Solid State Drive technology is set to turn the storage industry on its ear; there is little doubt of this.  When you consider the intrinsic benefits of anything built on solid state technology versus anything mechanical, it doesn’t take a degree in physics to understand the obvious advantages.

On the following pages, we thought we’d level-set the features, performance and pricing landscape for you with respect to the current state of SSDs.  Today, we have a look at four different SSD offerings, two from OCZ, one from Mtron and another from Super Talent.  Is a Solid State Disk in your future?  We’ll try to help you answer that question in this full performance evaluation and showcase.

Direct Link:

http://www.hothardware.com/Articles/FourWay-SSD-RoundUp-OCZ-Super-Talent-Mtron/

TechwareLabs has published a review of the Crucial Ballistix DDR2 PC2-6400. Here’s a clip from the review:

Quote: Today we take a look at the Ballistix series RAM from Crucial. Is this 2GB DDR2-800 kit a weapon of mass distruction? Or is it just a wimpy pellet gun? At an online price starting at a mere $50 could this be the best ram you can stick in your rig. Find out.

LINK: http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/memory/Crucial_Ballistix_Tracer/index.shtml

TITLE: WolfKing Timber Wolf Gaming Keyboard @ Benchmark Reviews

DESCRIPTION: Today’s PC gaming enthusiast is always on the lookout for the edge that will put him or her above other players. A performance gaming keyboard is at the top of the list of products that can certainly make a difference. Today Benchmark Reviews takes a look at what could possibly be an edge that some players are looking for, the Wolf King Timber Wolf gaming keyboard.

The typical gaming keyboard is hardly more than a standard keyboard with a few enhancements. They have unnecessary software to set up profiles for multiple games, which can bring along its own issues. Multiple and fast keystroke capability are also on the list of features. Will the design of the Timber Wolf change the way you play?

ARTICLE URL: http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=218&Itemid=1

We have just taken a look at the 4GB ToughDrive Camo from ATP.  This is a rugged flash drive that is much smaller than other “rugged” drives and still manages to keep your data safe, secure, and protected from weather, the washing machine or fellow employees.  If you need to keep your data safe from the bumps, bangs and jarring of life, you’ll want to catch our review for all the details.

Title: ATP 4GB ToughDrive Camo
URL: http://www.bcchardware.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=6099&Itemid=40

Article Name: Thermaltake Vi-On Actively Cooled SATA/USB2.0 External Hard Drive Enclosure Review @ Tweaknews.net
Article Url: http://www.tweaknews.net/reviews/thermaltake_vi-on_hard_drive_enclosure/

Article Snippet:

“The Vi-On does exactly what an external enclosure should do – provide a cool and secure housing for that spare HDD you may have lying around. Installation takes only a few minutes and is simply a matter of snapping in the drive and then plugging it in to your PC. Both USB and a high speed eSATA interface are supported to make transferring files of all sizes a quick and easy process. For those times when portability is needed and the limited storage of a flash drive isn’t enough, the Vi-On paired with a SATA HDD is a handy alternative.”

NEW CONTENT (Miscellaneous) - NZXT Avatar Gaming Mouse

QUOTE: “On the slab today we have the monolithic looking NZXT Avatar mouse in all its matt-black glory. Boasting a 2600 DPI optical sensor, fully customisable interface and an ambidextrous design, it certainly aims to please all.

This is new territory for NZXT, having never released a mouse before. It will be interesting to see how it stacks up with the plethora of clickers on the market. Sitting on my desk is this little black box, with no markings aside from an embossed “NZXT” in one corner; reminds me of a certain movie with monkeys and bones…”

For more information, please visit - http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/1584/nzxt_avatar_gaming_mouse/index.html

Best Regards,

The TweakTown Team
http://www.tweaktown.com

Digit-Life Review: Gigabyte MA78GPM-DS2H Motherboard

Excerpt:
“The AMD 780G chipset itself lets motherboard manufacturers stand out even without researching user requirements and competition, because having a remarkable integrated graphics core, this chipset allows to install dedicated video memory, which makes this motherboard an independent graphics device.”

Article: http://www.digit-life.com/articles3/mainboard/gigabyte-ma78gpm-ds2h-780g-p1.html

InsideHW.com has posted review for MSI P45 Platinum motherboard. You can read a clip from review:

“MSI is well known to most of us as motherboard manufacturer or more accurately, MSI is present in that area of IT industry for a long time. Still, company had certain problems in this segment. You must likely imagine that those were some sort of technical problems but truth is that competition started to use better quality BIOS on their motherboards (especially in era of P35 chipset models). We don’t say that MSI didn’t know what’s important to implement into BIOS chip of motherboard. Problem actually reflected in “disobedience” of those options. Frankly, problems were eliminated in later BIOS versions yet impression of incompleteness existed for a while…”

If you are interested to read some more, we present you link:

http://www.insidehw.com/Reviews/Motherboards/MSI-P45-Platinum.html

Benchmark Reviews has released a new article which your readers might enjoy.  We would be grateful if you would please share it with them.

TITLE: ZOTAC GeForce 9800 GTX+ Zone Edition Video Card @ Benchmark Reviews

DESCRIPTION: It used to be that if you wanted to overclock your hardware, you ran the risk of voiding a warranty. Supposing that you dared to accept that risk, your options were still limited by the cooling equipment available to you. So it stands to reason that ZOTAC is making huge strides with their ZONE series, which combines a silent liquid-cooled system to a 55nm GeForce video card. The AMP! Series is already a fan favorite because of the extreme speeds at which they are factory overclocked, and the ZONE series adds to this a dramatically improved water-cooling solution for the best performance with no worries of heat or noise. Benchmark Reviews tests the ZOTAC GeForce 9800 GTX+ ZONE Edition G92 video card against a comprehensive collection of competitors in this article.

ARTICLE URL: http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=219&Itemid=1

TechwareLabs has published a review of the LiteOn DH-4B1S-08 Blu-ray Burner. Here’s a clip from the review:

Quote: Nitro proves once and for all that good things come in three’s. Check out his review of the combo CD, DVD, and Blu-ray recording Triple Burner by LiteOn and see how this device scores a three pointer with nothing but net.

LINK: http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/peripherals/liteon_dh4b1s_blu_ray_burner/

Title: LiteOn DH-4B1S-08 Blu-ray Burner @ TechwareLabs

Title:
SumoSac Sultan Luxury ‘Beanbag’ Chair Review @ TheTechLounge

Quote:
“Endurance gamers will love the Sumo Sac Sultan.  The huge pillow easily accommodates nearly any size human, and at least two average-sized ones.  If you are looking for a man-chair to add to your furniture fold, consider the Sultan.  Apartment residents wanting to save space and avoid shoving a couch up three flights of stairs may find a Sumo Sac a suitable alternative.  The Sumo Sultan will suffice for basically any application you can think of for a huge bag of comfort… just don’t operate heavy machinery after use.”

Article URL:
http://www.thetechlounge.com/article/569/SumoSac-Sultan/

TechwareLabs has published a review of the Tuniq - Tuniq 3 Chassis. Here’s a clip from the review:

Quote: Today Artiom takes a look at the Tuniq 3 Computer Chassis. Being the higher end of the Tuniq line, we have high expectations for the Tuniq 3. Can it perform to our expectations?

LINK: http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/cases/tuniq_3_chassis/

Title: Tuniq - Tuniq 3 Chassis @ TechwareLabs

Title:
A-DATA 16 GB 350x Turbo Compact Flash Card

Link:
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AData/16GB_Turbo_350x_CF_Card

Brief:
The new “Turbo” Compact Flash card from A-DATA raises the bar from 266x to 350x performance. It also adds Ultra DMA capability and uses SLC flash memory to attain insane speeds never seen before. If you are looking to build a solid-state HDD using CF Technology then this is one of the cards you should definitely consider.

TechwareLabs has published a review of the Logisys Ultra Slim Soft Touch Illuminated Multimedia Keyboard. Here’s a clip from the review:

Quote: Today, Dan Shannon takes a quick look at an ultra slim illuminated keyboard by Logisys and gives you the lowdown on the functionality of this marvel. The keyboard and mouse are the most used device associated with your machine so their ease of use and functionality can be highly important. Will the Illuminated Logisys replace your keyboard? Read our review and you may change your mind!

LINK: http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/peripherals/Logisys_Ultra_Slim_Soft_Touch_Illuminated_Multimedia_Keyboard/

Title: Logisys Ultra Slim Soft Touch Illuminated Multimedia Keyboard @ TechwareLabs

Digit-Life Review: Corsair HX620W Power Supply

Excerpt:
“Corsair is popular among PC enthusiasts, in particular, because of its high-performance memory modules. Power supplies of this company are somewhat less known. To fill this gap, we are going to review a number of its PSUs of various series. The first product that we have obtained is Corsair HX620W. The company positions the HX series as advanced high-performance power supplies for PC performance enthusiasts.”

Article: http://www.digit-life.com/articles3/psu/corsair_620-p1.html

Title:
PNY GeForce 9800 GTX 512MB XLR8 Video Card Review @ TheTechLounge

Quote:
“It’s an unfortunate thing that the 9800 GTX doesn’t quite live up to a souped-up, though no longer available, 8800 GTX.  I mean, it’s definitely a better card in most respects.  It consumes less power, is much better at video playback, and though it’s relatively louder, the 9800 GTX costs <em>one third</em> today what the 8800 GTX cost yesterday.  So for the same kind of dough, you can go SLI (with its inherent drawbacks of power and motherboard costs).  Which isn’t clearly an advantage with Intel CrossFire boards being as ubiquitous as they are.  Nobody’s saying it’s a bad card, it just hasn’t lived up to its expectations.  As a card by itself, it’s not bad, and if you’re limited to one card, it’s really the way to go.  And while it does beat an HD 4850, it does cost more–I’d say they’re equal on that front.  If not for the massive difference in power consumption, choosing  a 9800 GTX over an HD 4850 would just be a matter of preference.  Adding the GTX+ to the equation further weighs against this card, as it’ll improve on the performance quite a bit–although the plus is reported to use just as much power and it will definitely cost more. If you’re looking for the next amazing card that will last two years and still look its successor in the eye, you’ll have to turn to the GTX 200-series.”

Article URL:
http://www.thetechlounge.com/article/567/PNY-GeForce-9800-GTX-512MB-XLR8-Video-Card/

InsideHW.com has posted review for MSI P45 Platinum motherboard. You can read a clip from review:

“MSI is well known to most of us as motherboard manufacturer or more accurately, MSI is present in that area of IT industry for a long time. Still, company had certain problems in this segment. You must likely imagine that those were some sort of technical problems but truth is that competition started to use better quality BIOS on their motherboards (especially in era of P35 chipset models). We don’t say that MSI didn’t know what’s important to implement into BIOS chip of motherboard. Problem actually reflected in “disobedience” of those options. Frankly, problems were eliminated in later BIOS versions yet impression of incompleteness existed for a while…”

If you are interested to read some more, we present you link:

http://www.insidehw.com/Reviews/Motherboards/MSI-P45-Platinum.html

TechwareLabs has published a review of the Thermaltake DH-101 Home Theatre PC Case. Here’s a clip from the review:

Quote: Today Nitro takes a look at the Thermaltake DH-101 Home Theatre PC Case. Home theatres are more and more prevalent now-a-days and Thermaltake wants to make your HTPC look good. With smooth edges, a brushed aluminum front and a black piano finish, the Thermaltake DH-101 is bound to be an eye-catcher. Now the question remains, is it practical?

LINK: http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/cases/thermaltake_dh101_htpc/

Title: Thermaltake DH-101 Home Theatre PC Case @ TechwareLabs

NEW CONTENT (Networking) - TRENDnet TEW-624UB 300Mbps Wireless N USB 2.0 Adapter

QUOTE: “Over the past few weeks we have looked at a couple of products from TRENDnet, including the 200Mbps Powerline AV Fast Ethernet Adapter Kit as well as the 300Mbps Dual Band Wireless N Gigabit Router.

Both are pretty good products and overall we were left thinking quite good things about TRENDnet and what they had sent us to review. Today we have another review of a TRENDnet product and this time it is the TEW-624UB (version B1.0R to be exact) 300Mbps Wireless N USB 2.0 adapter. It is designed to add wireless capability to your Windows 2000, XP or Vista desktop PC or notebook or as an upgrade over a slower wireless connection such as 802.11b.”

For more information, please visit - http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/1582/trendnet_tew_624ub_300mbps_wireless_n_usb_2_0_adapter/index.html

Best Regards,

The TweakTown Team
http://www.tweaktown.com

CPU3D Review: ATP ToughDrive Camo (8Gb) USB Flash Drive

Large capacity USB flash drive are now widely available … however, for may users size isn’t everything. Nowadays, consumers are now demanding a lot more … including durability, shock resistant, water-proof and rugged construction. ATP’s Special Edition ToughDrive Camo features  all of the above as well as Desert Camouflage Print and a large 8Gb of storage.

“ATP have produced a very good USB flash drive that features excellent build quality and rugged construction. It’s Windows Ready-Boost ready, water-proof, shock resistant and offers very good read/write performance. “

Read the rest of the review … http://www.cpu3d.com/content/view/5774/51/

Title: Samsung LN40A650 40inch LCD HDTV at Overclockers Online
Link: http://www.overclockersonline.net/?page=articles&num=1961
Quote: The LN40A650 comes packed with features including multiple HDMI
inputs, VGA input for older computers, ATSC tuner, LAN, InfoLink, WiseLink
and Anynet. The Samsung panel produces magnificently stunning and mouth
dropping pictures. Everyone who has seen my new TV was envious of it.

NEW CONTENT (Motherboards) - GIGABYTE EP45-Extreme Motherboard

QUOTE: “P45 not only supports true Crossfire thanks to its twin x8 PCIe slots, but it also manages to support DDR2 and DDR3 along with the latest ICH10R Southbridge and PCI Express 2.0 support. The best thing is that all this falls into the mid-range PCs price point. Who could argue with that?

Today GIGABYTE has sent us their latest high-end offering, based on the P45 chipset. This baby is dubbed the EP45-Extreme and we will show you why soon.”

For more information, please visit - http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/1580/gigabyte_ep45_extreme_motherboard/index.html

Best Regards,

The TweakTown Team
http://www.tweaktown.com

Palit 9800GT Super+ 1GB Single/SLI Video Card Review

Author: Benjamin Sun Date: 09-01-2008

Two 9800GTs beat a GeForce GTX280 which is pretty amazing considering the performance of that card. Palit 9800GT Super+ 1GB is available online today at a price of $170, meaning that two of them would cost you less than a GeForce GTX 280 which they would outperform and be a better value. Palit has released three versions of the 9800GT including the reference clocked one, this card which offers better cooling and 1GB of memory and the 9800GT Sonic card which has a higher clock speed. The addition of PhysX enabled software allows the card to improve frame rates up to 20% as it offloads the physics to the GPU from the graphics card. This is a serious Hot Product as in SLI mode you get one kick ass pair of VGA cards that can almost just plain wallop the GTX280 standard edition card.

Review Link: http://www.motherboards.org/reviews/hardware/1812_1.html

Traditional hard disk storage is living on borrowed time. We know it and storage manufacturers know it. Solid state drives, which use non-volatile memory chips instead of rotating metal discs for storing data, are simply a better medium in the long run. They consume less power, create nearly zero heat, and produce no noise – but best of all, there are no moving parts to wear out over time. The technology and prices aren’t quite there yet, but it’s only a matter of time. Take a quick look through any tech-oriented forum and you will likely run into folks proclaiming the death of traditional platter based storage. For the most part, they’re right - but there is a twist to the story as platter based storage manufacturers are fighting back.

There is still plenty of life in traditional storage technologies, and Seagate is out to prove that with their newly launched Cheetah X15K.6 hard drives which feature 170 MB/s+ read / write speeds.  Head on over to the site and check them out…

Seagate Cheetah X15K.6 Hard Drive:

http://www.hothardware.com/Articles/Seagate-Cheetah-X156-Hard-Drive

System Mechanic 8 is the latest incarnation of iolo technologies PC tune up software.  Formed in 1998, iolo is recognized worldwide as the market-leading provider of PC tune-up software and is best known for its award-winning System Mechanic family of products.

As your PC is utilized more and more, its performance seems to slowly degrade and become more sluggish.  With System Mechanic 8 on board, these issues are addressed pro actively, keeping your operating system running at its peak performance.  System Mechanic 8 cleans unwanted services from startup, optimizes the registry, fine tunes the internet settings, defragments system memory and hard drives, repair hard drive error and much, much more.

When I had a chance to talk to one of the representatives from iolo at the Pepcom show, they stressed how System Mechanic 8 was ideal for both the neophyte PC user and the power user.

For the beginner, System Mechanic 8 offers “fix and forget” capability.  One click repairs and power tools allow automated repair and maintenance of your PC.  The ActiveCare technology allows System Mechanic 8 to do all the work and fix issues as they arise.

The power use has over forty tools to choose from and allows tweaking of system performance tools.  The Intellistatus technology allows the user to visualize key statistics and track performance.

Iolo also allows System Mechanic 8 to be installed on up to three computers per license.  This helps protect your laptop, desktop and one additional family computer.

So let’s take a closer look at the latest version of System Mechanic.

Read Full Review HERE