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Zhanping X.

Zhanping X.

Joined on 01/25/08

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 27
Most Favorable Review

Decent card for the money

SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 CrossFireX Support Graphics Card 100354OC-2L
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition 2GB GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 CrossFireX Support Graphics Card 100354OC-2L

Pros: Great price/performance (probably the best card out there for under $200 as of this review, I got it for roughly $185), nice cooler looks, and just a good card overall in terms of how fast it is (8.0 WEI on Windows 8).

Cons: It can get a little hot/loud when your running games or benchmarks-I had my leg next to the computer with the side panel off and I could definitely feel (and hear!) the heat. so if you're a silence freak (which I'm not), this might not be the card. Also, I'm not sure if this is the card or my setup, but on rare occasions, the screen will just turn into one color and freeze my system (you can hear the power supply struggling), though this is not the reason why I took off 1 egg, since it could be my setup.

Overall Review: I don't like to trust reviews that are from people who aren't "verified owners", have a "tech knowledge" of less than 3, who use bad grammar, or either go 5 stars or 1 star purely on one reason/no reason at all. But I truly believe that it is near impossible to tell how well a product will work in the long run unless you've had it for more than a month. Had I written a review a couple days after getting it, I would have complained about having weird diagonal lines and weird pictures-however, after a week, I figured out it was my cable connecting the monitor to the card, not the card itself. I know the screen turning into one color (see cons) is not a mere coincidence since I've used it for about 40 days now and it's happened about 5 times (mostly when the GPU is under stress). My point? Take a review with a grain of salt, including mines. Especially when it comes to graphics cards, there are quite a bit of 1 star reviews of people who simply plug their card in, see it doesn't work, then go online and complain via reviews. There are also the 5 star ones that simply plug their card in, see that it does work, then go online and rave about it just so that they can brag about it (along with the other specs of their computers). In my opinion, this card deserves a 4. It has the pros of a 4, has the cons of a 4. On a completely different note, my rebate still hasn't come in even after a month....why do rebates take 8 weeks to process anyways?

Most Critical Review

High airflow but loud!

Bgears b-Blaster 90mm 2 ball bearing  High Speed 3500 RPM High Airflow 78 CFM 3pin 3wire 12VDC fan.
Bgears b-Blaster 90mm 2 ball bearing High Speed 3500 RPM High Airflow 78 CFM 3pin 3wire 12VDC fan.

Pros: Fairly inexpensive ($9.50 + $2 shipping), best airflow in the 90mm category.

Cons: Loud. Might be way too irritating for some. Installation was a little troublesome, especially for someone like me in which this was their first fan.

Overall Review: I would not recommend this to people who like their computers quiet. However, for people who enjoy lots of airflow and are stuck with a 90mm fan hole, this is the best out there.

Good basic keyboard

Microsoft Keyboard 200 6JH-00001 Black USB Wired Standard Keyboard
Microsoft Keyboard 200 6JH-00001 Black USB Wired Standard Keyboard

Pros: Great keyboard for no-nonsense functions. Plus, it's from Microsoft, so there's at least that "There should be no incompatibilities with this keyboard!"

Cons: Cheap feeling, please don't consider this if you're a button masher or heavy gamer.

Overall Review: This keyboard replaced a old PS2 keyboard as my main one and I don't do much "heavy" gaming, so this still works, though I will definitely be getting a mechanical keyboard for my next one.

Fast RAM!

CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3 1866 (PC3 15000) Desktop Memory Model CMZ16GX3M2A1866C10
CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3 1866 (PC3 15000) Desktop Memory Model CMZ16GX3M2A1866C10

Pros: Lots of RAM and it is fast! Corsair is known for making great RAM, and this one is no exception.

Cons: None as of now

Overall Review: I got this RAM before prices started skyrocketing (I got it when it was $100.) So while I can say that it is good memory, I cannot say that I would pay $150 for the same stick.

Very solid board!

MSI Z77MA-G45 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
MSI Z77MA-G45 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Pros: BIOS layout, boot time, overclocking support, good quality, easy installation, USB 3.0, 4 DDR3 RAM slots, M-connector, overall great construction, Crossfire/SLI support. Also, it was all under $100. ($99.99 w/ Free Shipping, $10 rebate coming soon = $89.99). That is an excellent price for a Z77 motherboard.

Cons: The bloatware that it comes with, although it's easy to opt out and is expected with every new motherboard CD. I wish it could support more fans. I would have gladly traded 2 USB 2.0 for 2 more 3.0 (2.0 are here in abundance, though it is a Z77 limit).

Overall Review: This board has the maximum of all the Z77 chipset can naively handle: It includes 10 USB 2 (6 in back, 2 in front), 4 USB 3 (2 in back, 2 in front), 4 SATA 2, 2 SATA 3. It doesn't have any PCI, but keep in mind that this is a Micro ATX board, and for the money, it contains a great value for what it has.

It's a USB Adapter

C2G/Cables To Go 13403 2-Port USB 2.0 Internal AT Motherboard Adapter (0.30 Meters/1 Feet)
C2G/Cables To Go 13403 2-Port USB 2.0 Internal AT Motherboard Adapter (0.30 Meters/1 Feet)

Pros: Gave me 2 extra USBs from my extra USB header, fairly easy to install (a bit of a problem for people with big fingers, see bottom)

Cons: Cable length could be longer, and a bit pricey ($7 + $1 shipping), and the motherboard headers are split, which makes it harder for people like me (big fingers).

Overall Review: Otherwise, it does what it does. Simple, and despite the price, still cheaper than other solutions.

12/26/2012