Content and news by Rob Williams

Rob Williams

Rob founded Techgage in 2005 to be an 'Advocate of the consumer', focusing on fair reviews and keeping people apprised of news in the tech world. Catering to both enthusiasts and businesses alike; from desktop gaming to professional workstations, and all the supporting software.

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Rob's Recent Content

30 Greatest Games of 2005

Some may remember 2005 as a year of financial shortfalls, rising game production costs, depleted Xbox 360 stock, political soap-boxing, or over-exertion in Korean Internet cafes.

Forget all that stuff for now. 2005 wasn’t a year to be remembered for one great gaming breakthrough or innovation, but it did produce some remarkable products. It was a year marked with some of the best games of the fading generation.

This is a pretty agreeable roundup. It’s not only for PC games either, so we even see some Nintendo DS games in there. Check it out at Next-Gen.

Published on December 24, 2005

ASRock 939Dual-SATA2 Review

ASRock’s latest Socket 939 offering, the 939Dual-SATA2, not
only offers support for AMD’s future M2 socket but it also incorporates
some overclocking abilities that enthusiasts would have only dreamed
about appearing on a budget motherboard. But just how well does it fair
in the penguin trials?

Head on over to Phoronix for the full review!

Published on December 24, 2005

I-Star Storm Series D-300 Black 3U Rackmount Case Review

Out of the box the case is very well constructed and built solid than most
server cases of the same size. I-Star has emphasized that the design of the
Storm Series D-300 Black 3U Rackmount Case encompasses good EMI Protective
Shielding as well as a focus on tool-less key entry using latches. The case
measures approximately 19.0″ (W) x 5.2″ (H) x 20.8″ (D) and supports all full
size ATX motherboards. The entire exterior has been painted jet black with the
main focus on the front bezel. As an add-on feature, I-Star provides
interchangeable front bezels offered in different colours that include red,
blue, silver and gold.

Check out the review at Mod The Box.

Published on December 24, 2005

Coolermaster Centurion 532 Case Review

Key features of the case include toolless installation, a 120mm front fan and a aluminum/steel hybrid metal composition. This case retails for $79 USD,making it a value proposition compared to other Coolermaster cases retailing for over $150 USD. In this regard the Coolermaster Centurion 532 is a good fit for the price.

Check out the full review at Motherboards.org.

Published on December 24, 2005

The Underclocking Experiment

We never know if the people actually buying the hardware care about its overclocking potential, but as computer journalists and enthusiasts, we know we have to test it out. This got us thinking though; what about under-clocking? Most modern processors and motherboards can just as easily run under a rated speed as it can run over… but is there a point to this? Well possibly.

The term underclocking makes me cringe, but there are definitely some uses and reasons. Check out the full article at PC Stats.

Published on December 24, 2005

Overclocking and WindowsXP x64 Edition

We never know if the people actually buying the hardware care about its overclocking potential, but as computer journalists and enthusiasts, we know we have to test it out. This got us thinking though; what about under-clocking? Most modern processors and motherboards can just as easily run under a rated speed as it can run over… but is there a point to this? Well possibly.

Head on over to PC Stats for the full article.

Published on December 24, 2005

Crucial Gizmo! Hi-Speed USB2 Flash Drive Review

This product looks great, is lightweight and super tiny. It’s so tiny you may forget to remove it from your pocket and send it through a wash. I know I’ve done that in the past. I find these products invaluable because they are so convenient. In a minute you can easily transfer lots of data. I primarily use mine for backup of my contacts, emails and other important data…

Check out the full video review over at 3D Gameman.

Published on December 24, 2005

Arctic Cooling Freezer 64 Pro Review

Artic Cooling is famous for their video card coolers, but they offer more. The Freezer 64 Pro is the latest addition to their CPU coolers. Clever routing of airflow cools the motherboard voltage circuitry. Another good idea is that the fan is mounted on rubber posts which absorb any vibration caused by the fan. During our testing we learn that the Freezer 64 Pro can not only deliver solid cooling performance but does so without creating a lot of noise.

Check out the full review over at techPowerUp!

Published on December 24, 2005

Ultra Portable Disk Enclosure Review

When the capacity of a flash drive just isn’t enough, you can purchase an external drive enclosure and use a drive with a bog-standard interface within it, all thanks to nifty IDE to USB/Firewire bridging chips, or the not-yet-as-popular eSATA interface. There are numerous flavours of drive enclosure on the market now. Some are NAS wannabes, others cheap as chips 3.5″ disk enclosures, and then some slightly more specialist offerings.

Check out the full look at Hexus.

Published on December 23, 2005

ATI X1800XL Video Card Overclocking Guide

Wow! By overclocking our ATI X1800 XL have reached the same core speed as the X1800XT, though the memory would not clock up to the 750MHz of the XT. Trying to go any higher meant that we would need more voltage, and created more heat than we were willing to accept…

Check out the full guide over at Legit Reviews.

Published on December 23, 2005

What is TCP/IP?

What is TCP/IP? Many people may not know what TCP/IP is nor what its effect is on the Internet. The fact is, without TCP/IP there would be no Internet. And it is because of the American military that the Internet exists.

Check out the full article over at BTX Form Factor.

Published on December 23, 2005

Corsair 2048MB XMS PC3500LL PRO Dual Channel DDR Review

In recent reviews at Bigbruin.com we have taken a look at Corsair DDR rated at PC4000 and PC4400 speeds, but this time we’re going to take things down a little and look at some PC3500. The Corsair 2048MB XMS PC3500LL Pro Dual Channel DDR Kit provides a nice, big 2GB of dual channel DDR rated to run at 438 MHz DDR with timings of 2-3-2-6 1T.

Head on over to Big Bruin for the full review.

Published on December 23, 2005

Sharkoon Red Shock Heatsink Review

Today, we are looking at Sharkoon’s newest cooler, the Red Shock. The Red Shock gives the person using it several mounting possibilities and pledges to be one of the best coolers on the market. We tacked this cooler on an AMD Fx55 and a DFI motherboard and let’s see what happens.

Check out the full review over at Pro-Clockers.

Published on December 23, 2005

Desktop Linux’s Hardware Woes

Linux works. This is a very matter-of-fact statement, but it is one many people (myself included) make every day when they boot up their computers. It is not a perfect product, it would not be sensible to expect something as complex as an operating system to be flawless, but fact remains that Linux does work. On the software side of things the open source community has done a very good job of making this clear, but the other half of computing, hardware, this movement has not been as successful. Every day Linux users encounter driver and compatibility issues which Windows users have not had to deal with for years.

Check out the full article over at XYZ Computing.

Published on December 23, 2005

Logitech G7 Cordless Laser Mouse Review

The USB dongle is similar in size and shape to a USB flash drive. The G7 communicates with the computer via this USB dongle, which uses a 2.4 GHz wireless frequency to send 500 reports per second to the computer. This should allow for a lag-free experience.

Check out the full review over at OCIA.

Published on December 23, 2005

ATI All-In-Wonder 2006 PCI Express

The All-In-Wonder 2006 PCI Express won’t break any records in gaming benchmarks, but it’s a much stronger performer than its previous generation brother. It does have an edge in several ways though, mainly with the much improved multimedia features. As far as the competition goes, nobody offers a similar product, so if you’re looking for a do-it-all product without breaking the bank, it’s hard to go wrong with the All-In-Wonder 2006 PCI Express.

Head on over to Viper Lair for the full review!

Published on December 23, 2005

NVIDIA 1.0-8178 Linux Drivers

A mere seventeen days after the launch of NVIDIA’s 1.0-8174
display drivers that finally delivered Scalable Link Interface support
to Linux, the green guys have delivered yet another driver for the
penguin users on the heels of the holidays. Coincidently, the driver
release comes on the same day as the Xorg X11R6.9 and X11R7.0 launch
after a decade of no major releases. As the 1.0-8178 version implies,
there is not much in the way of significant advances but there is enough
to call for a new performance article, which we will be sharing with you
today.

Check out the full look at these new drivers over at Phoronix.

Published on December 23, 2005

X-Arcade Trackball Mouse Review

It’s interesting to note, even with the complexity of games like Call of Duty 2, F.E.A.R., and Quake 4, that arcade products like these still exist and are thoroughly enjoyed. The hardware required for playing these games can set you back thousands. While this controller is not meant for these games it’s still a blast to revive and play the oldies. Some of you younglings don’t remember games like Asteroids or Pong, but I do…

Check out the full video review at 3D Gameman.

Published on December 23, 2005

Beginners Guides: Upgrading A Motherboard Without Reinstalling

You can upgrade a processor or add a new memory module without causing so much as a blip from Windows XP, but a new motherboard can and will cause XP to stop booting altogether. Many have tried, and many have been greeted with the cold gasp of the Blue Screen of Death for their efforts. Fortunately, the procedure for correctly installing a new motherboard is rather easy and straightforward, and more fortunately, we’re here to talk you through it. PCstats never-ending quest to save you from computer store labor charges continues… after all, this is the exact same procedure a Service Center will charge you $80/hr to do.

This is a great article, and something all tech heads should know how to do. Check it out at PC Stats.

Published on December 23, 2005

Thermaltake Mambo Review

The Mambo is another competitively priced case from Thermaltake. It weighs only 6.2kg but still offers all the comfort of a full tower case. Its elegant black design makes it pleasing for the eyes of the more mature computer users.

Check out the full review over at techPowerUp!

Published on December 23, 2005

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