Tech News

  • GIGABYTE SATA 6G Update - RAID 0 Just How We Like It

    Published: Monday, February 8, 2010 | By: Will

    Here is a neat little article with RAID 0 and SATA 6G to take note on.Looks like Gigabyte is putting on there thinking caps to make the best performing SATA 6G RAID 0 solution for its users.

    "When we tested the ASUS P55 and GIGABYTE P55 boards with USB 3.0 and SATA 6G, we found some interesting numbers when using the GIGABYTE P55A-UD4P in RAID 0. For the most part we didn't see much of an improvement when going from a single to a dual drive configuration with RAID 0. GIGABYTE also noticed the same issue and quickly went to work with Marvell to find a solution.

    When enthusiasts choose to pair a set of drives in RAID 0, they are looking to nearly double their performance. RAID 0 offers many a quick and inexpensive way to get solid performance gains out of the slowest component or subsystem in their computer. Simply put, when your hard storage system is running faster, your entire machine feels more responsive and appears to be faster."

    Looks like Gigabyte has something over Asus once again.big grin smile

  • G.Skill Pi Series DDR3-2200 and Eco DDR3-1600 Review @ HardwareHeaven

    Published: Monday, February 8, 2010 | By: Will

    Here is a sweet looking set of RAM from GSkill that has some very awesome setting for getting to such high speed. Check out the review to see what I am talking about.

    "Today we have two sets of memory from G.Skill on our test bench, the high performane Pi series DDR3-2200 and a 1.35v set from the Eco series running at DDR3-1600."

    Pretty impressive stuff there.

  • Sapphire Radeon HD 5450 Review

    Published: Thursday, February 4, 2010 | By: Will

    The new Sapphire Radeon 5450 has just arrived and we are testing it right now. So we wanted to let everyone know the review is coming. Till then enjoy the pic.

    1. Microsoft DirectX 11 Support
    2. ATI Eyefinity Technology, support up to 3 displays. *
    3. ATI Stream technology**
    4. 40nm Process Technology
    5. PCI Express® 2.1 support
    6. Microsoft Windows 7® Support
    7. Enhanced Anisotropic Filtering
    8. Accelerated Video Transcoding**
    9. Display Flexibility
    10. HDMI 1.3
    11. Dolby® TrueHD and DTSHD Master AudioTM Support
    12. ATI PowerPlay ™ Technology***
    13. ATI Avivo™ Technology Enhanced Unified Video Decoder 2 (UVD 2)***
    14. Supports OpenGL 3.2 ****
    15. ATI CrossFireX™ multi-GPU technology*****

    We are very sure you HTPC guys are looking hard at this card.

  • NL: Monster Sized Air Cooled Heatsinks

    Published: Wednesday, February 3, 2010 | By: Will

    Here is a couple monster sized heatsinks for all your air cooling needs. Even though Ninjalane will be the first to tell you to just go watercooled.big grin smile

    Noctua NH-D14 Dual Fan CPU Cooler @ Pro-Clockers

    "Before I re-write the About Us page for Noctua let's get into why we are here today. Noctua was generous enough to send other their latest cooler, NH-D14. The D14 as we will call it is the largest cooler we have seen from Noctua to date. This new cooler weighs in at 1240 grams with two fans attached. This alone is scary enough but due to the SecuFirm 2 mounting system weight should be the last issue on your mind. Lets get into the review before I reveal anymore secrets on the D14." 

    Thermalright Venomous X CPU Cooler @ PCShopTalk

    "After the fall of the old king of air cooling, the TRUE, some manufacturers have succeeded to make better and better heatsinks, with different shapes and sizes. All concurrence was ripped apart when Noctua have presented their NH-D14 heatsink. Thermalright, which developed one of the best heatsinks for a really long time had to catch up. In this review we will see if we will have a new king of air cooling or a huge dissapointment." 
  • NL: PC Game Reviews Roundup

    Published: Wednesday, February 3, 2010 | By: Will

    It has been a little bit since our last PC game review roundup. Don't worry there is going to be enough new games hitting soon that will take care of the problem.

    Star Trek Online (PC) Review @ GamingHeaven

    "Back in 2004 an announcement was made that Star Trek Online was in development and geeks around the world rejoiced (this reviewer included). News releases after that were sporadic at best until in January 2008 it was announced that the developer was closing its doors and the game development (not including code) was being passed to Cryptic Studios. Given their experience with MMO games, Cryptic seemed an ideal fit and just over two years after taking on the IP, we have the official release of Star Trek Online."

    Mass Effect 2 @ Technic3D

    "Mass Effect 2 is the sequel to BioWare's hit space-based role-playing game (RPG), Mass Effect. A single player adventure, Mass Effect 2 allows players to continue the adventures of the fully customizable series hero, Commander Shepard, as you take on a whole new adventure and cast of supporting characters. Features new to this latest release in the franchise include the ability to import game save files from the original Mass Effect game to continue the adventure in an unbroken fashion, a new damage system, a more flexible dialogue game mechanic and more. See you in the following Review from Technic3D." 
  • ASUS P7H55D-M EVO & Intel DH55TC @ Techgage

    Published: Tuesday, February 2, 2010 | By: Will

    Look here a two for one review on two different board with the same Intel H55 chipset. HTPC is really in the air right now with everyone about to jump on this new setup. Let's see what these guys think about these board for your HTPC setup.

    "With Intel's recent Clarkdale processor launch, the itch to build that new HTPC is no doubt greater than ever. Not only does Intel offer a wide-range of processors, but motherboard vendors are currently offering an incredible amount of H55 models. We're taking a look at two here, Intel's own DH55TC and ASUS' P7H55D-M EVO."

    I think the Asus board would be my pick.approve smile

  • Inside Intel and Micron's 25nm NAND Fab - IMFT @ Legit Reviews

    Published: Tuesday, February 2, 2010 | By: Will

    Time for a road trip on the internet to the Intel/Micron Fab in Utah. Interesting to see, but I do have a spoiler. Not one guy was dressed in cool blue suit or dancing. Micro must not allow the Intel guys to have fun there.

    "This shrink is important as the new 25nm process reduces chip count by 50 percent compared to previous process generations, allowing for smaller, yet higher density designs and greater cost efficiencies. This is great news as that means IMFT will be able to get twice as many NAND Flash chips per wafer. Intel said that performance would be comparable to 34nm speeds today, but that endurance and reliability would be improved. Since devices like SSDs can be built using less 'chips' now you can expect to see SSD capacities increasing in the months to come. Micron even mentioned that 1TB 2.5" SSDs will be a possibility in 2010 thanks to the move down to 25nm..."

    What a shame I was so looking forward to dancing workers in the fab.big grin smile

  • GF100 (Fermi) Product Names Released

    Published: Monday, February 1, 2010 | By: Dennis

    Caught this on Facebook and Twitter of all places

    Fun Fact of the Week: GeForce GTX 480 and GeForce GTX 470 will be the names of the first two GPUs shipped based on our new GF100 chip!

    Seems reasonable cool smileapprove smile

  • Corsair Obsidian 800D @ PureOverclock

    Published: Saturday, January 30, 2010 | By: Dennis

    Here is a case that many of us have been dr00ling over. 

    The Corsair Obsidian 800D showcases extensive and unique features in a crowded marketplace that often lacks originality. Corsair may be new to the chassis business, but they've had years to watch and learn from other manufacturers’ mistakes. Can the Obsidian 800D rise to the challenge in a very competitive market? Can Corsair continue their successful move from memory products into other PC component areas? Let’s find out.

    The case is full of cool stuff and goes light on the crap we don't normally use.  A must see if you get a hands-on look.

  • NL: Review Block - Lil bit of everything

    Published: Saturday, January 30, 2010 | By: Dennis

    Here is a kitchen sink edition of a review block.  Nice thing about this...  The news box is clean once again, and this time because of posting stuff. cool smile

    Motherboards
    - EVGA H55 Motherboard @ Hardware Secrets
    - EVGA W555 First Look @ OC3D
    - MSI H57M-ED65 mATX Motherboard @ Hardwarezone
    - ASUS P7P55 WS SuperComputer Motherboard @ Bjorn3D
    - Gigabyte GA-P55-UD5 Intel P55 Motherboard Review @ PCStats

    Video Cards
    - HIS Radeon HD 5770 Videocard Review @ Tweaknews
    - Diamond Radeon HD 5750 OC Video Card Review @ Legit Reviews

    Cooling
    - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU Cooler Review @ Overclockers Online
    - Noctua NH-D14 CPU Heatsink review @ APH Networks
    - Zalman CNPS10X Flex CPU Cooler Review @ Hardware Canucks
    - Noctua NH-C12P SE14 @ Hardwareoverclock

    Storage and Memory
    - Seagate Barracuda XT 2TB @ Techgage
    - Kingston HyperX 12GB DDR3-1600 @ PureOverclock
    - Patriot Memory Torqx 64GB PFZ64GS25SSDR Solid State Drive @ PCShopTalk
    - Thecus N4100PRO: A Data-Treasure Cave @ InsideHW
    - Patriot Memory Torqx 128GB Solid State Drive (SSD) Review @ ModSynergy
    - Patriot Valkyrie NAS Raid Device @ Pro-Clockers

    Cases
    - Cooler Master HAF 932 AMD Limited Edition Case Review @ Bigbruin

    Until next time.