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Quickies

Daily Hardware Reviews 5/20/12 – Sapphire Radeon 7770 Edition

Looks like Sapphire just released their Radeon 7770 video card today, check out some of the reviews.

Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 @ Neoseeker

Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 @ Neoseeker

Video Card
ASUS GTX 680 @ Hi Tech legion
HIS Radeon HD 7950 @ Legion Hardware
Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 @ HardwareHeaven
Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 @ Neoseeker
Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 @ LanOC
Sapphire Radeon HD 7770 @ OCC

CPU
AMD Trinity A10-4600M APU @ HotHardware
AMD Trinity A10-4600M APU @ TechReport
Intel Core i7-3370K CPU @ Legit Reivews

PSU
Cooler Master Silent Pro 850W PSU @ Rbmods
LEPA B650 PSU @ Hardware Secrets
Seasonic Platinum 1000W PSU @ KitGuru

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PC Hardware | Video Cards

AMD vs Nvidia 2012: The Best Video Card for Under $200

Today we’ll be comparing AMD vs Nvidia, but rather than looking at the latest $1000 or $700 or even $400 cards based on the latest chipsets, we’ll instead be paying attention to a pair of models that have been around for a while. There are a few reasons for this. First of all, we haven’t reviewed video cards in quite a while (for the reasons why, I suggest you read this blog post from last week). Secondly, when new models are released, the older ones often become available at a discounted price, or you can find them used as people dump their older models in favour of the latest hype.

Most of all, we just want to find out if a $200 video card has what it takes to power the most common gaming resolution according to Steam’s hardware survey – 1920×1080. around 1/4 of all gamers with Steam installed are using this resolution, with a total of about 96% of them using lower resolutions. In other words, if you are one of those 96%, you would probably be wasting your money buying a $1000 GeForce 690. The question is, is $200 enough? Let’s find out!

AMD vs Nvidia – The Contenders

For the purpose of this review, we’ll be sticking with one manufacturer – MSI. They produce video cards that perform better than stock, and have other features worth considering. The models are:

AMD Radeon HD6870 – MSI R6870 Hawk

msi-n560gtx-twin-frozr-ii

Nvidia GeForce GTX 560 – MSI N560GTX/OC Twin Frozr II

Both these cards are available now for around $180-185 after a mail in rebate. The “Hawk” is actually a slightly souped up model with a few extra features we’ll talk about on the next page. Note that the GTX 560 is not a “Ti” model.
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Quickies

Daily Hardware Reviews for 5/17/12

Here are today’s reviews from around the web!

OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS 240GB SSD @ HCW

OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS 240GB SSD @ HCW

Motherboard
ASRock Z77 Professional Motherboard @ Hardware Secrets
Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H Motherboard @ Funky Kit
Gigabyte Z77-D3H Motherboard @ eTeknix

Peripherals
CM Storm Trigger Mechanical Keyboard @ eTeknix
Corsair Vengeance K60/K90 keyboards @ HotHardware 
Corsair Vengeance K60 Keyboard and M60 Mouse Review @ HardOCP

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PC Hardware | Storage

OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS 240GB Review

Today we are reviewing the OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS 240GB SSD. So far, we have looked at the ‘normal’ 240GB Vertex 3, along with the 120GB Max IOPS. So it will be interesting to see how all three drives compare, with an updated set of benchmarks and firmware versions.

Max IOPS 240GB

If you are wondering what the difference between the Vertex 3 240GB and the Vertex 3 Max IOPS 240GB might be, it’s all in the flash memory used. The standard Vertex 3 uses standard ONFI 2 flash modules made by Micron, where the Max IOPS 240GB uses Toshiba toggle flash. We’ll get more into that once we crack the drive open on the next page.

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Quickies

Daily Hardware Reviews for 5/14/12

We have a bunch of new cooler reviews to share with you today, along with quite a few other various hardware reviews. Check them out:

DeepCool Ice Wind Pro Heatsink @ FrostyTech

DeepCool Ice Wind Pro Heatsink @ FrostyTech

Cooler
Cooler Master TPC 812 CPU Cooler @Tweaktown
DeepCool Ice Wind Pro Heatsink @FrostyTech
DeepCool Frostwin Heatsink @PureOverclock
Cooler Master TPC-812 Heatsink @FrostyTech
Xigmatek SD1283 Cooler @ Pro-Clockers

Case
Lian Li PC-100 Case @ LanOC Reviews
NZXT Switch 810 Case @ OCC
NZXT Switch 810 Case @ Hi Tech Legion

CPU
Intel Core I7-3770K @ PureOverclock

Memory
G.Skill Ripjaws Z DDR3-2133 8GB Kit @ Pro-Clockers

Motherboard
ASRock Fatal1ty Z77 Professional @ Maximum-Tech
ECS Z77H2-AX Golden Edition @ OCC

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These are the 5 Latest HCW Blog Posts

For the full blog, click here
  • Carl Nelson: You are talking about changing the hard drive, all you have to do is swap it out, nothing else
  • Carl Nelson: I don’t get why you would want to play Diablo with a gamepad.. does it even support it?
  • Carl Nelson: Try enabling XBOX 360 emulation.
  • Jonathan: My younger brother and I are in the works of finishing putting a terabyte memory chip into my 1gen 60g, its...
  • Joshua: This works, but how do I make this work for Super Street Fighter 4 it does recognize the PS3 controller.

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