Bga 437(ON-BOARD),NVIDIA MCP7A-ION Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Using WD Green 3.5" drive, 2x2GB DDR3, 90W Adapter, DVD Drive, 120mm fan at low speed.
Power Consumption:
1W @ OFF
2W @ Sleep (Win 7)
26W @ Idle
30W @ 1080p h.264 mkv
32 @ 1080p h.264 + hulu 480 p (Flash 10.1RC)
Overclocking:
I had it POST at 2.3GHZ, but doubt it would have been stable.
Finally settled on setting FSB at 666, which sets CPU @ 2ghz.
This let me set the memory to exactly 1200mhz, which I've found to be the highest this MB will go for memory. I had it stable at 2.13GHZ, but could only set memory at 1185ghz or so.Pros:
-N Wifi works great, better even than my previous full size Rosewill N Card
-Integrated bluetooth picks up my Logitech Dinovo keyboard
-plays my HULU, Netflix, and h.264 files just great (having installed Flash 10.1 RC)
-takes DDR3 memory, which uses less power and is now cheaper than DDR2.
-Win 7 seems snappy enough at 1.6ghz, but easily overclockable to 2.0ghz. I had it stable at 2.13Ghz, but I couldn' set the memory to 1200mhz.
-Comes with Laptop power adapter and the molex adapter that plugs into the MB can power 3 Sata devices, which GREATLY reduces wire clutter
Cons:
Hotter than expected, was hoping for completely fanless, but I'm not comfortable with this:
Cold boot temp was 35 CPU, 25 MB, but temp approached 65 CPU/ 45 MB when running 1080p video.
This is normal, considering it is a high powered GPU.
I read about a fanless Zotac board hitting 71C and no crashing problems.
Regardless, I threw a 120mm fan on the heatsink, which I cannot hear after setting to Silent in BIOS.
Motherboard reserves 512MB for itself, plus another 256-512MB for the GPU. So my OS reports only 3 of my 4GB, so make sure you have 2x2GB memory, else you'll end up with 1GB usable for the system.IMHO, This board is definitely a better value than Zotac's equivalent offering.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Bga 437(ON-BOARD),NVIDIA MCP7A-ION

Click here for more information about Bga 437(ON-BOARD),NVIDIA MCP7A-ION

Read More...

HP Mini 1000 Notebook (Intel Atom Processor N270 1.60GHz, 10.2" LED Brightview Infinity Display, 1GB DDR2 RAM, 60GB PATA Hard Drive, Windows XP Home) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I just picked up the HP Mini 1000 with 10-inch screen, 1GB of system RAM and 60GB hard drive today for a family member and it's a great notebook. Technically, it's a "netbook" because it uses the low voltage Intel Atom processor and uses a smaller screen. Basically, a "netbook" is just a compact, lightweight notebook that has a weak processor and generally a smaller hard drive and less RAM than a full notebook.
The benefit of the Mini 1000 is that it's extremely easy to take with you everywhere, and unlike most netbooks this computer actually has a reasonably large keyboard that makes it easy to type.
Although the Atom processor isn't as fast as other new dual-core processors found in full-size notebooks, the Atom has more than enough power for web browsing, working in Microsoft Office, listening to iTunes, or very basic photo editing (although I wouldn't suggest buying a netbook for Photoshop work).
I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the built-in speakers on this netbook. You can listen to iTunes songs and movies without needing to use earbuds (unless you don't want other people to hear what you're listening to).
There are only two minor issues that I have with the Mini 1000. First, the mouse buttons are located on the sides of the touchpad rather than underneath the touchpad ... which takes time getting used to. The other is the fact that the "Infinity Display" is highly reflective which makes it hard to read the screen outdoors in bright sunlight or while you're inside your car during the day. Under normal indoor lighting the screen is gorgeous, but take it outside and you can't see what's on the screen because of the reflections on the screen. If you don't use your notebook much outside this isn't a problem.
Overall, this is a great netbook.

Click Here to see more reviews about: HP Mini 1000 Notebook (Intel Atom Processor N270 1.60GHz, 10.2" LED Brightview Infinity Display, 1GB DDR2 RAM, 60GB PATA Hard Drive, Windows XP Home)

Click here for more information about HP Mini 1000 Notebook (Intel Atom Processor N270 1.60GHz, 10.2" LED Brightview Infinity Display, 1GB DDR2 RAM, 60GB PATA Hard Drive, Windows XP Home)

Read More...