Tech News
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HD 7970 Price Cuts? Don’t Count on it @ Hardware Canucks
Published: Thursday, March 29, 2012 | By: DennisThis is kinda sad since I was looking at picking up a HD7970 but had a bit of sticker shock in the process.
When the GTX 680 was released last week at $499, many thought that AMD would trim a few bucks off of the HD 7970. Cuts to its $549 price tag yet haven’t happened and if what we hear is true don’t expect any movement on that front — at least not yet.
Before NVIDIA introduced their Kepler architecture, AMD was in a place of dominance within the GPU market. It was an enviable position and as a result we saw enthusiasts begin a headlong rush towards the HD 7970 and HD 7950. Unfortunately, AMD’s production of these $549 and $449 cards wasn’t able to keep up with demand and availability suffered. The GTX 680 rained on that parade in a big way by consistently beating the HD 7970 in performance benchmarks while retailing for “just” $499.I was listening to the TR podcast not to long ago and Scott kept going on and on about how the GTX 680 isn't really a "high-end" GPU. When you compare the specs I would tend to agree. If that is the case then the price is justified.
Tis a good read, give it a look.
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NL: Review Block - Motherboards and Video Cards - What could go wrong?
Published: Thursday, March 29, 2012 | By: DennisNormally I tend to keep the review blocks rather short and throw the hardware links right into your face but it has been decided that even review blocks need a little love. The following review block features Motherboard and Video Card review links from around the web.
Motherboards
- Funky Kit Review: MSI X79A-GD65 8D Motherboard
- ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 Motherboard @ Maximum-Tech
- MSI A75MA-G55 Motherboard @ Rbmods
- GIGABYTE X79-UD5 Motherboard Review @ Hardware Canucks
- ASUS P9X79WS Motherboard @ Bjorn3D
- Gigabyte Z68XP-UD5 @ PureOverclock
- Gigabyte GA-X79-UD5 Intel X79 LGA2011 Motherboard In-Depth Review @ PCSTATS
Video Cards
- Sapphire HD 7850 OC Radeon Review @ TechwareLabs
- GeForce GTX 680 3-way SLI review
- XFX HD7850 Black Edition Review
- XFX R7850 Black Edition Double Dissipation Graphics Card and AMD Anti-Aliasing Analysis Review @ HardwareHeaven
- ASUS GeForce GTX 680 SLI @ techPowerUp
- nVidia GeForce GTX 680 4-way SLI reviewJust look at all that hardware!
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Building the Right Box @ Techgage
Published: Thursday, March 29, 2012 | By: DennisBuilding computers has almost become second nature for me and when putting a system together it really comes down to how does this person want to use their PC. Gaming rigs typically need a good video card whereas general purpose systems can get by with ultra low power processors and integrated graphics.
A lot of effort goes into choosing the right parts for your newest computer, but Senior Editor Brett Thomas thinks the focus can sometimes be a bit off. In this article, he outlines where the best bang for the buck can be spent on your high-performance rig... and believe it or not, it might not be where you think!
Of course not everyone shares my same views and will base their decisions on things like price. yuk
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Rovio Entertainment acquires Futuremark Games Studio
Published: Wednesday, March 28, 2012 | By: DennisHere is some interesting news from the Futuremark company.
March 27, 2012 -- Espoo, Finland -- Rovio Entertainment, creator of the global phenomenon Angry Birds, announced today the acquisition of Futuremark Games Studio, the gaming arm of benchmarking software developer Futuremark.
“They are an incredibly talented and experienced team, and we are thrilled to have them on board,” said Mikael Hed, Rovio Entertainment’s CEO. “Rovio’s success is founded on the excellence of our team, and Futuremark Games Studio is going to be a superb addition.” Source: Rovio EntertainmentRead the full press release on the Rovio Entertainment website.
In an email from Futuremark the CEO, Jukka Mäkinen, claims that only the game studio was purchased and that all of the benchmark IP will remain with Futuremark.
He also goes on to say:
Here at Futuremark, we will renew our focus on creating great benchmarks and performance measurement software for gamers, home users, small businesses and the IT industry. This year will see a new version of 3DMark that, for the first time, will allow a direct comparison of gaming performance across operating systems and form factors, as well as a new version of PCMark for Windows 8. Source: Futuremark
This is some really exciting news which allows a budding game development firm the ability to expand their horizons and develop that next big game title.
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Thermalright Silver Arrow SB-E @ HW-Journal.de
Published: Wednesday, March 28, 2012 | By: DennisI have been looking all over for this heatsink and here it shows up in Germany of all places. This is a dual tower heatsink that is often compared with the Noctua NH-D14 that we reviewed.
"Das nicht nur Noctua gute Lüfter und Kühler bauen kann, dass bewiesen schon allzu oft andere Hersteller mit ihren Kreationen. Dazu zählt das aus England stammende Urgestein Thermalright, welches schon den einen oder anderen Verkaufsschlager hervorbringen konnte. Mit dem Silver Arrow wurde bereits vor einiger Zeit das aktuelle Spitzenmodell aus dem Hause Thermalright präsentiert. Jenen selben hat der Hersteller als Sandy Bridge-E Edition, kurz „SB-E“ neu aufgelegt."
Seems like a postive quote describing the hardware, I really have no idea though
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NL: Review Block - Cases and Coolers 3/27/2012
Published: Tuesday, March 27, 2012 | By: DennisHere is another episode of Cases and Coolers from the hardware inbox. Some hardware guys discredit Cases and Coolers as important when in fact they are the easiest bits of gear you can change that make the biggest difference.
Of course some would argue that video cards are the best bang for your buck which might be true if you have excess money to spend on hardware, in which case you wouldn't be having this discussion.
Coolers
- Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler Review @ HCW
- OC3D: Bequiet Shadow Rock TopFlow Review
- Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler Review @ NikKTech
- Cooler Master Hyper 412S @ Hardwareoverclock
- Noctua NH-D14 Heatsink Review @ Ninjalane
Cases and Chassis
- Thermaltake V3 BlacX Edition Case Review @ HardwareHeaven
- Corsair Carbide 300R Case Review @ Madshrimps
- Silverstone Temjin TJ-04E PC Tower @ Pro-ClockersRemember cases and coolers.
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Tacocopter Delivers Tacos Using Drone Helicopters
Published: Monday, March 26, 2012 | By: DennisI know a few hobbyist helicopter and quadcopter pilots who would jump at the chance to be involved in this project. I mean, who wouldn't?
The Internet is going wild for Tacocopter, perhaps the next great startup out of Silicon Valley, which boasts a business plan that combines four of the most prominent touchstones of modern America: tacos, helicopters, robots and laziness.
Indeed, the concept behind Tacocopter is very simple, and very American: You order tacos on your smartphone and also beam in your GPS location information. Your order -- and your location -- are transmitted to an unmanned drone helicopter (grounded, near the kitchen where the tacos are made), and the tacocopter is then sent out with your food to find you and deliver your tacos to wherever you're standing.Sadly it looks like the government is keeping the tacocopter grounded due to a pesky rule saying that flying robots can't be used for commercial purposes.
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Welcome to the New Ninjalane
Published: Saturday, March 24, 2012 | By: DennisIt has been over a month in planning but Ninjalane.com is finally running on new hardware. Normally this wouldn't be something to celebrate but I'm gonna anyway.
Minus a few bugfixes things should be up and running just as soon as the DNS resolves around the world.
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What Happens When A 35-Year-Old Man Retakes The SAT?
Published: Friday, March 23, 2012 | By: DennisHere is another cool story from the Internet.
What happens when a 35 year old takes the SAT "again". I was lucky enough to avoid taking the SAT since the college I was planning to attend accepted ACT scores and the ACT was suppsed to be "easier". Looking back I'm not sure if I would have scored better or worse, in fact all I was concerned with at the time was making the minimum for the school and high enough to qualify for financial aid.
There are many shitty things about being a grownup. You have to make money. You have to do taxes. You have to show up for your bail hearings. It's all really fucking annoying. But one of the few upsides of being an adult is that you NEVER have to take the SAT again. You never have to worry about it. You don't have to give a shit what'll happen if have to pee during the test. You don't have to look at another analogy ever again. It's not bad tradeoff for all the other piddling crap you have to deal with. I know I was happy with the arrangement.
The article is very colorful and pokes fun at some of the questions. Make sure you read the comments on the reading comp question, they are to die for.
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Facebook: Don't reveal your password to snooping employers
Published: Friday, March 23, 2012 | By: DennisThis is a pretty good article talking about the dos and donts of sharing your Facebook profile password just to get a job. The gist of the article is "Just say no" it works for drugs and will also work for this.
"As a user, you shouldn't be forced to share your private information and communications just to get a job," Facebook said in its post. "And as the friend of a user, you shouldn't have to worry that your private information or communications will be revealed to someone you don't know and didn't intend to share with just because that user is looking for a job. That's why we've made it a violation of Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities to share or solicit a Facebook password."
Here is something to consider. Fake Facebook accounts. we create junk email accounts to collect spam when you have to sign up for something, why not create a fake Facebook account that you can share with employeers? Yes, creating a fake account likely won't fly unless you plan for this well in advance of your interview but why not give it a shot.
Or you can stick to your moral guns and "just say no" the truth of the matter is if the employeer is resorting to checking Facebook accounts as a process of elimination its not going to be a place you want to work for anyway.
