Hardware Canucks » Reviews

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Review

skymtl — Thu, 23 May 2013 12:59:23 +0000

With the GTX 600-series slightly more than a year old, NVIDIA is now ready to start refreshing their GeForce lineup once again. The first card out of the gate is their GTX 780, a $649 GK110-based flagship which boasts performance that’s within spitting distance of the ultra expensive GTX TITAN.

Seagate Desktop HDD.15 4TB Hard Drive Review

skymtl — Tue, 21 May 2013 01:21:36 +0000

Seagate has begun a complete top to bottom refresh of their hard drive lineup and the Desktop HDD.15 4TB is their latest addition. This HDD houses impressive amounts of storage space and even though its 5900RPM speed may be slow by today’s standards, performance is actually quite surprising.

Intel 525 Series 120GB & 180GB mSATA SSD Review

skymtl — Sun, 12 May 2013 03:04:08 +0000

mSATA SSD drives are all the rage these days and Intel is now jumping head first into the market with their new 525 Series. In this review, we take a look at the 120GB and 180GB versions, two drives which are striving to dominate this segment.

Cougar Spike Mini Tower Review

skymtl — Sun, 12 May 2013 02:54:19 +0000

Have you heard of the Cougar Spike? Likely not but despite its ridiculously low price of just $35, this is a fully featured case. It may not offer any unique features but the Spike somehow makes things work quite well and becomes a front runner in the budget enclosure market.

Seagate SSHD Thin 500GB Review

skymtl — Thu, 02 May 2013 17:37:00 +0000

Seagate’s so-called “hybrid” solutions have been around for a while, successfully combining the capacity of a hard drive with the speed of an SSD. Their new SSHD series takes this mantra to the next level by increasing efficiency while also incorporating a number of significant upgrades.

hUMA; AMD’s Heterogeneous Unified Memory Architecture Revealed

skymtl — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 04:02:02 +0000

The new Heterogeneous Unified Memory Architecture (or hUMA) is part of AMD’s HSA feature set and will make its way into the Kaveri APUs. It is supposed to provide a unified memory address space for both the CPU and GPU, potentially increasing throughput by leveraging both processors in parallel.

AMD Radeon HD 7990 6GB Review; Malta Arrives

skymtl — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 04:00:13 +0000

AMD’s HD 7990 has been rumored for more than a year but now it’s finally here. With it, we get a pair of Tahiti XT cores, 6GB of memory and an insanely quiet heatsink all wrapped into a $999 card that’s supposed to go head to head against NVIDIA’s GTX 690.

Fractal ARC Midi R2 Review

skymtl — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 04:36:43 +0000

The newest addition to Fractal Design’s award winning lineup is the new Arc Midi R2, a case which may be compact but is crammed full of features and innovative add-ons. More importantly, the Midi R2 is supposed to improve upon its predecessor in every way possible.

Kingston SSDNow V300 240GB SSD Review

skymtl — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 03:19:10 +0000

Value means a lot in today’s SSD market and Kingston’s V300 series focuses on exactly that. With a combination of great performance alongside a highly competitive price and adequate capacity, the V300 240GB could be a perfect drive for first time SSD buyers and enthusiasts alike.

Dell UltraSharp U2713H 27” AH-IPS Monitor Review

skymtl — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 01:52:58 +0000

Dell’s new UltraSharp U2713H may be one of this year’s best monitors. With an AH-IPS PremierColor panel, an ultra wide color gamut and plenty of other high-end features, it is meant as a replacement for their highly-regarded U2711 and could go head to head against Apple’s vaunted Cinema Display line.

Cooler Master Storm Scout 2 Advanced Review

skymtl — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 03:01:10 +0000

The original Scout was one of the most highly regarded gaming cases when it was first released. Now, Cooler Master has introduced the Scout 2 which is available in standard and a so-called “Advanced” configurations, both of which aim to improve upon the original in nearly every way possible.

GTX 650 Ti Boost Roundup (ASUS, EVGA, Galaxy, Gigabyte, MSI)

skymtl — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 02:12:00 +0000

NVIDIA’s $170 GTX 650 Ti Boost has quickly become the go-to choice for gamers on a budget and board partners have been quick to jump on board. In this roundup, we take a look at cards from ASUS, EVGA, Gigabyte, Galaxy and MSI, none of which cost in excess of $10 more than the reference version.

Seagate Constellation ES.3 4TB Hard Drive Review

skymtl — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 03:02:23 +0000

Seagate’s new ES.3 series is their latest salvo in the enterprise hard drive market. With a capacity of up to 4TB, incredible performance, increased longevity over standard drives and a five year comprehensive warranty, it sets a new high water mark in this increasingly critical storage segment.

AZIO GM-2000 Gaming Mouse Review

skymtl — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 03:15:18 +0000

With a lack of software and a mostly standard design AZIO’s new $40 GM-2000 gaming mouse takes a basic, no-frills approach which is somewhat refreshing in a market cluttered with overly complicated competitors. However, will its simple plug and play functionality ultimately turn gamers off due to a lack of customization options?

Phanteks PH-TC14PE & PH-TC12DX CPU Coolers Review

skymtl — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 01:54:38 +0000

Phanteks originally launched their TC14PE heatsink to widespread acclaim. In this review we take a look at that iconic cooler alongside its newer TC12DX sibling to see how they stack up against comparably priced air and water cooling solutions.

NVIDIA GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB Review

skymtl — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 11:58:30 +0000

NVIDIA’s new GTX 650 Ti Boost 2GB is a card which has the potential to shake up the graphics card market. It is supposed to outperform a HD 7850 2GB while costing just $169 and is being released at the same time NVIDIA is dropping the price on many other GeForce cards. This represents the first phase in what will be an all-out assault on AMD’s position over the next few months.

Fractal Design Define R4 Review

skymtl — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 04:20:32 +0000

Fractal’s Define R4 may not be the newest case on the market but it is one of the most popular currently available. The $110 R4 follows closely in the footsteps of its Define series predecessors while improving in several key areas.

AMD Radeon HD 7790 Review

skymtl — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 03:58:54 +0000

AMD hasn’t been able to muster up a competitor against NVIDIA’s $149 GTX 650 Ti for the better part of 6 months but that’s about to change with the introduction of the HD 7790. By utilizing the brand new Bonaire core, AMD has been able to hit a near-perfect blend of performance and efficiency. Budget-conscious gamers should sit up and take notice.

Intel 335 Series 180GB SSD Review

skymtl — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 02:29:53 +0000

Intel’s new 335 Series 180GB offers something for everyone. From performance, to efficiency, to longevity this new SSD incorporates features normally seen on high end drives but it is wrapped up into a package which comes in under the $175 mark. For anyone who wants lightning fast boot times on a budget, it doesn’t get any better than this.

NVIDIA GTX TITAN vs. SLI & Crossfire

skymtl — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 03:25:50 +0000

NVIDIA’s GTX TITAN is the highest priced graphics cards on the market so parallels will naturally be drawn between it an dual card setups. In this article, we look at now it lines up against SLI and Crossfire setups of the GTX 680, GTX 670, HD 7970 GHz Edition and HD 7950 Boost, all of which happen to be less expensive.

Detailing Richland’s Dual Graphics & GCN Compatibility

skymtl — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 03:39:02 +0000

Considering their architectural differences, AMD’s VLIW4-based Richland APUs and the Sea Islands’ HD 8000M series may seem like strange bedfellows. However, AMD has somehow allowed them to work together in Dual Graphics mode in order to enhance graphics performance.

AMD Richland APU Preview: Trinity Gets a Facelift

skymtl — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 11:59:59 +0000

AMD have officially revealed the upcoming Richland APUs, which represent a unique amalgamation of old architecture with new, updated features and additional performance benefits for the mobile market. Richland will replace Trinity and compete with Intel’s 2013 releases by offering better battery life and higher clock speeds.

Corsair Hydro H90 & H110 CPU Coolers Review

skymtl — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 02:35:31 +0000

The All in One water cooling market’s move towards 140mm form factors has been a tentative one but with their new Hydro H90 and H110, Corsair is plunging in head first. Both offer different performance levels, sizes and price points and are ultimately supposed to combat NZXT’s successful Kraken series.

NZXT Phantom 630 Review

skymtl — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 03:40:52 +0000

NZXT’s Phantom series is both popular and polarizing but there’s no denying these cases are also well designed. The latest iteration, the Phantom 630, incorporates the DNA of past designs but does so at a lower price point, making it infinitely more accessible for budget minded gamers.

SanDisk Ultra Plus 256GB SSD Review

skymtl — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 03:19:37 +0000

SanDisk’s Ultra Plus 256GB is a different type of SSD. It uses a new Marvell Van Gogh controller and advanced 19nm NAND which combine to make an extremely advanced design with a price of under $215. But it needs to overcome some serious competition in order to make any headway in this cut throat market.

Cooler Master Seidon 240M CPU Cooler Review

skymtl — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 03:12:16 +0000

Cooler Master’s Seidon 240M is a closed loop water cooler which uses a dual 120mm design and is supposed to compete against the likes of Corsair’s Hydro series and NZXT’s new Kraken units. It does so by using a custom design and a price that significantly undercuts similar products.

Fractal Design Define XL R2 Review

skymtl — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 02:50:30 +0000

Many cases claim to offer a combination of style, substance, size and price but Fractal Design’s new Define XL R2 is one of the few to actually deliver on its promises. It uses a full tower form factor that offers plenty of interior space and advanced features wrapped into a neutral but striking exterior design.

Dell XPS 12 Convertible Ultrabook Review

skymtl — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 03:42:14 +0000

With the release of Windows 8, Dell has quickly followed up with their XPS 12, a notebook which can also moonlight as a 12″ tablet by way of an innovative flip mechanism. However, is Dell trying to cover too many bases at once? Can the XPS 12 offer the best of both worlds or is this a jack of all trades but master of none?

NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN Performance Review

skymtl — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 13:58:36 +0000

NVIDIA’s new GK110-based GeForce GTX TITAN has taken the PC gaming world by storm but actual benchmarks of its performance against the competition remained elusive. Now, we’re finally able to publish our full review and take the lid off of this incredible graphics card’s prowess.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN; GK110’s Opening Act

skymtl — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:59:18 +0000

NVIDIA’s GK110 has finally made its way into the GeForce lineup with a graphics card aptly named “TITAN”. In this first look, we delve into the TITAN’s architecture, features and specification to set the stage for our upcoming review of NVIDIA’s new $1000 monster.