Pros: I bought this spendier 580 specifically because it had a big cooler. It runs fairly cool at load without sounding too loud. Runs as expected in benchmarks. This does the job quite well for 1080p. Has RGB to let the kids play with.
Cons: Massive. Huge. I thought my GTX1070 was big. This dwarfs it. Make sure your case is big enough. I knew it was going to be big but now I want a card weight holder stick thingy to put under the floating corner. The sag on this heavy, loooong card will be incredible eventually.
Overall Review: I bought this to hastily replace my son's GTX1060/i3 8100 rig that was lost to ex-wife drama last week. This seems to be just as good, paired with an r5 2600. A solid choice for an anger at your ex build. :-)
Pros: This thing comes packed with features that are hard to find an equal to at this price (under $600). Full 1080p (matte), 1TB hdd and a 128GB ssd (not either/or), 8GB of ddr4 (not ddr3), an i3 CPU, USB 3.1 and a real video card (gtx950). I couldn't find anything with specs like that for less than $700. It runs great. It loads into windows quite fast and comes with minimal bloatware. I didn't even bother removing it as some of it may prove useful. I just deleted the icons off the desktop. The keyboard is a membrane, chiclet style board. It's not the best laptop board I've used (for feel) but I'd say it's about average. The lower tray holding the board is made of metal (unlike the outer case shell) so it has a nice, premium feel while using it. The touchpad is pretty good. It is very responsive and has a nice feel to it. It has integrated buttons on the bottom (part of pad itself). The laptop feels nice and light for a 15" laptop. It is plastic but has a nice look and feel to it. The power brick is your standard variety for this size laptop with a decent length on the cord. It's relatively thin for a full size laptop. It's very easy to carry around. Gaming: I don't game much on laptops. I build desktops for that. Regardless, this little guy is impressive for gaming. Firestrike @1080p is about 3000-3200. The unit does not get loud or hot while gaming (compared to other units I've used in the past). The card seems about equivalent to a desktop GTX570. Not bad for a fairly cheap laptop.
Cons: No backlit keyboard. Not a touchscreen. Not a metal case. Screen feels a bit flimsy. (whole span flexes, not the joints, those are solid) No CD/DVD/BD drive
Overall Review: I was initially looking to buy a nice, metal, smaller everyday laptop for about $400-500 but the specs on this were hard to pass up. It doesn't have a premium feel but it also doesn't feel cheap. It performs quite well and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a gaming laptop without breaking the bank.
Pros: Big sound for such a little speaker. Pretty decent range. Seem to be silent at idle. Small size and footprint allows for easy placement on a desk or shelf .
Cons: Cables are a bit short. The cable between the two speakers only allows you to stretch them out about 2 feet apart. The 2 wires to connect to source are also kind of short (3'). The "off" position on the volume dial is truly just zero volume. There is no actual on/off switch.
Overall Review: I only bought these because they were on sale for $7. Had I paid closer to $20, these would still be satisfactory. I mostly use fairly high end speakers (bose, etc) and these little guys still impress.
Pros: Solid. They painted the inside. Fairly roomy.
Cons: So I presume I was supposed to receive an accessory box with this case? (screws, motherboard stand-offs, etc) I didn't get one and this isn't the 1st time NZXT has messed up the little things. It will most likely be my last time as there are plenty of other options. I had to hunt down an old case in my garage to steal motherboard stand-offs from so I could even use this case. What fun, thanks for that. The labeled 2.5 HDD spot at bottom is completely worthless as it's orientated wrong. All the front panels have a funny look to them like the finishing process didn't come out quite right. The sheen has a dead spot in all the same areas and really makes this case look cheap. No filters (I knew this but it's still a con for any case without them) Limited options for front fan sizes.
Overall Review: This is probably about build 40 for me (past 10 years). 4th NZXT case. Looking like the last. SSD Tip: I was able to vertically mount the 2.5 SSD on the rear of the HDD cage (faces back panel), plugs facing down, two screws holding the top from within the HDD cage, top row. They line up just close enough and it mounts at a slightly misaligned angle but solid.
Pros: Fully modular. Lots of sata power (3 wires w/ 4x sata) and of varying lengths. Silent in hybrid mode. (I presume normal is quiet too). Aesthetics. If that matters to you than that's where this unit may get a leg up. All the wires at each end of any particular cable are colored black. None of that ugly, multi-color junk that can make your otherwise nice looking case build a little less nice looking. The side label also reads right side up regardless of your unit's orientation of choice (an small annoyance on many other units to this day). There's a back label near main switch which gives it a clean look (would read upside down if you face your fan upwards). Comes with a good retaining bag for all your extra cables.
Cons: While the cable bag is nice and durable, easy to carry, the 2nd included bag, the one for carrying the power supply is not viable for daily use. Whenever I carry around my power supply (and who doesn't, right!?) to parties, the beach, the park (etc, etc), I find that the included bag is just too flimsy and thin. The drawstring feels inadequate for the weight. A nice, Gucci power supply carrying bag might be more befitting of this unit, and more stylish. An embroidered Corsair logo (rather than cheap silk-screening) would also enhance my enjoyment as I carry my power supply around.
Pros: Best price for a fast 240GB drive. Comes with 4 screws.
Cons: Is packaged in only the static free bag. Could easily get damaged in shipping. (mine was sent in a yellow envelope)
Overall Review: I'd never heard of this brand but I gave it a shot anyways as the price was very good. I'm pleased that the performance is exactly as advertised. I'm getting upwards of 510mb/sec write speeds and 550mb/sec read speeds. That's high end, EVO 850 performance for a bargain. Time will tell if it holds up... Here's a transcript of my ATTO benchmark: Block Size...Write Speed...Read Speed 256.0...........511024..........556495 512.0...........508882..........557948 1024.0.........514984..........557948 2048.0.........516222..........557948 4096.0.........512525..........539760 I installed this in an Asus G750JS gaming laptop as the primary drive. Usually loads Windows in under 10 seconds now.
Pros: It's a nice looking case, easy to work in. There is plenty of space and a decent amount of cable management in the back. The tool-free design works pretty well. My Zalman 9900MAX air cooler had plenty of clearance and the overall airflow of the case was pretty good with just the fans it came with. It has a 3 speed fan controller (but I just kept it on low).
Cons: --The power button is poorly designed. Mine started getting stuck in after about 3 months of use, and I don't shut down very often. It sticks because it was designed as a diamond shape and the corner gets wedged when pressed a bit too far, which is quite easy to do. --The front fans aren't filtered so the front of the case just gets filthy (non-removeable grill). HDD bays enter/exit from rear side of case. Looks cleaner but ends up being a bit more of a hassle having to go through the back panel. --The door latch feels a bit lacking and it's a bit difficult to press to open.
Overall Review: I finally just replaced this with something a bit bigger and fancier, but for ~100 bucks, this 410 is an all around good case with good value. Aside from my sticky power button, mine is still in perfect condition. Nothing has broken, fallen off or failed. Careful with the power button though. ;-)
Pros: These are high quality, polarized glasses. The frame is solid, the lenses aren't too dark. They look great too. They also come in a nice, solid, clam-shell case. I ended up buying 2 pairs for about 20 a piece.
Cons: Can't think of any.
Overall Review: I have bought 3 pairs of sunglasses from this seller and all have come quickly with proper item(s).
Pros: This case is well thought out in every conceivable way. In addition to all the things you'd come to expect in this price range are all the little details that you don't see elsewhere: --Extra, rear SSD mounts. --Removable and adjustable HDD bay. --Easy and effective fan filters and fan cleaning. --Ridiculous, cavernous space in the rear for cable management. --Allow you to mount fans all over the place --Includes 2, high quality, & quiet 140MM fans. --The included screw/rubber gromet packs are phenomenal too. --Rear thumb screws stay in the bare panels when removed. --Everything inside is steel. The HDD bays, the rear, removable blanks, etc. --The metal, front 5.25" breakout panel can be reinstalled (to use 3.5") --Sound dampening material throughout and it does a good job. It's a very pretty case. It's not too bland and not some overboard rave party either. Looks nicer in person than in these pics (most cases do). It's a really solid, sturdy case. They don't get much more solid than this (out of numerous cases, only my Antec p180 is more robust, and that thing's a tank). It's quite massive for a "mid-tower" case. It's really large inside (wide and deep) so it can surely accommodate any CPU fan you'd want to use (widest depth from window to board I've ever seen). It also can handle the Extended ATX motherboards (I'm using a huge Gigabyte Sniper.G2 board) and easily handle long video cards. Basically, you can do any build you want with this case. I doesn't limit you in any way that I can see.
Cons: --Heavy and LARGE. (not necessarily a con, but it's a beast). --No proper HDD light (only a power LED). --Power LED is kind of bright.
Overall Review: I have numerous higher-end cases from Antec, NZXT and Corsair and this Fractal Design unit is easily as impressive as those. I have never worked with a case that was so well designed (to work in) and user friendly. I got this on a whim when it was Seventy dollars and I feel like I stole it. I would have felt comfortable paying up to $150 for this case. I got it to replace my GFs older Antec P180 and I'm jealous of her new R4 case. I will be buying a Fractal Design again in the future. The quality is top notch.
Pros: Looks nice (subjective), does a great job at cooling. If nice aesthetics and great performance are what you're after, this unit fits the bill.
Cons: Installation is a pain, but worth it. Unit is pretty large - ensure your case can accommodate it.
Overall Review: I have bought 3 of these in the past year. They aren't cheap but they do a fantastic job. These cool nearly the same as the nice Noctua air coolers (look up the Guru3D comparison charts or any other). I can't stand the ugly tan/brown fans Noctua uses so that's a no go for me. Here's my 9900MAX on my i7 4790K. Temps vs stock cooler as follows: Idle temps dropped 5 degrees; CPU idles just over ambient. Load temps dropped 25-30 degrees (C). This Zalman Cooler:: Summer.. 80 ambient (27c) (Idle - 28c / Load - 63c) Winter...... 67 ambient (19c) (Idle - 20c / Load - 51c) Stock Cooler: Summer.. 80 ambient (27c) (Idle - 33c / Load - 89c) Winter...... 67 ambient (19c) (Idle - 25c / Load - 77c)
Pros: This case has a lot of features normally found in more expensive cases (that I use myself): inside & rear is painted, tool-less drive bays, filters, bottom mount PSU, rear CPU access, front usb 3.0, and a solid feeling power button. For 37 dollars shipped, this was a great deal for a friend's budget build.
Cons: It's a little bit on the flimsy side but not too bad (I've seen much thinner metal on cheap cases. The backside has very little in the way of cable management (or somewhere to hide extra cabling).
Overall Review: Totally recommend this case (or the identical black one) for someone looking for decent features in a cheap case. Looks pretty nice too -- not too bland and not like a Rave party.
Pros: I got this for 100 dollars. It's 95 bucks as I write this. For this price (in 2015), it's one of the best values for video gaming horsepower (but there are some trade-offs). It is an older card (q4-2010), but it was high end when released and performs well (60FPS) @1080p with current games (GTA5, witcher 3) with low/medium settings. You will not find a card that performs this well for less money unless you go used. (for now, 2015) It looks decent. It's a little bit plasticy but for this price range, that is a great cooler.
Cons: Because this card was high end when released, it's a power hungry beast. Because it's power hungry, it also expels a fair bit of heat. You need a good power supply (500w or better) that preferably has it's own PCI-e power plugs. You also want a case with good airflow (not a Dell/HP, etc) or it will get loud. It isn't particularly quiet even with a good airflow but it's not outlandishly loud. AMD drivers are mediocre at best. We also just had a 6 month gap between driver releases. That's terrible compared to Nvidia's cycle and stability.
Overall Review: It performs well with current games (but if you want to run max settings at 60FPS @1080p+, look elsewhere and prepare to spend 2-3x as much). It was a solid choice for a friend's budget build. Personally, I'd still spend a few bucks more ($20?) and grab a GTX750Ti. Well worth it. This will do though. :-) (I run a GTX970 myself)
Pros: Good speeds, nice looking. Has an indicator light that is blue when connected to USB 3.0, white when it's USB 2.0. Got it for forty-six dollars shipped.
Cons: None that I can think of.
Overall Review: This is my first pocket external drive (I own many full size externals) and this little guy does not disappoint. Avg speeds I get (tested with large files to/from an SSD): USB 3.0> between 110-112mb/sec read&write USB 2.0> between 37-38mb/sec read&write
Pros: There was no mystery when I got my drive. Mine was a new Western Digital Enterprise class (Black) built in late 2010.
Cons: Nothing to speak of.
Overall Review: It came shipped in bubble wrap inside a box which was inside a bubble wrapped soft package. Very nice. Don't hesitate to purchase due to the "white Label". I know I will be buying more of these old enterprise class drives at fire sale prices. Everyone seems to be getting Western Digital or Seagates in this crapshoot. At this price, it's hard to beat.
Pros: Runs games at or near the same level as a GTX 780Ti for less than half the recent price of that Ti. This CPU coupled with a stock i7 4790K runs the newest games at their max settings at a consistent 80-120 FPS @1080p (lows never dip below 60) This includes Shadow of Mordor, Thief, Tomb Raider, Arkham games, Battlefield 4, Alien Isolation and more. It rips through everything with ease. Power usage (or lack there of) is amazing for such a powerful card. Tempuratures are better than my old GTX 760. The 970 literally doubled my framerates in nearly everything and the 760 wasn't bad at all. The card is nice looking. It's fairly understated. It's also nice and slim so running 2,3 or 4 of these would be a breeze.
Cons: Coil Whine. During certain benches (basically at extreme high framerates), I get significant coil whine. The ancient graphics card testing "ATI Tool" exposes it best. It happens in real world gaming but it's quiet enough that I'm not gonna sweat it much.
Overall Review: My card isn't the greatest over-clocker (of 970s ,that is) . I'm running mine at a modest +202 (1352) and +100 on the memory. Fantastic in terms of GPUs but nothing special for these 970s.
Pros: Really fast. Not the fastest, but great speed for this price range. I have 3 of these. 2 120GB and 1 240GB. Each system I installed them to saw dramatic speed increases. All load into windows in under 10 seconds (my main rig is 7-8 seconds). Programs run much snappier. Any games you choose to install on it will load fast too.
Cons: None.
Overall Review: An SSD upgrade at these prices is a no brainer.
Pros: In an Antec p180 case (4 fans), load temps dropped about 25-30 degrees c, from 75-80 on stock cooler, to 48-53 on this Zalman. (for an i7 2600K, stock speed). Installation was easy.
Cons: None really.
Overall Review: It's somewhat large and that may be an issue in smaller cases. Has to be installed from back of motherboard. If case has no rear motherboard access, you'll have to remove motherboard to install this. (as usual)
Pros: What I got was indeed a 5450, GPUZ confirmed this. It was the proper interface. PCI-e. It came (as ugly) as pictured. (maybe that one's a con) That's all I can think of that was good.
Cons: Card is defective. To clarify, mine posts, but... Artifacts in windows loading screen. Red dots appear in picture like an added red hue (similar to a video cord not plugged in properly). Clicking on any game lets you know that no, you didn't really just pop in a new GPU, there's really no direct3D device installed at all. DXdiag shows a card is present, but no tests for Direct3D. Default windows driver. 12 series Catalyst drivers won't install properly. Neither will 11 series, and so on...
Overall Review: This isn't my first refurb/open-box trip around the block. This company though, I only touched because of the mesmerizing prices. I was thinking I was rolling the dice on such a cheap card. $17 for a dx11 card, how could I go wrong? (it's for a PC with onboard video) I don't think I'll touch this brand again, ever. If you are considering a DiabloTek as your primary GPU, you had better have a backup plan ...and it better not be a 2nd DiabloTek card.
Pros: Fast. Responsive. Really fast. The quad core Tegra 3 is amazing. The screen is really vibrant. The responsiveness is as good as the nicest smartphones. Playing movies looks great. Avi, Mpeg, mkv, SD, HD, all work fine. It's made of gorilla glass. The sound quality is really good for a tablet speaker. I would imagine it's the best. It is loud enough to hear clearly throughout a large room. GPS navigation: CoPilot a huge app, (not free... unless... ahem) with phone/tablet stored maps, works on this. I have used it in the car, so real GPS navigation is possible using the Prime without internet. Think 10.1" Garmin. (if you hack in tethering, then Google GPS and internet should theoretically work) I think the price is fair. This thing is the cat's meow. The additional $150 dock makes this an amazing netbook, adds battery life a USB port, an SD slot, a real keyboard. Why would you buy any other $400-500 android tablet? Transformer wins No contest.
Cons: MicroSD only reads cards up to 16GB. US
Overall Review: Was getting ready to spend 100 less on a Galaxy or Xoom, but then bought this as a gift for my Mother who surfs on her new smartphone constantly. I don't regret it. She loves it. I wasn't sold on needing a tablet myself, even after messing with some iPads. After playing with the Transformer for awhile (setting it up, testing) I love it. Now I want one. Or the next one with full 1080p resolution screen. :D
Pros: It came free. Literally.
Cons: No box. lol
Overall Review: So I went to buy an MSI 260 and they went out of stock just as I was completing the purchase with my credit card info. I then opted for a different EVGA card. Apparently they charged my card for the original purchase and completed the order, sans video card. So, I ended up getting the free game even though I didn't buy the video card it was being packaged with. Gotta love computer sales/shipping glitches.
Pros: 55nm process (less heat, more overclocking headroom). Incredible Price/Performance ratio in comparison to other cards. Destroys the old 260 and it's 192 cores as well as the 4870. Runs quiet. Looks spectacular through my case window. There isn't a game out there that this card can't handle on max settings. GTA4, Fallout3, Bioshock, Empire:TW, whatever, they all run pretty much flawlessly at high settings now.
Cons: It's Freakin HUGE!!! I mean, h0ly $h!t, it's 1.5 inches longer than my 8800GT, a card I previously thought was massive. It barely fit in my NZXT Lexa case, and that case is ginormous in it's own right. I nearly had to angle it in there with a shoehorn! Really, you may want to check your clearances in your case before you buy, it's that BIG!
Overall Review: Seriously, if you spend the money on a 280 or better, you're wasting it. This card is on par with the original GTX 280 and even surpasses it in some instances. I replaced my 15 month old 8800GT 512mb with this, and the results have been outstanding. GTA4 can now run maxed out @1920x1080 (aside from view distance) and the game runs like butta. Every other game I've tried has been equally impressive. FWIW, 3dmark 06 jumped from 13,500 to 17,500. HDR2.0/3.0 scores went from ~5000 to ~8000. FYI - System: E8400 (@ 4.0GHz) / 4gb 1066 / P35 DS3L / XP SP3 / OCZ Powerstream 600w / X-Fi Fata1ity / 1TB WD / 320GB Seagate
Pros: No dead pixels. Unbelievable price point when you consider that most 24" screens were going for seven hundred to one thousand a year or so ago. The picture looks really wonderful for gaming and movie viewing. Aesthetically, this thing is beautiful (just don't touch it lol). DVDs look pretty good. 1080p movies look outstanding. Games look just amazing, even with my single 8800GT which is doing surprisingly well at this resolution. GTA4 and Fallout3 look jaw-droppingly good on this new monitor!
Cons: Menu navigation is a little odd. ....and, umm ...It didn't come with a free HDMI cable?
Overall Review: Yes, it is Really BIG. It may be too big for some. I think that 22" is actually the perfect size for most folks. Picked this up during last week of jan 09 for two thirty & free shipping. That was too good to pass up, been needing to buy a monitor for awhile. Buy it!
Pros: It's big, really big. I can install every game I own, rip every CD I have and download 'til my heart's content and never worry about HDD space. It's not silent, but it seems to be as quiet or more quiet than my other drives. It's Fast! This thing flies, it outdoes my 150GB 10,000rpm Raptor in most tests and it just feels kinda zippy. In HDTach this drive reports 94MB/s avg read speed; for a single drive, that's fast! To compare, the avg read speeds of: [150GB Raptor-78MB/s], [320GB Se@gate-65MB/s], [60GB WD-41MB/s].
Cons: ummm... I had to download the software to set up the drive? That's the closest to a con that I can come up with here.
Overall Review: I steered away from the Se@gate 1.0 and 1.5 TB drives since they have so many trouble reports. Normally that brand is very reliable, just like WD is. Make sure you always avoid M@xtor like the plague though!
Pros: This was too good to pass up at one hundred dollars, but it's worth the asking price. My main reason for goin with this was the USB drive and that it was higher end. The sound quality is outstanding. My ten year old Pioneers never sounded so good. The slidetrak control (the whole clear window slides side to side with your finger) is pretty cool and the options within are vast, though the simple settings for a novice are easy enough to find and set. The "sound restorer" is wonderful and reminds me of the Crystalizer on the X-Fi soundcards. The unit looks fantastic, the readout is quite clear.
Cons: Minor nitpicks really... The face is a bit difficult to re-attach. As mentioned, the random function does frustrate at times but it will work. File navigation in a huge folder can be tedious, numbers on the remote would have been nice to go to, say song #437. Works better if you split huge folders into multiple folders. The wiring harness doesn't have labels on the wires (as some companies do).
Overall Review: Careful in choosing thumb drives for use with this deck. I bought 3 cheap 2gb drives (Crucial, though they say Lexar on them). They have HUGE blue led lights on the very end that is quite annoying at night. I plugged in an extension cord to lay the drive on the floorboard. lol I was a Pioneer/Alpine person. This is my first Clarion and it won't be my last.
Pros: This is for 3 pin, 5 volt, addressable rgb. --- ARGB. not RGB. If your board has only 4 pin, 12v rgb, this will not tie into your software. If you have rgb AND argb headers, you are golden. Phanteks makes an RGB version of this same fan frame. This one is "digital", that one is not.
Cons: None to really speak of if you understand what you are buying.
Overall Review: Phanteks needs to make an RGB bat light.