Here today's reviews and articles, including Gigabyte Intel Z87 Motherboard Lineup Preview, Rosewill RDEE-12002 USB 3.0 Hard Drive Enclosure, Samsung Galaxy S4 Smartphone Review, ASUS Xonar DGX and Xonar DSX Audio Cards Reviews, and Samsung Series 3 NP300E5E-A05CA Review



Gigabyte Intel Z87 Motherboard Lineup Preview @ PC Perspective

Today, Gigabyte unveiled their Intel Z87-based board lineup to select members of the press at a live event from their headquarters in City of Industry, CA. Their Z87 boards are broken down into four series - the Extreme OC series, the Gaming Series, the Thunderbolt series, and the Standard series.

Read more: Gigabyte Intel Z87 Motherboard Lineup Preview @ PC Perspective

Caterpillar REEF D5.163.21.127 Watch @ NikKTech

It's quite normal for people to check out all the usual and well-known brand names when they are out to purchase a watch either to own for themselves or to give as a gift to someone really close. For example some friends of mine always like to buy Casio G-Shock, Timex and Suunto watches because they consider them as the best for extreme sports and scuba diving due to the durable materials used and extra features like depth meters, barometers, GPS etc. I on the other am always on the lookout for new watch models introduced by Casio, Seiko, Citizen, Sector and quite a few other brands that i happen to respect and trust. However in a market where new players emerge every day it's somewhat important for people like me to keep an open mind and that lesson was taught to us by Caterpillar since it wasn't only until recently that we had a chance to check out one of the latest watch models added to their collection, the REEF.

Read more: Caterpillar REEF D5.163.21.127 Watch @ NikKTech

Rosewill RDEE-12002 USB 3.0 Hard Drive Enclosure @ techPowerUp

The Rosewill RDEE-12002 combines USB 3.0 with the latest generation SATA interface. With easy access to the interior, solid use of aluminum, and the ability to hold even the tallest high-capacity drives, the list of specifications makes for an impressive read, but will it perform?

Read more: Rosewill RDEE-12002 USB 3.0 Hard Drive Enclosure @ techPowerUp

ASUS M5A97 R2.0 Motherboard @ Hardware Secrets

The ASUS M5A97 R2.0 is an entry-level motherboard for AMD socket AM3+ processors. It uses the AMD 970 chipset, which is a simpler version of the AMD 990FX. Let's take a look at it!

Read more: ASUS M5A97 R2.0 Motherboard @ Hardware Secrets

Samsung Galaxy S4 Smartphone Review @ HardwareHeaven.com

So what of the S4, is it enough of an upgrade from the S3 to entice current users? Can it compete with the impressive build quality offered by the HTC One? Today we take a look at the new model to see how it fairs in the current market.

Read more: Samsung Galaxy S4 Smartphone Review @ HardwareHeaven.com

Coffee Talk with Timmy Cook @ The Tech Report

TR contributor Jason Fox had the rare privilege of chatting with Apple CEO Tim Cook over a cup of coffee. Except, he didn't really—but he still wrote about how the encounter would have gone down.

Read more: Coffee Talk with Timmy Cook @ The Tech Report

ASUS Xonar DGX and Xonar DSX Audio Cards Reviews @ Legit Reviews

It’s unfortunate that desktop sound cards are becoming less popular. Many years ago, sound cards with their dedicated audio processors could genuinely benefit gamers and their computers when CPUs were much slower. Nowadays, sound cards are being displaced by such factors as fast CPUs, increasing usage of software audio processing, and improved motherboard audio. Additionally, quality listening hardware is necessary to really hear the difference and the cost of good headphones or speakers is another cost burden many people don’t want to deal with. Cheap audio solutions are acceptable to most people and that's fine, but a more recent to insult to high-end audio is the development of trendy headphone fashion currently led by Beats by Dr. Dre, though I digress.

Nevertheless, there will always users who demand the benefits sound cards can bring to the table. Audiophiles demand sound quality, home theater PC users can utilize the outputs and connectivity, and gamers can step up their game with accurate positional audio. ASUS has tackled these challenges with its Xonar sound card line-up. Today we’re looking at the two budget Xonar cards, the DGX and the DSX, though ASUS has made an entire range of Xonar solutions. Among them are the Essence ST and STX which are targeted at home audio enthusiasts, the ROG Phoebus which complements the gamer’s arsenal, and the Essence One DACs made for the most hardcore of audiophiles.

Read more: ASUS Xonar DGX and Xonar DSX Audio Cards Reviews @ Legit Reviews

Case Mod Friday: Amethyst @ ThinkComputers.org

Welcome to another Case Mod Friday showcase! This week we have Anthony Hick's Amethyst build. He has actually sent us shots of his entire setup! Here is what he has to say about his build: My first build, designed for gaming. Essentially started out as a budget build, but I've been adding upgrades as I am able to afford them.

Read more: Case Mod Friday: Amethyst @ ThinkComputers.org

Samsung Series 3 NP300E5E-A05CA Review @ TechReviewSource.com

When shopping for a laptop, it's easy to find a PC that offers all of the necessary performance and features—it's find all that at an affordable price that's difficult. As affordable mainstream laptops go, the Samsung Series 3 NP300E5E-A05CA ($699), available in Canada, manages to balance the demands of performance and pricing fairly well, offering a laptop with solid performance at a reasonable price. While it's not perfect—the port selection could stand to gain a USB 3.0 port—the overall package is quite good, making it our Editors' Choice for mainstream laptops in this batch of Canadian systems.

Read more: Samsung Series 3 NP300E5E-A05CA Review @ TechReviewSource.com