PC Tech Thread

anyone got any opinions on ips screens (not korean seconds like the crossfire or whatever it's called).

am on the lookout for a 27" 2560x1440 with displayport and hdmi.

up until yesterday I was set on the dell ultrasharp u2713hm but then I saw the asus pb278q and think it's actually the better option.

I'm long out of the pc tech game and don't follow current trends/technologies so was wondering if anyone here had any input?

Spotter could you let me know how much for the IBM or macbook. Looking for a laptop for a family member - that could be just the ticket.

anyone got any opinions on ips screens (not korean seconds like the crossfire or whatever it's called).

am on the lookout for a 27" 2560x1440 with displayport and hdmi.

up until yesterday I was set on the dell ultrasharp u2713hm but then I saw the asus pb278q and think it's actually the better option.

I'm long out of the pc tech game and don't follow current trends/technologies so was wondering if anyone here had any input?

They all use exactly the same screens. Go for whichever one you like the look of.

The only difference with the crossovers is the cheaper casing and stand. Exactly the same screen. And they're not Apple seconds as was rumoured ages ago, just as the Dell and Asus aren't.

Truly, they all have the same LG screens inside.

If you're gaming then most have a gaming mode which will disable all image processing to prevent ghosting.

The only point at which these screens make a difference is if you are doing colour sensitive work and need evenly lit screens that have been calibrated. At which point you need to be looking at the NEC SpectraView screens.

^^^ I got a Dell U2711 at the start of the year and love it. The finer dot pitch is really noticeable, and makes the old 24" 1920 x 1200 which sits next to it look really low-res in comparison.

My one caveat would be the anti-glare coating which adds a subtle grain to bright areas although to be honest I'm long past even noticing it. That might not be the case on the U2713 anyway.

Other than the difference in price, what makes you think the Asus is a better bet? I notice it has speakers, but can't imagine they'd be much good.

Spotter could you let me know how much for the IBM or macbook. Looking for a laptop for a family member - that could be just the ticket.

Or? why not buy both?

Or? why not buy both?

I don't have all the monies!

an intel E8400

I don't have all the monies!

ha ok, I'd only want £100 posted for the IBM, It needs a new battery really but they're only £30 on t'bay. I 'll have to check the price for the macbook

Bit of advice please...

I left my PC downloading some tv series off newsgroups and came back to a reset PC and a warning that it had blue screened and windows didnt know why.

I checked the event log and saw that Microsoft defender had been disabled immediately prior to the reset and then a load of programs relating to validating my Windows user license were run and the user license was re-registered.

Just checked and the downloads are corrupt but scanning with AVG shows up nothing.

I'm guessing this was some sort of spyware which has nicked my Vista license? If so they're welcome to it, was looking for a reason to format and revert back to XP.

Received my Crossover monitors this morning, just tested them. Bear in mind I have a calibration tool from my NEC monitor.

Verdict? Mind-blown, these things rock.

For £270 per 27" monitor is incredible.

These are the newer models, I've got the display port variant so that I get the full resolution. The colours are only fractionally off the quality of my NEC (which literally cost 5 times more) but substantially better than my other Samsung monitor and the IPS monitor on my old Thinkpad. The screen brightness is consistent. Viewing angles are great. There are no dead pixels at all.

The case is plastic, but it is actually much nicer than the images online suggested. The front glossy border isn't too big nor too visible, and the dappled plastic on the back is at least sleek and without major ugliness. The whole monitor is fairly thin, and given the screen size and brightness I doubt I will even see the borders.

Flipping the onscreen display to English was a couple of seconds.

I have no complaints. I think these are the best purchase I've made in ages. I'm still totally taken aback that they're so damn close to the colour quality of my very expensive NEC monitor.

Oh, the model I got was the Crossover 2720MDP.

I got them from here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/221009335215?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649#ht_10420wt_919

The price varies depends on exchange rate... advertised in dollars, but the GBP payment varies by exchange rate.

I paid £270 about 2 weeks ago. It looks like the exchange rate makes it about £280 now.

I didn't get hit for customs or taxes, so I guess I'm one of the lucky ones.

It was dispatched via EMS, which is basically the global ParcelForce network. I tracked it via here: http://www.track-trace.com/post if someone ends up buying one too.

I was willing to pay the 20% VAT and a £15 fee if I incurred it (per monitor)... still would've been good value. But didn't get hit by it at all.

i wish i had the cash for these. I think i would rather have 2 of these than 1 40" TV

Bit of advice please...

I left my PC downloading some tv series off newsgroups and came back to a reset PC and a warning that it had blue screened and windows didnt know why.

I checked the event log and saw that Microsoft defender had been disabled immediately prior to the reset and then a load of programs relating to validating my Windows user license were run and the user license was re-registered.

Just checked and the downloads are corrupt but scanning with AVG shows up nothing.

I'm guessing this was some sort of spyware which has nicked my Vista license? If so they're welcome to it, was looking for a reason to format and revert back to XP.

Run malware and spyware search and destroy

Big monitor would be a nice upgrade. I don't use my second screen much at home.

Pulled out the big laptop the other day and wondered if there's any point doing anything to it. It literally still has the original installation of Windows XP on it from when I bought it back in 2005/6 and runs rock solid because unlike most Windows users I can tell the difference between good/bad software.

Bit boring though.. software engineer with xp is like Michael Schumaker driving a Fiat Punto when he's not racing. No point upgrading though if it only gets used once in a blue moon. Thought about ripping out the hdd and replacing with SSD and Win7 but it's faffing about for not much point. Hmm.. maybe I could run soft synths on it and use my midi keyboard to control it?

Hmm..

Took ubuntu off. Reinstalled win7.
Why screen resolution look like it drawn with crayons ans comic sans?
1024? I thought HP dm1 was higher than that.

Dun did updates,
Allworks.

I've got VB's old machine:
Motherboard is an Asus A8N-SLi Premium (Socket 939) with dual-core 64-bit CPU (AMD X2 4400+).

What's the best CPU I could get running on this without updating the motherboard?

If I did upgrade the motherboard as well - what should I be looking for?

You're going to find it hard to upgrade the CPU as the 939 socket was superceded by AM2 and then AM3 sockets.

I'd actually ask whether CPU is the bottleneck that makes you want to upgrade. If it's "speed in general" then a SSD might be the best upgrade you can make.

That motherboard was already tricked out with the maximum RAM it could take, wasn't it? In which case, your biggest limiting factor was probably RAM.

If you don't want a SSD, then I'd go straight to looking at motherboard, CPU and RAM.

For motherboard, start with the socket type... I'd go for an Intel 1155 socket as it currently has the widest range of CPUs available and will likely be supported for a freaking long time.

With that in mind, here's a motherboard and 8GB RAM combination for £160:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-199-MS

Or, if you can push a little bit more, then this Asus is pretty fantastic for £160, but you need to buy your RAM too:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-491-AS

As for CPU, the 1155 opens up all Intel i3/i5/i7 CPUs. So you've got a lot of choice and can spend as much as you want.

There is no bottleneck. I just feel like change for change's sake. Already have an SSD and max RAM as they were easy upgrades. Probably better off saving the money and buying a new bike instead. Bikes > computers.

Looks like the i5 is the best bet at the moment. I'll leave it for a bit and when I get bored next will overhaul. Cheers.

Not sure how pertinent the information on here is really, that mainboard section doesn't seem to give much away

My laptop has been fine since that little quibble last week but it is annoying me, dreadfully slow when using photoshop/lightroom. I'm on a relatively new install too.

Would another gig of ram and an SSD really make a difference? I guess another 25% of ram should make a decent difference(does it work like that?)

Would 64 bit windows help?

As a wannabe photographer I'm tempted to buy a mac but for £1k+ are they really that powerful? I can just see it being useful in future, maybe. I don't know.

Ta

The SSD will make a difference.

Unless you are already maxing out your RAM, that won't make as big a difference. Besides, even if you don't buy RAM modern operating systems (all of them) all use the hard drive for virtual memory... so buying an SSD will appear to speed up memory too.

That does seem like a fine option. I was kind of hoping you would tell me to spend my money but we'll see.

How does this seem?

http://www.ebuyer.com/268244-ocz-120gb-agility-3-ssd-agt3-25sat3-120g

Those are good.

I may get one myself.

aren't the vertex 4 a better option for a little more money?

they have like 50% more IOPS I think.

The difference between one SSD and another based on IOPS is very hard to perceive compared to the difference between a HDD and an SSD.

If it's your first upgrade to an SSD, literally any SSD is good for the job. My general rule from there is that unless you know what it means and why you need it, I wouldn't spend the extra money for incremental benefits.