ECS KN1 Extreme Motherboard, Antec Sonata II ATX Case, and more!

Hey folks, we've got a BIG update for you this afternoon. It starts off in the form of the giant, "Beastly", Gigabyte GV-3D1-68GT... which is 2 6800GT GPU Cores slapped onto 1 board! I'm sure some of you are wondering "How do you cool this thing?!?", so we've provided a pic below. In other news, Microsoft has started beta testing it's Longhorn OS. If we come across any screenshots, we'll be sure to post them!

GIGABYTE Unleashes 3D1-68GT VGA Card

Beastly GV-3D1-68GT Dual GPU VGA card scores over 20,000 points in 3DMark03

Taipei, Taiwan 11th July, 2005 - GIGABYTE Technology Co. Ltd., a world-leading VGA card manufacturer, today introduced the much anticipated GV-3D1-68GT, the most powerful and technically advanced GIGABYTE graphics accelerator card to date with a monster score of more than 20,000 in 3Dmark03, and just under 10,000 in 3Dmark05. As the successor to the legendary GV-3D1 that debuted at the beginning of the year, the GV-3D1-68GT is designed around proprietary technology from GIGABYTE that harnesses two GPUs together in a single VGA card SLI configuration. Improvements to the new GIGABYTE 3D1 VGA card-series flagship include dual 16 pixel pipelines from two GeForce 6800GT GPUs, quad-view support for up to four displays at a time, and compatibility with a somewhat wider range of motherboards than the initial 3D1 VGA card offered.

Demonstrating remarkable R&D strength and prowess, GIGABYTE VGA card design teams succeeded in combining dual GeForce 6800 GT graphics processors with 512MB DDR3 memory and all the other electronic components onto a card that fits in a normal ATX case. Additionally, GIGABYTE engineers have improved the power supply interface for the GV-3D1-68GT to ensure stable extreme 3D performance. With its outstanding design and impressive new features, the GV-3D1-68GT is a tribute to the innovation and understanding of new technologies that differentiates GIGABYTE from other VGA card suppliers.

The new flagship 3D1 series from GIGABYTE also supports a host of cutting edge industry wide technologies such as Microsoft DirectX 9.0C and OpenGL 1.5, and boasts a third generation graphics engine that streamlines the creation of complex visual effects through features such as the CineFX 3.0 engine for developers to create unique 3D game features and effects in both game animation and high-definition video. For discerning PC gamers, the GV-3D1-68GT incorporates Intellisample™ 3.0 that increases performance at higher resolutions through advances in compression technology to deliver exceptional visual quality. Moreover, the GV-3D1-68GT is also outfitted with NVIDIA^(R) UltraShadow™ II that fulfills complex digital lights and realistic shadows in future-generation games. On top of all these features, the GV-3D1-68GT also incorporates PureVideo™ technology that ensures support for new video formats, while its motion estimation engine (MEE) allows the card to record and play video files simultaneously without interrupting system performance, and help create a home theater from a PC.

The GV-3D1-68GT is equipped with dual DVI-I, TV-OUT and D-SUB output, and comes bundled with an impressive range of software including Cyberlink PowerDVD 6.0, Joint Operations, and Xpand Rally.

Biostar NF4UL-A9 Review, FX55 overclocked to FX65 speeds @ AMD Zone

"With this core an improved 90nm process, SSE3, and tweaks to the memory controller were added. We quickly tested the overclocking ability of this new FX with high end air. We were able to reach 3.1GHz, but had to fall back to 3GHz for benchmarking. Now we add another tool to our overclocking arsenal as we utilize the Prometia Mach II phase change cooler to bring the CPU down to negative 40 degrees Celcius. Our goal is to push the CPU to new heights, and get the highest clock benchmarks we can."

ECS KN1 Extreme Motherboard Review @ GruntvillE.com | Image

"Based upon the nForce4 Ultra chipset, this board supports Socket 939 processors from the AMD Athlon 64 family. Just a look at the features and extras, even the boards' purple PCB seems to show a promising start, especially when this motherboard can be found selling for a mere $104 online. One begins to wonder if this isn't too good to be true, after all, this is a board that's supposed to be competing against other enthusiast grade boards from ASUS and ABIT which sell for $150 and up."

Dell Inspiron XPS Gen 2 Gaming Laptop Review @ The Tech Zone

"The XPS Gen 2 breaks much new ground for Dell - unlike many of their other products, the XPS actually looks good! The first thing you'll notice about the XPS are those neon lights on the front, back and top of the notebook. Do they do anything special? No. Do they look cool? You bet! It's decoration more than anything else but it does show that Dell is starting to understand that gaming notebooks is just as much about show as it is about go."

Titan Vanessa L-Type CPU Cooler (Socket 462, 754, 939, 940, 478, & 775) @ Tweak3D

"While standard CPU coolers bundled with OEM computers or retail boxed processors do their job they often fail to impress a true enthusiast who's not only concerned with keeping heat down but also about having the headroom to explore overclocking. Today we've taken such stance and have decided to review a product attempting to fulfill these requirements, the Vanessa L-Type cooler from Titan Computer Co. Ltd which retails at about $65."

Antec Sonata II ATX Case Review @ Legit Reviews

"This might be the quietest case I've ever seen. When using the ducting system it was found that the CPU and VGA fans were noticeably quieter than the original Sonata..."