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Silvertone KL02 Case

This post was written for Overclockers Online by Jared Thomas.

Manufacturer: SilverStone

Silverstone has long been a company known for their high quality full tower cases and elegant home theater PC cases. While their Temjin series of cases always garner a lot of attention for high quality and great cooling, they also make mid tower cases for those seeking something a little, more modest in size but with the same quality.

It has been quite some time since I decided that a mid tower was not enough room and moved into a full tower case. While full tower cases offer more roomy interiors, they also are much larger on the outside and such not everyone has the room to accommodate such size in their office. Today I am taking a look at their latest in the Kublai series, the KL02B-W, aiming to offer high quality construction like the Temjin series without all of the high end features. The KL02B-W still offers a variety of unique features, read on to find out how well it all comes together.

Package

The KL02B-W comes in a black and dark blue box, matching the color style of the case itself.

On the front of the box you get an exterior view with a list of features. On the back is an exploded view with a few of the features highlighted.

Tags: case, Chassis, KL02, Overclockers Online, Review, Silverstone

. 30 Mar 08 | Reviews, Technology | Comments (0)

HIS Radeon HD 3450

Manufacturer: HIS Digital

HIS is one of the better known video card manufacturers when it comes to ATI-based cards. I’m sure you have seen several of their products reviewed here at Overclockers Online. Before continuing further, I must admit I am an NVIDIA fan and that this is the first ATI card I am getting my hands on in about 4 years – my last ATI card was a Radeon 9000 Pro.

In the past two years, the term “high definition” has become a household term. Video card manufacturers, such as ATI, have embraced it as well such as in the case of the Radeon HD series. In this review, we will be taking a look at the Radeon HD 3450 from HIS.

Package

HIS has opted to go with a relatively small package for the HD 3450. The front is heavily adorned with a graphic that looks like abstract art. The model name is clearly displayed, as well as HIS’s logo. Icons flaunting several features are also present. These include a sticker that says “HIS Certified 0dB Silence” in reference to the passive cooler on the card that we will take a look at shortly. Also, we can see that the 256MB DDR2 equipped, PCI-Express 2.0 based HD 3450 supports ATI CrossFireX technology, and HDMI output with 1080p “Full HD” capability. A DVI-to-HDMI adaptor is also pictured.

Tags: 3450, AMD, ATI, hightech information system, Overclockers Online, Review, video card

. 26 Mar 08 | Reviews, Technology | Comments (6)

Zalman CNPS7500-Cu

Manufacturer: Zalman

Not too long ago I had the opportunity to try out Zalman’s newest water cooling system, the Reserator XT, and their latest heatsink aimed at the HTPC and small form factor market, the CNPS8700 LED. Today I am taking a look at one of their desktop products, the CNPS7500-CU. The 7500-CU follows suit with Zalman’s long line of ‘flower’ heatsinks and looks to continue their reputation for quality and silence. Read on to find out how their latest heatsink performs.

Package and Specifications

The packaging is pretty much identical to the packaging of the CNPS8700 LED that was reviewed earlier. You get a clear view of the heatsink inside and you are clearly told that it is compatible with the latest Intel and AMD CPU’s.

Tags: CNPS, CNPS-7500, cooler, HSF, Overclockers Online, Review, Zalman

. 23 Mar 08 | Reviews, Technology | Comments (4)

Samsung 2493HM

Manufacturer: Samsung

Another day and another monitor review! Typically, a monitor is characterized by its function, as display for digital content, but beyond the basic display capabilities of a monitor, innovation is what defines a monitor as more than a mere display, but a piece with a purpose and place in one’s home.

Samsung has been in the consumer electronic market for quite some time now, they have not only the experience, but an enormous, ever- growing line of products as well to show for it. Samsung has made numerous appearances here at Overclockers Online with an impressive showing of printers, digital audio devices, and of course monitors!

At Macworld 2008, Samsung unveiled two brand new monitors, the 2493HM and the 2693HM, both offering Full HD 1080P, 1920x 1080 pixel resolution, HDMI connectivity, 10 000:1 contrast ratio and a 5ms response time. Beyond display specifications, both displays boast a versatile stand, and built in speakers!

Tags: 24", 2493HM, LCD, Monitor, Overclockers Online, Review, Samsung

. 18 Mar 08 | Reviews | Comments (0)

Noctua NH-U12P

Manufacturer: Noctua
Price: $59.99 @ NCIX.com

Noctua is back at Overclockers Online with another “sound-optimised premium component”. Last time, we looked at a fan from this Austrian company. Today, we have a CPU cooler. Heatpipe-outfitted coolers have become the norm and this one from Noctua is no different.

Featuring four dual heatpipes, tne Noctua NH-U12P tower isn’t unlike other coolers on the market. What makes it unique is the fact that it comes with the amazing NF-P12 fan that I reviewed last time.

Package

The NH-U12P comes in a cubish box that is unmistakenly Noctua thanks to the characteristic color scheme. A small window on the front allows a glimpse of the NF-P12 fan that comes with the cooler as well as some of the heatsink’s fins. A small list of features is present as well as a note that Noctua’s own NT-H1 thermal compound is included.

An extensive list of heatsink and fan specifications can be found on the top of the box. Note that the heatsink can accommodate up to two 120mm fans.

Tags: heatsink fan, NH-U12P, Noctua, Overclockers Online, Review

. 15 Mar 08 | Reviews | Comments (0)

OCZ 2x2048MB PC8000 DDR2 (OCZ2P10004GK)

OCZ Platinum 2x2048MB PC2-8000 (OCZ2P10004GK)

Manufacturer: OCZ Technology Inc.

The word on “buzz street” as of late has been DDR3 and all the performance that it brings. Well, that is “buzz street” and today, we are reporting live from reality square where money doesn’t grow on trees. In this wonderful land of reality, performance isn’t something that can be discarded either. That is the joy of reality. Performance is still a requirement alongside budget and cost effective purchases. As we all know, DDR2 memory prices have dropped like the titanic in the North Atlantic this past year, but what does DDR2 still have to offer us computer enthusiasts aside from value?\

In addition to enthusiasts, DDR2 still has a lot of things to offer all computer users. Everyday computer users are really going to want to stick around today because what we are looking at from OCZ Technology isn’t just for the benchmarking, overclocking, teenager with too much disposable income. We are taking a good look at the biggest asset DDR2 memory still has to offer the computer public…size, lots of it at an amazing price. Not only can DDR2 offer gobs of system memory with staunch performance, but with the Platinum PC2-8000 2x2GB kit from OCZ, it can be had for pretty much pennies a glass.

OCZ Technology has long been a mainstay in the system memory industry and always at the top of the list for system builders everywhere. At one point OCZ was thought of as a hardware junkie’s memory supplier but that couldn’t be further from the truth these days. OCZ has a wide selection of memory options at every level and for every budget. They offer lifetime warranty on all of their performance memory and back it up with some of the best customer service and technical support in the business. Let’s get started with a look at this 4GB kit of high performance Platinum memory that is priced extremely well for use in anyone’s Windows Vista powered system.

Package & Contents

The OCZ platinum series utilizes their XTC heat sinks so there isn’t too much that is new as far as visuals go with this kit. The package is also something we have see a number of times so we won’t spend much time there as well.

Tags: 2x2GB, 4GB, DDR2, DDR2-1000, memory, OCZ, Overclockers Online, PC2-8000, RAM

. 12 Mar 08 | Reviews | Comments (3)

BlueLounge Pop

Manufacturer: BlueLounge

Price: $9.95 from Bluelounge

Introduction

I’ll admit it, when I was asked to take a look at “some cable management products”, I was not at all excited. Cable management products are a stark contrast from the types of toys we usually play with here at Overclockers Online!

So who is Bluelounge and what exactly do they offer? Bluelounge was established as a multidisciplinary design studio by two designers, Dominic Symons and Melissa Sunjaya. This unique union of design and art has turned its spotlight to pursue elegant solutions for every day problems.

Bluelounge’s purpose, creed, and while origin is unknown, this famous quote which is often attributed to Einstein holds an incredible amount of truth. In humanities ever insatiable desire to learn we tend to over synthesize and over compound ideas, to the point where they become unrecognizable to the state in which they were conceived.

Today we will be taking a look at the POP by Bluelounge which is aimed at tackling the age old problem of tangled ear bud cords.

Package and Contents

One of Bluelounge’s goals is to “[...]to transform even the most everyday items into objects of desire.” Bluelounge follows through with this even down to the packaging.

While the front does not give away too many clues, the back of the package does an excellent job describing the products function, simply put: pop, wrap, clip.