Joined on 01/24/05
Very nice drive
Pros: Speed. Load times are minimal now. Vista can't begin to slow this beast down. Runs really cool (upper 30s under load). It looks awesome. It's very quiet; I don't hear it with the side of my case off. Did I mention it's fast?
Cons: Price is a bit steep, but it IS worth it. Title says Retail, but mine came as what appears to be OEM (no box, cables, etc... Only the drive in an anti-static bag). I was hoping for a really cool green and black box with a dinosaur on it, but I'll live! ;) No other cons at all that I can think of.
Overall Review: We all know this is a fast drive; it is an updated, new generation Raptor after all. If you're considering this drive, but are hesistating because you're not sure if you should fork over $300, just do it. I don't think you'll regret it. I don't! It IS worth it!!! =)
Incredibly well designed and insanely efficient case
Pros: - Truly allows for incredible airflow - Easy cable management - Quick and painless install - Tons of room for big components like heatsinks and large video cards, while leaving room to work
Cons: - Some plastic components feel slightly flimsy, but none broke - Not a glass panel (not a huge con) - It's a 'fatty', wider than most cases, but that's expected due to design
Overall Review: This case dropped my temps by about 10 degrees across the board. The ability to easily hide the cables from the 'visible' chamber is incredible, allowing for 5 minutes of cable management to achieve a near flawless view of the primary 'chamber'. The amount of space available to work in on both sides allows for a stress free install and maintenance. Would definitely buy again, and highly recommend.
Best game of 2008! Hands down!
Pros: The CE Package - -Really nice extras; the lunch box and bobblehead are fantastic add ins. I was expecting a small, cheap looking bobblehead but it's actually very nice and far from tiny. -Watched the 'making of' DVD and found most of it entertaining and informative. Their offices are incredibly nice. =) The Game - -MASSIVE city to explore. 120+ hours I've played, and still lack 6 bobbleheads and about 60 places to discover. -Replay-ability. So many ways to go with your character. Be a saint and help everyone, or be psychotic and kill everyone. -Dozens of abilities and perks to chose from and upgrade -Custom weapons. -Visuals are very nice. The level of detail put into everything in the game is mind boggling!
Cons: The CE Package - Nothing really... A+ package that is definitely worth the $15-$20 increase over the normal game. I love the bobblehead! =) The Game - -Level cap! My biggest complaint! Capping at level 20 is unacceptable because it isn't at all proportional. After 15 of so hours I had hit the cap, but was only about 20% into the game! But I head this will be fixed in the upcoming expansion (Operation Anchorage), so I'm happy! =) -Crashes. I've found that if I have anything running in the background that is even somewhat resource hungry, my game crashes quite frequently. i.e. if my virus software starts a scan whilst I'm playing, my game crashes. Running is on a Q6600 @3.4GHz, and 4GBs of ram and a 300GB VelociRaptor. The game just doesn't like to share I guess. Quitting most background programs fixes this issue and the crashes are MUCH less frequent. -Can't enter EVERY building. ;P -10 hour or so main quest. Seriously... I started over and am ignoring the main quest and just exploring
Overall Review: I would recommend this game to anyone. I've never played Fallout 1 or 2, but still fell in love with 3 almost instantaniously! And if you've considering buying it, definitely give some thought to this CE! Unlike most CEs, the extras here are well worth the extra cash. I got mine locally, so I can't rave about NewEgg's outstanding service, but if I hadn't gotten this locally, NewEgg is the first place I'd go to online. =) Remember, there is a LOT to do in this game! Ignore the main quest and just explore if you're looking for some real fun! =) This game blows Oblivion out of the water! I always look forward to Bethesda's next game! =)
It's not fair to the game...
Pros: Great all around game. Lots to do, infinite number of possible creations (and a high replay value). I love being able to design all of my creatures, buildings and vehicles. Very fun! More for the creative centered gamer (not implying anything bad about other types of gamers; we all like what we like! ;) - it doesn't get much better than this. It's like five games rolled into one (for each of the stages). It allows you to establish a galactic empire! Shape planets into places that can sustain life and flourish, establish trade routes and alliances, or attempt to take over another star system. There's so much to do in the space age! So many badges to get, tools to gain, missions to go on... how can anyone get bored with this? Looks great! No, it's not Crysis-like, but that's good. Normal gaming PCs (normal = 'budget/midrange) can play it, no problem and it still looks good. It's obvious a lot of time and care went into creating this masterpiece.
Cons: Yes, DRM is a 'con', but that's against EA, and NOT Spore. It doesn't affect my rating of Spore one bit. The planets in stage 5 seem to be either filled with life, or completely lacking. I do wish there was more to each planet, so there'd be a reason to go randomly exploring un-inhabited planets (besides setting up a colony), but maybe there is. I've only been playing it for just about a week and I've gotten about 3% into the space stage. The first cell stage is sometimes frustrating. There seems to be no way to escape some of the other cells who want to eat you, but that's part of the game; survival of the fittest, right? =) Second stage seems to be much easier for herbivores and carnivores. The Epic creatures are annoying in the fourth stage! One took out my entire army. Don't anger these guys...
Overall Review: It's wrong to rate this game so lowly because of the DRM. NewEgg isn't asking you to rate EA, or their policies and procedures; They're asking you to rate Spore. Yes, EA's DRM is a pain, but I don't blame them for trying. The PC game industry is going under, and going under fast. EA didn't release Madden on the PC this year because they only lose money by doing so. It'd be nice to see some of the people's outrage here directed at the people ultimately responsible for all of this; the people who download all of their software and games without ever giving a dime to the people who spend hundreds of man hours developing the software and games for our use and enjoyment. It's their fault. Be mad at them. It's not fair to give us just 3 activations for a game we pay for, but at least that cuts down on the people who tell their friends they've found this awesome game and that they'll make them a copy so they can play it too. There's a lot of that
Niiiice
Pros: Dropped temps on overclocked 8800gt from 50c idle/76c load to 39c idle/46c load. Big enough to rig 2x 120mm fans on (which I did). Easy to install.
Cons: Everyone who has complained about the memory sinks are 100% correct. The adhesive sucks! You definitely want to use your own adhesive. Had to purchase from a different retailer because NewEgg is always OOS.
Overall Review: I would buy again in a heartbeat. If the ram sinks had better adhesive, this would be the perfect VGA cooling product. But nothing's perfect ;) Buy it!
Worth it
Pros: It's quiet, inexpensive. Does what it says. It's "green". Would buy again. Used for an average workstation, no real power hungry components and it's perfect.
Cons: Really can't think of any.
Overall Review: If you need a replacement PSU for an average, or even a little above average workstation, this is a fantastic choice. Can't really beat the price for such clean and quiet power.