Weekly CPU Prices - Week of August 25, 2008-August 28, 2008
There was not a lot of activity in the AMD and Intel processor charts this week, but a few double-digit price drops managed to sneak in. These may not represent quantum shifts, but there may be a couple of deals to be found. If you're looking for a new CPU or just want to see where the market is heading, be sure to check out the detailed price lists and commentary in our Weekly CPU Pricing Guide.
D-Link DWA-652 Xtreme N Notebook Adapter Review-August 20, 2008
The Wireless-N revolution is upon us, and although the IEEE 802.11n specification is still in Draft 2.0 format, it still offers a potential 300 Mbps wireless link, or almost 6X that of Wireless-G. The D-Link DWA-652 Xtreme N Notebook Adapter is an upgrade device that adds Wireless-N to an older notebook, getting it up to speed for faster online performance.
High-End Memory Prices - Week of August 18, 2008-August 18, 2008
Our high-end memory charts are showing price drops throughout the guide, but these are showing up in a few surprising areas. As usual, DDR3 led the way, but it wasn't that much ahead of the Registered/FB-DIMM listings, while matched pair DDR2 also wasn't far back. If you want the inside scoop on the high-end memory market, then don't miss our detailed price list and commentary, and see who is offering the best values.
AMD 790GX Chipset Review-August 8, 2008
The AMD 780G represented the first wave of the HD 3000-based integrated chipsets, but the AMD 790GX is definitely second-generation. This improves on the 780G in almost every way, offering full Phenom X4 support, a faster graphics core, integrated display cache, and a higher-end architecture. If you've always wanted a performance platform with integrated graphics, look no further.
July Video Card Price Guide-July 31, 2008
The July edition of our Video Card Price Guide demonstrates that no matter your budget, our monthly price list can always find the right deal. We break down the trends and prices from the entry-level, mainstream and enthusiast-level cards, and find the best overall values. If you're looking for a new video card, or just want to see where the market is heading, then be sure to check out the detailed price lists and commentary.
On Hardware Central
Platform Trends: Intel Gets Up and Atom-August 18, 2008
Suddenly, no small, light, low-priced notebook -- a.k.a. netbook, a.k.a. Asus Eee 901, Acer Aspire One, MSI Wind, or Dell Comingsoon -- is complete without Intel's battery-sipping Atom N270 processor. Actually, that 1.6GHz, Hyper-Threading CPU is just one of seven Atoms, with thermal design power as low as 0.65 watt, and they're destined for more than just netbooks. Here's a look under the hood.
Platform Trends: Nvidia Reseeds its Mainstream Line-August 4, 2008
Though its flagship GeForce 200 Series holds the spotlight, Nvidia Corp. has taken the opportunity of a switch to 55-nanometer-process engineering to perk up its formerly-elite-now-everyday GeForce 9 lineup of graphics processing units. You'll see some graphics cards that look awfully familiar, others that will put a grin on the faces of gamers with only $100 to spend, and still others in between. Vince Freeman helps you keep score.
Lenovo ThinkPad X200 Review-July 29, 2008
The advent of Intel's Centrino 2 mobile platform gives Lenovo an excuse to replace the ThinkPad X61 with a 12.1-inch widescreen ultralight with better performance, a slew of configuration and communication options, and a keyboard to die for. SmallBusinessComputing.com's Jamie Bsales takes the mini for a spin.
Elsewhere...
Will Solid State Drives Go Beyond Enterprise?-August 22, 2008
Solid state disk (SSD) drives currently cost as much as 30 times more than Fibre Channel drives, but the return is impressive. The high cost has kept SSDs primarily tied to high-end enterprises that can afford such pricey performance. But given that prices for SSDs are dropping rapidly, the drives may become more ubiquitous than in enterprise.
The Secondary Payoff to Intel's Cool Chips-August 22, 2008
What started as a breakthrough of chemical engineering 17 months ago has resulted in Intel breaking into new territories where it had never been in the past, at least with any success. In January 2007, the company announced a design breakthrough called high-k metal gate, which would allow it to continue shrinking the manufacturing size of its processors while avoiding a heat build-up.
Intel Sees Fewer Power Cords in Your Future-August 21, 2008
More than a hundred years ago, Nikola Tesla envisioned building a global power network that would provide the entire world with an unlimited supply of free power, delivered wirelessly. But a century later, Intel is working a project similar in spirit, if not technology, to Tesla's vision.
Recently on Sharky Extreme
July Hard Drive Price Guide-July 31, 2008
Welcome to the July edition of our Hard Drive Price Guide, which provides a monthly snapshot of the overall market. We break down the trends for both Parallel and Serial ATA desktop drives, and find the best overall values in each area. If you're looking for a new hard drive, or just want to see where the market is heading, then be sure to check out the detailed price lists and commentary.
D-Link DGL-4500 Xtreme N Gaming Router Review-July 28, 2008
The IEEE 802.11n specification is in Draft 2.0 format, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy the faster 300 Mbps wireless speeds, enhanced stability and greater range now. The D-Link DGL-4500 Xtreme N Gaming Router is a serious piece of hardware that not only uses the fastest Wireless-N and Gigabit LAN speeds, but also incorporates several gaming-oriented features to ensure your online games will get all the bandwidth they need.
Gigabyte GA-MA790FX-DS5 Motherboard Review-July 16, 2008
The AMD 7-series of chipsets offers everything from entry-level to ultra high-end platforms for the Socket AM2+ market. We're concentrating on the top of the line 790FX chipset, and the Gigabyte GA-MA790FX-DS5 motherboard that features it, so check out our review to see how it stacks up against some other AMD-based solutions.
July High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide-July 9, 2008
It is time for another edition of our High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide, where we take $2500 in cash and assemble feature-rich, high performance gaming systems using readily available parts. If you ever wanted to know exactly what $2500 could buy in today's PC market, look no further than our latest edition of this guide.
AMD Phenom X4 9950 BE & 9350e Review-July 2, 2008
AMD is taking the old "hit 'em high & hit 'em low" adage to heart with their latest set of product releases, offering up the unlocked 2.6 GHz Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition alongside the low-power 2.0 GHz Phenom X4 9350e. These two processors couldn't be more different in terms of clock speed and TDP rating, so check out our review for performance, overclocking and power usage results.
Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 5500 Revolution Review-June 27, 2008
If the selection of Logitech cordless desktops had one issue, it was the lack of a top-end mouse in the package. With the Cordless Desktop MX 5500 Revolution, Logitech has solved that problem, and incorporated the popular MX Revolution into their latest desktop kit. Check out our review to see how it stacked up in terms of features, design and usability.
PNY XLR8 GeForce 9800 GX2 1GB Review-June 17, 2008
The latest trend in enthusiast graphics card is to produce a hot mainstream card, then double up for some multi-GPU goodness. ATI did it with the Radeon HD 3870 X2 and NVIDIA has followed up with a GeForce 9800 GX dual-GPU card of their own. The PNY model offers a great look at the technology and provides a serious dual-GPU performer for the enthusiast market.
OCZ PC2-8500 Titanium 2x1GB Review-June 4, 2008
The shift from DDR2 to DDR3 is still just beginning, and most performance users are still using low-cost DDR2. DDR2-800 remains the standard, but as both AMD and Intel now support higher-speed DDR2-1066, like the OCZ PC2-8500 Titanium 2x1GB kit, this is emerging as the new default clock speed.
May Value Gaming PC Buyer's Guide-May 19, 2008
Our latest Value Gaming PC Buyer's Guide is online, and we're taking $1,000 in cold, hard cash to build a powerhouse gaming PC for the budget crowd. If you're the type of gamer who counts your pennies before buying any new computer, then this is the system guide for you.
Gigabyte Radeon HD 3870 512MB Review-May 14, 2008
The Radeon HD 3870 512MB is positioned as ATI's answer to the mainstream performance question, and for the most part, it has done extremely well. After introducing a standard reference design, Gigabyte has put its own spin on the Radeon HD 3870, complete with a Zalman GPU cooler and Ultra Durable 2 design. Check out the review to see how it did in our performance and overclocking tests.
AMD Phenom X3 8750 Review-April 23, 2008
The multi-tiered Phenom lineup has had to wait a bit for the updated B3 core to make the rounds, but the new triple-core X3 is finally here. The 2.4 GHz Phenom X3 8750 is the flagship of the triple-core line, running at a full 2.4 GHz, but at a lower power envelope. Our review will determine how well a Phenom X3 handles our system and gaming benchmarks, and see how high it can overclock.
Samsung Spinpoint F1 1TB Hard Drive Review-April 22, 2008
Samsung may have been the last company to join the 1TB hard drive club, but in this case, timing could be everything. The debut of the Samsung Spinpoint F1 1TB coincided with a shift towards higher-density 334GB platters, allowing the use of a triple-platter design in a full 1TB data capacity. Check out our review and see how this enhanced design affects the physical specifications and performance results.
ASUS EN8800GT TOP 512MB Review-April 21, 2008
The 65nm GeForce 8800 GT was designed as an alternative to the mainstream GeForce 8600 GTS and high-end GeForce 8800 GTS models, but companies like ASUS decided to close the gap even further. Using custom designed, pre-overclocked cards like the EN8800GT TOP 512MB, ASUS has helped blur the lines between the mainstream and high-end markets.
Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 1TB Hard Drive Review-April 10, 2008
Seagate may have followed Hitachi to the 1TB disk party, but the Barracuda 7200.11 1TB hard drive offers a very compelling high-end solution. The full terabyte of disk capacity is a major selling point all on its own, but the flagship Barracuda drive also delivers on the performance end too. Check out our review and see how the 1TB behemoth stacks up.
AMD Phenom X4 9850 Black Edition Review-March 27, 2008
The B3 is here, and the X4 is back. This spells good news for AMD fans, as the Phenom X4 9850 showcases the latest B3 core revision, and at a higher 2.5 GHz clock speed. This is also a "Black Edition" release, which means an unlocked multiplier, and in addition to the standard system and gaming benchmarks, we'll be seeing how far we can overclock it.
Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Review-March 27, 2008
Enthusiasts have been waiting on the 45nm Wolfdale to appear since Intel first announced the line. The 3.16 GHz Core 2 Duo E8500 sits at the top of the Wolfdale food chain, and offers a very compelling mix of high performance, low power usage and insane overclocking. Check out our review and see how it stacked up against some of the top processors from both AMD and Intel.
Gigabyte GeForce 8800 GT 512MB Review-March 21, 2008
The 65nm GeForce 8800 GT was designed to bridge the gap between the mainstream GeForce 8600 GTS and high-end GeForce 8800 GTS models, but Gigabyte thought it could go one better. Their latest GeForce 8800 GT 512MB card features a custom design, complete with Zalman cooler and higher clock speeds, which all add up to a very interesting high-end graphics card.
