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Here a roundup of the latest reviews and articles:

Adata Ultimate SU800 SSD Review
ASUS GTX 1050 Ti STRIX OC 4 GB
Chapeau 24 Cancellara - Same same but different
Creative iRoar Go Review
D-Link Performace Series DIR-890L AC3200 Enthusiast Router Review
Fnatic Gear Clutch G1 Optical Gaming Mouse Review
Gears of War 4 DirectX 12 Graphics Performance Analysis
Gigabyte Z170X-Designare Motherboard Review: Affordable, High-Tech, Great Peformance
I made my dumb appliances smarter with the Internet of Things
MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium Motherboard Review
Seagate IronWolf ST10000VN0004 10TB Hard Drive Review
V-Moda Crossfade Wireless
WD My Passport 4TB 2016 Edition Portable External Hard Drive Review
Windows 7 cumulative rollup updates - Any good?



Adata Ultimate SU800 SSD Review

Adata is the first independent fab customer to bring a 3D NAND consumer SSD to market. It's a big deal but is it enough to call this drive the Ultimate SU800?

Read full article @ Toms Hardware

ASUS GTX 1050 Ti STRIX OC 4 GB

The ASUS GTX 1050 Ti STRIX OC is the highest clocked GTX 1050 Ti on the market, with a fantastic cooler that is not only nearly inaudible with outstanding temperatures, it also stops completely during desktop work. ASUS has also included a metal backplate with their card.

Read full article @ techPowerUp

Chapeau 24 Cancellara - Same same but different

Hats off. Here's a long review of Chapeau 24 Cancellara 64-bit Gnome edition, a Fedora-based distribution, tested on a Lenovo G50 laptop with UEFI, Secure Boot, 16 partitions and a multi-boot setup with Windows and numerous Linux distributions, covering live session, installation and post-install usage, including look & feel, network support - Wireless, Bluetooth, Samba sharing and printing, smartphone support - iPhone and Ubuntu Phone, package management, applications and extra software, backups, online accounts, multimedia support - MP3 and HD Video, hardware compatibility, suspend & resume, resource utilization, performance, responsiveness, battery life, stability, customization, problems with the bootloader setup and some of the programs, various other issues, and more. Enjoy.

Read full article @ Dedoimedo

Creative iRoar Go Review

The Roar PWS (portable wireless speaker), has firmly been cemented in the market and has become a well loved product. Many consider it to be the perfect all-rounder, and has often been dubbed as the Swiss Army knife of wireless speakers due to its versatility and inclusive nature. Early criticisms fell to its size and mass, Creative then presented the Roar 2 which is 20% smaller by volume, and 100g lighter than its predecessor. Next in line came the Roar Pro, sharing many similarities with the original Roar, but features an improved battery/lifespan, the advanced aptX low latency codec and support for the iRoar mic, allowing it to become a good quality portable PA or karaoke machine. In our most recent outing, we felt the power of the iRoar, along with the companion subwoofer dock, the iRoar Rock. The self-titled 'most intelligent speaker on the planet', is undisputed and it sits as current primo of the Roar series. Despite delivering just about everything you could ever want from a speaker, the iRoar doesn't quite have it all; its still rather large and heavy, and it isn't weather proof.

The iRoar Go addresses that, coming in 25% lighter and 40% smaller than the iRoar, it is the most portable Roar speaker yet. Adding to that, it has an IPX6 protection rating, meaning that it is sealed against dust, and has a waterproof rating to the equivalent of being jet-blasted from all angles for 3minutes and should not show any signs of seepage, or failure. This means less concern on those poolside, or seaside trips, still be sure not drop it in the toilet or the ocean. Despite these changes, the iRoar Go still features that fantastic bi-amplified 2.1 design and versatile connectivity. To control the iRoar Go, Creative have developed a supporting desktop and mobile app (Sound Blaster Connect) that gives advanced controls and features.

Read full article @ Vortez

D-Link Performace Series DIR-890L AC3200 Enthusiast Router Review

With more and more devices requiring an internet connection, the choice of which router to get becomes a more vital one. TVs, consoles, mobile phones, tablets, PCs, laptops, and IoT devices all require internet access and when they all need it at the same time, the network can get congested. That's where D-Link's DIR-890L AC3200 Ultra Wi-Fi Router  comes into play as it has three bands and six antennas to distribute the load and achieve maximum coverage.

Read full article @ eTeknix

Fnatic Gear Clutch G1 Optical Gaming Mouse Review

Fnatic is one of the names most gamers will be familiar with, as one of the biggest and most popular gaming teams in the world, they’re in the perfect position to show off high-quality gaming peripherals. While a lot of gaming teams rely on sponsorship deals, Fnatic has gone one step further, producing their own gaming hardware and what better way to show people the products are great, than to use them themselves to win multiple tournaments!

Read full article @ eTeknix

Gears of War 4 DirectX 12 Graphics Performance Analysis

The Gears of War franchise’s magical formula of chaotic action and a narrative which doesn’t take itself too seriously has made it an enormous success. Even though it’s often associated as an Xbox exclusive, the original title eventually launched on the PC platform and received widespread critical acclaim. Saying that, the later releases didn’t make their way to Windows PCs which is a crying shame as Microsoft focused their efforts on the console market. Thankfully, Microsoft’s new management has acknowledged the growth of PC gaming and the need to integrate multiple devices into a single ecosystem. The Universal Windows Platform is designed to act as a gateway for Microsoft’s software library while bringing PCs, Xbox and mobile phones together, leading to a more enriching user experience.

Unfortunately, the Universal Windows Platform has a poor reputation due to buggy, unoptimised games and a lack of basic features. For example, the service doesn’t make it easy to access system files and fails to embrace modding which can extend a game’s lifespan well beyond the launch window. According to Xbox Chief Phil Spencer, Microsoft is listening to feedback and hopes to create a legitimate pro-consumer rival to Valve’s Steam platform. Honestly, I can’t foresee the company making huge inroads due to the Games For Windows Live client and broken promises from the past. Plus, most people love the idea of accessing a huge library within Steam, a platform they’ve grown accustomed to. Whatever the case, I’m ecstatic to see games which seemed destined to be Xbox exclusives released on the PC.

Read full article @ eTeknix

Gigabyte Z170X-Designare Motherboard Review: Affordable, High-Tech, Great Peformance

Today we are going to take a look at Gigabyte’s Z170X-Designare motherboard, one of the company's more recent Socket 1151-based boards for Intel's 6th Generation Skylake-based processors.

At first glance this is an unassuming board, at least in terms of its appearance. It features a dark and subdued black PCB with chrome highlights and nothing overly dramatic or gaudy. Yet for the sub-$250 price tag, this motherboard is loaded up with a strong array of cutting edge technologies...

Read full article @ HotHardware

I made my dumb appliances smarter with the Internet of Things

Sometimes I forget things. In particular, I forget to transfer my clean but wet laundry from the washing machine to the dryer. When this happens, I have to waste time, detergent, electricity, and water to re-wash the clothes. I figured I could get crafty and make the dumb old washer and dryer whisper in my ear through the internet to make me less forgetful. Here's how I did it.

Read full article @ The Tech Report

MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium Motherboard Review

With its high-end price point and feature-set the MSI X99A XPower Gaming Titanium (https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/X99A-XPOWER-GAMING-TITANIUM.html#hero-overview) locks horns with the likes of the ASUS X99-DELUXE II and Gigabyte X99-Designare EX RGB, though ASRock lacks a similarly priced offering. A dissection of the product name reveals a motherboard that is trying to cater to Gamers and Overclockers on the X99 platform.

Read full article @ KitGuru

Seagate IronWolf ST10000VN0004 10TB Hard Drive Review

The Seagate IronWolf ST10000VN0004 10TB is the biggest hard drive money can buy. But do not let its capacity fool you -- it compromises nothing in speed and power efficiency.

Read full article @ APH Networks

V-Moda Crossfade Wireless

Hi, my name is Wes and I’m addicted to wireless headsets.. I hate to admit it, because I have just about any wired headset I could want in the warehouse, but on my main PC I prefer to use a wireless headset. Over the years I can’t even count the different ways that I have gotten tangled up in a headphone wire or damaged the wire with my chair so years ago I started using wireless headsets. I started with the Corsair Vengeance 1500’s then I went to the Logitech G930’s, and for the past three years I’ve had the SteelSeries H Wireless. I’ve run into multiple issues with reception issues, especially at LAN parties, battery issues, and at one point the Corsairs even just came apart in my hands. The H Wireless held up better and gave me fewer issues because of its swappable battery setup but the audio performance and comfort were never really as good as anything wired. But it's 2016, going on 2017 and I’m feeling saucy. I decided to check out the V-Moda Crossfade Wireless. I’ve got the wired version that I take with me to LAN events and love them, so I thought they might finally be the solution to the audio and comfort issues while being wireless so I’ve been giving them a try.

Read full article @ LanOC Reviews

WD My Passport 4TB 2016 Edition Portable External Hard Drive Review

The holiday season is officially here and chances are most of us will be travelling and taking more pictures than we normally would. Having a portable storage drive to ensure those memories are safely backed up is something you might want to think about. Portable storage solutions have continued to get better over the years and just this Fall the team over at WD did a complete redesign of their popular My Passport portable USB drive series. WD now offers the series in six vibrant colors Black, Yellow, Red, White, Orange and Blue with a completely updated look.

Read full article @ Legit Reviews

Windows 7 cumulative rollup updates - Any good?

Beware geeks bearing gifts. Anyhow, I've written an article and tutorial about the new Windows Update cumulative rollup functionality for Windows 7 and 8.1, with security and quality patches, focusing on prework, speed, performance, privacy, other considerations, and more. Take a look.

Read full article @ Dedoimedo