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Alexander M.

Alexander M.

Joined on 10/22/10

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Most Favorable Review

Great monitor for Hardcore Gamers

BenQ ZOWIE XL2735 27" 1440p 1ms(GTG) 144Hz eSports Gaming Monitor, DyAc, Black eQualizer, Color Vibrance, S-Switch, Shield, Height Adjustable, VESA Ready
BenQ ZOWIE XL2735 27" 1440p 1ms(GTG) 144Hz eSports Gaming Monitor, DyAc, Black eQualizer, Color Vibrance, S-Switch, Shield, Height Adjustable, VESA Ready

Pros: I was so excited to get this to review. Out of the box you get the monitor, the awesome stand, the power cord, a pass-through USB 3.0 Cable, a DisplayPort cable (which is really surprising, the monitor uses DisplayPort 1.2 connectivity in-case you were interested), the settings switch, the shield side covers, an instruction booklet/CD and warranty guide. This having a DisplayPort cable out of the box really impressed me as most monitor manufacturers try and skimp out and just give you a VGA/DVI cable and call it a day even though their monitor supports other ports. Setup took less than 5 minutes to get the monitor attached to the stand and plug in everything, I left the shield side covers off mine because they distract me a bit, but they are nice to have if I ever get into e-sports. The 144Hz refresh rate and a 1ms response time on this monitor makes the games nice and crisp. The settings switch is probably my favorite part about this monitor as I usually like to adjust the monitors settings depending on what I am doing. The highest resolution of the monitor is 2560 x 1440 which is very nice and adds a lot of room on your desktop. The USB 3.0 pass-through ports on the monitor are a nice touch as well as it allows you to easily connect external devices right then and there instead of having to search for one on the back of your computer. Also the monitor offers a headphone and mic jack to hookup your awesome gaming gear. The stand that the monitor sits on is a quality build that offers height adjustment and pivot of up to 90 degrees to allow you to easily connect the cables to the monitor as well as swivel the monitor left and right and tilt adjustment to get the exact precision of how you want to game. Of course if you want to use your own Vesa mount, you can still do so (100x100 mm).

Cons: There are only a few cons that I noticed with this monitor: -The price: The price is a bit high for this monitor, but if you want what most e-sports venues are using at their events this is the price you'll need to pay. -No G-Sync or Free-Sync: I am very surprised by this. Even though this monitor does support a very nice refresh rate and response time and BenQ's own techology that helps makes the games nice and crisp, you would think that for the price that one of these options would have been included. - The default settings out of the box are horrible. You'll need to adjust them to your liking out of the box. Don't get concerned though as it is very easy to do. -This is a TN panel and you aren't going to get as nice of colors as you would with an IPS or a VA panel, but remember this monitor is specifically made for gaming purposes and most IPS/VA panels don't support a refresh rate as high as this one.

Overall Review: I would highly recommend this monitor to my gaming brothers/sisters out there that want a nice gaming monitor for their setups. For anyone else that is looking to do just normal email/web surf/video watching, this isn't the monitor for you. For those who are content creators and deal with photoshop and video editing I would recommend to look at other monitors as well (mainly IPS and VA monitors). BenQ has always had a special place in my heart for their monitors just because of their build design and attention to detail of what they include with the monitor itself. This monitor is no different.

Most Critical Review

Some Ups, Some Downs...Overall Average

Rosewill RDCR-13001 USB2.0 All in One Internal Card Reader w/ 3 ports USB2.0 Hub / eSATA port / Extra silver fascia panel / SATA Power - Retail
Rosewill RDCR-13001 USB2.0 All in One Internal Card Reader w/ 3 ports USB2.0 Hub / eSATA port / Extra silver fascia panel / SATA Power - Retail

Pros: I was on vacation when this little guy came in the mail for me to review. This internal card reader is pretty neat device. Luckily I still had an open bay in a rig I built a couple years back to test this thing out. Setup is pretty easy to begin with (for those who are used to installing this type of device in a computer). Out of the package, you just slide into an empty bay and plug in the three cords (Power, SATA and USB). The cords may look short, but actually will fit most regular sized cases. Windows 7 handles the rest of the install. All-in-all it took me 5 minutes to install and test. One thing I liked about the device: Interchangeable face plates (Black and Silver). It really allows for that tiny bit of customization when working with silver cases…I just wish they would have created a face plate that was white for those rising in popularity white cases. Another good thing is the amount of cards this thing can read. Out of all of my memory cards for different gaming, phone and camera devices, it could handle them all. One weird pro: It has a 5V DC port…I am not too sure which device would use this, but if I run across one in the future at least I’ll have it. ESATA is always nice to charge those phones/cameras that charge through US when you shut off your computer.

Cons: -Like I stated in the pros, I wish it had a white face plate because I am planning another build with a white case I have my eye one. -The LED’s are a bit bright and annoying. I know they are there to make sure the you know the device is connected and working, but I wish they would tone it down a bit on the LED’s. -Only USB 2.0, not USB 3.0…with more and more motherboards supporting USB 3.0, you would have thought that Rosewill would have opted to add it into the reader…but I guess not. Kind of disappointed by this fact alone.

Overall Review: Overall, it is super easy to install. It reads almost any memory card you might have, but it has its downsides. Hopefully Rosewill in their next line of card readers will fix the cons I listed to make one awesome device. Still, it is a good device for those looking for memory card readers for those who can overlook those cons.

Great SSD for New Builds or Upgrades!

Crucial P310 M.2 2280 2TB PCI-Express 4.0 x4 3D NAND Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) CT2000P310SSD5
Crucial P310 M.2 2280 2TB PCI-Express 4.0 x4 3D NAND Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) CT2000P310SSD5

Pros: Out of the box and into the PC is an easy install. The included heatsink is a great addition for keeping the drive cool while gaming or performing demanding tasks. Read/Write speeds are excellent for any tasks. Works as a PS5 SSD Upgrade unit as well if you have a PS5.

Cons: None noticed.

Overall Review: This is a great buy for anyone looking to build new or upgrade existing computers! I would highly recommend to anyone looking to expand their storage or even use it as their main storage source. Read/Write speeds are within spec of the listed speeds on the box. It also works as a great upgrade to add storage to a PS5 system. I've attached photos of it installed in my PC and a speed test using the CMD line. Only thing to mention: Certain Motherboards might have their M.2 slot next to their RAM slots and the heatsink may cause seating issues if using the included heatsink. I would try to avoid those motherboards if at all possible to provide the best quality performance this drive can offer. It does generate a bit of heat under load but the heatsink does it job well in keeping it well within safe temperatures.

Great Modular Power Supply

CORSAIR RM1000e Fully Modular Low-Noise ATX Power Supply - ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 Compliant - 105°C-Rated Capacitors - 80 PLUS Gold  Efficiency - Modern Standby Support
CORSAIR RM1000e Fully Modular Low-Noise ATX Power Supply - ATX 3.1 & PCIe 5.1 Compliant - 105°C-Rated Capacitors - 80 PLUS Gold Efficiency - Modern Standby Support

Pros: -Modularity: Unit is super modular. Use only the needed cables in your build and keep cable management to a clean setup. -Super Quiet: I don't hear much of anything when the unit is powered on. Makes enjoying games that much more enjoyable. -Premium construction: Cables are nicely made and make me feel confident when powering all of my PC that nothing will go awry when gaming in the future.

Cons: -Only cons are I wish from a packaging stand point we could get away from plastic packaging.

Overall Review: For those looking for a great modular power supply, look no further. Corsair has brought their A game with this great unit. Pick and choose which cables you need to connect while leaving the rest out and keep your cable management to a minimum. There is basically no sound I can audibly hear when this thing is on. The design of the casing makes this thing look super professional if you have a case that allows you to see inside. Rest assured with 80 Plus Gold certification that this unit is super efficient and won't break down easily. Cables are super premium and look nice in all black versus the usual Ketchup/Mustard cables of days of old. I would highly recommend this unit to anyone looking for a new build's PSU as this should last you many years to come and is a great investment.

Great Bike or Portable Speaker

Rosewill Portable Speaker with built-in Power Bank, IPX4 rated Water-Resistant, Play Music via Bluetooth, AUX, MicroSD, FM Radio, Up to 30 Hours Playback, Includes Bike Mount and Carabiner - RW-SF5
Rosewill Portable Speaker with built-in Power Bank, IPX4 rated Water-Resistant, Play Music via Bluetooth, AUX, MicroSD, FM Radio, Up to 30 Hours Playback, Includes Bike Mount and Carabiner - RW-SF5

Pros: Out of the box, this speaker had some juice, so decided to turn it on and try it out on my desk. The sound blasted my ears right away (for some reason was turned up to max out of the box), but it impressed me with how loud it got. I never really thought Rosewill made anything other than computer parts, so was surprised to see this. The device comes with a Bike mount hardware, charging cable (Micro USB Type B to USB A), Micro USB Type B to Aux, a Carabiner and a Controller that connects via the Aux port to control playback while biking. It can play music through Bluetooth, MicroSD card (yes it has a slot), FM Radio or Aux cable. It is a decent sized speaker, but it seems to be best used attached to a backpack or a bike (although it can sit on a desk as well). The speaker also can answer phone calls as it has a built in speaker. Music sounds quite nice on this, while not high end, it does the job for what it is meant for. Bass is quite nice as it has a built in subwoofer as well. Need a charge of your phone? This speaker also doubles as a 6000 mAh battery bank. Want to play music in stereo with more than 1? This speaker also offers that with a pairing option to pair it with another.

Cons: There are a few cons with this device, but nothing to drop an egg over. The charging port on this device uses Micro USB Type B to charge. Unfortunately in a world where USB Type C is dominating devices, it would've been nice if this device used USB Type C as well. While I am not a fan of the color, I know it really is meant to be an outdoor speaker used on a bike or backpack. so color doesn't really matter. In the specs, it mentions only MicroSD cards up to 32GB can be used. While there are higher cards available, I doubt anyone is going to store more than 32GB of music on a card. While this device is Waterproof (for splashes of water), it is not submergible like some other brands, but I doubt anyone is going to take this and drop it in a pool.

Overall Review: Overall, I would recommend to anyone looking to add some music to their outdoor experience. It is great for Bicyclists or Hikers. It gets really loud so you can hear it while doing most any type of exercise. A great speaker for a great price!

Great Mid-range Case

Montech Air 900 Mesh ATX Mid-Tower PC Gaming Case, High & Max Airflow, Full-Metal Mesh Front Panel, Tempered Glass, Dust- Proof, Unique Mesh Side Panel - EATX, ATX, Micro ATX, Mini ITX - Black
Montech Air 900 Mesh ATX Mid-Tower PC Gaming Case, High & Max Airflow, Full-Metal Mesh Front Panel, Tempered Glass, Dust- Proof, Unique Mesh Side Panel - EATX, ATX, Micro ATX, Mini ITX - Black

Pros: Looking to make sure you have enough Air Flow through your system? Look no further with this case. While I've not heard of Montech as a brand before, I must say their case is a very quality case with some nice design aspects. I swapped out my system from a different case into this one with relative ease. This case supports most the the popular motherboard sizes you can think of. My system was a mini-ITX and while it looks small, it fits great in this case. Montech made sure to put Dust Filters where they could fit them all around the chassis so no dust should be able to get in a ruin your precious parts. Montech graciously included fans in their case. While not RGB like pictured (those are a different bran of fan), they do a great job at performing great airflow through the case. You can add more to help improve the quality of airflow, but my system was staying moderately cool during all my testing. Cable management was a charm in this case with some velcro cable ties. It makes it very easy to hide cables when you don't want them shown. After closing the case after my system move, I could tell the build quality was very sturdy. The tempered glass side panel definitely is a plus when working with RGB in your system.

Cons: The only con I had with this system was not seeing a USB type C connector on the front panel IO. We're quickly moving towards USB C being the new standard type for most of everything and it would have been nice to see one connector. It wasn't a deal breaker for me though as my mother board includes one on the back IO. I still question why there is a need for USB 2.0 Ports, but I guess some legacy systems still like them.

Overall Review: I would say this case is great for anyone looking for a great budget case that is worried about CPU/GPU temps. This case offers a lot of similar features in more higher end cases. The hardest decision you'll have is choosing between black or white. Both look amazing.