Here a roundup of today's reviews and articles:

Alienware Wireless Gaming Headset: AW988 Review
AOC USB-C Portable Monitor Review
ASRock DeskMini Z370 GTX1060 Review
Corsair K70 RGB MK.2 RAPIDFIRE Review
Corsair's Strafe RGB MK.2 gaming keyboard reviewed
G.SKILL SNIPER X 3600 MHz DDR4 Review
Intel to officially enter discrete graphics cards market in 2020
Intel’s 8-core Coffee Lake coming in September
Kingston Nucleum USB-C Hub Review
Noctua NH-U9 TR4-SP3 AMD Threadripper CPU Cooler Review
Samsung 970 PRO 1TB SSD Review
Synology DiskStation DS1618+ Review
The best CPU coolers: air and water coolers for every budget
Toshiba OCZ RC100 240GB & 480GB M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD Review
Toshiba OCZ RC100 SSD Review
Toshiba OCZ RC100 SSD Review
Toshiba OCZ RC100 SSD Review
Toshiba RC100 M.2 2242 240GB and 480GB SSD Review

Alienware Wireless Gaming Headset: AW988 Review

We have spent the last few days living with the Alienware AW988 headset perched on our head and have gotten a very good idea of what the first headset from Alienware in nine years is all about. We gamed, we watched movies, and we listened to a lot of music. We tell you how it did and all the features and build quality.

It surely does not matter how long Alienware has been out of the gaming headset business, because it is surely back in it with the model AW988. The Alienware Wireless Gaming Headset, as it will be more affectionately known as, has just emerged on Dell's website and is priced at $229.99. The AW988 ticks all the checkboxes that a modern gamer needs, and most likely wants. Its pricing puts in what we would consider the "middle" tier when it comes to your hard earned dollars. The mainstream wireless headset pricing gamut reaches from the sub-$100 price range to the $300+ price point, and it is likely that Alienware has carved out a bit of ground for itself in the middle.

Read full article @ HardOCP

AOC USB-C Portable Monitor Review

If you're in the market for an external monitor that travels well, AOC has a great option.

The majority of the writing I do for Mobile Nations, Windows Central's parent company, happens at home. I have a gigantic monitor that lets me comfortably split two windows so I can have the text I'm writing on the left side of the screen and reference material on the right.

When I take my laptop out into the world, work slows down a lot. If I'm writing up an article on a new phone, and I'm referencing the manufacturer's press materials, I type a bit, change back to the manufacturer's site, go back to typing, and so on. It doesn't sound like a lot, but the time it takes to switch back and forth between windows adds up.

Read full article @ Windows Central

ASRock DeskMini Z370 GTX1060 Review

Small form-factor machines have emerged as a very significant chunk of the PC market. Building on the success of the UCFF NUCs, Intel introduced the mini-STX platform in 2015. We have seen multiple mSTX PCs from vendors such as ASRock (DeskMini 110), ECS (LIVA One), and MSI (Cubi 2 Plus). ASRock took things a bit further by creating the micro-STX form factor that could accommodate a discrete GPU (MXM card). The DeskMini Z270 was introduced last year, and the Z370 version with support for Coffee Lake CPUs was launched a few months ago. Todays review takes a look at the DeskMini Z370 GTX1060 version.

Read full article @ Anandtech

Corsair K70 RGB MK.2 RAPIDFIRE Review

Corsair released their new K70 RGB MK.2, as always, based on Cherry MX switches (Speed, Red, Blue, Brown), RGB backlit of course. In terms of the overall basis and concept, it is an improvement over the previous model(s), including a choice for speed switches which we test. The K70 RGB MK.2 is the successor of the regular K70 and RGB models in terms of the overall basis and concept, but our review sample is based on that newer type of switch called the MX SPEED-switch, which Corsair also refers to as RapidFire. Simply put, the actuation point on these linear switches is shorter than on Cherry MX Reds, now 1.2mm compared to 2mm, respectively. Now realistically you’re looking at a small slash short change here switch-to-switch, on average, from cherry reds to the new fast ones. In fact, they share the same 45g actuation force, too. It's not just all about the RGB LEDs and faster switches though, the keyboard once again comes in excellent looking black anodized aluminum, it just looks fantastic. The MK.2 comes with a detachable full-sized wrist rest that has had an update, it's a bit bigger and has a dimpled rubberized feel, rather comfortable. The specs otherwise remain the same, including a configurable 250 up-to 1000Hz polling rate, 100% anti-ghosting, and the media keys and USB pass-through on the rear remain too. The K70 RGB MK.2 is a full n-key rollover keyboard. That four-way BIOS switch located at the backside of the keyboard ion the older models now has been removed and can be controlled with the iCUE software. But hey, let's have a peek at the revamped model, shall we? Next page, please.

Read full article @ Guru3D

Corsair's Strafe RGB MK.2 gaming keyboard reviewed

Last year, I reviewed Corsair's K95 RGB Platinum—the highest-end keyboard in Corsair's lineup. It debuted some features that are now making their way to other keyboards in Corsair's menagerie. The first keyboards to receive these updates are the K70 and Strafe. Corsair has slapped MK.2 on the end of these updated boards' names to denote the differences between the old and new generations. Both the K70 RGB MK.2 and Strafe RGB MK.2 launch today, and I have a Strafe RGB MK.2 on my desk to test. Let's dive into it.

The Strafe is Corsair's option for those who don't want to pay the $20 premium for the full brushed aluminum top plate on the K70 RGB MK.2. Strafe buyers still get some of the brushed-aluminum goodness at the top of the keyboard, though. The rest of the chassis is made of lightly textured, matte-black plastic. The plastic will let out a soft creak if you apply a fair amount of force to it, but the construction is still solid overall. The first feature that has made its way from the K95 Platinum to the MK.2 is the RGB LED-illuminated Corsair logo up at the top of the board. As always, Corsair's RGB LEDs are vibrant and have buttery-smooth color transitions. The only other RGB LEDs I've seen that come close are Cooler Master's.

Read full article @ The Tech Report

G.SKILL SNIPER X 3600 MHz DDR4 Review

Called SNIPER X, G.SKILL's new memory release is optimized for Intel's latest entry-level chipset motherboards and CPUs. These enthusiast-grade G.SKILL DDR4 modules are thematically matched to specific motherboards designs - and for all you RGB haters out there - do not include LEDs.

We all know that system memory is important, both in size and speed, and with modern platforms and DDR4, there are definite speeds and capacities for each platform that are most ideal, either for maximum speed or maximum performance. Yet with so many options out there and so many potential platforms and motherboards, finding the right memory for your needs can be a difficult task, and it really doesn't need to be. Although it might not seem like it at first glance, things like RGB LEDs and specific heatspreader designs are there to help ease that confusion, and some kits out there are actually specifically designed to run with specific motherboards, offering you the chance to build a custom "pre-built" PC that has all those compatibility issues already taken care of for you. Naturally, G.SKILL has such products on store shelves right now with their Sniper X series.

Read full article @ TechPowerUp

Intel to officially enter discrete graphics cards market in 2020

Intel is not launching new graphics cards at CES 2019, but at least a year later as confirmed by Intel CEO Brian Krzanich during an event for analysts last week. This is also backed by a claim that Intel is entering data center and client markets, which should mean gaming solutions. Sounds interesting?

Both AMD and NVIDIA have been investing a lot of money into the mid-range market, this is likely where Intel should start its journey. But is there any space left for a third player in this game?

It is worth adding that this won’t be the first discrete graphics solution from Intel. Some of you might still remember Intel 740, which by the way is now 20 years old (!). It was Intel’s attempt to popularise AGP standard, it failed however against main competitors such as 3DFX’s Voodoo 2 or NVIDIA Riva 128/TNT at the time.

Read full article @ VideoCardz.com

Intel’s 8-core Coffee Lake coming in September

Intel is set to refresh Coffee Lake-S and Skylake-X architectures in the third quarter. Intel's 8-core Coffee Lake The 40th Anniversary Core i7-8086K processor announcement was overshadowed by 'overclocking demo' of Intel's first 28-core HEDT CPU. The 8086K was the only actual desktop processor announcement from Intel at Computex. This processor is already available on sale and first reviews are available online. Unfortunately, there was no news on 8-core Coffee Lake-S CPU, even though Intel themselves released Z390 chipset specifications just 3 weeks ago. There were no press releases, no press briefings.

Read full article @ VideoCardz.com

Kingston Nucleum USB-C Hub Review

With Apple's decision to embrace USB-C on all of its modern Macs, the company has created a need for USB-C docks so that we can continue to use all of our non-USB C peripherals as we wait for the rest of the tech industry to catch up.

Kingston's Nucleum USB Type-C Hub is designed to meet that need, offering a selection of useful ports for MacBook, MacBook Pro, and iMac owners who still need to use the USB-A, HDMI, SD, and microSD ports that are no longer available on recent machines.

Read full article @ MacRumors

Noctua NH-U9 TR4-SP3 AMD Threadripper CPU Cooler Review

I don’t think we’ve reviewed any CPU coolers for AMD Threadripper so it’s about time to present a couple of cooling solutions for this HEDT platform.

I was surprised how few coolers for the Threadripper are available on the market. Not many brands decided to release these products and I guess it’s because of the fact that with high performance and great marketing success of this platform are not coming sales. However, there are manufacturers like Noctua who care to deliver cooling solutions even for these less popular products.

I won’t hide that you will be able to see the whole line of Noctua coolers for the Threadripper processors so if you are interested in this topic then stay with us for next couple of weeks.

Read full article @ FunkyKit

Samsung 970 PRO 1TB SSD Review

It's the fastest consumer drive KitGuru has ever tested - but you have to pay for every bit! Official sequential performance figures for the 1TB drive are 3,500MB/s for reads and 2,700MB/s for writes. The 512GB drive has the same read figure with writes dropping to 2,300MB/s. Random 4K performance is quoted at 15,000 IOPS and 55,000 IOPS for reads and writes respectively at a queue depth of one and using a single thread. At a queue depth of 32 and using 4 threads, the reads and writes are both quoted as 500,000 IOPS. The 512GB drive has the same figures as the 1TB drive with the exception of the QD32 4 thread read figure which drops to 370,000 IOPS.

Read full article @ KitGuru

Synology DiskStation DS1618+ Review

Designed to allow easy sharing of files on a network, and even more advanced features like multimedia transcoding and playback, Network-Attached Storage (NAS) devices are becoming more and more commonplace in today’s homes and businesses. Most units offer not only their file and resource sharing benefits, but they typically also provide other great features like automated backups to cloud services and fault tolerant disk configurations that can be of great benefit to business users. Many companies offer NAS devices spanning the gamut from single or dual-drive systems, all the way up to rack-mounted enterprise solutions capable of supporting dozens of local disks. Synology, a tried and true provider of NAS, networking, and surveillance products, recently released the DiskStation DS1618+, a NAS aimed at providing both home and small-to-medium sized businesses with a scalable storage solution. Offering room for up to six drives, and the ability to upgrade to a 10Gbps NIC or M.2 SSD caching, the DiskStation DS1618+ looks to be a powerhouse system. Follow along as we explore its features and give it a bit of a workout in our review.

Read full article @ ThinkComputers.org

The best CPU coolers: air and water coolers for every budget

A good processor cooler is an important part of the computer. Besides appearance and size, there are two aspects that are important when choosing a cooler: noise production and cooling performance. These are two issues that are in fact at odds with each other, so the best cooler offers a balance between them. Which CPU cooler should you buy then?

Every year, we test a mountain of processor coolers, gathering and processing large amounts of test data into comparative tests of air coolers and water coolers. In this article we will take a different approach and give you specific tips for which cooler to buy, depending on your wishes and budget. Looking for the lowest temperature? The answer is here! Would you rather have a good mix between cooling performance and noise? We have it too! Looking for an affordable model, or a water cooler? In this article we will tell you directly which model a good choice is.

Read full article @ Hardware.Info

Toshiba OCZ RC100 240GB & 480GB M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD Review

Toshiba is positioning their new RC100 NVMe SSD as "NVMe for everybody". The OCZ RC100 is Toshiba's new mainstream SSD, positioned between the TR200 and the RD400. The 2-lane Toshiba OCZ RC100 is faster than any SATA SSD delivering NVMe goodness for much less money out of pocket than typical 4-lane NVMe SSDs.

The focus of Toshiba's newest is affordability. To accomplish this feat, Toshiba employs PoP (Package on Package) technology to create an entire SSD on a single BGA package.

Read full article @ TweakTown

Toshiba OCZ RC100 SSD Review

Although we first caught a glimpse of the SSD that would become the Toshiba OCZ RC100 back at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, they are now ready for public consumption and Toshiba has just begun shipping the drives. If you’re not hip to the OCZ RC100, it’s a new family of solid state drives that’s specifically designed to push the NVMe interface and smaller M.2 form factor further down into mainstream price points. Toshiba accomplishes this feat by using a single-package design that packs the NAND flash memory and controller into a single chip. The drive’s design is also DRAM-less to further reduce costs.

Read full article @ HotHardware

Toshiba OCZ RC100 SSD Review

We first learned about the Toshiba RC100 Series SSD at CES 2018 and were intrigued by the by what Toshiba was showing off. The RC100 series are all M.2 PCIe Gen 3x2 NVMe drives that use the tiny 2242 form factor rather than the much more common 2280 form factor. Toshiba was able to release this drive on such a small PCB as it uses single-core design where the Toshiba DRAM-less controller and 64-Layer TLC NAND Flash (BiCS3) are all on the same package.

Read full article @ Legit Reviews

Toshiba OCZ RC100 SSD Review

We first learned about the Toshiba RC100 Series SSD at CES 2018 and were intrigued by the by what Toshiba was showing off. The RC100 series are all M.2 PCIe Gen 3×2 NVMe drives that use the tiny 2242 form factor rather than the much more common 2280 form factor. Toshiba was able to release this drive on such a small PCB as it uses single-core design where the Toshiba DRAM-less controller and 64-Layer TLC NAND Flash (BiCS3) are all on the same package. Most desktop and laptop users will likely care less about the smaller 2242 form factor being used, but this is a big deal for laptop users that have an open WWAN/LTE M.2 (miniPCIe) slot and want a secondary drive for more storage space. This is a pretty small niche market though and of the half dozen notebooks that we have in the labs none have an open WWAN slot, so we’ll be sticking to our desktop test platform to review the RC100.

Read full article @ Legit Reviews

Toshiba RC100 M.2 2242 240GB and 480GB SSD Review

Budget SSDs are a tough trick to pull off. You have components, a PCB, and ultimately assembly - all things which costs money. Savings can be had when major components (flash) are sourced from within the same company, but there are several companies already playing that game. Another way to go is to reduce PCB size, but then you can only fit so much media on the same board as the controller and other necessary parts. Samsung attempted something like this with its PM971, but that part was never retail, meaning the cost savings were only passed to the OEMs implementing that part into their systems. It would be nice if a manufacturer would put a part like this into the hands of regular customers looking to upgrade their system on a budget, and Toshiba is aiming to do just that with their new RC100 line:

Not only did Toshiba stack the flash and controller within the same package, they also put that package on an M.2 2242 PCB. No need for additional length here really, and they could have possibly gotten away with M.2 2230, but that might have required some components on the back side of the PCB. Single-sided PCBs are cheaper to produce vs. a PCB that is 12mm longer, so the design decision makes sense here.

Read full article @ PC Perspective