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Richard R.

Richard R.

Joined on 02/10/06

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 4
Most Favorable Review

Great overclocking board for i7

GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard

Pros: Great looking board, lots of stable overclocking tools

Cons: Takes 5-10 seconds to START booting, not that it's a big deal but bear in mind that's normal for this board.

Overall Review: I have had this board overclocked to 4.2 on air pretty stable a few times, I've been running it overclocked with an i7 920 from 2.6 to 4.00 now for about a month straight. There is a great overclocking guide on a similar Gigabyte motherboard online(pdf format), and that guide works great for this board. I did a cheap i7 build with cheap GSkill 1333 ram and it overclocks to 1520 easily and has been very stable.

Amazing case, a few drawbacks

Otter Box Black / Yellow Defender Case for Apple iPhone 3G/3GS (1942-05.5)
Otter Box Black / Yellow Defender Case for Apple iPhone 3G/3GS (1942-05.5)

Pros: Pelican case-like protection. Throw it against a wall to freak your friends out, safe in the knowledge that this case is unbreakable. Rubberized outer layer makes it stick better to tables and smooth surfaces, less likely to slide off. Screen protector is great, you won't even notice it's there, and it's built into the case.

Cons: Because it has the extra hefty protection, the entire shells come out of the phone a few extra millimeters. What this means is that you cannot put this phone/case combo into normal iphone docks, it just won't fit. In addition, the bottom charge port opening is designed to let the APPLE power cable through, this port opening is too narrow for a lot of cheap, third party knockoff power adapters. Trust me, this is a big deal and you should be aware of that.

Overall Review: I ended up removing the rubber covers for headphone jack and charger cable, just sliced them off as I got tired of pulling them back all the time. I also removed the paper covering the speakers on the bottom, as this made the volume a lot louder. I didn't buy it for water proofing, I got it because if I drop my iphone 3GS I want to know that it's not going to be shattered, and this case makes it bulletproof.

For bigger hands, get an ID grip

Logitech G9x Black Two modes scroll USB Wired Laser 5700 dpi Gaming Mouse
Logitech G9x Black Two modes scroll USB Wired Laser 5700 dpi Gaming Mouse

Pros: Amazing customization, well built(can take some abuse, unlike the much cheaper made mx518s), interchangeable grips, the best sensor in the business, etc.

Cons: It is a little bit of an odd shape, I actually prefer the hand contoured shape of the MX and earlier G series, as well as Razer mice, but none of those others can match the G9 series on customization, build quality, etc.

Overall Review: You need an ID grip from Logitech(tack on 25 bucks).com if you have really big hands or want it to feel like an MX or earlier G series mouse. The included grips are just too small for gamers with medium/big hands, IMO. On the plus side, the ID grip is the perfect fit for my hand AND you can get a custom image on it. I choose to put our FPS clan logo with a background of screenshotted "haxor" calls. Yes, I am a geek. I owned a G9 and this is everything it was with an overhauled super accurate 5000dpi sensor. Bonus. If you want the best, get this, that's all I can say.

Awesome cooler for i7

COOLER MASTER V8 RR-UV8-XBU1-GP 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler Compatible with Intel 1366/1155/775 and AMD AM3/AM2+/AM2
COOLER MASTER V8 RR-UV8-XBU1-GP 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler Compatible with Intel 1366/1155/775 and AMD AM3/AM2+/AM2

Pros: Massive cooler, cools i7 920 well enough to hit 4.2GHZ on air in my Gigabyte X58 setup, and that's with overclocking my 6gb gskill 1333 RAM to 1520 or so. In addition, it looks really friggin sweet, LED lights are nice. Temps never rise above 65C in an Antec900 case without side fan.

Cons: A little tough to install, but what huge CPU air cooler isn't. Once you've done it a few times it becomes easier.

Overall Review: If I had to build my i7 system again, I would get this cooler again. For the money you can't beat the performance, and almost more importantly, the coolness factor of the design.