysinternal’s AutoRuns tool. Rather than re-inventing an explanation, AutoRuns has a […]
An open letter to mobile game manufacturers
Icrontic :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
You could probably sell more games…. but it sure doesn’t seem like you want to.
PC Tools ThreatFire 3.5 Antivirus Software
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Solid free protection supplements your existing antivirus.
Gateway P-172X FX Desktop Replacement Laptop
PC World :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
Power-packed desktop replacement laptop delivers good game performance but bungles sound.
IBM announces PowerXCell 8i, QS22 blade server
Beyond3d Processor News :: Saturday, May 17, 2008
IBM today made formal the announcement of an HPC-targeted variant of the Cell B.E. processor, given the name PowerXCell 8i. Featuring re-engineered SPEs with enhanced dual-precision performance and improved memory…
Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS4 Motherboard
CDR Info :: Thursday, May 15, 2008
Gigabyte introduces an energy efficient motherboard based at Intel’s P35 chipset with good performance and overclocking abilities even when using an Intel Quad core processor.
Gates Talks Up Windows 7
PC Mech :: Thursday, May 15, 2008
“With the frustrations caused by Windows Vista, many are looking ahead at what Windows 7 will bring. And according to Bill Gates, it may just be what the doctor ordered.”
Ubuntu Hardware Compatibility List. Know It, Love It
PC Mech :: Thursday, May 15, 2008
“One of the most outright frustrating experiences using a Linux distribution is having hardware that absolutely, positively will not work with it for whatever reason. But what if you’re building a box? Is there any way to find out what hardware will work best?”
ASRock Penryn1600SLIX3-Wifi Motherboard Review
Hardware Canucks :: Thursday, May 15, 2008
Feature-wise this board is a clear winner. ASRock provides its customers with dual 16x SLI slots and a third 8x slot, 7.1 HD audio, WiFi capabilities, overclocking and monitoring software, and many other perks. All the features we tested in this review worked as promised and setup was quite straightforward. As was seen in the tests, the improvements when running SLI and an overclocked system were rather dramatic and really did well to show what we find is a huge selling point for this board. Although the board didn’t clock quite to the point of some others on the market, dual 16x SLI makes up for that quickly in 3D and gaming applications.
Maxtor OneTouch 4 Plus 1TB External Hard Drive Review
Think Computers :: Thursday, May 15, 2008
“Terabyte hard drives are becoming more popular with the need for more hard drive space. If you’re looking to expand your hard drive capacity I think the Maxtor OneTouch 4 Plus 1TB External Hard Drive would be great for you. This drive includes USB and Dual FireWire interfaces with available capacities of 250GB, 500GB, 750GB, and 1TB. The drive is jam packed with plenty of software to suffice the most avid external storage fanatics, while being easy to use for the everyday individual. Read on further to see what all this OneTouch drive has to offer.”
Apevia X-Telstar Red/Black Case Review
OCC :: Thursday, May 15, 2008
“During testing, I noticed that my power LED was not working. It was not the motherboard pins, I tested the motherboard with a spare LED, which worked. I took apart the front panel to check to see if the power LED was hooked up correctly and found that the top Apevia circle logo also had an LED, which is hooked up to the power LED line (in parallel). Apparently, that logo was also supposed to be lit. Interesting that both LEDs would not work.”
Buying a New Computer Today: Force Fed Technology That The Average Consumer Doesn’t Need Editorial
Tweaknews :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
“To help me convince you that this is also true for the computer hardware industry, tell me if you have heard of anyone saying, “Man I just bought this computer 6 months ago and it is now obsolete!”. But who dictates that a computer is obsolete? Just because Rev.B of your motherboard came out, or the latest processor is 200Mhz faster than yours doesn’t mean your computer is obsolete. If it accomplishes the tasks you need, it is only obsolete when it won’t do a specific task for you, and nothing less. The computer industry will try to convince you that yours is obsolete by releasing a new product every six months in order to keep their sales figures high and put pressure on the layman to replce their computer.”
Sunbeamtech Quarterback Case
Modders Inc. :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Sunbeamtechs budget case, the Quarterback, is a standard ATX case with some rather interesting features. It has got a unique cooling option called the Core Fan Design that helps keep temperatures down. The case is also tool less and has plenty of room inside for today’s larger video cards.
Corsair HX1000W Power Supply Review
Hardware Canucks :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Fans have been frothing at the mouth for it, reviewers have been begging for it to arrive on their doorsteps and enthusiasts have been waiting for that fateful day when it becomes available to buy. We are talking about the crowning achievement of Corsair’s seemingly never-ending quest to produce a 1000W power supply: the HX1000W. Indeed, forums all over the internet have been abuzz with excitement ever since that fateful day more than half a year ago when the first tantalizing pictures of this behemoth showed up on a few websites. Well, the wait is over; the mothership has landed and the Corsair HX1000W should be available for purchase from you friendly neighborhood retailer as you read this.
SilverStone TS01B 2.5 sata Enclosure with RFID Review
Xtreme Computing :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
“For this review I will be looking at a new product from the highly respected pc hardware manufacturer SilverStone. The product I will be looking at is a laptop hard drive enclosure, the SilverStone TS01B, but this is an enclosure with a difference it utilises RFID security.”
OCZ Reaper HPC PC3-10666 2 GB Memory Kit Review
OCIA :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
“With the semi-recent arrival of DDR3 memory, OCZ has had the chance to expand on a whole new line of products. Already, they have the full series available on their website: Reaper, ReaperX, Platinum, Gold, Titanium… the list goes on. Today, we have for review the 2x 1GB OCZ Reaper HPC PC3-10666 memory kit, rated at 1333MHz.”
ASUS M3N-HT Deluxe Motherboard Review
Hardware Logic :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Making sure every possible niche is covered, Asus provides AMD users a high end, SLI capable motherboard with several unique features. The Asus M3N-HT Deluxe dishes out goodies like the brand new 780a chipset, 3-way SLI capability, Hybrid SLI, ESA, HyperTransport 3.0, PCIe 2.0 and the sexy Cool Mempipe. Is this the motherboard you’ve been waiting for? HardwareLogic straps the M3N-HT onto the test bench and drops the knowledge on you, raw and uncut.
Mushkin Ascent XP3 16000 2 x 1 GB Review
OCC :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
“Having to test modules rated for 1000 MHz (2000 MHz effective) presents some unique challenges. First of all, you need a board that can push 1000 MHz+ on the northbridge. Second, you need a chip that can run speeds of 500+ MHz to run 1:1 when testing. Well, we have the next best thing. Since my poor Q9450 just won’t let me play in the 500 MHZ range, I had to look at the alternatives. The modules are designed to run on an nVidia 790i SLI chipset based motherboard, so thats what I did. Because of FSB holes, or a poor divider, I was not able to gain any speed over 2000 MHz at the rated latencies of 9-9-9-24. So instead of going higher, I decided to try and see how tight I could run the latencies. 2000 MHz at the stock volts of 1.9 to 2.0 volts and 9-9-9-24 was a cake walk. Heck, it should be. Now it got a little interesting. First up was 9-9-8-24, good so far. Then down to 9-8-8, then 8-8-8 – I thought this looked promising. After a few hours of test and repeat, latencies of 8-8-8 were a reality at 2000 MHz. Hmmm, let me push my luck at 8-7-7-24. Surprisingly, this fell after another session of test and repeat benchmarking. “Can there be more?” I asked. Well, yes there was. CAS 7 was a no go at 2000 MHz, but 8-7-6-24 was good. However, it would lock up randomly in a few tests. With the voltage adjustments I had been successful with, they still would not allow it to happen. So, I figured I’d start low-balling the voltage to the DIMMs, and ended up at 1.82 volts for my game and benchmark stability.”
DDR3 RAM: System Memory Technology Explained
Benchmark Reviews :: Wednesday, May 14, 2008
These are uncertain financial times we live in today, and the rise and fall of our economy has had direct affect on consumer spending. It has already been one full year now that DDR3 has been patiently waiting for the enthusiast community to give it proper consideration, yet it’s success is still undermined by misconceptions and high price. Benchmark Reviews has been testing DDR3 more actively than anyone, which is why over fifteen different kits fill our System Memory section of reviews. Sadly, it might take an article like this to open the eyes of my fellow hardware enthusiast and overclocker, because it seems like DDR3 is the technology nobody wants bad enough to learn about. Pity, because overclocking is what it’s all about.
NZXT Tempest Mid-tower case Review
Metku Mods :: Monday, May 12, 2008
“NZXT, the US-based manufacturer has come up with a new case model – Tempest – which they advertise to be the new airflow king. Cooling seems to work but the build quality leaves a lot to be desired…”
AMD K10 Architecture Review
Inside HW :: Monday, May 12, 2008
…” A few months ago, the American company Advanced Micro Devices – AMD, as the second biggest manufacturer in the processor market, launched the new K10 microarchitecture onto the market, in the form of a server solution codenamed Barcelona. Barcelona is the new Opteron which brings many novelties in the fields of virtualization, multi-socket scaling, as well as many improvements in multithread software synchronization. As far as desktop computers are concerned, the K10 architecture also brings along an entirely new platform, which should unify all vital system components under a single brand – Spider.”…
Lian Li Armorsuit PC-P80R Spider Edition
techPowerUp :: Monday, May 12, 2008
In our CES 2008 coverage of Lian-Li you saw the awesome Lian Li PC-P80 R AMD Spider Edition case. These cases are just now coming through manufacturing, and TPU is one of the first sites in the world to bring you a detailed look at this new case. It features nearly everything an enthusiast could want, but is it truly the dream of an ADM/ATI fan?
Noctua NH-U9B CPU Cooler Review
RB Mods :: Monday, May 12, 2008
Noctua, makers of some of the best case fans on the market, has branched out into the CPU cooler market, which is a move that makes sense since they already dominate the high-end fan market. They sent us one of their new CPU coolers, the Noctua NH-U9B, to test out. Will this be a natural expansion of their product line or will we find growing pains? Read on to find out.
MSI X48C Platinum
t-break :: Monday, May 12, 2008
Upgrading your rig is never an easy task- especially when you have to replace the motherboard. Generally speaking, when you upgrade your motherboard, chances are that you’re also looking at a new CPU and sometimes RAM. With their X48 chipset based motherboard, MSI tries to make things a little easy by providing DDR2 as well as DDR3 support which can certainly reduce the size of dent to you account.
NZXT Cryo LX Notebook Cooler Review
Think Computers :: Monday, May 12, 2008
“Laptops are really becoming popular, especially when it comes to desktop replacements. Many laptops now are just as powerful as desktop computers if not more powerful. A lot of people now prefer laptops over desktop because they can easily take the laptop with them and they take up less space on their desk. One thing about laptops is they easily overheat, especially gaming laptops. That is where notebook coolers come in. Today we will be looking at the Cryo LX notebook cooler from NZXT, which looks like a pretty extreme notebook cooler.”
Vantec NexStar Hard Drive Dock Review
OCIA :: Monday, May 12, 2008
“The problem with all earlier forms of removable media is capacity. Even a 16 or 32 gig flash drive can be a little small for some uses, and they are pretty expensive. Think about it, you can pick up a 500 gig HDD for the price of a 16 gig thumb drive, or a 750 gig for the price of a 32 gig thumb drive. For that matter, you could get a RaptorX for the price of the 32 gig flash drive. Today, we will be taking a look at the Vantec NexStar Hard Drive Dock, an external solution for simple swapping of hard drives.”
Mushkin Ascent XP3 16000 2 x 1 GB Review
Overclockers Club :: Monday, May 12, 2008
Razer/THX Mako 2.1-Channel Speaker System
Techgage :: Monday, May 12, 2008
Razer is well-known for producing high-quality peripherals, but audio can be an entirely different bag. Our concerns over their new found venture can be set aside though, as the tag team effort between them and THX helped build an amazing 2.1 system that’s actually worth its $400 price tag.
Western Digital 1 TB Caviar GP Serial ATA Hard Drive Review
Tech ARP :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“The Western Digital 1 TB Caviar GP delivers a terabyte of storage capacity with low power consumption at a relatively low cost. If large, affordable storage capacity in a single drive is what you are looking for, then this is the drive you are looking for.”
Aeneon XTUNE DIMM DDR3 PC-12800 memory kit
Hardware Overclock :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
Hardwareoverclock Austria has posted a new review. Last week they has take a look at the Aeneon XTUNE DIMM DDR3 PC-12800 memory kit, Speed Grade DDR3-1600 CL9 at 1.5V (9-9-9-27). This 1600 MHz kit is optimal for all overclocking systems with 400 FSB and more.
SilverStone Decathlon DA700 Power Supply Review
OCIA :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“SilverStone is a company that needs no introduction. Although they have only been in business since 2003, in that time they have produced some great case designs. In the tradition of the Zeus and Olympia power supplies, with their single, large +12v rail, SilverStone now introduces the next generation of power supply built especially for enthusiasts, the Decathlon.”
Nvidia 780a Chipset Preview
Overclock 3d :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“Nvidia’s latest chipset release for AMD is feature packed and ready to roll. We take a look at what’s new and if it can live up to the hype.”
Hiper Anubis
techPowerUp :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
The Hiper Anubis is an incredibly sturdy chassis, which goes the “trusted and true” route. You will not find any fancy layout or interior screw-less system, but thumb screws instead. The beautifully designed front is one good reason to give the Anubis a little plaque with a unique serial number on it.
Actinic Software Business v9.0
Bios Magazine :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“Actinic is comprehensive. It’s certainly ready to use out of the box, unlike many enterprise products, and offers lots of room for customisation as your online store grows. The only downsides are that it’s overwhelming for sole traders and you will likely need the help of a designer and Web developer (some HTML code can get complicated). If you’re a one-man outfit looking to make your first steps into e-commerce quickly and easily, Actinic probably isn’t the right choice, even though there is the cut-down Actinic Catalog (£379 ex. VAT). You should also consider that custom development allows a lot more flexibility in setup and design – such as integrating a store into your existing Web site, creating a look and feel that is markedly different from your competitors, offering extensive reporting, or working in tandem with online auctions – but costs can run into thousands of pounds.”
Coolermaster Aquagate Mini R80 Watercooling CPU Heatsink Review
Frosty Tech :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“The Coolermaster Aquagate Mini R80 is a self contained watercooling system designed for a broad range of Intel and AMD processors. Unlike a lot of CPU watercooling systems which can be complicated to install, fill, bleed and monitor, the Aquagate comes pre-plumbed and pre-filled with an ethylene glycol based coolant. The system is guaranteed for two years operation without need for refill, so to get started all you need to do is mount the CPU block and attach the heat exchanger to the side of the computer case.”
Abit IX38 QuadGT Socket 775 Motherboard
3dgameman :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“The Abit Abit IX38 QuadGT Socket 775 Motherboard is based on the Intel X38 Express / ICH9R Chipset and supports the latest 45nm Intel Dual and Quad Core processors. It accepts up to 8GBs of Dual channel DDR2 1066/800/667/533 Un-buffered Non-ECC memory. Has six SATA 3Gigabit/s connectors capable of RAID 0, 1, 5 & 10The board comes with 6 fan headers. This board also uses Solid State Capacitors and has five phase digital Pulse Width Modulation (PWM). This improves performance, increase stability and reduces power consumption. Watch the video to find out more.”
FSP 500 Watt Blue Storm II Power Supply Review
Hardware Logic :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“FSP has been around for more than a decade. In that time, they have built themselves up as one of the largest power conversion product purveyors in the world. Among their power products are personal computer power supplies. We recently reviewed their 700 watt FX Epsilon. Today we have a smaller FSP unit from a different line; the FSP Blue Storm II 500 watt PSU.”
GFXChilla Graphics Card Cooler
PCFRAGS :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
Our friends over at Coolink were nice enough to provide us with one of their recent offerings to look at today; the GFXChilla Graphics Card after market cooling solution. Coolink is a brand of the Kolink International Corporation founded in 1996 and at the time primarily in the Asian market. In 2005 it made it’s foray into the European market and is now a well known brand there. Now Coolink is spearheading it’s move into the American market with it’s GFXChilla with it’s value minded GPU cooling solution.
SilverStone Kublai Series KL03 Case Review
Madshrimps :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
A Silverstone case with LED lightening in none rectangular front panel? The Kublai series is Silverstone’s entry in the Gaming/Enthusiast ATX case market. Build with less expensive materials it aims to find a balance between price, looks and features. We take a look at the KL03 model in this review to see how it stacks up to the competition.
Arctic Cooling Silentium T3
Driver Heaven :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
“Arctic Cooling is probably most well known for CPU and VGA coolers but a few years ago they started branching out into cases. The concept behind AC’s case range has always been silent but effective cooling and this philosophy also extends to the PSU’s that are bundled with each chassis. Today we are reviewing one of the newest additions to the Silentium range, the T3.”
GIGABYTE X48T-DQ6
Bjorn 3d :: Sunday, May 11, 2008
Today we are going to take a look at GIGABYTE’s high end motherboard, the X48T-DQ6. GIGABYTE makes two versions of this board utilizing Intel’s X48 chipset. The X48 which is a DDR2 variant and the X48T which is the DDR3 version that we will be covering today. The X48 brings minimal changes to the chipset when compared to the X38 and the only tangible difference should be more overclocking headroom. In recent years GIGABYTE has truly reinvented itself as a leader in innovation. In today’s world the name of the game, or color to be more specific, is green. We have green cars, green homes and now you can add motherboards to the growing list of items going green. GIGABYTE has made a concerted effort to produce motherboards that use the least amount of energy possible without sacrificing performance. A task not easily accomplished. To this end they have dubbed this innovation DES or Dynamic Energy Saver. A system which can adjust voltage, power phases and clocks speeds of the board and CPU to ensure as little energy as possile is wasted while providing as much power as needed. Is it possible to have a power efficient system without losing performance? Let’s find out.
Patriot Viper DDR3-1866 2GB Memory Kit
Tweak Town :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“Patriot has been one of the newer companies to come on board at TweakTown to supply us with their high performance memory for testing, and so far we have been pretty impressed with their line of high performance memory. Once again they have come on board to send us their new series of DDR3 modules. Today we have Patriot’s Viper Fin DDR3 2GB dual channel memory kit.
The sticker on one side of each memory module contains info on the modules. The kit we received was rated for speeds of 1866MHz or 933MHz core speed with timings of 8-8-8-24 at a maximum voltage of 1.9v. The modules are all RoHS which means they are manufactured with lead free solder.”
Scythe Zipang 139MM CPU Cooler Review
OCC :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“Fortunately, the heat sink blew away most of my doubts about the product. The Zipang is shockingly well built and extremely solid. It feels like serious quality, not at all flimsy like many others in this price range. Again, the shear size of the fan speaks for itself; attached resolutely with fan clips. I ran my hand across the the six heat pipes, which connect to the main cooling fins, in not only one section, but two sections, distributed on the bottom and throughout the center (UPHC as dubbed by Scythe). In addition, the Zipang includes a thick sub-heatsink, attached to the main cooling plate directly. This reminds me of the famed, but obsolete Thermal Right XP-120, except on some serious steroids.”
Kingston HyperX KHX14400D3K2/2GN DDR3-1800 Review
i4u :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“Today we are checking out a 2GB DDR3 RAM kit from Kingston’s HyperX line. This RAM is a great lower cost kit that performs well and has overclocking headroom.
When all the testing was finished the Kingston HyperX KHX14400D3K2/2GN kit performed well. It has some headroom left for overclocking and performs well at the programmed SPD settings. The RAM is also a bit cheaper than some other brands of enthusiast DDR3 on the market.”
Enermax PRO82+ 525 W Power Supply Review
Hardware Secrets :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“Enermax has recently released two high-efficiency power supply series, MODU82+ and PRO82+. The name implies that products from these two series have efficiency of at least 82%, but Enermax says they actually have efficiency of at least 84%. Both use the same internal project, with MODU82+ models using a modular cabling system. Today we are going to take an in-depth look on the 525 W model from the PRO82+ series (also known as EPR525AWT) and see if it can really deliver its labeled power and efficiency. Read on.”
IN-WIN B2 Stealth Bomber Mid-Tower Case Review
Hardware Canucks :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
Prior to arriving on our doorstep, IN-WIN’s B2 Stealth Bomber Mid-Tower case was already facing the unenviable task of overcoming several pre-conceptions on what we could expect from this case. In the past, our experience with IN-WIN cases has been positive, but impressions of their product line had them pegged as relatively conservative when it came to both styling and price. Add to this a street price at around $50 more than we’d ever expected to see an IN-WIN case listed for and you can imagine the B2 had some heavy lifting to do in order to win us over.
Coolermaster LED Silent Fan Review
XS Reviews :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“There’s been a lot of hype in the computer industry about ‘silent fans’ and fortunately, at last, some are actually starting to earn this title. Today I’ll be taking a look at the Cooler Master LED Silent Fan – another fan bearing the title of “silent”. Will it be good enough to earn the “Silent” mantra?”
Lian Li Armorsuit Series
Tweak PC :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
The Armorsuit Serie is the ultimative tower-series from Lian Li. It’s breath-taking – even for the enthusiasts.
CoolIT Systems PURE CPU Cooler
Tweak Town :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“Companies like CoolIT Systems played a large role in turning water cooling into a mainstream practice by making it available on a large scale, even getting their products in the hands of big box builders like Alienware.
Today we are going to look at CoolIT’s latest water-cooled processor heatsink, the PURE. CoolIT calls their cooling systems “Fluid Heat Exchangers” and have been building their FHEs for a couple of years now.”
Xen.Core Carboon Fan
Technic 3d :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“The Xen.Core Carboon Fan with 80,92 and 120mm arrived Technic3D. The Fan with Non-acoustic bearing and the Blade design is balanced for low noise performance. See you in the following Review the Sixpack for the Summer?”
“In The Beginning…” – My First Computer
PC Mech :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
“The Tandy 1000, introduced in 1984, was manufactured to compete directly with the IBM PC. The one I had came standard 128Kb of RAM, one double density 5.25″ floppy disk drive and a 16 color RGB monitor. As add-ons, dad had the foresight to also purchase a matching dot-matrix printer and a Tandy joystick.”
Coverage from GIGABYTE P45 Spring Break and Plug-Fest 2008
Tweak Town :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
This morning we are gathered with worldwide media at the Gigabyte headquarters in Taiwan for their Spring Break event and Plug-Fest 2008. It’s an event which allows media to get an early look at Gigabyte’s upcoming Intel P45 Express based motherboards.
ASUS P5E3 Premium WiFi-AP
Techgage :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
X48 is new, but there are many boards already begging for your dollars. We are taking a look at the most robust of them all, the P5E3 Premium, which includes built-in WiFi, a great board design and fantastic overclocking abilities. It would almost be a perfect board if it weren’t for the $375 price tag
Eagle Tech Consus M-Series Hard Drive Enclosure Review
Hardware Canucks :: Saturday, May 10, 2008
Then eSATA hit the scene and geeks everywhere rejoiced for finally we had an external connection which would be just as fast as an internally connected hard drive. Unfortunately eSATA has had a slow adoption rate as it is much more expensive than USB to implement. All this is about to change, as Eagle Tech has landed a bevy of new enclosures all sporting eSATA connections.
Cooler Master eXtreme Power Plus 460 W (RS-460-PMSR-A3) Power Supply Review
Hardware Secrets :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Cooler Master has recently launched a new entry-level series of power supplies, eXtreme Power Plus. Products from this series are very simple, with optional passive PFC. We reviewed the 460 W model (RS-460-PMSR-A3), which costs only USD 40. Is this a good product for the average user? Can it really deliver its rated 460 W? Let’s see.”
NZXT Tempest Case
3dgameman :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“The NZXT Tempest Case will be a big hit amongst enthusiasts. Affordability is obviously very important to most folks and this case is very well priced considering what’s included. Airflow is crucial and with 6 included fans (4x120mm & 2x140mm) this case is king in that department. HDD storage space is also vital and with space for 8 HDDs this is not a problem. Another big plus is it’s compatible and tested with many well known water cooling radiators which can be mounted at the top of the case using the pre-drilled holes. This is one of the best mid-tower cases on the market! Watch the video to find out more.”
Intel FCLGA4-S Core 2 Extreme Reference Heatsink Reviewed
Frosty Tech :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Ever wonder how Intel’s retail heatsinks stack up against the best aftermarket CPU coolers out there? In this review Frostytech will be comparing the Intel FCLGA4-S reference heatsink, which is boxed with retail 45nm Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6850 processors (and others), against one hundred Intel socket 775 heatsinks from every imaginable manufacturer. One notable innovation with Intel’s FCLGA4-S reference heatsink is harder to see, a vapour chamber.”
NVIDIA Hybrid SLI and HybridPower Benchmarked and Explained
Legit Reviews :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“NVIDIA Hybrid SLI and HybridPower technology are welcomed additions to the enthusiast computing scene and give consumers another reason to purchase NVIDIA platforms. Having the ability to turn off the discrete graphics at will is one of the coolest new features we have seen on a PC. It’s amazing that it took this long for someone to figure it out, but the time has finally come. NVIDIA Hybrid SLI technology was found to be pretty solid for being brand new technology.The slight performance decrease was expected, but the ability to use HybridPower seems to outweigh the performance hit…”
NESTEQ ECS7001 700W Power Supply Unit Review
Techware Labs :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Ruffy takes a look at the new NESTEQ 700W PSU which is rated at 80+ efficiency. We ran some in use tests and shows you why the attention to design detail from the modular design, types of cables, quantity of cables provided that in effect seem to double due to their patented Enhanced Easy Connection System is worth you taking a look at this PSU.
Sans Digital MobileSTOR MS2UTN+ RAID Enclosure Review
ASE Labs :: Friday, May 09, 2008
” ASE Labs has always explained the benefits of having redundant storage and backups. There are series of articles devoted to each technology. Sans Digital is a big player in RAID enclosures and their latest model, the MobileSTOR MS2UTN+ delivers USB2 and eSATA support to a 2 disk array of your choosing. This combines the best of both world for data backup and redundancy. It really is an excellent product. ”
Durapower CR-104 Media Reader Review
Mikhailtech :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Since nobody uses floppy drives anymore, what is one to fill the empty 3.5” drive bay with? Currently, the trend is to go with media readers, and with good reason. Media cards are popping up all over the place and in many different gadgets. So, what makes the Durapower CR-104 different from the rest? Read on to find out!
Noiseblocker Coolscraper 3.0 Review
XS Reviews :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Noiseblocker have created some pretty immense coolers in the past, notably among them is the Coolscraper series which combines high performance cooling with ultra silence. Now they’ve sent me the much anticipated Coolscraper 3. Lets see if it lives up to the high standard that we have come to expect from Coolscraper over the past few years.
Silverstone Treasure TS01B RFID Enclosure
techPowerUp :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The Silverstone Treasure TS01B is a very unique 2.5″ SATA hard drive enclosure. You may not only use it as a plain USB 2.0 powered unit, but may also set it up to safely encrypt your hard drive as well. The two included RFID tags then act as keys to gain access to your data.
Xigmatek Achilles S1284 HDT CPU Cooler
Benchmark Reviews :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Xigmatek has really made a name for themselves over the past year thanks to the Heat-pipe Direct Touch technology that they have embraced. When Benchmark Reviews originally reviewed the HDT-S1283 cooler we were absolutely astonished by the incredible results. Once again, we are the very first to test the newest hardware, and you’ll be impressed to know that this product delivers the performance needed by overclockers while fulfilling the enthusiasts wish list for attractive features. Benchmark Reviews introduces the Xigmatek Achilles S1284 HDT CPU Cooler CAC-SXHH4-U02 and tests the performance against the top competitors.
NZXT Tempest ATX Mid Tower Enclosure
Tweak Town :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Enter the Tempest, an enclosure that claims to be the “Airflow King”. This is a mighty tall order to fill considering some of the similar products on the market, so we will take a closer look and see if they can live up to this statement.
It will take more than just a couple of extra fans to step up to a statement like this, so we will look at overall design, active fans that come in the standard configuration as well as cooling a high-end rig. Can NZXT manage to really be considered an Airflow King?
OCZ Cryo-Z First Look
Icrontic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
While technical issues hampered a more thorough investigation of the unit’s prowess, we were impressed by the cooling potential of the unit. In our opinion, it is superior to the phase-change heavyweight, the Prometia Mach II GT. If OCZ can rein in the easily-corrected QC issues, the $299 MSRP of the OCZ Cryo-Z promises to send hard-core overclockers into a frenzy.
Thermaltake M9 Review
OCC :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“One word describes my feelings about the Thermaltake M9 VI1000BWS – fantastic! It performed very well in my tests, looks awesome, and the included 120mm fans manage to push a good amount of air while remaining very quiet. The tool-less drive bays and expansion slot retainers were very well made – I didn’t even break one! From top to bottom, this is my favorite mid tower so far, and its very reasonable price makes it an even more attractive option.”
NVIDIA nForce 7 AMD Series Arrives – ASUS M3N-HT Deluxe Motherboard
Legit Reviews :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“We compared the nForce 780a SLI to the AMD 780G since we wanted to test out the integrated graphics and PureVideo HD functionality as well as general performance. It seems to have paid off; the test results were interesting as the HD DVD playback testing over the HDMI output showed that NVIDIA passed up ATI when it comes to offloading the CPU usage. NVIDIA claims that an HT3-based Phenom CPU is required to provide the necessary bandwidth when playing HD video using the motherboard GPU. Our testing showed this is not true, but NVIDIA claims moving from a HT1 processor to HT3 will give the integrated graphics the bandwidth it needs to better render HD content. This is something we will check out later, because if we are impressed with what a 2.5GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core CPU can do with HT1, we’d better be sitting down for some Phenom 50-series action…”
Asus P5Q3 Deluxe Preview
Driver Heaven :: Friday, May 09, 2008
In the near future Asus will be launching their P5Q3 Deluxe motherboard which is based on the Intel P45 chipset. We have had an early sample of the board running in our offices for a little while now and today we have a preview for you…
Thermolab Nano Silencer TLI-U Low-Profile Heatsink Review
Frosty Tech :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“The Nano Silencer TLI-U is ideally sized for 1U server chassis, nano formfactor PCs, car PCs and media center microATX-style cases. The entire TLI-U heatsink stands no taller than 45mm, and uses the same swagged aluminum fin technique as the Micro Silencer model. Twin sintered wick copper heatpipes and a total weight of just 214 grams make the TLI-U a capable low mass cooler for weight sensitive applications. For the sake of convenience the heatsink even comes with a pre-applied patch of 8 W/mK rated gray thermal interface material on the bottom.”
In Win B2 Stealth Bomber Case Review
RB Mods :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Today we take a look at the InWin stealh bomber case and as the name reveals is inspired from an airplane. Inwin has been in the case market for a long time and they have now started to focus on designed cases which you might see if you take a quick look at their website. We are going to be looking through this case in tonights review and we will also show you the main feature this case has which is a motorized front door.
AMD Phenom 9850 & 8750, Athlon 4850e and AMDs 780G Review
Driver Heaven :: Friday, May 09, 2008
It has been some time since we reviewed an AMD processor on Driver Heaven, but quite a lot has happened since then with the release of various CPU revisions, as well as triple core, the 780G chipset and further energy efficient Athlon models. So today it is time to catch up with the current range of AMD products starting with the Phenom 9850.
Technic3D/Xigmatek S1283 Red Scorpion
Technic 3d :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The Xigmatek S1283 Red Scorpion (Achilles) CPU Heatsink arrived Technic3D. The CPU Cooler with new silent LED PWM Fan, H.D.T. technology and easy installation. See you in the following Review the Red Scorpion on a Intel Dual-Core XE6800 CPU compared with Standard Boxed Cooling and more.
ASUS M3N-HT 780a SLi Review
OCC :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“The ASUS M3N-HT has many upgradable options such as the ability to run triple SLi if you have the cards available, or Dual SLi if you do not want to spend that much on GPUs. The temperature test with the Mempipe was not the greatest drop in temperature, but when a user is overclocking, every degree is a help to get the maximum out of his system. The Express Gate feature is a noble idea with a wealth of uses, especially if you need to get online to get a driver when you cannot get Windows to operate.”
Western Digital 320 GB Scorpio Notebook Hard Drive Review
Tech ARP :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Although Western Digital did not reveal it, the Scorpio is certainly making use of perpendicular recording technology to achieve its performance levels. Of course, there’s only so much they can do with perpendicular recording technology. It is likely that the Scorpio also uses four platters to attain its remarkable storage capacity of 320 GB.
Asus M3N-HT Deluxe reviewed
Neoseeker :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Today NVIDIA unveils its 780a series of motherboard chipsets for Socket AM2. The new chipset supports the best integrated NVIDIA graphics yet, including full support for HDMI and high definition playback – and if that was not enough, you can do up to triple SLI on the 780a!”
Tyan Thunder n3600M
Phoronix :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Two months ago we had looked at the Tyan Tempest i5400XT motherboard, which was Tyan’s latest product based upon Intel’s newest workstation chipset and had support for dual Intel Xeon quad-core processors. We found the Tempest i5400XT to be a real winner and everything had worked terrific with Linux. Today we are looking at another Tyan workstation motherboard but the tides have turned as we look at their latest AMD dual quad-core solution, the Tyan Thunder n3600M. The Thunder n3600M motherboard supports dual AMD “Barcelona” Opteron processors, 16 sticks of DDR2 RAM, and eight SAS ports, among other stunning features.”
Sapphire Hybrid CrossFire 780G Motherboard
Modders Inc :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Are you in the market for a small form factor m-ATX motherboard that can give you blistering performance for your multimedia needs, plus the ability to play the latest Direct X 10 games? And as a bonus you can install a second card to gain CrossFireX for your games. Then you have to check out the Sapphire PURE Hybrid CrossFire 780G Innovation Motherboard.
ASUS P5Q3 Deluxe – Intel P45 chipset review
Nordic Hardware :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“In this review, we will take a closer look at ASUS P5Q3 Deluxe, which is based on Intel’s P45 chipset. The difference in performance between the P35 and its precursor P965 was minimal; the question is whether the P45 has any additional performance advantages. An important difference between P35 and P45 is that the latter is made using the 65nm manufacturing process, while the former was made with the 90nm process.”
Nvidia’s nForce 780a SLI chipset reviewed
Tech Report :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The nForce 780a SLI is the first Nvidia chipset to take full advantage of Phenom processors, and it comes with a novel motherboard GPU that enables Hybrid SLI. Keep reading for the goods on Hybrid SLI and how the 780a stacks up against AMD’s 790FX chipset.
NVIDIA nForce 780a SLI Motherboard Round-Up, Asus, MSI
Hot Hardware :: Friday, May 09, 2008
It is hard to believe that it has been almost two full years since NVIDIA released a new flagship chipset for the AMD platform. Since the nForce 590i SLI’s official release in May of 2006, NVIDIA has introduced a handful of mid-range and more affordable chipsets for AMD processors, but the 590i SLI was it at the high-end, despite AMD’s release of new quad-core Phenom processors and competing 7-series chipsets.
Early this year while NVIDIA outlined their plans to mix things up at the high-end of their AMD chipset line-up with the IGP-equipped nForce 780a SLI, but it has taken quite a bit of time to bring that product to market. Today though, we present to you three nForce 780a SLI-based motherboards (two from Asus and one from MSI), that are sure to pique the interest of all of the AMD fans out there. For the first time since the Phenom launch, AMD fans will now be able to pair up NVIDIA’s flagship graphics configurations with an AMD CPU and exploit all of the features inherent to both.
OCZ PC2-6400 ReaperX HPC 4GB Kit
techPowerUp :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The OCZ ReaperX HPC memory series is the newest variant of the heatpipe cooled memory available from the manufacturer. Its new design improves on the cooling with dual heatpipes and finer fins to keep the parts cool. In our testing we saw excellent performance going all the way to DDR2-736 at 3-3-3-12.
Mushkin XP-3-12800 DDR3 2GB
PC FRAGS :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Our friends over at Mushkin were kind enough to send us a 2 Gig kit of their yet to be released XP-3 DDR3 12800 (PC3- 1600) that runs at 7-7-6-18 at a modest voltage of 1.85-1.9v. According to reports gleaned from the Web they show cased them at CeBIT this year. ‘It?s our pleasure to announce the XP3 series modules at CeBIT this year?, said Brian Flood, Mushkin director of product development.
AMD Phenom X3 processor family performance
Techspot :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The latest processor series from AMD is a little unusual as it makes use of not one, two, or even four cores, but rather three! That’s right, the new Phenom X3 carries an unusual core configuration, and I guess the question most of you are probably asking yourselves (as we did) is why? The most reasonable explanation is that this still allows AMD to sell Phenom X4 processors with a defective core, minimizing their loss. Second, it gives some leverage for AMD to compete with Intel’s dual-core processors, being able to pull the “additional core” card.
Ultra X-Pro 750W & 800W PSU’s Review
Driver Heaven :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Ultra’s X-Pro range consists of many units with a power output ranging from 600W to 800W. Today we will take a look at the two most powerful units of this particular series, the X-Pro 750W and the X-Pro 800W. Today we will find out if they should be in your shortlist for an upgrade or for a brand new high end gaming system.
ThermoLab Micro Silencer CPU Cooler
Tweak Town :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Today’s product comes to us form a South Korean company called ThermoLab. Even though the company has been doing business since 2003, the chances of many readers already knowing the company are slim. This is mainly due to the types of products the company has been producing until now.
While most enthusiasts are looking for the largest heatsink they can fit in their system, many mainstream and server users are looking to keep their cases small. Small cases require smaller components, and believe it or not, smaller is getting to be a big deal.
Zalman ZM850-HP 850W Modular Power Supply Review
Think Computers :: Friday, May 09, 2008
A little while ago, ThinkComputers reviewed the Zalman ZM500-HP 500W power supply unit. This time around, Zalman, maker of fine cooling products and power supplies, submitted for review a more powerful, but louder version of its line of power supply units, the ZM850-HP 850W. This 80PLUS-certified unit has lots of connectivity with its modular design, and two heatpipes and an ultra-quiet fan keep the unit virtually silent. The review is here.
Cooler Master Real Power Pro 850 Watt Power Supply Review
Tweaknews :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“With six +12v rails and four 6-pin PCI-E connectors just for starters, it’s designed for those high end overclocked gaming rigs with multiple video cards that require a lot of power to perform optimally. Let’s have a look at the rest of its offerings in more detail.”
NZXT Alpha Classical Series Mid-Tower Case
Benchmark Reviews :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Fortunately, since the PC Enclosure market is roughly organized into three segments; entry/OEM level, mid-range and performance/enthusiast, all you need to do to begin your case search, is to figure out which segment of the market fits your systems needs and zero your search down to that particular segment. Someone looking to spend between $25.00-$75.00 on their future system’s enclosure need not waste their time exploring the expensive performance/enthusiast segment of the market, and so forth. Well, if part of your criteria is that you are on a budget or a first time builder, then usually the place to start is at the entry and budget mid-range levels.
Once there, while parusing the current multitude of styles and designs, your eye would almost certainly be caught by the entry-to-mid-range NZXT offering: the ALPHA. The first time you see it, you’ll think, “I bet that’s what Darth Vader’s desktop looks like.” Today at Benchmark Reviews, we’re going to find out if NZXT’s latest in their Classic series line is just another….pretty face?
Thermaltake BlacX Hard Drive Docking Station Review
Overclockers Club :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Well, I must say I quite like the Thermaltake BlacX Hard Drive Docking Station. Transfer speeds were the same or better than the two traditional style enclosures that it was compared to. The ability to hot swap not only 3.5″ hard drives, but 2.5″ notebook drives as well, makes this unit a must-have for a computer enthusiast. Most enclosures are built for a certain size drive and take some work swapping them out, but with the Thermaltake BlacX, you just push the eject button and place a new drive into the docking station. This is especially good for transferring files from an old drive to an upgraded one with ease. One thing I liked is the fact that there are no fans, meaning it is very quiet when in use.”
CoolIT PURE CPU Cooler Review
Hardware Canucks :: Friday, May 09, 2008
In the end the CoolIT PURE is not for everyone. Anyone who thinks just because a CPU cooling solution is water based means that “monster overclocks” are around the corner will be disappointed with it. However, anyone who wants to a very quiet, well mannered cooling system will be more than pleased with the PURE’s cooling capabilities, even if you intend on using a hot running quad core CPU.
Computrace LoJack for Laptops Review
Hardware Logic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Did you just spend a paycheck or two on a kickin’ new notebook? Here’s a scary statistic for you chew on: Roughly 2 million portable PCs end up in thieves’ hands every year, making notebook theft the second most common crime, trailing only identity theft. Yikes! But before you invest in a briefcase complete with chain and handcuff, there may be a better alternative.”
Cooler Sunbeam Silent Whisper
Madbox PC :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Featuring 6 heatpipes, this cooler has 2 versions, one compatible with LGA 775 and another with AMD K8 Family (754/939/940/AM2).”
Lian Li PC-C1110 Super Mid-Tower Chassis Review
OCIA :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Lian Li certainly put a lot of thought into the design of this case, even taking the time to implement the classic separate thermal zone design that is common to many full-tower and server cases. Can this case wow us like the PC-A17 did, though? Continue on as we find out..”
Noctua NH-U12P CPU Heatsink with/ Additional Fan Review
Techware Labs :: Friday, May 09, 2008
For those seeking powerful cooling that is also quiet Noctua may be the answer. We take a look at the large NH-U12P heatsink from Noctua and test this beast against the stock Intel cooler to show you its installation, cooling performance, and our observations. Read our review to see what we think.
Patriot Memory PC3-15000 Extreme Performance LLK Review
Club Overclocker :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Over the past year, we’ve had the pleasure of reviewing all sorts of DDR3 memory. Our opinion was has been generally favorable for the memory and negative about the price. Now we have an odd situation. Patriot Memory has just sent us the fastest, default memory speed that we’ve every tested here at the Club and it comes with the cheapest price of any of the other DDR3 kits we’ve reviewed. I’m still trying to find out what the catch is. Before I wake up or Patriot emails me that the price was a mistake, Let’s go take a look at some DDR3 that is running a default speed of 933Mhz (1866DDR).
Cooler Master Real Power M850 850W
techPowerUp :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Cooler Master’s Real Power M850 power supply is one of the first power supplies that has six 12V rails. This should be enough power for all your SLI or CrossFire needs. Like many other PSUs today, the M850 comes with a high gloss reflective case and a large number of connectors.
Akasa AK-TT12-80 Thermal Adhesive Tape
Frosty Tech :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“Akasa’s AK-TT12-80 double sided Thermal Adhesive Tape comes in a small 80mm x 80mm square, about 0.3mm thick, from which you cut out a small square the appropriate size for your application. The thermal interface material has a thermal conductivity of 0.9 W/mK, and is double-sided to ensure bonding with the IC and heatsink. Peel adhesion is rated at 1200g/inch2 – or 1.2kg per square inch.”
Thermolab Micro Silencer TLI-S Heatsink Review
Frosty Tech :: Friday, May 09, 2008
“In this review Frostytech will be testing a low profile Intel socket 775 heatsink which could be ideal for 2U sized server chassis, small formfactor PCs and other media center microATX-style cases which are seriously height limited. The Thermolab Micro Silencer TLI-S heatsink uses a simple swagged aluminum fin and heatpipe construction, weighs a feathery 276 grams and comes with a pre-applied patch of 8 W/mK rated gray thermal interface material.”
Human Pixels
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Today is a slow news day so here are a few entertaining videos to pass the time. The following two videos are examples of “human pixels.” First, Space Invaders. Second, the UC Berkley Marching band performing a half-time show including a whole crapload of video games (Zelda, Super Mario, Tetris, etc.) If you thought video games […]
Reducing Power Usage On Overclocked PC’s
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Many of you computer enthusiasts out there like to overclock your PC’s (personally, I avoid it like the plague), however a direct side effect to this is the increased power usage your steroid pumped PC consumes. Increased power usage not only contributes to a higher power bill, but also increased output of heat (which will […]
Working Offline With Google Docs, Part 1
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
For some mobile professionals, Google Docs may be a viable alternative to Microsoft Office.
Workhorse Laptops
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
No matter what your needs are, you can find your perfect portable right here.
Westinghouse TX-47F450S LCD HDTV
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
A decent but unspectacular TV at a very good price makes for a good bargain buy.
Top 5 46- and 47-Inch HDTVs
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The screen sizes in this category are ideal for people with average-size living rooms. The sets deliver stellar performance, a generous array of the newest inputs, and unique picture adjustment features. Check back frequently for the latest updates.
VisionTek Radeon HD 3870 X2 Overclocked Edition Review
Overclockers Club :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Casual Friday: Games and Bad Language Lessons
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Can Grand Theft Auto teach you Russian? Can slugging Street Fighters help you learn Japanese? This week, we get schooled in unconventional places.
Samsung LN46A550 LCD HDTV
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
This all-around excellent TV is easy to use and a delight to the eyes.
Basic Font Styles Using CSS
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
If you’re administering your own web pages (or possibly WordPress themes,) it’s more or less required to know Cascading Style Sheets, a.k.a. CSS for short. In the video below I give a very basic tutorial on how to adjust font styles using CSS.
RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120 (T-Mobile) PDA Phone
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Sleek Pearl lets consumers use Wi-Fi to boost call quality where cell signals falter.
Scythe Zipang 139MM CPU Cooler Review
Overclockers Club :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Hades Gaming Ares H1 Optical Gaming Mouse
Dragonsteel Mods :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Hades Gaming (http://www.hades-gaming.com/) products including their excellent mouse pads. Today, I will examine the H1 Optical Gaming Mouse and determine whether it is worthy of your gaming dollar. Let’s get started….
How To Test WordPress Before Installing It
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
People see PCMech.com and sometimes wonder what is the “engine” behind the magic, so to speak. Well, it’s no secret that PCMech uses WordPress. If you were thinking about trying WordPress for yourself there are completely free ways to do it (as in without the requirement of a domain and web host). See video below […]
HP Officejet Pro K8600dn Inkjet Printer
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
You pay a bigger price for this inkjet, but you can print bigger things on it–and enjoy smaller ink prices plus automatic two-sided printing.
XM Radio Mobile (on BlackBerry) Satellite Radio Service
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
This pared-down version of XM’s satellite service is handy, but don’t expect flawless performance.
Shuttle KPC K4500 Compact PC
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
This new Shuttle makes an excellent kiosk or office PC if you don’t need an optical drive.
OpenOffice 3 Hits Public Beta
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
It has been a long time coming, but OpenOffice version 3 has officially been released to public beta. The current stable version of OpenOffice is pretty good, but as a Mac user, I have been waiting for a native Mac version of OpenOffice. I am currently running NeoOffice for the Mac, which is good but […]
Epson Stylus C120 Inkjet Printer
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
This inkjet printer is your best bet for speed on the cheap, but its plain-paper quality suffers.
No, Your Computer Isn’t Hacked
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Recently, both myself and a lot of users at work here have received a barrage of “undeliverable” email messages. I’m not talking about a few here, but hundreds a week. Naturally, the first thing I thought is our mail server has been compromised. Long story short, that was not the case. Next, I thought it was […]
Toshiba 46XF550U LCD HDTV
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
This underpowered, overpriced HDTV does not stand up well to the competition.
Thermaltake M9 Mid-Tower PC Case
Dragonsteel Mods :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Thermaltake (http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/) is one of them. They've been around for quite a while and have a large selection of PC cases that will fit any budget or type of system build. My experience with their products has always been a good one, and they are a company that is constantly improving their products for the better. Today for review I've got the Thermaltake M9 ATX case, it's a mid-tower style case that is sort of a basic case but offers some nice features and looks good as well. Aesthetically the M9 is very pleasing with an almost solid black exterior, nice contour lines and an overall sense of style to it. When powered on the blue LEDs of the included fans make a nice contrast with the black and make for a very nice presentation, its also quiet and does a decent job of keeping your system cool. So continue on to learn more about the Thermaltake M9…
How To Create A Scheduled Task
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Many times, the items we need to schedule to run automatically, such as virus and malware scans, have a built in scheduler which allow you to create an event without having to use the task scheduler in your OS. This tip serves as just a simple reference to some resources which show you how to […]
Canon Pixma iP2600 Inkjet Printer
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Home and student users should love this inkjet printer’s output–and its price–but they’ll need a little patience.
Audioengine A2 Desktop Speakers
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
These small, elegant-looking speakers serve up musical bliss.
An Operating System – In Your Web Browser?
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
There are numerous choices in operating system to run on your computer. Most use Windows. Others use Linux. Others (like myself) use a Mac. However, one thing is abundantly clear: our computing lives are moving online. Speaking for myself, it is my web browser (Firefox) which is always open. It is the first program I start […]
ASUS P5E3 Premium WiFi-AP @n
Techgage :: Friday, May 09, 2008
X48 is new, but there are many boards already begging for your dollars. We are taking a look at the most robust of them all, the P5E3 Premium, which includes built-in WiFi, a great board design and fantastic overclocking abilities. It would almost be a perfect board if it weren’t for the $375 price tag.
Site Downtime
Dragonsteel Mods :: Friday, May 09, 2008
Pardon the mess…I just wanted everyone to know that there is going to be some downtime for the site within the next 72 hours. We are migrating/moving to our new host and will need to work out the kinks etc, hopefully though everything will go nice and smoothly with little or no problems. So if the site is not here when you visit in the future that's the reason but we will be back up ASAP on a new, much faster server/host.
Interview With Risley: Getting Traffic To Your Site
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The other day, I met with Kyle Graham of Ambidupdate.com. We were meeting to talk a little business, but he had asked me ahead of time if he could do a quick interview. Of course I said yes. He used his new Flip Video to record this interview of me outside of a Chili’s in […]
“In The Beginning…” – My First Computer
PC Mechanic :: Friday, May 09, 2008
I broke into the world of computers and technology at around the ripe old age of 10. Not so amazing really, but remember…that was in 1984…back when most people on the street didn’t know what a computer was. The day my father came home from Radio Shack with a brand new Tandy 1000 was the […]
Lexmark Z2420 Wireless Inkjet Printer
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
The Z2420 Wireless is cheap, and Wi-Fi makes it versatile, but otherwise it’s a typical and somewhat slow inkjet printer.
Thermaltake M9 Review
Overclockers Club :: Friday, May 09, 2008
First Look: Samsung’s Glyde Phone Has a Slick Touchscreen
PC World :: Friday, May 09, 2008
New cell phone is easy to use for basic tasks like phone calls and messaging.
Build Your Own Mac – Apple’s Key to the Future?
PC Mech :: Thursday, May 08, 2008
“I saw someone over at DailyTech ask a question about building a Mac and watched him take machine gun-like shots over and over from PC and Mac fanboys for asking a stupid question. You know it’s bad when you have both sides of the computer world bashing you. Of course you can’t build your own Mac. But, Why not?”
Noctua NH-C12P CPU Cooler Review
Dragonsteel Mods :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“Today for review I’ve got something special, something that no one on this side of the ocean has yet actually, the Noctua NH-C12P CPU cooler. Noctua has honored us with the privilege of being their US launch partner for their new CPU cooler. The C12P continues Noctua’s tradition of striving for performance without sacrificing quality along the way. The C12P is like no other Noctua designed cooler to date, and not much like any other CPU cooler I’ve even seen actually. It incorporates six heatpipes into a short, fat style body that Noctua calls a ‘C-Type’ design with airflow gaps that allow cooling of the motherboard components as well. This design allows for a much higher compatibility with more motherboards and PC case configurations, where a tall CPU cooler won’t fit the NH-C12P will fit easily. The NH-C12P uses Noctua’s own NF-P12 120mm fan for cooling so you know it will be quiet as well. The Noctua NH-C12P is possibly the best cooler on the market today, from my testing and re-testing it beats all others I have for comparison, and that includes names like Thermalright, Scythe, Zalman, and OCZ. I was so surprised by the results of my testing that I re-did the testing all over again to be sure of my results, and they were the same, the NH-C12P is the new king of CPU coolers… ”
Being Cut Off From The Outside World
Tweak Town :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
After a two week hiatus thanks to a house move, I’m back with my editorials; and while everything has been pretty smooth with the move, the one thing that hasn’t has probably been the most important.
I’ve moved into a new place which hasn’t actually got a phone line running to it. That’s okay, but I assume the telco company I was dealing with knew what they were doing when they booked a tech to come out and hook my line up. On the first appointment, he decided not to show up. The same thing happened with the second one.
Cooler Master Hyper Z600 Review
OCC :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“When you take the Cooler Master Hyper Z600 out and get it alone, you are able to see how extremely large this piece of hardware actually is. Not only is it tall, it is also very wide. You can also see that the entire cooler is made out of aluminum, which is a very common choice between all manufactures to use for a cooler nowadays. All four sides of the Hyper Z600 look very similar; actually looking at only the fins, they are aligned the exact same on every side. This heatsink is setup very differently than any of the others that I have used before. There are two heatpipes that attach to the base and soar all the way up to the top of the heatsink and are positioned in each of the four corners of the unit.”
Noctua NH-U12P Heatpipe CPU Cooler
Benchmark Reviews :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Noctua has always fascinated me with their cooling solutions. They take the concept of product refinement to a new level, and often times simply tweak key areas of an existing design rather than reinventing the wheel. A perfect example of their research and development is found in the NH-U12P CPU cooler. This new product replaces their older NH-U12F model, and now features a NF-P12 cooling fan. Through the use of four heat-pipe rods configured in a “U” design, the NH-U12P borrows from the well-established performance record of many top-level coolers. Additionally, Noctua emphasises the complete experience beyond simply cooling the processor, and optimizes their products to operate with very low noise levels.
Coolit Pure Review
OCC :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“CoolIT claims that installing the PURE cooler is quick and easy, but I found that installation into my case – a Lian-Li PC-P60 – was a little more trouble than I expected. The problem I encountered stemmed from the sizable depth of my case, and the PURE’s tubing was too short to span the distance between the CPU and the radiator mounted on the hard drive cage. I ended up resting the PURE’s main assembly on my RAM slots, so that I could mount the CPU block without stretching the hoses too far.”
Smooth Creations Broodling Monster PC Showcase
Hot Hardware :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
This is just something fun and light for a Friday. Swing on by and take a look at what has to be the most killer paint job on a system that we’ve seen here in a long time. It also has some kick-ass going on under the hood as well.
Ultra X3 800w Modular Power Supply Review
Club Overclocker :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Here at the Club we have looked at a lot of power supplies over the years so its nice to see a familiar face once in a while. The Ultra X3 800 Watt Modular power supply is the latest in a run of solid Ultra products from the X3 line. The X3 800W has all the great features we have come to expect from Ultras top power supplies like FlexForce cabling and 85% efficiency under a normal load. Combine this with Ultra’s Limited Lifetime warranty and this power supply should be just what the doctor ordered
OCZ ReaperX HPC DDR3-1333 2GB Memory Kit Review
Think Computers :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“In a few short years, OCZ has really made its mark in the PC enthusiast world. They have branched out into power supplies, CPU coolers, thermal compound, peripherals, flash media, they even have a new phase-change cooler for those extreme overclockers that need sub-zero temps. But, OCZ’s forte is still high-performance system memory. Today I will be looking at OCZ’s latest offering in the ReaperX series, the ReaperX PC3-1066 (DDR3-1333) 2 gig kit. Will the DDR3 ReaperX prove to be the awesome overclocker that its DDR2 little brother is? Read on and see…”
Tuniq Miniplant 950w Power Supply Review
Virtual Hideout :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“Tuniq has recently come out with a new series of power supplies called the “Miniplant”. This new line of power supply comes in three versions: 1200W, 1000W, and 950W. In this upcoming review, we will be going over the 950W Miniplant power supply.
So what exactly is the Miniplant, now that we know it isn’t a nuclear device? It’s a 950W powerhouse packed into a standard-sized PSU enclosure. With this type of power and small footprint, this power supply would be geared to the mobile gamer, who needs that extra bit of wattage for their SLI/CrossFire setups without the extra acreage. Some of the prominent features of the Miniplant are the high efficiency 80+ certification, multiple circuit protection, active PFC, and a plethora of cable connections to keep everyone happy.“
MSI K9A2 Platinum Motherboard Review
Motherboards.org :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
MSI has done a wonderful job with their K9A2 Platinum motherboard. The performance is higher than the last AMD motherboard we did the Gigabyte GA-M69GM-S2H motherboard back in September. The ability to do Quadfire (Four ATI cards in Crossfire) is excellent. The minor issue with the motherboard utility aside and the problem with setting up RAID aside, this was a joy to work with. The question with the AMD motherboards is always whether it might be better to buy a new Intel CPU with new motherboard rather than buy an AMD board to use the old CPU. For the true hardcore enthusiast, there really isn’t an AMD choice that makes sense as Intel Core 2 Quad CPUs dominate the AMD equivalents in performance. AMD competes in price as the lowest priced Intel Quad Core is 10%+ higher priced than the AMD equivalent.
http://www.rbmods.com/Bilder/Articles/Geeks/Hp_jornada_728/pic13l.jpg
Inside HW :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
…” This time we’ve compared two CPUs: Core2Quad Q9300 (this is the bottom model of current lineup) and Core2Extreme QX9650 (the top model of current lineup). We have experimented with QX9650, bringing down its multiplier so we got whole palette of Core2Quad processors from Q9x50 generation. To make evaluation of performances we have included in test even Core2Extreme QX6850 which is the top model Quad CPU from previous generation (65nm).”…
CoolJag Falcon 92-AL Heatsink Review
Mikhailtech :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Is the CoolJag Falcon 92-AL the ‘Ultimate Cooling Machine’? With enough surface area to build a small car out of and a auto-controlled Smart fan, it should be a contender.
Thermolab Micro Silencer Review
OCC :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“As you can see, this cooler was outperformed by the other heatsinks, except for the Nano Silencer, in each test. When you take a look at the size difference between the Micro Silencer and the other heatsinks it was compared to, it should not have been able to beat them or even come close. However, again taking a look at its size, it is able to remove the heat off of the processor better than the stock cooler provided by Intel.”
NZXT Tempest Mid Tower Gaming Case
Legit Reviews :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“The Tempest from NZXT’s crafted series is a very nice looking computer case. With a current street price of $109 plus shipping it is in the same price bracket as the ever-so-popular $99.99 Antec Nine Hundred hardcore gaming case.To compare these two cases one will find that they are similar in style, but the Tempest has a little more going for it; it can hold up to 8 hard drives and the top of the case is designed so that it can mount some of the most common dual 120mm water cooling radiators to it with out modifications. Buying a case is obviously a personal decision, but it would be hard to go wrong with the Tempest…”
Safari, Firefox Drop; IE Gains
PC Mech :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“According to a story on ComputerWorld, market share of Apple’s Safari web browser as well as usage of Mozilla Firefox both dropped in the last month. Internet Explorer market share actually gained…”
Firefox Add-On Integrates Todo List into Gmail
PC Mech :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“I have long thought that Google desperately needs to add an in-house todo list to their Gmail Apps line-up. They likely will before too long. And my wish list for a Google todo app is as follows…”
Reducing The Power Consumption Of Overclocked PCs
Tech ARP :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“Just by using these two tips, you can radically reduce the power consumption of your PC. The first step tackles the processor’s power consumption when it idles while the second step attacks its power consumption under load. Together, they will really bring down your overclocked PC’s power consumption. Do your bit for the planet – start using these two tips today!”
OCZ 4GB Rally2 USB Flash Drive
Overclockers Online :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
From the concept of the Rally Flash Drive family, OCZ has done everything right: a sleek slender body with fast performance. As the series matured and evolved to the Rally2 Turbo, the drive has had a few cosmetic changes and the performance has kicked into a higher gear. The curved edges with no protruding parts and overall small body makes it an easy fit into pockets while the 25-30MB/s performance guarantees you quick copy from hard drive to flash.
4GB SDHC Memory Cards: OCZ vs. Crucial
Phoronix :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“Have you been searching for a Secure Digital card that is able to accommodate all of the pictures you take on your next vacation or looking for more storage on your Internet tablet? If so, you have likely come across the latest Secure Digital High Capacity cards that overcome the earlier 2GB capacity limitation of traditional Secure Digital cards. However, there are just so many SDHC cards on the market and they are all priced similarly from different manufacturers, so what should you choose? At hand today in this weekend review are two 4GB SDHC cards from OCZ and Crucial.”
DFI LANParty LT X48-T2R Motherboard
Tweak Town :: Wednesday, May 07, 2008
“X48 has certainly earned a name for itself now. While Intel has been at the back end of adapting new technologies that actually work (forget the Rambus incident), the X38/X48 chipsets are somewhat ahead of their time.
What can be said for the DFI X48 LANParty board other than yet another success from this once OEM company is that DFI has really taken on a new persona over the last three years. With a huge boost in R&D, DFI are designing boards that are not only functional, but look just as good as they perform.”
ASRock Penryn 1600SLIX3-WiFi 680i Motherboard Review
Think Computers :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
“ASRock came on board in 2002, not long after I started building my own rigs. In those six short years, they have come up with some remarkably innovative designs for economy motherboards. Today I will be looking at the ASRock Penryn 1600SLIX3-WiFi motherboard. ASRock has taken the nVidia 680i SLI chipset, given it the capability of running the new Core 2 Extreme 1600mHz FSB processors, added WiFi, and placed that in an economy-minded board.”
Cooler Master Centurion 590
techPowerUp :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The Cooler Master Centurion 590 is a very affordable entry level case that brings a lot of features from much more expensive enthusiast class enclosures. Its nine 5.25″ drive bays offer ultimate expandability, large video cards will also find a comfortable home in it.
Eagle Tech I Series USB HDD Enclosure Review
Club Overclocker :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Eagle Tech Computers is back with an addition to their expansive line-up of external hard drive enclosures. Back in September of 2007 we took a look (here) at three of their enclosures including the D-Series, a full-size dual SATA drive enclosure that uses RAID JB0D technology to maximize storage space and drive compatibility. The latest from Eagle Tech falls within that category and is called the I-Series
Hiper Anubis Case
3d game man :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Hiper Anubis Case
Noctua NH-U12P CPU Cooler
Modders Inc :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The NH-U12P is the newer version of the NH-U12. It has the same basic features as the NH-U12F, but is paired with the new Noctua NF-P12 120mm fan. The Noctua NH-U12P has shown that it preforms better than its older brother, the Noctua NH-U12F.
DFI LANParty DK X38-T2R mainboard
Hardware Overclock Austria :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Hardwareoverclock Austria has reviewed DFI’s X38 mainboard LANParty DK X38-T2R. The most important themes in the review are the Bios and the overclocking features.
Coolermaster Hyper Z600 Passive Heatsink Review
Frosty Tech :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
“The Coolermaster Hyper Z600 heatsink is a novel passive CPU heatsink for today’s dual core processors. Its’ ‘star’ shape, widely spaced aluminum fins and prodigious number of silvery copper heatpipes allow it to work without the benefit of a fan, albeit within specific thermal limits. As far as passive cooling goes (and I mean true passive cooling without any fan blowing toward it) Frostytech threw caution to the wind and stressed the Coolermaster Hyper Z600 heatsink in its passive mode.”
Intel Skulltrail preview
Nordic Hardwae :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Intel Skulltrail is the ultimate platform for the high-end users. It has two sockets that can house two Intel Core 2 Extreme processors, and four PCIe x16 slots with support for up to four graphics cards working together in either SLI or CrossFire. We will explore the latter in a future article, but until then we’ve compiled this preview for you. We’ve taken a closer look at Skulltrail and see what hides beneath the heatsinks and coolers.
Kaspersky Internet Security 7 Review
PC Review :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
“This suite of tools will provide the average user with excellent protection against a wide range of computer security threats, much more so than an out of the box system. There are however, plenty of alternative products (at cost or free) which claim to do the same job. It should be expected that a good security package will not only provide good threat protection, but also work in the background with a minimum of use of system resources. This stops the system from slowing down and being considered bloated.”
Spire Powerfuse S162 Review
XS Reviews :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
“As Spire say, they are a name synonymous with quality and innovation and most innovative companies respond aptly to market trends. One of these trends is that many people now have expensive high end graphics cards and prolonging their life has become paramount for many. With that in mind, Spire have sent the “Powerfuse” over-voltage surge protector for us to review.”
VIA’s Open-Source Efforts A Bluff?
Phoronix :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
“Last month we reported on VIA’s new open-source driver efforts that was announced at the LF Austin Summit. This new strategy involves VIA providing the open-source community with NDA-free hardware specifications, code, and other resources — in a similar fashion to what ATI/AMD and Intel have been doing for some time now. However, not everyone has been satisfied by this announcement and their new Linux website isn’t yet exactly useful. We explore the VIA Linux situation in this article as well as sharing what two open-source developers have to say.”
Thermolab Nano Silencer CPU Cooler LGA775
Dragonsteel Mods :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
“Yesterday I looked at the Thermolab Micro Silencer CPU Cooler, today I’ve got the Thermolab Nano Silencer. If you thought the Micro Silencer was small then you’ll be amazed at the size of the Nano Silencer, it is about half the size of the Micro and still performs almost as well. I’m truly surprised by the performance of this cooler when you consider just how small it is. Since it’s so small there should be no problem fitting it into any size case, and there should be no compatibility issues with motherboard or cases. ”
Nexus XiR-3500 Copper Ed. CPU Cooler
Tweak Ton :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
“Recently I took the Nexus XiR-2300 for a spin and found it to be a very good CPU cooler. Actually, it was the second best we have tested thus far. Today we are going to take the sibling of the XiR-2300 for a spin, the XiR-3500; an all copper cooler that uses the same design.
Between testing the two Nexus coolers I wanted to find Nexus’ secret; how they were getting the performance out of the XiR Series with such a conventional design. After a little digging I found the secret, a technology called SkiveTek, and it is exclusive to Nexus.”
Helio Mysto Cell Phone
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This slim slider-style cell phone is stocked with extras, including a mobile version of MySpace.
Soyo SYXRT4791AB LCD HDTV
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
A very appealing price and good speakers aren’t enough to offset this TV’s poor picture quality.
Matrix Orbital GX Typhoon Display
Bit-Tech Modding :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Matrix Orbital has been quietly humming away in the background for a couple of years now, working hard on its upcoming series of GX displays and peripherals. We’ve been involved for a while, but is it time to pull the cover off and show off the new baby? Let’s take a look…
SupportSpace Tech Support Service
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This Web-based service delivers immediate fixes for your PC woes.
Adobe Photoshop Express (Beta) Software
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
New Photoshop version offers an easy way for inexperienced users to edit and share their photos.
Linksys Wireless-N Gigabit Router WRT310N
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The Linksys Wireless-N Gigabit Router’s strong feature set provides almost everything you’d want for a small business seeking to support legacy 802.11b/g hardware as well as faster 802.11n clients.
The Best 10 All-Purpose Laptops
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
These laptops can do it all and are a great choice for most on-the-go users.
Casual Friday: GTA Bore
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
You may have heard of this game: Grand Theft…Auto…something. Plus we score you a couple free GTA games and take a spin with Mario’s new ride.
Coolit Pure Review
Overclockers Club :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Palm Centro PDA Phone (AT&T)
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This sporty, slimmer variant of the Treo is available on the AT&T network.
Symantec Norton 360 Version 2.0 Software Suite
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Security suite covers all the bases in an easy-to-use package, but doesn?t ace PC protection.
HP Officejet H470wbt Mobile Inkjet Printer
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This travel-friendly inkjet is good for on-the-go printing, but it may be too slow for in-office use.
Mio Moov 310 GPS
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Despite its simplicity, this Moov is a great buy as an entry-level GPS device.
NZXT Tempest Mid-Tower
Techgage :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Finding a quality mid-tower for under $100 doesn’t happen to often, but NZXT looks to hit the mark with their Tempest. It offers plenty of space (and even support for eATX), four large pre-mounted fans, an intuitive internal design and sharp looks, making it a wise choice for any new build.
Grand Theft Auto IV: Exceeds Every Expectation
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Grand Theft Auto IV hurtles onto the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 with the force of a supernova, making good on nearly all its promises.
New 802.11n Routers: The Best Wi-Fi Yet
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The best new 802.11n wireless routers deliver strong performance, coverage, and compatibility–but picking the right one for your network is more complicated than ever. Our lab tests reveal the top choices, whether you are looking for a basic bargain or consider speed and range paramount.
Onkyo TX-SR805 Home-Theater Receiver
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The first home-theater receiver to decode DTS Master Audio and Dolby TrueHD from Blu-ray movies produces phenomenal sound.
Top 5 Network-Attached Storage Devices
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
These are the top network-attached storage devices today, but ratings and rankings can change quickly due to pricing and technology changes so check back frequently for the latest info.
Mitsubishi LT-46244 LCD HDTV
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
An okay TV at an exorbitant price makes for a losing combination.
Site Redesign
Dragonsteel Mods :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
If you haven't noticed we've done a bit of redesign to the site, though I'm sure you did by now… through the magic of CSS and little HTML thrown in we've got a nice new site that I hope works and looks much better. It's much more streamlined now, and I know I'm happier with it, there are a couple tiny kinks to work out yet, but for the most part it's complete and will remain this way for quite some time.Some might question the color scheme, but I wanted something different, something that stands out, but yet works well together.I think it's easier to navigate now with the larger highlighted menu, and I think the important stuff stands out better now. Thre are a couple more things to be added yet, and a few more tweaks but nothing major overall… I'm still finishing up the redesign/reorganization of the 'Reviews' page, I like the small pictures better of the individual items, yes I know it loads a bit slow right now, but within the next week or so we will be moving to a new server where things will be much quicker to load overall.I still need to come up with an official logo for the site, but my lack of time has put that to the side for now…
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 Laptop
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This well-built laptop combines middle-of-the-road performance and a sizable hard drive at a good price.
NEC NP100 Portable Projector
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The affordable NEC NP100 portable projector provides bright images for both business and home-entertainment users.
Thermolab Nano Silencer CPU Cooler Review LGA775
Dragonsteel Mods :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Yesterday I looked at the Thermolab Micro Silencer CPU Cooler, today I've got the Thermolab Nano Silencer. If you thought the Micro Silencer was small then you'll be amazed at the size of the Nano Silencer, it is about half the size of the Micro and still performs almost as well. I'm truly surprised by the performance of this cooler when you consider just how small it is. Since it's so small there should be no problem fitting it into any size case, and there should be no compatibility issues with motherboards either. So continue on to see a very small CPU cooler that performs just as good, and better than coolers that are twice or three times its size…
SugarSync File Syncing Service
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This sweet service is easy to use and works across different platforms to keeps files in sync on multiple devices.
Thermaltake BlacX Hard Drive Docking Station Review
Overclockers Club :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Repairing Or Uninstalling Corrupt Programs
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
I recently ran into a problem on my machine where my installation of Office 2007 became corrupted. As a result, I was not able to repair or uninstall it from the Add/Remove programs menu. Instead of giving up and going through the major hassle of reinstalling everything, I came across a more elegant (and much […]
Canon PowerShot A470 Point-and-Shoot Digital Camera
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This bargain-priced, no-frills camera offers very good image quality.
Preview Your Next Cell Phone–Virtually
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
TryPhone’s virtual handsets don’t replace the real thing, but they could help you narrow down the list of candidates when you’re shopping.
VMWare Fusion 2.X – Multiple Screens!
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Vmware is releasing information about the forthcoming 2.x version of Vmware Fusion. Actually, it is available for download now as a beta release. And this one is sure to please. Why? Multiple screen support! This is great news for me and should be for any Mac user who has more than one monitor. My Mac Pro has […]
LG Glimmer Cell Phone
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This touch-screen phone from Alltel Wireless is no iPhone killer, but it’s still worth checking out.
Fujitsu LifeBook A6120 Laptop
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This all-purpose laptop performs very well without being overpriced.
Identity-Theft Protection: What Services Can You Trust?
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
New online services offer to protect you from identity theft, and some claim to help you undo damage after it happens. But when we tested the services, we found that many fall short.
Build Your Own Mac – Apple’s Key to the Future?
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
I saw someone over at DailyTech ask a question about building a Mac and watched him take machine gun-like shots over and over from PC and Mac fanboys for asking a stupid question. You know it’s bad when you have both sides of the computer world bashing you. Of course you can’t build […]
The Best Digital Voice Recorder
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Sony’s ICD-MX20 is a top choice if you need a portable digital voice recorder that converts speech into text.
D-Link Wireless N Router DIR-615 vB2
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Though it has strong features and an attractive price, this entry-level draft-2 802.11n router was rather slow and failed to complete some of our long-distance tests.
The 10 Best Compact Cameras
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The newest compact digital cameras give you only limited controls in most cases, but low prices and excellent image quality make these low-frills options worth considering.
How-To: Creating a Table Of Contents in OpenOffice Writer
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This video I made for those who are (or thinking about) writing a book in OpenOffice Writer. It’s also for those who have done the same thing in Microsoft Word but don’t exactly know how to perform the same function in OO. With this video, now you know.
RIM BlackBerry 8820 (T-Mobile) PDA/Cell Phone
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This solid business phone gets a boost from the addition of voice over Wi-Fi.
Ubuntu: Removing Compiz Fusion Including Config Files
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Over at UbuntuGeek.com they’ve just released an article that instructs how to remove Compiz Fusion including all the config files. Ubuntu users who read this will most likely ask the following two questions. Why? Compiz is awesome! What advantage does removing the config files do in addition to removing it? In answer to 1: Yes, Compiz is awesome. It showcases […]
Top 10 Cell Phones
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
These are the best standard cell phones today, but ratings and rankings can change quickly due to pricing and technology changes, so check back frequently for the latest info.
Wi-Fi Draft-2.0 802.11N Routers: Good, Better, and Best
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Linksys routers scored well in our high-end and midrange matchups, but competitors performed respectably. At the low end, Belkin is a clear winner.
10 E-Mail Marketing Dos and Don’ts
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Help your business flourish–and avoid costly errors–by following these rules of e-mail marketing.
Asus P527 Cell Phone
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The P527 smart phone is loaded with features, including extensive GPS options, but it’s far too slow for even casual users.
Make Sure That General E-Mail Gets Answered
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Email Center Pro helps small businesses manage shared e-mail accounts for receiving such correspondence as general inquiries and customer service requests.
Thermolab Micro Silencer Review
Overclockers Club :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The Three Evils by Greensabbath
Bit-Tech Modding :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Things have been fairly quiet from our Mod of the Year winner Nick Falzone. Granted, that’s because he’s spent the winter in the beautiful city of Florence, Italy studying architecture. But that doesn’t mean he’s not been modding – and we have his latest build to prove it.
First Impressions – Live Mesh Review
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Syntax-Brillian Olevia 747i LCD HDTV
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Badly designed set has a very good picture to compensate for its shortcomings.
How We Test Wi-Fi Draft-2.0 802.11n Routers
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Links to Reviews for May 3-5
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
ECS A780GM-A Black Series Motherboard – “The 780G chipset is the most powerful integrated graphics chipset on the market today. ATI is soon to release the 790G chipset which will bring even more performance to the integrated graphics chipset market. Integrated graphics are great for the person wanting to build a inexpensive system as you only […]
Microsoft Stops Going After Yahoo, Yahoo Stock Goes Into The Toilet
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Life officially 100% sucks for Yahoo right now. Microsoft decided to back out from buying Yahoo. Guess what happened. The stockholders decided to give Yahoo a good swift kick in the ass, i.e. the stocks dived and dived hard. As far as Microsoft is concerned, their stocks actually edged up. Will Yahoo recover from this? Unknown at […]
Mod of the Month – April 2008
Bit-Tech Modding :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
April showers bring May flowers – but they also fog up a good spray painting job. Fortunately, our modders persevere through the lousy weather and difficult tasks to bring us fantastic forum contributions. Who’s in the top five this month? Let’s take a look at April’s Mod of the Month!
Sony VAIO VGN-SZ791N Laptop
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This stylish, lightweight laptop comes loaded with powerhouse components–but it’ll cost you.
Apple AirPort Extreme Base Station With Gigabit Ethernet
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Apple’s Airport Extreme router boasts some nice features, including support for wireless range extension and USB drive/printer sharing. But you must decide whether to operate it in 2.4-GHz or 5-GHz mode.
LG 47LBX Opus LCD HDTV
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
A swiveling stand and USB-based music and photo capabilities don’t make up for this HDTV’s poor image quality.
Linksys Dual-Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router With Storage Link WRT600N
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Linksys’s dual-band router is one of the first draft-802.11n routers to support simultaneous 2.4-GHz and 5-GHz networks, making it a great choice for supporting both legacy Wi-Fi gear and future streaming media devices.
Cooler Master Hyper Z600 Review
Overclockers Club :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
SageTV HD Media Extender
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This box delivers good-looking video from your PC to your TV–assuming that you can get it connected.
Tech Trend: For HDTV, Don’t Overlook Overscan
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Make sure your high-def television displays a true 1080p image.
Casual Friday: MTV’s Virtual Music Scene
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This week we play entire albums in Rock Band and cruise New York’s virtual Lower East Side, then score you some sweet DS deals (while supplies last).
Vizio VO47LF LCD HDTV
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Great image quality and a fantastic price make this HDTV impossible to overlook.
ASUS EN9600GT Silent 512MB
Techgage :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Looking for excellent gaming performance but also want to keep PC noise to a minimum? The EN9600GT Silent from ASUS is the card to buy. It couples the power of the 9600 GT with pure silence, and costs little more than the stock model, making it a great choice for either the HTPC or desktop.
Samsung Ace SPH-i325 PDA Phone
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This PDA phone includes plenty of features that will keep you entertained while you’re on the go.
14 Reasons Why AIM Is Still The Best Instant Messaging Network
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
1. It’s not Microsoft. 2. It’s not Apple. 3. It’s not Yahoo. 4. It works on any OS using almost any IM client you can think of (AIM client itself, AIM Lite, Trillian, Pidgin, Kopete, Adium, Digsby, Miranda, etc. etc. etc.) 5. Jabber still sucks. 6. MSN/Live still doesn’t work right and disconnects randomly. 7. Yahoo does […]
Ask Our Experts: The Best Battery Options
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Extended-life laptop battery versus external laptop battery.
Sharp LC-46D64U LCD HDTV
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Poor picture quality makes avoiding this set an easy call.
Iogear Mobile Digital Scribe Pen
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The $130 Mobile Digital Scribe is pricey and needs better bundled software, but it’s fun to use.
Network Storage for Home and Office
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
You don’t have to be an IT guru to add storage to your network. These network-attached drives make setting up shared data access easy and straightforward.
Should You Trust Your Health Records to Google and Microsoft?
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Until we have laws guaranteeing the privacy of my digitized health information, I’ll pass.
Netgear RangeMax Next Wireless-N Gigabit Router WNR3500
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This Netgear router performed well, is easy to set up, and supports wireless range extension–but it’s somewhat awkwardly designed and lacks enterprise encryption support.
Noctua NH-C12P CPU Cooler Review
Dragonsteel Mods :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Noctua (http://www.noctua.at) has honored us with the privilege of being their US launch partner for their new CPU cooler. The C12P continues Noctua's tradition of striving for performance without sacrificing quality along the way. The C12P is like no other Noctua designed cooler to date, and not much like any other CPU cooler I've even seen actually. It incorporates six heatpipes into a short, fat style body that Noctua calls a 'C-Type' design with airflow gaps that allow cooling of the motherboard components as well. This design allows for a much higher compatibility with more motherboards and PC case configurations, where a tall CPU cooler won't fit the NH-C12P will fit easily. The NH-C12P uses Noctua's own NF-P12 120mm fan for cooling so you know it will be quiet as well. The Noctua NH-C12P is possibly the best cooler on the market today, from my testing and re-testing it beats all others I have for comparison, and that includes names like Thermalright, Scythe, Zalman, and OCZ. I was so surprised by the results of my testing that I re-did the testing all over again to be sure of my results, and they were the same, the NH-C12P is the new king of CPU coolers… So, please continue on to learn more about what could possibly be one of the best CPU coolers on the market today…
Contest: NZXT Tempest Steel Mid-Tower Chassis
Techgage :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
We’ve just posted a review of NZXT’s latest gaming chassis and awarded it high marks, so how about we give one away? All you need to do is jot your e-mail in the form and submit to be automatically entered for our drawing next week. Contest ends at midnight, May 6th.
FCC Says “Whoa, There!” Concerning Universal Service Fund
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Almost everyone has a wireless phone. And sure enough you’ve probably seen that “Universal Service Fund” (or something similar to that) on your bill. You’ve probably thought to yourself What IS that charge for? The USF was created in 1997 by the FCC in order to meet the goals of Universal Service as outlined in the […]
Google Docs Goes Offline
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Though buggy and limited in its current form, this software service has potential as a competitor to Microsoft Office.
Top 10 All-Purpose Laptops
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
These laptops can do it all and are a great choice for most notebook users. Ratings and rankings can change due to pricing and technology changes, so check back frequently for the latest info.
Is the Palm OS Dying? Should You Care?
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Some believe Palm OS smart phones are a dying breed–but there are good reasons not to count them out yet.
WordPerfect Office X4 Standard Edition
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
WordPerfect keeps its traditional look, but beefs up support for PDFs and Office 2007.
Belkin N Wireless Router F5D8233-4 v3
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
The Belkin N Wireless Router has improved, thanks to firmware upgrades that have accelerated its formerly sluggish performance.
The Top 15 Vaporware Products of All Time
PC World :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
These big ideas were supposed to revolutionize technology, but beyond a few prototypes, they never actually appeared. In a few cases, you’ll probably be glad they didn’t.
“Test” Presentations Before Giving Them
PC Mechanic :: Tuesday, May 06, 2008
This should be one you file in the “duh” category, but I have seen this more times than I care to remember. Whenever you are giving a presentation or a demo, take the time to make sure everything is working before it is time to actually give your presentation. I have seen everything from expired licenses […]
Spire SP332CB 3.5″ Internal Card Reader
RB Mods :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
Since the early 90s you may have found a cooler made by Spire in your computers. Spire is known of its cheap CPU coolers which are mainly used in low-end and home user computers. On the other hand, Spire has been well known of its USB Hard disk enclosures. This time, we will have a look of Spires new 3.5″ Internal Card Reader.
Technic3D/be quiet! Dark Power Pro 450W
Technic 3d :: Friday, May 02, 2008
“The be quiet! Dark Power Pro 450W PSU P7-Series arrived Technic3D. See you in the following Review from Technic3D the next PSU Review with a very high efficiency and a good price. Make the quiet 120mm fan, 4 Serial ATA connectors, 2x PCI-e 6+2-Pin this PSU better than the P6-Series PSU?”
Kingston HyperX 2GB PC2-9200 DDR2 Memory Kit Review
Big Bruin :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
Getting the Kingston HyperX 2GB PC2-9200 DDR2 memory kit up to the stock speed of 1150MHz was tricky only because it is an odd speed that I couldn’t quite dial in with the settings found in the test system’s BIOS. But getting into that general range required minimal effort, and even overclocking to well above 1200MHz was pretty much plug and play.
Gigabyte DES X48T-DQ6 Motherboard Review
Hardware Logic :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
“INTEL’s X48 chipset is the much anticipated follow up to the X38 chipset….which in turn was the much anticipated follow up to INTEL’s hugely successful P35 chipset. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist or industry insider to know that many in the enthusiast community are less than thrilled about the “marginal” improvements during the progression of chipsets, especially considering the prices some of these motherboards are going for (in excess of $300). While this isn’t to say any of the three chipsets are poor performers, I find it a bit curious that INTEL has run these chipsets out as they have, taking the overall performance of each into consideration.”
Quantum Force “Avenger” exposed
Tweak Town :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
“The official launch of P45 chipset is a month away, and usually this means Taiwan manufacturers are at the Alpha or Beta stage of development for their new products.
Foxconn it seems has stepped ahead of the pack with a product that is complete and ready to launch ahead of schedule. We at TweakTown have got some very tasty pictures and some pretty hot tips on the expected features of the Foxconn Quantum Force “Avenger” motherboard based on Intels P45 chipset.”
Exclusive look at MSI GX600X TurboBook
Tweak Town :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
Introducing the all new, very loud and proud GX600X TurboBook from MSI. Clearly unlike any other notebook you would have seen from them in the past, it looks as if it would be better suited to ‘nitro crew’ outfitting hotrods with digitized tune-ups. The sleek glossy black coating is aimed to catch the eye, while the top cover is emblazoned with a superman style logo in an equally loud fashion.
In particular, this GX600X top of the line notebook is a peak performer, with excellent overclocking capabilities as well as lots and lots of features and peripherals; from e-SATA or HDMI connectivity to a special ‘Turbo’ button that we found gives a 20% increase in processor speed. The Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity are as to be expected from a high-end notebook, whereas the graphics are truly magnificent in such a small platform.
ECS A780GM-A Black Series Motherboard Review
Motherboards.org :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
The 780G chipset is the most powerful integrated graphics chipset on the market today. ATI is soon to release the 790G chipset which will bring even more performance to the integrated graphics chipset market. Integrated graphics are great for the person wanting to build a inexpensive system as you only need the memory, hdds, case drives and you have a cool system that plays every game out there, with lowered resolution or setting but it still can play those games with the full visual fidelity that playing the games with a high-end card would do. The ECS board is a little slower than the Gigabyte board that has the same chipset and components. I would attribute this to the differences between two motherboards using the same chipset and not worthy of mention except that it is across the board. ECS’s board is on the web for around $80, making it a good board to purchase for those wanting an inexpensive yet functional computer system.
Bgears b-Envi MicroATX Case
Overclockers Club :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
“The Bgears b-Envi MicroATX was extremely fun to test because it kept surprising me with it’s features. First of all, how cool is it to have LED touch buttons for your front panel? They are responsive buttons that beep when you touch them so that you know that the touch was registered. Also, the buttons are lockable so that you don’t accidentally hit one of the buttons and turn off your computer by mistake. The case only weighs eight pounds before you put the components inside of it, and even after the components are installed, this case is still rather light. I will definitely be bringing this case to LAN parties.”
Asus EEE PC running on Windows XP Review
Inside HW :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
…” Asus made an effort and delivered very good and useful manual with EEE PC. In manual you can find detail description of how to install XP and how to customize it for best performance. By customizing we mean how to turn off all those unnecessary, by our opinion, Windows services which take up 4 GB on SSD (for example “System Restore” service). Average installation of WinXP Pro SP2 should occupy around 1.5 GB, exact same amount like our installed OS takes. To be honest, this could be reduced if you use nLite program.”…
Sunbeamtech Core-Contact Freezer Heatsink Review
Frosty Tech :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
“The Sunbeamtech Company is best known for its ‘flashy’ cases and PC accessories, but under the brand Tuniq it has released CPU thermal solutions like the popular Tower 120. Today Frostytech is testing out one of the new breed of direct heatpipe contact coolers that are sweeping the industry; the Sunbeamtech Core-Contact Freezer heatsink. Sunbeamtech’s heatsink stands 143mm tall, is 125mm across and accommodates one “silent” 120mm Magnetic Fluid Dynamic Bearing fan that spins at 1,000~2,000 RPM.”
Akasa UV SATA Cable Review
XS Reviews :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
“SATA cables aren’t the most interesting of products in the computer sector and most motherboard manufacturers bundle them as freebies. However, some SATA cables are said to increase airflow, provide better cable management and offer better transfer speeds, but is any of this true? Well today I have a UV blue Akasa Serial ATA cable for review, so let’s find out.”
Mainstream Quad Core Processors Compared from AMD and Intel
Madshrimps :: Saturday, May 03, 2008
“In this review we compare AMD’s latest AM2+ based Phenom X4 9850 to Intel’s mainstream Q9300 Processor. Which one gives you more performance for the buck? Answering this question is not as straightforward as you might think. With AMD aggressive pricing and new B3 revision does it stand a chance against an upgraded Q6600? Let us find out.”
Thermolab Micro Silencer CPU Cooler LGA775
Dragonsteel Mods :: Friday, May 02, 2008
“Today I’m taking a look at the Thermolab Micro Silencer CPU cooler, it’s a small cooler that incorporates fins and heatpipes to help cool your CPU. It’s actually smaller then the Intel Stock CPU Cooler, making it attractive for people that are space limited in their cases. Despite its size though, it performs very well, even when compared to tower style coolers that are twice, or even three times its size. ”
In Win B2 Stealth Bomber Case Review
Techware Labs :: Friday, May 02, 2008
Ruffy takes a look at the In Win B2 Stealth Bomber case which has a few cool hidden surprises under the hood. A quick look at the B2 and you get the feeling that it would be right at home on the tarmac. It has a military feel to it that comes complete with a motorized front panel and interesting interior ducting.
Dell XPS 730 H2C Unboxing and Preview
Hot Hardware :: Friday, May 02, 2008
In the last half year, Dell has been busy revamping their entire desktop XPS lineup. First came the XPS 420 late last year, a premium multimedia workstation. Then Dell introduced a new mid-range gaming oriented desktop, the XPS 630 early this year. The 630 is a mid-tower sized gaming desktop styled after the flagship XPS 700 series but with more affordable components and a relatively thrifty price tag. We found the XPS 630 to be an excellent machine in our evaluation.
While these new additions to Dell’s desktop XPS lineup were certainly welcome, we hadn’t seen a major update to the flagship 700 series in over a year and we were beginning to wonder if Dell would ever get around to it. With the launch of NVIDIA Quad-SLI and AMD Crossfire X configurations, the XPS 720 just wasn’t looking as attractive as it once was, considering it is supposed to be Dell’s top-end gaming machine. An update was overdue. Today, it’s obvious that the folks over at Dell haven’t been taking any down-time. Instead they have been busy putting together a major update to their flagship XPS 700 series in the form of the brand new XPS 730 that we have on tap for today…
CPU vs. GPU Review
Inside HW :: Friday, May 02, 2008
…” Questions we ask ourselves quite often when buying a new PC are: “Should I take a cheaper processor and a slightly more expensive graphics card or vice versa?”, or the legendary one, “Will this new processor choke on my graphics card” etc. Variations to these questions are without number and we would need at least a page to write them all down, but we are sure that you found yourselves in such a situation at least once.”…
Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro 650w ATX PSU
Overclock 3d :: Friday, May 02, 2008
“Shhhh…Be Quiet! Did you hear that? Nope. It must be the extremely silent 650w Dark Power Pro PSU.”
MSI P7N SLI Platinum Motherboard
Viper Lair :: Friday, May 02, 2008
“Those of you who passed on the previous generation of Intel SLI boards will be pleased that many of the issues from before seem to be gone now. While not the fastest board, the MSI P7N SLI Platinum performed well and overclocked well with some elbow grease. Stability was great.”
Thermolab Nano Silencer Review
OCC :: Friday, May 02, 2008
“The Thermolab Nano Silencer was intended to be a low profile Socket 775 cooling solution for your computer, and while it does adhere to the low profile standard, unfortunately it does not cool the processor as effectively as high end heatsinks may. At stock CPU settings, load temperatures hit 61 degrees Celsius – far surpassing my comfort zone! I recorded disappointingly similar results when the overclocked E6600’s load temps jumped to 73 degrees Celsius. However, the Thermolab Nano Silencer does take advantage of its design; due to the size of the unit, I was expecting much higher temperatures.”
OCZ Rally2 Turbo 4GB USB 2.0 Flash Drive Review
Virtual Hideout :: Friday, May 02, 2008
“The Rally2 Turbo lived up to the caliber of performance we’ve come to expect from OCZ. This isn’t just a sleek-looking drive; it’s a sleek-looking drive with the transfer rates to match. With fast read and write transfer rates and a minimalist look/design, the Rally2 Turbo stands out among a crowd of “flashy” drives that don’t deliver on performance. The small size and aluminum case make it a valuable device for any professional.”
Thermaltake Armor+ ESA Case Review
Hardware Secrets :: Friday, May 02, 2008
“Armor+ ESA (internally called VH6001BWS by Thermaltake) is a big super tower case, being one of the few cases around featuring 10 slots for expansion cards (most cases have only seven), allowing the installation of four video cards and extended ATX motherboards. It also has seven 5 ¼” bays (although only six can be actually used), a big 190-mm side fan, sliding motherboard tray, ESA technology for monitoring and controlling the fans and the temperature inside the case and several other features that make this case really unique. Let’s take an in-depth trip inside this case.”
Thermaltake Big Typhoon CPU Cooler Review
Hardware Canucks :: Friday, May 02, 2008
Today we will be looking at what many consider to be the king of the down-draft coolers: the Thermaltake Big Typhoon. When this big guy was first release back in 2005 it made quite the splash (pardon the pun) as it was truly a step forward in the world of air cooling technology. Back then, not only was it purported to give amazingly low temperatures to both the CPU and the motherboard but do it at nearly inaudible noise levels.
Cooler Master Z600 and Sphere CPU Coolers Review
Big Bruin :: Friday, May 02, 2008
Everything is big with the Z600…. The height, width, weight, heatpipes, and even the thickness of the fins. It is capable of providing incredible cooling results when used with either one or two low speed 120mm fans. Adding higher speed fans might create some extra noise to live with, but I can imagine that the temperatures could be ridiculously low.
GlacialTech Igloo 5750 Silent CPU Cooler
Legit Reviews :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
“The GlacialTech Igloo 5750 is a different design from the typical heat-pipe coolers on the market today for a number of reasons. Most obvious is that it is not a tower cooler. One of its other features worth mentioning is that it is quiet for an active cooler; at 15 dBA you would have a hard time hearing this fan inside any case. If you are looking for silence from your PC this should be on your list of CPU coolers to purchase…”
Business Software Alliance Wants Your Head
PC Mech :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
“When you click on that button, you see a system whereby you can “rat out” an employer using pirated software and do so anonymously. Now, a one million dollar payday would, of course, be limited to people who expose a really big case. But, a recent news release by BSA says they are expanding that program and that they have awarded $58,000 to 14 people who provided credible reports of piracy.”
Gigabyte AirCruiser GN-WI06N-RH
Phoronix :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
“Last month we had looked at the Gigabyte AirCruiser N300 GN-WI30N-RH 802.11n WiFi adapter. The wireless adapter uses the Ralink RT2860 chipset, which doesn’t have a Linux driver in the kernel, but we were able to easily get this 802.11n wireless adapter working with Ubuntu when using ndiswrapper and the Windows driver. Today we have our hands on the Gigabyte AirCruiser N300 Dual GN-WI06N-RH, which is a PCI Express Mini-Card with dual-band 802.11a/b/gn support. How well does this Atheros-based WiFi card work on Linux? We’ll tell you in this review.”
OCZ Quad 2Gb Memory Kit Review – 8Gb of Platinum Goodness
Madshrimps :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
With the introduction of Vista, 2 GB of memory suddenly seems insufficient. Many people have made the jump to 4 GB lately, but on a 32Bit operating system, more is definitely overkill. Today we happen to have a 64 bit operating system installed on our test system, so there’s no stopping us from fully loading our P35 motherboard with… 8 GB of memory. And we even managed to overclock it!
NZXT Tempest Mid-Tower Review
Techgage :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
Finding a quality mid-tower for under $100 doesn’t happen to often, but NZXT looks to hit the mark with their Tempest. It offers plenty of space (and even support for eATX), four large pre-mounted fans, an intuitive internal design and sharp looks, making it a wise choice for any new build.
Nexus XiR-2300 Aluminum Ed. CPU Cooler
Tweak Town :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
“The founding fathers of Nexus had a dream, a dream that one-day end users could use powerful computers without the need for earplugs. While it may seem as a play on words and a couple of phrases from famous speeches, the statement holds true, Nexus is all about quiet computing.
Today we will be looking at the Nexus XiR-2300 Aluminum Edition CPU Cooler. This product was designed by Nexus to keep a CPU cool while reducing the audible fan noise that is typical in stock fans. As you can imagine, if this XiR-2300 has the Aluminum label then there is a copper version as well. We will be looking at the XiR-3500 Copper Edition later this week.”
Xigmatek HDT-SD964 Exposed Heatpipe Base Heatsink Review
Frosty Tech :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
“The Xigmatek HDT-SD964 is a potent CPU cooler because it puts four copper heatpipes in direct contact with the processor. The technique is called ‘Heatpipe Direct Touch,’ and for today’s class of heatspreader capped processors it’s one of the best means of keeping the CPU running cool.”
NZXT Alpha
Tweak PC :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
With the Alpha comes a cheap case from NZXT. Is it worth buying?
Corsair Dominator 2x1GB DDR3 PC3-14400 Review
Hardware Canucks :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
Dominator memory is the best that Corsair puts out and ranks among the highest rated modules industry wide. We have the absolute pleasure of looking at a high frequency/low timing DDR3 kit of Corsair Dominator memory today in the TWIN3X2048-1800C7DF. Rated for operation at DDR3-1800 with tight timings of 7-7-7-20, our NVIDIA 790i based motherboard has been drooling ever since we got confirmation they were on their way.
Granny’s Guide to Social Media and Web 2.0
PC Mech :: Thursday, May 01, 2008
“Myspace. Facebook. Twitter. Blogs. RSS Feeds. All this stuff is probably in that category of stuff which other people do, but not you. Or perhaps you’ve never heard of it. Or perhaps you think you understand it all and find it to be a huge waste of time.”