It really doesn’t seem like it’s been all that long, but it’s been nearly a year and a half since NVIDIA has had a dual-GPU card on the market. The GeForce GTX 295 was launched in January of 2009, the first card based on the 55nm die shrink of the GT200 GPU. For most of the year the GTX 295 enjoyed bragging rights as the world’s fastest video card; however the launch of the Radeon HD 5000 series late in 2009 effectively put an end to the GTX 295’s run as a competitor.

Even with the launch of the GTX 400 series in March of 2010, a new dual-GPU card from NVIDIA remained the stuff of rumors—a number of rumors claimed we’d see a card based on GF10X, but nothing ever materialized. Without a dual-GPU card, NVIDIA had to settle for having the fastest single-GPU card on the market through the GTX 480, a market position worth bragging about, but one that was always shadowed by AMD’s dual-GPU Radeon HD 5970. Why we never saw a dual-GPU GTX 400 series card we’ll never know—historically NVIDIA has not released a dual-GPU card for every generation—but it’s a reasonable assumption that GF100’s high leakage made such a part unviable.

But at long last the time has come for a new NVIDIA dual-GPU card. GF100’s refined follow up, GF110, put the kibosh on leakage and allowed NVIDIA to crank up clocks and reduce power consumption throughout their GTX 500 lineup. This also seems to have been the key to making a dual-GPU card possible, as NVIDIA has finally unveiled their new flagship card: GeForce GTX 590. Launching a mere two weeks after AMD’s latest flagship card, the Radeon HD 6990, NVIDIA is gunning for their spot at the top back. But will they reach their goal? Let’s find out.

Read more...

Our today’s article is dedicated to a passive computer system designed for those who cares most about the acoustics and tries to minimize the noise at all costs. Looks like due to the new Nofen system, this is no longer such a big problem.Our today’s article is dedicated to a passive computer system designed for those who cares most about the acoustics and tries to minimize the noise at all costs. Looks like due to the new Nofen system, this is no longer such a big problem.

Read more...

We have already learned that in some cases Radeon HD 6870 may even compete successfully against GeForce GTX 560 Ti and Radeon HD 6950. Today we are going to talk about two new graphics cards on AMD Barts GPU.We have already learned that in some cases Radeon HD 6870 may even compete successfully against GeForce GTX 560 Ti and Radeon HD 6950. Today we are going to talk about two new graphics cards on AMD Barts GPU.

Read more...

Our latest candidate for PSU torture testing is the Seasonic X-560. Seasonic first garnered praise with the X-Series by offering a range of 80 Plus Gold PSUs from low wattage up through high wattage units, along with two passively cooled versions. Other reasons for their popularity are the 5-year warranty and outstanding internal design. Even most of the S12II and M12II models (which they don't generally offer as review samples) are getting awards all over the world for providing high quality in a mainstream market segment. At a price of $120 USD the X-560 is definetly not the cheapest ~550W power supply, but we're here to find out if buyers get more for their money.

As you can see in the picture Seasonic delivers a bag for modular connectors—the X-560 has fully removable cables. Also included in the packed are a power cord, four screws, a user's guide, and many cable ties. In short, Seasonic provides plenty of extras to keep the customers satisfied.

A note on the PSU informs users that this PSU works passively below 20% load. Features include "tight voltage regulation", "gold plated terminals", and a mainboard with many SMDs (surface mounted devices). High-class solid caps are part of the ouput filtering. And for the gamers among us, this PSU supports multi-GPU technologies, all with a reasonable rating of 560W.

Read more...

<p><span style="font-size: small;">AMD's Fusion technology is finally here. At present AMD Fusion platforms only power low-end personal computers, in the coming months AMD will introduce Fusion chips for mainstream PCs. But what about the future of Fusion program? Will it power high-end desktops? Maybe next-generation game consoles? What advantages can Fusion bring to end users? Neal Robison, the head of software developer relations department will answer these questions here and now.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/amdfusion-2011-neal.html">Read more...</a><br /> </span></p>