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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/

Best Solid State Drives of 2011

Out of all the products we reviewed in 2011 some of my favorite were Solid State Drives.  So many companies have pushed the envelope when it comes to transfer speeds we were very impressed with almost all of the solid state drives we reviewed in 2011.  There were a few drives that really stood out to us and that is what you will find on this list.  Keep in mind that this list is comprised of drives that we have reviewed only.  Read on to see what our favorite solid state drives of 2011 were!

OCZ RevoDrive 3 (Review)
OCZ’s RevoDrive has been a very unique and interesting product since we saw the first version of it back in 2010.  What OCZ has done with the RevoDrive is take solid state drive transfer speeds to the next level by eliminating the SATA bottleneck and using a PCI-E interface.  Not only have they done that they have basically placed 2 solid state drives on the card and have them running in a RAID configuration for the best speeds possible.  So what type of speeds are we talking about?  In our testing we scored a read speed of 996MB/s and a write speed of 903MB/s in ATTO Disk Benchmark!  Almost to the 1GB/s mark!  OCZ does have a RevoDrive 3 X2 that has 4 drives on one card and that drive does break the 1GB/s mark, but we did not have the chance to review it.  If you are looking for one of the fastest solid state drives available the RevoDrive X3 from OCZ is it!

Kingston HyperX Solid State Drive (Review)
Kingston is mainly known for Memory and their first jump into the solid state drive market with the SSDNow Series of drives did not make that much noise at all.  We all know the HyperX line of products as being Kingston’s high-end products so it was about time we got a HyperX solid state drive.  The first thing that I said when I saw the drive was, “Damn that is a sexy drive!”, it is really is why its brushed aluminum finish and blue accents.  But besides just looking great it does perform good as well.  In our testing we scored a read speed of 559MB/s and write speed 525MB/s in ATTO Disk Benchmark.  With these speeds it is the fastest 2.5-inch SATA 6GB/s drive we tested this year!  Kingston sent us the upgrade kit which comes with a desktop mounting bracket, external USB enclosure, Acronis migration software, blue SATA 6GB/s SATA cable and a pretty nice screwdriver.  This is everything you will need if you are upgrading from a normal SATA drive.  Also surprisingly enough the upgrade kit and and standalone drive are the same price!

Corsair Force Series GT Solid State Drive (Review)
You know only a few years ago Corsair was only really known for memory and now look they have products in many different categories, but not only that their products are in the top of many of those categories.  For example the Corsair Graphite Series 600T case made it into our Best Cases of 2011 list!  It is really great that Corsair is taking the time to produce quality products.  We’ve seen so many companies try and branch out and they make sub-par products or just release OEM products under their own name.  The Force Series GT is Corsair’s fastest SATA 6GB/s drive.  In our testing we scored a read speed of 557MB/s read and 513MB/s write in ATTO Disk Benchmark.  Besides just the fast speeds the drive is a very attractive red color.  The Force GT is also one of the most affordable drives out there, the 120GB version goes for $199 online, whereas other 120GB drives are around $230-$250.

So that is our list of our favorite solid state drives from 2011.  Do you think another drive deserves to be on this list? Let us know in the comments!

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