| Build a PC: Recommended Builds (May 2014) Posted: 07 May 2014 01:48 PM PDT Baseline, performance, and ultra PC builds! What time is it? It's time to Build a PC with our Blueprints! This month, we've built three rigs at three approximate price points: Baseline, Performance, and Ultra. Baseline gets you a powerful system for gaming and content creation at 1080p, Performance beefs everything up across the board, and Ultra lets the dogs out. These rigs are lab-tested and editor-approved. Prices listed here reflect print time and may not match the ones you find elsewhere online. In addition, Newegg has jumped on board to offer packaged deals for each of the builds below in an attempt to offer a better overall value. To see these bundle prices, click the "Buy-or-get-more-info-at-Newegg" button at the bottom of each build. Feedback is welcome. Tell us what you think! Note: Some of the prices/links listed below may not show up properly if this page is ad-blocked.
| Ingredients | | Part | Component | Price | | Case | Corsair Vengeance C70 | $108 | | PSU | Rosewhill Hive 750W | $90 | | Mobo | Gigabyte G1.Sniper Z87 | $168 | | CPU | Intel Core i5-4670K | $240 | | Cooler | Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO | $35 | | GPU | EVGA GeForce GTX 760 2GB 02G-P4-3765-KR | $280 | | RAM | 2x 4GB G.SKILL Ares Series | $65 | | Optical Drive | Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD Burner | $20 | | SSD | Samsung 840 EVO 250GB | $155 | | HDD | Seagate Barracuda 1TB ST1000DM003 | $65 | Total = $1226
| Click here to see the live bundle price:  | We call this build the "baseline" because it's the bare framework for an expandable system. For example, a single video card doesn't need anywhere near 750 watts of power, but those watts are reserved for a second GPU down the road. The Gigabyte G1.Sniper Z87 motherboard is also well-suited for dual video cards and can deliver respectable overclocking, and the Intel Core i5-4670K is a high-grade workhorse to pair with it. The Corsair C70 case gives you plenty of options for cooling, too, so you can always upgrade from a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo air cooler to a closed-loop liquid cooler later. The Nvidia GeForce GTX 760 remains the best bang-for-the-buck GPU, but this month we went from the SC version to the vanilla ACX, due to pricing fluctuations. 
| Ingredients | | Part | Component | Price | | Case | NZXT Phantom 530 | $130 | | PSU | XFX P1-850B-BEFX 850W | $145 | | Mobo | Asus Sabertooth X79 | $320 | | CPU | Intel Core i7-4820K | $305 | | Cooler | Corsair Hydro Series H100i | $105 | | GPU | EVGA GeForce GTX 780 03G-P4-3784-KR | $530
| | RAM | 4x 4GB G.SKILL Ripjaws F3-12800CL9Q-16GBRL | $150 | | Optical Drive | LG WH14NS40 Blu-ray Burner | $68 | | SSD | Samsung 840 Evo 500GB MZ-7TE500BW | $280 | | HDD | Seagate Barracuda 3TB ST3000DM001 | $110 | TOTAL = $2143
| Click here to see the live bundle price: | The 280mm NZXT Kraken X60 CPU cooler's availability was sketchy at press time, so we replaced it with the Corsair Hydro Series H100i. At 240mm, its radiator is a bit smaller, but it's quiet and reliable. We're sticking with the Core i7-4820K CPU since it's an LGA 2011 part, so it offers more bandwidth for multi-GPU setups than a Haswell-based LGA 1150 system. The CPU is slower in some tests than a Haswell part, though, so it's not for everyone. The GeForce GTX 780 is a great card for gaming at 2560 resolution, and two of them can handle Ultra HD quite well, should we feel the need to upgrade in the future. The NZXT Phantom 530 case has lots of room for activities, so we're sticking with it for now. 
| Ingredients | | Part | Component | Price | | Case | Corsair Obsidian 900D | $320 | | PSU | Silverstone Strider Gold Evolution 1200w | $230 | | Mobo | Asus X79 Deluxe | $340 | | CPU | Intel Core i7-4930K | $580 | | Cooler | Cooler Master Nepton 280L | $140 | | GPU | 2x EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti 03G-P4-2884-KR | $1400
| | RAM | 4x 4GB G.SKILL Ripjaws F3-12800CL9Q-16GBRL | $150 | | Optical Drive | LG WH14NS40 Blu-ray Burner | $68 | | SSD | Samsung 840 Evo 1TB MZ-7TE1T0BW | $460 | | HDD | Seagate Desktop HDD.15 4TB ST4000DM000 | $165 | TOTAL = $3853
| Click here to see the live bundle price: | The high-end landscape will be seeing some major shifts over the next few months. Nvidia just announced the GeForce GTX Titan Z, which combines two GTX Titan Blacks onto one dual-slot card, and AMD recently dropped the Radeon R9 295X2, which combines two R9 290Xs onto one dual-slot card with an integrated closed-loop liquid cooler (CLC). These are some monster products. Intel's LGA 2011 platform will be seeing an upgrade to Haswell architecture, eight cores with sixteen threads, DDR4, SATA Express, and bunches of native SATA 6Gb/s ports. So what you're looking at is the calm before the storm. This rig is still highly respectable, though (as it should be, for this kind of money). The Corsair Obsidian 900D super-tower case has easily fit every CLC we've ever used, and it won't break a sweat over complicated custom loops, either. The 1200-watt Silverstone Strider Evolution will handle three GPUs easily. Speaking of which, we're holding steady with two GeForce GTX 780 Ti video cards, but if you prefer AMD's Radeon tech, their 295X2 is a fine challenger. |
| PowerColor Teases New Devil 13 Graphics Card, Leaked Photos Suggest Radeon R9 295X2 Posted: 07 May 2014 10:59 AM PDT  PowerColor's next Devil 13 graphics card may require four 8-pin PCI-E power connectors
You might of expected hell would freeze over before you'd ever see a graphics card with the audicaty to demand four -- yes FOUR! -- 8-pin PCI-Express power connectors. You'd also be wrong. Maybe, anyway -- if leaked photos posted to a Chinese language web forum turn out to be legitimate, then PowerColor's upcoming Devil 13 Radeon R9 295X2 dual-GPU graphics card will have a hellish thirst for electricity. Here's what we know for sure -- PowerColor is conjuring up another Devil 13 graphics card. We know this because the company teased a Devil 13 photograph on its Facebook page with the caption, "Something very special is coming in May... dare to guess?" Guesses might not be necessary, as a handful of blurry photos (aren't they always?) posted to Chip Hell show what the poster claims is PowerColor's Devil 13 Radeon R9 295X2 graphics card. One of the photos shows a row of 8-pin PCI-E connectors, four in all, waiting to be filled. That's twice as many as found on a reference Radeon R9 295X2. 
The rest of the card sports an aggressive design that takes up three slots looks authentic, so we're inclined to believe this is the real deal. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Seagate Increases Capacity of Wireless Plus External Drives Posted: 07 May 2014 10:32 AM PDT  New capacities and cloud capabilities highlight Seagate's latest batch of Wireless Plus HDDs
Seagate this week unveiled a new family of Wireless Plus mobile storage solutions that offer more capacity and features than the previous generation. The Wireless Plus line is now available in 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB capacities and come with integrated cloud services, including Dropbox and Google Drive. These are designed for a wide range of mobile devices and platforms, such as Android tablets and smartphones, iPhone, Kindle Fire, Windows 8 PCs, and just about any device with Wi-Fi connectivity. "Wireless connectivity is a feature that has been added to external storage over the last couple of years; it provides the convenience of high capacity and easy sharing for mobile devices that are limited in their storage capabilities," said Ross Rubin, principal analyst at Reticle Research. "Now, with the integrating of popular cloud storage services to these products, there exists an invaluable bridge to even more content." Using the included Seagate Media app, you can sync your files on the Seagate Wireless Plus storage device with an existing cloud storage provider. It creates your own Dropbox or Google Drive folder so that files are always available. Once you connect to the network, your files will automatically re-sync. According to Seagate, these drives offer up to 10 hours of battery life. Seagate's Wireless Plus drives are available now in 2TB ($200 MSRP) and 1TB ($180 MSRP) capacities. The 500GB model ($150) will be available on Friday. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Crucial Starts Sampling DDR4 Memory for Server Applications Posted: 07 May 2014 09:54 AM PDT  The transition to DDR4 RAM has begun
We're eagerly awaiting the arrival of DDR4 memory into the mainstream market, though it's going to take some time. After all, Intel's next generation Z97 chipset still uses the DDR3 standard, though on the bright side, a transition is slowly taking place. One of the driving forces is Crucial, a subsidiary of Micron, which has begun sampling next-generation DDR4 server memory through its new Technology Enablement Program. Crucial's DDR4 memory is designed to enable next generation enterprise environments with data rates that start at 2133 MT/s -- that's up to twice as fast as DDR3 when it was first introduced, and it's expected to get even faster as the technology matures, Crucial says. When paired with Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 v3 product family-based systems, Crucial DDR4 memory doubles memory bandwidth from 8.5GB/s to 17GB/s while using up to 20 percent less voltage than DDR3 (it operates at 1.2V compared to 1.5V). It's up to 40 percent more energy efficient than DDR3. "Memory is one of the biggest limitations when it comes to enterprise server environments. Many memory-dependent server applications are crucial to the day-to-day operations of a business, but they require higher densities of memory and increased performance," said Michael Moreland, worldwide product marketing manager, Crucial. "Crucial DDR4 memory enables servers to perform faster and run more efficiently than ever before, reducing power and cooling expenses along the way – essential for meeting the ever-increasing workload demands of data centers." Crucial didn't say how much its DDR4 modules cost, though it did point out that it backs its DDR4 RAM with a lifetime warranty. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Origin PC Upgrades Desktops Systems with Intel 9 Series Z97 Motherboards Posted: 07 May 2014 08:51 AM PDT  Boutique builder jumps on Intel's Z97 platform
If you're anxious to make the leap to Intel's 9 Series platform, boutique system builder Origin PC is more than happy to oblige. In fact, Origin PC is the first custom PC builder to announce the availability of motherboards based on Intel's next-generation Z97 chipset. You'll find the Z97 motherboard option in Origin PC's Genesis, Millennium, and Chronos line of desktop PCs. "The new Intel 9-series chipset raises the bar by adding support for solid-state drives in PCIe M.2 form-factor, Intel device protection with boot guard technology and Intel Rapid Storage technology with support for PCI Express-based storage drives. The new 9-series also features support for a new set of Intel Core processors with a speed boost to bring power and efficiency to the next level," Origin PC points out. Gaming desktops build around an Intel X79 motherboard start at $1,159 for the Chronos line, $1,674 for the Millennium line, and $1,736 for the Genesis line. To give an example of a configuration, the Genesis at $1,736 comes with a Gigabyte GA-Z97X-SLI motherboard, Intel Core i5 4460 quad-core processor clocked at 3.2GHz (3.4GHz Turbo Boost), 8GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3-1600 memory, 500GB hard drive (7200 RPM), 650W Corsair RM650 power supply, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit, and a few other tidbits. You can shop Origin PC's refreshed gaming desktops now. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Asus Builds a Pair of Chromebooks Powered by Intel's Bay Trail-M Posted: 07 May 2014 08:23 AM PDT  Next generation Chromebook models boast all-day battery life
With Intel throwing its weight behind Google's Chromebook platform, get ready for a barrage of announcements based on its Bay Trail-M and 4th Generation Core i3 processor line. To kick things off, Asus just rolled out a pair of Chromebooks built around Intel's Bay Trail-M dual-core N2830 processor clocked at 2.42GHz. They include the 11.6-inch C200 and 13.3-inch C300. Both feature a 1366x768 resolution, though the C200 wields a glossy display while the C300's panel is non-glossy. Other than the display, size, and weight, the C200 and C300 share the same feature-set, including 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, 720p HD webcam, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, HDMI 1.4, audio jack combo, SD card slot, and of course Google's Chrome OS. The extra-spacious touchpad supports multi-finger gestures, while the chiclet keyboard is "engineered with a high quality mechanism for a solid fee with responsive and accurate action," Asus says. Watch for the Asus Chromebook C200 and C300 to land on U.S. shores at the end of June starting at $250. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Newegg Daily Deals: NZXT Phantom Black Case, WD Black Series 1TB HDD, and More! Posted: 07 May 2014 08:08 AM PDT |
