Tech News
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NL: Review Block for March 18th 2011 - Motherboards and More
Published: Friday, March 18, 2011 | By: DennisHardware reviews from around the web.
Motherboards
- Sapphire Pure Black P67 Hydra Motherboard (PB-CI7S42P67) Review @ KitGuru
- TechwareLabs Review: ASRock Fatal1ty P67 Professional Motherboard
- ASRock Fatal1ty P67 Professional (Intel P67 Express) Motherboard Review @ TweakTown
- Gigabyte E350N-USB3 @ PureOverclock
- ASUS P8P67 PRO LGA1155 Sandy Bridge Motherboard Review @ Hardware Canucks
- ASRock Motherboard Preview 2011 @ ocInside
- Gigabyte G1 Assassin Intel X58 Motherboard Review @ ThinkComputers
Video Cards
- Overclocked NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 Round-Up @ HotHardware
- MSI R6870 Hawk Video Card Review @ HardOCP
Memory
- Kingston HyperX PC3-2133 CL9 Review - XSReviews
Cooling
- Noctua NH-C14 CPU Cooler Review @ OverclockersHQ
- Noctua NH-C14 CPU Cooler @ Bjorn3D
- Noctua NH-C14 CPU Cooler Review @ OCIA
Power Supply
- Cooler Master GX-450W PSU Review @ BayReviews
Cases
- Zalman Z9 Plus Mid-Tower Case Review @ Bigbruin
- Cooler Master Centurion 5 II Black and Red Edition: First Look @ Pro-Clockers
- Thermaltake V9 BlacX Edition Case Review @ Tweaknews
Audio
- Tt eSPORTS Shock Gaming Headset Review @ TechgageThis might be the longest review block ever.
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Sapphire HD6870 Flex Reviews
Published: Friday, March 18, 2011 | By: DennisWe recently took a look at this video card and found it to be very similar to the standard HD6870 with the addition of more video outputs. Overclocking and gaming support are still good so don't be discouraged by the "FleX" name.
- Sapphire Radeon HD 6870 FleX Review @ Techgage
- Sapphire FleX Edition Radeon HD 6870 1GB @ Pro-Clockers
Be sure to check out our review of the Sapphire HD6870 Flex on your way back. -
Pepsi Creates a Bottle Using 100% Plant Products
Published: Thursday, March 17, 2011 | By: DennisPeople who know me will have no doubt have noticed my preference of Pepsi over any other soft drink. I wouldn't say my love of Pepsi is an addiction but rather a principle I can stand behind and speak strongly against.
As a drinker of Pepsi for several years I have seen most of the bottling experiments Pepsi has tried from the traditional 12oz can to my favorite the 1 liter "Big Slam" (not the weak 1 liter we have now but the awesome one with the big top). One of the most unique containers I have seen is the glass bottle from the 90's. This was a 16oz clear glass container wrapped with a thin polyfoam insulator to keep your fingers from getting cold. These bottles were awesome but went away after a couple years in favor of the cheaper plastic bottles we see today.
A recent breakthrough in container design features a combination of plant materials with standard petroleum based plastics to create a sort of green plastic bottle. Well the Pepsi engineers have taken this one step further and created a plastic bottle that is made entirely from plant products and thus removed the dependency of oil from the material list.
They claim the new bottle is indistinguishable from the traditional plastic bottle but you know when they bring it to market the packaging will be covered in advertisements describing the new material.
The bottle is made from switch grass, pine bark, corn husks and other materials. Ultimately, Pepsi plans to also use orange peels, oat hulls, potato scraps and other leftovers from its food business.
The new bottle looks, feels and protects the drink inside exactly the same as its current bottles, said Rocco Papalia, senior vice-president of advanced research at Pepsi.
I am of the opinion that bringing back the glass container would be a smart move for Pepsi but one of the reasons they went away was cost. Let's hope the plant bottle is a viable solution for Pepsi can fully replace petroleum based containers sooner rather than later.
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How can I secure data I need to carry with me? via Ask Ars
Published: Wednesday, March 16, 2011 | By: DennisEver wondered how you can transport large amounts of data in a safe and secure method?? Well, in a way, we have been doing it for years, consider this. Armored Truck, its main task is to transport large amounts of money from one place to another. For years armored trucks have been soft targets for bank robbers which carry the illusion of security. Just watch "the Town" and "Groundhogs Day" if you don't believe me. Another option is what those spy guys do by handcuffing a briefcase to their arms. The method also has the illusion of security assuming a) the guy carrying the briefcase wants to keep his arm and b) that the briefcase is armored and/or protected by a good lock.
The issues with both of these methods is that once you remove the human element there is only a thin veil separating the robber from the goods.
Ask Ars takes a comical approach to the question of transporting secure data from one place to another that removes the human element from the actual transport and assumes that pedo bear doesn't get you first.Question: What's the most secure way to transport 100GB of data via Sneakernet?
Sharing small files across the Internet with a good amount of security keeps getting easier, but large datasets can still create long, painful upload times. In this video edition of Ask Ars, we cover the most secure ways to transport large datasets by trekking the dusty trail, otherwise known as Sneakernet, even with predators in hot pursuit.Them bears are scary too.
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THQ Homefront Launches Today (3/15)
Published: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 | By: DennisThere are several reasons why I am excited about this game.
- Based on the back story the game should have an EXCELLENT single player story
- The game "borrows" Call of Duty controls and interaction (why mess with a good thing)
- Multi Player game modes
My only phj34r is that the game will suffer from major consolitis and be nothing more than a console port like Call of Duty: Black Ops. However based on the strong back story and the fact they consulted with the writer for "Red Dawn" I'm willing to take a chance.
In fact I'll be headed to the local "Cave of Evil" (Best Buy) to pick up the game during lunch and hopefully be fragging tonight. -
NL: Review Block - GeForce GTX 550 Ti Launch Day
Published: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 | By: DennisnVidia has just released their latest card in the 500 series lineup called the GTX 550 Ti (pronounced "tye" or "Tie"). We were lucky enough to not only get a card from nVidia but also from 2 other vendors and hope to have those live in the next few days.
Be sure to check out our review of the NVidia GeForce GTX 550 Ti but also check out reviews from these sites as well.
Reviews around the web
- KFA2 Galaxy GTX 550 Ti LTD OC WHITE review [MSI Cyclone 2] @ Guru3D
- Nvidia's GeForce GTX 550 Ti graphics processor @ TR
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti Debut With Zotac, MSI and Asus @ HotHardware
- ASUS GTX 550 Ti DirectCU TOP @ PureOverclock
- Nvidia GTX 550 Ti (MSI vs Palit vs Zotac) Review @ t-break
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 550 Ti graphics card review @ Hexus
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti 1GB Review @ Hardware Canucks
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti Launch Review (Palit and Zotac) @ HardwareHeaven
- ASUS GeForce GTX 550 Ti Direct CU 1 GB @ techPowerUp [MSI Cyclone 2] [Zotac AMP] [Palit Sonic]
- MSI GeForce GTX 550 Ti 1GB Cyclone II Video Card @ Tweaktown
This is only the "early" edition so keep checking back as there is bound to be more as the day rolls on. -
Sapphire HD6870 Flex @ LanOC Reviews
Published: Tuesday, March 15, 2011 | By: DennisHigh-end graphics cards are always fun to play with and even become more fun when companies tweak them slightly to do things we may not expect. In the case of the Sapphire HD 6870 Flex they have taken a regular HD6870 and enabled a additional video port for even more Eyefinity goodness.
When you are looking for video cards there are so many things to consider it can be very over whelming. Even after you have picked the model you are going to go with, what brand do you pick? Overclocked? Something has to stand out from the crowd or you’re more likely just going to pick the cheapest card available and go on with life. Sapphire has a product line that hopes to do just that. The Flex edition cards are designed to be more functional than a standard card and depending on the situation they can be a MUCH better deal. Today I am going to take a look at their HD6870 Flex edition and explain why you should consider a Flex card next time you are on the market.
We recenlty got a chance to look at this great card, but sure to check out our review of the Sapphire Radeon HD6870 Flex.
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Danger Den Black Series Tower 21 @ PureOverclock
Published: Sunday, March 13, 2011 | By: DennisEver wanted to assemble your very own acrylic computer case?? Danger Den might have the answer.
Danger Den is one company that customizes in acrylic cases to suit various needs and aesthetic preferences. And today we're looking at the Black Series Tower 21, a full tower clear case that seeks to make a big impression. Want a new water cooling setup? Want some unique styling? Read on, the Danger Den Tower 21 might be just up your alley.
The review sample comes with 7 expansion slots making it perfect for a standard sized motherboard but otherwise unusable for some of the new extended designs we have started to see.
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Snooping Timbuk2 camera messenger bag @ Tech Report
Published: Sunday, March 13, 2011 | By: DennisWhen I travel the various trade shows I am often seen carriyng around a Ninjalane branded messenger bag. (one with the Ninjalane logo and star on it) It's not that I want to carry around dead weight over my shoulder but rather I need some place to store the gear I carry around on a daily basis, camera, pens, notebook, swag etc.. The toughest decision when picking a bag like this is.. will it hold everything? and will it also be safe?
It would seem Geoff over at Tech Report has taken on a similar task and wrote up a review of his findings.
For more than a decade, I lugged my notebook in a simple shoulder bag. I suppose you'd call it a messenger-style bag today, but I got it before fixed-gear bikes were seen outside of velodromes being ridden by men wearing skinny jeans from the women's department. In those days, it was just a bag—the one that accompanied me to and from class every day.
I need to see one of these things in person since if the form factor is correct it might be a perfect replacement for what I'm using now.
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NVIDIA's dual-Fermi card that never was ?!?
Published: Friday, March 11, 2011 | By: DennisBy now we have all heard the rumors about the dual GPU card from nVidia rumored to be called the GTX 590. As the name suggests it is supposed to be faster than the current flagship GTX 580 and if history holds true will feature 2 "lesser" GPUs on a single card with a bridge chip connecting and splitting bandwidth between the GPUs.
Because of this bridge chip you won't be able to link more than 2 physical cards together but will take up less room than 4 cards from the same GPU family.
I found the following image on 2 sites. Tested (http://www.tested.com) and engadget (http://www.engadget.com) and what immediately caught my eye was the ghostly white vampire'ish PCB color and rather "fake" looking component parts.
PAX East 2011, which kicks off tomorrow, is widely expected to finally deliver a dual-GPU solution from NVIDIA's Fermi family of graphics chips, a PCI Express-saturating single-card workhorse to be known as the GTX 590. While we wait for its arrival, however, here's a sentimental look back upon 2010 and another little prototype that NVIDIA had kicking around its labs back then.
Does that mean this is simply a mockup or the collective creation of a master model builder looking for his 15min of fame and fortune? Given the total size of the PMW, I'll cry foul but qualify that by saying, OMG this is sweet!!
Check either of the above sites for more pictures of this wicked white video card.
