Tech News

Stronghold 2: Review @ Gaming Horizon

Posted on June 7, 2005 8:12 AM by Rob Williams

Ok, so now it’s time to get the graphics out of the way. And, I have to say that they are pretty impressive. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a game that actually allows you to see how much time and effort was put into designing it. Since this is Read More Comment (0)

Asheron’s Call 2: Review at GameZone

Posted on June 7, 2005 8:06 AM by Rob Williams

It’s been a long time since Turbine’s Asheron’s Call franchise got started. Building on the success of the original Asheron’s Call, their second game in the series, Asheron’s Call 2: Fallen Kings, was a wonderful game for its time. Trying to draw new players into the world of Asheron’s Call, Turbine has Read More Comment (0)

Thermaltake PurePower TWV 500w PSU Review @ A1 Electronics

Posted on June 7, 2005 8:05 AM by Rob Williams

The choice of 500 watts of power provides a PSU with just the right amount of power for all virtually all todays requirements of modern computers from the office to home desktop use. And with you only needing to plug in the power leads you actually need you do not have to find a home somewhere inside your computer case for the ones you do not use. We all know what that is like.

You autotmatically have to appreciate PSU’s that use the cable connect system. It just makes sense! Check out the full review at A1 Electronics.

TITAN Bianca TWC-A05 Watercooling Kit @ InsaneTek

Posted on June 7, 2005 8:02 AM by Rob Williams

TITAN isn’t always fast with product releases but when they do have something new, it’s always pretty promising. Continuing the line of girls, the external watercooling kit named Bianca is released.

Check out the full review of this kit, over at Insane Tek.

OCZ EL DDR PC-3200 Dual Channel Titanium

Posted on June 6, 2005 7:55 PM by Rob Williams

Built upon years of experience, will OCZ’s Titanium series continue in the same success shared by the Gold and Platinum performance memory modules? In this review, we’ll be trying out the OCZ EL DDR PC-3200 Dual Channel Titanium system memory. This memory runs at 2-3-2-5 while conforming to PC-3200 DDR speeds and featuring Enhanced Latency Technology and an OCZ PowerSwap warranty. Will this be the new ideal RAM for gamers and enthusiasts alike?

You can head over to Phoronix for the full review.

ThermalRock Eclipse Case Video Review @ 3D Gameman

Posted on June 6, 2005 7:54 PM by Rob Williams

This product screams unique looks, has countless features, & swappable media storage. The innovative media storage area is fantastic, offering quick access to blank media or a game play disk. Also, there are plenty of drive bays; 4×5.25″, 2×3.5″ (Ext.), & 5×3.5″ (Int.). For convenience, ports (2xUSB 2, 1xFirewire, Mic, & Headphone) are located at the front of the case. It even has two 120mm fans for excellent case ventilation. Watch the Video to find out more…

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

Intel and Apple – Jon Peddie has his say @ Hexus

Posted on June 6, 2005 7:54 PM by Rob Williams

Apple has been experimenting with x86 processors for some time, and in fact Steve Jobs revealed what has been rumored for years that a secret team inside Apple has had their OSes running on x86 for over five years. OS X was developed as much on x86 hardware as it was on PowerPC. SO if Apple wanted to, they could have offered OS X to the x86 world a year ago. However, Leopard the new x86 version of OS X will not come out until 2006 – about the same time Longhorn comes out.

Check out the full article at Hexus.

Stratics Planetside HoC Tonight!

Posted on June 6, 2005 7:52 PM by Rob Williams

Stratics is pleased to announce a House of Commons with the developers of Planetside on today, Monday, June 6th . It will be at 5pm PST / 8pm EST in the #StraticsHoC channel on Stratics IRC. Alex “Samhayne” Von Minden and Lydia “Zatosia” Pope, the new Planetside Community Manager will be in…..

OCZ PC5000 EL (DFI nF4 Special) @ Bit-Tech

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:39 AM by Rob Williams

It has been a while since we last had a look at some memory. A couple of weeks ago, we spent a great deal of time looking at NVIDIA’s SLI, with five parts in all. We didn’t really cover memory in any great detail, because there are so many viable options for you to consider. Today, we are looking at some DDR memory from OCZ that is specifically tuned for DFI’s awesome LANPARTY nF4 SLI-DR motherboard, which won bit-tech’s excellence award, being the best SLI motherboard that money can buy at the moment.

This is great looking memory, and seems to overclock quite well. Check out the full review at Bit-Tech.

Thermaltake Beetle @ Red & Blackness

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:37 AM by Rob Williams

Hello chaps, today we have another Thermaltake cooler on the testing bench. This time it’s their Beetle cooler. The design on it may scare away a few people but I think that most of them like the look. Anyway, it must be the craziest look I have ever seen on a cooler so far in my life. (20yr) :p

It certainly is a strange looking cooler, but how well does it do it’s job? Read the review here.

Albatron K8SLI @ Overclockers Online

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:35 AM by Rob Williams

Today, we’ve been given the opportunity to review the Albatron K8SLI. As far as I know, this is the first AMD SLI motherboard Albatron has produced, and it appears to be in high demand because of its lower cost compared to competitors. Performance at a low cost is one important key to a successful product.

Check out the full review over at Overclockers Online.

A Tale of Two Hackers

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:27 AM by Rob Williams

SYDNEY, Australia — Lapping up the sunshine here outside a downtown cafe, Kevin Mitnick is apprehensive. He never asked to be the world’s most high-profile convicted computer criminal, he says, and he’s sick of media interviews dwelling on his criminal past.

“But … that’s how you make your money,” interjected Alexis Kasperavičius, Mitnick’s longtime friend, business partner and one-time co-conspirator.

It’s a strange read, but a good one. Check it out at Wired.com.

Intel: No DRM in 945

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:24 AM by Rob Williams

Computerworld Today Australia story incorrectly reported that the Intel Pentium D processor and Intel 945 Express Chipset includes unannounced embedded DRM technology. The Intel Pentium D Processor and the Intel 945 Express Chipset family do not have unannounced embedded DRM technologies.

Check out the story at the Inquirer.

Will porn.xxx see the day?

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:16 AM by Rob Williams

Last week, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers approved the creation of .xxx, a kind of virtual red-light district that’s scheduled to go live by the end of the year.

Permitting sexually explicit material online is, of course, only objectionable among advocacy groups that would love to outlaw anything as daring as “Heather Has Two Mommies.” (Nobody is forced to click on links pointing to raunch and ribaldry, after all.)

I personally think that there should be .xxx domains, however I strongly believe that adult sites would have to use .xxx, and could no longer use .com. That way kids could not type in a wrong .com and get an adult site, which is too common today. Read more here.

Dell to launch ‘Lexus lineup’ of PCs

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:12 AM by Rob Williams

The No. 1 PC maker said the as-of-yet unnamed brand, which is slated to debut this fall, would include both desktop and notebooks priced between $1,200 and $3,500 and positioned just above the company’s Dimension and Inspiron product families.

It’s unknown exactly what components will make the computers, however I can imagine a hefty amount of the price will be due to the design. Read more about it here.

Will we get a 9 – 5 Notebook soon?

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:02 AM by Rob Williams

A somewhat outlandish idea a few years ago, the eight-hour notebook is moving closer to reality as promising trends in battery materials and power consumption converge. If all goes well, within three to four years, portable PCs could see battery life double from today’s four-hour stretch.

8 hours is quite a while, but it would be nice. I would expect a very dull computing experience for it to last that long, but we’ll see. You can read more about it here.

Battlepad Sortie Mouse Mat @ ThinkComputers.org

Posted on June 6, 2005 8:00 AM by Rob Williams

Another thing I said, I was skeptical about was the size and being able to keep the mouse on the pad. Using this pad, your movements track very well so your not rolling over a huge surface, movement is well contained to the pad. I played a few different games (Warhammer40k: Dawn of War, Unreal Tournament 2004 to name some) and also some applications, I had no problems keeping my mouse on the pad at all.

Check out the full review at Think Computers.

Computex Taipei 2005 Coverage (XGI Tech) @ Phoronix

Posted on June 6, 2005 7:55 AM by Rob Williams

Unfortunately, due to some conflicts in our schedule we were unable to attend the XGI Technology booth during Computex Taipei 2005. However, thanks to the generosity of the folks over at XGI we have some pictures of their items that were on display. Items include the XGI Volari 8300 and even some motherboards!

Check out the full info over at Phoronix.

Arctic Cooling Ati Silencer 5- rev 2 @ XtremeComputing

Posted on June 6, 2005 7:55 AM by Rob Williams

The design of the fan is like a turbine (but lets hope without the noise) but forces the air over the block and out of the rear. This of coarse means this cooler takes up 2 pci slots, the backing plate is included in the packaging and is just screwed into the backplate on its own without having to attach it to the cooler. Another feature that was nice to see was the fan connector cable, this is were the Arctic cooling silencer scores another plus point buy having the OEM fan plug rather than a traditional 3 pin with a four pin adaptor.

Check out the review of this classic cooler at Extreme Computing.

Computex Coverage 2005 @ InsaneTek

Posted on June 6, 2005 7:48 AM by Rob Williams

We were fortunate enough to attend Computex this year and we bring you many product highlights from various companies.

They have many, many pictures to check out, and you can see them here!

PowerColor Radeon X700 256MB Bravo Edition @ InsaneTek

Posted on June 5, 2005 8:55 AM by Rob Williams

While the ATI Radeon X700 chipset is a bit slower in performance than Nvidia’s 6600GT counterpart, PowerColor does include a nice heatpipe cooler to make silent enthusiasts happy.

Check out the full review at InsaneTek.

OCZ Platinum PC3700 TCC5 Contest – Only Lasts One Week! @ InsaneTek

Posted on June 5, 2005 8:54 AM by Rob Williams

It’s InsaneTek’s 1 year anniversary and we’ll be having many contests for the month of June. Here’s some OCZ Platinum PC3700 to start it off. The memory features new TCCD replacements called TCC5. These chips are great and are not considered to be lower quality. The contest only lasts one week so hurry and join!

Get all the details on how to win on the InsaneTek Forums.

Mushkin 2GB HP3200 Dual Channel Memory Kit Review @ Rojak Pot

Posted on June 5, 2005 8:52 AM by Rob Williams

The new Mushkin High Performance series offers high capacity, high performance and affordable prices. If you are looking for new memory modules with the best price-performance ratio, the Mushkin HP series is definitely something to consider.

Today, Chai puts the Mushkin 2GB HP3200 dual-channel memory kit under close scrutiny to see what this new large-capacity memory kit is capable of doing. Let’s see how these Infineon-based modules perform in our tests!

Check out the full review at Rojak Pot.

NVIDIA CoolBits For Linux Guide @ Phoronix

Posted on June 5, 2005 8:43 AM by Rob Williams

In addition to OpenGL 2.0 and additional Xinerama support, the CoolBits feature has finally been added to NVIDIA’s Linux Display Drivers. For those unfamiliar, CoolBits is an overclocking utility for NVIDIA based cards. Support for CoolBits has been built into the Windows NVIDIA drivers for quite some time, only requiring a small registry tweak in order to enable the control window. However, CoolBits has finally made its way to Linux! In this short guide we’ll share with you how to enable CoolBits in the latest NVIDIA 1.0-7664 drivers along with our successes and failures we experienced using this new feature on a few of our machines.

I didn’t know this program existed, but after reading the guide, I’m getting it! Check it out at Phoronix.

Computex – Day 4 @ Phoronix

Posted on June 4, 2005 6:54 AM by Rob Williams

What’s up for day 4 at Computex Taipei 2005? Well today we primarily have coverage of the latest products from Foxconn, MSI, AOpen, DFI, Powercolor/Tul, Triplex, Vantec, XGE, and Apacer.

A ton of pictures to be found once again. Check out the heatsink on the DFI Intel board while you’re there. Insane! Check it out at Phoronix.

< Older Posts

Newer Posts >