Joined on 08/30/08
DD-WRT and 802.11AC
Pros: Go to Trendnet's support page and download the open source firmware, that is the DD-WRT build for this router. No need to scavenge forums and read long tutorials. Just download that firmware file and upload it to your router. Boom DD-WRT the easy way. Both 2.4ghz and 5g has solid throughput. Mind you, not the fastest connection I ever seen, but at ~$85 for a dual band router and DD-WRT basically officially supported, I am not complaining.
Cons: The router is powered by a 800mhz ARM A8, which to me seems to be overkilled. DD-WRT never report cpu loads higher than 25% and the CPU idles at 75C. Underload the temperature quickly climbs to ~80C and I suspect some thermal throttling on the Wlan interface. Unfortunately the under/overclocking does not work at all with the official dd-wrt, so I just cross my finger and hope the soc can sustain such high temperature.
Overall Review: I don't have an AC receiver to test the throughput, but my older devices get above average speeds with both 2.4 and 5ghz N. The response time is also fairly quick, except occasional hiccup presumably related to thermal issues. I might crack the box open and add a bigger heat sink or attach a fan to the side. I guess a DD-WRT router is never meant for those who just want their router to perform out of the box. But for the tweakers, this is a good router to work with.
Good Screen if You Tweak It
Pros: 40 inch IPS for under 300 bucks. Good contrast level, good color, great viewing angle, has all the input needed to hook up a xbox, a wii, a cellphone and a laptop. No dead pixel or any visible defects on the one we've got.
Cons: The stand is not assuring, just a plastic tube you have to nail onto another piece of plastic. Out of the box setting is way too high. I turned down contrast and color to about 33-35. Turn off all the dynamic contrast nonsense. Audio setting is also insanely over tuned. Turn off EVERYTHING in audio and set a flat EQ. Oh, this thing doesn't come with speakers, or it really shouldn't
Overall Review: Buy yourself a pair of speakers with this screen. Just a regular pair of 2.1 PC spear for 20 something bucks will do. In that way you'll have a screen that is comparable to most 600+ dollar TV and speakers that beats all of them.
A Lot to Like, But...
Pros: Slick, small, and clean inside out, you are probably not going to find another ATX case like this one. Entire case is made with shiny brushed aluminum, which makes it extremely light but still retains structural integrity. Layout is fully optimize in order to fit all those component into the space. I was looking for a stylish and sophisticated case, and this is it.
Cons: There is only so much stuffs you can put in so little space, there is definitely a thermal ceiling with just one exhaust and one intake fan. I have a 78w CPU and a 110w GPU and the case gets pretty warm in full load. Your combine TDP probably shouldn't exceed 250w to play it safe. The power supply exhaust is also plain stupid, make sure your gpu doesn't spill too much heat into the case, beacuse the PSU will suck the heat in and trap it between the front cover. Also the w
Overall Review: For those who consider replacing the fans, you must buy fans with 140mm mounts. Many of the 140mm fans on the market actually uses 120mm mount, watch out. The stock fans are not bad, they are decent at 1000rpm, default setting, and I ran mine at 750rpm and they are quiet. They don't run silent, but quiet is good enough for my main machine.
Simply Beautiful
Pros: Beautiful, the phone is beautiful to look at, beautiful to hold, and beautiful to use. The beauty is not just skin deep, the smooth transition, the swipe gesture, the logical layout, the way the texts pop on the AMOLED, it is just a pleasure to use. The phone also has most of the functions I required baked in. Twitter, email, feed reader, to name a few. Even some quality games, such as NFS and Galaxy on Fire.
Cons: The app store so far is pretty bare. There are a decent number of good app on there, such as podcatcher, but most of the higher profile apps on iphone and android is not and probably will never make it to Meego.
Overall Review: I want my phone to work fast and smooth, to multi-task, to be able to browse the web on the go, and to play a little game and media. The N9 excels at all those tasks and looks good doing them. If you can live with the limited app selection, this is probably one of the best phone money can buy.
Pretty and Pretty Small, but...
Pros: Very small, smaller than a netbook.Glossy white very eye catching. Includes 2 stands. Adequate CPU, have a GPU, and I paid $200 bucks for this plus a HDD, really can't beat the value.
Cons: Week CPU and GPU, DDR2. Don't get me wrong, this is enough for your HTPC web serving, basic multitasking, and video playback should be flawless 720p and down. For 1080p you need to use the right codec for the GPU's hardware aceleration. Oh, the cover is hard to open, I pried it open with a plastic fork to avoid scratching it. DO NOT use screw driver.
Overall Review: My rig was over heating after I put the cover on. Open it up again, take off the heat-sink and notice no thermal compound but 2 thermal pads on both the ion and atom cpu. Put some low quality thermal gel I have left over and it runs fine now. Cpu idles at 40-50, and max at 60-70, GPU seems staying around 60-70c. Just FYI, the fan and heat sink should be enough to cool the ion setup, just bring your own paste.
Awesome Looking Case
Pros: Very beautiful case. The look of this case just can't be praise enough. Use aluminum down to the dumb screws. The craftsmanship is out of this world. Comes with decent fans with good airflow for CPU and HDDs. If you want to build a good looking Office/General use desktop, you have found your case.
Cons: The airflow for the PSU is not terriblely well designed, and depending on the CPU cooler you use, you might get decent to poor airflow. Graphic cards are basically on their own in cooling. The case does not have any means to assist air intake or exhaust for the top half, so if your graphic card doesn't have a blower style cooler, getting a pci slot blower fan is highly recommended.