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Here the first reviews roundup of today with 20 reviews, including Z68 Motherboard Roundup: ASUS, EVGA, ASRock, Gigabyte, MSI, ZOTAC, AMD FX-8150 Bulldozer VGA Performance Analysis, and MSI Intel X79 and Sandy Bridge-E Preview



Spire Sentor 6004 Review
techPowerUp posted a review on the Spire Sentor 6004

Spire packs the Sentor 6004 with six LED equipped fans and offers an extended chassis to allow for large graphics cards to be installed. We pull the chassis apart and fill it with with hardware to see if it manages to impress with its understated, timeless looks or if these are signs of weakness.[/quote6
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Z68 Motherboard Roundup: ASUS, EVGA, ASRock, Gigabyte, MSI, ZOTAC
HotHardware.com posted a Z68 Motherboard Roundup

Until Intel's next-gen, high-end Sandy Bridge-E and its companion X79 chipset launches sometime this quarter, Sandy Bridge-based family of second generation Core processors and the Z68 Express chipset remain Intel's premiere desktop platform. It is with that in mind that we've just taken a look at several different motherboard offerings from manufacturers that cover a range of form factors, feature sets, and price points. If you're on the market for a Z68 board for a new build, odds are one of the products in this round-up will meet your needs...
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Crucial Ballistix Elite PC3-14900 8GB Kit Review
TweakTown posted a review on the Crucial Ballistix Elite PC3-14900 8GB Kit

RAM is about to become a real big thing again over the coming months. With the Bulldozer platform offering some really strong memory performance and the new Quad Channel requirement that will come with the next iteration of the high end Intel platform, we're about to receive a lot of it.

For now, though, we're seeing companies continue to push Dual Channel kits out for the beloved Z68 / P67 platform. The latest comes from the team over at Crucial and expands the popular Ballistix line. The new Ballistix Elite are no doubt designed to sit at the top of the Ballistix food chain.
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Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3 1600 CL9 Memory Kit Review
Legit Reviews posted a review on the Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3 1600 CL9 Memory Kit

Corsair Vengeance DDR3 memory modules are designed with enthusiasts in mind. The kit we have today is an 8GB (2x4GB dual channel) 1600MHz memory kit which features 9-9-9-24 timings at only 1.5 Volts. Cerulean Blue aluminum heat spreaders help dissipate heat, and provide the aggressive look that you want in your gaming rig. This kit was designed for Intel Sandy Bridge processors and it will be interesting to see how it does!

The Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3 1600 CL9 memory kit comes in what Corsair calls "Cerulean Blue", which Corsair claims is designed to match the color found on motherboards supporting 2nd Generation Intel Core Sandy Bridge processors. To our eyes, this particular shade of blue is only found on ASUS motherboards, although other manufacturers such as Gigabyte and MSI do offer motherboards with blue accents...
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Corsair Carbide Series 500R Case Review
Hardware Secrets posted a review on the Corsair Carbide Series 500R Case

The Corsair Carbide Series features two models so far, the 400R and the 500R. We reviewed the 400R a couple of months ago, and it proved to carry a terrific cost/benefit ratio, deserving our Golden Award. Let's see if its brother, the 500R, follows the same heritage.
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Synology DS411+II 4-Bay Desktop NAS Server Review
TweakTown posted a review on the Synology DS411+II 4-Bay Desktop NAS Server

Synology is a large NAS manufacturer with several products. Looking at the numbers, Synology rivals both QNAP and Thecus in terms of the number of products available and in some categories outpaces them in truly innovative offerings. One such area that stands out is Synology's Disk Expansion products that allow you to double the drive count of your existing NAS with an add-on enclosure. I can't really tell you why Synology hasn't been a larger target on our radar, because I don't really know, but their blip is gaining more attention moving forward.

Today we're looking at the DS411+II NAS that's available at a modest price point, yet still offers over 100MB/s of data transfer throughput. With DLNA tipping up in many of the latest TVs, Blu-ray players and other devices, we've been on the hunt for quality systems that offer exceptional performance at low prices. On paper the Synology DS411+II meets the criteria.
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Sewell InjectIR - IR over HDMI Remote Extender Review
MissingRemote posted Sewell InjectIR - IR over HDMI Remote Extender Review

Those of you with older television cabinets or mounted televisions know the difficulty that comes with hiding your equipment out of site while still being able to control it. Radio frequency (RF) has its benefits but requires a special remote control as well as IR blasters for each individual device you are looking to control. Sewell has developed the InjectIR device for those users who don’t want the complexity of an IR setup but still want to be able to control their hidden devices.
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Zotac ZBOX Nano AD10 Mini PC Review
ThinkComputers.org posted a review on the Zotac ZBOX Nano AD10 Mini PC

We have seen quite a few different Mini PC’s lately. They make great Internet surfing and media machines for home theater setups. Not that long ago we took a look at Zotac’s ZBOX HD-AD02 mini PC, which proved to be a great and very function mini PC, but was a little on the large side. Today we have the ZBOX Nano AD10, which has to be one of the best-looking and smallest mini pc’s we have looked at. I know you are going to say it so we will say it now, it looks like a Mac Mini only smaller! Inside this small design you have an AMD E350 CPU, AMD Radeon HD 6310 graphics, 2GB of DDR3 and a 320GB hard drive. Let’s check out the ZBOX Nano and see if performs as well as it looks!
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Thermaltake Toughpower 1350W Power Supply Review
OCC has published a review on the Thermaltake Toughpower 1350W Power Supply

The Thermaltake Toughpower 1350W power supply performed very well throughout testing. The voltage regulation is excellent and in combination with satisfactory DC noise levels means good quality DC from zero to full load. It's claimed 80 Plus Silver certification is backed up by a good set of results following the OCC power supply testing methodology that gets as close if not closer than other power supplies in this class.
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Rosewill FUTURE Mid Tower Gaming Case Review
Hi Tech Legion posted a review on the Rosewill FUTURE Mid Tower Gaming Case

The Rosewill FUTURE Mid Tower Gaming Case offers value for any user. The FUTURE is labeled as a gaming case, however, the price, paired with the features, can be taken advantage of by most of the market. The FUTURE supports both standard ATX and Micro-ATX motherboards. Cooling includes four 120mm fans installed with room to expand. The two front HDD bay intake fans feature blue LEDs for that gaming look. On the front there is room for three 5.25" peripherals with a bracket that can change one of the bays to fit a 3.5" drive, or 2.5" HDD. Inside, there are six internal 3.5" HDD bays. There is also an internal bracket that can fit up to two 2.5" HDDs, if necessary.
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SanDisk Sansa Clip Zip & Fuze+ Audio Players Review
Techgage posted a look at two of SanDisk's latest MP3 players, the Fuze+ and Clip Zip.

The smartphone might have taken over the bulk of our digital lives, but there's still room for the dedicated audio player, be it for working out or just wanting a convenient option. SanDisk has long offered some of the better, easier-to-use players with its Sansa series, so let's see how its latest models fare: the Fuze+ and Clip Zip.
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Dell Inspiron 14z Laptop Review
HardwareHeaven.com posted a review on the Dell Inspiron 14z Laptop

The Inspiron 14z as it is known features a second gen Core i5 CPU and some good on paper specifications. Today we have one on our test bench to find out what this model has to offer for those who don't need a 15"+ system.
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NZXT Tempest 210 Case Review
Neoseeker posted a review on the NZXT Tempest 210 Case

NZXT's Tempest 210 is a great mid-tower computer case that was designed with the budget system builder in mind. Hit our latest case review to see how well the Tempest 210 stacks up to its bigger brother, the Tempest 410, as well as more expensive offerings from the competition.
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AMD FX-8150 Bulldozer VGA Performance Analysis
eTeknix.com posted an AMD FX-8150 Bulldozer VGA Performance Analysis

If you're unsure as to what Bulldozer and the FX range or processors is all about, then we suggest you take a look at our article explaining the ins and outs of it. If you are aware of what Bulldozer and the FX range is all about, we still suggest that you take a look as some vital key information is listed, including something that you may have missed. The article focusses on the complete range of processors in the line-up and clearly goes into detail about the technology that makes it up and what simply makes it tick.

On top of all of this, we also made it clear that the facts needed to be seen and whilst a lot of consumers were expecting a lot, most were let down in terms of the usual suspect of benchmarks as seen in our FX 8150 Bulldozer review. So why are we here again, revisiting something that was actually; a complete let-down? Simple, we want to show you more, and where it matters the most, well at least one aspect of it.

Simply put, their are two main aspects that people really wanted to see with Bulldozer and that is firstly how well it overclocks and secondly, how it performs in some extreme games. While we thought, showing these individually would be a fantastic look at how this compares to the equivalent flagship Intel i7 2600k processor, we were more interested in seeing how well it performs in games, whilst overclocked. We already know that the i7 2600k beats the FX-8150 hands down in general workload tests and a bit of light gaming, but its time to go no holds barred and see what they both can really do in terms of performance, and we have to also remember that the FX-8150 is a fair bit cheaper to, so just keep that in mind when comparing the two rivals.

Getting started, there isn't much point going over the architecture again and what Bulldozer was meant to be about, and instead will see us jumping straight in to the tests to see if the FX-8150 can redeem itself in any way.
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Arctic Sound E461-BM Earphones for Mobile Phones and Music Players
MEGATechNews posted a review on the Arctic Sound E461-BM Earphones for Mobile Phones and Music Players

While many of us rely more on text messaging, regular old voice calls are still important. At the same time, we want to have a great experience when listening to music on the go too. Approaching both of these areas in our lives are the E461-BM earphones from the fine folks at Arctic Sound. This certainly isn’t their first time to this dance.
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NZXT Tempest 210 Review
XSReviews has a new rundown of the NZXT Tempest 210.

NZXT have been a big player in the desktop chassis game for many years now. With humble beginnings as providers of stylish cases with less practical capabilities, today they offer a wide range of options for the PC gamer and enthusiast.

Today we're looking at the Tempest 210, an enclosure that NZXT claims provides high levels of cooling. Indeed their whole spiel about the product is focued on how hot a gamer's room can be. So you'd expect something a bit special if that was the focus right? Let's take a look.
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MSI Intel X79 and Sandy Bridge-E Preview
Vortez posted a MSI Intel X79 and Sandy Bridge-E Preview

So, with the introductions out of the way, we really should move on to the delicious hardware. First up, four of Intel's i7 3960X Extreme Edition - the highest end in their launch range of Sandybridge-E CPU's. These chips were all Intel's latest C1-Stepping, and represent what consumers will be seeing once Sandybridge-E is formally released later this year.
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Intel Core i7 Processors for LGA1156, LGA1155 and LGA1366
iXBT Labs posted a review on Intel Core i7 Processors for LGA1156, LGA1155 and LGA1366

Today we shall focus on Intel Core i7 processors, in particular those outperforming Core i7-880. Firstly, we need to retest them with our new test method. Secondly, the new LGA2011 platform is to be announced very soon, and we'll need these test results for further comparison.
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CM Storm Trooper Review
The Guru of 3D posted a review on the CM Storm Trooper

Cooler Master has unleashed its CM Storm Trooper Case. The chassis, as you noted is branded under the CM Storm series. The case features an all black and bulky design with a cool front panel. The Trooper comes with a nice nine expansion slots providing support for multi-GPUs in SLI or Crossfire. in total there's space for 14 hard drives and the motherboard tray even supports XL-ATX form factors. Its one of CMs best chassis to date we dare to state.
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OCZ ZT Series 750 W Review
techPowerUp posted a review on the OCZ ZT Series 750 W

OCZ's new ZT series fills a gap between the ZX and ZS series. The ZT units feature a fully modular cabling design, 80 PLUS Bronze efficiency, five year warranty and an affordable price for what they have to offer, so the deal sounds sweet. But before we jump into early conclusions let's first see if the OCZ ZT 750W will manage to impress with its performance, too.
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