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Upgrades

Submission + - Should You Switch to DDR3 Memory? (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "DDR3 and the motherboards to support it are here. It offers double the throughput and lower power consumption than DDR2, but in its current form high latencies of CAS 8, among other things, hold it back from showing significant performance improvements over DDR2. ExtremeTech's Loyd Case has an introduction to DDR3 and benchmarks to support his claim that the technology is overpriced at present for what you get. From the article: 'Since DDR3 requires four samples per core clock cycle to be sent, that means that any data that's not relevant to the fetch is discarded. In other words, potentially more unneeded data may be delivered per clock cycle with a quad-pumped architecture.'"
Windows

Submission + - Running Vista Without Antivirus (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "Does Vista's User Access Control — you know, all those dialogs and dark screens that appear when you try to do anything system-altering in Vista — make antivirus software unnecessary? Here's an article that makes the claim that savvy users who keep their noses clean in terms of downloading and installing suspicious code and pay attention to UAC prompts don't need to run antivirus software."
Input Devices

Submission + - Logitech Unveils MX Air Wireless Mouse

Submitted by
ThinSkin
ThinSkin writes: "Logitech's latest secret comes in the form of the MX Air Wireless Mouse. Alongside its uses as a "grounded" standard mouse, the MX Air can be lifted off the mousepad and waved around for cursor control. It is governed by "Freespace motion control," which intelligently knows how to translate air movement no matter how the mouse is held, or where it is pointed. The MX Air looks more like a living room device than a computer peripheral with its sleek, black design, and has eight buttons that are disguised behind backlit controls. ExtremeTech has a review of the MX Air and has recorded their experiences with this unique device. While the positives seem to outweigh the negatives in the review, the editors aren't too thrilled with its price tag of $150."
AMD

Submission + - AMD Announces Another Round of Desktop CPU Price C (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "AMD is practically starting to give away its processors, with its top dual-core Athlon 64 X2 models now dropping below $200. Oddly, the prices of the chipmaker's two enthusiast FX-74 and FX-72 chips, are now both listed in the company's price list at exactly the same price — $599. It seems that AMD is trying to flush this stock out of its inventory in anticipation of its upcoming Barcelona quad-core microarchitecture, as well as making itself the bargain CPU vendor."
Windows

Submission + - Review of Stardock's TweakVista (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "The new TweakVista utility from Stardock surfaces some of Vista's more obscure settings, giving access to diagnostics and making suggestions for services that you should be running. ExtremeTech's review of TweakVista generally likes the software, and though it's called version 0.9, it is for sale — $19.95 — and feels feature-complete. More suggestions on system optimization, however, would be helpful. From the review: "According to TweakVista, on July 1st, the 'Windows Shell Services DLL service took 651ms longer to shut down than usual.' That's nice. Other than this stark presentation, there's no digestible information as to why the shell services DLL took over half a second longer to shut down. And there's no hint as to what to do about it.""
Microsoft

Submission + - Microsoft's Natural Ergonomic Desktop 7000 (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "While it's not as crazy-looking as a combination of the SafeType Keyboard and Zero Tension Mouse would be, Microsoft's offering in the field of ergonomic input devices is a decent start, as ExtremeTech's review of the Natural Desktop 7000 shows. The 2.4GHz wireless mouse and keyboard combo makes a start towards fighting carpal tunnel syndrome by getting your wrists out of the "pronated," or flat, position, and throws in stuff like zooming, 4-way scrolling, and the claim of longer battery life."
Software

Submission + - Safari on Windows--Just Say No (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "Apple says Safari is "the world's best browser," but here are 10 reasons why Safari is inferior to other browsers available on Windows. The article also includes checkups on Apple's claims of Safari's faster operation. It turns out that for most rendering tests, Safari is indeed quite a bit faster than IE, and especially Firefox, but there are other performance issues to consider."
Windows

Submission + - Speed Up Booting Vista (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "ExtremeTech has posted a guide to getting Windows Vista to load faster. Recommendations include adjusting the BIOS, disabling unneeded hardware devices, removing extra fonts, disabling unneeded services (of which there's a huge table with their functions explained), and optimizing boot file locations using the prefetcher and a disk defragger."
Input Devices

Submission + - Vertical Mouse Aims to Hit the Mainstream

Submitted by
ThinSkin
ThinSkin writes: "People normally rule out ergonomic mice because these mice are just plain kooky, or their features don't extend beyond two buttons and a scroll wheel. The VerticalMouse 3 is doing everything it can do to break into mainstream use by offering a very familiar shape that resembles an ordinary mouse turned 90 degrees, while also providing five buttons and four one-the-fly dpi modes (up to 2600 dpi). ExtremeTech's review of the VerticalMouse 3 cites very positive experiences with the mouse, although warns users that it slightly errs from a true, 90 degree handshake position."
Communications

Submission + - Six Multi-Service IM Clients Reviewed (extremetech.com)

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "It's been a while since AOL stopped trying to jam third-party IM clients like Cerulean Studios' Trillian. ExtremeTech has posted a roundup of free alternatives to the standard IM software from the big boys — AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and MSN (now Windows Live) Messenger. The products are a mixed bag, some of them Web 2.0-based, like the excellent meebo and the ad-heavy eBuddy. Most give you combined message windows with tabs. GAIM is now Pidgin, Meetro tries to get you chatting with locals, and Trillian, now at version 3.1, remains the client to beat."
Graphics

Submission + - Anisotropic Filtering and Antialiasing Explained

Submitted by
mikemuch
mikemuch writes: "In case you're not up on the techniques that make today's games look smooth and sharp, Jason Cross at ExtremeTech has written a guide to the various flavors of antialiasing and anisotropic filtering. He touches on what current graphics hardware is capable of in these realms and shows "real-life" examples of the techniques in action in current game titles."

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