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Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell Processor Review
Just a year ago Intel launched their Ivy Bridge processors and now a year later we have another platform launch from Intel. The 4th Generation Core Haswell processors are the “tock” to Intel’s “tick” and “tock” release schedule. A “tock” represents a new architecture and a “tick” represents a process refinement. So Haswell brings with it a new architecture, but is still built on the same 22nm process as Ivy Bridge. Intel has introduced a new LGA1150 socket with Haswell and a new chipset so you will not be able to throw this processor in an older motherboard, you will have to buy a new one. Today we are taking a look at the top of the line Haswell desktop chip the Core i7-4770K. Of course the “K” denotes that it is an unlocked processor. This is a quad-core processor that has a default clock speed of 3.5 GHz and a turbo frequency that goes all the way up to 3.9 GHz.
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/intel-core-i7-4770k-haswell-processor-review/
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XSPC AX Radiator Desk Stand Review
One of the biggest limiting factors in what you can do with watercooling is how much room you have in your case. With so much equipment to pack in for watercooling alone, space ends up being one of the chief concerns for builders and modders. And the single biggest limiting factor: how much radiator one can fit. Radiators are large, bulky, and inflexible in how they need to be installed. This can easily lead to the builder having to sacrifice cooling surface for space. There is a solution to this problem though; external radiator stands. And if you have chosen to use XSPC’s AX series of radiators, then you’re in luck. Today we will be looking at the AX Radiator Desk Stand from XSPC.
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/xspc-ax-radiator-desk-stand-review/
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Win a NZXT Phantom 630 Case!
It is summer time and it is the perfect time to give you, our readers some free hardware! We have teamed up with our friends at NZXT to give away a brand new NZXT Phantom 630 Case! This Ultra Tower not only looks good it has room for quite a lot inside like long graphics cards, XL-ATX Motherboards, 8 hard drives and a lot of watercooling! Like many of our contests we will be running this one on Facebook and it is extremely easy to enter!
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/win-a-nzxt-phantom-630-case/
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Case Mod Friday: ReactorMod
Welcome to another Case Mod Friday showcase! This week we have a builders ReactorMod build. Here is what he had to say about it: It's a modded Chieftec BX-03 case. I wanted to make it look like it's quite old and kinda shabby. I was thinking about this build for quite a long time, so I managed to collect some cool stuff that I've found on a nearby scrap yard (e.g. switch or steel sheet that I used to make the radiator cover). I also used some spare parts that I had lying around.
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/case-mod-friday-reactormod/
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Enermax Triathlor FC 550W Power Supply Review
Enermax is a brand whose strong product is their power supplies, especially when it comes to the high-end spectrum. Their Platimax and MAXREVO units are some of the best out there. But these units are not cheap in terms of cost. Enermax knows not everyone has a ton of cash to throw at a new power supply so they have created the Triathlor series of power supplies. There are actually the Triathlor and Triathlor FC units. The Triathlor units are lower wattage and non-modular and the Triathlor FC units are higher wattage and are modular. Today we are checking out the Triathlor FC 550W unit which is 80PLUS Bronze certified and offers quiet operation.
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/enermax-triathlor-fc-550w-power-supply-review/
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SilverStone ARM22SC ARM Two Dual LCD Monitor Mount Review
We mainly know SilverStone for their cases and for good reason, they are high quality and look great. What if SilverStone took that same quality and put it into a LCD monitor mount? Then you would have what we are reviewing today which is the ARM Two ARM22SC dual LCD Monitor Mount from SilverStone. LCD arms are a great addition to any computer setup, especially if you are using a multi-monitor system. The ARM22SC is constructed with robust aluminum alloy and steel so this is a heavy duty piece of hardware. It will support two displays with VESA mounts. Read on as we get this installed and see how it transforms our desk.
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/silverstone-arm22sc-arm-two-dual-lcd-monitor-mount-review/
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Win a Pivos XIOS DS Media Player!
Pivos is a company we have been working with lately and they make some pretty cool little media players. We have already reviewed their XIOS DS media player and it is a very unique device. Pivos was nice enough to give us one to give away to our readers! Just like all of our contests this one is very easy to enter and we will be running it on Facebook? So what are you doing get out there and get your entry in!
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/win-a-pivos-xios-ds-media-player/
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Case Mod Friday: Black and White
Welcome to another Case Mod Friday showcase! This week we have Christian Black and White build. Here is what he had to say about it: Well this is the first time I do something like this, and it really is interesting the world of case modding the project is BLACK AND WHITE and really was a design chosen because I began to paint the cabinet only and one thing leads to another as in all cases and was thinking of some ideas for covers.
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/case-mod-friday-black-and-white/
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The History Of The Hard Drive
In 1953, engineers in IBM's California-based laboratory invented the very first hard drive. Since that first disk drive, technological advances have been made at an astonishing rate, with data capacity increasing and size and price decreasing exponentially, year on year. 60 years on, the hard drives of today are unrecognizable from the first models, which took up an entire room. Hard drives today are measured in terms of gigabytes and terabytes, rather than megabytes-an amount of data that would have been almost unimaginable in the early history of computers. Here we take a look back at the evolution of the hard drive as it grew from 5MB to 4TB.
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/the-history-of-the-hard-drive/
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Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 11 Review
Lenovo has been making headlines with their IdeaPad Yoga. It is a tablet convertible that can be used as a laptop as well. There are 11-inch and 13-inch models. While the larger 13-inch model has the choice of Intel Core processors, the 11-inch does not and is rather powered by the NVIDIA Tegra 3 platform. Today we will be taking a look at that unit which does offer a very sleek and slim design, responsive 11.6-inch touchscreen, Lenovo’s patent-pending hinge design that allows the screen to flip completely over and it is running Windows RT. Let’s check it out!
http://www.thinkcomputers.org/lenovo-ideapad-yoga-11-review/

ASUS GeForce GTX 660 DirectCU II OC Edition Video Card Review

Final Thoughts
The GTX 660 sits at a very good position at the $200-$250 mainstream market.  You are going to get a good price for performance ratio with this card, which many gamers will apprecaite.  Remember this card is based off the GK106 core not the GK104 core that the GTX 660 Ti, GTX 670 and GTX 680 are based off of.  With the GK106 you have 960 CUDA cores, with 80 texture memory units (TMUs), 24 raster operations processors (ROPs), and  2GB of memory on a 192-bit wide GDDR5 interface.


ASUS adds on the GTX 660 by including their DirectCU II cooler.  ASUS has been using this cooler for a little while now and it really puts the competition in the dust.  The two cooling fans are super quiet, but still provide great cooling.  The 3 large copper heatpipes make direct contact with the GPU and take the heat to the large heatsink array for it the be dissipated.  Oh yeah and the shroud ASUS uses looks awesome and will match ASUS’s own Republic of Gamers motherboards.  Better cooling is not only good for better performance, but when you want to overclock the card you are going to be able to push it further.

Talking about overclocking this is the OC Edition of the card, which means instead of having a stock GPU clock of 980 MHz like on most GTX 660’s the stock clock on this card is 1020 MHz (1085 MHz boost).  That means your performance is going to be better than any stock GTX 660 card out there.  Even though this card was already overclocked I was able to get the stock GPU clock up to 1100 MHz and the memory up to 1600 MHz.  ASUS’s GPU Tweak software makes overclocking pretty easy and also allows you to monitor everything.

Like most ASUS cards they have gone with their own custom PCB for the card.  It is designed with ASUS’s DIGI+VRM design which features 6 power phases that have digital voltage regulators to minimize power noise by 30% and enhance power efficiency by 15%, widen the voltage modulation range, and improve overall stability and longevity by 2.5 times longer than reference designs.

The only real problem I had with this card was the minimal accessories included.  The card only comes with the single DVI to VGA adapter.

When it comes down to it if you are looking at a GTX 660 ASUS’s GTX 660 DirectCU II OC Edition is a great choice not only because it is overclocked but because of the cooling power and quality components used.  You can pick up this card at my favorite online retailer for $239.99.  Overall ThinkComputers gives the ASUS GeForce GTX 660 DirectCU II OC Edition Video Card a 9 out of 10 score and our Recommended Award.

Pros:
- Great overall performance
- DirectCU II cooling
- DIGI+VRM power design
- Only requires a single 6pin PCie connector
- Factory overclocked
- GPU Tweak software included

Cons:
- Only accessory is a DVI to VGA adapter

Asus GTX660-DC2O-2GD5 GeForce GTX 660 Video CardStoreRatingPrice$226.49$209.99PROVANTAGE$203.28$209.99SeaBoom.com$225.95Offers by PriceGrabber.com
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