Patriot DDR400 1GB Memory - Review

A few days ago, I got a 1GB Stick of Patriot DDR400 Memory, it was not my first choice of memory, as I am an A-Data fan boy, but due to the fact that they were sold out, I had to go with Patriot (my second choice of memory). The extra memory gave Windows Vista breathing space, bringing life to my Sempron PC. However, it will not run at DDR400, either a motherboard problem, or memory problem. I will test it on a Socket 939 PC and report its speed after testing it on there tomorrow. After 24 hours of none stop memory testing, it came through with 0 errors, which is on the positive note. It also, comes without heat sinks. If you have an old DDR PC, it is recommended to get these memory sticks before they become obsolete.


After testing the memory, I have come to the conclusion that the memory needs exact same sticks or to run by itself to run at full PC3200 speed.

Here is the Pro's & Con's list

Pro's

• Cheap in DDR pricing
• 1GB
• Gives Vista room to breath
• Patriot Branding
• Stable
  

Con's

• Price vs DDR2
• No Heat sinks
• Requires to be matching pairs for it to run at PC3200 speed.

The RAM can be purchased from www.newegg.com at a price of $38.99 with $4.99 shipping.




Image in the shot is CPU-Z 1.44.1 which can be downloaded at http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php

MSI nVidia 6200 AGP - Review

I got a delivery in the mail today, it was an MSI Nvidia 6200 AGP X8 Graphics card, to replace the FX5700 in the blog below. As usual, with new hardware or software, I write a little review on them, with a pro's and con's list. So here is the MSI nVidia 6200 review.

This card is fast enough for watching live television and recording live television, it drops the processor load down from 100% to 27%, which is a much needed sigh of relief, after thinking id need to get a more beefier processor to replace the Sempron 3100+. The card is quite small in comparison to today's bad boys, and has no fans on it. Supported with Windows Aero, it scores a 2.0 for performance.
2.0 for Aero, 2.6 for Gaming.

Here are the pro's and con's list

Pro's

• Cheap
• 256MB GDDR2
• AGP X8
• Vista Premium Support
• Silent

Con's

• Requires 350W
• 4 Pixel Pipelines
• Cannot handle older games unless you set the graphics to real low.

All in all, this is a much needed card if you want to get a cheap card for watching television on. Again it is an MSI AGP X8 Nvidia 6200 256MB GDDR2 and it can be bought at Newegg for $34.99



Images are copyrighted Gareth Hale, 2008. All rights reserved.

Windows Vista - How much RAM should I go with?

This is a common question, trying to decide the best amount of Physical RAM for your computer running Vista. Even though Microsoft recommend 1GB to run Vista smoothly, that is not really enough unless all you do is browse emails and internet. At the price RAM sells at now, there is really no excuse to say that RAM is too expensive / Vista uses too much. At under $20/gig, you can easily stock up on 2GB and not break the bank.

Windows Vista Basic
Minimum = 512MB (0.50GB)
Recommended = 1,024MB (1.00GB)
Gareth's Bloggie recommends = 1,536MB (1.50GB)

Windows Vista Home Premium
Mimimum = 1,024MB (1.00GB)
Recommended = 1,024MB (1.00GB)
Gareth's Bloggie recommends = 2,048MB (2.00GB)

Windows Vista Business
Mimimum = 1,024MB (1.00GB)
Recommended = 1,024MB (1.00GB)
Gareth's Bloggie recommends = 1,536MB (1.50GB)

Windows Vista Ultimate
Mimimum = 1,024MB (1.00GB)
Recommended = 1,024MB (1.00GB)
Gareth's Bloggie recommends = 3,072MB (3.00GB)

You may need more than the bloggies recommended, but going with less certainly impacts your computers overall performance.


Cheapest place to buy RAM
www.newegg.com - Newegg have great deals on RAM, starting at $16.99 per 1GB Stick.
www.ebuyer.co.uk - Ebuyer have good deals on RAM, starting at £13.00 per Gig

New Poll

With a landslide Victory of Windows Vista on the last poll, with 66% of you saying you think Vista is worth it, which version of the operating system would you pick?

Polls close 1 week today at 1:30AM Eastern Daylight Time.

PNY Video Cards -- Falling Heatsinks?!

Yeah, nothing much to report here, except my PNY FX5700VE video card for the college PC decided to fall off, killing my card. So the college PC is unusable till the 6200 arrives on Tuesday.

Anyone know why a PNY GeForce FX5700VE heatsink/fan will drop off the card? It puzzled me!

Zalman Cooling Fans

I just got a new cooling fan, it is a Zalman, the fan itself is 120mm and is extremely quiet, running at 20db, the fan itself, cools my AMD Athlon 64 x2 Processor down by 6C, and the case temperature is also down, by 9C. It is a wonderful fan for the price and extremely worth the price of $9.99 from www.newegg.com. However, with every item, there is always a con, so here is my pro's and con's list.


Pro

• $9.99 for 1x 120mm fan
• Quiet
• Moves a tonne of air
• Carries the Zalman Name
• Optional LEDs

Cons

• The Silicon Connectors

Apple Vs Microsoft

There has been a huge debate recently about Apple vs Microsoft, especially with Microsoft's latest operating system, Microsoft Windows Vista. There is usually Vista criticism from members who have used Windows Vista on a slow computer, such as a computer with a gig or less of RAM combined with a single core processor and integrated graphics.
Now, I myself, am a huge Microsoft fan boy, there is nothing wrong with that, nor is there anything wrong with been an Apple fan boy. But if you admit to been a Microsoft fan boy, prepare yourself for name calling, bashing and repeated bullying from the Apple fan boys. Coming online and saying WINDOWS VISTA SUCKS does not justify why you think it sucks, and blaring out more random crap, just makes you sound very ignorant. Apple have built a community as a 'cult' if you will, so saying your a Microsoft fan boy to an Apple fan boy, it like kissing Satan's mother, lets continue....

Microsoft Windows Vista is designed for gaming, online communication, office work and usually provides more than enough tools for the basic video editor.

Apple Macintosh OS X is designed for advanced photo and video editing, and light Internet usage, it is not intended to be a business machine, nor are they intended to be a gaming machine, that is exactly why their computers are not very "quick" except for the Mac Pro.

Personally if Apple could come to a desktop computer, id stay with Microsoft Windows........ Why?, for the support, reliability, compatibility, unless your going to do advanced video/picture editing, I recommend that you save your money, and buy a high end PC over a low end Apple.