Titan Dragonfly 4 Review
Performance testing the Titan Dragonfly 4 CPU Cooler
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ROCCAT Ryos MK Glow Illuminated Gaming Mechanical Keyboard Review
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NZXT Source 530 Case Review
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Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Review
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Batman: Arkham Origins Review
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Cooler Master Nepton 280L Review
A closer look at the Cooler Master Nepton 280L and JetFlo 120 fans.
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Logitech G510s Gaming Keyboard Review
Logitech G510s Gaming Keyboard Review
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PowerColor Devil R9 270X Review
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Raidmax Vampire Case Review
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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Review
A look at NVIDIA's answer to the R9 290X from AMD and their partners.
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Assassin's Creed Revelations 2-Years Later Review
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Assassin's Creed III 1-Year Later Review
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BitFenix Expands Colossus Line of Cases
BitFenix has announced the addition of a pair of cases to its Colossus line of cases that was launched three years ago with the Colossus Full Tower. The two new cases are the opposite of the Colossus namesake in size, instead targeting the small form factor market. One case is geared toward Micro-ATX boards and the other accommodates the Mini-ITX form factor. The two cases share a number of design elements including support for long graphics cards and 240mm water cooling radiators, modular hard drive cages, cable management locations, and filtered intake fans. Both cases also offer lighting with three color choices and a pulse mode. Take a look at the video below for an extensive look at the new cases.
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Protecting Quantum Information by Removing Quantum Information
One of the weird aspects of quantum mechanics is that observing a system can change it, causing information to be lost. This is a challenge for quantum computers, which require information is stored in qubits for extended periods of time. Researchers at NIST and other institutions however have found actually protect the information in qubits by causing them to give up information.
Typically, once information is encoded into the quantum states of particles, forming a qubit, one would want to protect it from the environment and any interference that could cause that information to be lost. What the NIST researchers have done though is taken advantage of that interference to protect the information they want. The researchers used two ultraviolet lasers to entangle two beryllium atoms, forming a qubit, and had two partner magnesium ions nearby. With an ultraviolet laser and microwaves, the researchers caused the qubit to release information to the magnesium ions, but that information only concerned properties of the particles besides their entanglement. The magnesium ions were then cooled with multiple lasers, causing that information to be lost to the environment.
Eventually what happens is the qubit enters a ground state where only the desired entanglement is left, and it is protected from electromagnetic fields. Essentially, everything unwanted about the qubit was removed, so only what the researchers wanted was left, making it hard to destroy. The researchers found they could successfully entangle the correct state within milliseconds, 75% of the time, and with more time the accuracy grew to 89%.
Source: NIST
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Hardware Roundup: Tuesday Edition
There's a lot of good items for you to look over today, including a couple of Intel Z87 motherboards and Noctua coolers. The first Z87 motherboard is the Gigabyte Z87X-UD3H, which comes in at a lower price point than most but certainly isn't lacking for features. Next is the Biostar Z87X 3D motherboard, which is also a more budget-friendly motherboard that packs in a sweet audio solution. As for Noctua, well we have looks at both the NH-U14S and NH-D14 CPU coolers; the first is a single tower cooler while the second is the big daddy dual tower cooler. There's a review on the Lenovo Erazer X700 gaming PC for those who'd rather buy a fully assembled computer that doesn't skimp on the performance. We have a review on the new Moto X smartphone and also an AirPlay speaker from Wren for iOS devices.
Motherboards
Gigabyte Z87X-UD3H @ ThinkComputers
Biostar Z87X 3D @ Bjorn3D
CPU Cooling
Noctua NH-U14S @ Frostytech
Noctua NH-D14 @ PC Perspective
Prebuilts
Lenovo Erazer X700 Desktop Gaming PC @ TechSpot
Speakers/Headphones
Wren V5AP AirPlay Speaker for Apple iOS Devices @ ThinkComputers
Mobile
Moto X on Verizon Wireless @ LanOC Reviews
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The OverclockersClub 2013 Christmas Contest is Here!
It's December, whcih can mean only one thing: the OverclockersClub 2013 Christmas Contest! That's right folks, the annual Christmas Contest has arrived at OCC, with a plethora of prizes up for grabs. There is, of course, a grand prize, and Bosco and the sponsors have truly outdone themselves. The grand prize computer features an Intel Core i7 4960X, three NVIDIA GTX Titans, an ASUS motherboard, a 240GB Kingston SSD, 16GB of Patriot DDR3 RAM, a Thermaltake Water 3.0 Performer cooler, and plenty more items. Sounds sweet, right? You know it does! There's more than just the system, like RAM from Mushkin, Kingston, and G.Skill; SSDs from Kingston; cases from Thermaltake and Fractal Design; peripherals from a variety of manufactuers; CPU coolers from Noctua; and really just far too many things to list in here.
There are some requirements to enter of course, but predominantly in the email you send to contest@overclockersclub.com. That email must contain your username, full system specifications, and your full mailing address with phone number. The phone number is particularly important, as the grand prize winner will be getting a call from Bosco himself on Christmas morning. You seriously do not want to miss that call, especially if you don't recognize the number! The 2013 Christmas Contest is open to everyone, but just be sure to enter by December 24.
Best of luck to everyone, and a Merry Christmas from all of us at OCC.
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NVIDIA Releases GeForce Experience 1.8
NVIDIA just keeps rolling right along, as earlier today it released version 1.8 of GeForce Experience. The new update features "game-changing Optimal Playable Setting functionality", as well as various improvements to ShadowPlay to help make it even better. Optimal Playable Settings can now go up to 3840x2160 resolutions; users can choose between Windowed, Borderless Windowed, and Fullscreen Mode; and there's a handy slider to adjust settings between Optimal, performance, quality, or anything in between. NVIDIA defaults to settings that should give you at least 40 frames per second, however you can move the slider to the left for 60FPS or move it to the right for lower FPS (yet better quality). Of course those FPS numbers can change depending on the game and your specific hardware, but it at least gives you a good baseline.
As for the ShadowPlay improvements, Windows 7 users can now record up to 20 minutes of Shadow Mode footage, just like Windows 8 users. Windows 7 Manual Mode also no longer restricts you to a single 3.8GB file, as now it can record across multiple files until you run out of space (if you so choose). NVIDIA's even added the ability to record game and VOIP audio at the same time, so now you can narrate your footage as it happens. All users have to do is just select the "In-game & microphone" option under Audio in GeForce Experience. Some of the other improvements include reduced stuttering while replaying footage, and the ability to capture footage at native resolutions and aspect ratios up to 1920x1080.
GeForce Experience 1.8 should automatically prompt you to download and install if you're using it already, otherwise you can grab it from GeForce.com.
Source: NVIDIA
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Razer Adds New Headphones to Lineup
Razer got its start with gaming mice but has since expanded its business to include all sorts of high-end peripherals, with the Kraken Forged Edition headphones as the latest addition. The hand assembled headphones are made from aircraft-grade aluminum with leather ear cups to provide for comfort during extended use. Countless hours of design and test have led to a pair of headphones that "deliver booming bass, clear mids and crisp highs for sound that’s optimized for music and pitch-perfect for gaming." Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan said, "These are the best headphones on the market for both music and gaming, period. We’ve made some incredible audio products in our time, and I’m proud to say that we have taken another huge step forward in terms of audio quality in a pair of headphones with phenomenal fit and finish."
Source: Press Release
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Razer Releases New Evil Geniuses Branded Peripherals
Razer has been active in the eSports community for some time, sponsoring teams, players, and events. The company has now announced a new array of peripherals carrying the brand of Evil Geniuses, one of the teams sponsored by Razer. Limited edition versions of the Taipan mouse, Goliathus mouse pad, and Black Widow Ultimate keyboard will be available and represent the top of line products from Razer. Members of the Evil Geniuses team were involved throughout the design process to help create products that represent the team and its players. Evil Geniuses CEO Alex Garfield said, "Razer's enthusiasm for a custom line of Evil Geniuses products was a major factor in our decision to partner with them in the first place. It shows that there was an internal commitment at Razer to help us grow as a business." The Goliathus has an MSRP of $19.99, the Taipan will cost $89.99, and the Black Widow Ultimate will sell for $149.99. The Taipan and Goliathus are available now while the Black Widow is expected to be available the second week of December.
Source: Press Release
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Regenerating Polymer Developed
Self-healing polymers are pretty cool materials that have the ability to repair cracks, scratches, and cuts on their own. If an object has lost a major piece of itself though, the self-healing property will not be able to do much. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University however have developed a model for materials with the ability to regenerate bulk sections.
Regeneration is not a new concept for science, as many animals are able to regenerate severed limbs. This already-studied process helped the researchers identify the criteria for this work: initiation; propagation; and termination. To allow a material to sense when a portion of itself has been removed, the researchers added nanorods, of which the ones nearest to the new surface, move towards it. These nanorods then will cause polymerization reactions with molecules in a solution, to grow more of polymer. Through the computer model, the researchers also realized how to control the process, so as to stop it when necessary, and ensure the newly-grown material looks like the old one.
As this is currently just a computer model, it could be years before an actual regenerating polymer is created. For now though, the researchers will continue to work to optimize the model for when that polymer is ready to be made.
Source: University of Pittsburgh
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Hardware Roundup: Monday Edition
It's officially December, and there's a few reviews for you to check out to welcome in the final month of the year. There's a new scalable NAS from Synology that could be the heart of your media server, either as your first step into the NAS world or an upgrade over an existing model. Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite gets reviewed to see how the e-reader line does with a backlit eInk screen. We finish today with a look at a couple of handy programs that can automatically download subtitles for movies and TV shows so you don't have to worry about it.
Storage/Hard Drives
Synology DS1513+ Scalable NAS for SMB @ Madshrimps
E-Readers
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite @ Benchmark Reviews
Software
Time Saver: 100% Hands Off Subtitle Downloads in Windows or Mac @ TechSpot
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Hardware Roundup: Friday Edition
November is just about over and done with, and before it goes we have a few items for you to check out. We have a review on a Gigabyte Radeon R9 270X WF OC video card, which uses the company's Windforce 3X cooler and boosts the clocks by 50MHz. There's a look at the BitFenix Prodigy M case that's been tweaked a little to fit an mATX system instead of ITX, while still keeping all the original Prodigy features. Things finish off today with the Thermalright AXP-100 CPU cooler to help keep ITX systems from going up in flames.
Video Cards
Gigabyte AMD Radeon R9 270X WF OC (GV-R927XOC-2GD) @ Madshrimps
Cases
BitFenix Prodigy M @ Benchmark Reviews
CPU Coolers
Thermalright AXP-100 @ LanOC Reviews
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New Time-of-Flight 3D Camera Developed
Though many people may only associate 3D photography with movies, it is a growing technology that will likely find use in many fields, such as medical imaging, sensors for cars, and gaming. Researchers at MIT have recently demonstrated a 3D camera that uses time-of-flight technology and can achieve a time resolution approaching femtoseconds.
Time-of-flight (TOF) technology is pretty straightforward as it simply relies on the fact that the speed of light is known, so by measuring how long it takes a light pulse to reflect off an object, one can determine the distance to that object. This is how Microsoft's new Kinect technology works. One problem with TOF cameras is that they do not work well with semi-transparent or translucent objects. The researchers have managed to overcome that issue by applying algorithms similar to those that sharpen photos taken by a shaky hand. Combined with some other tools, the $500 camera is able to reach towards femtosecond resolution, making it a 'nano-camera.'
Of course, at $500 this is not particularly cheap technology, but because of this camera's similarities to the new Kinect, prices could drop due to the games industry. Once that happens, the MIT researchers will have already produced a number of ways for people to utilize the technology.
Source: MIT
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Hardware Roundup: Wednesday Edition
It's the day before Thanksgiving in the U.S., and we have some reviews for you to be thankful for while awaiting the turkey dinner. We have an article examining the frequency variance of retail AMD Radeon R9 290X models and how there really should be a pre-defined clock for the base and turbo speeds. We also have a look at the new NZXT Source 530 case, which is a more budget-minded case that's brimming with features. There's a review on a Powerline kit from Rosewill to deliver an Internet connection using your home's internal wiring. We wrap things up with a review on the new Apple iPad mini to see if all the improvements make the price increase worth it.
Video
Retail Radeon R9 290X Frequency Variance Issues Still Present @ PC Perspective
Cases
NZXT Source 530 Full Tower @ Neoseeker
Networking
Rosewill RPLC-200PKIT Powerline Adapter Kit @ Benchmark Reviews
Laptops/Tablets
Apple iPad mini Retina @ TechSpot
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Gaming can Link Emotions
Have you ever noticed yourself picking up the expressions and mannerisms of others you spend a lot of time with? This is not uncommon and has some physiological basis. Researchers at Aalto University and Helsinki Institute for Information Technology have recently found that this linkage also occurs between two people playing video games together.
With facial electromyography to measure the reactions of facial muscles, and an EEG to measure brainwaves, the researchers pitted gamers against each other in a game called Hedgewars. This game features hedgehogs with artillery and the goal is to eliminate your opponent's hedgehogs first. When two human players were competing, the measurements indicated that their negative emotions became synchronized. Curiously, the more competitive the game, the more the positive emotions also became linked.
The researchers are not entirely sure why the linkage strengthened as the situation became more stressful, but it is possible this is to allow one to better anticipate their opponent, or to preserve any social bonds. The latter could definitely be true as the players were friends prior to playing the game, and would not have wanted to threaten that.
Source: Aalto University
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Acer to Make First Chromebook With Touchscreen
Chromebooks seem to be the new craze in the laptop world. They are some of the bestselling laptops on Amazon, and they make plenty of headlines. Now Acer is ready to differentiate itself from the rest of the Chromebook makers. The company is introducing the first Chromebook with a touchscreen, and this is done without sending the price through the roof. The C720P, as it is called, will have an MSRP of "only" $300.
Now you may ask yourself the question whether a touchscreen is even necessary, since it is not really that prominent in the rest of the laptop market. But according to Arif Maskatia, CTO for Acer, "[the] new touchscreen C720P gives customers an intuitive way to browse sites online, enjoy apps, and do more with the Chromebook". So maybe this is the OS touchscreens have been waiting for.
Other than that, the laptop is not anything special. It has a 11.6 inch display with a 1366x768 resolution, an Intel Celeron 2955U processor, 2 GB of DDR 3 RAM, and a 32 GB SSD. Other features include Wi-Fi, USB 3.0 and 2.0 ports, a webcam, and an HDMI output. The battery is said to last up to 7.5 hours, which is decent, although not fantastic. The decent battery life might have been a trade off in order to keep the Chromebook light and thin. It weighs a little less than 3 pounds and is a mere 0.78 inches thick.
It will be sold at Amazon, Best Buy, and in Acer's online store starting early December.
Source: MaximumPC
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Available Tags:Gaming , Keyboard , Cooler Master , Logitech , NVIDIA , GeForce , GTX , Hardware , 3D , Acer ,
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