Here a roundup of today's reviews and articles:

AirFly Review
AMD StoreMI Technology Review
be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 CPU Air Cooler Review
Budget King: Intel Pentium Gold G5400 Review
Building a basic gaming PC with AMD's Ryzen 3 2200G
G.SKILL Ripjaws MX780 Review
Gamer Storm MF120 Chassis Fan Kit Review
HAVIT i18 Ultra Comfortable Wireless Headphones Review
NZXT H500i Review
NZXT Kraken M22 Review
Plextor M9Pe NVMe SSD Review: Teaching An Old Chip New Tricks
Supermicro X299 Overclocking Guide

AirFly Review

Twelve South is best-known for its BookBook cases for MacBooks and iPhones, but subsequently expanded into a wide range of stylish accessories for Apple kit – they have products for MacBooks, iMac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and more.
Its latest product, launched earlier this month, is a Bluetooth transmitter designed to let you use AirPods or other wireless headphones with in-flight entertainment systems or other equipment with a 3.5mm headphone socket: AirFly

Read full article @ 9to5 Mac

AMD StoreMI Technology Review

AMD has released its StoreMI technology as a free download alongside the its recently launched Ryzen-2000 series processors and X470 platform. The software allows users on this hardware platform to leverage AMD's latest take on classic tiered storage, combining the capacity of larger HDDs with the speed of SSDs and DRAM. We take a look at this technology to see what it can offer users!

RAM disk, RAM drive, paging file, swap file and other methods to increase performance have been a boon to Windows operating system over the years. I have tried several of these programs and even modified the Windows page file to attempt to get that performance to its peak with some success and occasional program failures. Now AMD has given 400-series chipset socket AM4 motherboard users a way to get the capacity of large HDDs and speed of SSDs without having to chance limited funds by using StoreMI, a free storage enhancement utility (with some device size limitations).

Read full article @ Neoseeker

be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 CPU Air Cooler Review

be quiet! is back again after a less than impressive showing with the Dark Rock 4 CPU cooler. This time be quiet! is bringing out the big guns with the Dark Rock Pro 4. Bringing with it seven 6mm copper heatpipes, and a pair of 135mm Silent Wings 3 fans in a massive dual tower layout, how will it fair compared to it's little brother?

Today's review takes place on our purpose built cooler testing system, featuring an AMD Ryzen R7 1700 overclocked to 3.9GHz, a GIGABYTE Aorus AX370-Gaming 5 motherboard, 16GB of Corsair DDR4 memory, and an ASUS GeForce GTX 670 DirectCU II TOP GPU. Full details of the test system and testing methodology can be found here.

Read full article @ HardOCP

Budget King: Intel Pentium Gold G5400 Review

Last week, Intel completed the Coffee Lake range of processors with no less than 14 new models. One of the most interesting variants is the Pentium Gold G5400, which has four threads and is still very affordable. We have tested it and will tell you in this review if we can indeed declare it the new top budget processor.

Although a few new Core i3's and i5's also came on the market, Intel expanded its latest series mainly in the budget segment. For example, complete new Pentium and Celeron series were released in stores, making it possible to acquire a Coffee Lake processor for well under 44 pounds / 50 euros. What's new is the suffix 'Gold', but that has little further meaning.

Of the more affordable CPUs, the Pentium G5400 that we are testing today is perhaps the most interesting. Anyone who has studied budget PCs over the past year will undoubtedly remember the previous generation's Pentium G4560. Intel then used HyperThreading in the Pentiums for the first time. It does that again, but in a number of ways the Pentium G5400 has just a bit more oomph than its predecessor. For example, the clock speed is 200 MHz higher by default - quite important because these processors do not have a turbo or unlocked multiplier. In addition, the L3 cache is now 4 MB instead of 3 MB in size.

Read full article @ Hardware.Info

Building a basic gaming PC with AMD's Ryzen 3 2200G

As my friends know, I have a peculiar fondness for testing the limits of low-grade hardware. For that reason, when AMD's Ryzen processors with Radeon Vega Graphics—better known as "the Ryzen APUs"—finally hit the market I was pretty eager to pick one up and play with it. Budget constraints left me unable to do so until just recently. One of my friends ended up with a spare Ryzen 3 2200G that she passed on to me to play with.While I certainly appreciated the gesture, it seemed a bit of a waste at the time. I didn't have a motherboard to put it in, nor any RAM to use with it even if I did. DDR4 was (and is) still prohibitively expensive.

Read full article @ The Tech Report

G.SKILL Ripjaws MX780 Review

If you like customization and modularity in your peripherals, then the G.SKILL Ripjaws MX780 is definitely worth checking out. It offers a fully ambidextrous design with interchangeable side panels and a height-adjustable back panel for maximum comfort.

G.SKILL has been around for nearly 30 years in the hardware market, and they surely weren't just sitting idle all that time. Most people know this company because of their high-end RAM products, but they did experiment with peripherals as well. The G.SKILL Ripjaws MX780 is by no means a brand-new mouse since it was released in 2015. There are very few mice out there that offer physical customizability of this amount, and when it comes with this many features, it definitely has the potential to be interesting.

Read full article @ TechPowerUp

Gamer Storm MF120 Chassis Fan Kit Review

With most gamers having some form of specialist chassis to house their system in, cooling fans are becoming more and more relevant to a good set-up. This is no more predominantly seen than when users attempt to push their systems with overclocks. With air flow being a key factor in this, having good system fans are essential to ensuring the best and optimal airflow to keep everything nice and cool.

The problem is that while chassis designs and fans can be pleasing to the eye, sometimes the fans do not provide the level of airflow or the tooling necessary for you to effectively control. There are, of course, other factors to consider outside of efficiency including RGB lighting effects and noise.

With this, Gamer Storm has designed the MF120. A kit comprising of 3 120mm system fans. Please do not be confused though, these are not fans for air or AIO coolers. Although I daresay they could be purposed to that if one wished. These are fans specifically designed for installation in your chassis as either new or replacement to your existing air flow system. With RGB lighting and even WIFI control, these fans are clearly designed to not only impress but perform as well.

Read full article @ eTeknix

HAVIT i18 Ultra Comfortable Wireless Headphones Review

Listening to music is perhaps the only thing that keeps me going either when I’m on the treadmill and ready to give up or while using our somewhat overcrowded public transportation to reach my destination (fortunately that's a very rare thing for me). Unfortunately however as many of you have pointed out over the years there aren't really that many affordable wireless headsets out in the market worth getting your hands on whether that's due to mediocre audio clarity, low batter life, build quality and/or design. HAVIT may not be the first name that comes to mind when out in the market looking for a wireless headset but since to date all of their products to have made it here were quite balanced (price/performance) we decided to take a closer look at their latest i18 Ultra Comfortable Wireless Headphones.

HAVIT, since 1998, is the global professional brand of PC and mobile terminal peripheral; it is the national A custom enterprise, the enterprise with independent international brand that is key cultivated and developed by Guangzhou government. Its business covers brand operation, import and export trade, cross-border E-commerce and supply chain service. The sales network evolves more than 80 countries and regions. Except that, it establishes branch office for marketing in Miami, America. It becomes specialized manufacture of many international brands and supplier of chain groups. In recent years, HAVIT has fully entered into new channel and industrial field such as cross-border E-commerce, mobile terminal, Borlee 3D printing. Under the promotion of remarkable achievements, the influence of its brand has become bigger and bigger, in future; HAVIT will continue to strive for more excellent achievements. Enjoy what I have!

Read full article @ NikKTech

NZXT H500i Review

NZXT has been busy refreshing its catalogue of PC enclosures with a modern range launched under the H-Series umbrella. We've already taken a closer look at the flagship H700i, but this week's arrival of the H500i is arguably of more interest to most mainstream builders. Priced at £100 and introduced as a successor to the ageing but much-liked S340, the H500i has the makings of a well-rounded mid-tower that won't break the bank, so let's take a closer look.

Sleek, two-tone styling is a signature feature of the H-Series range, and the H500i doesn't disappoint. Available colour options include red, white (pictured) and blue, as well as an all-black model for those who prefer to keep things simple. All four utilise a matte finish that's elegant and not at all gaudy, and our white review sample is really quite trendy in the flesh.

What helps the case appear stylish is a relatively petite form factor. Dimensions of 210mm (W) x 460mm (H) 428mm (D) are ample for a high-end build without feeling bulky, and NZXT's steel frame feels nice and rigid throughout. We particularly like the fact that a single piece of steel covers the front and top sections, and the steel plate covering the PSU area also works well - who really wants to see in there anyway?

Read full article @ Hexus

NZXT Kraken M22 Review

NZXT has released a budget-friendly 120mm rad based Kraken series liquid cooler, meet the M22. This new cooler is compatible with CAM software for that funky LED display and the radiator is armed with one 120mm PWM fans. It looks to be a handy quick drop-in solution, but does it perform and is it silent? let's find out. You know, in the world of CPU coolers nothing ever stops developing. These days you can pick a gazillion different heat-pipe based coolers, where many are shaped, formed and priced the same. The better heat pipe based coolers are good though. Next in line are LCS systems (liquid cooling), the entry-level products are affordable, easy to install pre-fab liquid cooling kits. We've seen and tested many of them as Corsair, Asetek, Cooler Master and of course NZXT is kicking it hard with the Kraken series.

The product we test today is the Kraken M22, an updated small form factor design (120mm). While the fan and PUMP are fed by your motherboard FAN headers, it is a cooler series that is easy on the eyes as it also is fitted with that funky mirror LED at the cooling block. The M22 will offer decent enough performance, the product is compatible with NZXT CAM software (but just for the LED unit). You hook up the LCS unit towards a USB port and then the software allows you to alter the colors and animations. NZXT holds the crown when it comes to LCS RGB bling.

Read full article @ The Guru of 3D

Plextor M9Pe NVMe SSD Review: Teaching An Old Chip New Tricks

The M9Pe is the new flagship SSD from Plextor, and its first NVMe SSD to use 3D NAND flash memory. The M9Pe is the successor to both the M8Pe, which used Toshiba 15nm MLC, and the M8Se, which used Toshiba 15nm planar TLC. As with most SSD product lines, as a general industry wide implementation, MLC NAND is being abandoned in the transition to 64-layer 3D NAND. The M9Pe was officially launched at the beginning of this year, but the M9Pe didn't hit the shelves until March, and supplies are still inconsistent.

Plextor is the retail SSD brand of Lite-On, one of the larger suppliers of SSDs for OEMs. Lite-On doesn't manufacture their own NAND flash memory or SSD controllers, so their primary means of product differentiation is through writing their own SSD controller firmware. This often gives them an edge against companies that simply re-brand reference designs from the controller vendors, but as the biggest players in the SSD market are increasingly vertically integrated it is getting harder for Plextor to compete. The Plextor-branded retail NVMe SSDs also offer the cosmetic distinction of optional heatspreaders and add-in card adapters with heatsinks and LEDs. Aside from those cosmetic touches, the M9Pe is essentially the same as the Lite-On CA3 client SSD we reported on previously.

Read full article @ Anandtech

Supermicro X299 Overclocking Guide

Supermicro's dedication to the enthusiast high-end desktop world has recently been solidified with the launch of their C9X299-PG300, which is not only designed to provide you with the latest technologies ADVERTISEMENT , but also support 300W power consumption off the bat. The motherboard fully supports a 300W TDP, which is crazy high, and to do that it utilizes one of the strongest 8-phase VRMs found on a motherboard.

It utilizes the latest in Infineon PWM control technology and power stages, and today we will teach you how to overclock Skylake-X CPUs on the platform, specifically with this motherboard. Many might not be that familiar with Supermicro's UEFI BIOS, but we are happy to report all the settings are present to allow you to overclock your CPU and memory with ease, and we have been commissioned by Supermicro to bring you this article on how to overclock their new motherboard. The review of this motherboard is up, so if you have more questions not covered here, please look at that.

Read full article @ TweakTown