Reviews 51945 Published by

Here a roundup of today's reviews and articles:

Creative iRoar + iRoar Rock Review
Crucial MX300 (525GB & 1050GB) Solid State Drives Review
GE 12724 Z-Wave In Wall Smart Dimmer Switch
Kingston Industrial Temperature MicroSD Review
Logitech Multi-Device K780 Keyboard and M720 Triathlon Mouse Review
OCZ VX500 512 GB
OCZ VX500 SATA SSD Review: Fast, Affordable Storage
RIOTORO CR1080 Review
Silverstone ST1200-PT Strider Platinum Power Supply Review
SureCall EZ 4G Home Cellular Signal Booster Review
Toshiba OCZ VX500 512 Gigabyte Review
Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB & 1TB SSD Review
Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB SSD Review
Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB SSD Review
Toshiba OCZ VX500 SSD Review (256GB/512GB/1TB) – A New MLC Contender In The Recent Sea of TLC
Toshiba OCZ VX500 SSD Review
Toshiba's OCZ VX500 512GB SSD reviewed
Xiaomi Air 12 Review



Creative iRoar + iRoar Rock Review

Building on the legacy of the Roar portable wireless speaker, it was inevitable the Creative will push the boundaries and technology to deliver a premium device. That device features a built in SB-Axx1 audio processor, an expanded NFC ring, a 50% larger battery, an optical output, touch controls oh and is 'twice as loud' as the original Roar!

Aside from being a fantastic portable wireless speaker, Creative have gone to the next-level regarding user interface. The only hard controls featured on the iRoar is the power/pair button, as well as a shuffle/loop switch, all other commands are touch controls that light up when needed. To compliment that, There is an LED display for battery life, volume level and mode indicator. Creative have released a SDK available for people to create custom Apps and add-ons.

Read full article @ Vortez

Crucial MX300 (525GB & 1050GB) Solid State Drives Review

A few months ago we took a look at Crucial’s MX300 Solid State Drive. This was the company’s first consumer solid state drive to make use of 3D NAND and make them the second company (behind Samsung) to offer a 3D NAND drive to consumers. By using 3D NAND Crucial is able to keep the costs of the drive lower and enable higher capacity drives. When the MX300 was initially launched Crucial only offered a 750GB version, but now the they have filled out the lineup with 275GB, 525GB, 1TB, and 2TB capacities. Today we will be testing the 525GB and 1TB (1050GB) versions of the drive. They offer the same 530 MB/s sequential read and 510 MB/s sequential write speeds as the 750GB. Let’s jump in!

Read full article @ ThinkComputers.org

GE 12724 Z-Wave In Wall Smart Dimmer Switch

Whether they do it for fun, energy savings or simply to make their lives easier; more and more people are looking to automate their homes. One of the largest sectors of this automation push is in power and lighting control and if you think about it, that makes sense. The typical home has more of these circuits than thermostats etc. Years ago geeks were accomplishing this automation through X10 but now the most common protocols are Z-Wave and ZigBee, with the recent new comer being Bluetooth. All of these protocols operate on mesh networks and are capable of passing along commands to distant devices. There are many companies out there that make these devices but only one that GE trusts to license their name to... Jasco.

Read full article @ Bigbruin.com

Kingston Industrial Temperature MicroSD Review

The Kingston Industrial Temperature MicroSD card is designed specifically for harsh environments with temperature extremes, from -40C to 85C. Its high insertion rating is ideal for applications in which the card will be frequently accessed and removed from devices. On top of that, Kingston extensively tests the Industrial SD cards. Industrial Temperature MicroSD cards are water, shock, vibration, and airport x-ray proof.

Read full article @ Benchmark Reviews

Logitech Multi-Device K780 Keyboard and M720 Triathlon Mouse Review

Logitech introduced an innovative multi-device Bluetooth keyboard, the Multi-Device K480, back in 2014. The K480 could be configured for use with up to three different devices, and definitely stood out in the crowded I/O peripherals market. Our wish-list for a follow-up product included an integrated trackball or touchpad and ability to use such multi-device peripherals with a wider range of PCs (not just the ones with Bluetooth capabilities).

Read full article @ Anandtech

OCZ VX500 512 GB

OCZ's new VX500 SSD is built around a Toshiba controller paired with Toshiba 15 nanometer MLC flash chips. The drive offers excellent performance at even better pricing, making it a great candidate if you want to stay away from TLC drives but don't want to break the bank.

Read full article @ techPowerUp

OCZ VX500 SATA SSD Review: Fast, Affordable Storage

Although NVMe PCI Express solid state drives are all the rage as of late, due to their relatively strong performance and inherent feature benefits, manufacturers continue to tune and refine their SATA based offerings as well. Case in point: the brand new OCZ VX500 series solid state drives we’ll be showing you here today. The OCZ VX500 series targets the mainstream computing segment and initially consists of a quartet of 2.5mm SATA SSDs, packing all, in-house, Toshiba made technology. The hook is, even though these new drives are priced aggressively, they eschew less expensive TLC NAND in favor of more durable MLC, and performance is relatively strong too...

Read full article @ HotHardware

RIOTORO CR1080 Review

Being the new kid on the block may cause some to lower their expectations, but RIOTORO first had a hit with the CR1280 and it does it again with the CR1080. I was quite surprised that a full-size ATX motherboard can fit in such a small, attractive case. This case has styling and function at a very reasonable price. The layout and use of space is well planned and executed. Cable management is really nice and allows for a clean, uncluttered build. There really wan't much to dislike with the CR1080. It is small, but you certainly know that going into it. No surprise that you aren't going to fit a dozen hard drives and 4-Way SLI in there. I suppose only having one case fan might be a minor issue, until you consider that the case is set up for an addtional three 120mm fans if you choose to add them. And being a small case, the extra airflow would not hurt. Overall, the CR1080 is certainly an impressive case. As for pricing, the MSRP for the CR1080 is $79.99 (on Amazon) and I think this is a fair price for what you get. Check out the RIOTORO CR1080 and see how big things can come in small packages.

Read full article @ OCC

Silverstone ST1200-PT Strider Platinum Power Supply Review

When I watch people building up a gaming or enthusiast system I see most of their time and money is spent on making sure they get the most powerful video card and best processor. This is a natural tendency since those are the things we perceive to dictate overall performance. The thing is many people forget that performance cannot be realized unless you have power to drive everything, which means you also need a quality PSU.

In this review we will be looking at the Silverstone Strider Platinum 1200W PSU. As the namesake suggests the new Strider Platinum is an 80+ Platinum certified PSU that comes with everything the Strider series has to offer plus 1200 Watts.

Read full article @ Hardware Asylum

SureCall EZ 4G Home Cellular Signal Booster Review

More often than not, it is easy to find yourself holding your arm up and waving it around in circles. Endlessly searching for that extra signal bar, or for your iPhone to pop from 3G to LTE. This is especially difficult when you are at your parents house, which parallels a "blackhole" when it comes to signal. Read on to see how SureCall can help!

Read full article @ TechnologyX

Toshiba OCZ VX500 512 Gigabyte Review

With the OCZ VX500 series Toshiba has SSDs in their portfolio which offer convincing performance, maxing out the SATA interface. Apart from that there is MLC NAND flash memory and therefore endurance is on a very competitive level as well. Overall the OCZ VX500 could be an interesting drive and now we really want to know what this SSD is capable of.

Read full article @ ocaholic

Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB & 1TB SSD Review

OCZ is diving back into the mainstream SSD market in a big way. Their new VX500 series combines an affordable price with excellent performance and some incredible NAND durability.

Read full article @ Hardware Canucks

Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB SSD Review

Toshiba OCZ already has the RD400 in the high-end/enthusiast SSD market segment and the TR150 at the value end of it. Notably missing was a new up to date drive to compete in the mainstream market. That gap has now been filled with the launch of the VX500 series. It will take over from the old VT180 (Vector 180) mainstream series as that product line becomes end of life.

Read full article @ KitGuru

Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB SSD Review

The Toshiba OCZ VX500 was released this morning and it will be replacing the current OCZ Vector 180 or the VT180 as it is called by Toshiba. The drive that we’ll be taking a closer look at today is the Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB SSD. Read on to see how it performs!

Read full article @ Legit Reviews

Toshiba OCZ VX500 SSD Review (256GB/512GB/1TB) – A New MLC Contender In The Recent Sea of TLC

The OCZ Vector has been the top performing SATA SSD (http://thessdreview.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3d9b6193ffd32dd60e84fc74b&id=f7b788c868&e=312ec141fb) from the company for the past few years. Utilizing their proprietary Indilinx controller and most recently, Toshiba's A19 NAND, they provided for strong performance for mainstream consumers as well as enthusiasts, but it did have its drawbacks in recent times. Since the release of the latest PCIe NVMe SSDs this year, however, nearly all SATA SSDs are no longer part of the enthusiast segment. When we reviewed the RD400 (http://thessdreview.us7.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=3d9b6193ffd32dd60e84fc74b&id=a6cb32b585&e=312ec141fb) it was very clear that it took over that battle and left the Vector 180 to fight in the mainstream segment.

While at FMS this year (http://thessdreview.us7.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=3d9b6193ffd32dd60e84fc74b&id=41ad490784&e=312ec141fb) , we also noticed that OCZ have been tweaking their brand again, refreshing their image since their Toshiba acquisition (http://thessdreview.us7.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=3d9b6193ffd32dd60e84fc74b&id=ebfe15ccc5&e=312ec141fb) . The Vector 180 and Trion 150 both had been renamed to VR180 and TR150 respectively and a new aesthetic has been applied to them with a larger presence of the Toshiba logo. Today, we are see the next evolutionary step for the OCZ Vector and it comes in the release of the Toshiba OCZ VX500. The VX500 now contains a new Toshiba controller that has been use in other Toshiba SSDs like the Q300 Pro (http://thessdreview.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3d9b6193ffd32dd60e84fc74b&id=4aebb9b54b&e=312ec141fb) and, unlike many of the latest SATA releases (http://thessdreview.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3d9b6193ffd32dd60e84fc74b&id=a289c06022&e=312ec141fb) , it boasts their latest
15nm MLC NAND rather than TLC NAND. Additionally, the OCZ VX500 is now a DRAM-less SSD, well except for the 1TB model which utilizes a small DRAM cache. All this, paired with the same great warranty service and some of the most competitive MRSPs they have released to date, make for the Toshiba OCZ VX500 to be a seemingly great mainstream option for those in search of a new SATA based SSD. Let's dive into the review to see if this new product is truly as great a value as it seems and if the DRAM-less design will make it or break it.

Read full article @ The SSD Review

Toshiba OCZ VX500 SSD Review

Join as we review the latest storage spawn from Toshiba, the Toshiba OCZ VX500 series SSDs. This new model positions itself in the mainstream SSD segment fighting with the Samsung EVO series, Crucial MX300 and comparable SSDs in both price and performance. It is an SSD series that is 100% Toshiba proprietary, that includes the controller and 15nm MLC NAND flash memory. Value for money wise you will receive a an SSD series that is fast enough, it won't break your wallet and comes with a great after-sales warranty program. You guys might have noticed a change in the OCZ series SSDs, they are now being branded as Toshiba with OCZ product series. Roughly a year or two ago Toshiba purchased OCZ. Up-to April this year OCZ functioned as a separate brand owned by Toshiba, the decision was made to house OCZ as a brand inside Toshiba

Yes, in a storage world dominated by the big guns like Micron and Samsung margins are getting smaller and smaller. Toshiba OCZ needed to address that to get the price per gigabyte down and offer a competitive solution that is fast, will be excellent in any PC and obviously a product that can compete with the Samsungs EVO series in both price and performance. To do so they are using an in-house Toshiba controller that steers all new 15nm MLC based Toshiba NAND flash memory. So the Toshiba OCZ VX500 series is obviously SATA 6Gb/s based and comes with read performance of up-to 550MB/s and a peak write performance of 515MB/s with IOPS 4K read/Write: 92k/65k. These SSDs are rated at 74~592 TB (depending on volume size) written during the 5-year warranty period.

Read full article @ Guru3D

Toshiba's OCZ VX500 512GB SSD reviewed

Toshiba's OCZ VX550 steps into the mid-range MLC performance spotlight as the aging VT180 rides into the sunset. We put the newcomer through its paces to see where it fits into the crowded world of mainstream SSDs.

Read full article @ The Tech Report

Xiaomi Air 12 Review

Rumours about Xiaomi, the big Chinese smartphone vendor, launching a laptop have been going around for a few months already. Turns out that the company had not one, but two laptops in the pipeline.Xiaomi is known for producing very nice looking smartphones for not a lot of money, the Mi5 being an excellent example of what the company can achieve, so anything emerging from its design team is likely to get heads turning.And this was the case when the Xiaomi Air 12 and its bigger brother, the Xiaomi Air 13, were launched in August 2016. Both of them have an air of familiarity that can't merely be coincidental.Even the name alludes to another laptop produced by a firm based in Cupertino, California – the MacBook Air is the model we're referring to and there are a lot of similarities here as we'll find out.

Read full article @ TechRadar