- Qualcomm Launches Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 Mobile Platform
- AMD Launches Ryzen PRO 7000 Series Mobile & Desktop Platform
- Intel Launches Sleek Single-Slot Arc Pro A60 Workstation Graphics Card
- NVIDIA Announces Latest Ada Lovelace Additions: GeForce RTX 4060 Ti & RTX 4060
- Maxon Redshift With AMD Radeon GPU Rendering Support Now Available
Social & RSS Feeds
Latest Videos
Latest News
Tech News
DFI LAN Party UT nF4 Expert SLI 3D Marking @ 3.9Ghz
We took this new motherboard from DFI for some overclocking tests and put a naked FX-57 under some cascade cold treatment. With a better board layout/design and more tweakable options in BIOS, we are able to overclock the FX-57 to 3.9GHz and is stable under 3DMark benching. We will write a review on this fine board soon but now more OC tests continue.
I first heard of this board a few days ago, but I already want it. The additions and improvements on the board itself are sweet, including an extra PCI slot and an improved sound system. Take a look over at the VR-Zone forums, where Samino took the board for a ride and hit 3.9GHz on his naked FX57 with cascade!
PCLinuxOS v0.92 Test 3
PCLinuxOS, a start-up KDE engineered distribution, has
recently released their v0.92 Test 3 build that contains an updated
Unionfs stable version as well as fixes largely when it comes to the
livecd-installer. Bundled with PCLinuxOS v0.92 is everything from the
LimeWire P2P application to a scientific calculator. Even though
PCLinuxOS hasn’t yet gained much momentum from the desktop Linux
community, its intentions are definitely in the right direction and we
look forward to seeing how this distribution “shapes up” after passing
its development stages.
This is a great looking distro.. it has a friendly looking skin! I particularly like the look of the control panel. Take a look through the full pictorial over at Phoronix.
Holiday 2005 Memory Buyers Guide
Tis the season for you to go and spend your hard earned money on things you most likely don’t need, or the person you are getting it for doesn’t need either, but we still do it anyway. So in the spirit of the Holidays we decided to make your gift giving and maybe receiving a bit more painless and easier. We’ve come up with, a Memory buyers guide, featuring 4 of the top Ram manufacturers out there today. There are many companies out there that make ram now, but these four are in my opinion the top 4 manufacturers. We will be looking at 3 offering from each company, High End, Low End and DDR2. The companies are Corsair, Crucial, OCZ and GEIL, the companies are in no particular order of preference just an order. Since the new shift is toward 2 gigabytes of ram, that is what we will be focusing on, but some choices will be 1 gig sets.
This is a pretty good guide, and although it only covers four companies, I agree with most of the choices. Hands down, it looks like the Corsair PC3500LL took the top rank with them. Take a look at the full guide at Think Computers.
First Look at ATI PowerPlay (Linux)
It doesn’t seem to be such a busy day, even for a Sunday, so we will skip the hardware round-up today.
Shipping with ATI’s v8.19.10 display drivers is a technology
that Linux mobile users have long awaited to enjoy and that is
PowerPlay. ATI’s PowerPlay is a power management technology that is
designed to dramatically reduce the power consumption of ATI MOBILITY
RADEON GPUs by adjusting the core and memory clock speeds along with the
voltage supplied to the chip. By adjusting the GPU, the laptop battery
life and heat-output can often be dramatically improved. Today with us,
we have the first Linux preview for this battery-saving technology.
It’s about time ATI! Check out the full look over at Phoronix.
Leadtek PX7800 GTX TDH MyVIVO Extreme 256MB and SAPPHIRE RADEON X1800 XT 512MB
What we’ve learned today is that both ATI and NVIDIA’s partners know how to put a decent package together. Both cards, although expensive, offer something the other doesn’t, and neither is a bad buy. That’s not a review cop-out; it’s the plain truth.
Both cards performed extremely well, so it would be a tough decision in the end. It would really depend on which card you could get cheaper I suppose, unless you are a hardcore ATi buff. Check out the full look at Hexus.
Hardware Roundup for Nov. 12
The weekends finally here, now it’s time to relax. Weekends are not usually that busy for new hardware reviews, and this weekend is no exception! There are a couple great ones though, such as the Antec case that Computing on Demand is taking a look at. If you are looking for a case that has more class than flash, then check it out. If you are an Intel user, there are two DDR2 reviews for you to look at today, both being Corsair. If you are all psyched up for the new X1800XT, you may want to check out Hexus in regards to a Hard-On edition!
- Antec P-180 – Computing on Demand
- MGE XG Dragon Aluminum Case – Driver Heaven
Cases & Enclosures
- Evercool Ice Storm – PC Modding Malaysia
- Thermaltake Polo735 Athlon64 Heatsink Frosty Tech
Cooling
- Corsair XMS2 5400UL – Madshrimps
- Corsair TWIN2X2048-6400PRO – MBReview
- Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD4000KD 400GB SATA – PC Stats
- X-Micro Mini DisGo – 3D Gameman
Memory & Storage
- Asus A8N32-SLI Deluxe – PC Perspective
Motherboards & CPU’s
- iOne Lynx-Q5 Gaming Mouse – Tech-Mods
- Microsoft Wireless Optical 5000 – Red & Blackness
Peripherals & Power Supplies
- ATi RADEON X1800 XT Hard-On Edition – Hexus
- HIS Radeon X800 GTO IceQ II – Hardware Secrets
Video Cards
City of Villains Review
When City of Heroes was released in 2004 it was pretty clear that the universe filled with superheroes was only halfway done. Just as Star Wars wouldn’t be the same without the Sith Lords, no life of a hero can be complete without some super villains to fight. With City of Villains Cryptic and NCsoft’s online RPG becomes a much more complete experience.
Check out the full review over at Boom Town.
Xbox 360 Controller for Windows Review
Most PC games are made to be played with the keyboard and mouse, and that’s a bit of a problem, frankly. There are plenty of great games that would shine on the PC, if only the developers could rely on everyone having a game pad. Scarce though they are, many PC games support, and are played best with, a decent game pad—sports games and the occasional platformer (Psychonauts, Rayman), for instance.
Expect our review of this product in the coming weeks. All I can say is, FINALLY. A fully functional and comfortable controller to use on the PC. Check out the first looks at Extreme Tech.
QUAKE 4 Review
In the end, I honestly fail to see what makes this title so special. There have been so many titles over the years that do the exact same thing that it’s not even funny. Now, while id may have been trying to stay true to the legacy, and would be touted as “retro gamers†on that part, a title like this honestly can’t stand on it’s own in 2005. The lack of storyline coupled with the stale Gameplay sprinkled with the archaic and poor texturing leaves much to be desired, and while the soundtrack might try to pump you up and get you going, the rest of the game just does a better job dragging you down.
Check out the honest review over at GamePyre.
NGO NVIDIA Optimized Driver v1.8189 (x32/x64)
The NGO NVIDIA Optimized Driver is a tweaked version of the NVIDIA ForceWare driver. The main purpose is to satisfy the users with better performance and image quality. The Driver has support for all Geforce cards.
Great, I need both versions! If you want some wicked fast and optimized drivers, definitely head on over to NGOHQ.
St. Louis LAN Party Raises $2k for Charity
We saw an opportunity with the Katrina disaster to help people with the resources we have. Gamers are usually portrayed as an antisocial branch of society, uninterested in anything outside of the virtual worlds they enjoy. Recently, they’ve even been branded as budding criminals because of the controversy surrounding people who go out and kill someone and then say a game made them do it…
Having fun and raising money for charity.. great stuff! Take a look over at Legit Reviews.
Hardware Roundup for Nov. 11
Ahh, we are so close to the weekend, so don’t plan on heading out until you’ve had your daily review intake. There are a lot of power supply reviews happening today by a variety of makers. If you need a power boost, today is definitely the day to read up. If you are interested in SLi, Motherboards.org has a great article with dual XFX 7800GT’s. The performance is so good.. is GTX really necessary?
Dell has horrible customer service and they don’t sell AMD, but they do have open source systems! I would assume that if someone wanted a PC with open source software on it, they may be more apt to build their own computer, but I could be wrong. At either rate, XYZ has a nice writeup on the possibilities with those systems. Overclockers Online has upgraded their contest to include a new item, so check that out as well!
- Arctic Cooling NV Silencer 5 Rev3 – InsaneTek
- PrimoChill ICE UV Blue Water Cooling Fluid – Big Bruin
- Thermaltake Silent Boost K8 Athlon64 Heatsink – Frosty Tech
Cooling
- Buffalo Ministation 40GB Portable Hard Drive – Cache-Community
- OCZ Rally Dual Channel USB Flash Drives – Rojak Pot
- SanDisk ImageMate USB 2.0 CompactFlash Reader – Cyberwizard Pit
Memory & Storage
- BTC 6301URF Low Profile Keyboard & Optical Mouse Combo – Techniz
- Enermax Liberty 500W Modular PSU – Xtreme Computing
- OCZ PowerStream 520W – Tweak News
- Seasonic S12-600W PSU – Viper Lair
- SilverStone Strider ST60F 600W – InsaneTek
Peripherals & Power Supplies
- Gigabyte NVIDIA GeForce 6600GT w/ Silent Pipe II – Hardware Zoom
- XFX 7800GT SLI – Motherboards.org
Video Cards
- ATI Catalyst 5.11 Official – NGOHQ
- Case Window How-to Guide – Pro-Clockers
- Dell’s Open Source Desktop Systems – XYZ Computing
- Epson Stylus Photo R220 Photo and CD/DVD Printer – Cache-Community
- 1GB Apple iPod Shuffle – Big Bruin
- Talk Back: Fighting Commoditization Of The Encoder Business – Design Technica
Etcetera
- Overclockers Online Give Away Prize Addition! – Overclockers Online
- Winners of the Crucial Ballistix Tracer Mod Competition – CaseModGod
Contests
Black & White 2 Review
After a brief tutorial level where your conscience (portrayed by a chubby devil who sounds like he’s from New Jersey, and an angelic sage floating on a cloud) guides you through the basic controls of the game. You then witness a scene where your people, the Greeks (the name is merely coincidental – you are in another world, and none of the gods of the Greek pantheon are mentioned), are being ransacked by mighty Aztec warriors. Before the Greek capital is destroyed, you are able to save a few townspeople. After whisking these refugees away, you set about the work of restoring the greatness of the Greek people.
Check out the full review at Game Chronicles.
Bet on Soldier Review
Start developing an FPS and you should know that you are entering the most crowded market on the PC. A genre where a few towering giants look down with scorn upon the many pretenders flinging themselves desperately against the base of their colossal contributions to the field. If you want to stand out you need two things: some flash graphics and a fresh approach. With a market as overpopulated as this one, even a new angle wrapped in some standard graphics may be enough. This must have been the thinking behind Bet on Soldier as this marginally original spin on the shooter is decked out in the kind of graphics which only serve as an exemplar of what 50 years of Communist oppression will do to an artistic aesthetic. Although bafflingly, Kylotonn is not an eastern European development house but is based in Paris.
Wow, this is one game that didn’t do too well! Check out the full review at Ferrago.
Futuremark 3DMark2006 Info & Screenshots
According to our friends from HKEPC, some manufacturers have received a copy of 3DMark2006 Beta for internal testing but there is no scoring function yet in the beta copy for confidential reasons. There is particular game test in 3DMark06 which is similar to the Game Test 3 “Canyon Flight” of 3DMark05 but now it utilizes lots of HDR and SM3.0. Certainly the sea monster looks a lot better indeed from what we have seen. Things are not looking too rosy for ATi previous generation cards such as X300/500/600/700/800 that don’t support SM 3.0 but it is fine for NVIDIA GeForce 6 series.
Depending on how in-depth 06 uses SM3.0 and HDR, that could really have a huge role in the scores. It looks like ATI may be left behind before it even has a chance. Check out the look at VR-Zone.
Dungeons & Dragons Online Preview
Dungeons & Dragons is a pretty extensive license going back to its roots. There’s a ton of history there but it’s also a name that can be expanded on as Wizards of the Coast has been doing as of late. The newest addition to the lore is the world of Eberron which is being described as a more pulpy look at the series than has been seen in the past. High adventure and intrigue are the rules. Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach is the newest addition into the computer games section of the franchise that is much closer to the type of experience the Dungeons & Dragons pen and paper game provides than MMO out there right now.
Check out the full preview over at IGN.
Buy GeForce 7800GTX 512MB now!
Still, this baby is the new king of 3D world, so for $799 you get the following: “7800Ultra” is clocked at 550MHz for the GPU core and 900MHz DDR for the video memory (as written on a retail box). Result is fill-rate of gigantic 8.8 billion pixels per second (up from 6.88 on original 7800GTX) and 13.2 billion texels per second (up from 10.3 Gtexel), bundled with 57.6 GB/s of video bandwidth goodness.
No doubt, you’d be crazy to buy this card instead of two regular 7800GTX’s, unless you are filthy rich. They don’t mention which online e-tailer, but someone already has their card and it’s not even supposed to launch until Monday. Check it out at the INQ.
Sony sued again over root kit and now PSP
A BLIZZARD of lawsuits appears to be facing Sony in its different guises after Mark Russinovich revealed copy protection software installed rootkits on people’s machines. The US Electronic Frontier Foundation is also collecting information on the case.
I know nothing about the PSP infringments, but I still hope Sony get’s what they deserve about the rootkits. It should teach other companies a lesson before they consider doing the same thing. Check it out at The Inquirer.
Dangerous Waters Review
Simply put Dangerous Waters is a naval strategy PC game using today’s ships, submarines, helicopters and aeroplanes. Hence the manual being as extensive as it is. There is so much to learn, play and enjoy.
Check out the full review at A1 Electronics.
Hardware Roundup for Nov. 10
Ever want to build your own laptop, but soemone tell you it’s not possible? Then you should check out out the review at Legit Reviews, where you can take a solid base and then buff it up. Of course, if you want to upgrade your computer, and don’t want to buy a new CPU, you may want to check out the Epox SLi review at PC Stats, which still uses socket 754.
If you are interested in tracking the power from an outlet, check out out the monitor over at Mod The Box. Finally, if you want to check out the next gen from NVIDIA, check out the exclusive pic over at Hexus.
- Antec Minuet II Micro ATX Case – Think Computers
- Evercool H.D.D Air Condition – Overclockers Online
- Shuttle SD11G5 XPC – SFF Tech
Cases & Enclosures
- Cooler Master AquaGate Mini R120 – Overclockers Australia
- Cooljag JZC811C Heatsink – Paradise|OC
- Thermaltake Venus 12 Athlon64 Heatsink – Frosty Tech
Cooling
- Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 500GB SATA 3 Gb/s Hard Drive – Big Bruin
Memory & Storage
- Epox 8NPA SLI Motherboard – PC Stats
Motherboards & CPU’s
- Cyber Snipa PC Gamepad – Xtreme Computing
- Jou Jye 480W SLi PSU – PC Modding Malaysia
- Nexus NX-5000 SLI 500 Watt Quiet Power Supply – 3D Gameman
- Razer Copperhead – Phoronix
- Seventeam ST-550EAG 550W PSU – Xtreme Computing
- VPC 2000 Multimedia Hub – Extensive Mods
Peripherals
- XFX Geforce 6600 DDR2 Videocard – Neo Seeker
Video Cards
- ASUS V6-V Notebook and Pakuma Akara K1 – Hexus
- ASUS Z63A Whitebook Laptop – Legit Reviews
- Evaluation: Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-R1 Digital Camera – Design Technica
- Seasonic Power Angel Monitor – Mod The Box
- XFX’s Revo64 Serial ATA RAID Card – Tech Report
- World Exclusive picture from HEXUS of the forthcoming NVIDIA “TBA” – Hexus
Etcetera
- EMC POSITIONED IN “LEADERS” QUADRANT IN NEW ANALYST REPORT – Read PR
Press Releases
AGEIA’S PhysX Processor Receives POPULAR SCIENCE 2005 Best of What’s New Award
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – November 9, 2005 – AGEIA™ Technologies, Inc., the pioneer in hardware-accelerated physics for games, today announced that its PhysX™ processor has been chosen to receive a prestigious “2005 Best of What’s New Award†from POPULAR SCIENCE in the Computing category. The AGEIA PhysX processor will be featured in December’s Best of What’s New issue on sale November 15th.
Check out the full press release here.
Chris Sawyer Sues Atari
CHRIS SAWYER, the brains behind the unbelievably popular RollerCoaster Tycoon series, is to sue Atari for $4.8 million still due as royalties from the games. Current estimations indicate that Sawyer’s games account for $180 million, with $30 million of that going to the man himself already. This suit has been initiated thanks to findings by forensic accountants brought in by Sawyer which he alleges reveal that he was still due the princely sum of $4.8 million. He is also hoping to be reimbursed for his legal fees and interest.
Some may call him greedy, but it looks like it is his money. I certainly hope he wins then, because that’s one game I certainly didn’t consider to be a waste of money. Check out the posting at The Inquirer.
Jack Thompson Withdraws from GTA Case
Controversial Miami-based attorney Jack Thompson has withdrawn from an Alabama lawsuit amid allegations that he violated legal ethics rules. The lawsuit, Strickland vs. Sony, was filed against retailers and publishers of the Grand Theft Auto series. Thompson had previously been representing the case’s plaintiffs — the families of a pair of police officers and a police dispatcher who were murdered by Devin Moore, who claimed that the GTA games helped “train” him to kill. Moore was convicted of the crime and sentenced to death.
This is one idiot that will not be missed. There could be some truth behind what he rants and raves about, but he certainly goes overboard very easily. Check out the full posting at IGN.
CPU-z 1.31 Released
CPU-Z is a diagnostic tool that provides information on your CPU, including: processor name and vendor, core stepping and process, processor package, internal and external clocks, clock multiplier, partial overclock detection, processor features, supported instructions sets, L1 and L2 cache information, location, size, speed, and technology.
- Improved support for ATI RS480/482 chipsets.
- nVidia GeForce 6100/6150 (nForce 410/430) chipsets support.
- Intel E7520 chipset support.
- New CPUs support : AMD Opteron socket 939, Intel Pentium 4 Cedar Mill and Presler, Intel Xeon Paxville, Intel Pentium M Yonah SC & DC.
- Several bug fixed.
A couple friends have already pointed out a few bugs already, so no doubt some still reside. You can grab the newest version right here.
Futuremark Interview – The Next 3D Mark?
We think it’s time to spill the beans (or at least, show us the can label) for the next 3DMark? What snippets can you tell us – what shader model are you considering as the default option (SM2.0 again)? What kind of effects are you going to highlight this time – parallax bump mapping, tone mapping, soft shadow edges?
I don’t think it is a secret that we have been working very hard to bring out one more DirectX9 3D benchmark before we move over to the next big thing, Windows Vista. I don’t want to spill all the beans about the next 3DMark yet, since the benchmark is not done, and there are some things that may still change. The minimum required shader model will be 2.0, but we will also have a couple of graphics tests requiring SM3.0 with support for FP16 textures and blending of these.
Regardless of whether you love 3D Mark or think it is a nonsense benchmark, there’s no doubt that it’s fun to watch. Nothing like a nice tech demo to impress your family and friends! Check out the interesting continuation of the interview over at Beyond3D.