Easy HTPC

While Intel is proudly boasting about the sheer performance that their new Core i7 processors delivers, AMD has gone down a different route, choosing instead to expound about the value of their offerings. For example, their current Dragon platform, consisting of a Phenom II processor, AMD 790GX motherboard and an ATI Radeon HD 4870, is touted as a competitive yet value for money alternative to Intel’s pricey Core i7 offerings. Of course they both serve different needs of end-users.

Additionally, AMD also carved out a niche for themselves amongst HTPC builders. Ask any HTPC enthusiast what is their motherboard chipset of choice and chances are he would be using an AMD 780G. The main reason behind this is the board’s integrated Radeon HD 3200 GPU. This integrated graphics processor (IGP) is actually based on the older Radeon HD 2400 GPU, which barely even qualifies as an entry-level GPU by today’s standards. But as an IGP, however, it is one of the best, thanks to its ability to crunch high definition (HD) videos. It’s kind of like being the smallest fish in the ocean, but the biggest fish in the pond.

Read.

Via Hardwarezone.com

We’ve covered Windows 7 from rumor to release candidate, which you can currently download and install for free. Now, it’s enchilada time: Here’s everything of value that we learned about Win 7, packed in a complete, easy-to-read guide.

Note: This is one awesome guide. If you have been sitting on the fence, deciding to install Windows 7 or not, this guide should help your decision.

Read the Complete Guide here.

Via Gizmodo.com

It was way back in December 2008 that NVIDIA began to tout its ION platform as the basis to the world’s smallest, premium, visual computing PC.

Fast forward some four months, and we’re almost all aware of what ION has to offer. Bringing the power of a GeForce 9400M IGP to a Pico-ITX platform that supports Intel’s Atom processor, ION should, in theory, open the flood gates to low-power systems that can handle modest 3D gaming and decode high-def content without breaking a sweat.

Sounds like the perfect netbook, nettop or HTPC, but if you’re not already convinced by NVIDIA’s hyperbole, it’s now getting many of the industry’s biggest names to chime in.

Here’s what the likes Microsoft, Electronic Arts and Google have to say:

“Providing superior performance for one of the fastest growing market segments makes NVIDIA ION a winner. Consumers today want less expensive PCs with more capabilities, which is exactly what ION delivers. Users can suddenly do more with their systems, and developers benefit from an expanding market. It’s a win-win for the entire industry,” says Jim McGregor, chief technology strategist at analyst firm In-Stat.

“ION enables consumers with new mini-notebook and small desktop systems to access and play a larger library of Windows games, creating incredible opportunity and access for all gamers,” adds Corey Rosemond, group manager, Microsoft Games for Windows program.

“New affordable and powerful PC hardware like ION is going to change the landscape of PC gaming. This new mass-market target audience is a perfect match for Battlefield Heroes,” said Ben Cousins, executive producer at DICE, a division of Electronic Arts.

“NVIDIA and Google will bring the Earth into view for millions of new users. We’re really impressed with how well Google Earth will run on affordable PCs powered by ION graphics processors. It will raise the industry standard for entry-level graphics,” says Stefan Kuhne, Google Earth software engineer.

We’re already eagerly anticipating the ION platform, and NVIDIA’s telling us that ION-based systems will be arriving in the second quarter of 2009 – that could mean any minute now. (Thanks to pauldarkside for the heads up!)

Via Hexus.net

A preview of Windows 7 gaming

Introduction 

Though officially in beta, Windows 7 is probably the most talked about subject in the world of PC technology today.  Released to the public on January 7th, 2009, Windows 7 has quickly found its way onto many computers including netbooks, laptops, virtual machines and even gaming and enthusiast PCs.  Users that were once distrusting of Vista and even Mac-lovers have spent the last few months complementing Microsoft of their latest operating system and for good reason: it slick, fast, visually appealing and runs on all ranges of hardware quite nicely.  Here in my office I have installed it on an Eee PC, a separate hard drive in my main system, my MacBook Pro (gasp!), the NVIDIA ION platform and a couple of benchmarking and testing rigs as well. 

This article will be the first in a series of performance and feature reviews on Windows 7 that will be updated and added to up through the final retail release of the Windows 7 operating system; whenever that might be.  As the title obviously suggests, today we are going to be looking at GPU and gaming performance on Windows 7 in comparison to Windows Vista.  There are two primary goals with this article: first we would like to see how, in general, performance on this beta version of Windows 7 compares to the performance of gaming on a more mature Vista operating system with Service Pack 1.  Secondly, we would like to compare how both NVIDIA and AMD are doing in terms of driver optimizations and performance for Windows 7 compared to each company’s support on Windows Vista. 

 
Windows 7 desktop feature – image from WinSuperSite.com 

Now, to assuage some obvious emails we will get from readers and trolls, let me add in a few points.  Yes, I realize that Windows 7 is in beta and as such performance results we get today may not be what we see when the OS is finally released.  It could be faster, it could be slower; that is the exact reason why this will be a SERIES of articles that is update continuously throughout the Windows 7 development cycle.  Once the Release Candidate 1 version of Windows 7 is divulged we will definitely come back to these results to see what changes.  Also, I realize that NVIDIA and AMD drivers might also be considered to be in a “beta” state as well – though not that both parties have WHQL approved drivers available that shouldn’t really be too much of an issue. 

Read the rest of the story here.

Via PC Perspective

Geared toward gamers, the Rampage II GENE packs a lot of power in a small size.

Gamers looking to build a small form factor system have historically been left with few choices when it comes to motherboard features. Generally speaking, the mATX boards have been hobbled by design compromises necessitated by their smaller size. ASUS has introduced a new game-changing mATX motherboard, the Rampage II GENE, as part of its Republic of Gamers product series that’s targeted toward gamers and enthusiasts looking for performance and overclocking capabilities normally found only only larger ATX form-factor boards.

To start off, the Rampage II GENE is an X58 chipset board which means it supports the latest Core i7 processors from Intel. As you know, the Core i7/X58 combination supports triple channel DDR3 memory using the built-in memory controller found on the Nehalem CPUs. ASUS has squeezed six, count ‘em – 6, DIMM slots onto the Rampage GENE II that can support a maximum of 24GB of DDR3 memory at speeds up to 2000MHz. Not to give up anything to larger ATX boards, it also packs six SATA II connections plus a rear eSATA II port and onboard SupremeFX X-Fi 8-Channel Audio with EAX4.0 support. There’s no wimpy integrated graphics on this board as it has 2 PCIe 2.0 X16 slots with CrossFire and SLI Technology support (supports dual X16). All that storage capability is coupled to a ICH10R chipset which gives you the option to run RAID 0, 1, 0+1, 5, and JBOD drive configurations. Throw in a Gigabit LAN connection and you have the makings of a impressive SFF gaming system or, perhaps, a real powerful HTPC. The Rampage II GENE can be found online for around $259US.

Via Neoseeker.com

Introduction

Coolmax has graced us with some really outstanding power supplies in the past. The first was the CUQ1350B which was a behemoth when it came to power as well as size. The whole idea of the CUQ, which also included a 1200 watt model, was to compete for the top spot in the most demanding rigs. The type of rigs that many of us can only dream of. You know the ones: dual, triple or quad video card setup using dual WD Raptors in raid for maximum performance.

And then there was the CUG-950B which was aimed at the rest of us that did not demand such large amounts of power. But that was still more than what the average Joe needed. This line only consisted of the 950 watt unit we reviewed. Even this model could power a well-built gaming rig with multi-GPU setups. Two great models of power supplies for the more than average user. But what do Coolmax have for the average Joe? One that does not need 800 plus watt of power.

The answer is the CU-700. The CU-700B which we will be reviewing today is aimed at the individual’s that don’t want to fork out $100 plus for a power supply. The same individual that do not even need 600 watt but wants the insurance when the time to upgrade comes along. The CU-700 fits this individual to a tee. The Cu-700 not only boasts 700 watts of power but does it at a price that any can afford. At $60 the CU-700 will not break the bank. The same individual would also like the fact the low cost unit is 80% efficient.

A little something from Coolmax

The CU-700 is a partial modular power supply that lets you select the cables you need while powering your system at a healthy 700 watts. Everyone likes a clean and easy installation. This power supply allows you to keep what you want and remove what you don’t. While necessary connectors, like the 20+4 pin power connector, are attached to the unit, you decide which of the others should stay. Customize your power supply to reflect your system.

Read the rest of the review here.

Via Pro-Clockers.com

Get yours today.

Today I have something special for everyone! I’ve spent the past couple of weeks playing with one of the NVIDIA Ion reference platforms and get to bring you my thoughts on this new innovative platform. The NVIDIA Ion platform has been one of the most anticipated platforms since it was shown off at CESback in January 2009, and even more so when the performance numbers were released later that same month. The NVIDIA Ion reference PC that I will be looking at today uses an Intel Atom 230 processor, a single 2GB DDR3 1066MHz SO-DIMM memory module, and the GeForce 9400M 256MB graphics processing unit. This system is basically what one will find in a high-end netbook, but has been placed in a sleek and sexy small form factor case that has Home Theater PC (HTPC) or media PC written all over it.

The NVIDIA Ion reference PC weighed in at 1.4 pounds and chassis was a mere 5.6 x 4.3 x 1.5-inch box that looks too small to contain a full PC. The NVIDIA Ion does include a cooling fan inside, but to help get the heat out NVIDIA laser cut in a thermal vent into the top of the chassis. This cooling vent also serves for branding as it was cut in the shape of NVIDIA’s ‘eye’ logo. Looking at the NVIDIA Ion by itself, it doesn’t look too special, so let’s place it next to some objects that you might be familiar with.

With the NVIDIA Ion reference PC sitting between my Blackberry Bold smart phone and the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295 video card you get an idea of how small this PC really is. The NVIDIA Ion reference PC is powered by an Intel Atom 230 processor, but what makes it different from other platforms is the fact that it also features a desktop version of NVIDIA’s 16-core GeForce 9400M (a different version of the 9400M than what is found in netbooks). With the GeForce 9400M GPU inside this Ion can playback 1080P video content with ease as well as play games like Spore with decent frame rates. 

Via Legitreviews.com

It’s not the first Dragon-based gaming rig out there but, according to ComputerShopper, Cyberpower’s new Gamer Dragon 9500 may just be one of the best bargains around, with it even able to do double duty as a media PC if you’re looking to keep your number of boxes to a minimum. That latter attribute comes larger from its addition of a Blu-ray drive, but the system expectedly really delivers the goods when it comes to gaming, with the ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 graphics (with 2GB of DDR5 memory) helping to pump out some respectable frame rates at even ridiculous resolutions. The $1,499 base price will also get you a generous 1TB hard drive, 4GB of RAM and, of course, the 3.6GHz AMD Phenom II X4 940 processor at the heart of the rig. Hit up the link below for the full rundown, and a few benchmark numbers.

Read.

Via Engadget.com

In a collaborate effort, iBUYPOWER teams up with Tiger Direct to launch the new Gamer Power 906 — Intel Core 2 Quad Q8300 Processor, 4GB DDR-2 RAM, Nvidia 9600GT1GB GPU, 500GB SATA storage and 600-watt PSU — a performance system with enough juice to crank graphic intensive games without breaking the bank. Components inside the Power 906 is housed in a roomy NZXT Alpha Chassis with silent cooling solution, professional cable management system, clear side panel and is preinstalled neon lights; enough blings and well organized to showcase the system’s interior.

The iBUYPOWER Gamer Power is up for ordering now for $710 at Compusa or Tigerdirect.

Via Slashgear.com