OCZ Technology: From SSDs to Layoffs
Once upon a time between 2004-2006, OCZ was a well-known manufacturer of high-end memory components and power supply units that sold under the motto Founded by Enthusiasts, for Enthusiasts . During the peak economy in 2007, OCZ Technology CEO Ryan Petersen proved his devotion to enthusiasts by purchasing PC Power Cooling (May 2007), swiftly followed by elite system-builder Hypersonic PC (October 2007). Through the years that followed, OCZ's brand name would successfully sell NVIDIA GeForce graphics cards, overclocker heatsinks, premium thermal pastes, hardcore gaming peripherals, and even a mind-controlled Neural Impulse Actuator (NIA). On March 2008, OCZ Technology revealed the industry's first consumer Solid State Drive - the apex of their dedication towards high-performance computer hardware enthusiasts. The future looked so very bright, until stock value became the mission. As of 26 October 2012, many of the great minds behind OCZ's enthusiast movement were without work.
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Gigabyte F2A85X-UP4 AMD FM2 Motherboard The second generation of AMD A-Series APUs is now among us. Hopefully you have been able to read our articles about the newest AMD Trinity Processors. Those APUs are nice, but they amount to nothing without a motherboard to pair them with. At Benchmark Reviews, we tested those APUs with the Gigabyte F2A85X-UP4 Socket FM2 A85X Motherboard. While the A85X chipset brings a few minor changes to the FCH, Gigabyte has added a lot of their own features to the F2A85X-UP4 motherboard to ensure that it meets all of the needs of early FM2 adopters. Read More ...
Silverstone FP37 SDXC USB 3.0 Front Bay Card Reader A media card reader can be a convenient device when it comes to transferring information between cameras, video cameras and a desktop computer. Media card readers based on USB 3.0 should take advantage of the higher interface bandwidth to allow much faster file transfer. In this article, Benchmark Reviews looks at the Silverstone FP37 USB 3.0 front bay media card reader to find out just what kind of features and performance can be expected from this newer generation of media card reader. Read More ...
AMD FX-8350 Vishera Desktop Processor AMD introduced its new FX-series processors almost exactly a year ago, and AMD enthusiasts hoped these Zambezi CPUs, built on AMD's new Bulldozer architecture, would provide real competition to Intel's Sandy Bridge line. But although the FX-8150 had eight integer cores and was capable of high clock speeds, its high price and poor performance at the individual core level meant that it wasn't very competitive with the equivalent Intel CPUs. Now we have the AMD FX-8350 CPU, code-named Vishera and based on the Piledriver architecture to test. Has AMD managed to reduce the performance deficit relative to Intel? Let's find out. Read More ...
Use PlayStation3 Gamepad with PC Games Ever considered buying a gamepad for racing, sports, or split-screen PC games? Well, there are quite a few options from Microsoft, Logitech, and Saitek including the popular Logitech F710 and Saitek P3600. However, if you don't fancy the grip of the Xbox controller, don't agree with the colour scheme of the F710, or are just looking for something different, there is good news! The Sony DUALSHOCK 3 controller (designed for the PS3), with a little work can be made to work on your PC. Certain unique features of the PS3 controller, such as six-axes motion-sensing and pressure sensitive buttons, make it a viable competitor to the more popular options. In this article, Benchmark Reviews will demonstrate that one of the best controllers of all time can be used to score breathtaking goals, pull off amazing combos, and crush lap times in your favorite PC games. Read More ...
Logitech G710+ Mechanical Gaming Keyboard After almost dying out, then re-emerging as boutique items for snobs, mechanical keyboards are experiencing a sudden surge in popularity as people realize the advantages they have in keyboard feel and longevity over the traditional rubber dome or membrane keyboards. After testing mechanical keyboards from Cooler Master, Corsair, Rosewill, and Thermaltake, Benchmark Reviews now has the opportunity to look at a mechanical keyboard from one of the largest keyboard vendors in the world, Logitech. Join me as I explore the features and capabilities of their new Logitech G710+ Mechanical Gaming Keyboard. Read More ...
JVC HA-NC250 Noise Cancelling Headphones Noise cancelling headphones are almost a necessity for frequent travelers. Benchmark Reviews has just complete field trials of the JVC HA-NC250 noise cancelling headphones. These headphones provide solid all around performance for a very competitive price. Read More ...
RHA CA-200 Black Noise Isolating Headphones Since its conception Benchmark Reviews' primary focus has been on consumer and enthusiast PC hardware, and now with the proliferation of mobile computing and gadgets it was only a matter of time before that focus shifted slightly. Today we will be taking a look at a set of RHA CA-200 Black Headphones from Reid Heath Acoustics. Available now for a mere $29.95, the CA-200's claim to offer high quality and performance at a low cost. Features include; 40mm mylar drivers, neodymium magnet and CCAW voice coils, 3.5mm gold plated connections, an ErgoFit system which allows the ear cup to pivot on multiple axes, and most importantly - a detachable braided cable. Please join us as we analyze the performance, comfort, aesthetics and functions of the RHA CA-200 Black Headphones. Read More ...
Logitech G930 Wireless Gaming Headset A great headset will change the way you think about sound. It all started when I upgraded to a Sapphire Radeon 7970. As it turns out, this dual-slot graphics card extended just enough to prevent the installation of my aftermarket sound card in the only remaining PCI slot. The Razer Carcharias headset I was using just didn't sound the same with onboard sound, so it was off to find another solution - so I returned the 7970 and all was good. HA! Like any of us here at Benchmark Reviews would miss out on a perfectly valid chance to upgrade... Truth be told, I still felt like something was missing in my computing experience, so I set out to find another headset that would enhance the audio I enjoy - a worthy compliment to the enhanced visuals afforded by the Radeon 7970. That brings us to the Logitech G930 Wireless Gaming Headset - ladies and gentlemen, lend me your ears... Read More ...
PNY XLR8 PRO Solid State Drive Not many Solid State Drive manufacturers offer a five-year full-replacement product warranty, but PNY does. Built in the USA, the PNY XLR8 PRO SSD series combines a second-generation LSI/SandForce SF-2281 SATA 6Gb/s controller with fast IMFT-branded NAND flash components to produce up to 85,000 IOPS. PNY has tweaked the XLR8 PRO SSD-series to deliver transfer speeds up to 550 MB/s read and 520 MB/s write. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests these claims, and compares XLR8 PRO SSD performance to competing storage solid-state solutions to find out which SSD is best. Read More ...
CM Storm Recon Mouse and Skorpion There are many different aspects to an enjoyable computer experience, and one of the foremost of those is input devices. The right mouse or keyboard can make or break a game, cause the death of a boss, or the death of your party, make your headshot across the map, or end up with you staring at a respawn timer. Cooler Master recently released their Storm Recon mouse, as well as the Skorpion mouse bungee. The ambidextrous Storm Recon boasts many different bells and whistles, and here at Benchmark Reviews, we will put both items through their paces. Read More ...
Genius GX-Gaming Cavimanus 7.1 Headset There are headsets that are nice for listening to music, and then there are headsets specifically designed to enhance the gaming experience. Genius presents the GX-Gaming Cavimanus 7.1 channel corded Headset and takes pro gaming audio to a whole new plateau. The Cavimanus has combined a high quality neodymium 40mm sound driver, with a well calibrated vibration feature that provides incredible explosive bass that sounds like its coming from a sub woofer. With a mid-range retail price point of $64.99, Benchmark Reviews will analyze the Cavimanus (HS-G700V) for quality, performance, and value. Read More ...
NETGEAR R6300 Gigabit Wi-Fi Router Next generation wireless routers are now firmly in the marketplace, and Benchmark Reviews has had the opportunity to take a closer look at one of NETGEAR 's current flagship routers, which is the NETGEAR R6300 Gigabit Wi-Fi Router. Having Broadcom's 5G Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11ac chips on-board, The R6300 is capable of delivering speeds of up to 1300Mbps when connected to other 802.11ac devices, and speeds of up to 450Mbps when connected to 802.11n devices. Some have suggested that it has, a face that only a mother could love, but, personal preferences aside, the design of the R6300 is not indicative of this router's performance and capability. It is packed with great features, such as READYshare, that are designed to address your personal and professional wireless needs. Whether you want to stream HD video, sit down for an extended gaming session, or even do a number of tasks simultaneously, the NETGEAR R6300 can handle it. Read More ...
Patriot Gauntlet 320 Wireless HDD PCGTW320S If you've ever wanted a compact storage device that was small, had its own power supply, and wirelessly accessible, then the Patriot Gauntlet 320 fits the build perfectly. While capable of connecting via SuperSpeed USB 3.0, the Patriot Gauntlet is so much more. Designed as a portable hard disk drive with 320GB of storage space, 5.5-hour lithium-ion battery, and and integrated 150Mbps Wi-Fi b/g/n access point, the Patriot Gauntlet 320 (PCGTW320S) simultaneously streams media to up to five devices. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the Patriot Gauntlet 320 using Google Android and Apple iPhone devices as well as digital media players and the PC platform. Read More ...
MSI GTX N650Ti Power Edition Video Card The final iteration of NVIDIA's Kepler GPUs is now upon us. The GTX 650Ti, which is technically closer related to the GTX 660 than the actual GTX 650 itself, is about to fill in the final gap in Kepler GPU chart. The GTX 650Ti is being positioned as an affordable GPU meant to allow all gamers to have the same Kepler benefits that may have previously been out of reach. Here at Benchmark Reviews, we have the MSI GEFORCE GTX 650Ti Power Edition 1GD5/OC video card on hand and we have put it through its paces. In the following article, we will strip down the MSI GTX 650Ti Power Edition video card and test it against a wide variety of other graphics cards to show you just where it stands. Read More ...
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 Ti Video Card NVIDIA's GeForce GTX series traditionally offers enthusiast-level performance with features like multi-card SLI pairing and GPU Boost application-driven variable overclocking technology. The GeForce GTX 650 Ti graphics card keeps with tradition in terms of performance by offering the capable GK106 GPU with 768 CUDA cores, but skips past some of the top-end extras. Nevertheless, NVIDIA Kepler GPU architecture delivers additional proprietary features such as: 3D Vision, Adaptive Vertical Sync, multi-display Surround, PhysX, and TXAA antialiasing. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 Ti graphics card with DirectX 11 video games. Read More ...
AMD A8-5600K APU Trinity Desktop Processor Right on track, well after Ivy Bridge, AMD has released their second generation of Accelerated Processing Units in the form of the Trinity series A10-5800K and the A8-5600K. Last week, we brought you a preview of these two APUs just to give you a taste of their gaming performance and some of their specifications. Today, at Benchmark Reviews, we are going in detail for a full work-over of the A8-5600K APU. Read More ...
AMD A10-5800K Trinity Desktop Processor Right on track, well after Ivy Bridge, AMD has released their second generation of Accelerated Processing Units in the form of the Trinity series A10-5800K and the A8-5600K. Last week, we brought you a preview of these two APUs just to give you a taste of their gaming performance and some of their specifications. Today, at Benchmark Reviews, we are going in detail for a full work-over of the A10-5800K APU. Read More ...
Orcs Must Die! 2 Video Game Are you looking for some slice dice fun that doesn't require a large time commitment? Do you wish you were in the Lord of the Rings movies, killing orcs left and right? If you answered 'yes' to both of these questions, then Orcs Must Die! 2 is the action game for you. Featuring slick graphics and great use of sound, Orcs Must Die! 2 is the type of game you launch intending just to play a map or two, then look at the clock and find out hours have passed. Check out why you should give this budget-priced video game a chance in this review from Benchmark Reviews. Read More ...
MSI Z77 MPOWER LGA1155 Motherboard MSI should be well known to most of our readers, and today Benchmark Reviews checks out their new MSI Z77 MPOWER LGA1155 motherboard. This time around MSI is aiming at the performance enthusiast and overclocker: the MPOWER is an OC Certified motherboard. What, precisely, does OC Certified mean? Join us as we put this board through its paces and see if it can serve as the foundation of an overclocked system. Read More ...
SPEEDLINK KUDOS RS Gaming Mouse It's annoying when certain jazzed up peripherals are branded as 'Gaming' especially when they have no particular benefit to gamers. SPEEDLINK on the other hand have made a very good effort with the KUDOS RS Gaming Mouse, while it is very flashy looking with its red metallic finish it also packs some good features too. The KUDOS RS features include a 5700 dpi laser sensor, on-the-fly sensitivity and profile switching, 7 programmable buttons and a 4D scroll wheel. Here at Benchmark Reviews many of us are enthusiastic gamers and we strive for quality and functionality as just much as you, our faithful readers. Please read on to find out more. Read More ...
CM Storm Scout 2 Gaming PC Case Benchmark Reviews evaluated the first CM Storm Scout gaming case when it was first released in 2009. Back then, it was a unique combination of form, function, and swagger. The built-in handle made it a natural for LAN parties, but the size and weight meant two things - you could pack in some serious hardware, and you needed serious muscles to carry it around. Perhaps surprisingly, that combination turned out to be very popular, and Cooler Master was encouraged to bring the basic design up to date after a few years. The 2012 version, called Scout 2, is better in almost every way. No major shifts in form or function occurred, and almost everything you liked about the original Scout has been updated and improved. Let's take a look at what the design team did with their second chance... Read More ...
Borderlands 2 Defeat The Warrior Farming Guide Borderlands 2 is an exciting game that pulls you into a fantasy world that's been done a hundred times, but finds a way to give it to you like never before. While the game itself is a hybrid creation with familiar ingredients that taste of Eve Online, World of Warcraft, and Fallout, then seasoned with hints of Battlefield 3 and Call of Duty. Players assume the role of a vault hunter in one of four combat disciplines: Commando, Gunzerker, Assassin, and Siren. The character then fight bandits in first-person shooter format across a vast array of maps, but unlike most FPS-styled games, each level means better loot and tougher enemies. In this article Benchmark Reviews explains how to easily beat 'The Warrior' end boss within 'The Talon of God' final story mission, then we show you how to farm him for XP and legendary purple weapons over and over again. Read More ...
Mad Catz S.T.R.I.K.E. 7 Gaming Keyboard Mad Catz has always taken wild swings at design and innovation. Their latest introduction, the Mad Catz STRIKE 7 gaming keyboard, is among the most luxurious and expensive keyboards on the market. With 7 detachable and modular pieces, 1 TFT-LCD touch screen, 12 programmable macro keys, 12 touch screen macros, and 3 instant toggle profiles, the raw capability of this keyboard can put any keyboard to shame. Benchmark Reviews will take apart the STRIKE 7 and see if it really is the king of the crop. Read More ...
AMD Trinity APU A10-5800K & A8-5600K Preview Less than two days ago, Benchmark Reviews received the latest and greatest APUs from AMD; the A10-5800K and the A8-5600K. They don't launch in the retail market for a couple of weeks, but we are bringing you the low down in a special preview of the newest Accelerated Processing Units about to become available. The Second Generation APUs follow along the same lines as last year's APU releases by AMD with some notable upgrades in both CPU and GPU performance. The new Trinity series of APUs also comes with a new chipset and socket that are surprisingly not backwards compatible with the first generation Llano series of APUs. Read More ...
Biostar Hi-Fi Z77X Intel ATX Motherboard The latest chipset from Intel, the Z77, has been around for a little while now and has certainly spurred a lot of interest by aftermarket motherboard manufacturers. Little actually changed between the Z68 chipset and the Z77 chipset. Z77 added Smart connect to let you receive emails while your computer is asleep and Rapid Start to speed up boot times. With so little changing, it is up to the manufacturers to pack their motherboards so full of features that they stand out above the rest of the competition. That is exactly what Biostar has done with the Hi-Fi Z77X. Read More ...
Thecus N5550 NAS Network Storage Server The Thecus N5550 NAS Server is aimed right at the typical small business owner or advanced home user, by virtue of its size and form factor. It benefits from a recent tech refresh of the Intel Atom product line, has 2GB of DDR3 installed, and uses an interesting SATA/RAID controller solution. The Local Display feature means you can hook up a keyboard, mouse and video monitor directly to the NAS, for setup or media streaming duties. With five bays you can have capacity and redundancy, with RAID 5, 6, or 10, plus a hot spare. Dual GbE network ports are standard, as is a single USB 3.0 port on the front panel. Benchmark Reviews has tested several NAS products lately, ranging from simple two bay units, up to an 8-Bay NAS for the storage needs of large businesses. Let's see how this 5-bay device compares to its competitors. Read More ...
Razer Carcharias Gaming Headset For many gamers, the most important piece of hardware in their repertoire (after their computers of course) is their headset. Whether you use one so you can game while your significant other is asleep, to get better audio quality than your speakers provide, or simply because you prefer them, there's nothing like a good headset. Razer offers gamers their Carcharias wired gaming headset, model number RZ04-00270100-R3U1. Priced for $79.99, the Carcharias offers good sound, a comfortable fit (even with glasses!), and plug-and-play interfacing. Benchmark Reviews will test the Carcharias headset for range, sensitivity, comfort and general functionality. Read More ...
EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB SuperClocked When PC gamers upgrade their computer's video card, they want to get as much value as possible from their investment. They also want to be covered in case of failure, and get back into the fight as quickly as possible. NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 660 graphics card delivers impressive performance to the mainstream, pushed into hyper speed by EVGA's factory SuperClocked treatment. A 3-year warranty can be extended to 10-years, surpassing every other brand in the industry. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the EVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB SC (model 02G-P4-2662-KR) against a collection of DirectX 11 discrete graphics solutions. Read More ...
Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced Mini-ITX Case As more and more features are subsumed onto the motherboard, and graphics cards grow ever more powerful, many enthusiasts are realizing that they can do without the size and space requirements of an ATX form factor system. Micro-ATX and mini-ITX systems are becoming more popular, with new motherboards and cases breaking out of the HTPC market that they've defined for so long and nudging into the enthusiast market. Benchmark Reviews looks at Cooler Master's Elite 120 Advanced case and builds a gaming system in it to see how it fares. Read More ...
ADATA XPG SX900 Solid State Drive Until recently, all SandForce-based solid state drive storage products came with a reserved NAND flash capacity referred to as 'Over Provisioning', used for low-level tasks by the SSD controller. Available now with the ADATA XPG SX900 series, a LSI-SandForce 2281-based solid state drive, capacity grows 7% larger thanks to new firmware that specifies binary capacity points while preserving performance. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the value-priced 256GB ADATA XPG SX900 SSD (model ASX900S3-256GM-C). Read More ...
Thermaltake BlacX 5G Docking Station For our readers in the field of IT, data recovery whether from a dying disk, virus infection, or a dying system is a common occurrence. While slave drive kits work, they can look messy. Thermaltakes solution to this is its line of BlacX vertical docking stations. Benchmark Reviews will be looking at the updated Thermaltake BlacX 5G docking station, which will give users SATA 6Gb/s and SuperSpeed USB-3.0 support allowing for the fastest possible transfer speeds. This review will be evaluating whether the Thermaltake BlacX 5G dock is something every IT department should have or if there are better solutions on the market. Read More ...
Damage Inc: Pacific Squadron WWII Aerial warfare first became a major component of combat during the Second World War, amidst a transitional period in motorized flight that had only been created forty years prior. There had been mixed results in the previous World War, but the enormity of WWII pushed Nations to invest their best engineering into airborne combat operations. The fight was everywhere, but it was most efficient from the air above. Mad Catz captures this historical time in the flight simulation video game Damage Inc: Pacific Squadron WWII. Each collector's edition kit includes the popular Saitek Pacific AV8R FlightStick, imposing realistic flight controls into action for either simulation or arcade modes. Read More ...
CM Storm Stryker Computer Case Review In the fall of 2011, Cooler Master's gaming and enthusiast product branch, CM Storm, released the CM Storm Trooper Computer Case. It was a massive full-tower case with a very unique front I/O style and a big handle on top. The CM Storm Trooper received a lot of high marks by reviewers and owners alike. This time around, Cooler Master is changing things up just a little. The CM Storm Trooper is getting a face-lift and a name change. In this article, Benchmark Reviews is taking a look at the CM Storm Stryker, a white, windowed version of the Trooper. Read More ...
Silverstone SUGO SG08 Mini-ITX Case Does your system contain a single video card and use onboard sound? If so, you might understand the increasing popularity of small form factor systems based on micro-ATX and mini-ITX motherboards. These tiny systems trade expansion slots for small size and convenience, and Silverstone of course has a number of cases for each. Benchmark Reviews checks out their latest mini-ITX computer case, the Silverstone SUGO SST-SG08, in this review. Read More ...
SLI Performance: GTX 660 Ti vs GTX 670 Back in May (2012) NVIDIA released their $400 GeForce GTX 670 video card, securing the number two position in their single-GPU product stack. Just three short months later, the GeForce GTX 660 Ti graphics card arrived to market and filled store shelves at the $300 price point. With a substantial $100 price difference between these two product, consumers might (incorrectly) presume there's a significant difference in hardware or performance. To the surprise of many, the GeForce GTX 670 and GTX 660 Ti are nearly the same card. Both feature identical 28nm NVIDIA 'Kepler' GK104 graphics processors, complete with 1344 CUDA cores all clocked to identical 915 MHz core and 980 Boost speeds. Additionally, the GTX 670 and GTX 660 Ti also feature the exact same 2GB GDDR5 video memory buffer, clocked to 1502 MHz on both cards. The only physical difference between these two products resides in the memory subsystem: GeForce GTX 670 receives four 64-bit controllers (256-bit total bandwidth) while GeForce GTX 660 Ti is designed with three memory controllers (192-bit bandwidth). So does this amount to any real differences in video game performance? Read More ...
Xigmatek Gigas uATX Computer Enclosure Mention the term Small Form Factor and most people think of a PC case that you can hold in one hand. The term came into use when PC giants HP, Compaq, and IBM were all trying to shrink the corporate desktop. The question that came to mind when Benchmark Reviews first saw the XIGMATEK Gigas was, Why this design? It's because consumers want sleek, fashionable components in their life, and big tower cases are past their expiration date, as industrial designs go. There's an increasing focus on svelte boxes that work with a mini-ITX or micro-ATX motherboard. The tiniest boxes give up some measure of performance in exchange for space, but mid-sized models like the Gigas can handle the most powerful components available. The combination of four 120mm fans and passive ventilation on the side panel supplies plenty of cool air for all the critical components inside. The ability to use virtually any 120mm CPU cooler also helps keep temps down. While not exactly commonplace, you can also run a SLI/CrossFire arrangement. The Gigas will handle full-sized graphics cards up to 320mm in length, and PSUs up to 300mm. Let's see if we can turn this piece of art into a Power Cube. Read More ...
MSI GTX 660-Ti Power Edition Video Card The long-awaited mid-range Kepler cards are finally here, with NVIDIA partners releasing their own unique takes on the GTX GeForce 660Ti GPU. MSI brings some of the features of their Lightning series down to this level, with enhanced power circuitry, triple voltage control, and even the auto dust-removing Twin Frozr cooler. NVIDIA says this GPU can compete in performance with the much more expensive AMD Radeon 7950, but does it? Benchmark Reviews puts the MSI GTX 660-Ti Power Edition video card through its test regimen to find out. Read More ...
ASUS GeForce GTX 660Ti DirectCU-II TOP Many computer hardware enthusiast recall when NVIDIA unleashed their GeForce GTX 580 video card onto the gaming landscape back on November 2010, setting the bar so high the closest threat to the $500 price point was a combined pair of the competition's best graphics cards. Under two years later, NVIDIA returns with a 150W mid-range solution that beats their former flagship. Built upon the NVIDIA GK104 GPU, the GeForce GTX 660 Ti offers the same high-end features found on the top-end GTX 680, but with a much more affordable price tag. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the ASUS GeForce GTX 660 Ti DirectCU II TOP, model TI-DC2T-2GD5. Read More ...
SilverStone TJ04-E Computer Case Silverstone is a company that whose products I always look forward to reviewing. They tend to keep their engineering department on a loose leash and as such Silverstone tends to have some unique designs come out of its doors while keeping the beautiful exteriors I expect out of my cases. The Silverstone TJ04-E is a redesigned version of the venerable TJ04 case, with a new interior that has some interesting designs that allow the TJ04 to hold nine 3.5 drives and six 2.5 drives. The TJ04-E can also accommodate video cards up to 12.8 even with the drive cage installed an impressive feat considering the TJ04-E is only 489mm long and considered a mid-tower enclosure. Therefore, the real question is does the unique design of the TJ04-E make for a great case, or does Silverstone need to go back to the drawing board. Read More ...
G-Cube iHL-500BK Luxury Headset In the world of computer audio, G-CUBE is not one of those names that comes up often. There's a valid reason for this: The company is still at the stage where it is trying to establish a place for itself amongst the crowd of contenders in this hotly-contested arena. Their new Luxy 500 Dynamic HiFi Headset (model number iHL-500BK) is the company's latest entry into the market of sub-$100.00 headsets. Benchmark Reviews examines the Luxy 500 Dynamic HiFi Headset and tests it through a wide variety of usage scenarios. Read on to see how the iHL-500BK stacks up against everything we throw at it. Read More ...
Overclocking the MSI N680GTX Lightning Benchmark Reviews recently tested MSI's N680GTX Lightning video card. While it's the fastest single-GPU card we've ever benchmarked, we weren't able to fully explore its overclocking ability since the utility required to adjust the card's voltages, MSI's own Afterburner 2.2.3, wasn't available. But now it is, so join us as we explore the outer levels of benchmarking performance. Read More ...
NETGEAR ReadyNAS NV+ v2 NAS Server The NETGEAR ReadyNAS NV+ v2 is aimed right at the typical small business owner or advanced home user, by virtue of its size and form factor. It benefits from a recent tech refresh of its hardware and software, becoming the v2 model in the process. With four bays you can have both capacity and redundancy with RAID 5 on a three or four disk array. RAID expansion and migration are easy, with X-RAID2 software that manages all the hard work of expanding and migrating from a single disk to RAID 1, and then to RAID 5. The NV+ v2 uses a Marvell 6282 CPU, running at 1.6GHz and 256MB of DDR3 system memory. A single GbE network port is standard, as are two USB 3.0 ports on the back panel. Benchmark Reviews has tested several NAS products lately, ranging from simple two bay units, up to an 8-Bay NAS for the storage needs of large businesses. Let's see how this 4-bay device compares to its competitors. Read More ...
Sentey Extreme Division GS-6000 II Optimus If you are familiar with Sentey, you'll recognize a certain pattern they have when releasing their computer cases. They generally release a style of case and then release a few more with the same style and some minor changes. There will be an R version of the case that has red highlights, a B version with blue, W for white, and so on. In some case series they will also release a V version with a different side panel (usually windowed). In the case of the Optimus series, as well as a couple of other series, Sentey has now released a II version of the case. At Benchmark Reviews, we have a Sentey GS-6000 II Optimus case on hand and ready break down to explore what they've changed on this one. Read More ...
Cooler Master Storm Sonuz Headset Speakers work well for general listening, but when you need to hear sound detail there's no match for good headphones. Taking things to the next level, Cooler Master offers gamers and audio enthusiasts the best of both worlds with their CM Storm Sonuz wired gaming headset, model SGH-4010-KGTA1. Priced around $69, Sonuz delivers smooth analog sound over extra-large 53mm drivers. In this article Benchmark Reviews will test the CM Storm Sonuz headset for range, sensitivity, comfort, and functionality. Read More ...
ASUS P8Z77-V Thunderbolt Motherboard In the market for a new LGA1155 motherboard, but don't want to spend the cash on a top-end enthusiast level product? Or maybe you just don't need all the extra frippery, but instead are just looking for a solid workhorse board. While ASUS is certainly happy to cater to users with some extra cash in their pockets, they also have a nice selection of midrange motherboards that don't trim as many features as you might think. Benchmark Reviews takes a look at ASUS' mainstream Z77 offering, the P8Z77-V. Read More ...
WD TV Live Digital MultiMedia Player Until recently digital multimedia could only be enjoyed on the computer, and with some extra effort it could be shared onto a portable electronic device. But high-definition movies and music are really best enjoyed on a home theater system, with larger screen and powerful speakers. Now that HDTVs and wireless networking are commonplace an era of attached digital media players has begun, and the WD TV Live helps make the transition easy. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the WD TV Live high-definition digital media player, model WDBHG70000NBK-HESN, and we evaluate how well it entertains us. Read More ...
MSI GeForce GTX 680 Lightning Video Card NVIDIA's new Kepler-based video cards have set new standards in performance for the desktop graphics market. Now that reference-design cards are widely available, manufacturers have the breathing space to start distinguishing their products. Benchmark Reviews has been given the opportunity to examine MSI's N680GTX Lightning video card, and as we'll see MSI has gone far beyond simply slapping a new cooler on a reference design board. As with other products in MSI's Lightning line, the N680GTX boasts a completely new board design that should allow substantial overclocking. Read More ...
Video Games as a Legitimate Art Form Video games: They can be so beautiful to look at, lovely to listen to, and the best of them can take you on narrative journeys that can sometimes rival the best examples of cinema, theater, and literature have to offer. Which begs the question: Can video games be considered a legitimate form of art? Read along as Benchmark Reviews examines the question in-depth. Read More ...
ASUS O!Play LIVE HD Media Player If you're like me, over the years you've collected a huge digital library full of music, pictures, and movies onto your computer. Occasionally, I might watch a video from off my laptop or listen to a song while working at the desktop, but high-definition movies and music are really best enjoyed on a home theater system with larger screen and powerful speakers. The ASUS O!Play LIVE HD Media Player makes this transition easy, accepting every modern media format over local storage and network connections. Watching broadcast television and DVD/BD movies have been replaced with streaming Internet content and downloaded multimedia files, especially for college aged viewers who own a smartphone or tablet device. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the ASUS O!Play LIVE HD Media Player, and we evaluate how well it performs our tasks. Read More ...
Corsair Vengeance C70 Computer Case Corsair has been catering for the hardware enthusiasts and gamers for many years now and have gained a lot of praise for their high quality and high performance hardware. In this review Benchmark Reviews examines and tests out the Corsair Vengeance C70 mid-tower gaming PC case. Many of us believe that consoles killed PC gaming and Intel killed overclocking, but now we have another problem - Case manufactures killing case modding. The Corsair Vengeance C70 computer case has an ammo box theme and comes in military green to boot (also available in white and black). The C70 has some new features unique to this model and comes with two 120mm intake fans and one 120mm exhaust fan and removable mesh intake filters. There is also support for many different watercooling configurations including dual radiators for the deep pocketed enthusiast out there. Read More ...
Genius Imperator Pro Gaming Keyboard Genius introduced a strong lineup of gaming peripherals this year and today we will take a look at the GX-Gaming Imperator Pro MMORPG/RTS Gaming Keyboard. This is based on the Imperator baseline model except with extra features that you may want in a premium keyboard. Benchmark Reviews takes a look at the Genius Imperator Pro Gaming Keyboard to see how well it stands against competition. Read More ...
SilverStone Grandia SST-GD07B HTPC Enclosure Appearance is the strongest suit of the SilverStone Grandia GD07. Nothing fits into a fashionable home theater setup as well as a nicely finished dark aluminum front plate, free of everything that shows up on the face of a typical PC. The GD07 also offers functionality at the extreme end of the HTPC market. Generous drive capacity, ability to handle multiple full-length video cards, and compatibility with eATX motherboards puts it way over the top. Flexible options for system airflow, with both down draft and horizontal CPU coolers as viable choices, expand the range of suitable components. This is not a PC case that Benchmark Reviews would recommend for a folding farm, but for extreme HTPC use it performs far above most alternatives. For those that want to have all their main storage integrated into their HTPC and/or want to do some serious gaming on the big screen in the family room, this is one of the very few cases that can do that in style. Read More ...
Corsair Vengeance 2000 Wireless Headset Corsair is well known for their wide range of high quality and high performance enthusiast and gaming orientated computer hardware. The Vengeance 2000 is their first foray into the wireless gaming headset market and boasts multi-channel 7.1 surround sound gaming audio capabilities too. The Vengeance 2000 headset is very comfortable thanks to a padded headband and microfiber covered memory foam ear pads, and has true freedom of movement thanks to the lack of wires. At the business end we have 50mm drivers with a frequency response of 20Hz to 20kHz and a unidirectional noise-cancelling condenser microphone with a frequency response of 10Hz to 10 kHz. The main setback of the Vengeance 2000 (model CA-9011115-NA) is its price, at $144.99 you have to really ask yourself if it is worth an extra $55 over the Vengeance 1500 for wireless freedom. Benchmark Reviews intends to give you all the information you need to know about the Vengeance 2000 wireless 7.1 gaming headset and to answer any questions you might have. Read More ...
PNY XLR8 GeForce GTX 670 Video Card Most gamers simply want to play upcoming releases without worrying over hardware requirements or system compatibility, and the GeForce GTX 670 video card is the most recent graphics product that deliver it all in one package. For around $399 the GeForce GTX 670 matches price to the AMD Radeon HD 7950, yet performs to the level of Radeon HD 7970. The PNY XLR8 GeForce GTX 670 keeps to NVIDIA's ultra-efficient design and delivers top-end potential while keeping some space reserved for overclocking. Offered as a bonus to their customers PNY also includes a thin-profile 72 long HDMI cable, and a free 3-month membership to the E-Sports Entertainment gaming community. With DirectX-11 games such as Battlefield 3 and Max Payne 3 demanding more from computer hardware, Benchmark Reviews tests how well the PNY XLR8 GeForce GTX 670 video card (VCGGTX670XPB) delivers the required graphical performance. Read More ...
MSI Radeon HD 7870 Hawk 2GB Video Card AMD's Radeon HD 7000 series is out in full force now and even with the NVIDIA 600 series launching, it's still getting a lot of attention. As is typical with video card releases, manufacturers like to make their own designs and subtle changes and release various different cards based off of the same GPU. Here at Benchmark Reviews, we've received the MSI Radeon HD R7870 Hawk video card and we are prepared to put it to the test. With an unlocked BIOS and a digital PWM, the MSI R7870 Hawk begs to be overclocked. Let's find out just how fast it can go. Read More ...
OCZ Vertex 4 Solild State Drive Based on the second-generation Everest 2 platform and featuring Ndurance 2.0 technology, the OCZ Vertex 4 solid state drive arrives one year after they acquired the well-known flash controller manufacturer Indilinx. Boasting the industry's best SATA-based I/O performance, the Vertex 4 series (VTX4-25SAT3) is designed to deliver optimized performance for enthusiasts wanting to capitalize on near-instant response times. OCZ Vertex 4 SSDs are available in up to 512GB capacities, and deliver up to 550MB/s read speeds with up to 95,000 Random Read IOPS. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests these specifications, and compares the OCZ Vertex 4 solid state drive to the leading competition. Read More ...
Patriot Memory PBO Alpine Media Player Watching streaming content or downloaded multimedia files have replaced television broadcasts and movies on disc, especially for college aged viewers who own a SmartPhone device. The drawback to watching anything on an Apple iPhone or Google Android device is that the screen is small and sound is flat. Patriot Memory has created the PBO Alpine Media Player, capable of playing just about every modern video format across HDMI onto an HDTV or monitor at 1080p using the familiar Android 2.2 interface. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the Patriot Memory PBO Alpine High Definition Media Player, and evaluates how well it performs compared to the competition. Read More ...
Rosewill RK-9000BR Mechanical Keyboard Having used and reviewed quite a few mechanical keyboards in the last year I have now tried out almost every type of Cherry MX switch out there except the Cherry MX Brown and Clear switches. Thankfully, in this during this review of the Rosewill RK-9000BR I was able to knock yet another switch off my list. The Cherry MX Brown switches used on the Rosewill RK-9000BR provide would be customers with the best of both Cherry MX Black, and Blue switches without the negatives of each. Benchmark Reviews will be evaluating the Rosewill RK-9000BR to see how these switches hold up to daily use and what they are like to use for an extended amount of time when compared to their red, black, and blue counterparts. Read More ...
CoreRise Comay Venus Pro 3 SSD Suzhou CoreRise Electronics Corporation is new to the industry, but they're starting off big. As the 91st manufacturer to join the Solid State Drive industry, CoreRise introduced themselves into the market back in 2010 with an Indilinx-based SSD, and have returned to expand their product family using LSI-SandForce technology for the new Comay Venus Pro 3 SSD. Designed for the SATA 6 GB/s interface, Venus Pro 3 features 555 MB/s reads and 525 MB/s writes of compressed data. CoreRise advertises the Comay Venus Pro 3 to produce 4KB random read IOPS up to 40,000, and write up to 85,000 IOPS. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the CoreRise Comay Venus Pro 3 SSD against the fastest storage devices available. Read More ...
Icron USB Ranger 2211 Range Extender Everything from Rocket Launchers to Dancing Clowns are available as a USB peripheral these days. Most of us keep our USB devices within arm's length, but there are times where a little more distance is desirable. That's the case for the average consumer; the commercial or industrial user has a tougher life. They have Rocket Launchers and Dancing Clowns too, but they're the full-sized versions. You can bet the computers which control them are located more than 5 meters away. That's the reason for today's article; what to do when your USB device is 300 feet away from your PC? You find a device like the Icron USB Ranger 2211, and a big spool of Cat 5 Ethernet cable, and you hook it up, no problem! Just so you can be sure that there won't be any problems, Benchmark Reviews put the latest USB extender from Icron Technologies on the test bench. We also look under the hood, and show you the technology that's inside. Read More ...
Cooler Master ARC Macbook and iPad Stand Most enthusiasts think of Cooler Master primarily as a case and CPU cooler vendor, although they've long since branched out into other product lines, like gaming peripherals and accessories for notebook computers and mobile devices. Benchmarch Reviews takes a look at one of their newest products, the Cooler Master ARC Macbook Pro and iPad stand. Read More ...
G-Cube V-Track 310 Wireless Mouse Wireless mice are becoming the de facto standard along with macro software that further enhances productivity, while at the same time, decreasing repetitive clicking. The G-Cube V-Track 310 boasts sixteen macro Gestures for the right button, with a multitude of actions per gesture, two options for vertical and horizontal scrolling, four DPI settings, three report rates, and it's wireless. It also comes in four colors, Red, Blue, Green, and Black. In the continuing spirit of bringing you the latest and sometimes the greatest, Benchmark Reviews will analyze the new G-Cube V-Track 310 2.4Hz Wireless Mouse. Read More ...
How NVIDIA GeForce GRID Will Change Video Games NVIDIA recently unveiled two new graphics technologies at the 2012 GPU Technology Conference: NVIDIA GeForce GRID and NVIDIA VGX. You're probably not familiar with either of these 'Cloud Computing' technologies, but in the next few years they'll develop to become quite commonplace. One day in the not so distant future, you could find yourself choosing between a NVIDIA GeForce GRID subscription or NVIDIA GeForce graphics card to play the latest high-end game. In this editorial I explore what these two new technologies offer, and how they will change the graphics industry. Read More ...
HIS HD7850 IceQ X Turbo X 2GB Video Card Many are still waiting for NVIDIA to release the rest of their 28nm line-up, and AMD have already shown their full hand. The question is; do you buy now or wait to see if you can get a better deal? Waiting is a vicious cycle and there will always be something better released after you make a purchase. Don't wait too long to make your choice, there is plenty to choose from without waiting. In this article we take a look at the HIS Radeon HD7850 IceQ X Turbo X 2GB 'GHz Edition' video card armed with AMD's Pitcairn 28nm GPU Core. This is the fastest HD7850 that HIS produce and we intend to overclock it some more to see how much faster it will run. Benchmark Reviews aims to provide you with an unbiased review of the HIS Radeon HD7850 IceQ X Turbo X 2GB video card (model H785QNX2G2M) and report back our findings, keeping you informed on the latest technologies available on the market today. Read More ...
G.Skill Ares 16GB 1866Mhz DDR3 Memory Kit Some people want or even need the most memory that they possibly can get into a system, for those users a simple 16GB of RAM may not be enough. Thankfully, due to rapidly dropping prices having as much RAM as servers of yesteryear is neither overly expensive, nor that unreasonable to have. Benchmark Reviews will be looking at the G.Skill Ares 1866MHz 2 x 8GB kit designed specifically with those people in mind. Named after the Greek god of war the G.Skill Ares kit looks like it is ready for war with its heat sinks glistening in the sun but is it really the warrior it claims to be or a just imposter with nice armor. Benchmark Reviews will evaluate the merit of the Ares name and determine if this kit is truly worth of the name it has been given. Read More ...
Intel DZ77GA-70K Motherboard Components Intel always sends reviewers their top-end motherboards when new CPUs are introduced. Called Extreme Boards , these motherboards are designed for extreme performance and festooned with skulls. The past Intel Extreme Boards I've looked at came with early, buggy BIOSes; performed relatively poorly, and had very few additional features other than those provided by the CPU and chipset. So I wasn't expecting much from the Intel DZ77GA-70K Z77 Express motherboard, but was amazed to find that this time, Intel might have a winner on its hands. Join me as Benchmark Reviews takes a look at Intel's new Z77 Express standard bearer. Read More ...
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 Video Card Tests NVIDIA Have enjoyed the fruits of their labors with the recent launch of Kepler, their latest ultra-efficient desktop GPU architecture. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 seized the crown for graphics performance, but also has a price tag fit for kings. Now NVIDIA are back to address the needs of performance gamers with GeForce GTX 670, using the same GK104 GPU found in GTX 680 along with 2GB of GDDR5 memory running at the same clock speeds. For around $399 the GeForce GTX 670 matches price to the AMD Radeon HD 7950, yet performs to the level of Radeon HD 7970. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 video card against the leading competition, including the GeForce GTX 570 that it replaces. Read More ...
Sins of a Solar Empire Rebellion Beta Sins of a Solar Empire is one of those Real Time Strategy games that you won't be able to tear yourself away from easily. Sins is one of those addictive experiences that you start to gauge other games by. Very few space-based RTS games come close to perfection, and Sins is one of them. After playing Sins, you'll be daydreaming about it while trying to play other RTS titles. In this article, Benchmark Reviews offers our opinion of the Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion expansion pack. Read More ...
CM Storm Sentinel Advance II Gaming Mouse Back in September 2009, CM Storm released the Sentinel Advance Laser Gaming Mouse. It sported a 5600 DPI laser sensor, which was the top-of-the-line at the time. 5600 DPI is still very high for a gaming mouse. Now Cooler Master is releasing the next evolution of this gaming mouse, the CM Storm Sentinel Advance II Laser Gaming Mouse SGM-6010-KLLW1. Sporting an Avago ADNS-9800 laser sensor, the Sentinel Advance II has the capability to scale up to 8200 DPI and all the way down to 200 DPI. In this article, Benchmark Reviews examines the CM Storm Sentinel Advance II Laser Gaming Mouse SGM-6010-KLLW1. Read More ...
Intel DZ77GA-70K Benchmark Performance I've sometimes thought that Intel tries too hard with its enthusiast level motherboards. The Extreme series, which is what Intel seeds reviewers with when new CPUs are introduced, tend to shout with prominent skull logos, POST code readouts, POST sequence LEDs, and other bling, but in my experience they fall down badly on features and performance. So you can understand that I wasn't expecting too much from the DZ77GA-70K motherboard. But I was in for a surprise. Read More ...
HIS Radeon HD 7770 iCooler Video Card If the you have read the reviews of the AMD Radeon HD 79xx series of video cards here at benchmark reviews you will know that owning the fastest single GPU video card will hurt your wallet. While we can all aspire to (or dream of) owning one or more of these high end video cards, the simple fact is that not everyone can afford such luxuries. In this article we take a look at the more moderately priced HIS Radeon HD 7770 iCooler 1GB video card armed with AMD's Cape Verde 28nm GPU Core. Sure enough it won't run your favorite games maxed out at 1080p but with an msrp of $129.99 you might be pleasantly surprised at its power to weight ratio. Benchmark Reviews aims to provide you with an unbiased review of the HIS Radeon HD 7770 iCooler 1GB video card (model H777F1G2M) and report back our findings, keeping you informed on the latest technologies available on the market today. Read More ...
Intel DZ77GA-70K Motherboard Overview Intel has tried to sell motherboards into the enthusiast market in the past, with little success. Even though their top-end motherboards are labeled Extreme Boards and have prominent skull logos (everyone knows skulls are good), the features and performance have been notably lacking, especially in comparison to the best of the third party motherboards. I've not been impressed by any of the previous Intel Extreme Boards I've reviewed, but the Intel DZ77GA-70K was a revelation. Benchmark Reviews takes a look at the features of Intel's first motherboard that's actually competitive with the big boys. Read More ...
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 Benchmark Performance Back on 22 March 2012, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 video card made headlines and became the best-performing single-GPU graphics card on the market. Only six weeks later NVIDIA engineers have successfully combined two 28nm GK104 GPUs together to create their new GeForce GTX 690. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests game performance with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690, a double-slot graphics card equipped with a pair of Kepler GPUs. Featuring NVIDIA's cutting-edge GPU Boost technology, the GeForce GTX 690 video card can dynamically adjust power and clock speeds based on real-time application demands. Using EVGA Precision-X, the GeForce GTX 690 has both GPUs overclocked beyond 1200 GHz to produce ultimate graphical performance in PC video games. Read More ...
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690 Video Card Features It didn't take long for the engineers at NVIDIA to find the right combination of speed and power before they could successfully fit two 28nm GK104 Kepler GPUs onto the same printed circuit board. The GeForce GTX 690 is built for the ultra-performance hardware enthusiast and hard-core gamer wanting to play PC video games at their maximum graphics quality settings with the highest screen resolution possible. It's a small niche market that few can claim, but also one that every gamer dreams of enjoying. In this article Benchmark Reviews inspects the features available on the new NVIDIA GeForce GTX 690, a double-slot graphics card equipped with a pair of Kepler GPUs. Read More ...
ASUS P8Z77-V Deluxe Features Overview Vendors strive to distinguish their products on the market in a number of ways. With motherboards, where in most cases the stock performance will be very similar across all motherboards using the same processor and supporting chipset, the only real ways to make your product stand out are price and extra features. ASUS is adept at exploiting the features aspect of their motherboards, including everything from custom ASICs and sophisticated power circuitry to full-blown add-ons like WiFi Go! Their Deluxe level motherboard ladle on so many features it's hard to keep track, but Benchmark Reviews will give it a try with our features overview of the ASUS P8Z77-V Deluxe motherboard. Read More ...
HIS HD7950 IceQ Turbo 3GB Video Card We have now seen round three of the AMD HD7000 series video card launch cycle and still NVIDIA have yet to fully show their hand, and until they do these new video cards are going to cost an arm and a leg. In this article we take a look at the more moderately priced (compared with the HD 7970) HIS Radeon HD7950 IceQ Turbo 3GB video card armed with AMD's Tahiti 28nm GPU Core. Sure enough it will run your favorite games with high settings at 1080p but with an msrp of $459.99 you might want to check your finances before you click that buy button. Benchmark Reviews aims to provide you with an unbiased review of the HIS Radeon HD7950 IceQ Turbo 3GB video card (model H795QT3G2M) and report back our findings, keeping you informed on the latest technologies available on the market today. Read More ...
Cooler Master HAF XM Computer Case At Benchmark Reviews, we have established that the main three items to look for in a computer case are price, functionality, and style. All three of these are vitality important for a case that will be taking up space in your home or office for the foreseeable future. None of them should be overlooked. As a gamer, I take a special interest in Full Tower cases because of the functionality they offer. But sometimes Full Tower cases are just too big to fit comfortably where they need to. Mid-Tower cases can provide a lot of the functionality of a Full Tower case but with the style that might be preferred, depending on the circumstance. It's the balance of providing that functionality that often gets case manufacturers into trouble. Benchmark Reviews has Cooler Master's new HAF XM case on hand and this article is dedicated to discovering if the famous HAF-X's little brother holds true to the family tree. Read More ...
ASUS P8Z77-V Deluxe Motherboard Components The introduction of the first member of the new Cougar Point chipset family, the Z77 Express, happened several weeks before the availability of the Sandy Bridge CPUs they were designed for, so we've seen a number of these motherboards become available at retail recently. ASUS has provided Benchmark Reviews with a sample of their top-end P8Z77-V Deluxe LGA1155 motherboard, which may well set a new high-water marks for most features crammed onto a motherboard. Read More ...
ASUS P8Z77-V Deluxe Benchmark Performance The introduction of the first member of the new Cougar Point chipset family, the Z77 Express, happened several weeks before the availability of the Sandy Bridge CPUs they were designed for. This led to review sites having to test new chipsets with older Sandy Bridge processors. While Z77 motherboards are perfectly capable of running Sandy Bridge CPUs, they're really designed to showcase Ivy Bridge. Now that Benchmark Reviews actually has a Core i7-3770K CPU in hand, we can show you how it performs in ASUS' new P8Z77-V Deluxe motherboard, a top-of-the-line product with so many features it's hard to keep track of them all. Read More ...
Intel Core i7-3770K Ivy Bridge Processor Intel sticks to their tick-tock CPU development cycle, where the ticks represent new CPU architectures and the tocks represent process refinement. Sandy Bridge CPUs were the tick , and the new Ivy Bridge CPUs are the tock . Fabricated on a 22nm process with Intel's new low-leakage 3D transistors, Ivy Bridge represents a fabrication breakthrough if nothing else. But how does it compare against the immensely popular and powerful Sandy Bridge CPUs? Benchmark Reviews dives into the fray to let you know. Read More ...
Corsair Vengeance M90 Laser Gaming Mouse With fifteen buttons, a 5700 DPI laser sensor, a solid aluminum core, and onboard memory the Corsair Vengeance M90 can be customized to fit almost every users need. However, button counts, high DPI sensors, and unique designs do not automatically guarantee a great product and so each product must be evaluated on its usefulness as a tool and not just raw numbers. So please join Benchmark Reviews as we review the Corsair M90 and evaluate if it is worthy of the legendary Corsair name or if it is simply marketing hype with no substance to back it up. Read More ...
Corsair Vengeance K90 Mechanical Keyboard Having reviewed many keyboards it suprised me how excited I was to review the Corsair Vengeance K90. With its unique design, Cherry MX Red switches, and as Corsairs first foray into the keyboard market I found the K90 to be a interesting prospect in a world filled with rather ordinary keyboard designs. Join Benchmark Reviews as we look at the K90 and evaluate if its unique design merits the $129.99 asking price that is it being given. Read More ...
Corsair Vengeance M60 Laser Gaming Mouse The Vengeance M60 FPS laser mouse is Corsair's latest addition to its line of products. The M60 has 8 configurable buttons aimed at maximizing the FPS gaming performance. The dedicated sniper button is one of its most interesting features with the promise to help accurate aiming. Benchmark Reviews will be testing out the Vengeance M60 and see if it's a worthy buy. Read More ...
Corsair Vengeance K60 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard The Vengeance K60 FPS Mechanical Gaming Keyboard is one of Corsair's latest introductions. This keyboard is a rare cherry MX red keyboard (similar to cherry MX blacks), offering very light resistance to key presses, and no tactile click during presses, perfect for quick successive key presses like double taps. Benchmark Reviews will review this keyboard for its FPS gaming capabilities as well as general usage. Read More ...
MSI Z77A-GD65 LGA1155 Motherboard It's time for a new Intel chipset: the Z77 Express chipset replaces last year's Z68 chipset and its predecessor P67 chipset. Aside from the support for what MSI calls third generation Intel Core processors , the Z77 brings some enhanced features like native SuperSpeed USB 3.0. MSI's not satisfied with letting the Z77 stand on its own, though, and adds its own unique features to their MSI Z77A-GD65 board. Benchmark Reviews tests this new motherboard and compares its performance and features against a top-end Z68 motherboard. Is an upgrade for your rig warranted? Read on... Read More ...
How to Cheat eBay Sellers and Scam PayPal Most people are familiar with eBay, the website with an endless catalog ready for purchase. Like many, I've needed to purchase an out of production item and found it available from International sellers. I will also occasionally use eBay to sell random unwanted items to help fund the upgrade or repair. Overall my experience has remained positive, but very recently my opinion of eBay and its banking service PayPal have significantly changed. I have discovered that eBay and PayPal have policies in place that blindly protects buyers, even when they're clearly out to scam and abuse honest sellers. Read More ...
Intel X79 Motherboard Overclocking Guide This Intel X79 Motherboard Overclocking Guide is meant to assist and outline aspects of overclocking parameters as well as the experience of overclocking on the ASUS X79 series of motherboards. I have detailed our recommendations to maximize the overclocking potential / scaling on ASUS' X79 series of motherboards. This guide has been developed after extensive internal testing across multiple boards, multiple UEFI builds and a high sampling rate of C0 CPUs and limited sampling of C1 stepping CPUs. While this guide is not definitive and will not contain every possible overclocking combination or guarantee results, the information detailed has been consistently duplicated and yielded repeatable results in our testing. Of course the quality of the CPU and cooling is very important but overall we think the results on our boards should exceed those of others at like settings. Read More ...
ASUS Rampage IV Formula Gene Motherboard The ASUS Republic of Gamers Rampage series of motherboards usually comes in three varieties, the Extreme, Formula, and Gene. Benchmark Reviews recently brought you an in-depth review of the ASUS Rampage IV Formula motherboard. Now it's time for a look at the Formula's little brother, the ASUS Rampage IV Gene. Built on the Intel X79 Express chipset, the Rampage IV Gene represents the low-end of the ASUS Republic of Gamers X79 motherboards. Follow along inside as Benchmark Reviews examines the ASUS Rampage IV Gene X79 Express motherboard. Read More ...
HIS Radeon HD 7870 IceQ Turbo 2GB It's round three of the AMD HD7000 series video card launch cycle and still NVIDIA have yet to fully show their hand, and until they do these new video cards are going to cost an arm and a leg. In this article we take a look at the more moderately priced (compared with the 79XX series) HIS Radeon HD7870 IceQ Turbo 2GB 'GHz Edition' video card armed with AMD's Pitcairn 28nm GPU Core. Sure enough it will run your favorite games with high settings at 1080p but with an msrp of $379.99 you might want to check your finances before you click that buy button. Benchmark Reviews aims to provide you with an unbiased review of the HIS Radeon HD7870 IceQ Turbo 2GB video card (model H787QT2G2M) and report back our findings, keeping you informed on the latest technologies available on the market today. Read More ...
Antec P280 ATX Mid Tower Computer Case For many enthusiasts want a quiet system, with room to spare, and a beautiful exterior the Antec P280 is exactly what they are looking for. The Antec P280 is a Super Mid Tower designed as an addition to venerable Performance One series. This refresh comes with a redesigned interior, exterior, and an updated port selection. These updates came without Antec disrupting the Performance One series goal of Quiet Computing , using materials with different acoustic qualities to help minimize the amount of sound leakage. Benchmark Reviews will evaluate if the noise characteristics and build quality of the Antec P280 are worthy of the Performance One moniker that it has been given. Read More ...
ASUS EA-N66U Wireless-N450 Ethernet Adapter Devout followers of the technology industry may have seen a sneak preview of ASUS' latest dabble in networking hardware back in January when it was announced at CES 2012. Maybe you only read an information starved press release after the event, either way there hasn't been much information regarding the ASUS EA-N66 3-in-1 Dual Band Wireless N450 Ethernet Adapter until now. Benchmark Reviews recently reviewed the ASUS RT-N66U Dual Band Wireless N900 Router and USB-N53 Dual-Band Wireless N300 USB Adapter, and now the EA-N66 3-in-1 Ethernet adapter completes the trio. There are a few Wi-Fi to Ethernet bridges available on the market as well as dedicated Wi-Fi repeaters and Access Points, but never before have all three functions been combined into one device, and never has a piece of networking hardware ever looked so interesting. Speed is the name of the game here, the EA-N66 3-in-1 Dual Band Wireless N Ethernet Adapter has a 10/100/1000 Base-T compliant RJ45 interface and can operate on 2.4GHz and 5GHz wireless N frequencies at speeds up to 450Mb/s. Read More ...
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 Graphics Performance Of the many platforms available for gamers to enjoy video games, there's no question that the highest quality graphics come from PC. While game developers might not consider PC gaming as lucrative as entertainment consoles, companies like NVIDIA use desktop graphics to set the benchmark for smaller more compact designs that make it into notebooks, tablets, and smartphone devices. NVIDIA's Kepler GPU architecture is an example of this, delivering unprecedented performance while operating cooler and consuming far less power than previous flagship discrete graphics cards. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 video card equipped with a 28nm GK104 Kepler GPU, and compares it against the best DirectX 11 video cards available. Featuring their new NVIDIA GPU Boost technology, the GeForce GTX 680 video card can dynamically adjust power and clock speeds based on real-time application demands. Read More ...
Arctic MC001-BD HTPC Media Center Home entertainment is quickly changing, and computer techology has become integrated with the personal space. Data storage and playback is becoming more diverse and streamlined by the second. More and more entertainment can be found on the Internet; TV shows, movies, music... the list goes on. To keep up with the demand for instant entertainment, manufacturers such as ARCTIC are designing devices that are ever more sleek and quiet, usually with an array of features to keep the consumer content in their own personal empire. If you are looking to update your home theater with personal entertainment devices, or simplify your leisure time, there are many new Windows Media Center devices emerging on the market. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the Arctic MC001-BD Entertainment Center with Blu-ray player to see if this Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium HTPC can combine the benefits of personal computer with multimedia streamer. Read More ...
QNAP TS-879U-RP 10GbE NAS Server There is a glass ceiling in the world of NAS devices, and like all glass ceilings it's not that obvious until you bang your head against it a few times. The standard-issue network interface in the IT world is a one Gigabit Ethernet connection. Convert bits to bytes and you end up with a less impressive sounding 125 MB/s interface. The ceiling comes into play quickly, because even a single 3TB HDD can push 160 MB/s through its SATA 6 Gb/s interface, when it's running hard. I was a little frustrated when I did an extensive review of the QNAP TS-879U-RP Turbo NAS server last month, because I didn't have a network environment that could unleash its full performance. Now that I do, let's take a look at what it takes to get this corporate animal up to full speed. Read More ...
Genius DeathTaker USB Laser Gaming Mouse Taiwan-based Genius may not be a well known brand when compared with other established companies such as Steelseries and Razer, but they have been around for a long time. They were credited for shipping the first mouse with a scroll-wheel, and currently manufacture products for other brand-name companies. The GX Gaming series is their first stab at entering the gaming peripherals market under their own brand. Benchmark Reviews has on its hands the Genius DeathTaker MMO/RTS gaming mouse. We will be testing this premium 9-button, weight-adjustable gaming mouse to see whether this late-comer can take the spotlight. Read More ...
ASUS Rampage IV Formula X79 Motherboard Within the world of personal computing, there is a group of people referred to as enthusiasts. This generalization can be a little confusing, so let's explore it. An enthusiast is someone who uses their computer for much more than the average user. An enthusiast can usually be further categorized as one of two types of people; a gamer or a performance tuner. For enthusiasts, the middle-of-the road just doesn't cut it. They want the best that manufacturers can provide. It is with enthusiasts in mind that ASUS created the Republic of Gamers line of products. The ASUS Rampage IV Formula LGA 2011 motherboard is one of the latest releases in the Republic of Gamers line. Here at Benchmark Reviews, we've gotten our hands on an ASUS Rampage IV Fomula Battlefield 3 Edition motherboard and we are taking you piece by piece as we explore this enthusiast inspired piece of hardware. Read More ...
ASUS RT-N66U Dual Band Wireless-N900 Gigabit Router Building on the success of the RT-N56 Dual Band WiFi router, ASUS has been hard at work trying to create the next 'next-best' wireless router. Today, Benchmark Reviews brings you the ASUS RT-N66U Dual Band Wireless-N900 Gigabit Router. As you will see in the images that follow, the ASUS RT-N66U certainly looks the part and is different in that way from 99% of routers on offer today. The RT-N66U has three high power external antenna to allow simultaneous 2.4GHz and 5GHz signals to run at up to 450Mb/s concurrently, this allows you to stream HD content to your media devices (5GHz) while you enjoy uninterrupted wireless internet (2.4GHz). On the box ASUS claim that the RT-N66U has Leading giga-level throughput over 900Mb/s but as with most claims this doesn't always come true, our testing threw out some good numbers but nowhere near ASUS' claims. The ASUS RT-N66U has two built in USB 2.0 ports that allow you to share printers and USB storage over LAN and WAN, and also allows you to share a 3G/4G internet connection. Read More ...
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