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Here a roundup of today's reviews and articles:

12-Way NVIDIA GeForce Comparison For F1 2015 On Linux
1UP Keyboards Pok3r Sleeve
ASUS X99-Deluxe II Review
ASUSTOR AS3202T Network Attached Storage System
Best Laptops: Q2 2016
EVGA unveils its full Geforce GTX 1080 lineup
MSI AfterBurner 4.3.0 Beta 3 and GeForce GTX 1080 Overclocking Guide With AfterBurner 4.3.0 Beta 3
NETGEAR Nighthawk X8 - AC5300 Tri-Band Quad-Stream Wi-Fi Router (R8500)
Noctua Industrial PPC Fans Revisited: 24V Models and Chromax Colour Accessories
Noctua NH-U14S CPU Cooler Review
Toshiba OCZ RD400 M.2 NVMe 512 GB Review
Toshiba's OCZ RD400 512GB SSD reviewed
Video preview of be quiet! Dark Base 900 Chassis
Zalman Z9 NEO



12-Way NVIDIA GeForce Comparison For F1 2015 On Linux

While the F1 2015 Formula One racing game was released for Windows last year, only yesterday was the Linux port released by Feral Interactive. Given the high requirements for F1 2015 on Linux with this OpenGL port, I decided to test this racing game on a range of NVIDIA graphics cards under Ubuntu Linux. Yep, only NVIDIA tests this round as the game doesn't work yet with the AMD Linux drivers.

Feral Interactive recommends a GeForce GTX 970 or better for playing F1 2015 on Linux while the listed minimum system requirement is a GeForce GT 640. Under Windows, the game lists the minimum supported GPUs as a AMD HD 5770 or higher / Intel 4th Gen Iris / GeForce GTS450 or higher. Their recommended graphics on Windows is a Radeon R9 290, 5th Gen Intel Iris Pro, or GeForce GTX 970. Given this Linux port is much more taxing on the system and doesn't even work with the Intel or AMD Linux drivers, for this comparison I tested a variety of Kepler and Maxwell graphics cards.

Read full article @ Phoronix

1UP Keyboards Pok3r Sleeve

Returning readers are sure to know that I have a bit of a thing for keyboards, especially smaller 60% keyboards. In the past we have covered them multiple times including a few custom made products made specifically for the keyboard enthusiast market like custom leather wrist rests and an all oak Poker case. What I’ve learned is that when there is a gap in the market from the bigger companies people from all over step up and start selling products that they originally designed for themselves. A great example of this is 1UP Keyboards. A year ago I reached out to them about us covering their sleeves because I had been following them and because keyboard sleeves are a perfect way to protect your expensive keyboards when taking them to and from LANs or work. Well they declined at the time but recently reached back out to us about it. Given we are in the middle of the LAN season I couldn’t turn down a chance to protect my Pok3r like my wife’s Poker 2 is protected.

Read full article @ LanOC Reviews

ASUS X99-Deluxe II Review

The Intel X99 has been pushed into the shadows with the release of the Intel Z170 chipset, but with news of an upcoming processor release from Intel certain brands have decided to revive the once cutting-edge LGA2011 platform by releasing new motherboards which are able to tap into new features.

One such board to receive a revival is the X99-Deluxe II. Based on the original X99-Deluxe, the Deluxe II carries with it a subtle aesthetics facelift but has had an overhaul to the fundamental features. Not only is Deluxe II capable of hosting the next-generation of processors, but there is also support for USB 3.1, and a large dose of storage – which includes SATA, SATA Express, M.2 and U.2. ASUS has also fine-tuned key areas so that gamers can take advantage of x16/x16 modes for multi-GPU configurations.

So, on paper this board is mightily impressive – let’s waste no further time and jump into our review!

Read full article @ Vortez

ASUSTOR AS3202T Network Attached Storage System

A few years ago, I was walking in a mall parking lot in Markham, Ontario. As I passed by rows on rows of Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi vehicles -- many with license plates ending in '888' -- one particular car caught my eye. On the trunk, it said "C250". However, something did not really add up for me. Not only did it have unusually wide rear tires and particularly beefy brakes with cross-drilled rotors, it also had quad exhausts at the back, and featured a rear diffuser. As I moved along to the front, I spotted a bulging hood. Since the car was parked, I decided to take a look inside. Although the windows were tinted dark enough it took some effort to inspect the interior, once I got close enough, it confirmed my suspicions: If the bucket seats did not give it away, the "AMG" marking at the bottom of the speedometer and "6.3-V8" label at the back of the tachometer did. Clearly, this "C250" was not your pedestrian 201hp Mercedes-Benz C-class. Instead, it was the obscenely lunatic C63 AMG, equipped with a massive 6.2L V8 engine that produces at least 451hp -- and if the guy bought the Performance Package, make it 481. Imagine the surprise when this "C250" pulls away from you at the lights and hits 60mph in less than four seconds! You know, sometimes, certain things may look pedestrian to us. However, what is under the hood could be something you have completely not been expecting. In November last year, I reviewed the ASUSTOR AS1002T, which featured a relatively pedestrian Marvell ARMADA-385 1GHz CPU with 512MB RAM. Two months ago, I covered the AS3102T, a system that looked almost exactly the same on the outside, but featured a beefier Intel Celeron N3050 CPU with 2GB of RAM. Well, today, we are going to take a look at yet another NAS from ASUSTOR. The AS3202T literally looks identical to the AS3102T both on the outside and the inside, but it comes with one fundamental change: A quad core Intel Celeron N3160 CPU. I would not call this the AMG of NAS boxes unless they shove a Core i7 into something of this size, but until that day arrives, will we still see a performance boost over its dual core brethren? We took one in to find out.

Read full article @ APH Networks

Best Laptops: Q2 2016

The big consumer push for laptops is generally around the CES timeframe in January, but not all of those devices are available immediately. There have also been a couple of new models launched since January so we’ll see a few new additions to this guide since our last refresh.

The PC market has certainly been struggling lately, but the increased competition has been good news for consumers with some fantastic laptops coming to market over the last several years. There has been a big push to better displays, solid state storage, and much better battery life than only a couple of years ago. Intel’s latest Skylake processors are out in full force, and with this guide we even see a device with AMD’s Carrizo processor available.

Read full article @ Anandtech

EVGA unveils its full Geforce GTX 1080 lineup

In addition to the standard GTX 1080 Founders Edition, which is completely stock and the GTX 1080 ACX 3.0, which is based on both reference PCB and reference clocks but features EVGA's new ACX 3.0 cooler, EVGA has also unveiled three factory-overclocked and custom graphics cards, the EVGA GTX 1080 SC Gaming ACX 3.0, GTX 1080 FTW Gaming ACX 3.0 and the GTX 1080 Classified Gaming ACX 3.0 graphics cards.
The biggest update in the lineup is the new EVGA ACX 3.0 cooler, which further upgrades the already impressive ACX 2.0 cooler by increased heatpipe and copper contact area with STraight Heat Pipe 3.0, which in terms made it 10 percent cooler as well as a new optimal tuned heatsink and fin design, which made it 13 percent quieter, compared to the ACX 2.0 cooler.

The new EVGA ACX 3.0 cooler still comes with memory/MOSFET cooling plate, dB Inverter and two Double Ball Bearing fans but now also comes with RGB LEDs placed in the shroud and fully controllable via EVGA's PrecisionX OC software, at least on some models. All Geforce GTX 1080 models come with a backplate.
In case you missed it before, the GTX 1080 Founders Edition works at 1,607MHz base and 1,733MHz GPU Boost clocks while 8GB of GDDR5X memory is clocked at 2,500MHz (10,000MHz effective). The EVGA GTX 1080 ACX 3.0 is the same and only replaces the stock blower fan with the new EVGA ACX 3.0 cooler. IT does not feature RGB LEDs but only white ones, same as the reference one.

Read full article @ Fudzilla

MSI AfterBurner 4.3.0 Beta 3 and GeForce GTX 1080 Overclocking Guide With AfterBurner 4.3.0 Beta 3

Today an article slash guide dedicated on overclocking the GeForce GTX 1080 with AfterBurner 4.3.0. Can we take it towards 2000 MHz ? Yes we can. Armed with a new trick or two overclocking will never be the same though. But if you want another notch extra performance out of an already seriously fast Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080, we'll gladly teach you how to do it.

Read full article @ Guru3D

NETGEAR Nighthawk X8 - AC5300 Tri-Band Quad-Stream Wi-Fi Router (R8500)

*NETGEAR touts the Nighthawk X8 AC5300 (R8500) Smart Wi-Fi router as “the next wave in Wi-Fi”. Generally, I am inclined to dismiss this sort of hyperbole, but the $350/£350 802.11AC includes features that are a reasonable step up from other models including: quad-streams, two 802.11AC radios, Wave 2 enhancements , and six Gigabit Ethernet ports, with two 802.3ad (link aggregation) enabled. Alongside this, it also includes a feature that should have a tangible benefit for all clients – active antennas. By moving the amplifiers from the mainboard to the tops of the antennas, there should be a clear benefit in signal strength and clarity. I am not sure that is enough to count as a “next wave”, but it has got me every interested in testing out the R8500.

Read full article @ MissingRemote

Noctua Industrial PPC Fans Revisited: 24V Models and Chromax Colour Accessories

Known for its signature brown colour as well as its silent performance, Noctua's fans come easily recommended for those with thermal concerns but a bit of a hit-or-miss when it comes to system aesthetic integration. Many are not too fond of the brown and flesh color-scheme which sharply contrasts with mostly black and loud red or blue component pieces.

Read full article @ Modders-Inc

Noctua NH-U14S CPU Cooler Review

Our spring into summer CPU cooler reviews continue with the Noctua NH-U14S CPU Cooler, the big brother to NH-U12S we reviewed previously. The NH-U14S is the bigger, badder (a good bad if there is such a thing) and down right better CPU cooler than the NH-U12S, at least it should be. We are going to put it through the ringer to find out!

Read full article @ TechnologyX

Toshiba OCZ RD400 M.2 NVMe 512 GB Review

With the OCZ RD400, Toshiba launches an NVMe-SSD for end users. The drive which is lying front of us appears to perform extremely well pumping out up to 2600 MB/s sequentially reading and 1600 MB/s sequentially writing. This definitely makes us wonder how much of that horsepower is available in real life.

Read full article @ ocaholic

Toshiba's OCZ RD400 512GB SSD reviewed

Toshiba is bringing the OCZ brand into the NVMe SSD market with its RD400. We put the drive through its paces to see how it stacks up with Intel's 750 Series and Samsung's 950 Pro drives.

Read full article @ The Tech Report

Video preview of be quiet! Dark Base 900 Chassis

We recently had some time to chat with Aaron Licht about the upcoming be quiet! Dark Base 900 Chassis. This chassis is due for release at the end of June 2016 and Aaron takes us through all the main features, as well as a couple of unique talking points. As always KitGuru will be on hand to give our full indepth analysis in a few weeks time.

Read full article @ KitGuru

Zalman Z9 NEO

The Zalman Z9 NEO aims to offer a diverse and useful feature set and good looks and liquid-cooling compatibility, all at an affordable price. Add the fact that it comes equipped with a whooping 5 (!!) fans and it just got even more interesting, while the choice between a black or white version does not help curb the expectations we have diving into this review.

Read full article @ techPowerUp