Related articles

• Rather than add expensive bells and whistles to its $2,233 gaming machine, Digital Storm chose a few of the best parts it could fit within the system’s budget. That means there isn’t any Blu-ray capability, as a single 20x DVD burner occupies one of the Cooler Master 932’s six front bays. The minimalist theme with a mind to performance continues to the inside, where a single XFX GeForce GTX 295 graphics card uses its dual graphics processors with slightly better performance scaling than one might expect from expensive 3-way and quad-GPU configurations. For us, the poorly-concealed ribbon cable is the only distraction in an otherwise cleanly-assembled system. We have no clue why any company would use Ultra ATA rather than SATA, when prices are nearly identical. Choosing Ultra ATA doesn’t just make cables messier, it also forces users to leave the motherboard’s third-party controller enabled when they might otherwise deem it unneeded. Asetek’s LCLC (low-cost liquid-cooling) single 120 mm radiator cooler reduces leverage against the CPU socket area compared to tall cooper coolers, while also leaving extra room around the CPU socket for easier access to cables and RAM. Though Asetek-brand components aren’t normally available to retail customers, Corsair now sells the single-radiator design as its H50 model. RAID and SSD’s are out of the question when value focuses on gaming performance. Digital Storm uses a single Western Digital Black Edition 1 TB hard drive. With five expansion slots, three memory slots, five external bays, and four internal bays empty, the Gaming Dominator is ready to fill the future expansion needs of most buyers. A file folder contains a certificate of ownership, Windows Vista Home Premium booklet, Windows 7 upgrade code, warranty and service information, setup instructions, the original Windows OEM DVD, motherboard and graphics card driver/support disks, and a three-DVD set of restore DVDs. An accessory box provides the cables and hardware originally included with the motherboard, graphics card, case, and power supply. See more products MSI X58 Pro LGA 1366 Core I7... PC Connection $227.36 Amazon.com $169.87 Directron $184.99 ElectronicsPLUS $198.89 TriStateCamera.com $214.87

• There are four main editions available: Windows Vista Home Basic The elementary version is indeed very basic. It features the Vista OS core, but doesn't come with the fancy AeroGlass interface, nor lots of other features. It is, however, sufficient if you simply want the latest operating system and its security. Instant Search and the features described earlier in this article haven't been removed. At $199, this is the cheapest version of Vista. Windows Vista Home Premium The premium edition is $40 more expensive than the Basic edition and comes with AeroGlass and the Windows Media Center, but it lacks some features that only come with the Business, Ultimate and Enterprise editions. DVD authoring and HDTV video quality are supported, as well as Meeting Space (the successor to NetMeeting) and Remote Desktop Client capabilities. We consider the Vista Home Premium edition a nice mixture between a Home and a Media Center Edition. Windows Vista Business The business version is $299 and does not feature the multimedia capabilities of the Home edition. Instead, it comes with Internet Information Server (IIS) web server, fax support, offline file support, file system encryption and support for two processor sockets. Windows Vista Ultimate Ultimate has everything, but it is the most expensive edition at $399. It combines everything from the versions described above. In addition to these, there is a Vista Enterprise edition, which is available to Volume License customers (VL). In terms of capabilities, it lies between Vista Business and Ultimate. You will find a more detailed overview on the Vista editions on the Microsoft website. Should You Upgrade Now? Upgrading can be important if you care about Mac users not laughing at you anymore - after all, MacOS X (Tiger) has had lots of Vista's features for a long time. But let's be serious. Windows Vista certainly is the most significant Windows release ever. From a feature point of view, it implements lots of new items and additions to make use of today's technology, though this is something that we take for granted in a brand new operating system. We want indexed search, a decent interface with improved input/output options for interacting with the user and more. From an additions point of view - think of Windows Mail, Internet Explorer 7, Media Player 11 and Windows Gallery - there is not much that you cannot get from 3rd party software. Mozilla Thunderbird and Firefox, various media players or iTunes and Picasa will do the job about as well. So why upgrade? For old Windows hands, the improved security should be the strongest reason to switch, but it is the overall experience that makes Windows Vista so smooth. It installs quickly, it can easily be customized, it connects to other devices and networks much better, and finally, it just "feels good". This overall impression is likely due to performance features such as SuperFetch and ReadyBoost, which we will cover in greater detail in another article. If your PC is only average, or you hesitate to spend $199 to $399, think twice, because you may easily end up spending more money than that on hardware upgrades. Although Microsoft asks for 800 MHz and 512 MB RAM, realistically we consider 1 GB RAM and 1.2 GHz the minimum for a smooth Vista experience. If you care about good looks, be sure that your graphics card is no older than two years. Driver support can still be an issue if you need exotic hardware to work, too. For example, we are missing drivers for a webcam and a fingerprint reader. If you care about maximum system performance and responsiveness, you should try running Vista with its performance enhancement features on a decent machine and turn off all the visual goodies. Who Should Buy Windows Vista Right Away? Only you can decide if upgrading from Windows XP to Windows Vista right away makes sense for you. We do recommend, however, going for Windows Vista right away if you plan on buying a new system anyway. Five years after Windows XP, Windows Vista undoubtedly is the better operating system, period. For new systems, it isn't more expensive than Windows XP, but it gives you more comfort, better connectivity, more security and a future-proof software platform. We found it to be more accessible as well, so go for Vista if you are a beginner, rather than fighting with the difficulties of Windows XP when it comes to doing things. Join our discussion on this topic

• The Hornet is loaded with features, making this a solid all around PC, and as the gaming benchmarks will attest, a great gaming system. On the front panel there are two temperature sensor readouts that allow you to monitor overclocking or other operations. The system comes with a Plextor DVD +/- RW front loading optical drive. This is a good feature for a LAN party, as there is not a tray that slides out. Monarch includes a Mitsumi FA404M USB 2.0 floppy disk drive with a 7-in-1 flash memory reader. There is a handle with which you can pick up and carry the entire system. There are headphone and microphone jacks on the front as well. Four USB ports are located next to the audio jacks making this a versatile portable system. Two cold cathodes add highlights to the case in the dark and the side window allows the owner to sport the limited edition EVGA graphics cards inside. The back of the case has typical PS/2 connections and USB, Firewire and Ethernet ports. In all, there is everything necessary to make this a well-rounded system with plenty of functionality. One feature of Monarch systems is warranties. The company offers a standard 90-day free warranty to fix anything should something happen within that timeframe. Beyond that, the customer can choose to extend the warranty or to choose service options. The system we tested was priced with the three-year onsite service contract. Monarch allows for three onsite visits from a locally-trained professional. These visits can all take place in the same year or there can be one per year. It all depends on how the owner desires to use his or her three service calls.