Tech Gear Thread

[Jeff Likes Bagels]

I like amazon instant a lot, considering that i use amazon prime for my textbooks and pretty much everything else, it's a nice addition. I think having Amazon Prime is cheaper than netflix too, and you get more out of it.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/netflix-hulu-plus-amazon-instant-video/

[Nit3h4wk C0uP3]

I just got a Gear Power by Iogear. Heavy little sucker. But it'll charge 2 phones at the same time and will come in handy when I can't get to an outlet. It's cool so far..

[slipkord]

Got a 39" Insignia basic little TV for kids play room. Out of the box the picture sucks which I knew going in. Thinking of investing in a calibrator. Any recommendations? Budget is maybe $250. I figure I'll use on all my TVs as well. Are these with the money?

[alpha]

Got a 39" Insignia basic little TV for kids play room. Out of the box the picture sucks which I knew going in. Thinking of investing in a calibrator. Any recommendations? Budget is maybe $250. I figure I'll use on all my TVs as well. Are these with the money?

I have a Spyder4PRO that I use for my computer monitors.  They sell a separate TV module.  I've never used one for a TV though, so I wouldn't be able to comment on that aspect of it.

[slipkord]

I was contemplating buying the Spyder4 for the TV. They say it does the job but it's basic. As long as it fixes the color I'm good!!

[CrackerTeg]

My laptop has a 25w amd Athlon dual core and I'm looking to upgrade. I don't see the point of shelling out a fuck ton of cash to replace it. I have found other cores that fit the socket. Question is, should I go with a triple or quad core phenom chip?

[Pascal]

Do you have the brand and model number of your laptop ? Just want to check out stats compared to todays midrange computers

[CrackerTeg]

I'll do you one better: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c02497777&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en

[alpha]

What are you looking for in your laptop that a new CPU would provide?

[CrackerTeg]

[Pascal]

Your best cpu choice would be the phantom II P960 25W-35W quad core, it is cheap but you would still be considered as a slow pc. everything else on your laptop is considered slow as heck compared to today's standards

 For comparison , this is the cpu from a low en 450$ 15.6 in laptop vs your actual and the quad core.
=328&cmp[]=126&cmp[]=1861]http://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare.php?cmp[]=328&cmp[]=126&cmp[]=1861

and this vs a 800$ laptop.
=328&cmp[]=126&cmp[]=1947]http://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare.php?cmp[]=328&cmp[]=126&cmp[]=1947

My advice, If you only look for a small boost and everthing else is fine, get the cpu and ram upgrade. otherwise, get a new laptop. For 1000$ you'll be mind blown by the performance gain.

[CrackerTeg]

I'm already maxed on RAM. The only thing I can hope to boost is the CPU. I've found the trip core and the quad core for under $100. I don't have cash lying around for a new machine. I'm looking at a career change this summer so shelling out that kind of cash is out of the question.

BTW, your links don't work.

[alpha]

So I was looking for more clarification than just a picture that said "Power!"

Since you already have 8GB of RAM and that is the stated max, you're not going to see much gain there, even if you could swap in a some faster RAM.

What I was trying to ask with my previous question is:

In what situation are you being CPU bound?  Games?  Other app that is CPU intensive?

I'm just curious if you would benefit from faster IOPS rather than a new CPU; but if you are CPU bound and not IO bound, then the CPU would be your best bet for an upgrade.

[Pascal]

too bad it doesn't work, but you still can compare your cpu ratings at this site.
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_list.php

[Pascal]

you have to take a cpu with very similar power consumption or make sure your power supply is powerful enough to go higher