Here a roundup of todays reviews and articles:

Acer TA272 HUL All-in-One Review: Android Invades the Desktop
AMD Athlons R3 Graphics: RadeonSI Gallium3D vs. Catalyst
Are AMD Athlon/Sempron APUs Fast Enough For Steam On Linux, Steam Machines
ASRock FM2 A85X-ITX Motherboard Review
Asustor AS-204TE
be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 Review
CM Storm Recon Review
Diamond Wireless Range Extender WR300NSI Review
Mad Catz R.A.T. TE Gaming Mouse Review
Noctua NH-D15 Dual-Tower CPU Cooler Review
OCZ Vertex 460 240GB Solid State Drive Review
Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC and R9 290 Vapor-X OC Review
SilentiumPC Fera 2 HE 1224 CPU Cooler Review
SilverStone PS10 Case Review
Trying Out Radeon R9 290 Graphics On Open-Source
Windows Phone 8.1 Tip: Pin the Sense Apps to Start
Windows Phone 8.1 Tip: Pin Web Pages to Start
XFX Radeon R7 240 Core Edition Video Card Review

Acer TA272 HUL All-in-One Review: Android Invades the Desktop

One of the more interesting products to surface at this year’s CES was an all-in-one computer from Acer, the TA272 HUL. Veering off the beaten path, Acer decided to see what would happen if they took the traditional AIO formula, threw out the Windows operating system and PC hardware, replacing it instead with high-end smartphone guts powered by Android.

Much like a notebook, all-in-ones are tricky to get right as you’re essentially stuck with whatever hardware the OEM selects for you. If the manufacturer attempts to cut corners on a key component, it can ruin the entire experience.

Case in point: this is the third 27-inch AIO that I’ve reviewed in as many years. The two earlier systems – the Lenovo IdeaCentre Horizon and the HP Omni 27 Quad – only supported a resolution of 1080p. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with 1,920 x 1,080 on a handset, tablet, notebook or even a smaller desktop screen, it’s not a good fit for a larger display where you can begin to see individual pixels without really trying. That's a typical example of cost-cutting tactics that ultimately backfires.

Read full article @ Techspot

AMD Athlons R3 Graphics: RadeonSI Gallium3D vs. Catalyst

o not much surprise given these are $60 USD parts and under, there isn't much to squeeze out of these Kabini APUs with Jaguar processor cores. Many AM1 motherboards reportedly are not even offering any overclocking options from within their UEFI setup area. Fortunately, the ASUS AM1I-A motherboard that I've been using for many of these AM1 Linux benchmarks, offers basic overclocking support.

The ASUS UEFI BIOS Utility for the AM1I-A mini-ITX motherboard allows adjusting the APU frequency, memory frequency, CPU ratio/multiplier, north bridge frequency, DRAM timings, APU voltage, and the DRAM voltage. Regarding the adjusting the multiplier on the APUs, only the AMD Athlon 5350 and Sempron 2650 that had a multiplier that could be increased beyond its default value. For all four of the APUs with the basic overclocking, when attempting to adjust the APU frequency past 105MHz, regardless of voltage, the system would become unstable.

Read full article @ Phoronix

Are AMD Athlon/Sempron APUs Fast Enough For Steam On Linux, Steam Machines

Earlier today the latest installment of our extensive Linux testing of AMD's new Athlon AM1 APUs were shared in the form of RadeonSI vs. Gallium3D benchmarks of the Radeon R3 Graphics found with these new entry-level APUs. Not included with that open-source vs. closed-source driver testing was any Source Engine / Steam Linux game testing due to an XCB DRI3 issue, but this article is devoted to looking at the Catalyst performance for the Sempron 2650, Sempron 3850, Athlon 5150, and Athlon 5350 to see whether any of these APUs can make the cut for a budget Steam Machine.

With all four of these brand new AMD AM1 APUs bearing Radeon R3 Graphics, they were tested using the Catalyst Linux driver (fglrx 13.35.5 / OpenGL 4.3.12798) when using Ubuntu 14.04 LTS. The games tested were Counter-Strike: Source, Half-Life 2: Lost Coast, and Portal. With each of these Valve Source Engine games we benchmarked them at six different resolutions: 1024 x 768, 1280 x 960, 1600 x 900, 1280 x 1024, 1680 x 1050, and 1920 x 1080. This way we can see quite well if there's CPU/GPU bottlenecks and at what resolutions (if any) the APUs deliver playable frame-rates with the Catalyst Linux driver. As outlined in the article earlier today, the Catalyst driver is still significantly faster than RadeonSI Gallium3D for these new AMD APUs.

Read full article @ Phoronix

ASRock FM2 A85X-ITX Motherboard Review

AMD has finally delivered on the new Richland APUs. And yes, they come with complete backwards compatibility. The question is, are any of the motherboards that were designed for the FM2 socket and Trinity still worth using with their latest chip? Or do you need something more? ASRock, a leader in innovative motherboard design, might have had the answer all this time, with the ASRock FM2 A85X-ITX. Maybe big things do come in small packages?

Read full article @ Futurelooks

Asustor AS-204TE

Asustor is hard at work to establish itself as a good name on the NAS scene, and they are on the right track. Today, we will take a look at the AS-204TE, which Asustor says to be the best multimedia and storage-center solution for your home because it comes equipped with all typical NAS functions, an HDMI port, and XBMC support.

Read full article @ techPowerUp

be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 Review

Cool, quiet and formidable. Is the third-generation Dark Rock Pro the best yet? For a good number of years the Dark Rock Pro 2 has been a go-to solution for enthusiasts seeking a high-end cooler that performs admirably, keeps quiet in use and looks the part. It's a cooler that ticked a lot of the right boxes, though it did carry a couple of provisos; namely tricky installation and a sizeable £60 price tag.

The good news for be quiet! fans is that the German manufacturer hasn't been resting on its laurels and has this year followed-up with the eagerly-anticipated Dark Rock Pro 3. This third-generation cooler, currently priced at a lofty £65, is said to have been "significantly upgraded" to deliver "the perfect balance between cooling and serenity." Let's dive in and see exactly what's on offer.

Read full article @ Hexus

CM Storm Recon Review

The gaming mouse is a very subjective device and for a gamer is always difficult find the perfect model. On the market and there are many models with various shapes, sizes and customization possibilities. Cooler Master with Recon offers an optical mouse for left-handed and right-handed, with 11 customizable keys and the Avago ADNS-3090 sensor.

Read full article @ ocaholic

Diamond Wireless Range Extender WR300NSI Review

Quality of wireless connectivity is subject to many factors, a few being congestion, mismatched protocols, and range. Range is the simplest to fix with hardware like Diamond’s Wireless Range Extender WR300NSI. Diamond has equipped WR300NSI with a signal strength indicator and fancy firmware. Are these features enough to successfully boost your wireless signal? We dive into this question and more in the full review.

Read full article @ ThinkComputers.org

Mad Catz R.A.T. TE Gaming Mouse Review

Mad Catz has introduced a new mouse to their R.A.T. gaming mouse lineup that features a new suffix and with a new set of features to boot. The R.A.T. TE, labeled as a Tournament Edition gaming mouse, is designed to be the swiftest R.A.T. mouse while retaining most of the characteristics of the namesake. Read on to find out more about this gaming mouse!

Read full article @ Legit Reviews

Noctua NH-D15 Dual-Tower CPU Cooler Review

Noctua thus has introduced the NH-D15, a dual-tower cooler tweaked for efficiency. Do not mistake its large size as an exercise in brute force for the NH-D15 upon closer inspection, is a measured approach to cooling. Moving to a pair of larger NF-A15 fans, the NH-D15 boasts excellent thermal management capabilities at a lower noise level.

Read full article @ Modders-Inc

OCZ Vertex 460 240GB Solid State Drive Review

Over the last few months, OCZ have been in the limelight with the news of imminent bankruptcy and to be quite honest, for us reviewers and particularly those of use that review their products it has been very had to ignore the facts and what was going on. As a result I was very sceptical that I was going to get any more products from them and these were the last days of one of the best SSDs names out there. Fortunately though, help was on hand and following a buyout from Toshiba, OCZ are once again back in the game. With Indlinx controllers at their heart and now having Toshiba’s own NAND packages spread around, OCZ have now got a stable supply of components for their SSDs and with this set of critical changes taking place, there is no other way to display their come back but to release a new drive.

Following in the footsteps of the Vertex 450, the Vertex 460 is home to the same Indlinx BareFoot 3 M10 controller, however on the NAND front the younger and fresher drive takes advantage of Toshiba’s 19nm MLC NAND packages and the resulting combination sees a drive that on paper looks quite promising. The rated performance figures put it up with some of the class leading drives, although it has been priced in the region of other mainstream drives.

Whilst some people are sceptical that the buyout from Toshiba will help out OCZ in the longterm, OCZ are still going to run under their own name and the essence of OCZ’s previous products is still going to be there. I personally have high hopes for them and I look forward to seeing a number of class leading products roll off the production line in the near future. There is only one way to see how the rejuvenation process has gone and that is to put the drives to test and see what they are made of.

Read full article @ eTeknix

Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC and R9 290 Vapor-X OC Review

There is no doubt that AMD gamers have been spoilt for choice this year when shopping for a new graphics card. Sapphire have been at the forefront of the new GPU revolution, thanks in no small part to their remarkable, class leading Tri-X cooling system.

Read full article @ KitGuru

SilentiumPC Fera 2 HE 1224 CPU Cooler Review

SilentiumPC send us their latest budget friendly heatsinks. Compatible with all of the major Intel and AMD platforms out there we take for a test run on a hot running setup to see how it stacks up to the reference cooling from Intel.

Read full article @ Madshrimps

SilverStone PS10 Case Review

Are you in the market for a budget priced chassis that looks like you spent more? Introducing the PS10 case from SilverStone, a mid tower case that offers a wide variety of hardware configurations and cooling support. SilverStone frequently leans toward a more budget build of case, yet their cases don’t lack for interesting character which appeals to many builders. Can the new PS10 live up to both of these expectations? Read on to find out!

Read full article @ PureOverclock

Trying Out Radeon R9 290 Graphics On Open-Source

One of the more commonly occurring test requests at Phoronix lately has been about testing the open-source RadeonSI Gallium3D driver with the Radeon R9 290 "Hawaii" graphics cards. Sadly, there's a reason why the R9 290 hardware isn't tested on the open driver much under Linux.

While the Radeon R9 290 has been out more than a half-year, the open-source support is still poor. In fact, when running the latest open-source code there still isn't hardware acceleration by default, and with distributions like Ubuntu 14.04 LTS there's only mode-setting support without any 2D/3D hardware acceleration. In my most recent R9 290 open-source testing, I installed Ubuntu 14.04 x86_64, then installed the Linux 3.14 kernel (and later, Linux 3.15 Git), followed by using the Oibaf PPA for Mesa 10.2-devel and xf86-video-ati Git.

Read full article @ Phoronix

Windows Phone 8.1 Tip: Pin the Sense Apps to Start

Windows Phone 8.1 includes a new and improved collection of "Sense" apps, utilities that take the guesswork out of using your smart phone. These include Battery Saver, Data Sense, Storage Sense and Wi-Fi Sense. And the first four of those can now be pinned to your Start screen for quick access and live updates.

Read full article @ WinSupersite

Windows Phone 8.1 Tip: Pin Web Pages to Start

With the move to Internet Explorer 11, Microsoft has dramatically improved the capabilities of its web browser in the Windows Phone 8.1 upgrade. Key among them is the ability to pin a web site to Start as a live tile.

Read full article @ WinSupersite

XFX Radeon R7 240 Core Edition Video Card Review

The Radeon R7 240 is an entry-level GPU that replaces the Radeon HD 8570 and competes directly with the GeForce GT 630 from NVIDIA. The model we are analyzing is the Radeon R7 240 Core Edition (R7-240A-CL) from the traditional manufacturer XFX. It is a single slot card with 2 GiB of DDR3 memory. Let's see how this model fared on our tests.

Read full article @ Hardware Secrets