RamSan-440 highlights

• The World's Fastest Storage®
• Over 600,000 random I/Os per second
• 4.5 GB/s random sustained external throughput
• IBM Chipkill technology
• RAIDed RAM boards
• Exclusive Active Backup® software
• Patented IO² (Instant-On Input Output) software
• Full array of hardware redundancy to ensure availability.

The RamSan-440 is a new solid state disk with record high performance, record high capacity for a RAM-based system, and a combination of features that help ensure the highest availability of data to its users. The RamSan-440 is the world’s first non-volatile RAM-based SSD to sustain up to 600,000 IOPS (input/outputs per second) and deliver up to 512GB of storage capacity in a 4U rack-mount chassis. It’s also the first SSD to use RAIDed NAND Flash storage modules for data backup, and the first system to incorporate Texas Memory Systems’ patented IO² (Instant-On Input-Output) technology.

Solid state disks, like Texas Memory Systems’ RamSan-440, allow organizations to manage very high transaction volumes and larger numbers of concurrent users with fewer servers, less power, and without excessive application tuning, thus increasing performance while lowering cost and administration efforts. RamSan solid state disks are used in the financial, telecom, e-commerce, and online-gaming industries, as well as government, military, and research organizations for online transaction processing, data warehousing, and batch processing.

Typically, solid state disks are deployed alongside traditional storage. For example, frequently accessed database tables and indexes may be stored on the RamSan, while less performance-sensitive database components remain on existing hard disk based storage. However, the growing size of mission-critical databases and the falling cost of solid state disks have increased demand for high-performance, high-capacity SSDs. The RamSan-440 meets this demand without sacrificing reliability or value.

The RamSan-440 uses DDR2 (double-data-rate) RAM to deliver 600,000 sustained random IOPS and over 4GB/second of sustained random read or write bandwidth, with latency of less than 15 microseconds. It is available in 256GB and 512GB configurations in a 4U chassis. The system can be SAN-attached or direct attached through up to eight 4Gb/second Fibre Channel ports. Multiple RamSan-440s can be combined to scale performance and capacity.

The RamSan-440 uses RAID protected Flash memory modules to rapidly back up the RAM-based data and ensure non-volatility for the system. In Active Backup mode, the RamSan-440 continuously backs up data to the internal redundant Flash modules without impacting system performance. The RamSan-440 can back up or restore the entire 512GB of data in just six minutes. Texas Memory Systems’ patented IO² technology further improves system availability by making user or application-requested data instantly accessible after the system is powered on.

RamSan PCIe Family Highlights

• 225GB-450GB SLC Flash storage
• 120,000 sustained IOPS
• 700 MB/s random sustained external throughput
• ECC and RAID
• Embedded CPU controller

The RamSan-10 and the RamSan-20 are both high performance Flash SSDs on a PCI card. This family of SSD products establishes the reference standard in PCI Flash architectures with industry leading sustained performance, reliability, and density. Their simplicity and affordability bring high performance storage solutions within reach of mainstream businesses and applications. The RamSan-10 and the RamSan-20 display TMS' unique ability to architect and engineer the future of solid state storage, leveraging over 30 years of SSD innovation and 10 years of PCI architectural expertise.

Both product designs leverage the power of Texas Memory Systems’ Fault Tolerant Flash (FTF) architecture. Because of their comprehensive on-board management suite, the RamSan-10 and the RamSan-20 have little to no impact on host resources and data is not lost during server crashes or power loss. The RamSan-20 is the highest capacity enterprise grade PCIe SLC Flash product on the market and provides far better sustained performance and reliability characteristics than competing products. The RamSan-10 is the ideally optimized product for applications requiring extraordinarily low latencies at smaller capacity points such as those run on scientific workstations or stand alone servers.

Both cards are easily installed in a server to transfer data much faster than other Flash drives and hundreds of times faster than traditional mechanical hard disks. They allow users to simply snap in an extraordinarily fast SSD for caching, application acceleration, and ruggedness without the space, power, and management overhead associated with traditional storage expansion.

The RamSan-10 and the RamSan-20 offer a simple, economical choice for accelerating single-server applications that require large, fast buffer areas and those that are random access intensive. Databases, video editing, financial modeling, data acquisition, simulations, and Web content are a select few examples of applications that will benefit from the use of both of the cards' remarkable capabilities.

RamSan-620 highlights:

• 1-5 TB SLC Flash storage
• 250,000 IOPS random sustained throughput
• 3 GB/s random sustained throughput
• 230 watts power consumption
• Lower cost

The RamSan-620 is a rack-mounted SLC NAND Flash SSD that provides plenty of shareable, high performance storage for IT organizations that need to respond to the growing storage and performance needs of their users and applications. It is a greener, more efficient alternative to hard disk drive-based systems. The RamSan-620 has extremely low latency and delivers 250,000 IOPS of sustained performance, compared to the 300 IOPS that a high end mechanical disk drive can achieve. SLC Flash and innovative controller designs give the RamSan-620 enterprise reliability and data protection. With capacity options of 1 – 5TB in a 2U enclosure that uses only 230 Watts, the RamSan-620 can handle data growth very efficiently. It installs quickly and easily and is managed in the same way as our other RamSan systems, integrating seamlessly into almost any SAN environment using Fibre Channel or InfiniBand connectivity. The RamSan-620 is extremely versatile and especially well suited for performance-demanding applications such as data warehouses, online transaction processing, batch processing, and video editing.

Flash has enabled TMS to deliver high performance storage solutions to a much broader customer base. For over 30 years we have been at the forefront of storage performance and application acceleration for enterprises. With this 15th generation RamSan-620 we are combining expertise and technology to solve challenging problems of performance and efficiency in enterprises of all types and sizes. The RamSan-620 is a breakthrough of giant green storage that is affordable for mainstream IT shops across industries.

I/Os Per Second

250,000 read and write

Capacity

1-5 TB of SLC Flash

Bandwidth

3 GB per second

Latency

Writes: 80 microseconds

Reads: 250 microseconds

Fibre Channel Connection

4-Gigabit Fibre Channel 2 ports standard; up to 8 ports available Supports point-to-point and switched fabric topologies Interoperable with Fibre Channel Host Bus Adaptors, switches, and operating systems

InfiniBand Connection (Available Soon)

4x InfiniBand (10-Gigabit) 1 port standard; up to 4 ports available Supports SRP upper level protocol Interoperable with InfiniBand Host Channel Adaptors, switches, and operating systems

Management

Browser-enabled system monitoring, management, and configuration SNMP supported Telnet management capability SSH management capability Front panel displays system status and provides basic management functionality

LUN Support

1 to 1024 LUNs with variable capacity per LUN Flexible assignment of LUNs to ports Separate LUNs assignable per internal RS-620 Flash card 512 byte block support, as well as the standard 4K block

Data Retention

Completely nonvolatile solid state disk

Reliability and Availability

Layer 1: ECC (chip) Layer 2: board-level RAID Layer 3 (optional): Active Spare (system) Internal redundancies - Power supplies and fans Hot-swappable components - Power supplies

Size

3.5" (2U) X 18"

Power Consumption (typical)

230 Watts

Weight (maximum)

35 lbs

ASUS P6T Computer Motherboard

ASUS P6T Computer Motherboard, ATX, nVIDIA 3-Way SLI Support, ATI Quad-GPU CrossFireX Technology, Core i7 Compatibility P6T Computer Motherboard Computer Motherboards P6T Computer Motherboard

The P6T Computer Motherboard from ASUS is a computer motherboard that is compatible with Intel Core i7 CPUs. It supports up to 24GB of DDR3 RAM and features a 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit Ethernet controller. The motherboard features 3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots, 1 PCI Express x1 slot, 2 PCI slots, and supports up to 8 SATA and 2 PATA drives.

• Compatible with Intel Core i7 processors that use the LGA1366 package
• PCI Express 2.0 slots
• Supports nVIDIA SLI and ATI CrossFireX
• Uses Triple-Channel DD3 memory
• ASUS TurboV allows you to overclock your computer
• True 8+2 phase power design optimizes power efficiency to reduce heat and increase performance
• Express Gate SSD boots your computer in as little as 5 seconds
• ASUS DriveXpert system allows you to more easily create hard drive backups and optimize disks for optimum transfer rates
• Power saving technologies help to reduce the utility costs associated with powering a computer • Quiet thermal solution system eliminates the need for a chipset cooling fan
• ASUS Crystal Sound system delivers on-board 5.1 surround sound with noise filtering technology
• EZ DIY features are designed to make the lives of hobbyists and systems builder easier, and include the ASUS Q-Shield, Q-Connector, and EZ Flash 2 systems
• Supports eSATA and FireWire devices
• RoHS compliant

Tiny Bluetooth

INTRODUCTION
When you buy a laptop today, it's likely to come with Bluetooth. But if you've got an older model or just want to add Bluetooth to your desktop, usually it requires that you buy a 3" long dongle that connects to a vacant USB port. Well, with the miniaturization of just about everything, we now have Bluetooth dongles that portrude just 1/4" from the USB socket. The latest from Brando allows you to add Bluetooth to your laptop or desktop in a very inconspicuous way. Read on to learn more about the smallest way to add Bluetooth to your computer!

WHAT'S HOT
This thing is very, very small. It's got a 33 feet range, is Bluetooth 2.0+EDR compatible (and of course backwards compatible with 1.0 and 1.1), and can support speeds up to 728kbps. It weighs just 2 grams (.07 ounces), can connect to seven devices at once, and supports A2DP.

SETUP
As with any plug and play device, the drivers installed automatically, and, in Windows Vista, I was able to access the Bluetooth console.

Asus UL30A-A1

Processor: 1.3GHz Intel Core 2 Duo ULV SU7300
Memory: 4GB RAM
Storage: 500GB hard drive
Optical Drive: None
Screen: 13.3 inches (1,366x768 native resolution)
Graphics: Integrated Intel GMA 4500MHD
Weight: 3.7 pounds
Dimensions (HWD): 1x12.7x8.8 inches
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium (32-bit)

Not since the HP Pavilion dv2-1030us have we seen an under-$800 fully functional ultraportable, so the $799 Asus UL30A-A1 is a welcome addition to the category. The 13-inch 3.7-pound Asus UL30A-A1 is a low-cost, highly portable notebook with good looks and decent performance. We define an “ultraportable” as a notebook weighing less than four pounds, and typically, they have 12.1-inch screens, but since this one makes that weight requirement, it falls into ultraportable territory, with the extra inch of screen real estate as a bonus. While the UL30A is on the heavy side of the category, it's compact and sturdy enough to travel with. With integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, this notebook is a good companion for someone with a fast-paced lifestyle and a tight budget.
the screen supports a 16-to-9 aspect ratio. With no optical drive, the UL30A-A1 won’t play DVDs, but it does offer crystal-clear playback on its 720p (1,366x768) display from Hulu, YouTube, and the like. The screen doesn’t pick up too much glare from surrounding light sources, despite its high-gloss design, and it offers surprisingly wide horizontal viewing angles. (You can view it off-axis from as far as 70 degrees to the right or left.) Vertical viewing is much more limited, and tipping the screen slightly forward makes the picture look washed out much more readily than tipping it slightly back.

The sound quality, on the other hand, is excellent. Volume levels were much meatier than we expected from such a compact unit. Rarely are laptop speakers too loud, but at full volume, the UL30A-A1 can fill a small room with music and drown out a conversation. The 0.3-megapixel Webcam is a disappointment, though, offering up grainy and washed-out images. The standard for notebooks is 1.3 megapixels, and that would have been a better choice.

Better, though, is the port selection, which is downright generous. On the left side, you’ll find two ports for video output (VGA and HDMI), plus a USB port. The right side is fully stocked with an SD-memory-card slot, headphone and microphone jacks, two more USB ports, a LAN port, and a power port. Instead of a Kensington lock slot, you'll find a triangular slot for attaching the notebook with a lanyard.As you'd expect from a laptop this thin, there's no optical drive, which is a sore spot for those who like to grab DVDs and go but a boon for those who like their laptops light.

APPile Tiny i bod

Apple has quietly introduced a new 4GB iPod shuffle. Not only is it bigger on the inside — it’s smaller on the outside. So small, in fact, that it has no buttons other than the shuffle mode switch. All the controls are now on the earbud cord, which means that you’ll be stuck using Apple’s own earbuds until third party versions make it to stores.

The new Shuffle also talks to you. Press the center button on the remote (a long press) and the "VoiceOver" function will tell you the name of the song and artist you are listening to, and it will also read your playlists. This is a rather helpful new feature, especially since, at 4GB, the Shuffle is approaching the capacity of the original full-sized white iPod.

VoiceOver speaks 14 languages, from Spanish to Mandarin. The actual speech is generated by iTunes and then schlepped across to the Shuffle when you sync. This means that if you are syncing with a Mac running OS X Leopard (the latest version) you get to hear the rather good robotic voice of Alex. If you are running an older version of the OS, or using a PC you get a rather crappy voice. You can check them out here at the Apple site.

And because the Shuffle now reads out your playlists, you can skip through them until you find the right one. Suggestion: Keep the names short and distinctive to avoid frustration.

The new iPod also loses a couple of hours in battery life — 10 instead of 12, and costs a little more at $80. The old Shuffle is still available in 1GB form for $50.

Intel Desktop Board DP45SG - motherboard - ATX - iP45

The Desktop Board DP45SG Motherboard from Intel is a computer motherboard that is compatible with Intel Core 2 Extreme, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Duo, Pentium Dual-Core, Celeron Dual-Core, and Celeron 400 CPUs. It supports up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM and features a Gigabit Ethernet controller. The motherboard supports up to six SATA drives with RAID.

Pros:

Great Features, Stable

Best Uses: Gaming, Home, Multimedia, Upgrade

Comments about Intel Desktop Board DP45SG Motherboard:

This motherboard is pretty awesome - it supports crossfire, DDR3 memory, the fastest intel processors, has an IR port and lots of USB ports, all around a pretty nice board

Processor

Socket : LGA 775

Supported :Core 2 Extreme, Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Duo, Pentium Dual-Core, Celeron Dual-Core, Ceelron 400

Front Side Bus: 800/1066/1333MHz

Memory:

Memory Slots: 4x DDR3 DIMM

Capacity : 8GB

Type/Speed:DDR2 800MHz, 1066MHz, 1333MHz

Voltage: 1.8V

Configuration:Dual Channel

Expansion Slots:

PCI Slots

2x PCI Express x16
3x PCI Express x1

Onboard Devices

Controller Cards:SATA

Graphics:None

Communication:1x RJ-45 Ethernet 10/100/1000Mbps

Connectors Internal Storage

5x SATA 3Gbps with RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 support

External Storage 1x eSATA 3Gbps

Ports 12x USB 2.0 1x FireWire-400

Display None

Communication 1x RJ-45

PC Health Monitoring

CPU Yes

Fan Yes

Temperature Yes

LED Standard LED Connectors

General

Chassis Compatibility

ATX

Dimensions (WxD) 11.6 x 9.6" (29.5 x 24.4cm)

Asus W90Vp-X1

Processor: 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9600
Memory: 6GB RAM
Storage: 320GB hard drive
Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW
Screen: 18.4 inches (1,920x1,080)
Graphics: Dual ATI Radeon HD4870 (CrossFire, 512MB)
Weight: 11.5 pounds
Dimensions (HWD): 2.5x17.4x12.9 inches
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit)

Every so often a notebook comes along that is so impressive that it raises the bar for all comers. The Asus W90Vp-X1, available exclusively at Newegg.com, is that notebook. Not only does this desktop replacement set new 3D-graphics and productivity-speed records, but it also features a beautiful HD display, a powerful audio system, and an easy-to-use overclocking utility that lets you squeeze a few extra clock cycles out of the processor. All this, plus a generous warranty program and a relatively affordable $2,199 price, earns the W90Vp-X1 our Editors’ Choice award.

Measuring 2.5x17.4x12.9 inches (HWD) and weighing in at 11.5 pounds, the W90Vp-X1 is one of the heaviest laptops we’ve seen, outweighing the dual-screen Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds by nearly half a pound. Factor in the gargantuan power brick (it alone measures 7.7x3.7x1.7 inches and weighs 2.2 pounds), and you’re looking at nearly 14 pounds of total travel weight. Fortunately, Asus includes a free Republic of Gamers backpack for those who want to take their game on the road.

Beneath the brushed-aluminum lid, you’ll find a gorgeous 18.4-inch LCD with a 1,920x1,080 resolution and a 16:9 aspect ratio, which means it can display HD content at 1080p without stretching or scaling. The brightly lit screen delivers incredible color quality and wide viewing angles, making it ideal for gaming and viewing videos. We only wish the high-gloss coating weren’t so reflective. Alas, this particular model lacks a Blu-ray drive, so you’ll have to settle for watching standard-definition DVD movies, which nevertheless look great on the big screen. Asus assures us that a Blu-ray model will be available through the retail channel in the near future, however.

A 2-megapixel Webcam embedded in the screen’s upper bezel makes conducting video chats and capturing and editing video and still images easy, especially with the included Asus LifeFrame software. The camera’s image quality tends to be grainy, but it's more than adequate for Skyping and chatting purposes. As with the Asus N80Vn-A1, the last notebook we reviewed from Asus, the Webcam can be used with the SmartLogon software as a face-recognition security tool.

The spacious keyboard deck sports a black brushed-metal finish with a glossy black bezel that frames the keyboard, which is roomy and features a dedicated number pad on the right side. The touch pad is also sizable and much more responsive than the one that comes with the N80Vn-A1. A fingerprint reader is sandwiched between the two highly polished mouse buttons, and a set of touch-sensitive media-player controls and a volume slider are positioned to the left of the keyboard.

Above the keyboard are a touch-sensitive display-brightness controller and six function keys, including a speaker-mute control, a touch-pad on/off button, a zoom button that magnifies the area of the display where your mouse cursor is positioned, and a Turbo Gear key that lets you enter into a power-saving mode and toggle between standard and overclocking modes. The Turbo Gear utility lets you bump up the W90Vp-X1’s bus speed incrementally by 3, 5, 10, 15, or 17 percent, which in turn speeds up the processor clock. At its highest setting (17 percent), the CPU runs at 3.28GHz (versus 2.8GHz, its native speed).

There’s also a key that launches the LifeFrame application, and the Splendid key lets you switch among five preset display modes (normal, gamma, vivid, theater, soft). At the far right is the main power button, and an Express Gate button is on the far left. The Express Gate button lets you launch specific applications, including a Web browser, a photo viewer, a media player, a gaming portal, and Skype, without having to boot into Windows. Audiophiles will appreciate the W90Vp-X1’s robust sound system, which consists of four speakers plus a subwoofer and provides lots of volume with booming bass.

The W90Vp-X1 uses an Asus X38-based motherboard populated with a Core 2 Duo T9600 processor (2.8GHz) and a whopping 6GB of DDR2 memory. Video is driven by two ATI Radeon HD4870 controllers running in CrossFire mode. This powerful combination churned out some very impressive scores on our benchmark tests, and in some cases, took top honors compared with the best-performing notebooks we've seen. On FutureMark’s PCMark Vantage 64-bit productivity test, the W90Vp-X1 turned in a leading score of 4,665, beating out Gateway’s P7808u by a single point and besting the Alienware M17 by more than 1,100 points. We overclocked the CPU to 3.28GHz and ran the test again for a score of 5,040 (an 8 percent increase). The system completed our iTunes encoding test in a quick 3 minutes and 9 seconds, giving it the number-one spot in its class.

Its Windows Media Encoder time of 5 minutes and 16 seconds was also above average but trailed the Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds and the Toshiba Qosmio X305-Q708 by more than a minute and a half. It completed the same test in 4 minutes and 29 seconds with overclocking enabled.

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AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition

Socket Type: AM3, AM2+
Number of Cores: Two
Operating Frequency: 3.1GHz
Front-Side Bus: HyperTransport 3.0
L2 Cache: 2MB

The Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition processor offers the same architecture, 45-nanometer (nm) manufacturing process, and unlocked multiplier for easy overclocking as AMD’s flagship CPU, the quad-core, $245 Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition—just with half as many CPU cores. But we came to a surprising conclusion with this $102 dual-core chip: For most users, it's actually a much better value than AMD's quad-core speedster, which costs nearly two and a half times as much. At 3.1GHz, it’s clocked just a hair slower than the 3.2GHz Phenom II X4 955, and for users who don’t regularly edit video or work with large files in Adobe’s Creative Suite, it's a very smart purchase. Not only does this dual-core CPU offer speedy performance with the right amount of cores for most users, but it supports older AM2+ motherboards and cheap DDR2 RAM. If you’re strapped for cash, you can drop this X2 processor into an existing AMD-based system right now for a quick-and-easy speed boost. Later on, when the cost of the surrounding hardware falls, you can carry it over to a newer AM3 motherboard that uses speedier DDR3 RAM.

With all the hype surrounding expensive quad-core processors like Intel’s Core i7 and AMD’s Phenom II X4 lines, it’s easy to forget that relatively few programs can actually take advantage of more than one processor core at a time. Having multiple cores is important for multitasking, of course, so that one processor-intensive task doesn’t bog down your whole system, but the average user isn’t likely to be doing more than a couple of these tasks at once. Apart from multithreaded programs like Sony’s Vegas Pro 9, Adobe’s Creative Suite, and a handful of other apps, the vast majority of programs aren’t written to make use of more than one processor core simultaneously. That means for the average PC user—and, for that matter, even the hard-core gamer—a quad-core processor is overkill, even wasteful, considering that half the processor is going to be idle (but still often sucking power) nearly all of the time. As a result, smart, budget-conscious PC builders and upgraders who want speed but don’t often use the aforementioned apps would be smart to stick to dual-core CPUs such as the Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition. Chips in its class offer speed and up-to-date architecture, without the cost of extra cores that are likely to go unused.

In our tests, the Phenom II X2 550 proved that it has more than enough muscle to tackle today’s everyday-computing tasks. It's significantly speedier than AMD’s recent $79 Athlon X2 7850 Black Edition, and in tasks that don’t tax multiple CPU cores, it wasn’t significantly slower than the flagship Phenom II X4 955 chip. The Phenom II X2 550 took 4 minutes and 39 seconds to complete our CPU-intensive Sony Vegas 8 MPEG-2 Render test, a task that the quad-core Phenom II X4 955 completed in 3 minutes and 25 seconds, a little more than a minute faster. By contrast, the Athlon X2 7850 CPU came in a distant third, taking nearly twice as long (9 minutes and 10 seconds).

In our PCMark Vantage test, a comprehensive system hardware workout, we didn't note nearly as dramatic a difference between the dual-core offerings running in our test rig as we did in the Vegas test. The Phenom II X2 550 scored 4,623, and the Athlon X2 7850 managed 4,109. (The Phenom II X4 955, on the other hand, scored a decidedly better 6,152.) In our Cinebench 10 test, which is written specifically to tax multiple CPU cores, the scores were more equidistant, with the Athlon X2 7850 turning in 4,777, the Phenom II X2 550 bumping up nicely to 6,697, and the high-end Phenom II X4 955, predictably, hitting five digits with a showing of 10,454.

Finally, in our iTunes AAC conversion test, we saw just how little multiple CPU cores matter in many real-world apps, especially when the clock speeds of two given CPUs are similar. The 3.1GHz Phenom II X2 550 took 3 minutes and 8 seconds to convert our 11 test files; the 2.8GHz Athlon X2 7850 took 23 seconds longer, while the quad-core 3.2GHz Phenom II X4 955 got the job done only 10 seconds faster.

Like all Black Edition processors, the Phenom II X2 550 is unlocked for overclocking, which adds to its value, as well. (Note, though, that AMD does temper that support with a clear caveat that damage from overclocking isn't covered by warranty.) AMD's OverDrive 3.0 software app offers extensive control over speeds and voltages, like earlier versions, and it has a number of features to simplify the overclocking process. The first, Black Edition Memory Profiles, lets you automatically set optimal performance for supported DDR3 memory modules. Another, AMD Smart Profiles, can adjust settings on the fly for specific applications and games. For example, if a game takes advantage of only one of the Phenom II X2's two processor cores, AMD OverDrive can boost the speed of that one core, while reducing the performance of the other. The initial release of OverDrive 3.0 includes 20 Smart Profiles, focusing on games and benchmarking applications; you can also create your own.

Averatec D1200 25.5-Inch All-In-One PC

Processor: 2.5GHz Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200
Memory: 4GB DDR2
Storage: 320GB
Optical Drives: DVD±RW
Monitor: Integrated 25.5-inch LCD
Graphics: Integrated Intel GMA X4500
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit)

Traditionally, the trade-off for buying an all-in-one desktop like the Apple iMac or our recent favorite, the Lenovo ThinkCentre A600, is that it typically costs hundreds of dollars more than comparable hardware in a typical tower with a separate LCD. For many, that added cost is well worth the convenience and aesthetic, space-saving pleasure of having your whole computer neatly boxed up behind your LCD. But with the Averatec D1200 25.5-Inch All-In-One PC, we're pleased to report the price is very reasonable.

In fact, we priced the parts from our favorite online outlet, and found it almost impossible to build a desktop system with the D1200's specs (including a 25.5-inch, 1,920x1,200 monitor, 2.5GHz Pentium Dual Core E5200 processor, 4GB of RAM, a digital TV tuner with remote, and a 320GB, 7,200rpm hard drive) for under $900. There's definitely room for improvement with the D1200, and we lament the fact that there's no Blu-ray-drive option to show off the large 1080p-capable screen to its best advantage. But if you're looking for an all-in-one PC for around $1,000 that also does double duty as an HDTV, this is the best choice on the market today.

We prefer the design of Lenovo's ThinkCentre A600 to the Averatec D1200's comparatively boring piano-black look. But the ThinkCentre A600 has a smaller 21.5-inch screen, and the $999 configuration ships with a slower processor, no TV tuner or remote, and a wired keyboard and mouse set, while the D1200 ships with all-wireless peripherals, though the keyboard's a bit of a clunker.

The other all-in-one PC to get a fair amount of press lately is the Dell Studio One 19. That system has a touch screen (which we didn't find all that useful), but it doesn't have an integrated TV tuner. And while you can configure a Studio One 19 with a wireless keyboard and mouse (and a faster Core 2 Duo processor) for about $1,000, its screen is much smaller at just 18.5 inches, and its resolution is too low to support 1080p content.

Then again, because there's no Blu-ray drive (or even an upgrade option), it isn't exactly easy to get 1080p content onto this machine (legally, anyway), as over-the-air HD content is broadcast in lower-quality 720p or 1080i. We did view a few 1080 trailers on the D1200; the system had no problems playing the files, and the screen looked great displaying them. Annoyingly, although there is a DVI connector on the back of the back of the D1200, it's an "out" port for connecting an external monitor, not an "in" port for hooking up an external video device. We really wish makers of all-in-ones with HD screens would add an HDMI port so the screen could be connected to an HD gaming console or an external Blu-ray player. That would make something like the D1200 the ultimate dorm-room or bedroom PC, but sadly we haven't seen a single all-in-one with an HD input.

There are a fair amount of other ports on the Averatec D1200, though. Along the right side, below the standard slot-loading DVD-recordable drive, reside headphone and microphone jacks, an MMC/SD/Memory Stick card reader, a standard USB port, and a nifty USB/eSATA port that we don't often see on anything other than laptops. Around the back, you'll find additional headphone and mic jacks (along with line-in), S/PDIF (digital audio out), a Gigabit Ethernet port (802.11n Wi-Fi is also included), a DVI port (in case 25.5 inches of screen real estate isn't enough), four more USB ports, the coaxial connection for the integrated ATSC digital TV tuner, and a pinhole button to pair up the wireless mouse and keyboard. There are also three fans at the back, which seemed to keep the system from getting too hot during testing, though that might change if you position the D1200 into a cramped entertainment center.

Appile Mac Book

Processor: 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8400
Memory: 2GB RAM
Storage: 160GB hard drive
Optical Drive: DVD±RW
Screen: 13.3 inches (1,280x800)
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce 9400M (256MB)
Weight: 4.5 pounds
Dimensions (HWD): 1x12.8x8.9 inches
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)

Apple's new entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro ups the battery life, adds a much-requested SD-card slot, and brings back the FireWire port, all at a lower price than its non-Pro MacBook predecessor. At $1,199, the new MacBook Pro is now more competitive with Windows notebooks, and it's a strong competitor in the thin-and-light notebook category, too.

Our 13-inch MacBook Pro is the base model, featuring an Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 processor running at 2.26GHz, with 2GB of DDR3 1066 SDRAM, a 160GB hard drive, a slot-loading 8x DVD burner, and the Leopard version of the Mac OS (OS X 10.5.7). Though the laptop ships with OS X, it can dual-boot a copy of Windows XP or Vista that you provide using Apple's Boot Camp software and drivers.

Despite its low price (low for a MacBook Pro, that is), it exhibits all the refined construction you'd expect from the line. Its solid-aluminum "unibody" (weighing in at 4.5 pounds) and thin design (just a hair under an inch thick) make it nearly identical to the previous 13-inch MacBook on the outside.

Opening the MacBook Pro's lid reveals a full-size 78-key Chiclet-style keyboard. Its styling is distinct, but its feel is merely decent. For touch-typing, the nearly flat, wide-spaced keys aren't as comfortable as those on high-quality traditional keyboards, such as the one found on the Lenovo IdeaPad Y650, but it's one of the quietest keyboards we've used. Our favorite keyboard feature is its LED backlighting, which can turn on automatically when the brightness in the room drops.

More impressive is the huge glass-surface, multi-touch-capable touch pad. If you haven't used one of these before, it takes a bit of getting used to, as it lacks buttons. To click, you press the entire pad; press down with two fingers to right-click. We had some initial troubles with dragging and dropping, but the large size of the pad and the nice library of gestures for window and picture manipulation make the learning curve worthwhile. By default, you have to hold the touch pad down (keeping the button engaged) while you drag an icon, text, or other item, and then release the button when you drop it. There are options in the control panel to turn on tap-to-click and the ability to double-tap to select an icon for dragging, but they're switched off by default.

The backlit, 13.3-inch screen has a resolution of 1,280x800 and, according to Apple, a color gamut that's been improved by 60 percent over the previous MacBook screen. The panel is very bright and crisp, and it offers vibrant and accurate color reproduction. It's covered edge-to-edge by glossy glass, which makes images pop but also results in glare and reflections under some lighting conditions. The display is driven by the integrated Nvidia GeForce 9400 chipset, which offers reasonably good gaming support and superb video playback. Unlike the larger MacBook Pro models, there's no option for adding a discrete internal GeForce 9600 graphics card. An integrated iSight Webcam sits just above the screen.

Audio-playback volume and clarity aren't quite as good as on the 15-inch MacBook Pro, which features speakers right next to the keyboard, but the sound quality is still above average. We did encounter an issue when running either Windows Vista or Windows 7 under Boot Camp: The maximum volume was about half of what we could achieve running OS X.

Intel Core i7-975 Extreme

Socket Type: Intel LGA1366
Number of Cores: Four
Operating Frequency: 3.33GHz
Front-Side Bus: Intel QuickPath Interconnect
L2 Cache: 1MB

Intel’s Core i7 processors continue to dominate the desktop world in terms of raw speed. The new quad-core 3.33GHz Core i7-975 Extreme Edition is a few hairs faster than the previous champ, the 3.2GHz Core i7-965 Extreme Edition, and it has the same stratospheric $1,000 price tag. If your pockets are as deep as your desire for bragging rights, or you're a media professional who can really use this much processing muscle, shelling out for the fastest desktop processor money can buy might be worth it. But for everyone else, the Core i7-975 Extreme Edition is all kinds of overkill.

We were certainly impressed with the initial Core i7 CPUs when they debuted late last year. After all, they offered unprecedented performance far above and beyond the capabilities of any CPU from competitor AMD. Now, more than six months later, the 3.33GHz clock speed of the Core i7-975 Extreme Edition is only a notch faster than that of its Core i7 predecessor, but in our benchmark tests, it still dominates the top-end CPU from AMD, the Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition. That said, that Phenom II chip can be had for under $250, while Intel’s high-end chip costs four times as much. And much to the dismay of both CPU makers, there still isn’t a whole lot of software around these days that takes full advantage of four processing cores. That's why we think, for most users who want smart, top-value CPU speed, AMD’s dual-core Phenom II X2 550 is such a wise choice at around $100.

If you go with the Core i7-975 Extreme Edition, aside from the grand you’ll have to shell out for the processor, you’ll also have to pony up several hundred additional dollars for a compatible X58 motherboard and triple-channel memory. AMD’s Phenom CPUs, meanwhile, are backward-compatible with last-generation AM2+ motherboards and exceedingly cheap DDR2 RAM. The Core i7-975 Extreme Edition is worth the price for video and graphics professionals who typically spend hours waiting for files to render. But for most users, even hard-core gamers and overclockers, the only way you’ll tax a processor like this today or in the foreseeable future is with a benchmark-testing application or a video-editing suite such as Sony Vegas Pro.

Despite those caveats, there’s no denying the Core i7-975’s impressive, though unsurprising, performance in testing. It left AMD’s top-of-the-line Phenom II X4 955 in the dust and, in most cases, outpaced the Core i7-965 by a not-insignificant amount. In our Sony Vegas 8 test, designed specifically to tax all CPU cores, the Core i7-975 Extreme Edition finished our MP4 rendering trial in an amazing 26 seconds, while the Core i7-965 took 50 seconds to tackle that task, and AMD’s Phenom II X4 955 took 1 minute and 24 seconds. In Cinebench 10, another test that taxes multiple cores, the Core i7-975 scored 19,973 to the Core i7-965’s score of 15,740; the Phenom II X4 955 managed just 10,454.

Our iTunes conversion test didn’t have such disparate results, revealing the real-world limitations of these high-end processors when tackling everyday tasks. The AMD Phenom II X4 955 converted our 11 test tracks in 2 minutes and 58 seconds; the Core i7-965 did so 12 seconds faster, and the new Core i7-975 chopped off another 21 seconds, completing in 2 minutes and 25 seconds.

In all of these tests, the Core i7-975 broke new records, but it wasn’t revolutionary. It’s definitely extremely fast, but there’s no reason that anyone who owns a previous Core i7 chip should feel compelled to upgrade at current prices. Like the previous Core i7 Extreme Edition CPU, and AMD’s Black Edition CPUs, the Core i7-975 features an unlocked multiplier for easy overclocking. But frankly, we can't see many applications that would make it worth the effort and risk to try squeezing more speed out of this CPU. It’s the best there is by a fair amount, and the price matches its performance.

HP Officejet 6000 Wireless

Print Technology: Inkjet
Interface: USB 2.0, Wi-Fi wireless, Ethernet
Maximum Paper Size: 8.5x14 inches
Maximum Resolution (Color): 4,800x1,200dpi
Maximum Resolution (Monochrome): 1,200x1,200dpi
Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) Included: Yes
LCD Size (Diagonal): None
Dimensions (HWD): 6.5x18.7x18 inches
Weight: 12.1 pounds

A general rule of thumb in selecting and buying printer: The more you spend, the wider the range of features you get, and the less expensive the cost per page for consumables will be. HP’s Officejet 6000 Wireless helps shatter that stereotype by offering features and functions usually found on pricier models, and at the same time shaving the cost per page down to less-than-laser prices. However, the Officejet 6000 Wireless’ performance is somewhat sluggish, and the print and graphics quality is good, though not great.

The Officejet 6000 Wireless is something of a novelty in the intensely competitive small-office/home-office (SOHO) market in that it’s strictly a printer and not a multifunction device. To offset a perceived lack of value-added functionality, the Officejet 6000 Wireless gives users multiple interfaces—USB 2.0, wired Ethernet, and wireless networking—and a duplexer that allows for easy, trouble-free double-sided printing. If you don’t fax, and you already have a copier or scanner somewhere in your office, why pay extra for those superfluous features?

The black and light-gray Officejet 6000 Wireless is a trim-looking, solid-feeling device, though like many inkjets, it shivers and shakes while printing. There’s no control panel and only four illuminated buttons: power, paper advance, cancel, and wireless. The power button blinks at different speeds, to indicate when it’s printing, receiving data, or in sleep mode. The wireless light illuminates only when the printer isn’t in sleep mode, even if it’s detecting an active Wi-Fi connection. This means that if you hit print while the printer is in sleep mode, you don’t know whether a Wi-Fi connection has been established.

On the front are four additional status lights that illuminate only when it’s time to replace one of the cartridges: magenta, cyan, yellow, or black. Unlike most inkjets, however, the printer continues to operate when one or more of the cartridges runs dry. If you’re connected via a wired or wireless network, you can elect to automatically receive real-time printer-status updates, including low-ink warnings.

The Officejet 6000 Wireless uses a front-loading, over-and-under paper system that can accommodate up to 250 sheets, though the receiving tray—which swings up at a 45-degree angle to assist in paper loading—can hold only 50 pages. Any more, and the pages eject over the top of the minuscule flip-up backstop at the end of the receiver tray. On the back-left side are the ports for the power cord, a USB connection, and/or a network cable. Also at the rear is a 2.5x3.5x11.75-inch duplexing unit, which easily snaps on or off for clearing paper jams. On top is a simple pull-up cover that allows easy access to the ink cartridges.

Setup is simple, if you follow the easy-to-understand, illustrated sheet to the letter. You must snap in an ink-cartridge holder, clip on the duplexer to the rear, and attach the receiver tray over the paper tray. The ink-cartridge slots are color-coded to assist you with correct insertion, and although you can physically put the wrong cartridge in the wrong slot, the illuminated ink-warning lights will blink to tell you which cartridges need to be placed correctly.

We decided to set up the printer as a wireless device, which requires first attaching it to your computer with a USB or network cable. (Both are supplied.) Normally, HP’s wizard-based installation utility works flawlessly, but for some reason, it could see our wireless network but couldn’t connect to it. After the initial failure, it automatically printed out an information sheet with all network settings, just in case we would need to install the printer manually. The printer then twice retried the install, successfully connecting the second time. We had no further installation problems, though it took almost a half-hour to install HP’s software. Why, we’re not sure, since the interface is quite simple and doesn’t include lots of business and personal projects and templates, like the more advanced (and considerably more expensive) HP Officejet Pro 8500.

We were impressed, not only with the Officejet 6000 Wireless’ initial low price, but with the long-range total cost of ownership. If you buy the normal-capacity ink cartridges ($9.99 for each color, plus $19.99 for black), the cost per page is 4.7 cents for monochrome and 14.6 cents for color, about average for an inkjet. But with the larger "XL" cartridges ($14.99 for color, $31.99 for black), the cost per page nosedives to only 2.6 cents for monochrome and 4.7 cents for color, which is less expensive than most entry-level color laser printers. Also, the Officejet 6000 Wireless is an Energy Star-rated device that uses about 40 percent less electricity than color laser printers. And to top it off, the Officejet 6000 Wireless has a monthly duty-cycle rating of 7,000 pages, higher than most inkjets in its class.

Gigabyte EX58-UD4P Motherboard

Part Number	EX58-UD4P
Manufacturer	Gigabyte
Chipset	Intel X58
North Bridge	X58
Socket	LGA-1366
Processor Types	Core i7
Number of CPUs	1
Base Clock	1333MHz
Memory Type	DDR3
Memory Channels	Triple
Maximum Memory	24GB
External Graphics	PCI Express x16 x2 PCI Express x8
IGP	N/A
South Bridge	ICH10R
Audio	8-channel
IDE	133/100/66/33
SCSI	None
SATA	3.0 GB/s
RAID	0, 1, 5, 10
LAN	10/100/1000
Firewire	None
USB	USB 2.0
BIOS	Award
Form Factor	ATX

The board is designed to work with the latest Intel Core i7 processors. With the launch of the Core i7 975 CPU, the board needs new BIOS to support the new CPU. The board supports up to a 6.4GT/s Quick Path Interconnect. The QPI provides up to 25.6GB/second of transfer rate double that of the 1600MHz FSB of earlier Intel CPUs.

With the release of the Intel Core i7 CPUs the memory controller has been moved to the CPU instead of the Southbridge as on earlier CPUs. The new CPUs support triple channel memory compared to dual channel memory on earlier Intel CPUs. The EX58-UD4P supports up to 24GB of DDR3-2100MHz memory with XMP eXtended Memory Profile.

The X58 chipset is the first to support SLI and Crossfire on the same board natively. SLI works by having two of the same NVIDIA based video cards or three in the same motherboard. It improves application performance by up to 3x (with three cards). ATI’s equivalent is called CrossfireX. CrossfireX can have up to four ATI cards working together to improve performance. The EX58-UD4P supports 3-way Crossfire or SLI.

Ultra Durable 3 lowers system temperatures by delivering more efficient spreading of heat from critical areas of the motherboard. The board features 2 ounces of copper for both the Power and Ground layers which enhances durability improves energy efficiency and has greater margins of overclocking. Gigabyte uses solid capacitors with a 50000 hour lifespan to provide stable reliable and long lasting motherboards.

Dynamic Energy Saver Advanced provides better energy saving capabilities and enhanced system performance using the built in energy saving capabilities of the VRD 11.1 CPUs to save the maximum amount of energy over other solutions that do not support these features. DES has been retooled to work even when the user overclocks the system providing ultra stable ultra smooth overclocking performance. Gigabyte offers DualBIOS protection, allowing the user to safely update the BIOS.

The EX58-UD4P offers a Hardware OverVoltage Control IC which offers a higher range of voltage control options than other solutions. The OV controller also provides hardware linear real-time voltage control which means that there is no delay compared to the GPIO in past implementations. The OV ICs also allow for much finer voltage control allowing users to adjust the voltage by as little as 20mV allowing for better overclocking. The board has an OV Alert LED, an OC Alert LED, two sets of temperature LEDs, and onboard Power, Reset and Clear CMOS switches to make overclocking easier.

MSI 790GX-G65 Motherboard

Part Number	790GX-G65
Manufacturer	MSI
Chipset	AMD 790GX
North Bridge	790GX
Socket	Socket AM2+, Socket AM3
Memory speed	1066/800/667/533
Processor Types	Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core/Athlon 64/ Sempron/Phenom/Phenom II
Number of CPUs	1
HT Speed	Up to 5200MT/second
Memory Type	DDR3
Memory Channels	Double
Maximum Memory	16GB
External Graphics	PCI Express x16 x2
IGP	ATI 790GX
South Bridge	SB750
Audio	8-channel
IDE	133/100/66
SCSI	None
SATA	3.0 GB/s
RAID	0, 1, 0+1, 5, 10
LAN	10/100/1000 4 LAN Ports
Firewire	IEEE 1394a
USB	USB 2.0
BIOS	AMI
Form Factor	ATX

The MSI board is based upon AMD's 790GX chipset. There are three things that this chipset has support for AM3 CPUs, DDR3 memory and integrated graphics. The Socket AM3 is a 938-pin package designed to support the latest AM3 CPUs. The memory controller is on the processor, meaning that the AM3 CPUs support DDR3 memory and this board supports it as well. Integrated HD 3300 graphics are the top of the heap in terms of performance for integrated graphics solutions.

AMD has launched several AM3 CPUs including the 810 we are using in this review, the 720 X3 and 710 X3 CPUs and more to come later this month. Due to the nature of the interface, AM3 CPUs will work on AM2+ boards, but AM2+ CPUs will not work on AM3 boards due to the missing pins and the use of DDR3 memory for system memory that is not supported by the AM2+ CPU.

APS stands for Active Phase Switching. APS uses the lower power modes of the CPU, memory and Chipset PWM when the system is not under load. Power savings of up to 27.6% are observed with APS enabled compared to a motherboard without APS. Auto Max FSB allows the overclocker to overclock quickly and automatically.

M-Flash allows the user to update the BIOS simply by using a USB drive. You can also sboot from a USB drive by using M-Flash if the BIOS crashes. MSI uses all Solid capacitors as is the custom with most motherboard manufacturers. Solid capacitors have a longer lifespan than regular capacitors and are much less likely to leak than the older capacitors. Chokes are inductors responsible for storing power and regulating current. Shielded chokes reduce core power loss and offer lower EMI emissions.

The integrated graphics core on the board is the HD 3300 from ATI. The HD 3300 has a core clock speed of 700MHz compared to the 500MHz core clock speed found on the HD 3200 on the earlier 780GX motherboard chipsets. The HD 3300 supports all features of DirectX 10.0 and in fact is a HD 2400XT modified for the motherboard with 40 SPs. MSI outfits their 790GX-G65 with 1 Gigabit for SidePort memory. SidePort memory works with your system memory to provide integrated graphics and can improve performance 15% over using the system memory alone.

ASUS M4N72-E Motherboard

Part Number	M4N72-E
Manufacturer	ASUS
Chipset	NVIDIA nForce 750a
North Bridge	nForce 750a
Socket	Socket AM2+, Socket AM3
Memory speed	1066/800/667/533
Processor Types	Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core/Athlon 64/ Sempron/Phenom/Phenom II
Number of CPUs	1
HT Speed	Up to 5200MT/second
Memory Type	DDR2
Memory Channels	Double
Maximum Memory	16GB
External Graphics	PCI Express x16 x2
IGP	NVIDIA GeForce 8200 for Hybrid SLI only
South Bridge	NVIDIA nForce 750a
Audio	8-channel
IDE	133/100/66
SCSI	None
SATA	3.0 GB/s
RAID	0, 1, 0+1, 5, 10
LAN	10/100/1000 4 LAN Ports
Firewire	IEEE 1394a
USB	USB 2.0
BIOS	AMI
Form Factor	ATX

The NVIDIA nForce 750a SLI chipset was released in 2008 for the AMD AM2+ platform. AMD CPUs based upon the AM3 platform may be used in AM2+ motherboards, but the reverse is not true due to the missing support for DDR3 and two extra pins. That's one of the benefits on the AMD platform while Intel CPUs force the changing of the motherboard every year it seems like, the AMD platform allows backwards compatibility for the most part.

The M4N72-E motherboard has at its heart the nForce 750a SLI NorthBridge. This NB supports SLI which means that you can use two NVIDIA graphics cards in tandem to improve performance in games and applications that support them. The chipset only supports 22 PCI Express lanes so when two cards are installed the two PCI Express x16 slots operate in x8 x8 mode. In any event the performance loss from going from x16 to x8 isn't worth writing home about.

The M4N72-E has support for DDR2-1200MHz memory when overclocked. As the memory controller on AMD platforms is on the CPU and not the chipset, the maximum memory supported when not overclocked is DDR2-1066MHz memory when an AM2+ or AM3 CPU is installed on the motherboard. As noted the AM3 CPU can be installed on an AM2+ motherboard if the BIOS are flashed to support the CPU. The M4N72-E supports DDR2 memory only.

The M4N72-E has an 8-phase power design meaning that it can deliver high power efficiency and great overclocking ability. There's also an additional 2 (or 1) phase power dedicated to the integrated memory/HT controller. The M4N72-E has Anti-Surge protection, allowing safe operation without worry from power surges. The Energy Processing Unit saves power by using the low power settings of the AM2+/AM3 CPU to save energy. AI Nap puts the system in minimum power mode.

ASRock A780GMH/128M Motherboard

Part Number	A780GMH/128M
Manufacturer	ASRock
Chipset	780G
North Bridge	780G
Socket	Socket AM2+, Socket AM3
Memory speed	1066/800/667/533
Processor Types	Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core/Athlon 64/ Sempron/Phenom/Phenom II
Number of CPUs	1
HT Speed	Up to 5200MT/second
Memory Type	DDR2
Memory Channels	Double
Maximum Memory	16GB
External Graphics	PCI Express x16
IGP	ATI Radeon HD 3200
South Bridge	SB710
Audio	8-channel
IDE	133/100/66
SCSI	None
SATA	3.0 GB/s
RAID	0, 1, 0+1, 5, 10
LAN	10/100/1000 4 LAN Ports
Firewire	IEEE 1394a
USB	USB 2.0
BIOS	AMI
Form Factor	ATX

This board is rather unique in being the only motherboard with the combination of a 780G (HD 3200) and the SB 710 Southbridge. The HD 3200 on the motherboard is a slower version of the HD 3300 found on motherboards with the 790GX chip on them. The HD 3200 is clocked at a clock speed of 500MHz for the core, compared to 700MHz on the HD 3300. The ASRock board also has 128MB of DDR3-1333MHz dedicated for an onboard frame buffer to speed up graphics.

Hybrid CrossfireX is an interesting but not very useful feature at this time. This works by combining the power of the HD 3200 with a discrete graphics card. The problem with Hybrid CrossfireX is that it only supports the HD 3450 card. Those wanting the ultimate in performance from their new AMD system would install a HD 4890 or HD 4870 instead of using the HD 3450 which will not improve performance that much.

AMD has moved from the Socket AM2+ interface found on earlier CPUs to the Socket AM3 interface with their 45 nanometer processors and adding support for DDR3 memory. The transition to the Phenom II series of CPUs means that there are AM2+ processors running faster than their AM3 counterparts. As there are two pins missing on the AM3 CPUs you can use AM3 CPUs on AM2+ motherboards, but can't use AM2+ CPUs on AM3 motherboards due to the missing support for DDR3 on the CPU.

XFX MB-X58I-CH19 Motherboard

Part Number	MBX58ICH19
Manufacturer	XFX
Chipset	Intel X58
North Bridge	Intel X58
Socket	LGA1366 Socket
Processor Types	Core i7
Number of CPUs	1
QPI	Up to 6.4GT/second
Memory Type	DDR3
Memory Channels	Triple
Maximum Memory	12GB
External Graphics	PCI Express x16 x3
IGP	None
South Bridge	ICH10R
Audio	8-channel
IDE	133/100/66
SCSI	None
SATA	3.0 GB/s
RAID	0, 1, 0+1, 5, 10
LAN	10/100/1000 4 LAN Ports
Firewire	IEEE 1394a
USB	USB 2.0
Expansion Slots
BIOS	AMIBIOS
Form Factor	ATX

The X58 chipset is Intel's first to support both SLI and Crossfire without an NVIDIA chip on the motherboard to support SLI. XFX uses the X58 chipset as the basis for this motherboard which supports up to 3-way SLI or 3-way Crossfire assuming you have the video cards to run them. Due to time constraints I was unable to run 3-way SLI or Crossfire testing.

Currently, the X58 chipset is the only one available to support Intel's Socket-1366 CPU in the form of the 920, 940 and 965 XE CPUs. The new CPU family has the memory controller on the CPU itself and not on the Southbridge as on previous Intel motherboard chipsets. In place of the Front Side Bus of the Core 2 Quad and earlier family we have the Quick Path Interconnect. QPI allows up to 6.4 Gigatransfers per second between the CPU and the chipset.

The X58 supports triple-channel memory, meaning that memory bandwidth is effectively tripled compared to single channel memory. The XFX board can handle up to 12GB of DDR3-1333MHz memory. Faster memory is available online and the board can support it through overclocking. Note that the X58i board has six DIMM slots, meaning that memory need to be installed in alternating slots to get triple channel mode.

Windows Vista was first released in 2006 and today is the default operating system for the majority of computers on the market. Vista introduced features like Windows Aero, Windows Sidebar, and improvements to the other Windows features. The X58 motherboard is Vista Premium Certified meaning that it will work well with the Windows Vista Operating system.

Hyper-Threading was introduced with the Intel Xeon CPUs. HTT allows the operating system to see a single processor as two logical processors. This allows the CPU to operate on two threads at the same time, improving performance when HTT is supported by the application. Intel's Matrix Storage technology controls the RAID array on the computer.

ASUS P6T SE Motherboard

Part Number	P6T SE
Manufacturer	ASUS
Chipset	Intel X58
North Bridge	Intel X58
Socket	LGA1366 Socket
Processor Types	Core i7
Number of CPUs	1
QPI	Up to 6.4GT/second
Memory Type	DDR3
Memory Channels	Triple
Maximum Memory	24GB
External Graphics	PCI Express x16 x3
IGP	None
South Bridge	ICH10R
Audio	8-channel
IDE	133/100/66
SCSI	None
SATA	3.0 GB/s
RAID	0, 1, 0+1, 5, 10
LAN	10/100/1000 4 LAN Ports
Firewire	IEEE 1394a
USB	USB 2.0
BIOS	AMIBIOS
Form Factor	ATX

This motherboard supports all current Intel Core i7 LGA-1366 CPUs including the 965, the 940 and the 920 CPUs on the market. The memory controller is integrated into the CPU supporting triple channel memory. Intel's Quick Path Interconnect is supported up to 6.4GT/second and a maximum bandwidth of 25.6GB/Second. The X58 chipset is the only one on the market to support the new Core i7 CPUs.

The board supports up to 24GB of DDR3 2000MHz DDR3 memory. Note that the maximum speed supported natively by the P6T SE is DDR3 1333 with faster speeds available through overclocking. The board supports Intel's Extreme Memory Profile (XMP) which uses the SPD to store overclocking profiles for the memory.

One thing this board does not support currently is NVIDIA's SLI configurations, which is their multiple GPU solution for improving game performance. Three-way Crossfire is supported as well as ATI's CrossfireX with two 4870 x2s, but though virtually every X58 board supports SLI this one does not. In fact every ASUS X58 motherboard except this one supports SLI.

TurboV is Asus's overclocking tool for Windows. This tool allows you to overclock without rebooting or exiting the Operating System. Adjustments of 0.02v intervals allow the end-user to change the voltages of the CPU PLL, NB, NB-PCIE, and DRAM with a lot of precision. Express Gate is ASUS's mini-OS that allows the user to boot into Linux within the span of a few seconds instead of a minute.

ASUS is one of the company's committed to saving the environment by reducing energy consumption and being environmentally friendly. The P6T SE has the EPU6 engine allowing it to use less power when in idle mode. The motherboard uses auto-phase switching for the CPU, VGA card, memory, chipset, drives and system fan to lower energy consumption when the computer doesn't need the extra power.

ASUS put a lot of work into cooling the motherboard. They use a fanless design with a heatsink covering the Northbridge with a heatpipe leading out to the back panel IO area. This allows the CPU fan or bundled optional fan to be utilized to reduce overall heat in the system by using these fans to cool the heated air. Stack Cool 2 transfers the heat from the critical components to the other side of the board. Fan Xpert allows users to adjust the CPU and Chassis fan speeds according to different ambient temperature. This allows the user to have less noise from the fans while keeping the CPU and chassis cool.

Asus Rampage II Extreme

Key Specs

Form Factor: ATX
Chipset: Intel X58
CPU Socket: LGA1366
PCIe Slots: Three PCIe x16; two x1
PCI Slots: 1
RAM Slots/Multichannel Support: Six/triple channel
Maximum RAM: 12GB
Onboard Graphics: No

The Asus Rampage II Extreme motherboard is the newest entry in the company's Republic of Gamers line, offering slick looks and extensive support for overclocking. This pricey ($399) board based on Intel's X58 chipset supports Socket 1366 Intel Core i7 CPUs and is aimed at performance fiends for whom raw speed and configurability are more important than cost.

If you like to show off the insides of your PC, you'll be happy to know that the Rampage II Extreme's design screams performance. The black board is accented by gunmetal gray heat sinks with Ferrari red highlights, plus an LED-lit chipset cooler that looks a lot like an engine block cover. The board boasts three PCI Express (PCIe) x16 slots (which run in x16/x16 with two graphics cards or x16/x16/x8 with three cards) and supports both Nvidia SLI and ATI CrossFireX. Asus's other X58 board, the P6T Deluxe, has a board layout that restricts you to single-width graphics cards; the Rampage II Extreme can support three double-width cards.

The board also sports a pair of PCIe x1 slots and a single PCI slot. Six memory slots support DDR3 DRAM at up to 1,800MHz, and there are seven (yes, seven) SATA hard drive connectors as well as IDE and floppy ports. External expansion is robust as well, with 12 USB 2.0 ports (six of which are on the back panel), two FireWire ports, two Gigabit Ethernet ports, and an external SATA (eSATA) port.

Like the MSI X58 Eclipse, the Rampage II Extreme bundles an EAX-compatible PCIe x1 sound card, offering better, cleaner sound quality than typical onboard sound solutions. But while MSI includes an actual low-end Creative X-Fi card, the Asus solution is based on the ADI AD2000B audio codec. Its X-Fi support is provided by the drivers, enabling EAX 4.0, Crystalizer, and other typical Creative functions through software. Sound quality is excellent; with a Core i7 CPU, any additional CPU usage by the drivers is going to go unnoticed.

The Rampage II Extreme includes an external LCD Poster status module that lets you view boot status and error messages. It connects directly to the motherboard, rather than using USB the way the external display included with the P6T Deluxe does, so it starts working before the operating system loads.

If there was any doubt that this board is aimed at extreme tweakers, it dissolves when you see that the BIOS settings open directly on the overclocking screen. There's a big, red power button right on the board, to let you test and tweak the board outside of a case. That's accompanied by a Reset button, as well as a small joystick that works with the LCD Poster to let you manually adjust voltages and clock speeds. If you don't trust the voltage readouts the motherboard provides, a set of two-pin headers is provided to allow technical users to connect a multimeter directly to various subsystems, such as CPU and DRAM, to measure the voltage. The Voltiminder LEDs on the board offer color-coded warnings if you push voltage too high.

The board has two BIOS chips. This offers security should a flash upgrade go awry, and Asus allows you to switch between two different BIOS versions. You could run one version when stability is key, and switch to a newer beta version when you want to push performance to the limit.

For performance enthusiasts not familiar with the minutiae of overclocking settings, Asus includes CPU Level Up software, which lets you easily select from preset overclocking levels.

Testing with a 2.66MHz Core i7-920 processor and the stock Intel cooler, in conjunction with a 1,333MHz DDR3 Triple Channel Memory Kit from OCZ, we easily reached the same 3.34GHz speed we achieved with the Asus P6T motherboard, using only Auto settings for voltages. The system was stable as a rock at this speed, and with a better cooler and appropriate tweaking, there's no doubt the Rampage II Extreme could have pushed the processor much faster.

The Rampage II Extreme is heavy on bells and whistles, while foregoing gimmicks. It's overkill for those running their CPUs at stock speeds, but for performance enthusiasts who want to push their rigs to the limit, it's well-equipped and then some. Only the lack of full x16-channel support on all three PCIe graphics slots is likely to disappoint

Intel Desktop Board DX58SO

Key Specs

Form Factor: ATX
Chipset: X58
CPU Socket: LGA1366
PCIe Slots: Two PCIe x16; one PCIe x4; two PCIe x1
PCI Slots: One
RAM Slots: Four (triple-channel)
Maximum RAM: 16GB
Onboard Graphics: None

The DX58SO may be officially billed as the Intel Desktop Board Extreme Series DX58SO, but its code name—"Smackover"—and the robotic skull surrounding the Intel logo on the chipset’s heat sink are good indicators that this new motherboard is aimed squarely at the enthusiast crowd. With support for dual graphics cards, extensive overclocking options for both processor and memory, and a full load of ports, Intel’s new board is ready to capture the eyes of enthusiasts who’d typically embrace performance brands like Asus and MSI.

This ATX motherboard is one of the first to use Intel’s new LGA1366 socket and X58 Express chipset, supporting the new Core i7 processor series. The DX58SO officially supports memory speeds of up to 1,333MHz, though overclocking options will let you use 1,600MHz or faster memory. The board has four DIMM slots, accommodating up to 16GB of RAM. For best performance, you’ll want to populate three of them to enable triple-channel access, which significantly increases memory bandwidth.

Intel’s BIOS has deep overclocking options, letting you adjust the maximum multipliers by processor core and increase the host clock frequency, which replaces the front-side bus as the tweaking value of choice for enthusiasts looking to up the speed of ratio-locked processors like the Core i7-920 and Core i7-940. When using the multiplier-unlocked Core i7-965, you can adjust Intel’s dynamic overclocking feature and increase the maximum multiplier depending on how many cores are in use. For instance, you might run at 3.86GHz when only one or two cores are stressed but drop to a stock 3.2GHz when all four cores are in use. You can make many overclocking adjustments on the fly from within Windows, using the Intel Desktop Control Center software.

The DX58SO does away with most legacy ports. Not only is there no PS/2 keyboard port or IDE hard drive connector, but the floppy connector is AWOL as well. The board is generously equipped with six Serial ATA ports (though one will be blocked if you use a long, double-wide graphics card like the GeForce 9800 GX2). And the DX58SO has loads of modern expansion ports, with a whopping eight USB 2.0 connectors on the back panel, along with Gigabit Ethernet, FireWire, digital and analog audio, and two external SATA (eSATA) ports. The motherboard has four additional internal USB connectors, as well as internal FireWire, Consumer Infrared, and HD audio ports. The board’s eight-channel HD audio comes courtesy of a RealTek ALC889 codec.

The DX58SO includes two PCI Express (PCIe) x16 slots, which can support a pair of AMD graphics cards in CrossFireX mode, as well as one PCIe x4 slot, a pair of PCIe x1 slots, and a single PCI slot. Though X58 boards are technically capable of supporting both CrossFireX and SLI dual-graphics setups, Intel and Nvidia haven’t worked out the proper licensing agreements for the DX58SO for SLI support.

Overall, the DX58SO’s layout is good, putting most ports in easy-to-reach spots at the perimeter of the board. The heat-sink designs let you install huge coolers without worrying about conflicts. A small snap-on fan, lit by a blue LED, is included for the chipset heat sink. It’s somewhat loud, however, so you’ll want to forgo it unless you’re pushing up the host clock frequency.

Though it lacks extreme features such as the six memory slots of the Asus P6T Deluxe, the Intel DX58SO is a stable, well-equipped platform with a good set of overclocking features for both casual tweakers and hard-core performance fans.