Here a roundup of today's reviews and articles:

22 of the Coolest (and Strangest) RGB Lighting Products
Acer Nitro 5 Gaming Laptop Review
Arctic Z1-3D Review
Azio Armato CE Backlit Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Review
How to Take Amazing Fireworks Photos
How to Use VLOOKUP in Excel or Google Sheets
MyDigitalSSD SuperBoost 2 512GB Review
Samsung 970 Evo & 970 Pro SSD Review

22 of the Coolest (and Strangest) RGB Lighting Products

In the PC space, RGB is everywhere. Your cooling fans can breathe color into your hardware. Your case can dress your PC in a spectrum of luminescent style. Your fingers can dance across a keyboard that changes colors like a club floor. You can turn your mouse from a piece of mobile plastic to a small light show and even your headphones can change colors to the beat of your drums. But RGB’s relentless takeover hasn’t ended there.

Nowadays, we’re seeing custom lighting capabilities on the most unexpected components, gaming gear, house décor, party favors and more. Here are 22 unexpected ways to taste the rainbow.

Read full article @ Tom's Hardware

Acer Nitro 5 Gaming Laptop Review

The Acer Nitro 5 is an outstanding entry-level gaming laptop and worthy of consideration if you have a more modest $900 budget.

The Acer Nitro 5 represents a great balance between price and performance. It's built sturdy and handles heat and battery life like a champ. However, it can be heavy and unwieldy, and its looks aren't for everyone. Owners of the Acer Nitro 5 will be satisfied with its excellent value, but if you're still shopping, keep in mind that it won't be a top performer, and that similarly priced alternatives will deliver better gaming performance.

Read full article @ Tom's Hardware

Arctic Z1-3D Review

The Z1-3D takes the standard recipe for monitor arms and adds a few more complementary features. The main highlights to take away are the built-in powered USB hub that provides four high-speed USB 3.0 ports as well as an integrated gas-lift. Additional elements like the clever 3D design and also the included cable management features, further strengthen the appeal.

Read full article @ Vortez

Azio Armato CE Backlit Mechanical Gaming Keyboard Review

If you like typewriter inspired keycaps but you'd want them paired with a more gaming oriented mechanical keyboard and you don't care much about RGB lighting then the Armato CE by Azio is just what you need.

RGB illuminated devices may be among the hottest selling products in the electronics industry right now but as we've pointed out many times already not all people are into it and yes that even includes gaming peripherals. Of course people can always choose single colors for their RGB illuminated gaming peripherals but on one hand price is always an issue (RGB models usually cost more compared to their single color counterparts) while on the other some gaming peripherals don't really go hand to hand with many different colors. The typewriter inspired classic edition of mechanical keyboards by Azio is a perfect example of this and after having tested their somewhat impressive RETRO model we decided to take a thorough look at their Armato CE gaming model.

Azio Corp. is a manufacturer dedicated to providing innovative tech gear to make everyday life more engaging and fun. We believe that design has the power to alter not only perceptions, but also emotions. Through superior design, we are driven to provide a better experience for people of all ages from all walks of life, no matter what your hobby, profession, or need may be. Technology can simplify complicated things, or complicate simple things. Our design goal is to create cutting-edge products that are intuitively easy to use, provide maximum comfort, and leave a minimal environmental footprint. Through the use of color, material, and finish, we strive to design our products with the perfect blend of elegance and ferocity. Our brand, Azio, is an acronym for "A to Z, Input-Output". This reflects the core of our business as a manufacturer of computer and electronic peripherals. The Azio brand logo employs a simple, geometric typeface to resemble solidity, efficiency and forwardness. This simplicity and cleanliness avoids all decorative and nonessential elements to demonstrate that Azio aims to only offer succinct products that have the optimum balance between aesthetics and functionality.

Read full article @ NikKTech

How to Take Amazing Fireworks Photos

You don't have to be a professional photographer to snap amazing pictures of fireworks. All you need is some basic equipment and know-how, the latter of which we offer up here.

Soaking in a professional fireworks display is a Fourth of July tradition in many parts of the United States. Between the barbecues and good times spent with friends and family, you'll no doubt be bombarded with images of fireworks over the coming days. And while those Instagram and Twitter users certainly mean well, the truth of the matter is that most of those photos will suck.

The good news is, you don't have to be a professional photographer to snap amazing pictures of fireworks. All you need is some basic equipment and a little know-how, the latter of which we'll be offering up here today.

Read full article @ TechSpot

How to Use VLOOKUP in Excel or Google Sheets

Have two sets of data with one common field? Learn how to combine data from different spreadsheets using the VLOOKUP function.

VLOOKUP is more than a spreadsheet function; it's how you become a workplace hero. When you have two spreadsheets with different, but related sets of data like a list of customer addresses and a separate list of customer purchases, you can combine the data into one sheet. It's not hard to learn how to create a VLOOKUP formula, but most of your coworkers probably don't have this knowledge (and you don't have to tell them).

Read full article @ Tom's Hardware

MyDigitalSSD SuperBoost 2 512GB Review

MyDigitalSSD is a small outfit operating out of upstate New York that aims to compete with the top brands at fair prices. They’ve been around since 2007 and have done quite the job considering their relative size. Their stated goal as a company is to stand out for reliable service by giving a very high-quality product that will last and remain reliable while still trying to give the best performance to value possible.

After our recent review of the Patriot Burst 480GB, we have recently aimed at looking at larger capacity SATA drives, and this is our second one in the list. This drive features Toshiba TLC NAND and the same Phison S11 controller featured in the other drive, as its a real go-to for lower-priced drives. All future drives will feature overprovisioning, though marketing only had older non provisioned drives in stock.

Read full article @ Wcctech

Samsung 970 Evo & 970 Pro SSD Review

Samsung finally introduced the new 970 Evo and 970 Pro SSDs, the long-awaited successors of the now over a year and a half old 960 Evo and Pro. They use a new controller and the latest version of Samsung's own V-NAND, in which no less than 64 layers are stacked on top of each other. We have tested these new SSDs extensively: are they as fast as their names and predecessors suggest?

We had to wait a long time for Samsung's new top models. While the Korean company gave its sata SSDs a refresh earlier this year with the 860 Evo and Pro, it remained silent after the many rumours around the manufacturer's new high-end SSDs. The SSD market experienced a dip last year: due to the constantly increasing demand and production problems of the latest generations of 3d-nand, prices rose. As a result, many consumers considered a lower price to be more important than having the best performance.

Read full article @ Hardware.Info