Here a roundup of today's reviews and articles, including ZOTAC ZBOX Nano ID68 Plus Mini PC Review, NETGEAR CES 2014 New Products Showcase, Zotac Zbox Nano ID69 Plus, Logitech G602 Wireless Gaming Mouse Review, and Dell XPS 15 Touch Screen Laptop Review



ZOTAC ZBOX Nano ID68 Plus Mini PC Review @ HardwareHeaven.com

Today ZOTAC expand their ZBOX range with a new model, the ID68-Plus. With i5 CPU, 4GB of memory and 500GB hard drive as standard mixed with easy upgrade potential and 4K support this palm sized system could be ideal for desktop and media use.

Read more: ZOTAC ZBOX Nano ID68 Plus Mini PC Review @ HardwareHeaven.com

NETGEAR CES 2014 New Products Showcase @ Benchmark Reviews

NETGEAR rushed out the gate full force as CES 2014 started with a flurry of new products designed to improve network bandwidth and signal strength for the home or small office. Their two newest WiFi range extenders even won prestigious innovations awards. Benchmark Reviews met up with NETGEAR at their invitation-only suite during CES 2014 to get a look at the newest products and technologies being released.

Read more: NETGEAR CES 2014 New Products Showcase @ Benchmark Reviews

AMD Kaveri A10 7850K Overclocked at 4.7 Ghz Benchmarks @ HCW

Many have been wondering how Kaveri performs when overclocked to a decent speed. We take ours and put it through the paces at 4.7 GHz to see how it compares

Read more: AMD Kaveri A10 7850K Overclocked at 4.7 Ghz Benchmarks @ HCW

Gigabyte G1 Sniper Z87 (LGA 1150) Motherboard Review @ eTeknix

With AMD fizzling out in the high end desktop market segment, people are increasingly choosing the Intel LGA 1150 platform for high end gaming systems. Not surprisingly motherboard vendors have responded to the popularity of LGA 1150, in particular Z87, and we are seeing a highly competitive market. Gigabyte, ASUS, MSI and ASRock are all constantly trying to undercut each other buy offering better quality motherboards at lower prices. Gigabyte’s latest attempt to pull away from the competition is the new G1 Sniper Z87 motherboard costing just $170/£115. Considering past G1 Sniper motherboards, like the G1 Sniper 5 Z87 and G1 Sniper M5 Z87, cost $400 and $200 respectively Gigabyte have really made some significant cost savings with the G1 Sniper Z87 motherboard. Yet looking at the G1 Sniper Z87 it is hard to see where those savings have been made because we still have a whole array of high end options including dual PCIe 3.0 X16 lanes, six SATA III ports, an 8 phase CPU VRM, high quality audio, Killer E2200 networking and a dual UEFI BIOS. The G1 Sniper Z87 looks like an option that will be hard to match at its price point.

Read more: Gigabyte G1 Sniper Z87 (LGA 1150) Motherboard Review @ eTeknix

Zotac Zbox Nano ID69 Plus @ Hexus

The number of ultra-small PCs arriving on the market is a sign of the times. The industry is slowly-but-surely making the transition to petite, efficient devices that are more capable than ever before, and if chip giant Intel has a say in things, the PC of tomorrow will be no bigger than a box of chocolates.

It's telling that a few of the HEXUS staff are now more intrigued by these little systems than they are by the big behemoths that typically cross our path. So much so, in fact, that a couple of our team have already downsized from full-tower machines to NUCs or something of a similar size.

But what this area of the market really needs is choice, and lots of it. Anyone building a traditional tower has a smorgasbord of components to choose from - that's half the fun - however if you want something that's significantly smaller, your options are limited. This should become less of a problem in 2014 as more manufacturers make the move to small-form-factor (SFF), but right now the mini PC continues to be championed by a select few.

Read more: Zotac Zbox Nano ID69 Plus @ Hexus

Kingston DataTraveler HyperX 3.0 64GB Flash Drive review @ FunkyKit

Kingston is constantly improving their flash drive products line by adding faster, higher capacity devices. One of these flash drives is presented in this review, DataTraveler HyperX 3.0 64GB.
Without a doubt flash drives are one of the most useful devices but many of them are slow or low capacity. Most users wish to combine both these features in one small flash drive and Kingston's HyperX series is just one of these products. Kingston is offering 64, 128 and 256GB versions of DT HyperX 3.0 but are they as fast as procucer declares ? Let's check it out in our review.

Read more: Kingston DataTraveler HyperX 3.0 64GB Flash Drive review @ FunkyKit

Corsair Vengeance 2100 Wireless Gaming Headset Review @ Legit Reviews

We’ve saved the best for last…or is it? The Vengeance 2100 headset we’re are looking at represents our last product review of Corsair’s 2013 headset refresh. Amongst the entire collection of five headsets, the Vengeance 2100 fills a premium niche with the most notable feature being its wireless capabilities. There was much to compare between the headsets and we’ll have to see if the Vengeance 2100 sits at the top of what has so far shaped to be an enforced top-to-bottom headset catalog.

Read more: Corsair Vengeance 2100 Wireless Gaming Headset Review @ Legit Reviews

Asus X102BA Review @ Techradar

Recently, Windows 8 laptops have gone back to their roots. We've seen a small number of them breaking away from the more expensive models, such as Ultrabooks and hybrids, offering great portability, incredible value for money and good battery life. Though manufacturers are hesitant to label them as such, they're basically netbooks in disguise.The latest in the line of this new niche is the Asus X102BA ? an 11.1-inch laptop that is light, easy to carry and costs relatively little.It goes against similar low-powered, bargain bucket machines out there, including the Acer Aspire V5-122P and HP Pavilion TouchSmart 11 though the Acer features a quad core A6 chip, while the TouchSmart offers just the two cores with its A4-1250 APU. The Asus, on the other hand, has the newly introduced Jaguar-architecture Temash APU, which is also a dual-core chip, as per the TouchSmart, but it uses much less power, on paper at least.

Read more: Asus X102BA Review @ Techradar

Logitech G602 Wireless Gaming Mouse Review @ OCC

Ultimately the Logitech G602 Wireless Gaming Mouse did impress me. I'm usually not a fan of wireless mice due to the need to feed them their never-ending supply of power via batteries. However, this mouse lasted longer than I thought it would on its first set of batteries. I can't give you an exact time, but longer than my typical laptop wireless mice seem to last. Not having the cable dragging along the others behind my desk, which I admit are quite the mess, was amazing. No drag, nothing to get caught on; it was just simple and smooth mouse movement.

Read more: Logitech G602 Wireless Gaming Mouse Review @ OCC

Logitech G700s Rechargeable Gaming Mouse Review @ OCC

However, I found it hard to find this mouse to have things exceptional enough to warrant its price. That was the one looming fact that sat above me every time I used it – I have nearly a hundred bucks in my hand right now. I kept thinking about what I could get with at least half of the price and still had a decent wired mouse underneath my fingertips. What it really came down to for me personally was the fact that I have no desire for a wireless gaming mouse; with that being its only true "feature" from other mice on the market it wasn't a home run with me. The cable to charge was aggravating at best and left me wishing to let the mouse charge on its own and come back later to use it again. The lackluster battery life, especially after using the G602, found me having to plug it in quite frequently – every other day with good use. The G602 may have two batteries, but I'll take the added weight for over a weeks' worth of play.

Read more: Logitech G700s Rechargeable Gaming Mouse Review @ OCC

Logitech's K400 wireless keyboard and touchpad reviewed @ The Tech Report

For only $40, Logitech's K400 combines a keyboard and touchpad in a lightweight, wireless package that seems ideal for the living room. We take a closer look at its couch surfing potential.

Read more: Logitech's K400 wireless keyboard and touchpad reviewed @ The Tech Report

AverMedia ExtremeCap U3 Video Game Capture Device Review @ HiTech Legion

A long time ago I got a brand new Nintendo Entertainment System for Christmas and I started playing Super Mario Bros. I had been playing games for years at that point but they were always on older systems, ones that I got used or maybe long after launch so even though everything was new to me it was old news for most of my friends. I started playing games back when they were dominated by books and everything was played on paper and in our imagination. Then I continued to play through the generations of Atari consoles like the 2600 and 7800. As soon as I got my hands on that new Nintendo all I wanted to do was play 24/7. While playing there were so many times I ran out to tell my sister or my mom about my latest conquest.(both of whom I am sure were on the edge of their seats awaiting my latest update). I just wanted someone to share my happiness.

Read more: AverMedia ExtremeCap U3 Video Game Capture Device Review @ HiTech Legion

G.SKILL Ripjaws 8GB 2133MHz DDR3L SO-DIMM Memory Kit Review @ Legit Reviews

This week our friends at G.SKILL overnight mailed us their latest RIPJAWS SO-DIMM F3-2133C11D-8GRSL memory kit straight from Taiwan. This is the kit that was announced in November 2013 and it is just now coming out. Just moments after receiving the kit, we popped it into the Intel NUC to see if it would work. We weren't expecting the system to post, but after several seconds we found ourselves on the desktop! After triple checking everything, we discovered that we were really running at 2133MHz! We were excited by this as neither Intel or G.SKILL have never been able to get 2133MHz memory working in dual-channel on the Haswell powered Intel NUC kits! So what changed? Read on to find out!

Read more: G.SKILL Ripjaws 8GB 2133MHz DDR3L SO-DIMM Memory Kit Review @ Legit Reviews

DDR3-2400MHz On AMD's A10 Kaveri With Kingston's HyperX Beast @ Phoronix

Earlier in the week I published benchmarks showing AMD Kaveri's DDR3-800MHz through DDR3-2133MHz system memory performance. Those results showed this latest-generation AMD APU craving -- and being able to take advantage of -- high memory frequencies. Many were curious how DDR3-2400MHz would fair with Kaveri so here's some benchmarks as we test out Kingston's HyperX Beast 8GB DDR3-2400MHz memory kit.

Read more: DDR3-2400MHz On AMD's A10 Kaveri With Kingston's HyperX Beast @ Phoronix

Mionix Naos 7000 and Avior 7000 @ PureOverclock

Computer mice are such odd peripherals. So many variations to suit different personal preferences, resulting in such a difficult time trying to guess which one is best for you. Having seen a great many mice in my day, suffice it to say I’ve seen both good and bad, and plenty in between. Particular models become popular amongst users, making a name for themselves, and often taking on the established industry heavyweights in the fight to impress consumers. One of those companies which seems to have a good understanding of what makes a good mouse, and is becoming increasingly popular as a result, is Mionix.

We’ve seen several mice from the Swedish company Mionix, with the Naos 8200 and Avior 8200 being standouts in a crowded marketplace. The Naos is a right-handed mouse, while the Avior is ambidextrous, though each share the same design essentials of comfort, elegance, and simplicity. Can’t really argue with that.

Read more: Mionix Naos 7000 and Avior 7000 @ PureOverclock

AMD Radeon Gallium3D Catches Up To Catalyst For Some Linux Games @ Phoronix

Yesterday I ran the latest RadeonSI Gallium3D vs. Catalyst AMD Linux driver comparison, effectively another round of open-source vs. closed-source GPU driver testing. In yesterday's article it was found the RadeonSI performance is improving a lot but the AMD Catalyst Linux driver remains much faster. In this article are benchmarks of the older "R600" Radeon Gallium3D driver compared to the Catalyst driver with graphics cards from the Radeon HD 6000 series and older where the open-source R600g driver provides support and in a more mature state.

This testing is similar to yesterday's AMD Linux comparison but rather than testing the RadeonSI driver that is for the Radeon HD 7000 series and newer, the R600 Gallium3D driver was the subject of today's tests, which support from the original Radeon HD 2000 series through the Radeon HD 6000 series. The graphics cards that were used for testing included the Radeon HD 4870, Radeon HD 5830, Radeon HD 6870, and Radeon HD 6950. The comparison was mostly focused on the Radeon HD 5000/6000 series as that's the furthest the support extends with the current mainline Catalyst driver. The Radeon HD 4000 series hardware and older is only supported by the legacy Catalyst driver that is seldom maintained and doesn't work with modern Linux distributions.

Read more: AMD Radeon Gallium3D Catches Up To Catalyst For Some Linux Games @ Phoronix

EVGA X79 Dark Review @ ocaholic

These days all motherboard manufacturers have a gaming/overclocking model in their portfolio. EVGA wants to win gamers as wells as overclockers hearts with their X79 Dark motherboard, which has been armed with plenty of features, a nice design, high quality components and a highly capable power design.

Read more: EVGA X79 Dark Review @ ocaholic

Dell XPS 15 Touch Screen Laptop Review @ HotHardware.com

Dell's XPS line of laptops have always been about foregoing compromise in the pursuit of a premium mobile experience. The company's latest lineup of XPS 15 touch-enabled systems carry that tradition into a new era of computing, driven by Microsoft's Windows 8.1 operating system. These machines are anything but cookie cutter, and even if you're not a fan of the unified approach Microsoft took with Windows, there's more here than just a touch computing experience. Much more.

To begin with, the real star of the show is the optional 15.6-inch Quad HD+ (3200x1800) display. Dell's the first system builder to employ a QHD+ IGZO panel, which trumps any of Apple's MacBooks with Retina-class displays. Packing 5.7 million pixels into a 15.6-inch frame results in a stunningly sharp viewing experience, and it looks gorgeous from virtually any angle...

Read more: Dell XPS 15 Touch Screen Laptop Review @ HotHardware.com

Livescribe 3 Smartpen Review @ Techradar

The Livescribe 3 Smartpen is the latest electronic pen from California-based Livescribe. Designed to take the pain out of digitizing, archiving and sharing handwritten notes and sound recordings, its wide-ranging appeal spans anyone from note-taking business people to list-scribbling shoppers.As with Livescribe's previous smartens, the latest model will only digitise your written notes when used with the company's proprietary dotted paper, which is supplied in a spiral-bound notebook. That's because the pen (somewhat disappointingly) doesn't work by magic - it houses a tiny infrared camera in the tip that reads the dots to help it track its position and digitize your pen strokes.

Read more: Livescribe 3 Smartpen Review @ Techradar

Google Glass Review @ Techradar

At first, Google Glass was a rarity. Explorers were members of an exclusive club. Nowadays, the club is still invitation only, and you can still turn heads wearing one on the street, but for anyone who wants to put Glass on their face, it's just a matter of a little time and a lot of money.The i ncreasing number of Google Glass invitations being sent to beta testers means that tech-savvy early adopters are struggling with an expensive question right now: is Google Glass worth it?To answer that question, I turned a critical eye to Google's sci-fi-looking wearable computer and tested its latest Explorer Edition of Google Glass. With the sound of my voice, I took hands-free photos by saying Okay Glass, take a picture. I instructed it to upload the resulting point-of-view image to Twitter and Facebook and attached a caption, all with voice commands. I saw flight information automatically beam to my eye with a gentle Google Now reminder the day before traveling.

Read more: Google Glass Review @ Techradar

Reveal the Power of Gaming on Battlefield 4 - Reloaded with latest R9-M290X graphics on MSI's GX70/GX60 Destroyer gaming notebook @ FunkyKit

 MSI has recently unveiled a pair of ultra schmexy gaming laptops packing some serious computing power. Now if we could only get them to let us review one, or two.
Taipei, Taiwan- MSI once again made breakthroughs in cutting-edge gaming notebooks. MSI has always been developing high performance notebooks. Its latest gaming laptop?GX70 and GX60 Destroyer, offer game enthusiasts the best experiences of both performance and affordability. The MSI GX70 and GX60 Destroyer pack with the latest generation of AMD's extreme mobile graphics card R9-M290X, high performance AMD A10-5750M quad core APU architecture, built-in HD8650G performance-grade DirectX11 for superior video resolution, and the top 3-screen output experience Eyefinity.

Read more: Reveal the Power of Gaming on Battlefield 4 - Reloaded with latest R9-M290X graphics on MSI's GX70/GX60 Destroyer gaming notebook @ FunkyKit