Dell unveils its new 34-inch curved ultrawide monitor
LG has already unveiled its new curved ultrawide monitor, but now it is Dell's turn with the new 34-inch Ultrasharp U3415W. Like LG's curved panel, Dell's new ultrawide monitor is also curved, with a 21:9 aspect ratio and 3440x1440 resolution.
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ALS Association attempted to trademark the 'ice bucket challenge'
I'm sure you've heard of the ALS ice bucket challenge by now, but I'm sure you didn't hear that the ALS Association had filed trademarks on the phrases "ALS ice bucket challenge" and "ice bucket challenge" on August 22, which was met with controversy.
What do you think of ALS Association's attempt at trademarking the ice bucket challenge? Have you taken part in it?
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Volition announces Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell for 2015
Saints Row fans will be happy to know that Volition has announced the next entry in the Saints Row series, Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell. The new game will have players visiting the afterlife, which should be an interesting journey.
There will be a few new weapons in Gat Out of Hell, where gamers can use the Arm Chairmageddon (a La-Z-Boy recliner with guns), the Energy Caster, a Locust Gun and a weapon that fires a plague of frogs. The game will be released for $19.95 on the PS3, PS4, PC, Xbox 360 and Xbox One on January 27, 2015. The developer will also release Saints Row 4: Re-Elected, which is a spruce up of Saints Row 4 for the PS4 and Xbox One.
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NVIDIA rumored to skip the GeForce 800 series, with GTX 980 coming
It looks like NVIDIA is preparing the GeForce GTX 900 series, with the company to reportedly skip the 800 series, according to VideoCards.com. The site is reporting that NVIDIA will launch the new second-generation Maxwell-based GPUs on September 9-10 at a press event, with the NDA lifting on the GeForce GTX 980 and GTX 970 on September 19.
Then we have the fact of AMD sitting on the unannounced Radeon R9 295X, something that the company should announce or unveil as soon as NVIDIA is done pulling the curtain off of its new Maxwell-based video cards.
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Alienware new Area 51 gaming PC features a totally unique chassis
Alienware has just unveiled its new Area 51 gaming PC, something that is making a comeback. The original design rewinds back to 2006, but there's now a new design, and it looks quite slick.
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Microsoft sat down with Cyanogen recently, so did Amazon and Samsung
Cyanogen is definitely doing alright for themselves at the moment, with the company meeting with some of the biggest companies in the world recently. Microsoft, Samsung, Amazon, Yahoo and more have met with the company "to see whether it becomes a potential partner or acquisition target."
Cyanogen is currently in search for a "big" Series C funding round, and with recent staff movements from EA and Facebook, it could get quite serious, quite quick for Cyanogen.
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Microsoft pulling plug on MSN Messenger in China later this year
Microsoft Windows Live Messenger, previously known as MSN Messenger, will officially end later this year. The software giant is pulling the plug in October for Chinese users, ending 15 years of service to users. Microsoft's service will remain active until October 31, with Chinese users shifting to Skype later this year.
MSN Messenger was launched in 1999 as a rival to ICQ and AOL's AIM chat services - with video calls, games, photo delivery, and other features added later. It didn't reach China until 2005, and faced challenges from QQ messenger and other rival domestic chat services.
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G.SKILL Ripjaws 4 DDR RAM reaches 4004MHz using Intel Core i7-5930K
Memory manufacturer G.SKILL has announced it reached 4004MHz frequency using its Ripjaws 4 Series DDR4 RAM on an ASUS ROG X99 Rampage V Extreme motherboard powered with the Intel Core i7-5930K CPU. The speed was verified by CPU-Z freeware system and hardware benchmarking software.
The launch of Intel X99 paired with DDR4 memory has excited PC enthusiasts and hardware manufacturers - as several gaming companies announced new PCs pushing impressive benchmarks. Expect RAM manufacturers to continue pushing DDR4 speeds even higher moving forward, while hardware will remain rather pricey in the foreseeable future.
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Digital Storm includes Intel X99 to enthusiast PC models for gamers
Boutique gaming PC company Digital Storm has rolled out the Intel X99 chipset to its high performance gaming systems, such as the Aventum II. PC enthusiasts look forward to using X99 to push their hardware benchmarks, as Digital Storm and OEMs roll out X99-related product announcements.
"The goal with all our systems is to maximize performance," said Harjit Chana, Digital Storm Chief Brand Officer, in a press statement. "That means arming each Digital Storm system with the bleeding edge technology needed to dominate the competition."
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Sprint, Softbank will introduce Sony Xperia Z3 smartphone
Sprint and SoftBank will reportedly launch the Sony Xperia Z3 smartphone, with the smartphone set to be unveiled during IFA next week. However, the company - which attracted just 2.1 percent smartphone market share in 2013 - will face stiff competition from Samsung and Apple. However, this would be the first time Sony smartphones would be available for SoftBank, and could provide a roadmap to increased market share.
"I can't see this making much of a difference," said Yasuo Nakane, Deutsche Bank analyst, when explaining the proposed deal. "Even if they put out a phone on Sprint, Verizon is the priority any way you think about it."
Despite Verizon - and No. 2 AT&T - being a priority for handset makers, this would at least be a step in the right direction for Sony. The Japanese electronics company has struggled to win over wireless carriers and maintain a positive relationship, unlike Samsung and other major phone makers.
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Chinese hardware supplier for Samsung accused of using child labor
A labor rights organization has accused Samsung and Lenovo of working with a Chinese supplier that uses child labor in its factory. The China Labor Watch sent in an undercover investigator that found child labor, overtime and pay abuse of younger employees in the HEG Technology factory. HEG reportedly uses facial recognition software to ensure no underage workers are hired at its facility, and an outsourcing company is used to hire students.
Samsung said it would like to do a joint investigation "for more precise verification," also saying: We find it regrettable that CLW issued the allegations today without any mention of our statement."
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Corsair teams with ASUS, launches 3000MHz, 32000MHz, 3300MHz DDR4 RAM
Hardware companies Corsair and ASUS have teamed up to create the fastest production DDR4 memory kit for use with the Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition CPUs. The new Corsair Dominator Platinum DDR4 memory kits are available in 3000MHz, 3200MHz and 3300MhZ speeds. The new RAM kits work especially well using the ASUS X99 Deluxe and Rampage V Extreme motherboards for Intel Core i7 CPU fans.
"Our rigorous validation with ASUS has enabled us to make Dominator Platinum 3300MHz the fastest desktop DDR4 memory available at launch," said Thi La, Corsair COO, in a press statement. "Our OC team and engineers are excited to see such performance headroom the new Intel platform and are looking forward to releasing even faster kits in the near future."
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Archos preparing a Microsoft Windows 8.1 tablet for $149
Electronics maker Archos has unveiled the Archos 80 Cesium tablet, a device running Microsoft Windows 8.1 and uses an Intel quad-core CPU with a 1200 x 800 resolution. The 8" tablet's hardware specifications haven't been released, but for $149, the price point might attract consumers.
The company also introduced the Archos 40 Cesium, a 4-inch Qualcomm Snapdragon 200-powered smartphone running Windows Phone 8.1. It will be released in Europe next month for around $130.
"Our upcoming lineup of consumer products delivers amazing performance, superior design and impressive affordability," said Loic Poirier, Archos CEO, in a press statement. "We are committed to making technology universally available and are proud to shape the market by providing high quality, yet attainable devices."
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NOAA Joint Polar Satellite System ground station vulnerable to attack
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is being pressured by the U.S. Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General to fix several vulnerabilities currently found in the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS). There are at least a few different high-risk vulnerabilities found in the JPSS ground stations that could be exploited by clever cyberattacks.
"The remediation of high-risk vulnerabilities is critical to the continued success of the JPSS mission and should have a high priority," according to the report. "The more high-risk vulnerabilities that exist in the system, the higher the probability is that an attacker could compromise it. This could lead to a disruption of NOAA's ability to command and control the Suomi NPP satellite and to provide data that is used in numerical weather models that support weather predictions and climate monitoring."
As sophisticated cyberattacks originate from China, Russia and other political rivals, it's even more important to take care of easy-to-fix vulnerabilities that could leave the NOAA's program at risk.
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Massive Xbox One system update is arriving, media player included
We've been expecting this update for the Xbox One for a while now, but it's finally rolling out to users across the world, and will continue to do so over the coming days.
- A new Media Player app: Play media files from an attached USB device or a network connected home media server with the new media player app - DNLA support coming soon. Xbox One will support more formats than Xbox 360, including support for dozens of new file formats like Mpeg 2 TS, animated gifs and MKV, which will be added by the end of the year.
- Party on in the new and improved Party App: Be the leader of your party with the new party leader setting. As the party leader, you can change whether the party requires invitations and you can remove others from the party. The updated app also lets you see what activities everyone in your party is doing and who is playing in the same game with you in addition to being able to quickly perform common actions like muting, joining, or sending game invites.
- New features for SmartGlass: You can now post status messages from the Activity Feed and comments, or share items from both your Activity Feed and Game Clips. Along with the new comment and share features, a personalized Activity Feed has been added to your profile and messages have been updated to a new layout supporting a full conversation view. Additionally, we are adding the ability to record game clips directly from the Now Playing bar. Finally, for users who upgrade the app directly, we have introduced a What's New page highlighting the features of each release.
- "Xbox On" capabilities in Australia, Canada (French), Italy, Spain, and Mexico: New regions will have the ability to use the "Xbox On" Kinect voice command to power on their consoles when they're in connected standby (Instant On) mode.
- Boot to TV: Now Xbox One owners will be able to set their console to boot directly to television when coming out of connected standby.
- Bandwidth Usage Display: Bandwidth Usage will show users how much bandwidth their Xbox One is consuming over a period of time, a useful tool for those who want to track against bandwidth caps set by ISPs in certain markets.
- GameDVR deletes: Users will be able to choose multiple GameDVR clips to delete at once in the Upload app.
- Save your Avatar Gamerpic: A new option to save Avatar Gamerpics to users' OneDrive.
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Assassin's Creed Unity has been delayed by two weeks to November 11
Ubisoft has announced that it has delayed Assassin's Creed: Unity by two weeks, with a new release date of November 11. Assassin's Creed: Rogue launches at the same time for the previous generation consoles, the Xbox 360 and PS3, while Unity launches on current generation consoles and PC.
2014 should be known as the year of delays, with Battlefield: Hardline being delayed through to 2015, Dragon Age: Inquisition was also delayed from October to November, The Division pushed into 2015, and more.
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Apple confirms September 9 event, wishes it 'could say more'
Apple has finally confirmed the September 9 event we've all known was coming for a while, sending out invitations to the media for the event that will be held at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts at De Anza College in Cupertino.
It looks like we should get excited for the event, but what to expect? Just two new iPhones with an iWatch too? Will we see some true innovations from Apple after years of slight iteration changes to the iPhone? I don't know whether to get excited or not, what about you?
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During peak times, Twitch has more viewers than cable TV networks
Amazon didn't shell out $970 million for nothing, so it should come as no surprise that Twitch has some incredible viewer numbers. The streaming gaming outfit, when pitted against cable networks, draws more viewers in peak times than the likes of HLN, CNN, E!, MSNBC, TruTV and even MTV.
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Latest Titanfall game mode removes the titans, and AI bots
There is a new mode in Titanfall, something that was baked into the game for its sixth update, which removes the titans and provides gamers with an 8 vs 8 shootout - no titans, no AI bots, just pure run and gun.
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Australian government sues Valve over its refund policy in the country
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is suing Half-Life and Counter-Strike developer Valve, claiming that the company is breaching Australian Consumer Law. The reason? Valve doesn't offer refunds of any kind, and now the ACCC is putting its foot down as these actions are against Australian consumer law.
Valve has since responded, with Doug Lombardi saying: "We are making every effort to cooperate with the Australian officials on this matter, while continuing to provide Steam services to our customers across the world, including Australian gamers."
Where it gets interesting, is Valve's refund policy, which states: "As with most software products, unless required by local law, we do not offer refunds or exchanges on games, DLC or in-game items purchased on our website or through the Steam Client. Please review Section 3 of the Steam Subscriber Agreement for more information." Within that refund policy, it reads "unless required by local law" so in this instance, local law requires a refund if the product is deemed faulty. An interesting turn for Australian gamers, and Valve right now.
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Metro 2033 developers next game will be 'less linear, more sandbox'
For fans of the Metro series, you might like to know about 4A Games' upcoming title, where the developer is shifting away from the linear gameplay of Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light, and into the open arms of a more sandbox experience.
We don't know if this will be another Metro game, or something completely new, such as new IP. For Metro fans, be sure to check out the Metro Redux from 4A Games that just launched, which features an upgraded look, and some new goodies.
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Google Project Wing is testing delivery drones in Australia
Google's Project Wing effort is tasked with developing drones that can be used to deliver goods and relief aid in case of a national emergency. The drone has four propellers that are electrically driven, with a wing span up to five feet, and weighs under 19 pounds. There have been at least 30 test flights conducted in August alone, as the research team begins analyzing test flight data.
"We're now back in California reviewing what we've learned from the tests and preparing our next set of adventures," Google said in a press statement.
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NASA fully commits to Space Launch System, set for debut in 2018
The NASA next-generation Space Launch System (SLS) is a multi-billion-dollar rocket project that is expected to officially debut during a November 2018 space launch. NASA expects to invest an additional $7 billion from February 2014 until the late 2018 test launch, in which the SLS will shuttle an Orion crew vehicle past the moon and back to Earth.
Total cost could surpass $12 billion to develop three variations of the SLS, with billions more needed to fly heavier next-generation boosters into orbit. As NASA and other space nations look beyond the International Space Station (ISS) - mainly to Mars - the SLS could help NASA push research of the Red Planet to a new level.
NASA heavily relies on the Russian space program to ferry astronauts and supplies to and from the ISS, but with growing political tensions, the U.S. space agency also has called on private rocket companies for assistance.
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L.A. County Sheriff's report link between terrorism and piracy
Internet piracy is helping boost gangs, drug dealers and terrorists, according to a major media conglomerate and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Police officers in Los Angeles County say piracy is a priority and want to clamp down on Internet pirates in neighborhoods they oversee.
If in doubt, saying there is a link to terrorism and street violence - whether or not accurate - is a good way to gain headlines and try to intimidate casual users away from copyright infringement. However, without offering hard evidence of this reported link, most people will just shrug it off and keep downloading and sharing files.
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Bitcoin shows longevity potential as retailers embrace cryptocurrency
Online merchants are embracing bitcoin payments from customers, even though the cryptocurrency has been described as volatile by some financial investors. However, retailers admit that bitcoins still don't amount for much of overall transactions, but expect it to slowly grow as more consumers become familiar with owning and using bitcoins.
"We don't have to deal with the actual holding of the bitcoin: it's the payment processor that takes the currency risk for us," said Bernie Han, Dish Network COO. "That's what makes it appealing for us and I guess for other merchants as well."
As bitcoin startups receive more funding - and trust from consumers and retailers - more investments are being made related to security to keep each person safer.
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Intel X99 Motherboards and DDR4 Memory Buyer's Guide (Launch Edition)
Introduction
The purpose of this guide is to help speed up your research and narrow down your X99 motherboard choices, so you can focus on more specific motherboard research. While the X99 platform isn't necessarily a landmark platform, there is an abundance of choices for both the motherboard and memory segments. Not only do you have to pick out a nice X99 motherboard for your Haswell-E CPU, but you also must adopt the new DDR4 memory specification.
These parts are pricey, and while I was looking over the sites of major retailers, I spotted countless errors in motherboard specifications. One large retail site even had an x99 motherboard with two display ports, after checking and confirming the site was wrong, I decided to compile my own specification list.
For clarification, I should mention that the X99 platform has no motherboard video outputs as the site was claiming. After countless hours of searching, compiling, and confirming, I think I have put together a decent list of X99 motherboards and DDR4 modules, almost all of which are available to buy at this very moment. We tried to find motherboards for sale from Biostar and ECS, but we couldn't find them, so they won't be included here today, but the other big players are included.
PRICING: You can find Intel X99 Motherboards and DDR4 RAM at Amazon.
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ICY DOCK Black Vortex 3.5" Drive Cage Review
The Black Vortex is a bay solution allowing you to mount four 3.5" hard drives into three 5.25" chassis bays. Features of this solution include all metal construction with front panel access to your drives for easy access. Additionally, the Black Vortex features a large front mounted fan to aid in cooling your drives, along with being design to accept the EZConvert Air and EZConvert Fit solutions for mounting 2.5" drives.
MSRP of the ICY DOCK Black Vortex is listed at $49.99 with a one-year warranty.
The Black Vortex is a rather solid solution for anyone wanting to add a bit of appeal to their chassis, while being functional for up to four drives. The build quality is top notch, even when we loaded the cage with four hard drives, it didn't lose its rigidity.
The front mounted fan, while being LED lit, isn't too bright when installed in a chassis. Of course, being a blue LED, it may clash if you're one that does themed builds, but then again, you can easily swap the fan out if needed. As far as noise is concerned, the Black Vortex is rather silent, even with the fan being powered by a Molex connection.
Overall, I would say the ICY DOCK Black Vortex is an excellent solution for anyone wanting to add multiple drives to their PC with the added benefit of additional chassis cooling with the front mounted fan design.
PRICING: You can find the ICY DOCK Black Vortex for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The ICY DOCK Black Vortex retails for $45.53 at Amazon.
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ASRock X99X Killer Fatal1ty (Intel X99) Motherboard Review
Introduction of the ASRock X99X Killer
Taking a look at the Intel i7 5960X EE which was also posted just minutes ago on TweakTown, we found ourselves extremely impressed with what Intel was offering from its prestigious Extreme Edition line of processors. Like any time you look at a single item that pretty much tips $1,000, you find yourself knowing that it's out of reach for so many people or just something that people can't justify.It's all fair enough in the end. The Core i7 5960X EE is a hugely expensive processor, but with that said, it's at the exact price point you would expect it to be. The good news is that below that, the i7 5930K and i7 5820K processors look like impressive options for people who want to jump on the X99 bandwagon, but not pay the price that is associated with the Extreme Edition line of CPUs.
If want to read more about the CPUs and the new X99 chipset, then I highly recommend you head on over to our Intel i7 5960X EE review where we cover both items in detail. Now we're moving onto the motherboard that was behind everything in that review.
The Killer Fatal1ty series of motherboards aren't new to us and we've had a chance to test both the Z87 and Z97 versions of the board in the past. We've been happy with what ASRock is offering, and expect that the trend will continue with the highest-end version of the board yet, the X99X Killer. It's the first offering of a bunch of Intel X99 boards we've got to look at over the coming weeks and months. Today, though, is all about the ASRock version, as we spend the time to focus on benchmarks that make use of our motherboard to see just how it compares to a list of Z97 motherboards we've tested lately.
Package - What comes inside the box
Moving to the right of Super Allow, we've got a bit about the ASRock Cloud technology and the main specifications of the board. Moving down, we've got information on the new PCIe Gen3 Ultra M.2 slot offering fast performance with compatible drives. On the bottom left side, we've got a run down on what the Gaming Armor feature brings. Some of the main ones here include the Hi-Density Power Connector, Purity Sound 2, PCIe Power Connector, 2oz Copper PCB and the overall heat pipe design. Finally, we finish up on the bottom right side covering some of those main ASRock features, which include HDD Saver, ASRock APP Shop, the inclusion of X Split and those few Fatal1ty features which cover Key Master, Fatal1ty Mouse Port and F-Stream software.
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Intel Core i7 5960X EE (Haswell-E) CPU and X99 Chipset Review
Introduction
Gracing us with its presence towards the end of 2011, the X79 chipset has been around for a long time with it tipping almost three years. When it comes to the world of computers, this is a long time. To give you an idea, when it came to other areas, we were looking at the HD 6970 from AMD when it comes to video cards, quad-channel memory kits at speed only as high as 2400MHz DDR and 512GB SSDs that cost nearly $900. Now we've got the dual GPU R9 295X2, kits of memory that support speeds in excess of 3000MHz DDR out of the box, and 1TB SSD drives that are not only a whole lot faster, but also priced at under $700, and some less than that.
If you found yourself as an early adopter to the platform, it's more than possible that you're still sitting on it. While chipsets like the Z87 and Z97 have represented much better value over recent time, the simple fact remains that people who wanted a large amount of cores or video card setups that expanded past two were best buying a system based on the X79 platform due to its strong enthusiast nature. For that reason, my own video card testbed has been based on the X79 chipset since almost launch. Apart from a slight CPU upgrade over that time, it hasn't changed much at all with the ASUS ROG based board continuing to perform exceptionally strong even now.
This is one of the largest PC launches in a long time, as the new platform brings with it not only a whole new chipset, but a shift to brand new DDR4 memory as well. With a new chipset and the shift to DDR4, it's a little hard to figure out where we should be starting first. It's fairly safe to assume that the new Intel Core i7 5960X EE processor is going to be the item that most people will drool over thanks to its $999 price tag and eight cores. For that reason, it's going to be the first piece of the puzzle we're going to look at, and why you're here right now.
While today our main focus will be on the performance of the CPU, we will also be covering the new X99 chipset in the following pages, along with a bit about DDR4. Once we've looked at the processor, we'll be moving into a mountain of X99 based motherboards and DDR4 memory kits that have already gathered in our lab to see just what you should be pairing with this beast of a processor.
At times it can be a little tough to get truly excited about what's going on in the hardware industry. However, with a new high-end chipset, a CPU that sports a bunch of cores and the latest in memory technology, I can say that I'm genially pumped to see how the new platform goes. So, let's leave it here, and see what the new Haswell-E processor line up looks like, before we get into the all-important performance numbers later on in the review.
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Sapphire Radeon R7 260X 2GB OC in CrossFire Video Card Review
Introduction of the Sapphire R7 260X 2GB OC
Along with the HIS card, we also had this Sapphire card as well. Normally, what we would do is fire up MSI Afterburner, and overclock the Sapphire card to see just how much performance we could get out of the model. However, I thought we'd mix it up a bit today.
I'm a huge fan of CrossFire. Sure, it's not perfect, and we do run into an odd problem here and there, but when it comes to top game titles, the extra GPU performance that is available usually works without an issue. For the most part, my recommendations for any dual GPU setup would revolve around high-end options. The biggest reason to go CrossFire or SLI is because a single card solution doesn't give you the performance you want.
Anyway, with all that said and done, I should quickly cover what exactly we plan to do here today. With our second R7 260X 2GB in hand, we're going to be pairing it with the HIS card we tested the other day to see just what kind of performance we can get when we CrossFire these two mid-range cards.
This probably isn't going to be the most popular CrossFire setup, but why not have some fun every once in a while? Now, let's begin our review with a look at the packaging of the Sapphire R7 260X 2GB OC.
Package - What comes inside the box
Upon turning the box over, you can see we've got a bit of a blurb on the left side. The right side gives us a bit of information on the main features, including the memory, Sapphire's cooling performance and quality, and the AMD APP Acceleration and support for low power mode.
PRICING: You can find the Sapphire R7 260X 2GB OC for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing, but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The Sapphire R7 260X 2GB OC retails for $114.67 at Amazon.
Canada: The Sapphire R7 260X 2GB OC retails for CDN$159.99 at Amazon Canada.
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OWC ThunderBay IV RAID 5 Edition External Storage Drive Review
The ThunderBay IV RAID 5 Edition is quite similar, or in fact, is the exact same device as the ThunderBay IV. On the back of this solution, we have dual Thunderbolt 2 ports, along with a 92mm cooling fan. Being that this is the same basic design as the original ThunderBay IV, we still have the all-aluminium design with a locking mesh front panel.
Accordingly, with this being the same enclosure we reviewed a few months back, albeit with a new RAID 5 option, we will only be testing the new capabilities of this solution here today. You can read the original review here.
MSRP of the OWC ThunderBay IV RAID 5 Edition is set at $649.99 with a one-year warranty.
The ThunderBay IV is a very well built storage solution from OWC, and it certainly is nice to see them offer up a RAID 5 option for those wanting a bit of data redundancy, even if it is SoftRAID. For those that do use OS X, you have most likely heard of SoftRAID, as it is certainly one of the best solutions available at this point in time.
Moving over to performance, I was quite happy to see the ThunderBay IV with the included Toshiba 3TB drives our unit came with reach 600 MB/s on several occasions. While 720p testing results were certainly all over the place, moving from 550 MB/s to 650 MB/s, they began to even out within 1080p, and subsequently 4K testing coming in at 600 MB/s.
For those that may have already purchased the ThunderBay IV before it was offered up as a RAID 5 solution, it may be easier if you want the option to purchase the SoftRAID application from the vendor, rather than spending an additional $649.99 to get a separate, new enclosure.
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MSI Radeon R9 280 3GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC in CrossFire OCed Review
Introduction of the MSI R9 280 3GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC
Priced at a under $500 for a pair, when compared to the R9 290X 4GB, the R9 280 3GB setup really offers a strong bang for your buck. We even saw them outpace a reference R9 290X 4GB with no issue. It isn't until we start dealing with some pretty heavily manually overclocked R9 290X 4GB cards that the R9 280 3GB setup is up for a real fight.
With our MSI R9 290 3GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC on hand and running in CrossFire today, we'll be seeing just what kind of performance we can get out of this setup when paired with our most beloved overclocking software: MSI Afterburner.
No one will deny that the R9 280 3GB got off to a rough start due to the unreasonable price point at which it launched. However, since we've started looking at the model again over the past few weeks, our opinion has really changed thanks to that new pricing AMD has given us. Let's see if the trend can keep on going today with the MSI R9 280 3GB Twin Gaming OC in CrossFire and Overclocked.
Package - What comes inside the box
Upon turning the box over, you can see that AMD expands on some of the major features they offer, including the Gaming APP that offers overclocking, the Military Class 4 Standard that brings Hi-c and solid capacitors, along with the Twin Frozr IV cooler we just mentioned. On the right, you can some of the main AMD features, minimum system requirements, and the main specifications of the card.
As for cables, we are given a CrossFire bridge, a 6-pin to 8-pin PCIe power connector, a dual Molex to 6-pin PCIe power connector, a DVI to VGA connector, and a MiniDP to DisplayPort connector to round things off. This is a significantly larger bundler than we saw from PowerColor, and it includes that handy MiniDP to DisplayPort connector.
PRICING: You can find the MSI R9 280 3GB for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing, but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The MSI R9 280 3GB retails for $234.99 at Amazon.
Canada: The MSI R9 280 3GB retails for CDN$364.99 at Amazon Canada.
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ICY DOCK EZConvert Air MB382SP Storage Enclosure Review
In the lab today, we take a look at the latest EZConvert solution from ICYDOCK, the Air. The EZConvert Air is a 2.5" SATA to 3.5" solution featuring support for drives in the 7 to 15mm z-height size range. The Air features a largely open-air design with a stainless drive tray, allowing maximum airflow to keep your drives cool. Compatibility of the EZConvert Air extends to and 3.5" bay with a SATA connection.
MSRP of the ICYDOCK EZConvert Air is listed at $24.99 with a one-year warranty.
The ICYDOCK EZConvert Air is a great solution for those wanting to utilize their 2.5" SSD or HDD solutions in a standard 3.5" device. Build quality is quite superb, as the drive tray is stainless steel, with a chrome plating for aesthetics.
Performance was great as well, with the device being a pass-through, we found no loss in performance while utilizing the EZConvert. In testing, we touched 540 MB/s read and 500 MB/s write, the same performance we found having our SanDisk Extreme II connected directly to our SATA 6Gbps ports.
PRICING: You can find the ICY DOCK EZConvert Air for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The ICY DOCK EZConvert Air retails for $23.65 at Amazon.
Canada: The ICY DOCK EZConvert Air retails for CDN$23.76 at Amazon Canada.
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HIS Radeon R9 280 IceQ X2 OC 3GB Overclocked Video Card Review
Introduction of the HIS R9 280 IceQ X2 OC 3GB
More recently, we saw AMD push the price of the model down, and now they're making a second push on the model, hopeful that initial thoughts on the model can be changed. Our fresh look at the GIGABYTE WINDFORCE OC version of the card really changed our overall thoughts on the model. GIGABYTE had done a great job overclocking the card, and the new price point set for the model is much more attractive.
Now we've got another R9 280 on our hands, with this particular version coming from HIS. Today we're going to take a slightly different approach to the card. Instead of testing it at out of the box clocks, we'll be increase the clock speeds ourselves to see just what kind of performance we're able to get out of the model.
The model already looks a lot better after we reevaluated it with the GIGABYTE version, and we're hoping that HIS helps to keep the trend going with strong overclocking performance. The IceQ X2 series of cards from HIS hasn't let us down yet, and we're hoping it continues to impress us today. So, let's see exactly what's going on with the HIS R9 280 IceQ X2 OC 3GB.
Package - What comes inside the box
On the rear of the box, HIS goes into some of the features of the cooler, like the cooler's four heat pipes, and the IceQ X2 cooling technology. Below that information, there are some details regarding the power features, including the Dynamic Phase Control PWM IC, the Full Solid-State Capacitors, and the Solid-State Choke. Everything is rounded off with some of the key AMD features that are bought to the table.
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Samsung 845DC PRO Enterprise SSD Review
Introduction
Now, Samsung brings another cutting-edge NAND technology into play with the deployment of the first branded 3D NAND (V-NAND) SSD in the datacenter. The 845DC PRO features Samsung's first generation 24-layer V-NAND. V-NAND is 3D NAND that achieves better density, performance, endurance, and power consumption, via vertical stacking of the NAND cells, and CTF technology. This runs counter to the established norm of increasing density through NAND shrinks, and for good reason. Shrinks provide more density, but actually reduce endurance. Readers can take a deeper look at Vertical-NAND (V-NAND) in this Samsung whitepaper.
The addition of the 845DC PRO gives Samsung a dual-pronged attack that addresses both ends of the workload spectrum. The DC EVO addresses read-centric applications such as content delivery networks and web servers. Additionally, the DC PRO addresses workloads with heavier write workloads, such as application and database servers.
The 845DC PRO comes in 400GB and 800 GB capacities. It offers expected performance metrics from a SATA SSD, with the exception of the 4K random write speed, where it is well above the rest of the field. The 845DC PRO sports an impressive sustained 4k random write speed of 51,000 IOPS for the 800GB model, and 50,000 IOPS for the 400GB we are testing today. The 845DC PRO also weighs in with a healthy 4k random read speed of 92,000 IOPS. The SSD also provides up to 530/460 MB/s sequential read/write speeds.
Samsung addresses quality concerns with tantalum power capacitors, end-to-end data protection, a two million hour MTBF, and a one per 10E17 UBER rating. The 845DC PRO is also backed by a five-year warranty. Samsung shocked even the most optimistic of analysts with the quick cadence of V-NAND product launches, and such speedy development is partly due to their vertical integration. The use of their own controllers provides Samsung with a tangible advantage in time to market with new NAND technologies, such as V-NAND and TLC NAND.
Samsung has also focused on delivering consistent performance, with 99.9% of 4k I/O at QD32 served in 0.6ms for read, and 5ms for write operations. Samsung also highlights their focus on providing predictable performance by providing in-depth latency targets for their SSDs. The 845DC EVO with TLC held up well in our testing; let's see how 3D V-NAND holds up in comparison to planar (2D) NAND SSDs.
PRICING: You can find the Samsung 845DC PRO SSD for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing, but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The 400GB Samsung 845DC PRO SSD retails for $1,069.00 at Amazon, and the 800GB Samsung 845DC PRO SSD retails for $1,900.00 at Amazon.
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Crucial DDR4 Memory Performance Overview Early Look vs. DDR2 & DDR3
An early look at DDR4 RAM performance vs. DDR2 & DDR3 with Crucial memory
We now have had a chance to run these DDR4 memory sticks through some preliminary testing to see just what we can expect from DDR4 in terms of performance. Before we get started on the actual performance tests, let's look at a breakdown of memory types and bandwidth over the years.
With memory advancements, we will begin to see new DDR4 showing up very soon on upcoming Intel platforms. Not only has memory speed increased to 2133MHz for desktop users, but server platforms with DDR4 support will be making its first showing in the 2133MHz speeds and bandwidth of around 34 GB/s. For normal server DDR3 platforms running at 1333MHz and 1600MHz, we can expect to see anywhere from 8.4 GB/s to 12.7 GB/s improvement in bandwidth.
In addition to memory speed and bandwidth improvements, we will see improved error correction ability with Cycle redundancy checks (CRC) and on-chip parity detection for integrity of command/address. Let's get on with our testing now.
Overall, we see big improvements in DDR4 versus current DDR3 memory sticks used on server systems. The big picture is improving application response times, data transfers to other systems on the server, and databases will benefit a lot from moving to DDR4. In our tests, we see that the slower CL15 rating has not had big impact on DDR4 memory performance. In fact, it has helped to increase the memory speed to faster levels. If memory ratings were tighter, these kits would most likely have to reduce memory speed.
The problem for memory manufacturers is deciding on whether to release memory with tight timings and slower speed, or loosens up the timings and increase speed. In fact, both of these two systems can even out in the benchmarks, so the manufacturers must decide on a process and go forward with their decision. Therefore, the CL15 rating is not much of a concern at this time. As time goes on and manufacturing processes get better and more advanced, we might see memory ratings get lower, but only time will tell.
The last thing to talk about is the lower power consumption of DDR4. The new memory modules have not only increased in size, but lowered power use and improved bandwidth. We have moved from a system with eight DDR3 memory sticks using 10.8 to 12 volts in total, to eight DDR4 memory sticks at 9.6 volts. That in itself does not sound like a lot, but add up the number of servers that an enterprise company will use and you can start to see big reductions in power use, which also means less heat output, reducing other costs for datacenters such as cooling bills - it all adds up.
Here in TweakTown's Enterprise Lab we have started Crucial DDR4 memory testing and ready to move forward on system performance reviews soon. Stay tuned!
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ASUS ROG Maximus VII Formula (Intel Z97) Motherboard Review
Introduction of the ASUS ROG Maximus VII Formula
It feels like it has been ages since we've had a chance to check out a Republic of Gamers based motherboard. We checked through the motherboard category, and it looks like our last victim was the Z87 based ASUS ROG Maximus VI Impact from the latter half of August of last year. It came as no surprise that we absolutely loved the board, as it showed us exactly what ASUS is capable of doing, even when giving the tiny platform that is Mini-ITX.Today we're kicking it up a notch. Not only are we dealing with a board that is based on the Z97 chipset (the one that replaced the Z87 platform), but we're also dealing with a larger sized ATX motherboard. We've had a chance to look at a few Z97 motherboards from ASUS, and we actually have a couple more to look at over the coming weeks.
The ROG name has always meant performance, and we're sure that today isn't going to be any different with the Z97 based Maximus VII Formula. Performance is the name of the game, and it's an area that ASUS tends to do very well in when it comes to the ROG line of products, whether they are motherboards or video cards.
If the past has taught us anything about ROG based motherboards, it's that we're probably dealing with quite a large bundle. So, let's leave it all here, and move forward to see just what ASUS is bringing to the table with the Republic of Gamers Maximus VII Formula Z97 motherboard.
Package - What comes inside the box
Moving down, you can see a big push on the audio features that bring Supreme FX Formula 2014 to the table. Sonic Studio is offered, which brings virtual surround sound; Sonic Soundstage offers hardware level audio profiles, and the Sonic SenseAmp auto detects headphones, and helps optimize the audio for them. Finally, the last features pushed are the networking options, which include Intel Ethernet, LANGuard for surge protection, and support for the GameFirst III software to help optimize networking performance.
PRICING: You can find the ASUS ROG Maximus VII Formula for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The ASUS ROG Maximus VII Formula retails for $339.99 at Amazon.
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Synology DS415play Four Bay NAS Review
Introduction
The DS415play carries on Synology's commitment to the Intel Evansport platform, including hardware transcoding via the custom ffmpeg implementation, in addition to the ability to stream 1080p to any number of devices.
The DS415play from its inception was built to be the last media server you will need. At the heart of this solution, we have the Intel CE5335 dual-core SoC, paired with 1GB of DDR3. On the rear of the unit, you will find a single gigabit Ethernet port from which Synology says you can achieve 112 MB/s read and 101 MB/s write speeds in RAID 5 within a Windows OS environment.
Being the latest from Synology, the DS415play is backed by the award winning DSM 5.0 NAS operating system. Let's continue on now and take a close look at it.
Pricing and Availability
Internal capacity for the DS415play peaks out at 24TB via four 6TB HDDs with additional support for EXT4, EXT3, FAT, NTFS and HFS+ via the USB 3.0 ports located on the rear of the unit.
MSRP for the Synology DS415play is listed at $569.99 with a two-year warranty.
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Whitepaper: The V-NAND Paradigm Switch (Sponsored Article)
Introduction: The V-NAND Paradigm Shift
NAND entered production in the 1970s, but NAND did not really become a viable option for mainstream storage devices like Solid State Drives (SSDs) until it could be mass produced at a reasonable cost. The performance of NAND flash has led to explosive gains in performance for personal computers and laptops, and the small size has enabled new compact designs for phones, tablets, and other mobile devices. NAND flash is also transforming the datacenter with increased performance and lower power consumption, delivering more efficiency, and lowering the total cost of ownership. NAND flash even permeates embedded applications, and is used in a diverse range of everyday items.
Cost has been one of the primary obstacles preventing NAND from completely replacing other forms of data storage. The NAND market has grown quickly as flash has become the go-to solution for computing applications of all varieties, but the overriding goal has been to lower production costs as each generation of NAND progresses. Price reductions are normally accomplished by shrinking the size (lithography) of NAND with each successive generation moving from 50nm technology into the 30nm range.
To reach new levels in performance, cost, and density, Samsung developed 3D Vertical NAND flash memory, known simply as V-NAND. V-NAND adds another avenue for capacity increases beyond NAND shrinks by scaling capacity vertically. Samsung V-NAND can also store 3-bits per cell, providing even greater capacity at a lower price point.
Samsung 24-layer V-NAND products are in production, delivering top performance and endurance for extended periods. In Samsung's V-NAND based SSDs, V-NAND coupled with an advanced flash controller provides twice the endurance for write data, requires half the power compared to planer (2D) MLC-based drives, and delivers a 20% increase in write performance.
Process maturity is leading to further innovation, and now Samsung is expanding V-NAND to 32-layers, with a projected capacity of 1TB in a single package by 2017. New SSDs with 32-layer V-NAND are poised to provide breakthroughs in read-heavy applications for PC and enterprise users. Stacking layers of charge trap flash structures increase density and improve performance without the ill effects of cell-to-cell interference.
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GIGABYTE Z97X-UD5H Motherboard - Circuit and Overclocking Guide
Introduction
One could look at the aesthetic appeal of the motherboard as selection criteria for a new motherboard; in this case, the Z97X-UD5H features matte black PCB with a set of vibrant gold heat sinks, which have a strong shade of gold closer to the actual color of real gold. You wouldn't buy a car without popping the hood and checking out the engine, but since you can't get a close look at a motherboard before buying it, I will do it for you. I will also provide you with a complimentary overclocking guide for this motherboard.
Let's move onto the next page now and take a close look at the important voltage regulator circuitry.
PRICING: You can find the GIGABYTE Z97X-UD5H for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The GIGABYTE Z97X-UD5H retails for $179.99 at Amazon.
Canada: The GIGABYTE Z97X-UD5H retails for CDN$222.02 at Amazon Canada.
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