cover
John S.

John S.

Joined on 07/09/05

0
0

Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 10
Most Favorable Review
Intel Core i3-3220 - Core i3 3rd Gen Ivy Bridge Dual-Core 3.3 GHz LGA 1155 55W Intel HD Graphics 2500 Desktop Processor - BX80637i33220
Intel Core i3-3220 - Core i3 3rd Gen Ivy Bridge Dual-Core 3.3 GHz LGA 1155 55W Intel HD Graphics 2500 Desktop Processor - BX80637i33220

Pros: So far seems to be running perfectly in my system. My current video card is a radeon HD 7870 and I do not experience bottlenecking at the CPU. Running great so far, and not hot even with the stock cooler.

Cons: No overclocking.

Overall Review: Stock cooler feels on the flimsy side. Luckily the CPU seems to run pretty cool.

Most Critical Review

Luck of the draw

APEVIA X-Dreamer II ATXB4KLW-BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 420W Power Supply
APEVIA X-Dreamer II ATXB4KLW-BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 420W Power Supply

Pros: Construction is pretty solid and looks very nice for its price. Temperature reading on the front is a nice touch. Provides pretty good ventilation. Nice viewing window and very easy to work with.

Cons: Half of the LEDs didn't work on the front of the case, tried to fix but couldn't get them to work. The plastic covers over the CD drives don't work for all drives, can be taken out if you don't mind it looking a little ugly. Small cracks where the clear front plastic piece was s c r ewed into the metal.

Overall Review: Though I wouldn't buy it again, it has worked for my computer. If you are building a new computer, just spend the extra money on a better case, where the price seems to really reflect what you get.

How did this get here

Rosewill FORTRESS-550 - 550-Watt Active PFC Power Supply - Continuous @ 122 Deg. F (50C), 80 PLUS Platinum, ATX 12V v2.31 & EPS12V v2.92, Intel Haswell, SLI & CrossFire Ready
Rosewill FORTRESS-550 - 550-Watt Active PFC Power Supply - Continuous @ 122 Deg. F (50C), 80 PLUS Platinum, ATX 12V v2.31 & EPS12V v2.92, Intel Haswell, SLI & CrossFire Ready

Pros: Definitely quiet. It's the most solid looking and feeling power supplies I've bought. Doing good going on 5 months...

Cons: Hope you got cable ties for all them extra wires.

Overall Review: Looks pretty nice in the case with the rest of the parts!

SAMSUNG 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3L 1600 (PC3L 12800) Desktop Memory Model MV-3V4G3D/US
SAMSUNG 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3L 1600 (PC3L 12800) Desktop Memory Model MV-3V4G3D/US

Pros: Extremely small and thin, and work perfectly in my system. Look really great and don't bump into anything since they are so small.

Cons: None as of yet.

Overall Review: Haven't failed on me yet, but it has only been about a month. This RAM came highly recommended and I can see why so far.

SAMSUNG 840 Series 2.5" 120GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-7TD120BW
SAMSUNG 840 Series 2.5" 120GB SATA III Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-7TD120BW

Pros: Got this as my new primary drive for a new desktop build. It's extremely fast and so far I've had no problems. Will update if I ever have any issues.

Cons: Doesn't come with any way of mounting it in the typical bays for hard drives in desktops.

Overall Review: It's so small and light that it took some rigging with velcro to secure it in the case. It's ridiculously light.

Awesome game with technical issues

The Witcher PC Game
The Witcher PC Game

Pros: As mentioned every time before, awesome story with interesting characters. Environments are never generic and atmosphere is amazing. Sidequests are almost always fun. The alchemy system is required to beat things at higher difficulties, and some of the potions have really awesome and unique effects. Intriguing levelling system of skills... on and on.

Cons: On mid end systems, even to mid-high end, load times are long and frequent. I crashed every 1.5-2 hours and had to reload. Framerate could really chug in areas with a lot of action or particle effects. Judging by how oblivion runs, the engine could have used some serious refining.

Overall Review: Not an open-ended game as you progress through acts which take you to new areas, which is both bad and good (good since it allows areas to change drastically before and after you visit like they should!) Overall this is an awesome game with some technical issues. People with high end machines probably shouldn't blink, while the rest should make sure they have something to occupy them during load times and the ability to deal with single-digit framerates at times.