SilverStone, a Taiwanese manufacturer of high-end cooling solutions, has recently launched two new coolers codenamed NT01-PRO and NT06-PRO. Both models replenish the Nitrogon series and distinguish themselves by utmost compatibility. Hence, this couple is able to cool down practically all CPU systems developed by AMD and Intel, due to the support of sockets AM2, AM3, FM1, FM2 (AMD) and LGA775, 1155, 1156, 1366, and 2011 (Intel).



Coolers NT01-PRO and NT06-PRO consist of a copper-nickeled base, six heat pipes (6 mm each) and single-section aluminum heatsink. The first model NT01-PRO is delivered without nominal fans and features 140x97x120 mm dimensions. The customer gets the right to decide which fans, 70 mm or 80 mm, will provide more cooling effect to CPU. This cooler will benefit the most if integrated on the rear or top panel of PC chassis.


The second model NT06-PRO features 140x82x139 mm and is delivered with a single 120 mm fan. Its rotational speed is monitored by …

Asus has replenished its graphics card series based on Kepler architecture with a brand variation of one-chip GeForce GTX 680 adapter. Brand Asus GeForce GTX 680 card has been developed on an original in design circuit board and is notable by the doubled to 4GB GDDR5 memory capacity. Nevertheless, the most outstanding characteristic of a new product is the implementation of a two-slot cooling system, codenamed DirectCU II. Earlier Asus equipped its GeForce GTX 680 adapters with three-slot coolers.



The company decided to concentrate mainly on the introduction of an uncommon cooling system, leaving all frequency showings identical to the recommended by Nvidia index. Thus, graphics core operates at 1006 MHz frequency, while memory module works at 6008 MHz. Memory chips are soldered on both sides of the circuit board. The reverse side of PCB is covered by an aluminum plate that is in direct contact with GDDR5 chips.


Some IT professionals dare assuming that the rejection of …

Area, a Japanese hardware retail company, has voiced its intentions to release four new expansion cards with SATA III interface and USB 3.0 ports. The announced products are called to present additional expansion facilities to PC systems. According to the present-day data, the release will include four models: PE4U3E-3E1 Sport Quattro, D-EP34U3R-S3, SD-PEU3R-2T2IL, and S-PESA3ES2L.



The first model, codenamed PE4U3E-3E1 Sport Quattro, will be based on Etron EJ188 controller. It will accommodate four USB 3.0 ports, three of which are external and the other one – internal. This expansion card will employ PCI Express 2.0 x2 bus for the connection to the PC interface.


The second model, codenamed D-EP34U3R-S3, will operate under the supervision of Renesas D720202 controller. The model will include two external and two internal USB 3.0 ports. The third model, SD-PEU3R-2T2IL, will employ Renesas D720201 controller as the basis and will contain also four USB 3.0 ports (two …