Mainstream is 3650 TOP

HD 3650 REVIEWS aren’t as numerous online as their 3800 series counterparts, but they are out there. Rusted Reviews has one, an Asus EAH3650 TOP to be more precise. In essence, it has about the same firepower as an HD 2600XT with a lower price tag and power consumption. Given a little nudge in the right direction – you could do a cheapo Crossfire combo with two of these (and get to the 512MB frame buffer sweet spot!). It’s an upgrader’s delight thinks TR.

Techenclave isn’t your usual hardware site full of zany comments and outrageous english. It’s actually a nice serious hardware site - based in India - and has a buzzing community forum where you can find this particular article. It’s a review of Dell’s gargantuan 3008WFP TFT, the famed 30-incher that knocks your socks off at 2560x1600. Good work all-round on the review...

Another forum that’s producing some interesting threads: Bjorn3D. The moderators are showing off a little gadget from Nvidia called System Tools (the chaps at marketing didn’t get their hands on it, we’re sure). Essentialy it’s an overall system frontend that lets you control every little detail of your system’s performance, from CPU, to mobo, to GPU, to RAM. From the screenies we’re pretty sure it isn’t final, but the article has a link to the app.

Foxconn builds mobos for many companies, but as of late market their MARS-branded Quantum Force-range of mobos – this is confusing, we know. OCC has a review of the Foxconn MARS P35. It’s targeted at enthusiasts, as you’d expect from this particular label of mobos, but comes with a unique “Gladiator BIOS” feature where you can tweak voltage and frequencies to your heart’s content. They liked it.

Silent PC Review is serving up a dose of power supply with a side order of revisionism. Seasonic revamped their M12 line and created the M12II-430, a modular PSU with a really high efficiency rating. It’s rated at 430W and pretty silent, which means it’s purpose-built for HTPC systems. It’s one of those cases where the sequel looks like it was done by a different director. Read the script here.

Adrian Wong has been talking about Intel chipsets and CPUs on TechARP today, and explores the current state of affairs of Intel CPUs –Duos to Quads. He insists Intel won’t be putting out 1600MHz Duos, or anything other than the Extremely Expensive ones. He does however point out that X48 is officially the first chipset to support 1600MHz FSB – which is strange since Intel is seeding QX9770s with X38 mobos like the one sitting on my desk right now. Odd thing to do... He does make a valid point about the CPUs tho’.

Anandtech is doing something out of the ordinary, it's reviewing a PC. Not a chipset, not a CPU, not a platform, but a bona fide retail computer system! Well, it is retail, although you aren’t likely to see it in any shop near you (unless you live in Chicago). We’re talking about the Überclok Ion. This is a serious gaming PC that’s priced a little below the likes of Voodoo PC, XPS and Falcon Northwest – and built with choice components. It’s got a decent price and an OC-proof warranty. Read it here.

Hiper – the Milton Keynes-based company - is crossing into the ATX market right now, and XBit is doing their thing with the Anubis ATX case. As a first in a new segment there’s a lot of kinks to work out from the case, but it shows a lot of promise – in particular for cooling geeks. Read on. µ