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Here a roundup of the latest reviews and articles:

10 Reasons to Finally Upgrade to Windows 10
AKG K845 BT Closed-Back Over Ear Bluetooth Headset Review
Apple iPhone 6s Plus Review: More Of A Good Thing
ASUS Announces the Z170-based Maximus VIII Extreme ROG Motherboard
ASUS GTX 980 Ti Poseidon Platinum Review
Beelink GTQ 4K Android Media Center Review
Cherry MX Board 6.0 Keyboard Review
CM Storm Quick Fire XTi Review
Corsair Void USB Dolby 7.1 RGB Gaming Headset Review
Crucial CT4K8G4DFD8213 2133MHz 32GB DDR4 Review
D-Link DCS-2630L: 180 Degree, HD WiFi 802.11ac Camera
DIRT Rally review: tested with 32 GPU's
Hands-on review: Telstra TV
HTC One A9 hands-on Review
LG 34UC87C 34" Curved Monitor Review
Logitech G920 & G29 Driving Force Review: A thrilling driving experience on PC
Mad Max Review
Microsoft upgrades Surface book to 1TB
Mionix Castor
MSI Radeon R9 380 Gaming 2G OC Edition Review
Noctua NH-C14S CPU Cooler Review
Patriot Viper V360 Headset Review: A Promising Start
QNAP TS-251 and TS-451 Review
Razer Mamba 2015 RGB Wireless – 16,000dpi
Revisiting the Killer NIC, eight years on
Scosche goBAT 6000 Portable Charger Review
Shuttle XPC Nano Barebone NC01U Review
Skylake Xeon Motherboards: GIGABYTE’s C230 Series Announced
Synology DiskStation DS1515 Review
The ASUS Z170-A Motherboard Review: The $165 Focal Point
Thermaltake Suppressor F51 Mid-Tower Case Review
Totoro Portable Power Bank External Charger Review
Zalman ZM1000-EBT 1000 W



10 Reasons to Finally Upgrade to Windows 10

Four months into its release, Windows 10 is doing alright, and despite some hiccups, we think its about time to upgrade. Here then are ten reasons you might consider making the leap, if you havent already.

Read full article @ Howtogeek

AKG K845 BT Closed-Back Over Ear Bluetooth Headset Review

I still recall a time when I’d go out with my Sony Walkman attached to my belt so i could listen to my favorite songs until i reached my destination (which back then was usually school). In time that Sony Walkman was replaced with a Philips waterproof Discman and i still remember the difference in audio quality since it was my pride and joy back then (was quite expensive too). In the end however i spend more time than with the above players while going back and forth from work with a Sony minidisc since it was smaller, easier to use (could record pretty much everything on-the-fly), had longer battery life and needless to say because its audio quality was excellent. One thing i never liked however is that although one had to pay quite a bit (especially for the mini disc model) to get the above players when released none was bundled with a descent set of earphones. There were several over ear headphone sets in the market but aside being extremely bulky (at least the good ones) they came with long, thick and heavy cables. Bluetooth changed that and although it did take a while and several improvements for it to compete with wired connectivity over the last 3-4 years we have seen several wireless headphones aimed at audiophiles. AKG is amongst the very few manufacturers in the market respected by both professionals and audiophiles alike (thus no introduction on our part is necessary) and today with us we have their top of the line K845 BT closed-back over ear Bluetooth headset.

With more than 1,400 international patents, the AKG® brand has been delivering the powerful, undistorted sound that music professionals have relied on for more than 60 years, consistently producing some of the truest and most natural-sounding headphones and microphones in the history of audio. Akustische und Kino-Gerate Gesellschaft mbH - shortened to AKG in 1965 - was founded by two Viennese, the physicist Dr. Rudolf Gorike and the engineer Ernst Pless, in 1947. Since that date, AKG has driven innovations in the headphones market, producing the ultimate in sonic accuracy for recording professionals, audiophiles and anyone with a passion for music, decade after decade. AKG equipment has toured with everyone from Frank Sinatra and the Rolling Stones to Missy Elliott and Kanye West. We’ve even done a few thousand global orbits aboard the Mir space station with stars of a different variety. Now, AKG studio performance is available everywhere you need it to be, with wired, wireless and noise cancelling headphones and ear buds that recreate your favorite music with all the richness and subtlety of the original performance – for your ears only. If you’re serious about music, and you’re looking for the perfect headphones or ear buds that meet your exacting standards, look no further than the AKG brand.

Unlike many other manufacturers which prioritize size over performance for their Bluetooth headsets (there are some exceptions like the Revo Wireless by Jabra) AKG went all out and instead used 50mm dynamic stereo drivers to provide the K845 BT with increased volume levels and rich/deep bass. These drivers feature a frequency response of 20Hz-20KHz with 32 Ohm impedance and 102dB sensitivity and are housed inside two relatively large earcups. The K845 BT also feature an integrated microphone (unfortunately we don't have any details about it), Bluetooth v3.0 + HS connectivity (with A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP), NFC (near field communication) compatibility, aptX codec, 2D-Axis mechanism and a 320mAh lithium polymer rechargeable battery which gives it up to 8 hours of playback time. Last but not least the frame of the K845 BT may primarily be made out of aluminum but it's actually surprisingly light since it weighs just 293g.

Read full article @ NikKTech

Apple iPhone 6s Plus Review: More Of A Good Thing

You don't need a crystal ball to figure out Apple will release a new iPhone handset every year. It's been doing it since the original came out in 2007, and starting with the iPhone 3G, Apple's naming convention has consisted of introducing a new model number every two years, with "s" variants in between. There was the iPhone 3GS in 2009, iPhone 4s in 2011 (the first to use a lowercase "s"), iPhone 5s (and iPhone 5c) in 2013, and now the iPhone 6s/6s Plus.

The one thing that's been true of each "s" upgrade is they've all been faster than their predecessors while retaining the same overall exterior design. That's again true of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, though there's quite a bit more here than a simple speed bump. Apple is keen on saying "the only thing that's changed is everything," and while that's overselling the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus a bit, labeling this generation a mere incremental upgrade would likewise be selling the devices short...

Read full article @ HotHardware.com

ASUS Announces the Z170-based Maximus VIII Extreme ROG Motherboard

We caught a glimpse of it very briefly in our motherboard overview at the time that Intel launched its 6-th Generation Skylake processors, but at the end of last week ASUS formalized its announcement around their flagship motherboard for this generation, the Maximus VIII Extreme. The Extreme, despite being part of the ‘Republic of Gamers’ brand, is designed by ASUS’ in house overclocking team and the goal is often to provide a rounded product that can do day-to-day as well as break records. We’ve reviewed other Extremes in the past, such as the Rampage IV Extreme, the Rampage IV Black Edition, and the Rampage V Extreme, and the product line aims to continue the mantra with this latest model.

Read full article @ Anandtech

ASUS GTX 980 Ti Poseidon Platinum Review

The GTX 980 Ti Poseidon Platinum from ASUS is the only card, which ships with hybrid watercooler from the factory. Therefore it's possible to used this card either aircooled or watercooled. Apart from that there is a complex custom PCB with a 10 phase power design as well as a factory overclock. Overall we're very curious how this card does in our review.

Read full article @ ocaholic

Beelink GTQ 4K Android Media Center Review

In this article for Benchmark Reviews, we test the Beelink GTQ Android TV BOX Media Center. Promoted as a 4K-ready media player with quad-core Amlogic S812 CPU and eight-core ARM Mali-450 GPU utilizing the new H.265 decoder ideal for 4K Ultra HD picture quality, the Beelink GTQ fills its compact metal shell with powerful hardware comparable to most laptop computers. While a 1000-Mb Gigabit Ethernet port is available, the Beelink GTQ also takes advantage of 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz wireless b/g/n networks.

Read full article @ Benchmark Reviews

Cherry MX Board 6.0 Keyboard Review

We review the Cherry MX Board 6.0 with Cherry red mechanical switches. Hey come to think of it, you know what is weird ? Over the past 2-3 years here at Guru3D.com we have reviewed numerous keyboards, 90% of them all are mechanical these days and all the mechies have MX switches that originate from .. Cherry. You'd almost forget that Cherry is not only the ODM/OEM for many of the manufacturers our there, they also offer an extensive line of in-house keyboards themselves. Today we'll have a peek at their Cherry MX Board 6.0, a fairly simple design yet quality set of keys that you can purchase in the 165~185 EURO range. The keyboard is the successor of the popular 3.0 in terms of the overall basis and concept, but it adds some more features and niche, and it is much more cool looking with full LED lit keys. The overall basis of Cherry MX based keyboards these days share a similar concept, this model remains basic. No fancy RGB lighting and animation modes, just a simple in design yet awesome build quality keyboard with a proper tactile feel to it. The MX Board 6.0 is fitted wit full LED lit keys. So from an aesthetics view, you get your keyboard, with each key having a back-lit LED. Though I'll immediately acknowledge that taste is a very subjective thing you'll be please to know you can turn off the lighting system as well as dim the keys. Every key is mechanical, using Cherry MX Red key-switches.

Cherry pairs the MX Board 6.0 with a full-sized wrist rest, they board itself has a 1000Hz polling rate, 100% anti-ghosting, and the media keys embedded under the function keys. Missing however are separated media keys as well as any programmable keys. The MX Board 6.0 features a full length wrist rest and red LED back-lighting with dual-colour LEDs for Caps Lock, Scroll Lock and Num Lock, plus Windows and the Win Lock key.

Let's have a peek at that first, and then browse our way into the review. Let's pop that .. oh wait I can't say that can I ?

Read full article @ Guru3D

CM Storm Quick Fire XTi Review

With the XTi, CM Storm adds yet another new gaming keyboard to their Quick Fire series. There is a standard layout and the keyboard comes with plain and simple looks. Since it is a product for gamers, the Quick Fire XTi features a backlight and apart from that you can buy it with different CherryMX mechanical switches.

Read full article @ ocaholic

Corsair Void USB Dolby 7.1 RGB Gaming Headset Review

The latest range of Corsair headsets launched recently and they’ve already blown us away with their impeccable build quality and performance. The Corsair VOID Dolby 7.1 Wireless is by far one of the best headsets we’ve ever tested and to make it even sweeter, it was priced under £100. Of course, wireless isn’t ideal for every user, so naturally Corsair pushed to make a USB version too, giving you all the thrills, without the ticking timer of the battery or signal issues; not that we had issues with either in our testing of course.

“Enter the VOID—the innovative family of advanced gaming headsets from Corsair. Whether you choose wireless, USB, or stereo powered audio gear, you will always be one step ahead of your enemies. With fast forward design, spectacular fidelity, and innovative features like InfoMic and CUE Control, Corsair VOID gaming headsets enable you to command and control your gaming soundscape without hitting pause.” – Corsair

The USB version is pretty much the same headset as the wireless, albeit a little lighter as it doesn’t need a battery, so it doesn’t need charging or the required charging cable either. It offers two powerful 50mm drivers, the very impressive Dolby 7.1 virtual surround sound technology, one of the first consumer virtual surrounds that I think is comparable to dedicated drivers. You’ll also find the InfoMic, Clue Control RGB lighting and more!

Read full article @ eTeknix

Crucial CT4K8G4DFD8213 2133MHz 32GB DDR4 Review

The increasingly widespread application of DDR4 on mainstream platforms has helped to drive the memory technology’s production rates upwards with pricing travelling in the opposite direction. A 32GB quad-channel kit of no-nonsense DDR4 memory can now be considered affordable by a greater audience who may have advanced workloads that consume vast amounts of system memory. Crucial is hoping to tick the ‘value’ checkpoint with its 2133MHz set of DDR4 memory.

Read full article @ KitGuru

D-Link DCS-2630L: 180 Degree, HD WiFi 802.11ac Camera

D-Link this morning announced the release of the full-HD DCS-2630L WiFi camera. This 802.11ac WiFi security/monitoring camera features a 180 degree field of view and full 1080p video support. D-Link sent out the camera to us last week as a review sample and I've been trying it out and happy with the results as a new indoor security camera.

The features D-Link advertises about the DCS-2630L are:

- 180 Degree Field of View – Widest angle lens on a fixed consumer camera
- Full HD 1080p Quality Video – Rich detail and crisp image quality for monitoring
- Unique De-Warping Technology – Maximizes video quality with less distortion
- 802.11AC Wireless – Latest Wi-Fi technology for better bandwidth and improved range
- Sound & Motion Detection – Push alerts notify users of detected motion or loud noises
- Two-Way Audio – Built-in microphone and speaker for two-way communication
- Local Recording – MicroSD/SDXC card slot for local recording based on event triggers
- Night Vision – See up to 16 feet in complete darkness with built-in IR LEDs

Read full article @ Phoronix

DIRT Rally review: tested with 32 GPU's

DiRT Rally is the newest race game from British developer Codemasters. Since 1998, this company has been developing several racing games in the so-called Colin McRae Rally-series. This game has been available in the early acces mode since april, for which people pay to get acces before the official release date of games they want to play. A downside of this is that the games are often not yet finished and because of that can be rife with bugs. So, caveat emptor.

Read full article @ Hardware.Info

Hands-on review: Telstra TV

Roku has been a long time coming to Australia. The little internet connected entertainment box has been well regarded on the other side of the Pacific for years, but getting it up and running in Australia has been a battle only the techiest of geeks have waged.So we were pretty excited when Telstra announced it would be launching the Roku 2 in Australia, branded as the Telstra TV. Even though Roku has moved on with both the Roku 3 and the Roku 4, the updated Roku 2 is still a well regarded little device.And given that Telstra has managed to acquire the holy trinity of Australian SVOD services - featuring both Netflix and Presto from launch and with Stan set to arrive in November - there's plenty of reasons that the Telstra TV is exciting for Australian entertainment fans.Given that the Telstra TV is essentially a rebadged Roku 2, the hardware is anything but a surprise. It's still a small squarish box with a weird purple clothing tag coming out the side, plus a USB, ethernet, SD card and HDMI ports around the back (and side).But this time around, instead of saying Roku on the front and remote, it says Telstra TV, and those little cloth tags read Roku powered.

Read full article @ TechRadar

HTC One A9 hands-on Review

Cut-price iPhone lookalike could turn HTC's fortunes around. IT'S NO SECRET that HTC is struggling to keep up in the smartphone market. Its latest financials showed huge losses, confirming that the company is still failing in its quest to become a real challenger to Apple and Samsung.

Enter the HTC One A9. HTC is hoping this is the smartphone that will save the firm, offering a premium design almost identical to that of the iPhone 6S but with the promise of a cheaper price.

HTC claims that the One A9 is not all about specifications, and the smartphone isn't as kitted out as its One M9 predecessor. The firm hopes instead that buyers will be won over by the unique experience the handset offers along with, no doubt, its iPhone-esque design.

Read full article @ The Inquirer

LG 34UC87C 34" Curved Monitor Review

In the monitor and HDTV markets, curved screens are being pushed and pimped from all directions. To some viewers, these displays enhance the immersion factor exponentially while others feel they actually distort images. Regardless of the controversy surrounding them, curved monitors have actually become a relatively hot commodity in the PC market and LG’s new 34UC87C is looking to capitalize on that popularity.

For many consumers, one standard size screen is simply not enough real-estate for maximizing efficiency or adding visibility in games and yet purchasing one mega-sized monitor is simply cost prohibitive. This is why multi monitor setups are so popular; they grant the ability to utilize several relatively large yet inexpensive screens and get the real-estate needed for a wide variety of tasks. On the flip side of that equation we have the 34UC87C, a monitor that is putting a titanic amount of real estate into play in an effort to effectively replace some multi monitor setups with a 34” curved display.

To keep the footprint within the realm of possibility, LG has opted for an ultra wide 21:9 form factor alongside its curvy frame. As an added benefit this allows viewers to actually sit closer to screen without having its edges blur past your peripheral vision.

Read full article @ Hardware Canucks

Logitech G920 & G29 Driving Force Review: A thrilling driving experience on PC

The G29 and G920 are fantastic racing packages that deliver a thrilling driving experience. The former is compatible with PC, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4, while the G920 is for the Xbox One as well as PC. Logitech says both wheels are built for longevity. They don't look or sound radically different to the G27 but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Read full article @ TechSpot

Mad Max Review

Has there ever been a trailer for something you initially had little or no interest in that intrigued you enough to become interested? That has happened a few times for me, and the Gameplay Overview Trailer for Mad Max was one such trailer. The presentation of the gameplay was frank and painted a picture of the game for me that made me curious about how it would turn out. It being developed by Avalanche Studios also made me a bit more interested, given some of its other open world work. One thing potentially worth noting is that I have never actually seen a Mad Max film, so it is very possible that there are some references in the game I do not get. I am familiar with the premise of the franchise and the game is separate from the films, but set in the same universe, so I doubt this will be an issue.

The story of the game starts with Max driving his Black-on-Black Interceptor across the wasteland, being chased by a group that eventually overwhelms him. The leader of this group, Scrotus, then appears, beats you unconscious, steals your car, and leaves you for dead. Not wanting to die yet, Max gets up, grabs onto Scrotus' land mover and fights him, plunging a chainsaw into his skull. In response, Scrotus hurls Max from the vehicle, starting Max on his journey to reclaim what was taken. All of this, by the way, is told by an opening in-game or in-engine cinematic (the graphics are the same as the rest of the game) that you have no control during.

Mad Max has received an M rating from the ESRB for intense violence, blood and gore, strong language, and use of drugs. They are all there so it definitely deserves this rating. While the use of drugs I do not believe I captured in any media, I am quite confident I captured the others, so if such content is inappropriate for you, there is a chance this review is as well.

Read full article @ OCC

Microsoft upgrades Surface book to 1TB

On the product page for its Surface Pro, Microsoft has shown off an option that takes the high end Surface Book and jams a 1 TB SSD inside.
It costs $3,199.00 which is more than $500 extra, which actually is not too bad for an SSD upgrade.
This really is the PC for the person who has everything. We are talking about a sixth generation "Skylake" Intel Core i7 processor paid with a whopping 16 GB of RAM, a custom NVIDIA GPU stashed inside the keyboard dock for more intensive graphics requirements.

Read full article @ Fudzilla

Mionix Castor

Castor is the newest IR LED gaming mouse in Mionix's line-up. It uses the same sensor as on the Avior and Naos 7000, but it has been upgraded to support 10000 DPI. The ergonomics are brand-new for this mouse as it is a medium-sized, right-handed-only model.

Read full article @ techPowerUp

MSI Radeon R9 380 Gaming 2G OC Edition Review

In this review we look at the MSI Radeon R9 380 Gaming. Armed with a TwinFrozr cooler this product brings you mainstream gaming at a price of roughly 200 USD - with 2GB and 4GB options of graphics memory you can game with decent image quality settings at Full HD. Follow us into this review where we'll look at temperatures, noise, performance and go with the latest game titles on the globe.

The Radeon R9 380 graphics cards will become available in 2GB and 4 GB versions, the GPU used you all know already as Tonga, the same GPU used on the Radeon R9 285. Made on the 28nm node from Global Foundries it features the latest architectural improvements with decent power efficiency. Tonga retains the basic technologies of the Radeon lineup such as Mantle, TrueAudio and XDMA for CrossFire support. The GPU has 1792 shader processors running over 32 ROPs with 112 texture memory units.

The initial consumer graphics card based on Tonga was the fairly similar Radeon R9 285 with 1792 activated stream processors, the Tonga for the R9 380 is the same GPU again with 1792 active shader processors. The reference cards will have two 6-pin power PEG (PCI Express Graphics) headers to give the tweaking experience a little more room next to the 4+2 PWM phase power design. Overall a decent card to play the latest games with whilst offering a good memory size versus good price versus the Full HD / 1080P monitor resolution.

Read full article @ Guru3D

Noctua NH-C14S CPU Cooler Review

Not that long ago we took a look at Noctua’s NH-D15S CPU cooler. It was a revised version of the original NH-D15 which was made to be more compatible with memory modules and PCI-Express cards. Well Noctua has done the same thing with their flagship C-type cooler as well. Today we are going to be checking out the NH-C14S, which is a new revision of the award winning NH-C14 that offers better memory clearance, an offset design that gives better clearance for PCI-Express cards, and offers both a low-profile mode and a high clearance mode. Will these changes affect how well the cooler performs? Or do we have another winner on our hands? Let’s get this cooler installed and see!

Read full article @ ThinkComputers.org

Patriot Viper V360 Headset Review: A Promising Start

Patriot is known for its memory and mobile products, and has just recently started selling peripherals. It might seem like an unusual jump, but their new headset proves that Patriot is prepared to expand and succeed in this new market. Patriot's initial headset offering is the Viper V360, a virtual 7.1 capable gaming peripheral that plugs in via USB. The V360 headset is equipped with … Read more.

Read full article @ Modders-Inc

QNAP TS-251 and TS-451 Review

QNAP has been around since 2004 which may not sound an extremely long time at all, but in their time spent inside the networking sector they’ve made inroads into a rather competitive arena. Their current portfolio includes a large selection of network-related devices for enterprise, SMB, Home and SOHO users. This is actually our first outing with QNAP and after hearing good things about the brand we’re anticipating good things today.

Today we’ll be taking a look at what QNAP has to offer in the TS-251 and TS-451 – two NAS units which are designed to cater for Home and SOHO users. Both products utilise 2.41GHz dual-core processors and DDR3 memory on the hardware-side and take advantage of the new QTS 4.2 OS on the software-side.

Read full article @ Vortez

Razer Mamba 2015 RGB Wireless – 16,000dpi

Many gamers avoid wireless mice due to concerns over battery life and latency – we put these concerns to the test when we visited Logitech last year in Switzerland. Razer are another company who believe it is time we change our mindset and give wireless mice some serious consideration.

Today we look at the new Razer Mamba wireless gaming mouse. It features a laser sensor with an insanely high DPI rating of up to 16,000. It has RGB lighting support and wireless or wired connectivity options with a proprietary charging dock.

Read full article @ KitGuru

Revisiting the Killer NIC, eight years on

Killer-powered Gigabit Ethernet ports can be found on many gaming-focused motherboards and laptops these days. We talked to Killer Networking about the details of its latest hardware and software, and then we put those features to the test with a Killer-equipped motherboard.

Read full article @ The Tech Report

Scosche goBAT 6000 Portable Charger Review

Portable chargers have become somewhat of a necessity these days. With so many people using their mobile devices as their main computing device and mobile gaming really picking up those small batteries in our devices do not last that long. This has pretty much caused an market to completely spring up for portable chargers. Almost everyone I know has one, and they are not even tech people! While there are literally thousands of choices when it comes to portable chargers the one we are taking a look at today is different than most. It is the Scosche goBAT 6000, let’s take a look and see what it can do!

Read full article @ ThinkComputers.org

Shuttle XPC Nano Barebone NC01U Review

With the Celeron 3205U at its heart, the NC01U Nano Barebone can be used for office tasks, browsing and thanks to its very small footprint it is barely noticeable on the table; of course it can be also installed to the back side of the display thanks to the included VESA mount, which will also permit a cleaner cable management. The central processing unit is actively cooled by a blower-type ADDA fan while the fan profiles can be always adjusted from inside the BIOS. This is not all: besides the 7mm HDD/SSD we can mount on one of the PCB sides we also have the option to expand the storage via the available M.2 2242 slot. Shuttle has great plans for this little box since besides the fact that it is available with multiple CPUs (NC01U3 with Intel Core i3-5005U; NC01U5 with Intel Core i5-5200U; NC01U7 with Intel Core i7-5500U), it will provide expansion boxes for it which will fit inside the special connector on the back of the NUC (XVB01, XLB01 or XCB01).

Read full article @ Madshrimps

Skylake Xeon Motherboards: GIGABYTE’s C230 Series Announced

With the new E3-1200 v5 processors announced today we also get a new series of workstation/server motherboards under the C230 series. Aside from standard workstation and Xeon markets that these platforms typically target, due to a set of increased limitations these new processors will not work in consumer grade motherboards, meaning that even for home use the C230 series will be at the front and center for enthusiasts who are interested in going down the Xeon route. Today GIGABYTE Server announced a quartet of motherboards for end-users and business customers alike, including ATX and mini-ITX configurations with IPMI management and NVMe support.

Read full article @ Anandtech

Synology DiskStation DS1515 Review

A first-rate five-bay NAS server for SMBs. Few network-attached storage (NAS) manufacturers are as sharply focused on the field as Synology, and its current product line consists almost entirely of rack-mounted and standalone NAS arrays of uncountable sizes and capacities.

The DiskStation DS1515 is, relatively speaking, one of the Taiwanese firm's more modest offerings. Aimed at small and medium businesses, it's a five-bay machine with simple data backup and multifunction server capabilities in mind.

Read full article @ V3

The ASUS Z170-A Motherboard Review: The $165 Focal Point

In the world of technology, you could speculate if there is ever a golden age, or a renaissance. All the time we expect technology to grow and improve, being better than the last. Sometimes there is nostalgia, but it never stops us using the latest because it provides the user experience we expect at a minimum. Like all the motherboard manufacturers, Ive followed ASUS for years, and observed their constant iteration as platforms evolve. The newest Skylake platform is upon us, and we review the ASUS Z170-A motherboard to see their interpretation of the desktop this generation.

Read full article @ Anandtech

Thermaltake Suppressor F51 Mid-Tower Case Review

Thermaltake has a long history of providing quality computer components to the global community, and I am sure that many readers have purchased at least one of their products in the past. With Thermaltake’s global reach comes the opportunity (and responsibility) to keep a keen observation of market trends and understanding of consumer needs and demands. By participating in computer exhibitions worldwide and maintaining regional branch offices and distributors, Thermaltake is positioned to keep close tabs on those trends.

One one such components is Thermaltake’s Suppressor F51 mid-tower case featuring removable noise dampening panels, case cooling options that include a pre-mounted 200mm front and 140mm rear fan, and versatile liquid cooling mounting options. The Suppressor F51 comes with air filters at the front and bottom of the case to keep airflow clear of debris; another filter is available up at the top if you remove one of the sound reduction panels.

The Suppressor F51 model being reviewed today is the windowed version, thus only the cable management side panel has any sound reduction material attached. The non-widowed version would feature additional sound reduction material on the component side panel, as well as a removable section to attach a side fan for even greater cooling potential especially around the motherboard PCI card slot area.

Read full article @ Neoseeker

Totoro Portable Power Bank External Charger Review

I’ve always loved anime and all things that go along with it and there’s plenty of anime themed products on the market. My Neighbor Totoro is a very popular anime and today I have a Totoro portable power bank or external USB charger for your phone or tablet. Totoro is kind of big really, but it’s cute and it has many LEDs on it that will light up while charging or not as you can just press the button to light them up when not charging. Totoro is well made and works great and it looks great too. Read on to learn more…

Read full article @ Technogog

Zalman ZM1000-EBT 1000 W

Zalman just released a new PSU series with 80 PLUS Gold certified models. The ZM1000-EBT we test today is based on a Sirfa platform and promises good performance, along with reliable operation.

Read full article @ techPowerUp