PC4Free's Technology Review Blog

NesteQ MaxZero Review

2011-03-03T13:36:00.000-08:00

Today we have the MaxZero from NesteQ. This is an 8 channel fan controller which slots into a standard optical drive bay. As well as being able to control the fans it also includes a temperature monitor which allows you to measure temperatures of 4 areas in your case.

What’s in the Box?

The fan controller itself with all of the power cables, fan connectors and temperature probes attached. (The controller is powered by 1 molex connector).

4 Screws for mounting the fan controller in the drive bay.

The manual.

Watch the Unboxing video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOHD6O1idLk

This is a good bundle including all that you will need to get up and running without having to buy any extras, apart from the fans of course. This will support all but the most extreme air cooling with more than 8 fans, not including those attached to your motherboard.

The main use of a fan controller is to keep your computer quiet while doing non-intensive tasks such as web browsing, being able to quickly monitor the temperature and the rate at which the fans are spinning.

The Fan controller has three buttons on the front and is fairly simple to use. It has a nice, large display showing the 4 temperatures and the rotations per minute of all 8 fans. The aesthetically pleasing design is a great positive and also is very functional. Actually changing the fan speed requires you to scroll through all of the fans and could be a little quicker, but still takes only about 10 seconds. You adjust the fans speeds in the pairs and cannot set the individual speed of each fan.

The fan controller also features an alarm system notifying you if your fan speeds are causing a high temperature which could potentially damage your components. You have the option to turn this alarm on and off.

The negative of this fan controller is that its connecting cables are not modular. This means even if you do not have 8 fans to connect you still have tidy the extra cables away. The cables are also yellow and red making them quite visible, which is not what you want when you are trying to achieve a case with good cable management. If the leads had been in black it would have been asy to disguise them.

The fan controller has a 0dba mode in which it slows down the fans so they are inaudible. This is a fantastic feature for the particularly sound-conscious among us. It also allows you to crank your airflow up to full when trying to achieve maximum performance and results in a benchmark or overclocking situation.

In conclusion, this fan controller looks great and performs fantastically. It is ready to go out of the box and really helps you tame the noise of your fans. The only problem is its non-modular cables, but if this is not an issue to you I can highly recommend this controller.

FaceVsion TouchCam N1 HD 720p Webcam

2011-01-27T10:11:00.000-08:00

With us today is the Touchcam N1 from Facevsion. This a Skype Certified 720p webcam with an impressive specification sheet, but how does it perform in real life?

Another swish box; sleek black packaging with compartments seems to be a winning combination. Inside the box we have the camera itself, a CD, some leaflets and a mini-USB cable. Fairly standard package for a webcam; the mini-USB cable could be a little short if your monitor is a long way from your computer.

The camera itself adopts a non-traditional rectangular shape. This allows its dual microphones and 78 degree wide angled lens. The audio quality created by these microphones is very good, especially compared to a laptop’s integrated mic. It does a good job of eliminating background noise and voices sound realistic rather than tinny.

The wide angle lens of the Touchcam allows a wide image allowing multiple people to be in shot at once. The video quality is obviously what it is all about. The N1 promises crystal clear 720p video and it’s true to its word. The depth-of field and colour reproduction is fantastic. The N1 offers very sharp pictures both in screenshots and videos. The built in autofocus works very well, working very quickly and choosing the correct area to focus on.

But won’t HD encoding use up my CPU? Nope, the N1 has a built in H.264 encoding chip meaning it won’t affect your PC’s processor allowing you to complete intensive tasks while video calling. However, to be able to broadcast the HD video you will need a good broadband connection with fast upload speeds.

As for mounting the camera, it uses a two hinged lever. This is lined with rubber to prevent it from slipping and it is easy to secure on both a monitor and a laptop. However if you don’t sit straight on to your monitor if is hard to adjust the view. The hinge also has no horizontal swivel meaning you can’t easily adjust it while in a call or when mounting it.

Being Skype certified you can just plug it in and go video call crazy, but be warned the webcam doesn’t come with its own recording software.

Weighing in at about £75 this isn’t a cheap webcam and you yourself are not going to see the results it is your callers who will be receiving the upgrade. That said webcam does have a lot going for it; the video and audio quality are superb in comparison with the standard ones integrated in a laptop. Just plug in to your computer and stream. The included autofocus and H.264 chip make it even easier for you especially if using a low powered notebook on the move. Overall this is a great camera only let down by the hinge and the hefty price tag.

Contour HD 1080p Review

2011-01-15T11:01:00.000-08:00

Link to manufacturer: Contour

Today we have the Contour HD 1080p by vHoldR. vHoldR makes a number of cameras such as this and the GPS version with which you can track your location. The Contour HD 1080p is a helmet cam which you can use to capture action sports such as skiing and mountain biking.

The camera comes in a sleek, stylish box.

Included is the camera itself, instructions, the battery, a USB cable, a flat surface mount, a goggle mount and a 2GB memory card comes pre-installed in the Contour.

It is becoming increasingly popular to include memory cards, which is fantastic; when you get your camera you can get it up and running straight away without having to order in yet another memory card. The memory card slot also means you have expandable options of up to 16GB.

As you’ll see from the contents unfortunately no mains adapter is included and so you have to charge the camera through your PC or laptop. Otherwise a pretty standard bundle with what you would expect.

To access the camera’s internals you just slide off the back panel. Available here is the mini-USB port, the memory card, the battery and the switch to change between the resolutions (more on that later).

As you can see the camera is a very small unit and fairly light, weighing 123g (4oz) which is important if you are going to have it mounted on your head. The camera has a nice brushed aluminium finish with a fairly large logo on both sides. The camera has no LCD screen for playback or view-finding to keep a small form factor. To get around this the camera uses 2 lasers to help you get the angle of your shot correct. This is demonstrated in the video review. The camera itself is waterproof which is fairly essential for recording ski runs.

The camera has grooves for mounting on both sides so that you can wear it on either side of your head. There is a large, dimpled switch on top of the camera which starts and stops the recording. This camera is extremely simple to use even when wearing gloves, while mounted on a helmet.

Now on to the actual video recording. The Contour boasts a 135® wide angle lens, the H.264 codec and an internal microphone. As mentioned before the laser view-finding system is very effective and easy to use. The Contour HD can record in 4 different resolutions which are chosen using the switch underneath the back cover. These are:

1090p (1920x1080) 30fps

960p (1280x960) 30fps

720 (1280x720) 60fps or 30fps

WVGS (848x480) 60fps

Personally I have always liked 720p due to its balance between good image quality and fairly small file sizes. The 60fps 720 mode is perfect for capturing action shots which this camera is made for. However the ability for such a small unit to capture full HD 1080p video is very impressive. The camera does perform at its best when filming action shots. The microphone isn’t fantastic being a little quiet, but is clear and acceptable. A video quality test and sample is shown at the end of the YouTube review.

In conclusion I am very impressed with this camera. A good looking, compact unit that is capable of recording 1080p video. The video quality is unbelievable for something this size. For these reasons the Contour HD 1080p is truly deserving of my Silver Award!

Youtube Review:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEIAgYkX3W4

Kingston HyperX 1800 Review

2010-12-26T09:00:00.000-08:00

Link to Manufacturer: Kingston

Kingston is one of the major manufacturers when it comes to RAM, with its HyperX range being the product of choice for a large amount of system builders. HyperX RAM can be classed as an enthusiast product as it generally runs over 1333Mhz, however, it does not break the bank. The kit Kingston have sent me to review is the KHX1800C9D3K2/4G. This is a HyperX ‘Genesis DDR3’ kit comprised of 2x2GB modules which should cost you around the £60 mark. This is a competitively priced kit featuring high memory speeds and a heatsink.

Specifications

DDR3-1800Mhz

Non-ECC

Unbuffered DIMM

4GB 2x2GB

Latency timings: 9-9-9-27

1.7-1.9V

A closer look

Let’s get a little closer and have a look at these modules. They come packed in blister packaging with an information leaflet nestled underneath.

The RAM has a nice, dark-blue heatsink with a raised contoured HyperX logo. This coloration will compliment many motherboards colour schemes from manufacturers such as ASUS and GigaByte.

The Heatsink isn’t any taller than a standard RAM module and so shouldn’t be affected by large CPU coolers. However, some memory in the HyperX range such as the T1 line does have a taller heatsink. The heatsink did a great job of keeping the RAM cool even when overclocked to 2000Mhz. Overall, this is a very good-looking kit with practical dimensions with a colour scheme that will compliment many motherboards.

Performance

Now, to the key part of the review, how the memory actually performs.

As mentioned earlier, this RAM runs at a frequency of 1800Mhz. This is faster than most RAM, even system builders use 1600Mhz the majority of the time. This gives the HyperX an advantage over many competitors.

The rated speed can also aid when overclocking both the CPU and the RAM. For example, you can underclock the RAM and set it to a speed such as 1600Mhz which then gives you a lot of headroom for overclocking. This means you don’t have to drop your memory speeds to below standard when ramping up your processor. This then leads me to overclocking the RAM itself. It was a breeze to crank the HyperX up to 2000Mhz with only a slight adjustment and a little fiddling in the BIOS.

The HyperX has timings of 9-9-9-27 (CAS 9). These are not the tightest timings possible, however the latencies have differing importance depending on the tasks and activities being undertaken.

Value

The Kingston HyperX costs around £60 for the 2x2Gb set, this is slightly more expensive than offerings from competitors such as Corsair where you can get a 2x2Gb kit FOR £45.(however this runs at a slower 1600Mhz). This is not ludicrously over-priced, but you will have to decide for yourself whether it is worth paying the premium.

Benchmarks

Conclusion

In conclusion, this is a fantastic kit of RAM. It looks great, has excellent memory read speeds and is a great overclocker. The only downfall of this is the price in relation to similar alternatives. For these reasons I am awarding the Kingston Hyper X ‘Genesis’ my Silver Award. I can recommend this RAM for those searching for high performance memory.

Video Review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xH_UcmjNDbU

Fractal Design Define XL Review

2010-12-25T06:07:00.000-08:00

Link to Manufacturer: Fractal Design

The Define XL is the new full tower case offered up by Fractal Design. Fractal have been increasing in popularity fairly rapidly and it seems rightly so. They are producing good-looking cases which are easy to build in.

Specifications:

Full tower case

E-ATX motherboard support

10 3.5” Drive bays

4 5.1/4” Drive Bays

Supports full length graphics cards

What’s in the Box?

To find out what’s included with the case watch the unboxing video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwTTxQXnpMA&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL

Unfortunately the case arrived slightly damaged from shipping, the lower section of the front-panel having fallen off. Fortunately this didn’t really affect the function of the case too much and I took this into account when writing and recording the review.

When I use cases I am looking for four things: Cable-management, Noise, Looks and Cooling.

Cable Management

The XL has some of the best cable management solutions I have ever used. It has the rubber grometed cable-routeing holes which have become standard on high-end cases. The gromets are well-placed to effectively route cables to appropriate places. On the back side of the case there is ample room to lay cables upon each other and still be able to close the side panel. There are also loops to attach the included zip-ties to. The PSU cables were stretched due to the large size of the case, just reaching. However, this added to the tidy look of the build overall.

Noise

Another area where the Fractal excels. Noise deadening on the side panels and in the front keep the noise in the Fractal XL to a minimum. The case also has the ‘Modu-Vent’ system where you can choose to replace some sound insulation with a fan.

Looks

The XL looks very sleek with its stylish front door. Its all black interior adds to this – a very nice looking case. However, this case is HUGE, unsurprising really from a case called XL. Don’t take the name lightly.

Cooling

Because of the sound deadening the cooling in the XL isn’t fantastic, the thick material contains the heat. You can choose to replace the ‘Modu-Vent’ with a fan to improve temperatures.

Conclusion

Overall, this is a fantastic case which I am going to give my Silver Award. The only thing preventing this from winning Gold and Editors choice is its thermal capability.

To find out why in more detail and to get a better look check out my video review here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frcEV3Z1HO8

Big thanks to Fractal for sending me this product to review.

Review of the Flip Ultra HD

2010-12-11T14:31:00.000-08:00

Link to Manufacturer: Flip

Flip has become famed for its compact, handheld camcorders with their unique USB flip-out design. At the time of review this camera will set you back around £110 or $172. Now, let’s take a detailed look at what could be set to be a very popular Christmas gift. The Ultra HD is the latest model in the Ultra range; the specifications are as follows:

Resolution: 1280 x 720

Frames per second: 50

H.264 video compression, AAC audio compression, MP4 files format

Fixed Focus Lens

Image stabilisation

Included Rechargeable battery (with 8gb model) 3xAAA batteries can be used

4.16” x 2.11“ x 0.88” 4.5 oz

Packaging:

The Ultra HD comes in a very slick, well presented box.

Included is the Flip itself, some user manuals and warranty information, soft carry pouch, Lithium-ion rechargeable battery and a carry strap.

This is a decent bundle. An excellent inclusion is the soft carry pouch meaning you don’t have to go and spend extra. Another good inclusion is the rechargeable battery (note: the rechargeable battery isn’t included with the 4gb model). Unfortunately, a mini-HDMI cable is not included so if you want to hook the Flip up to your TV you will have to buy that cable separately.

The video where I unbox the Flip to show you its contents can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2FRg6RnPrk

Hardware Tour

As you can see from the pictures the camera has the flip out USB stick using the slider. It features a speaker. On the bottom we have a tripod mount, mini HDMI port, a ‘Flip Port’ (for adding accessories) and a latch to lock the back on.

The camera has a soft, matte feeling which is excellent for gripping onto the camera while feeling really nice to hold. This coating doesn’t smudge and will make the camera comfortable when filming longer clips.

The absence of a SD card slot will probably tell you that the Flip Ultra HD line has built in memory. The benefit of this is it can work out of the box without having to purchase a memory card. However, on the flip side (no pun intended), this means you are stuck with the set amount of memory. This shouldn’t be an issue for most as you can just transfer your clips off the camera onto your PC or Mac.

The small LCD screen is great for quickly checking you captured what you wanted and is surprisingly crisp. Being so small you will want to transfer your videos to your computer or TV to see them properly.

User Interface

Another feature of the Flip is how easy it is to use. There are 7 buttons on the front each which is blatantly obvious to its function. To record, playback and delete is fantastically simple. This simple design makes video-taking quick and easy. A slight problem with this is that you cannot tinker with the settings, but seeing as this is just point and shoot advanced settings were not expected. Overall, the simplicity of the user-interface means even a 5 year old could work this camera.

The software included on the Flip which you can use to upload your pictures from your camera is also really simple and easy to use.

Quality

Now on to the main feature, the quality that this camera produces. The Ultra HD shoots in a resolution of 1280x 720 – a resolution of 720p. It also shoots 50 frames-per-second (fps). This means it should take very high quality video capable of capturing fast action without blurring.

I set to test out a number of features: how good the quality looked, image-stabilisation, how it handled action shots, low light footage, audio quality and some detailed up close video.

The video quality looks fantastic and is ideal for uploading high-quality YouTube videos and home-movies. The video is very crisp and defined with good colouration.

Image stabilisation is a new addition to the Ultra HD and is very welcome as footage taken on handheld camcorders. It does help smooth out some wobbles, but won’t be able to cope with huge wobbles. It also helps iron out the bumps while walking around.

The action shots with the 50fps are really good. The Ultra HD managed to capture all the detail without blurring at all. This is great for filming your kids running around or sports events.

Low-light footage isn’t fantastic on this camera; occasionally looking slightly grainy, but it is definitely acceptable. But, what do you expect from a £100, handheld camera?

The Ultra HD uses a built in microphone so obviously the audio won’t be studio quality. I found the audio to be very good for an integrated microphone even capturing sounds such as footsteps in the frost. Voices sound clear but perhaps slightly altered from true life. The Ultra HD cannot accept a normal stereo microphone although it is possible to attach a special microphone through the Flip Port. (The Blue Microphones ‘Mikey’ is set to launch in early 2011.

As detailed, up-close shots are my most frequent I was very impressed by the Flip. It has exceptional quality close-ups showing great detail and no loss in quality.

My quality tests can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9jmd4en5O8

In conclusion, the Flip Ultra HD offers fantastic image quality at a fantastic price. Flip has really built upon their innovative design by adding the new features. The Flip is a fantastic handheld camcorder that delivers quality you would expect of a more expensive device. It is everything you want from a handheld camcorder and therefore is a fantastic gift for Christmas. Because of this, I am awarding the Flip Ultra HD my Silver Award!

Unboxing Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2FRg6RnPrk

Quality Test:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9jmd4en5O8

New Awards

2010-11-23T10:06:00.000-08:00

As I have been reviewing products for a fair while now I have decided to create a few awards which I can give to exceptional products.

The first three awards are pretty standard.

Bronze Award:

Silver Award

Gold Award

And finally, the Editor's choice. I will award this to exceptional products for reasons such as bang for buck/ value for money or best in its class.

These are all of the current awards, I may create some more in future.

Please comment with your opinions on the awards in the comments section below or message me via email or YouTube.

Review of the Mezzi M1 Moulded Aluminium Case

2010-11-23T09:35:00.000-08:00

A great, versatile case offering ultimate protection and fantastic storage options. This case is sure to offer sufficient protection to your laptop with its moulded aluminium exterior and its orange leather interior to cushion the falls, knocks and scrapes. The code lock security system functions excellently and prevents thieves. This case is ideal for work; able to hold your laptop, notes, pens and much more. This classy case has a chic orange interior and smooth brushed exterior. If you want a heavyweight, stylish case then look no further than the Mezzi M1.

Youtube Review at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZR_0oPOQTOc

Review of the Huntkey X7 900W Power Supply

2010-11-23T09:14:00.000-08:00

Huntkey is a Chinese Power Supply Unit manufacturer that was established just under 20 years ago. It manufactures both OEM and retail power supplies.

The Huntkey X7 is a modular power supply that is certified by 80plus Silver.

In the sleek, well-designed packaging you get two users manuals, the power supply itself and all of the modular cables. These cables are:

2x 6pin PCI-e, 3x 6+2 pin PCI-e, 1x 8pin PCI-e, 1x 4+4 pin CPU power, 6 x Serial-ATA, 5 x 4-pin peripheral, 1 x 3+1pin floppy disk.

No screws or cable ties are included which is an unfortunate omission as one of this power supplies features is cable management.

All of the cables are sleeved helping to keep the cables tidy and aiding cable management inside the case. However, the wires are very visible through this sleeving. I would personally have preferred the cables to be opaque as I think this would be more pleasing visually inside the case.

Being modular, only necessary cables are connected cutting down on mess caused by unused cables. This, again, aides cable management inside the case as you only have to deal with the necessary cables. One thing I don’t like is the amount of connections on the Serial-ATA cables. The amount of bends in the cable makes it very difficult to manage efficiently. The cables are of good lengths however, easily reaching all of the components in a full-tower case. The cables would be stretched in a larger case such as the Cooler Master HAF X.

The housing of the power supply itself is nickel-plated brushed silver with a 140mm fan positioned on top. This fan claims to have ‘intelligent-thermal fan control technology’. I have found this smart-fan controller to have been very effective and the fan to be barely audible up to 75% load. However, once over 75% load the power supply starts to become very noisy. The diagram on the back of the power supply that shows where to connect each cable is very helpful; particularly to those who are inexperienced with power supplies.

Sadly, there is no AC switch on the back of the power supply which could be a hindrance in some situations where you need to quickly power off the computer.

The power supply has five 12volt rails each with an 18A capacity, meaning the stable with very little deviation (a maximum of 3%). The X7 claims to be compliant with multiple graphics cards, but I think that it would struggle slightly with 3 or more high-performance cards.

The 80-plus Silver award proves this power supply to be very efficient and this was also the case in my tests. The X7 sapped the same amount of power as a generic 500watt OEM power supply which flabbergasted me.

In conclusion, the X7 seems to have very high build quality and overall excellent cable management features. The included 2 year warranty is also nice. The cable management is slightly let down by the number of connections on each wire. A major flaw I have found is that I cannot seem to be able to find a retailer anywhere in the UK.

Youtube Unboxing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uY6ROSRXqY
Youtube Review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvWeSaa-Q-k