Ultra XL Dual Channel 1024MB PC3200 Memory Review
Modders-Inc has posted a new review on the Ultra XL Dual Channel 1024MB PC3200 Memory

Ultra sent over one of their 1024MB kits of their DDR XL memory for us to check out. With the claim of "Extreme Low Latency No Matter What!!". A bold claim that we will definitely test to see if these DDR XL memory modules are up to the challenge. Ultra rates the XL series at 2-2-2-5 @ 400MHz Front Side Bus speed. The XL memory is also has a nice look with the Gold heat spreaders to help control the modules temperature.

Ultra XL Dual Channel 1024MB PC3200 Memory Review

Fall IDF 2006: Intel Shows Quad-Core Kentsfield
Legit Reviews posted a news story from the IDF 2006

When running Ice Storm Fighters on a quad-core processor (we assume it was the QX6700) with a 1066MHz Front Side Bus (FSB) vTune showed that 13% of the FSB was being used. This goes to show that even on intense upcoming games/benchmarks that are heavily threaded don't require a higher front side bus...

Fall IDF 2006: Intel Shows Quad-Core Kentsfield



Digital Life Expo Preview
Boost Mobile Gaming published a preview on the upcoming Digital Life Expo in NY during October 12-15

The Major League Gaming playoffs in New York are going to be crazy and you won't want to miss a minute of the action. To maximize your time in NYC and especially at Digital Life, Boost Mobile Gaming has put together a comprehensive list of booths you'll definitely want to hit up. If this is your first experience at a trade show, or if you are a seasoned veteran, here's a quick list of booths destined to be the Best of the Best for Digital Life 2006.

Digital Life Expo Preview

EXTREME Widescreen Gaming: Matrox TripleHead2Go
OCModShop.com posted a review on the Matrox TripleHead2Go

In addition, you can actually use this device for what is called surround design, meaning, you can have three monitors independently working, displaying three entirely different desktops, and yet you can still run your mouse across the three screens as easily as you do with one, eliminating window swapping with increased productivity in your newly set up workstation.

EXTREME Widescreen Gaming: Matrox TripleHead2Go

Gigabyte GA-M59SLI-S5 nForce 590 SLI Motherboard Review
PC Stats posted a Gigabyte GA-M59SLI-S5 nForce 590 SLI Motherboard Review

You might be thinking Gigabyte has devised some kind of 'Tri-mode SLI' feature where three graphics cards can be run in tandem for mind-blisteringly fast gaming results.... well not quite. In reality the two blue PCI Express x16 slots operate to support SLI with a standard SLI bridge card and 32 PCI Express split between the two. The third slot operates at PCI Express x8 speeds, and can currently be used with an additional PCI Express videocard to expand desktop real estate, or very shortly with the anticipated new nVidia physics cards.

Gigabyte GA-M59SLI-S5 nForce 590 SLI Motherboard Review

Bluegears b-Enspirer 7.1 Sound Card Review
Virtual-Hideout has posted a review on the Bluegears b-Enspirer 7.1 Sound Card

If you are considering a new sound card solution and have the opportunity to sample this sound card, you won't be disappointed. The Enspirer could perhaps be the perfect 7.1 channel upgrade, especially if you want to save money.

Bluegears b-Enspirer 7.1 Sound Card Review

Super Talent 2GB Mega Screen MP3 Player Review
PC Apex posted a review on the Super Talent 2GB Mega Screen MP3 Player

We have a new review up on a sharp little MP3 player from Super Talent named the MEGA Screen MP3 Player. One of the key features of this player being (in case you missed it in the product name =] ) a vivid OLED display.

Super Talent 2GB Mega Screen MP3 Player Review

Robson Technology Overview
Hardware Secrets put up a Robson Technology Overview

The next Centrino platform to be released next year – codenamed Santa Rosa – will feature an integrated disk cache using flash memory in order to speed up disk access and also save energy – which is a must in extending battery life. In this IDF Fall 2006 we had a more detailed explanation on how this technology, codenamed Robson, will work. Let’s take a look.

Robson Technology Overview

Samsung 971P Review
Overclockers Online has posted a new review on the Samsung 971P LCD display

Aside from the esthetics of the 971p, like every Samsung LCD panel, the screen is stunning. The brightness and contrast make images and colors jump off the page and slap you in the face. The preset options that can be quickly cycled through are perfect for all situations and one couldn't ask for more adjustments through software that is included in the box. The Samsung 971p has just thrown for an 80 yard touchdown on opening weekend late in the 4th quarter to win the game and gets my fantasy start next week regardless of who it is playing.

Samsung 971P Review

Spire Pininfarina Review
Techgage have posted a new review of the Spire Pininfarina case

If you're a PC enthusiast chances are you've heard of Spire and if you're a car enthusiast the chances are you've heard of Pininfarina. If you're into both the chances are good that when you heard those two words together your first thought was "WTF?". Well, Spire just didn't pull a name out of a hat for this case, it was indeed designed by the folks at Pininfarina. This begs the question "Just what do car designers know about PC cases?" Read on to find out.

Spire Pininfarina Review

500GB Hard Drive Round-Up
The Tech Lounge posted a 500GB Hard Drive Round-Up

As platter densities have increased, we have watched our drives grow. 20, 40, 80, 120, 250, and now 500GB drives are in the mainstream. Larger ones are starting to show up, but the 500 GB variety is gaining popularity. All the big players are in the market. It is these 500 GB monsters that I have with me today. From Western Digital I have their Caviar SE16 (WD5000KS), from Hitachi I have their Deskstar 7K500 (HDS725050KLA360), and from Seagate the Barracuda 7200.9 (ST3500641AS). Each are SATA II, 7200 RPM drives with 16MB of cache.

500GB Hard Drive Round-Up

HIS X1650Pro IceQ Turbo Video Card Review
Viper Lair posted a review on the HIS X1650Pro IceQ Turbo Video Card

The video card itself is dominated by the IceQ cooler, which although big isn't at all heavy in comparison to some other video cards. Cooling was well taken care of with that cooler as well as the ramsinks. This allowed the card to keep cooler than many other cards I've looked at, while still keeping very quiet in overclocked operation. Overclocking wasn't anything to write home about but there was a increase that we were able to find out of this card. 2D quality is something that ATi and its partners can be very proud of, as it is among the best I've ever seen.

HIS X1650Pro IceQ Turbo Video Card Review

Intel Quad-Core CPU Overview and Roadmap
Hardware Secrets posted an Intel Quad-Core CPU Overview and Roadmap

Intel is going to release their first quad-core desktop CPU in next November under the Core 2 Extreme series and in January 2007 mainstream quad-core CPUs will be released as Core 2 Quad. Let’s take a look on the technology and specs used by these new CPUs.

Intel Quad-Core CPU Overview and Roadmap

X1300 XT Review
Neoseeker has published a review of ATI's X1300XT low end video card

Sapphire's Radeon X1300 XT will try to find its own place in an already crowded market of sub $100 video cards. ATI's main competitor, NVIDIA, has their own line-up of sub $100 boards ranging from the GeForce 6600 to the GeForce 7300 GT. ATI has also reduced prices on old stock of their Radeon X1300 PRO and Radeon X1600 PRO boards - two cards which really failed to excite enthusiast and normal consumers alike.

X1300 XT Review

Xitel HiFi-Link for iPod nano Review
Futurelooks posted a review on the Xitel HiFi-Link for iPod nano

Looking for a high quality and easy way to connect your tiny little iPod nano to your big home stereo system? Well, we might have what you're looking for. Xitel's has designed their Hifi-Link for iPod nano to provide a connection similar to that of a full-sized stereo component. How does it perform? Let's find out!

Xitel HiFi-Link for iPod nano Review

Thermalright Ultra-120 CPU Cooler Review
ThinkComputers.org posted a review on the Thermalright Ultra-120 CPU Cooler

Back in June we took a look at the Thermalright HR-01 and were very impressed. Today we are taking a look at another cooler from Thermalright with the same type of design. The Ultra-120 features a tower design with aluminum fins. We are putting it up against the latest AM2 coolers to see if Thermalright can still remain number 1 when it comes to CPU cooling. Let's take a look...

Thermalright Ultra-120 CPU Cooler Review

Does the Technology Really Matter?
The TechZone ask Does the Technology Really Matter?

Does the technology really matter in today's world? Basically computer systems just work today, cell phones work almost anywhere now and with our mobile devices we are getting all of our office communications now while we are out and about. So does the technology matter? All the information flowing through cyberspace, through the airwaves, down the copper, does it matter how it gets to its destination?

Does the Technology Really Matter?

Sapphire Quietly Launches an AGP Version of X1300XT
NgoHQ reports that Sapphire quietly launches an AGP version of X1300XT

The AGP market has been heating up a lot recently. Only a few weeks ago we reported that nVidia is planning to introduce an AGP version of 7300GT with DDR2 memory. Now it seems that Sapphire is ready to release a shipment of a RADEON X1300XT AGP card to a few distributors, according to a worldwide distributor.

Sapphire Quietly Launches an AGP Version of X1300XT

Transcend 2GB (2x 1024MB) DDR2-800 Memory Review
Bigbruin.com has posted a review on the Transcend 2GB (2x 1024MB) DDR2-800 Memory

Given the no frills appearance of these modules, I had fairly low expectations for overclocking, and pretty much any gain was going to exceed them... Without touching the timings at all, and with only an increase in voltage from 1.80V to 1.85V, this kit was able to climb to DDR2-960 speeds. Although unstable at 1000 MHz, I did get into Windows, and can tell that with a bit of tweaking, and perhaps some more voltage, these modules could handle it. Another thing that might help with overclocking is some sort of cooling. Many may find heatspreaders to be all about presentation, but slapping a set on these memory modules might be worth the money!

Transcend 2GB (2x 1024MB) DDR2-800 Memory Review

IDF Day 1 Coverage, Quad-Core QX6700 and 80-core Teraflop Chips
HotHardware.com posted day 1 of their IDF coverage

Mr. Otellini then moved on to Kentsfield and Quad-Core. These new multi-core CPUs will be targeted at the enthusiast market at first and it was confirmed that they will be available in volume in November. The first chip to hit retail will be known as the Core 2 Extreme QX6700. And future models will be known as the Core 2 Quadro. Finally, he claimed huge performance gains over existing dual-core processors, and talked about how current threaded software can readily take advantage of the chip.

IDF Day 1 Coverage, Quad-Core QX6700 and 80-core Teraflop Chips

Leadtek WinFast PX7900 GS TDH Review
bit-tech.net has posted a review on the Leadtek WinFast PX7900 GS TDH video card

As we have said before, GeForce 7900 GS is an incredibly good prospect at this moment in time and Leadtek's PX7900 GS TDH is no different to any other on the outside. However, we commend Leadtek for stepping outside of the box and including the heavily discussed HDCP crypto-ROM chip. Not only that, but Leadtek has managed to keep its card at an attractive price point that will no doubt appeal to price-conscious enthusiasts that are looking for a good bargain.

Leadtek WinFast PX7900 GS TDH Review