Seven heatsink CPU coolers Roundup

Typically, a procesorkoeler equipped with a fan. A small number of manufacturers focuses entirely on the constructing of heat sinks as effectively as possible – a fan you have to add. Hardware.info tested 7 of these cooling towers.

Else than you'd expect are coolers without fan not cheaper than instances that here already fitted. The cheapest cooler in this test costs an average of 39 euro. In addition, not to mention the cost for one or more fans. This pricing makes clear that these products are aimed at the top of the market, where more demanding users which want to pay for the best cooling performance (air). Also the small number of providers of this type of product is indicative: in this test we find two different brands, as stated in a total of seven products. The message: these companies submit to an optimal designed heat sink and let the user the freedom for which he/she chooses fans. This CPU-cooler for test we use one or two Scythe Gentle Typhoon 12 cm fans. The test is performed with the famous hardware.info test set-up for CPU coolers, consisting of an adjustable power resistance, which allows reproducible taxes and heat dissipation are. The sound production, we tested in a soundproof box – although all coolers with same fans are tested, the construction of the cooling body greatly affects the sound production, as will be seen.

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The Brazos Round-Up: Eight AMD E-350-Based Motherboards

AMD’s Brazos platform, driven by the Zacate APU, offers a lot of performance per watt. It comes up short on features, though. Eight manufacturers try to change that perception by adding slots, controllers, and even overclocking in a couple of cases.

Buying a low-cost, high-efficiency platform is kind of like choosing a cable package. For a few dollars more you can always get a killer feature that you really want. But then it seems like the features that are still missing really aren’t that much more expensive. It's a clever scheme to keep you constantly thinking about the next-best thing just a few dollars up the ladder.

You might face the same sticky decision when it comes time to shop for that inexpensive PC: go for the budget gold, or spend a few extra dollars on a faster processor (and then a few more dollars on a better graphics card, and a bit more on more memory, and...it really never ends). But AMD is hoping that its Brazos platform gives you enough compute horsepower, enough graphics performance, and enough value to squelch that never-ending desire to push just a little bit further. If you want a solid idea of what the platform includes, check out ASRock's E350M1: AMD's Brazos Platform Hits The Desktop First.

Today we have eight different Brazos-based platforms, priced from $115 to $175. If you're dead set on saving money, one of these setups should be able to satisfy you. Now it's time to figure out which tier in this little sub-market serves up the best value.

E350 Fusion Motherboard FeaturesOther DevicesBluetooth Transceiver
802.11n Antennas

E350 Fusion Motherboard Features Sapphire Pure
Fusion Mini E350PCIe x1/x41x mini PCIe (Filled)
1x x4 (Open for x16)

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