3 July 201316 April 2018NetworkBy Bruce Normann

ASUS RT-AC66U Wireless 802.11ac Wi-Fi Router Review

The ASUS RT-AC66U 802.11ac wireless router builds on the success of the RT-N66U model that Benchmark Reviews also tested recently. ASUS has been busy looking to the future, and the new IEEE 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard. While it’s not officially approved, it does appear to be stable, and there are products on the market already from all the serious players in wireless networking. While 802.11n was a step forward, and many of us have been appreciative of the additional legroom that the 5GHz band allows, there is still plenty of room for improvement in Wi-Fi performance. The ASUS RT-AC66U looks great sitting on the shelf, better than the majority of routers on offer today, but it’s the higher throughput and expanded signal coverage that’s going to win over most consumers.

SanDisk Extreme II SSD 240GB Solid State Drive SDSSDXP-240G

29 June 201316 April 2018StorageBy Olin Coles

SanDisk Extreme II Solid State Drive SDSSDXP Review

In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the 240GB SanDisk Extreme II SSD, model SDSSDXP-240G-G25, against the leading competition. This slim 7mm solid state drive is advertised to reach 550 MB/s reads and 510 MB/s writes with its Marvell 88SS9187 SSD processor, while also reaching 95,000 IOPS for random reads. SanDisk then goes beyond simple transfer speeds and TRIM garbage collection by including proprietary nCache non-volatile write cache technology for its 19nm Toggle NAND Flash.

27 June 201316 April 2018MotherboardsBy David Ramsey

Intel DZ87KLT-75K LGA1150 Desktop Motherboard Review

Until a few years ago, Intel motherboards were, well, boring: reliable, sure, and well-made, but without any really interesting features that would appeal to enthusiasts. That started changing around the time of the Z68 chipset, and although Intel has announced they’ll stop manufacturing desktop motherboards in the near future, the Z87-based DZ78KLT-75K makes a good swan song.

25 June 201316 April 2018GraphicsBy Hank Tolman

MSI N760 TF 2GD5/OC Twin Frozr Video Card Review

The latest member of the GeForce GTX 700 series lineup to hit the market is the GTX 760. This GPU is built off the GK104 GPU like quite a few GPUs in the GTX 600 and 700 series. The GTX 760 is built to replace the GTX 660Ti and fill an important price position between about $250 and $300. At Benchmark Reviews, we have MSI N760 TF 2GD5/OC video card on hand and have tested it with some of the most popular and graphically intensive titles currently available. The MSI N760 TF 2GD5/OC takes the stock features of the GTX 760 and adds to them by overclocking the GPU, adding a proven cooling solution, and including a bunch of other extras that you won’t find on the other GTX 760s. So without further ado, let’s get into the details of the MSI N760 TF 2GD5/OC video card.

25 June 201316 April 2018GraphicsBy Olin Coles

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 Graphics Card Review

NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 760 video card is built from the 28nm Kepler GK104 graphics processor, featuring 1152 CUDA cores that are clocked to reach 980 MHz and reach 1033 using NVIDIA Boost 2.0 technology. GeForce GTX 760 also comes with 2GB of GDDR5 video memory, clocked to provide a 1502 MHz graphics frame buffer. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests and compares the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 graphics card using several highly-demanding DX11 video games, such as Metro: Last Light, Batman: Arkham City, and Battlefield 3.

24 June 201316 April 2018PeripheralsBy Austin Downing

CM Storm Quickfire Stealth Mechanical Keyboard Review

Cooler Master has been building mechanical keyboards under its CM Storm line for the last couple of years. They started with the small Quickfire Rapid, and moved over time to larger designs, but Cooler Master’s newest design harkens back to the original Quickfire Rapid, bring improvements on its design and giving it sleek exterior with no markings on the tops of its keys. The question that Benchmark Reviews aims to answer though is whether Cooler Master improved enough to justify the extra cost or are users better off going with the original Quickfire Rapid.

16 June 201316 April 2018MotherboardsBy David Ramsey

ASUS SABERTOOTH Z87 Intel Motherboard Review

ASUS’ newest TUF motherboards are built on Intel’s new Z87 chipset, for the new Haswell-based LGA 1150 CPUs. The TUF line emphasizes reliability and durability rather than a cornucopia of consumer features or the ability to reach heroic overclocking levels. Can an enthusiast love the SABERTOOTH Z87? Benchmark Reviews checks this board out to see what makes it special enough to include in your next rig.

13 June 201315 April 2015StorageBy Olin Coles

OCZ Vertex 450 Solid State Drive Review

The last time we tested the OCZ Vertex 4, it was powered by a dual-core Marvell controller that combined technology from separate sources. This time, the OCZ Vertex 450 solid state drive is made of in-house components. Featuring an Indilinx BF3-M10 Barefoot 3 controller that supports 20nm Synchronous Multi-Level Cell (MLC) NAND flash components with AES-256 encryption and Trim support, Vertex 450 is good for 540 MB/s read speeds over a SATA 6-Gb/s connection. In this article Benchmark Reviews tests the 240GB OCZ Vertex 450 SSD, model VTX450-25SAT3-256G, against the leading competition.

11 June 20139 September 2013MotherboardsBy David Ramsey

ASUS GRYPHON Z87 mATX Intel Motherboard Review

It’s new Intel CPU time, and with the switch to the LGA1150 socket comes a slew of new motherboards. Today we have an interesting item: the ASUS Z87 GRYPHON mATX motherboard. What makes the GRYPHON interesting is that it’s the first micro-ATX member of ASUS’ TUF family of motherboards. Let’s see if this tiny motherboard can hold up the TUF banner.

4 June 201315 December 2014ProcessorsBy Hank Tolman

AMD A10-6700 APU Richland Processor Review

AMD has a pattern when it comes to processor releases. They release a new processor, run it through its paces for a while, then they release more of the same die with higher clock speeds. Generally, though, the new processors release at something closer to the release price of the first series of processors. That is the one part of the equation missing from this summer’s AMD APU releases. The AMD A10-6700 is the second processor coming out in June 2013 with an MSRP of $142. In this article, Benchmark Reviews is taking a detailed look at the A10-6700, especially its differences from the unlocked A10-6800K.

4 June 201315 December 2014ProcessorsBy Hank Tolman

AMD A10-6800K APU Richland Desktop Processor Review

So far, it seems that the early summer of 2013 is destined to be full of Intel Haswell coverage. Rather than consigning themselves to the shadows, AMD is quietly releasing two new members of their APU family. The next generation of APUs is being represented at the top by the A10-6800K and the A10-6700 Accelerated Processing Units, codenamed Richland. It has been about eight months since AMD released the last generation, Trinity APUs. When that happened, AMD took back the performance lead from Ivy Bridge in the sub-$150 CPU price range. This has been AMD’s bread and butter for a while now, especially with their ability to pair discrete level graphics with their CPUs that totally decimate the onboard capabilities of their opponent. Haswell may change things, but for now, we’ll see where AMD is setting the bar for entry-level performance. In this article, Benchmark Reviews takes a hard look at the third generation of AMD APUs with the top end AMD A10-6800K Richland Processor.

1 June 20139 September 2013MotherboardsBy David Ramsey

MSI Z87 MPower MAX Motherboard Review

Intel’s new Haswell CPUs bring with them a new socket, LGA1150, and a new supporting chipset, the Z87. MSI’s new Z87 MPower MAX motherboard is the first of third-party Intel Z87-Express desktop motherboard we’ve had the opportunity to test. As a member of MSI’s “MPOWER” motherboards, the full-sized ATX motherboard is a high-end product stuffed with features aimed at enthusiasts and gamers. Let’s take a look at it!

1 June 201315 December 2014ProcessorsBy David Ramsey

Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell Desktop Processor Review

After months of rumors and speculation, Intel’s 4th generation Core CPUs, code-named Haswell, are here. Haswell CPUs are a “tock”– that is, a new microarchitecture– in Intel’s “tick-tock” annual release cycle. Based on the same 22nm fabrication process and 3-D transistors introduced with last year’s Ivy Bridge CPUs, Haswell brings with it a new socket 1150, which means that you can’t just drop it in to replace an Ivy Bridge or Sandy Bridge CPU, since you’ll need a new motherboard. But what new features and performance does Intel’s Haswell processor bring with it? Let’s find out.

30 May 201316 April 2018GraphicsBy Olin Coles

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 Video Card Review

NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 770 video card is built from the 28nm Kepler GK104 graphics processor, identical to the GTX 680 released back in March 2012. Featuring 1536 CUDA cores that are clocked to reach 1085 MHz using NVIDIA Boost 2.0 technology, GTX 770 also comes with 2GB of GDDR5 video memory that creates the world’s fastest 1753 MHz graphics frame buffer. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests and compares the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 graphics card using several highly-demanding DX11 video games, such as Metro: Last Light, Batman: Arkham City, and Battlefield 3.

26 May 20139 September 2013PeripheralsBy Dan McNamara

Genius Ring Air Mouse 2 Review

It is not often you find a product that has the potential to change the way you work. The Genius Ring Mouse 2, made by KYE Corporation, is just such a product. I immediately could envision myself controlling my own presentation without having to return to the podium, or call on someone to flip through my slides. This alone is enough to justify the purchase for me. But, for the sake of our readers, Benchmark Reviews will test the Ring Mouse II to see what it can and cannot do for “business, travel, education and i-users”.

23 May 201316 April 2018GraphicsBy Olin Coles

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Graphics Card Review

NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX TITAN allowed gamers to challenge any video game they choose with the highest quality settings possible, but in limited supply and high price tag. For many players, their games really only needed half as much power and memory from a video card. Enter NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780: built from GTX TITAN to deliver 3GB of GDDR5 video frame buffer memory, and 2304 CUDA cores from the GK110 GPU that reach 900 MHz using NVIDIA Boost 2.0 technology. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests and compares the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 graphics card using several highly-demanding DX11 video games, such as Metro: Last Light, Batman: Arkham City, and Battlefield 3.

19 May 20139 September 2013PeripheralsBy Akim Green

Razer DeathAdder 2013 Gaming Mouse Review

Razer has made a good product better with the new DeathAdder 2013 gaming mouse, model RZ01-00840100-R3U1. Maintaining it’s famous ergonomic design, Razer has upgraded the optical laser to a more sensitive one as well as added rubber side grips. Many versions of the DeathAdder are available and the budget-conscious consumer will surely contemplate whether or not the refinements are worth the price difference. The featured product is marketed as an essential ergonomic gaming mouse; there are no bells are whistles, no weight adjustment, no changeable lights, just a mouse designed to dominate. Since the 2013 version of the DeathAdder is quite similar to it’s predecessors, this review may also serve as an evaluation of the general DeathAdder series. Read on as Benchmark reviews takes a close look at the raved-about Razer DeathAdder 2013 gaming mouse to see what all the hype is about.

15 May 201315 October 2013CasesBy Austin Downing

Corsair Obsidian 350D Micro ATX Computer Case Review

When Corsair introduced its Obsidian line in 2009 with the 800D it brought out a case that was beautiful, functional, and massive. In 2011 Corsair introduced the mid-tower Obsidian 650D it was still beautiful, functional, and just a bit too big for many enthusiasts. In 2013, Corsair introduced its first Micro-ATX case the 350D. The 350D keeps the beauty and functionality of its larger brethren but fits it into 17.7″ x 17.3″ case designed to contain a powerful multi-GPU system in a much smaller enclosure than many enthusiast have been accustomed to in the past. So let Benchmark Reviews walk you through the Corsair 350D and look at the new smaller case design.

12 May 201315 October 2013PeripheralsBy Tom Jaskulka

MAD CATZ R.A.T. M Wireless Mobile Mouse Review

Mad Catz arguably changed the gaming mouse market when they released their R.A.T. into the wild. With an unusual appearance and a previously unapproachable level of customization, the subsequent R.A.T. series of mice went on to win multiple awards and generate a lot of interest. Today, Benchmark Reviews has a chance to take a closer look at one of the newcomers to the R.A.T. line, the R.A.T. M wireless mobile gaming mouse. Does this rodent have what it takes to back up its heritage?

6 May 20139 September 2013PeripheralsBy David Ramsey

Mad Catz M.O.U.S.9 Gaming Mouse Review

Enthusiasts know Mad Catz and their gaming-oriented peripherals. In fact, the company motto is All About the Game. Under their Tritton, Saitek, and Cyborg sub-brands, they’ve offered keyboards, headsets, game controllers, mice, flight sticks and other peripherals aimed at gamers. Now, they tell us, they’ve decided to offer a more “mainstream” mouse, the M.O.U.S.9. Although it’s visually very similar to their R.A.T. series of gaming mice, the M.O.U.S.9 is more consumer-oriented. How much more so? Well, we here at Benchmark Reviews aim to find out.

29 April 20134 November 2013NetworkBy Bruce Normann

ASUSTOR AS-604T NAS Network Storage Server Review

Everybody needs a NAS, I’m convinced. Maybe if I described what the modern NAS has become – a Private Cloud, then everyone would agree. Years ago, when Benchmark Reviews started reviewing NAS servers, they were made to sit on your network as a sort of file server and you used proprietary, vendor supplied backup software. Today, as we all know, everything is wide open. Access anything, anywhere, with any application is not just a dream anymore. Hardware is still important, but the depth and breadth of the software is becoming more of a differentiator. The ASUSTOR AS-604T NAS Network Storage Server uses a familiar hardware platform – Intel Atom and a Linux distro, but the design team didn’t stop there. There are some fundamental improvements that were ready to be solved from a slightly different perspective. Join in, as we see how this new 4-bay device compares to its competitors.

15 April 20139 September 2013StorageBy Olin Coles

Seagate Desktop HDD ST4000DM000 Review

Seagate has recently re-branded their consumer storage products, formerly named Barracuda, in time for the launch of their 15th-generation. The 4TB Seagate Desktop HDD (OEM model ST4000DM000, retail kit STBD4000400) features a SATA 6Gb/s interface with Native Command Queueing (NCQ). Eight data heads read and write to four 1GB disc platters which enable 625Gb/in2 areal density. Cached by 64MB DRAM, this 5900 RPM hard disk drive is specified to move files at 180 MB/s sustained data rate. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests performance and explores new features on the 4TB Seagate Desktop HDD.

26 March 20139 September 2013GraphicsBy Olin Coles

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 Ti BOOST Video Card Review

With the economy on the rebound, gamers are coming out of hibernation with a hunger for modern DirectX11 graphics and realism. Since AMD has all but disappeared from the scene, NVIDIA has timed their affordable mainstream video card launch perfectly. Based on the NVIDIA Kepler GK106 architecture, the GeForce GTX 650 Ti BOOST delivers 2GB of 1502 MHz GDDR5 memory and 768 CUDA Cores operating at 980 MHz up to 1033+ with NVIDIA GPU Boost technology. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 Ti BOOST graphics card using several highly-demanding DX11 video games.

5 February 201315 December 2014PeripheralsBy Greg Schepers

Genius Gila GX Gaming Mouse Review

For several years, Genius has been manufacturing quality computer peripherals and decided, in 2011, to leverage its years of experience by creating the GX Gaming series, which currently consists of mice, keyboards, headsets, speaker systems, and mouse pads. The Genius Gila, which Benchmark Reviews will evaluate in this article, is the company’s latest foray into the gaming mouse market. This mouse boasts a 12-button design and offers desirable gaming mouse features such as adjustable weighting, on-the-fly DPI adjustability, and user-defined macros. The Genius Gila GX Gaming Mouse looks good and its features sound good, so read on and find out if it really IS good.

14 January 20139 September 2013PhonesBy Bruce Normann

Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX HD 4G Smartphone Review

Pervasive computing has taken over as the dominant technology market for consumers. Users who want to stay productive, or merely connected while away from their desk, have found the Smartphone to be a mobile workhorse. Today, Benchmark Reviews brings you a hands-on review of Motorola’s top-line device, the DROID RAZR MAXX HD. Both the RAZR HD and RAZR MAXX HD have a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, 1 GB of RAM, and a 4.7â€³ 720p HD Super AMOLED display. The RAZR HD has a 2530 mAh battery, and the RAZR MAXX HD has 3300mAh of go juice inside. This is not an all-day battery; this is a 2-3 day battery, depending on your usage pattern. Let’s take a closer look at Motorola’s latest flagship phone.