Here a roundup of today's reviews and articles:

AMD Ryzen 5 2600 / Ryzen 7 2700 Benchmarks On Linux, 9-Way Ubuntu CPU Comparison
Ballistix Tactical Tracer DDR4 RGB 32GB 2667 MHz Review
Charts CPU Performance Content Creation: 23 CPUs tested - Ryzen 5 2600X
CHERRY MX BOARD 5.0 Mechanical Keyboard Review
Colorful iGame GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Graphics Card Review
Conan Exiles Review
Crucial MX500 M.2 1 TB Review
Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition Review
Patriot EVLVR 1TB Thunderbolt 3 Portable SSD Review
Silicon Power Bolt B80 240GB USB 3.1 Gen 2 Portable SSD Review
State of Decay 2 Review
Xubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver Review

AMD Ryzen 5 2600 / Ryzen 7 2700 Benchmarks On Linux, 9-Way Ubuntu CPU Comparison

Last month we delivered launch-day Linux benchmarks of the Ryzen 5 2600X and Ryzen 7 2700X for these new "Zen+" processors while recently we received the non-X Ryzen 5 2600 and Ryzen 7 2700 processors for Linux testing as well. In this article are benchmarks of these new AMD Ryzen processors as well as other Intel/AMD CPUs for delivering a fresh nine-way Linux distribution comparison using the very latest software components.

Read full article @ Phoronix

Ballistix Tactical Tracer DDR4 RGB 32GB 2667 MHz Review

We review all-new Ballistix Tactical Tracer DDR4 RGB 32GB 2666 MHz (quad/dual-channel) from Ballistix (Crucial subsidiary). It's not the fastest at 2667 MHz, but it is a 32GB kit that can be tweaked over 3000 MHz easily. It's pretty cool with a new configurable RGB implementation and runs XMP 2.0 memory profiles on Intel platforms as well. Join us as we review not some nice bars of memory, it's fitted with a new style and design as well.

Then there's gamer grade memory for the high-end enthusiasts, which is what we will look at as Crucial, well, Ballistix has released their Tactical Tracer RGB memory. The new RGB series is hip and trendy alright, it increases the price of your average memory kit. Ergo this round Ballistix figured, let's just go for 2666 and 3000 MHz kits. On the Intel platform, the performance hit or benefit will not be that big, while in return you receive a little more RGB bling. And with memory prices still being sky-high that might be a very plausible idea, right? Grab some awesome memory, give it a black PCB and apply a notch of RGB and a cool heat spreader. With speeds starting at 2666 MT/s, Ballistix Tactical Tracer DDR4 RGB memory allows your also to monitor memory temperatures in real time and manipulate RGB lighting with the Ballistix M.O.D. (Memory Overview Display) Utility software.

Read full article @ The Guru of 3D

Charts CPU Performance Content Creation: 23 CPUs tested - Ryzen 5 2600X

These days there are basically two different groups of customers who demand lots of processing power: content creators and gamers, while this 2D performance comparison is targeting content creators. After having had a look at the following pages you'll have an overview on how fast recent CPUs are in regarding a variety of programs, may it be video encoding,
rendering, ...

PCMark 8 includes tests based on popular Adobe and Microsoft applications. In order to test the max perfomance of our system, we run the Creative benchmark suite in “Conventional” mode without OpenCL acceleration. PCMark 8 Creative benchmark includes workloads typical for enthusiasts and professionals who work in the field of content creation. The score in PCMark 8 Creative is measured in points where higher is better.

Read full article @ ocaholic

CHERRY MX BOARD 5.0 Mechanical Keyboard Review

Choosing the right peripheral components is critical to demanding PC users. The mouse and keyboard work like natural extensions of the body, and so their selection becomes a personal choice. Keyboards are used for both everyday workload as well as entertainment, so picking the right one is very important. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the Cherry MX Board 5.0 corded mechanical keyboard with German-made Gold Crosspoint contact technology precision Cherry MX Red linear switches, double-shot keys, and customizable white LED backlighting.

Read full article @ Benchmark Reviews

Colorful iGame GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Graphics Card Review

While Colorful may not have the big name reputation here in Europe or even in the US, they’re still a big player in the dGPU market. With a significant presence in Eastern markets, they deliver some very competitive graphics cards, and even more competitive prices. For gamers on a tighter budget, the GTX 1080 Ti likely isn’t on your shopping list. However, at under £150, the GTX 1050 Ti is a competitive solution for affordable PC gaming. The 1050 Ti has proven a big hit with many PC gamers who play at 1080p (or lower), in the eSports market, and for games like LoL, Fortnite, PUBG, Minecraft, etc.

Read full article @ eTeknix

Conan Exiles Review

The first challenge you’ll have to overcome in Conan Exiles is the download. For this review, I was offered a download code which clocked in at around 50 GB. Even with good, uninterrupted connection that’s still a few hours before you can actually play the game. Once you finally enter the Exiled Lands, though, you’ll find a survival game with a heavy leaning on RPG adventures.

Because of the recent incredible popularity of survival games, only now waning thanks to the breakthrough success of the Battle Royale genre, the marketplace is completely oversaturated. Most games tried to build on unique gimmicks or mechanics to try and stand above the crowd, and Conan Exiles is no different. As you may have guessed, the game is based on the Conan: The Barbarian, the universe created by writer Robert E. Howard almost a century ago.

Read full article @ Wccftech

Crucial MX500 M.2 1 TB Review

Crucial's MX500 is one of the most successful SSDs on the market, thanks to its great performance at an amazing price point. At launch only 2.5" SATA models were available, now the M.2 form factor drives are shipping, too - with no price increase.

Just like the SATA models, the Crucial MX500 M.2 uses an SMI controller instead of the Marvell chips we saw on earlier MX-Series drives. It also uses Micron's own 64-layer 3D TLC NAND chips, which is a first for the company. While TLC chips provide cheaper cost per gigabyte over more traditional MLC NAND, they also come with lower write performance. In order to work around that, Crucial designates a small, variably sized amount of memory as SLC cache, which writes a single bit to each TLC cell instead of three. While much faster, such a setup is basically a speed vs. size tradeoff. According to Crucial, the SLC cache is variably sized to provide the best performance.

Read full article @ TechPowerUp

Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition Review

Yep. Let’s not skirt around it in any way: we have another Wii U port here with Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition. To be clear, I adored the Wii U, and I think it had a great library of exclusives that I spent hundreds of hours on. I don’t regret my purchase one bit. But it’s hard to get excited about Switch releases when I’ve played so much of it all before.

But luckily, despite some extreme familiarity with Hyrule Warriors, Hyrule Warriors Legends and the Dynasty Warriors franchise and spin-offs, I once again found myself playing hours of Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition again on Nintendo Switch. On Wii U I played through the main story, Legend Mode, and enjoyed my time with it. On 3DS, I enjoyed playing as Linkle, but the severely reduced enemy count and lack of one-console local multiplayer made the experience, frankly, less fun, even if I could play it on the go. On Nintendo Switch I’ve dived deeper into other modes than ever before, and the ability to play as Linkle and all of the DLC characters I missed out on gave me hours of fun, made even better by local multiplayer on the big screen – my favorite part of every Warriors title.

Read full article @ Wccftech

Patriot EVLVR 1TB Thunderbolt 3 Portable SSD Review

The first Patriot EVLVR Thunderbolt 3 portable SSD prototype was first revealed at CES 2018 and got some buzz as it is one of only a handful of external SSD solutions aimed at mainstream users that uses the Thunderbolt 3 interface. Thanks to the Thunderbolt 3 interface and internal M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD, the EVLVR external storage solution is able to provide users with transfer speeds up to 1,500 MB/s read and 1,000 MB/s write. Read on to see how it performs on six different benchmarks in our review!

Read full article @ Legit Reviews

Silicon Power Bolt B80 240GB USB 3.1 Gen 2 Portable SSD Review

Silicon Power has added yet another rugged external drive in their continuously growing product lines this time however it's not an portable HDD but an exceptionally fast IP68 certified portable SSD called the Bolt B80.

Founded in 2003 by a group of enthusiastic data storage industry experts, Silicon Power is committed to delivering outstanding product and service quality. Headquartered and with our own state-of-the-art production site in Taipei, we have become a leading manufacturer of flash memory cards, USB flash drives, portable hard drives, solid state drives, DRAM modules and industrial-grade products. As an international player with four branch offices around the globe, we continuously strive to offer the perfect data storage solution for all requirements of modern digitalized life. With a strong focus on combining innovative technology and award-winning design, we live up to our brand promise to reliably preserve and protect your most valuable data. Because memory is personal.

Read full article @ NikKTech

State of Decay 2 Review

There are tons of prominent zombie games on the market. Whether they're open world affairs like Dead Rising or Dying Light, or something more competitive/co-operative like Day Z or Left 4 Dead, each offer their twists, but I'd happily say few are as unique as State of Decay.

The same is true for the sequel State of Decay 2, which launches on May 22, 2018, for Xbox One and PC.

Read full article @ Windows Central

Xubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver Review

I've written a long, detailed review of Xubuntu 18.04 Bionic Beaver, tested in a multi-boot Windows and Linux configuration on a laptop with UEFI, GPT and Intel graphics, covering live session, installation and post-install use, including look & feel, network support - Wireless, Bluetooth, Samba sharing, printing, multimedia support - HD video and MP3 playback, smartphone support - Android, iPhone, Windows Phone, partitioning, package management and updates, applications, hardware compatibility, webcam, suspend & resume, stability, performance, responsiveness, resource utilization, battery life, customization, fonts, many bugs and inconsistencies, and more. Enjoy.

Read full article @ Dedoimedo