Why buy a standard model when you can get the top-of-the-line? Treat yourself to the good stuff! We take three premium graphics cards for a spin to see just what kind of optional extras you can get when...
After an unfortunate series of untimely delays, the folks behind PCI Express 3.0 believe they've worked out the kinks that have kept next-generation connectivity from achieving backwards compatibility with PCIe...
Supporting Intel’s highest-performance processors with twice the bandwidth of its mainstream counterpart, the X58 chipset proves the staying power of good ideas. We take a closer look at what makes the latest...
Today, we're putting the newest and fastest sub-$150 processors against each other in a gaming competition to see which models offer the best bang for your buck. Will it be Intel's Core i3, its Clarkdale-based...
Smaller budgets were the rule for this quarter’s System Builder Marathon, but better performance was the exception. How will this affect our multi-budget value comparison? Check out the performance results,...
Tom’s Hardware takes a more frugal approach this month, with a high-end PC that fits within the budget of most folks who call themselves power users. Will recent advances in hardware allow this $2,000 build...
Dmitry Chekanov, managing editor of Tom's Hardware Russia, spent some quality time on the Computex 2010 show floor, complementing the news stories you've been reading all week. This weekend he's sharing what he...
Adding SATA 6 Gb/s and two more USB 2.0 ports, AMD’s flagship northbridge has evolved into the 890FX. Just as important are the evolutionary steps several manufacturers have taken in motherboard design. Today...
The last time we matched up Intel's Pentium G6950 against AMD's Phenom II X2 555, our overzealous overclocking efforts caused a processor meltdown. With a little more experience on Intel's 32 nm process (and...
The March 2010 launch of Intel's hexa-core Core i7-980X gave us a good reason to revisit the LGA 1366 interface. Today, we're looking at four new X58 Express-based motherboards that tie USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s...
We post stuff that the majority of our readers enjoy reading, and even so, Apple articles get bashed constantly -- mainly by just a select few. But what about the other way around? Are Apple-fans just as rabid?...
Our latest "How Much CPU Do I Really Need?" article pits the cheapest Core i3 and price-matched Phenom II series processors against the highest-priced CPUs for the same two platforms. Can the low-cost parts...
Soon, 4.8 Gb/s USB 3.0 and 6 Gb/s SATA will be hitting the mainstream. But be careful when you buy your next mainstream motherboard; some don't handle these technologies very well. We compare three...
Budget enhancements to this month’s SBM finally reflect last year’s price increases, allowing the return of liquid cooling at the high-end and Core i7 for the mid-priced systems. With big improvements to...
The last machine in this quarter's System Builder Marathon, Paul's $750 Gaming PC certainly isn't least. A triple-core Athlon II X3 didn't necessarily overclock well, but a fourth-core unlock gives this system...
We loosened the leash on our budgets a little this month in order to pack all of your most requested features into a system that's accessible to more than just affluent enthusiasts. Will this build be complete...
AMD’s new chipset promises big performance increases with its Radeon HD 4290 graphics core and built-in SATA 6Gb/s controller. Asus, Gigabyte, and MSI sent their latest motherboards to help us find out how...
Providing an HDCP-compliant audio path for its latest integrated-video CPUs, Intel’s new H55 and H57 chipsets are certain to appeal to both home theater and office system builders. We inspect nine samples to...
ASRock, Foxconn, Gigabyte, and MSI sent us their latest P55-based microATX motherboards for users wanting smaller solutions. We benchmarked, overclocked, and measured the efficiency of these diminutive...