Media Tech Review

So you read my last article ( Planning A Computer Build ) and you have decided that your are going to build one. If this is your first then you have a lot to learn before you build it but like many before you it can be done. With a little research you can build a computer with the quality parts that you want for a good price. Now a lot of the parts in a computer get focused all over the internet on the popular sites but one part that doesn’t get as much exposure is the power supply. Every now and then your favorite website will have a PSU shootout where they compare the latest and greatest but other than that the lowly PSU gets little attention. Well in this article we will discuss how to decide how big of a power supply that you need, what to look for in one, and a few favorite name brands that I prefer.

How Big Should It Be?

You can go over board very easy when buying a PSU. That can be costly in more ways than one. Not only will a more powerful PSU cost you more but it may eat more electricity and it could also be less efficient than that smaller PSU. Now I would like to tell you that there are rules of thumb for typical computer builds but in all reality there isn’t. Each computer will have a different power load if the sum of it’s parts are different. It is best to buy a PSU based on how many watts and amps your setup will require. To find that out you will need to make a list of your parts. As an example I will list the parts for one of my computers;

• Motherboard: ASUS A8NE
• Processor: AMD X2-4400
• Video Card: Nvidia 7900GT
• Memory (RAM): 2-1GB Sticks of OCZ DDR 500
• Hard Drives: 3 SATA @ 7200 RPM
• Sound Card: SB Audigy
• Disc Drives: 1DVD, 1 DVD-rw
• Fans: 1 120mm, 3 80mm
• USB Devices that draw power: Keyboard and mouse
• Other: card reader, floppy drive

Once you have made your list you can go to eXtreme Power Supply Calculator and just input the information you have in the easy to use calculator. Pay close attention to each box and make sure you read them correctly. For most of you when you are entering system type it will be a single socket even if you are building a quad core system. It will allow you to enter your processor further down.

When I entered all of my information it told me that I needed a 410 watt PSU. For most, if you went by this and got a 500 watt, it would suffice and probably last for quite a while, For me because I not only overclock my processor but I also overclock my video card plus run the PC at 100% for extended periods of time I try and get a little bit bigger PSU.

Which Brand

Now that you have a base line to start with you should look for a good brand PSU and a good outlet to buy it from. Remember, the PSU is an important part of your system, if it goes out it can and will take out other parts of your PC. A few of the name brands that I trust are;

• Tagan
• PC Power and Cooling
• OCZ
• Corsair
• SilverStone

Now this isn’t a complete list of good PSU’s by far but these are some that I have heard good reviews on or have personally used and had good fortune with. I currently have two OCZ power supplies and one Silver Stone that has served me well for a few years. One of the OCZ power supplies was purchased back in 2004 and has seen some very hard duty and still stood up. Now I have also heard good things about Enermax so I purchased one to try it out. I am not sure what went wrong but my wife’s computer went out and when I went home on leave (currently in Afghanistan) I found that the PSU had went out and I believe it also took the processor with it and no telling what else. Now I am not sure what happened exactly, could have been a power surge or anything else but at this time I just can’t recommend them.

When  choosing a PSU from one of these manufacturers, you may notice some like SilverStone offers PSU in the lower price range (below $50). Don’t go there! It may be a quality PSU but you want something better.

Where To Buy

I personally shop from two places, Newegg.com and Tiger Direct. They are not the only two places out there but they are who I use for all of my computer parts. They usually offer the best prices and service. They also get the stuff to you in a timely manner.

Reviews

Make sure that once you have pinned down a couple of different products check the retailer for reviews on that product. You can also check out Tom’s Hardware, Bittech, and Hardocp for reviews on certain products. Don’t forget to google them either, you may dig up some good or bad stuff on what PSU you are looking at. You also want to look for consistency in the product reviews. The PC world is full of fanboys and they will down grade a product they don’t like just because they like another better.

Sum It Up

If you do your homework and follow these steps you should find a PSU that will serve your needs for years to come. I hope you enjoyed reading this. If you have any questions or just want more information on computers I would suggest you drop by one of the forums that I like, Blazing PC, you will find a lot of friendly people there willing to help you with any computer problem (or some non computer related problems) you may have. Until next time thanks for reading Media Tech Review.

Well the bug has bit me and I am really wanting to build a new desktop. The only problem is that I am in Afghanistan right now and it will be at least 5 more months before I get home so that I can start on it. The technology will probably evolve again before I get home and most of the plans that I make now will be obsolete or just make no sense when the time arrives for the build. So what we are going to do here is just go over some of the things that you need to think about when building a new system.

Computer Usage

The first question you have to ask yourself is “what am I going to use the computer for?”. The answer to that will determine a number of things from operating system, hard drive space, power supply, graphics card, and so on. For me my computer will have multiple uses; heavy gaming, productivity (web sites), and media storage being some of them. So when I take all of that into consideration it will help me choose the parts that I am going to buy.

Cost

What you can afford to spend is just as important of a factor in building a computer as what you are using it for. For the computer that I will be building I know I could accomplish all of my goals while still building a computer for a cheap price just by sacrificing a little on performance. Now that doesn’t mean I would by cheap parts that may not last very long, it just means that I will choose a lower end item that still fulfills what I need it for. You can also buy parts that can perform better than stock just by doing a few tweaks but that is for another article.

Parts

Once you know what you are building it for and how much you can spend then you can start compiling a list of parts. Here is where you are going to decide Intel or AMD (processor), then what style motherboard to use (on board graphics or external, Intel or AMD compatible). If you chose to go with on board graphics then you probably are not looking to game with the computer (or design graphics) but make sure you purchase a board that has an expansion slot so that you can upgrade to better graphics later on. You will want it to be of the latest technology so that you will have a better chance of installing the latest graphics card later on. Once you have decided on your motherboard then you can decide on what type of case you want. The motherboards fit certain cases and you want to buy a case with ample room for the motherboard, psu, and all of your drives and expansion cards. The cases come in many styles and purpose built for many things from a small portable (shuttle style) to an HTPC case made to be a part of a Home Entertainment system. What ever you chose remember that a good case may be the platform for many computers over time and not just the one you are building now so choose wisely.

Once you have decided on a case then you can choose the video card, ram, cd rom, and any add in cards that you want (sound). Plus go ahead and decide what hard drives to buy.

Hard Drives; These need to be at least 3-4 times bigger than your current needs. This may sound like a lot but you can run out of hard drive space fast. The thing is hard drives are getting cheaper by the day and right now you can buy 1.5 terabyte drives for around $150. You could also get a pair of terabyte drives for under $200. That would probably do you for a little while.

CD/DVD/BluRay; Only you will know if you need one or two of these, BluRay or just DVD, and a burner or just a player. The main thing is, make sure you are buying quality stuff because these will stop working quick if you buy cheap stuff. another thing to look at is what interface you are going to use. Right now you might as well go with SATA because IDE while still a viable choice is slowly becoming obsolete.

RAM; If you choose a 64 bit operating system you can really get as much RAM as your computer will hold but if you are going 32 bit (unless something has changed that I don’t know about) you can only use a little under 4GB. Make sure you buy good quality and buy it in pairs. You also need to make sure that it is compatible with your motherboard because there are a few types of RAM out there these days.

Video Card; This is going to be an expensive part of your build or a cheap one. It is according to what you want to with you computer. You could go with the onboard graphics or spend a ton of money on multiple video card setups. Just make sure you are buying what you need to accomplish the task. You don’t have to go overboard. The naked eye can not tell the differecne between 55 fps and 90 fps so you may not need that $1000 video card setup. Those are for people who love to bench mark their system and try to squeeze everything out of them possible. If you bragging rights get it but if you just want to play your games then go for the more sensible video card solution.

Processor; Going back a little I am going to just touch on this. Make sure you get one that will handle what you need to do. They can be very inexpensive today and you have a lot to choose from. I was you though I would go for a quad core solution because of the cheap price and the ability to multi task easily.

Power Supply; Once you have everything else then you can figure out what size power supply would serve you best. You really need to make sure that the power supply that you choose is a quality unit because this will be the backbone of your system. Many good systems have been ruined by cheap power supplies.

Operating System

This is the topic that is probably the most debated. Should I use Windows, Linux, or port Mac OSX over to my PC? Do I want 32 bit or 64 bit software? Vista or Windows XP or hundreds of versions of Linux. What programs am I going to use and what OS works with them. The whole computer will be useless to you if you make the wrong choices. It can also be expensive, you can spend from $0 to $300. Most will just choose Windows XP or Vista 32 bit and that’s fine. It is one of the more compatible but it will cost you anywhere from $80 to $300 but the one good thing is there are a lot more people that can help you out if you have problems down the road.

Peripherals

Well now you get to choose how to finish the computer off. What monitor, mouse and keyboard plus anything else you may need (speakers, microphone, web cam, and headphones to name a few). These are the kinds of things that make the system whole and completely usable. Choosing a dual monitor setup or a great set of speakers, wireless keyboard and mouse, printers and scanners will all help you get the most out of your system. All of these can get expensive so be wise when shopping for these and if you can use what you can from your old system. I am going to reuse my gaming mouse and keyboard, my speakers, and my headphones with mic. I will probably buy a dual monitor setup though. It will get expensive but it will be worth it. Not only will it be good for gaming but it will help with my website work also. I can have the page I am working on open on one monitor and my other files on the other.

Stuff Not Covered

For those of you that are experts at this, sorry this article isn’t for you, it’s geared towards people that are a little newer to it than me and you. That is why you may have noticed I didn’t cover cooling and a few other items but for a lot of people just building a simple setup trying the stock cooling for the newer processors is sufficient if used within normal operating circumstances. It is when you start overclocking the processor that stock is no longer a viable cooling solution. I also didn’t cover figuring out how much voltage uses so that you can figure out how big of a PSU you need. For the most part for those running a single video card and not running a ton of drives, a 5 or 6 hundred watt psu should suffice. If you are a power user though you may need something bigger. Later on I will go over a lot of the different pieces to a PC and how to choose quality parts.

Make sure to come back often and see what other stuff is here to read. I will try and write plenty of stuff so stay tuned for more. Thanks for reading Media Tech Review.

Author James Terrell

Searching an iPhone Download Site

by MUNISH SHARMA

Finding an iPhone Download Site

Anyone interested in finding an iPhone download site should know that they have many great options available to them. There are some tips that anyone looking for an iPhone download site should keep in mind however, in order to not only find the best iPhone downloads but also the cheapest, and to avoid viruses.

Tips

One of the most important tips to finding an iPhone download site is to consider the file selection for movies, TV, and other media. You want to make sure that you are going to leave enough room on your phone for other applications, and not overload with stuff that you do not need. Often time the iPhone downloads will come with a whole bunch of stuff added onto a download, which you do not need.

Having access to a lot of files is one of the most important things to look for so that you can get your money’s worth here, so taking the time to do so is going to be well worth it. You also want to consider the website interface. This is a very important feature because the easier the website is to navigate, the less trouble you are going to have finding what it is that you are looking for.

There are literally thousands of different websites that are considered as an iPhone download site and which you can go to for downloads for your iPhone, so by keeping this in mind you will be able to narrow your choices dramatically.

Always remember that the safety of files is one of the most important factors when looking for an iPhone download site. The best iPhone download sites will screen all of their files before you download, so if this does not happen then most likely you are on a site that is offering corrupted downloads.

Before you download anything over the Internet, whether it is for your iPhone or not, make sure that you have your antivirus software up and running - and updated of course if applicable. This way, you can ensure that if any of the files you are downloading are corrupted, your computer will be protected and will not be harmed.

It really is not that difficult to find a good iPhone download site. With these handy tips you will be well on your way to finding a fantastic site, one that offers all the downloads that you are looking for. Just make sure that you take all the proper precautions before downloading anything onto your computer.

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We all outgrow our computers fairly fast, I know I do. I will buy a computer that I think is a good deal and it will be sufficient for a few months but eventually I need more. More ram, more hard drive space, better graphic, more! Well that was the case about three months ago. I started needing more hard drive space for this laptop that I got around Thanksgiving 2007. I thought while I am in there I will increase the ram too so off I went planning the upgrades, what I would buy and from where.

I did some pricing to find out the best place to get the parts from but I already new where i was going to buy from, trusty old NewEgg. I pick up most of my computer parts there so why should this time be any different? Well I decided on a 320GB hard drive from Western Digital that runs at 7500 rpm but had a power saving feature that would slow it down when it didn’t have to run so fast. I also picked up two 2GB ram modules. Now my computer uses 32 bit Vista so it will only actually use around 3 GB but hey the stuff wasn’t real expensive. I think my total came to around $180 or something like that and when the stuff arrived it didn’t take me long to install the ram and boot the computer back up.

The hard drive, well that was a different story. For one I didn’t have the system software disc, the laptop just didn’t come with one. For another reason I really didn’t want to reinstall all of my programs. I mean that junk takes hours when it is all said and done. So I started browsing forums for cloning topics, hard drive transfers, and such. I posted a few questions and then when I thought I had it figured out I tried it. My first attempt didn’t go too well. I cloned the drive, installed it, and it would not boot. So attempt 1= fail. Back to the old drawing board I guess. So I studied some more and tried it a few days later. This time I used a different program to clone the drive but I did it after booting into DOS. Before I shut the computer down to reboot into DOS though I had to clear the registry of a few items that assigned drive letters to each hard drive. It took about an hour to clone the drive and once it was finished I shut the computer down, installed the new drive, and booted it up. Attempt 2= Success! After the boot up I tried all of my programs and everything was fine except one. Adobe wanted me to re register but other than that I have had no problems.

With the upgrades done I have seen a nice little boost in load times, my games are a little faster and easier to play, and overall performance has improved to a degree that I am very pleased with. The bad thing is, this may be all of the upgrades that I can make to this computer. I will probably keep it for another year or so and start looking for another laptop but in the mean time it does everything that I need it to do. You never know, I may just get more than another year out of it, I guess it just depends on what my needs will be this time next year.

Thanks for reading and continue to come back to Media Tech Review for more tips, review, and just general rambling about the tech that we love to hate.

Welcome to Media Tech Review.I hope you will enjoy the site, I know it is new with just a few articles but I will be writing a few new articles soon and I will be adding information from all over. Please stay tuned for interesting stuff on the world of electronics and media and I hope to keep you entertained and informed.