Hardware News Roundup -- catching up edition :)

@ 2006/03/14
The hardware review scene never sleeps, in a twenty four hour period many new ones have been posted - video card, motherboard, memory, cpu reviews - hit "read more"

- Gigabyte 3D Aurora Gaming Case
Gigabyte is a company that is primarily known for their high-en
d motherboards, graphics cards and even their impressive CPU coolers. For a majority of case modders & enthusiasts, they are not a company that comes to mind when on the market for a quality case. That's the reason for publishing this review today. For those who may not be aware of yet, Gigabyte has ventured into cases and their first is truly impressive and one worth consideration. Come see why their first attempt at providing an quality case is a very successful one!



- Microsoft Notebook Optical Mouse 3000
Microsoft's new Notebook Optical Mouse 3000 (released September 2005) is small package that is stylish, comfortable, and remarkably affordable. The small optical mouse has a sleek new design sits low and has an ergonomic fit that allows a user's hand to flow over the mousepad. This mouse is a great alternative to notebook touch pads, with proprietary High Definition technology and new navigation controls for maximum comfort and productivity even on the go


- Matrox DualHead2Go
One way to get the most out of your laptop is with Matrox's DualHead2Go. This product enables users to add dual monitor capabilities to almost any laptop computer. Within minutes your system will be able from just another computer to a portable presentation powerhouse or a great media device.

- PowerColor X1600 XT BRAVO Edition
Are you building a new PC or HTPC and are looking for a great budget card? PowerColor may have exactly what you need, with their X1600XT 256MB. It offers great gaming performance for a budget card, and includes the AVIVO technology to make your video experience even better.

- Cooler Master Centurion 532 Case
I have used the Cooler Master Centurion 532 case for over a week now and I can't find anything that I don't like about it. Installing parts was simple with the tool-less design, and only due to my modified optical drives did I have to use screws. There seems to be a good amount of room inside this case and nothing interferes with the connectors on the motherboard.

- XFX 7800GT Video Cards in SLI
A couple of weeks ago, we took a shot at reviewing one single XFX 7800GT. Now we're going to put two of them together to find out if the extra dollars are worth the upgrade for the every day gamer.

- Seasonic 250w "Super Versitile" PSU
In short, the Seasonic 250W "Super Versatile" PSU has really impressed
me. I wasn't expecting a lot of performance out of a "puny" 250 watt
PSU, but this little engine that could powered my system beautifully.
The voltage rails remained rock solid even under full load, operation
was cool and quiet, and the accessory bundle was rich. Unless you plan
on running a fast dual core processor (PentiumD or FX-60) or high end
graphics card (7900GTX or X1900XTX), the SS-250SVP is a great little PSU
that seems like it woul be perfectly suited in the HTPC market and
should be capable of running most any fairly modest system of today


- Logitech G7 Wireless Mouse
Can any mouse justify a $99 MSRP ($70 street)? Logitech seems to think so, and the G7 makes a very strong case for itself. Gamers demand top performance from their peripherals and in a day when high end video cards have breached the $700 mark, the asking price doesn't seem all that unreasonable. In exchange for a lighter wallet, you'll get a highly customizable mouse that responds as well as any other on the market, wired or otherwise. However, it's what you don't get that makes this an attractive addition - no lag, no cord, no more excuses for poor gaming performance, and no Fatal1ty logo (no offense Wendel, I also don't wear Jordans). Aside from a second thumb button that will hopefully make a return debut in the G9, what more could you possibly not want?

- Corsair TwinX2048-3500LLPro
The Corsair TwinX2048-3500LLPro is low-latency memory with plenty of overclocking headroom. With more applications utilizing 2GB of memory, could this kit be what DDR users are looking for?

- Rock Xtreme SLI notebook
This really is one of those products where you either get it or you don't. Either you look at this 19" beast and think... "Hey, this is exactly what I've always wanted," or you think "That is absolutely ludicrous". There isn't much in between, and the system has really polarised opinions in the bit-tech office. Some of us think think this is an ultra-cool LAN machine, and some of us think it's just a non-upgradeable small form factor machine.

- OCZ DDR2 PC2-6400 Platinum Enhanced Latency XTC Dual Channel Memory
DDR2 Memory is becoming extremely popular and lately you'll find more of it on the market then ever before. One improvement over the previous DDR2 memory is the tighter memory timings and higher speeds, although I would like to see even tighter memory timings. This feature is something that the average user doesn't even consider. Most people will look for memory that is reliable, stable, and comes with a lifetime warranty

- Albatron GeForce 6600 512MB Videocard
With more people connecting their PC to the television, the PCI Express x16 Albatron GeForce 6600-512 also supports all the latest TV output standards like S-Video, composite and of course YPbPr component output. Who needs Intel VIIV or AMD Live, enthusiasts already know how to build their own HTPC.

- SilverStone Temjin TJ-06 ATX Chassis
Another solid product from SilverStone, from the sleek lines to the stylish front bezel. The Temjin 6 is a winner. This chassis will handle any motherboard you throw at it. The tool less rails are easy to use, as well as are the PCI slot clips, allowing larger cards to slide in and out effortlessly

- TerraTec Cinergy 2400i DT
The majority of PC-based PVR (personal video recorder) systems - even those
running Microsoft’s Windows XP Media Center Edition - feature only a single
tuner, so you can only watch the same channel as you’re recording. With
Terratec’s Cinergy 2400i DT it is now possible to view one digital channel
while recording another at the same time


- Gigabyte GA-8N-SLI Quad Royal
We’re writing to let you all know that we’ve just posted a new article at HotHardware.Com where we evaluate the feature-packed Gigabyte GA-8N-SLI Quad Royal motherboard. If you haven’t seen it before, the Gigabyte GA-8N-SLI Quad Royal sports four PEG slots. Unfortunately, no “official” quad-SLI support just yet…

- AMD Athlon 64 4400+ X2
Dual is the new buzz word among the geek elite. Dual monitors, dual video cards; and, of course, the subject of today's review--dual CPU's. Join us as we take the twins for a little benchmarking action, and see how an AMD 4400+ X2 compares to the FX-55 in a little sibling rivalry. Good clean fun for the whole family.

- VIZO MTP-101 Master Panel
The VIZO MTP-101 Master Panel is a niche product with limited application,
but if you have a need to connect a stand alone hard drive or an external SATA
hard disk enclosure such as VIZO’s Luxon enclosures, this product is worth the
upgrade. The speed benefits of SATA vs USB or IEEE 1394 are quite great, plus
the ability to plug in either SATA or IDE devices at the front of the computer
for sharing or backing up files offers great convenience


- Corsair TWINX2048-3500LLPRO Memory
There are many companies try to make in the high performance memory market. The names of the successful ones are few and far between. One name that really stands out when one thinks of high performance memory is Corsair. Corsair is one of the top makers of reliable, high performance RAM in the world and they've sent us some memory that that promises to deliver something we haven't seen yet, a CAS latency of 2 at speeds of PC3500. Pretty awesome stuff indeed, if it works.

- Zalman VF900 Cu GPU Cooler
Today’s graphic cards are getting more and more powerful every generation. With all this power; a good cooling system is needed. Even when companies sell these cards with good cooling, there are never enough. There is when companies like Zalman come to the rescue. Zalman have been producing great GPU cooling solutions for years now, take the VF700 for instance. But even the VF700 is no match for the likes of the ATI X1900 series. So, now enters the VF900.

- EPoX EP-9NPA+ Ultra AMD Athlon 64 Socket 939 PCIe Motherboard
The EPoX EP-9NPA+ Ultra PCI express motherboard set a good example
in the latest board and BIOS revision.
Because beside the brilliant equipment the nForce4 Ultra board offers awesome features
to overclock and delivers significant performance gains.
All important details of the EP-9NPA+ Ultra Socket 939 motherboard are available in the Review,
and in the comparison with altogether 17 Athlon 64 motherboards.


- AVIVO Video Encoder : Is VPU used ?
We just published a complement to our AVCE review. We tried to lauch a WMV HD to MPEG-4 (DivX) encoding with a X1300 Pro @ 600 MHz and @ 300 MHz, and then with our Athlon 64 3800+ @ 2.4 GHz and @ 1.2 GHz.

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