August 3rd, 2010
With the digital world slowly becoming three dimensional, it’s no surprise you can now get your mits on a 3D gaming desktop. Perhaps what is surprising is the base model’s price tag of $1489. Digital Storm are the cool manufacturer bringing you this delicious dollop of 3D at such a mouth-watering price. They’ve knocked up a large range of machines to choose from but we’ll concentrate on that base model.
* AMD Phenom II X6 1055T Black Edition (2.8GHz) (6 Core) (6 MB Cache) AM3 Socket
* Gigabyte GA-890XA-UD3 (AMD 790X Chipset) (SATA3 and USB 3.0) (Socket AM3)
* 4GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
* 500W Digital Storm Certified
* 1x 500GB Western Digital (16MB Cache) (7200 RPM)
* DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x)
* High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
* 1x NVIDIA GeForce GT 220 1GB (Includes PhysX Technology)
* Integrated Motherboard Audio
* Standard Factory Heat-sink and Fan
* Standard Factory Chassis Fans
* Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-Bit Edition)
* !PROMO BUNDLE: NVIDIA 3D Vision Kit (Asus 23 inch 120Hz VG236H + NVIDIA 3D Glasses)
A nice set of features and specs associated with that $1489 price tag. Of course the model can be configured pretty much however you want it to be and more expensive models include three 23 inch monitors.
For more information on Digital Storm’s 3D machines stroll on over to their website.
Featured tags: desktop digital storm
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July 12th, 2010
Today we took a look at desktops and came cross the new DX4840 range from Gateway. The DX4840 sports i3 or i5 processors, Windows 7 and at least 4GB of memory. Here are the specs on the DX4840-02e model
* Intel® Core™ i5-650 Processor2 3.2GHz with Turbo Boost Technology up to 3.46GHz (4MB L3 Cache)
* Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
* 4096MB DDR3 Dual-Channel 1333MHz Memory
* Expandable to 8GB
* 640GB 7200RPM SATA hard drive
* Integrated Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator HD
* 16X DVD+/-R/RW Super Multi Drive
* High Definition Audio with 5.1-channel Surround Support
* Available Expansion Slots 1 - PCI-E x16, 2 - PCI-E x1, 1 - PCI
* Dimensions (System) 16.23″ (H) x 7.09″ (W) x 16.27″ (D) or 412.24mm (H) x 180mm (W) x 413.2mm (D)
* Gateway® FHX2300 23″ Widescreen LCD Display (1920 x 1080 resolution & 16:9 Aspect Ratio)
* External Ports (10) USB 2.0 ports (4 Front, 6 Rear), VGA, (2) PS/2 Ports, HDMI™, (3) Audio Ports
* Multi-in-One Digital Media Card Reader with Photo Frame Button
* 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN (RJ-45 port)
* 25 lbs. (11.3 kg)
It also rocks in at $800 which isn’t a bad price for a desktop with all these features. We managed to find one review for you to check the full deal on the Gateway DX4840-02e over at PC Mag where they gave it a 4 out of 5, quoting integrated graohics and bloatware are negatives whilst on the upside were the machine’s performance and included monitor.
Featured tags: desktop gateway
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May 11th, 2010
Today we’re going to take a quick look at Dell’s small form factor desktop range, the Inspiron 580. As well as a starting price tag of $529, the Inspiron 580 sports a 4.4 out of 5 average customer rating on the Dell website. All this gets you a i3 processor with 7.1 integrated audio. For all the bells and whistles on the minimal Inspiron 580 read on
* Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit
* Microsoft® Works 9
* Intel® Core™ i3-530 processor(4MB Cache, 2.93GHz)
* 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM at 1066MHz - 4 DIMMs
* Integrated Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator HD
* 320GB - 7200RPM, SATA 3.0Gb/s, 16MB Cache
* Dell 19 in 1 Media Card Reader
* 16X DVD+/-RW Drive
* Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio
* Integrated 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet
Intriguingly there’s no Wi-Fi connectivity in the base unit, but an extra $44 gets you a Linksys Wireless G Compact USB Adapter. As mentioned the base unit will set you back a mere $529 which seems like a decent price for a small desktop. We managed to track down a four star review of the Inspiron 580 over at DesktopReview. Their only downside is that the 580 is a bit on the large size for a small form factor unit, something that could be easily ignored if desired. So all in all we reckon that the Dell Inpsiron 580 is pretty good value for a SMFF desktop.
Featured tags: dell desktop
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December 14th, 2009
Having just looked at Dell’s Mini PC offering for business users, here’s something more suited for the home user. Piixl have launched a cunningly designed media PC, the EdgeCenter 3770, which will fit neatly behind any VESA flat screen HDTV around its mounting unit using its aluminium VTX chassis. The chassis is adjustable to allow the PC to attach itself to the mounting unit to different sizes flat panels. But if course the key thing is what’s inside the unit, so here are the specs for the base Piixl EdgeCenter 3770 unit
* Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 (6MB cache, 3.00 GHz, 1333 MHz FSB)
* Onboard Integrated Nvidia 9300 IGP
* DDR2 memory 667 MHz 2GB Ultra Low Profile
* 500GB HDD 7200 RPM SATA II
* Built-in HDMI audio
* DVD Read/Writer
* Hauppauge HD DVB-T / Analog Hybrid TV Tuner
* Wireless N USB Mini Adapter
* Windows 7 Ultimate 32-bit
* Keyspan Vista Media Center RF Remote Control
* Logitech Wireless Desktop MK300
This base configuration for the EdgeCenter 3770 will set you back 2680 GBP ($4400) which is not cheap but for the convenience of having your media center hidden behind your TV it may not be that much to pay. Of course most of the specs are able to be upgraded to turn the base configuration into a real beast of a PC tucked away behind your display. We’re not so keen on the price but the concept is outstanding.
Source: Piixl
Featured tags: desktop Piixl
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December 12th, 2009
Aimed at the business user with space consideration a top priority, Dell have launched the Optiplex 780 USFF (Ultra Small Form Factor). The base on this unit measures a mere 9.4 x 9.4 inches yet the box contains the usual bits and pieces you’d associate with a ‘normal’ sized desktop. The Optiplex 780 USFF also has a neat $624 price tag with customisations and for that you get the following bells and whistles
* Genuine Windows Vista® Home Basic SP1
* Intel® Celeron® 450 (2.2GHz, 512K, 800MHz FSB)
* 1GB DDR3 Non-ECC SDRAM, 1066MHz, (1 DIMM)
* 160GB 2.5 inch SATA 3.0Gb/s
* Integrated Video, Intel® GMA 4500
* Dell USB 2-Button Entry Mouse with Scroll, Black
* Dell USB Entry Keyboard
Of course there’s no optical drive or monitor, but with most workplace installs done over a network and monitors chip as chips, well almost, the 19 inch Dell E190S will set you back $169, for a touch over $800 you get yourself a corporate desktop. As usual with Dell PCs you can ramp the base Optiplex 780 up a touch with a Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 (2.93GHz) powered unit with 2 GB memory, 320 GB HDD and 8X DVD+/-RW SATA optical drive costing $902. Not bad if you’re looking for something compact for your office workstations.
Source: Dell
Featured tags: dell desktop
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October 22nd, 2009
Apple have upgraded their iMac range with 16:9 ratio displays and Intel’s Nehalem processors. The all-in-one iMacs come in two display sizes, a 21.5 inch 1920 x 1080 res and a nice 27 inch 2560 x 1440 res. Here are some more details about the latest iMacs
* Perfect viewing from almost any angle with IPS technology
* LED backlighting remarkable brightness and efficiency.
* A seamless, precision-forged enclosure makes the back one continuous aluminum surface.
* Apple Wireless Keyboard and the new wireless Magic Mouse
Processor options
* 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3MB shared L2 cache
* 3.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB shared L2 cache
* 2.66GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 processor with 8MB shared L3 cache (27 inch only)
* 2.8GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with 8MB shared L3 cache (27 inch only)
* 4GB (two 2GB SO-DIMMs) of 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM; four SO-DIMM slots support up to 16GB
HDD options
* 500GB Serial ATA 7200 rpm (21.5 inch only)
* 1TB Serial ATA 7200 rpm
* Slot-loading 8x SuperDrive with 4x double-layer burning (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW)
Graphics options
* NVIDIA GeForce 9400M with 256MB of DDR3 SDRAM shared with main memory3 (21.5 inch only)
* ATI Radeon HD 4670 with 256MB of GDDR3 memory
* ATI Radeon HD 4850 with 512MB of GDDR3 memory (27 inch only)
* FireWire 800 port, 4 USB 2.0 ports, SD card slot
* Built-in stereo speakers with two internal 17-watt high-efficiency amplifiers, built-in microphone
* Optical digital audio output/headphone out, optical digital audio input/audio line in
* Ethernet Built-in 10/100/1000BASE-T (Gigabit)
* AirPort Extreme 802.11n Wi-Fi wireless networking
These latest iMacs certainly look very sexy, but is that enough to persuade you to buy one? The price tags don’t look too bad as well, with the 21.5 inch model starting at $1,199 and the 27 inch version at $1,699. Needless to say the higher specced options mentioned above will increase that figure. Crave have started the ball rolling with a review of the 21.5 inch standard model iMac.
If you’re keen it’s worth checking the two models out over at Amazon (21.5
and 27
) where they are available for pre-order.
Featured tags: apple desktop
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Posted in Hardware by JB | 2 Comments »
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