A breakthrough case in the industry

15 April 2010, Keelung, Taiwan – Lian Li Industrial Co. Ltd Ltd, today officially launches the PITSTOP T1 Mini-ITX Spider Test Bench 2010 Special Edition, promising to be an eye-catching and most innovative testing bench in the industry.  Uniquely designed with spider’s four legs and M/B tray completely angle-adjustable available in red, silver and black colors, Lian Li’s PC-T1 is most ideal for hardware enthusiast looking to display an impressive computer system for the next LAN Party or to challenge family and friends with a unique looking HTPC.

After the PC-777 snail shell design and the PC-888 sail design, the PC-T1 challenges again the concept of how a PC case has to look. Since its first appearance at CeBIT 2010, Lian Li’s T1 mini-ITX Spider Test Bench has caused a great sensation and whirlwind of inquires.

"MSI released a definitely interesting motherboard. Consider it, if you have no prejudice towards microATX form factor, and if you're going to use as few expansion cards as possible. With this motherboard you can build a variety of PCs, including powerful gaming rigs with a couple of high-end graphics cards and a quad-core CPU."

iXBT Labs Review: MSI 890GXM-G65 Motherboard

Wednesday afternoon, Massman, me and 798 other people arrived in Madrid, Spain. We are gathered at Campus Party Europe 2010. One of the biggest events in the world when it comes to technology, creativity and digital culture online. Massman will be having fun aside the top European overclockers playing with some top notch hardware, provided by Gigabyte. In day 1 report we have look at some the fancy case mods!

Campus Party 2010 in Spain - Day 1

"We all know that heat is our computers worst enemy, so having a better CPU cooling solution can help improve your CPU's life and allow for better overclocking. We try to test as many CPU coolers as we can so you can compare and decide for yourself on the one you want or need. Today, we will look at the Coolink Corator DS CPU cooler that has four heat-pipes and a SWiF2 120mm high performance fan. So let's see how this cooler holds up against other cooling solutions in the industry from Noctua and Spire."

Coolink Corator DS CPU Cooler Review @ BayReviews.com

64-Bit Operating Systems allow PCs to utilize more than 4GB of system memory, which is great news for multimedia professionals who need the extra RAM. Intel's X58-Express platform delivers triple-channel DDR3 performance, giving PC hardware enthusiasts and power-users the opportunity to choose between 3, 6, or 12GB system memory kits. In this article, Benchmark Reviews compares 12GB DDR3 memory kits against various 6GB versions. The 12GB Corsair Dominator CMD12GX3M6A1600C8 1600MHz CL8-8-8-24 DDR3 memory kit will be at the center of our attention as we discover exactly where that extra RAM is most helpful on our six-core Intel Core i7-980X Extreme Edition 'super-computer'.

12GB Corsair Dominator 1600MHz DDR3 RAM @ Benchmark Reviews

In the end, the IDAPT I3 is a decent device and if it came loaded up with the iPod, Zune and NDS tips, I'd find it very useful.  The option to pick four of your favorite tips is a great way to get the IDAPT configured for your personal use.  Unfortunately, there is not Zune connector available and hopefully IDAPT will make the Zune one available in the near future.  It does save a lot of cable clutter and our own Fujitsu was sharing his own personal pet peeve of having an entire power bar dedicated to charging different devices. . .

IDAPT I3 Universal Desktop Charger - BCCHardware.com

MAINGEAR employs dual ECO ALC solution to aggressively dissipate heat with whisper quiet operation

Calgary, AB – April 14, 2010 – CoolIT Systems, leaders in advanced liquid cooling technology, is proud to announce MAINGEAR Computers has selected a custom Dual ECO ALC solution to liquid cool the new Quantum SHIFT Xeon workstation PC.  CoolIT’s technology will help ensure that MAINGEAR’s workstation users have powerful computing performance at lowered acoustic levels.

"The inexpensive Gigabyte H55M-UD2H may become a good foundation for a home theater or just for a simple home PC. This compact motherboard has reasonable layout and offers the complete basic functionality supplemented with FireWire and eSATA. Its key feature, however, is the full-fledged implementation of Intel HD Graphics, HDMI and DisplayPort included."

iXBT Labs Review: Gigabyte H55M-UD2H Motherboard

"While the G9T is certainly serviceable around the home environment, I'm a bit troubled by Titans choice of materials and some of the design features. Starting with the cooling pad itself, the thin aluminum veneer doesn't do much to strengthen the plastic construction, and the thin metal clips, designed to stiffen the unit when deployed, don't inspire much confidence."

Titan G9T 3-IN-1 Laptop Cooler Review @ Tweaknews

One lucky winner will walk away with a great barebones system put together with parts from EVGA and Thermaltake. Contest Starts on April 9th 2010 and runs until May 9th 2010 @ 12 Noon MST. Entering is easy and the only prerequisite is that you be a member of the Ninjalane Message Forum.

Win a complete EVGA P55 barebones system @ Ninjalane

Not every computer needs to have a four million hertz processor and the world's best video card. Just like power tools, some jobs require raw power while other jobs require more finesse. When the job at hand involves video, web applications, light gaming or light office work it doesn't make sense to use a supercomputer or even a high-performance machine. This idea has become mainstream through the recent marketing of netbooks (internet notebooks) and video sharing devices, but even those platforms do not suit all light application needs. In this article Benchmark Reviews will test a nettop (internet desktop) from MSI; Wind Box model 6667BB-004US. This barebones PC kit is like an older, more capable sibling to the netbook. But how does it measure up against other alternatives?

MSI WindBox Barebones-PC Kit @ Benchmark Reviews

“There are well over 4 billion mobile phones in the world. Now imagine how many of those phones are stuck to the ear of someone driving a car. Annoying isn't it? And dangerous! And illegal in many places! However that's not stopping anyone now is it? Sure there are many different types of hands-free "kits" on the market to make using your mobile phone while driving much safer, but most of them are either too expensive, too complex or simply too bulky for most people. Griffin Technology has come to the rescue with an innovative way to enjoy your smart phone, in this case my iPhone 3GS, while driving. It's called the Hands-Free Mic + AUX Cable and it's ingeniously simply and effective.”

[News] Griffin Hands-Free Mic + AUX Cable Review @ Virtual-Hideout

Seagate has decided to try their hand at digital media distribution through a partnership with Paramount Pictures. Including a hit movie like 2009's Star Trek with the purchase of a 500GB FreeAgent Go drive is pretty cool, and being able to expand your digital collection with even more movies through Seagate may appeal to some.

Seagate FreeAgent Go 500GB Drive with Paramount Movies Review @ Bigbruin.com

It has been quite some time since we looked at a Razer product last. Today we are taking a look at their imperator mouse with features such as a moving thumb button, and 5600DPI according to the specifications. We are going to compare this mouse vs some high end mice on the market so lets take a closer look.

Razer Imperator Gaming Mouse @ Rbmods

Today we have on our testbench two NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 accelerators. Just the graphics cards alone will cost you $1000. Is this something that can be justified? Performance aside, what's going on with power and heat when running two of these cards?

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 SLI @ techPowerUp

With the price and availability of ITX systems coming down, the A330ION motherboard from ASRock is a decent choice for a quiet, Home Theatre PC or web-connected computer.  The A330ION board supports four SATA devices internally as well as two eSATA devices, a bunch of USB ports and HDMI, DVI-D and even a VGA port.  If you have some extra DDR3 and a hard drive lying around, it makes a cheap system that can get a lot of little jobs done. . .

ASRock A330ION ITX Mini-Motherboard - BCCHardware.com

Today I will be reviewing an external HDD enclosure from Icy Box called “IB-318STU3-B” (wonderful name). It has a USB 3.0 interface which should boost the data transfer speeds significantly, at least according to the specs. Only months ago, the third revision of the USB standard appeared. I’ve seen it called both “USB 3.0” and “USB SuperSpeed”.

 

What is clear is that the new version includes several improvements compared to USB 2.0. The most important update is of course the increase of the data transfer speed (theoretical) to 4.8Gbps (600MB/s) compared to USB 2.0’s 480Mbps (35MB/s). This is really a huge difference.

 

Another important change is the maximum power output of USB 3.0 of 900mA (500mA in USB 2.0), which will allow USB 3.0 ports to power a number of devices and accessories to laptops. In real world, this means fewer AC adapters to accessories like external harddrives, notebook cooling pads etc…

Review of Icy Box IB-318STU3-B USB3 HDD enclosure

"Danamics assures us that Cyberdyne Systems had no part in the liquid metal technology used in the LMX, but the Sodium Potassium Alloy used within the cooler is still pretty exciting stuff. As you’d expect the liquid metal is extremely effective at transferring heat, and unlike water doesn’t require any moving parts to circulate. We compare it today to the Corsair H50, the CoolIT Domino and Thermalright's IFX-14 heat sink."

Danamics LMX and LMX Superleggera Liquid Metal CPU Cooler Review @ ITShootOut.com

NZXT has been making quality computer cases since 2004. They have become a popular brand among computer enthusiests, and for good reason. NZXT cares about style and functionality. Here at Benchmark Reviews, we also care about style and functionality, and when NZXT agreed to let us review its new Hades (HADE-001BK) mid-tower Chassis, we happily agreed. The Hades boasts such features as up to nine 5.25" bays, or five 5.25" and four 3.5" bays. It touts room for up to 5 cooling fans and large video cards, and it also features a cable management system; all for around $100. Will the Hades live up to the NZXT reputation of quality? Stay tuned to find out!

NZXT Hades Computer Case HADE-001BK @ Benchmark Reviews

Latest Chassis Pushes Sonata Line's Celebrated Features Forward With Distinct Style

FREMONT, CA--(Marketwire - April 7, 2010) - Antec, Inc., the global leader in high-performance computer components and accessories for the gaming, PC upgrade and Do-It-Yourself markets, today announced the Sonata Proto, the newest addition to Antec's critically acclaimed Sonata line of Quiet Computing™ enclosures. Based on the worldwide best-selling Sonata III 500, the Sonata Proto combines improved noise reduction and powerful cooling with a modernized aesthetic and affordable price.