| Benchmark Reviews Editors Choice Awards 2009 |
| Articles - Featured Guides | |
| Written by Olin Coles | |
| Tuesday, 15 December 2009 | |
Benchmark Reviews Editors Choice AwardsBenchmark Reviews offers our finest choices for the 2009 Editor's Choice Award in this article, and the selection process has not been easy. To choose one consumer electronics product as the best-of-the-best when the vast majority of products tested at Benchmark Reviews are already at the top of their game demands the highest quality. Even though this past year has been filled with global crisis and economic meltdown, 2009 has still brought consumers some of the best products ever made. The consumer electronics and performance computer hardware markets have introduced excellent products throughout 2009, and only the best deserve our Editor's Choice Award recognition.
Between the time that Benchmark Reviews first began serving performance evaluations the enthusiast community in March 2007 and when our Editor's Choice Awards 2008 article at the end of last year, Benchmark Reviews had published over 230 product reviews. That might seem like a lot of hardware passing through our hands inside of only 21 months, but it's nothing compared to the nearly 200 more articles we've published in the past year. With a strong staff of writers to test and analyze consumer electronics and enthusiast computer hardware, we're doing everything we can to make sure no amount of money is ever wasted on a 'bad product'. It's important to note that Benchmark Reviews strives to test the greatest computer hardware available in our articles, which is a result of our selection process for product reviews and consequently reduces the chance we'll introduce less worthy products to our audience. Although it would be most ideal for a hardware review website to test each and every item sold on the retail market, it's just not feasible due to limited staff and purchasing budget. As a result, many of the products featured here are among the best consumers will find. If one of the many of the products we test in our review articles is good enough to earn an award, it receives either the Benchmark Reviews Seal of Approval, Silver Tachometer Award, or our Golden Tachometer Award. However, being very good is different from being the best. That's where the Editors Choice Award comes in. In this article Executive Editor Olin Coles recommends the most deserving products for the Benchmark Reviews Editors Choice Awards 2009, as nominated by our staff. For the 2009 calendar year, Benchmark Reviews select one Editors Choice Award recipient for each of the following product categories: Accessories, Audio, Cases, Cooling, Motherboards, Network Storage, Processors, Data Storage, and Video Cards. As a benefit to readers, we will also list the products receiving honorable mention and those who deserve the mark of shame. In full disclosure and as a note of special interest, Benchmark Reviews does not receive compensation for, or benefit from, the awards given to products in this article. The sole purpose of this article is to offer consumers an advanced insight into which products receive our highest recommendation. Although many review websites charge a fee for the use of their awards, which in turn leads to a vested interest in giving awards for the benefit of payment, Benchmark Reviews does not associate with these schemes and discourages them entirely. This allows us to remain unbiased towards manufacturers, and give a fair evaluation of the product to the best of our ability.
Best in Class: AccessoriesThe Featured Reviews: Accessories section at Benchmark Reviews is loosely defined by products that don't fit into more familiar computer hardware categories. The projects we evaluate in this area can range from headsets to fan controllers and digital photo frames. During the 2009 calender year there were two products that earned the most respect in this section: NVIDIA's GeForce 3D Vision Gaming Kit and the ASUS My Cinema EHD3-100 HDTV/FM Tuner. Awarded: NVIDIA GeForce 3d VisionWhen Benchmark Reviews tested GeForce 3D Vision at the beginning of 2009, it was uncertain how well this product would fare with the public and there wasn't much industry support. The Silver Tachometer Award was a result of several factors, but over time it seemed this product was growing into much more. We first mentioned NVIDIA Stereosonic 3D Gaming during our debrief of the 2008 International CES, and although it does require some additional hardware to enjoy the realistic 3D graphics experience the kit offers, it is the only product on the market the truly transforms the ordinary gaming experience into a realistic virtual experience. The out-of-screen effects are worth the price of admission alone, and earns the NVIDIA GeForce 3D Vision our 2009 Editor's Choice Award. Without doubt, there hasn't been another accessory on the market this past year that created more controversy than the NVIDIA GeForce 3D Vision gaming kit. The 3D glasses kit (part number 942-10701-0003-000) sells for $199 if you purchase it directly NVIDIA, or you can add the Samsung SyncMaster 2233RZ 22" widescreen 120Hz LCD monitor to the 3D Vision bundle package for $598. Alternatively, a few other retailers also offer this product through our price comparison tool.
Honorable Mention: ASUS My CinemaAlthough less impressive in terms of overall experience, the ASUS My Cinema EHD3-100 HDTV/FM Tuner is exactly what HTPC enthusiasts have been waiting for: a low-profile HDTV tuner that offers the best of both worlds. The My Cinema kit offers everything needed to turn any computer with an open PCI-Express port into a Windows Media Center PC. Aside from its diminutive footprint inside the computer enclosure, the EHD3-100 kit packs a big punch. ASUS designed the My Cinema to offer analog and digital reception, along with a FM radio tuner. When Benchmark Reviews tested the EHD3-100 kit in June 2009, our staff awarded the Golden Tachometer for it's wealth of features. Now the digital TV has finally made its transition, there's no point in talking up dual-analog/digial reception but this kit still shines regardless. Priced at $114.99 from NewEgg, the ASUS My Cinema kit still offers an all-in-one package for MCE fans that could only be made better by offering HDMI output.
In our next section, Benchmark Reviews awards the very best computer cases available in tower and HTPC form factors.
Best in Class: Computer CasesComputer cases are a very personal decision for system builders. Unless the computer is basic workstation for the average business, most personal computer users want to have their hardware housed inside something that fits their tastes. The golden age of computer cases began on the very same day that beige box systems stopped being the 'norm', and every day since then has included windows in the side panel and colored fans lining the interior walls. Benchmark Reviews offers a vast assortment of options in our Featured Reviews: Cases section, with the majority of the chassis we test falling into a specific form factor: Small Form Factor (SFF), Home Theater Personal Computer (HTPC), and ATX Tower designs. Of these form factors, several products have stood apart from the crowd throughout 2009. Mid-Tower ATX CasesAwarded: Cooler Master Storm SniperThe mid-tower ATX computer case category is the most fiercely competitive market segment in the aftermarket industry, with literally hundreds of enclosures available to builders. Benchmark Reviews originally tested the CM Storm Sniper in January of 2009, and in the months that followed Cooler Master added several more names to the CM Storm series of mid-tower computer cases (such as the CM Storm Scout Gaming Case SGC-2000-KKN1-GP and CM Storm Sniper Black Edition). The CM Sniper SGC-6000-KXN1-GP model sells for $159.99, and delivers a wealth of premium-level components to the middle-market price segment. The cooling performance alone was enough to win our Golden Tachometer Award, and the added features at a reduced price all come together nicely in this gaming case to earn the Benchmark Reviews Editor's Choice Award for 2009.
Honorable Mention: Antec P183 and NZXT GammaBenchmark Reviews evaluated the Antec P183 Mid-Tower Computer Case around April of 2009, and despite an initial price tag above its competitors we awarded the P183 our Golden Tachometer award. As we near 2010 the Antec P183 sells for only $139.99, which is an excellent price for this steel mid-tower computer case. The only drawback from my perspective is the seemingly pointless front-panel door and lack of high-volume airflow. Still, the Antec P183 is a very close runner-up for our 2009 Editor's Choice Award. Much later in the 2009 product year Benchmark Reviews tested the NZXT Gamma Computer Case GAMA-001BK, and outstanding steel mid-tower case that sells for only $39.99 after rebate. It comes with premium features like an eSATA port and air filters for all of the fan openings. While the design may not feel natural to some consumers, ignoring the sharp-angled front bezel reveals that the NZXT Gamma offers everything a budget builder could want. For the price there isn't another case that matches value, which makes the NZXT Gamma an excellent runner-up for our 2009 Editor's Choice Award. HTPC EnclosuresAwarded: Silverstone LC10B-E HTPC CaseTested around June of 2009, the Silverstone LC10B-E HTPC Case earned our Golden Tachometer Award for offering an excellent HTPC enclosure with the ability to fit a full-size ATX motherboard and seven 3.5" devices inside its small chassis. Although the LC10B-E doesn't come with a power supply unit included with it, this SilverStone HTPC case sells for $104.99 (after rebate) from NewEgg. The Silverstone LC10B-E is perfect for home theater enthusiasts who would like to transfer the hardware inside their desktop computer into something more appealing for the entertainment center. Based on the relatively good price and abundance of features, the Silverstone LC10B-E HTPC earns our Editor's Choice Award.
Honorable Mention: nMedia HTPC 8000 and 6000BIf awards were giving on the merit of originality along, the nMediaPC HTPC 8000 Wooden Media Center Case would be the clear-cut winner (pun). The HTPC 8000 is a great Media Center enclosure, which fits a full-size ATX motherboard and power supply inside the spacious wooden HTPC case for only $109.99. The rustic look of the bronze front panel and media card reader help this throw-back antique radio design fuse new with old.
Another HTPC solution we liked very much was the nMediaPC HTPC 6000B, which offers plenty of room for full-size ATX components all for the low price of $69.99. For budget builders looking for a traditional HTPC design with all of the features they might need to make their Media Center system a success, the HTPC 6000B could be the ideal fit. It doesn't win our Editor's Choice Award, but it was good enough for the Silver Tachometer and the price has dropped significantly since it was first tested in September. In our next section, Benchmark Reviews visits the best products for CPU cooling... something our Best CPU Cooler Performance series does every few months.
Best in Class: CoolingBenchmark Reviews knows something about CPU cooling. Every three months we publish our Best CPU Cooler Performance series, which compares some of the highest-quality heatsinks available in a head-to-head benchmark. Inside of the past year, we have published numerous articles revolving around the topic of CPU coolers. Our 80-way Thermal Interface Material Performance Test was enough work to earn a pension for it, but articles like the Best CPU Cooler Performance LGA1366 - Q1 2009, Q2-2009, and Q3-2009 are all major projects in their own right. As the last and final Q4-2009 article prepares to be published, Benchmark Reviews once again gathers the collection to test on AMD's new AM3 platform. As for the best of the best, that depends on your qualification. To us, performance is the name of the game. In this regard, only a few products have proven themselves above and beyond the competition: the Prolimatech Megahalems is the first that comes to mind. When value to performance is the metric of choice, the Cogage TRUE Spirit packs a mighty punch from such a small cooler. To a larger extent, the Scythe Mugen 2 SCMG-2000 offers the same performance at the same price, but delivers a much larger product. High-Performance CoolingAwarded: ProlimaTech MegahalemsOriginally tested early on in 2009, the Prolimatech Megahalems proved itself to be several degrees better than the next best CPU cooler. The ProlimaTech team followed the original LGA1366 Megahalems with adapter kits, and then released the dark nickel-plated Mega Shadow CPU cooler for LGA775/1156//1366. It seems that the higher the overclock voltage gets, the better this cooler performs. FrozenCPU sells the ProlimaTech Megahalems for $64.99, and with some additional shopping you can fit the Megahalems on AMD's AM2/AM2+/AM3 socket for $9.99. Make sure to add two Yate Loon D12SH-12 fans in a push-pull configuration for $7 each, and you'll find that only chilled liquid cooling can outperform it. While the Megahalems does not come with an included fan, this allows enthusiasts to pick and choose the best 120mm combination for their application... but it also allows admirers of the truly silent PC to use the Megahalems as a passive heatsink cooler. For the sheer performance and versatility, along with an unparalleled mounting kit (LGA1366), the ProlimaTech Megahalems earns the Benchmark Reviews 2009 Editor's Choice Award for high-performance enthusiast CPU coolers.
Honorable Mention: Xigmatek Thor's Hammer S126384Benchmark Reviews tested the Xigmatek Thor's Hammer S126384 CPU Cooler when it launched in February, and it's performed at the top of our charts ever since. There are several coolers that rub elbows for the top spots, but aside from the ProlimaTech Megahalems the Xigmatek Thor's Hammer is one of the best coolers for managing temperatures when the overclock drives the CPU voltage to the redline. Priced at $64.65 the S126384 fits nearly all current Intel and AMD sockets, and can be used as a passive heatsink for silent applications, or with two 120mm fans for ultimate cooling performance. The included bolt-through kit puts the Thor's Hammer ahead of older top-performing solutions (such as the TRUE), which is also why this cooler received our Golden Tachometer Award and our Honorable Mention for the Editor's Choice Award. Value CoolingAwarded: Cogage TRUE SpiritIn the value-performance category there are several products deserving top attention, but only a handful deliver outstanding performance at an entry-level budget price tag. The recipient of our 2009 Editor's Choice Award in the value-cooling category is the Cogage TRUE Spirit. The TRUE Spirit CPU cooler is equally impressive as the High-Performance Cooling winners mentioned above, yet the Cogage TRUE Spirit offers top-level performance at an entry-level price. Thermalright's Cogage TRUE Spirit is an excellent choice for overclockers, although the four heat-pipe rods might possibly limit the thermal range this cooler can handle compared to the more robust Thermalright TRUE. FrozenCPU sells the Cogage TRUE Spirit for $39.95, and with a better fan (or two) along with the aftermarket Thermalright LGA1366 Bolt-Thru Kit for an extra $10 there's plenty of room for overclocked cooling performance.
Honorable Mention: Scythe Mugen 2 SCMG-2000The Scythe Mugen 2 SCMG-2000 CPU cooler deserves honorable mention for it's top-level cooling performance and entry-level pricing. Sold at the bargain price of $34.99 with an included Scythe Slip-Stream 120 fan, the Mugen-2 is probably the best value available to budget wary overclockers. Performing among the very best coolers we've tested, the Mugen-2 offers something to everyone, even overclockers looking to push their processor past the point of no return. Worst in Class: AC Freezer XtremeWhen Benchmark Reviews tested the Arctic Cooling Freezer Xtreme in our LGA1366 Core-i7 CPU cooler round-up, we expected this heatsink to at least improve upon the previous Freezer designs. This would not be the case; not even by a little bit. Not only was the Freezer Xtreme design sub-par compared to every other cooler we've handled, but the miniscule contact base failed to completely cover any processor that it was designed for. In the end, depressingly poor performance on a stock CPU was all too expected and cemented our vote for the worst enthusiast CPU cooler produced in 2009. AC makes several great products, but the Freezer Xtreme is not one of them.
Best in Class: ATX Motherboards2009 has been a busy year for motherboard manufacturers. Universal abit went out of business early on in the year, while industry leaders like ASUS and Gigabyte gave up market share to smaller companies such as MSI, ASRock, BioSTAR, DFI, and EVGA. This new surge in competition certainly helped fill the pages of our Featured Reviews: Motherboards section, giving the staff at Benchmark Reviews plenty to write about. Intel launched their X58-Express chipset 2 November 2008, and the P55-Express was introduced with the LGA1156 socket ten months later in September (2009). AMD kept themselves busy, having launched their 785G (RS880) in August. Awarded: Gigabyte P55/P55A SeriesWhen Benchmark Reviews published the article Gigabyte GA-P55-UD6 Motherboard: P55 vs X58 in September (2009), we were surprised by how far Gigabyte had come with their engineering process. Now granted it had been ten months or more since the Intel X58 chipset had shipped, but in those months Gigabyte made the leap from their 12+2+2 power phase design with VRD 11.1 support on X58-Express motherboards to their current 24-phase power VRM for the P55 series. The results were impressive, and paired with the slightly more efficient Socket LGA1156 processors the power consumption was as low as it has ever been. While we would have preferred that Gigabyte introduce their 24-phase power VRM with the enthusiast-level X58 platform, it made a nice feature to add onto others that Gigabyte would later introduce for the P55 platform. Using the Marvell 88SE9128 SATA 6Gb/s controller offered forward compatibility for future-generation storage devices, while the NEC D720200F1 host controller (part number µPD720200) delivered SuperSpeed USB-3.0 connectivity for blazing fast 5Gbps transfer speeds. While Gigabyte and ASUS each offered their own Marvel SATA-III controller that worked relatively well for a first-generation product, the 9123 part used by ASUS included a known issue with PATA/IDE drives and was immediately discontinued. Gigabyte however used Marvell's 9128 part on their entire P55A series, which all offer SATA-6G and USB-3.0 functionality. Offered at NewEgg for $134.99 our value pick would be the Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3, which is presently the least-expensive SATA-6G/USB-3.0 motherboard available. For the best blend of features, performance, and price, the Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD4P gets our nod. For all the bells, whistles, and heatpipes, the P55A-UD6 is top of class. It is the total package of features and improvements that has earned Gigabyte our 2009 Editor's Choice Award for their P55A motherboard series.
Honorable Mention: ASUS P55 SeriesASUS has a penchant for being the first to offer new technology on their motherboards, and although the P7P55D Premium was first to market and used the Intel P55/ICH10 chipset together with a troubled Marvell 88SE9123 SATA-6G chip, ASUS learned of Marvell's problem and cancelled future development with the 9123 component. Nevertheless, the ASUS P7P55D EVO did a great job of offering enthusiasts a solid Intel P55 motherboard utilizing the proven stability of JMicron's JMB363 and JMB322 (DriveXpert Technology) chips. Priced at $194.99 the ASUS P7P55D EVO is far from a budget board, but also not as costly as most other high-end P55 offerings. ASUS received our Golden Tachometer Award for the P7P55D EVO, and is honorably mentioned for our Editor's Choice Award. Best in Class: mITX MotherboardsAwarded: ZOTAC ION Atom N330 KitWhen NVIDIA paired their GeForce 9400m GPU to the Intel N330 dual-core processor, they created the ION platform. Zotac capitalized early-on and produced the ultimate mITX motherboard kit with Wi-Fi-N capability and plenty of HTPC functionality. Benchmark Reviews tested the ZOTAC IONITX-A-U Kit in June 2009, and it promptly received our Golden Tachometer Award. Having used the ION platform for many months now, we've tested the Intel N330 as the center-piece to our Windows 7 HTPC. With a full 1080p native HDMI 1.3a A/V interface along with Wireless-N and Gigabit Ethernet functionality, the Zotac ION kit costs only $184.99 to create the ideal Windows Media Center.
In our next section, Benchmark Reviews offers our best recommendations for SOHO and Enterprise-class Network Attached Storage (NAS) server products... and we name one product not worth your hard-earned money.
Best in Class: Network StorageNetwork Attached Storage (NAS) servers have become commonplace in the modern business space, whether that sector be corporate enterprise or small-office home-office (SOHO). Benchmark Reviews has taken the high road with NAS products, comparing them for their features and functionality, but also forcing them to reach the highest levels of performance. Our Featured Reviews: Network section has grown over the past year, and some of our award winners have earned so much respect that we're recommending them for our top choice within two specific market segments: Enterprise and SOHO. Enterprise NASAwarded: QNAP TS-809 ProHard Disk Drive storage capacity is already beyond two Terabytes, which makes multi-bay NAS servers seem overkill... unless your an Enterprise with multiple Terabytes of data in need of a home. That's where the QNAP TS-809 Pro NAS comes in, and offers eight bays of SATA-HDD storage with hot-swap capability. While it's true that the TS-809 Pro doesn't offer Jumbo Frame support, it's also true that this is the fastest NAS product we've tested despite this (62.5/76.9 MBps single-disk read/write performance). QNAP is the industry leader for advanced firmware that offers more features and functionality than most businesses would ever consider using, and their latest v3 firmware is the industry's best. The QNAP TS-809 Pro offers built-in iSCSI target service, AES 256-bit volume-based encryption, and RAID-0/1/5/6/5+Spare/JBOD disk configurations. An Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz processor and 2GB of DDR2 memory make up the system hardware for this large NAS, and keep performance at it's peak. Pair these features with failover Gigabit Ethernet support, and eight hot-swappable SATA bays, and the TS-809 Pro becomes the perfect fit for the storage-needy Enterprise sector. Sold at NewEgg for $1699.99 without drives the QNAP TS-809 Pro is an excellent alternative to the more expensive file server. The combination of performance, functionality, and value have earned the TS-809 Pro our nomination for the 2009 Editor's Choice Award.
Honorable Mention: Thecus N7700When Benchmark Reviews tested the Thecus N7700 NAS there were several key ingredients that earned the N7700 our Golden Tachometer Award. While file transfer speeds were impressive, measuring 50.0/62.5 MB/s for single-disk read and writes, they weren't the fastest we had seen. Seven hot-swap bays good for RAID-0, 1, 5, 6, 10, Single, and JBOD disk configurations was also very impressive, but not enough to be the biggest NAS offered. Dual Gigabit Ethernet NICs with teaming and failover safety along with iSCSI support was another nice touch, but still not enough to earn an honorable mention in our Editor's Choice Awards. Without question, it was the ZFS file system support with continuous integrity checking auto-repair that earns our respect, and makes the Thecus N7700 a good value for $949.99. SOHO NASAwarded: Synology Disk Station DS209Not everyone needs hot-swappable hard drive bays, or eight of them for that matter. Besides, two disks are enough for RAID-1 mirrored redundancy. This is where the Synology Disk Station DS209 NAS comes in: 1.2GHz Marvell Kirkwood 88F6281 processor paired to 256MB of DDR2 RAM with enough power to offer RAID-0, 1, Single, and JBOD disk configurations. The DS209 delivered 50.0/43.5 MB/s single-disk read/write performance over a Gigabit Ethernet NIC with Jumbo Frame functionality enabled. The Synology DS209 is available at NewEgg for $299.99 without hard drives, which is a small fee for a full-featured file server replacement.
Worst in Class: Patriot CorzaSometimes we expect too much from a product, and sometimes we just simply don't get what we expect. Either way, the Patriot Corza PCZ35SNAS2 was a letdown. To be fair, the Corza NAS costs mere $99.99 after rebate at NewEgg, making it one of the most affordable Network Storage appliances available. Nevertheless, the Patriot Corza was the absolute worst performer Benchmark Reviews has ever tested. The Corza does offer RAID-1/0/Linear disk configurations, but the firmware is a throw-back to the old GeoCities/AngleFire websites built around 1996. If all you need is a network-connected home for your data, then this could be a possibility... so long as you're in no hurry and don't ask for anything more.
Best in Class: Enthusiast CPUAwarded: AMD X4-965 Black Edition 125W ProcessorWhen we discuss enthusiasts in relation to the processor industry, there's only one real focus we're referring to: overclocking. And when you're looking to overclock a processor without restrictions, there's really only two choices: one that costs $999.99 for the privilege of an unlocked clock multiplier, or the AMD Phenom II X4 965 BE with all of the same unlocked features for a mere $185. Tough choice, right? While the AMD X4-965 Black Edition may not compete well against Intel Core i7 processors in terms of workstation performance when measured with CAD/CAM applications, the enthusiast segment is more concerned with high clock speeds and overclocking results than they are with drawing wire-frames in AutoCAD. Benchmark Reviews confirmed that gaming performance is actually better with the X4-965 when compared to the Intel Core i5-750, which shares the same price-point. For the pure enthusiast excitement of unrestricted overclocking with outstanding gaming performance, Benchmark Reviews offers our Editor's Choice Award to the AMD X4-965 Black Edition CPU.
Best in Class: Workstation CPUAwarded: Intel Core i5-750 ProcessorWorkstation computers are used in businesses for their power and stability, helping applications like AutoCAD or Maya perform in real-time. When Benchmark Reviews tested the Intel Core i5-750 Processor there had already been a long list of suitable alternatives from Intel. However, for the value the LGA-1156 socket offered excellent processing power on the Intel P55-Express platform. Surely Intel's enthusiast-driven Core i7 LGA1366 series could also work well in the business sector if the cost of the X58-Express platform wasn't an issue, but for only $199.99 you get nearly the same real-world performance with all same benefits of quad-core computing and Turbo Boost Technology.
Honorable Mention: Intel Core i7-860Intel originally launched the Core i7 processor series with the X58-Express 'enthusiast' chipset. While the LGA1366/X58 platform made waves for almost a year, mainstream consumers and performance-savvy businesses had to wait for the LGA1156 Core-i7/i5. It may seem strange to award the slower Core-i5 processor, and only give honorable mention to the LGA-1156 Core i7 series, it's necessary to understand the market segments they compete in. The LGA1156 socket is a mainstream part made for the mainstream P55 platform, and priced at $549.99 the Intel Core i7-870 Processor is much closer to enthusiast pricing. Alternatively, the Core i7-860 offers all the same features and functionality for $279.99 and is worth the honorable mention. Best in Class: Value CPUAwarded: AMD Phenom II X2 550 BEWe've already bestowed our Editor's Choice for AMD's X4 965 Black Edition for its purely enthusiast features and functionality, so it makes perfect sense that the AMD Phenom II X2 550 BE Processor that earned our Golden Tachometer Award be considered for the best value in desktop processors. Priced at a mere $99.99, the AMD Phenom II X2-550 BE shares the same unlocked clock multiplier as the X4-965, but is a dual-core version with lower speed. On the merit of price alone this product is noteworthy, but adding the most desired of enthusiast features has earned the AMD Phenom II X2 550 BE our 2009 Editor's Choice Award.
Best in Class: Data StorageWithout question, 2009 has been the break-out year for data storage innovations; more specifically Solid State Drive (SSD) technology. The Featured Reviews: Storage section at Benchmark Reviews is a testament to the many storage products we've tested over the course of this past year, filled with over thirty different reviews of SSD products. Early on in this year SSD prices appeared to be making the technology obtainable, however very recently the prices have gone skyward. Now that performance is kept at its peak with TRIM and Garbage Collection (GC) features, the only two concerns that remain are cost and capacity. Long-term longevity and real-world Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) are still relatively unknown for the new technology, making them less-suitable for the Enterprise environment. Corporate storage solutions have remained largely dependant on magnetic hard disk media for their data, and until SSDs can prove themselves this will continue to be the case. Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) hard drive technology has been considered by many to be the fastest available from rotating media products, and offer high-density storage capacities with low response-time delays. In this section, Benchmark Reviews shares our top three choices for the respective storage market segment: Enthusiast StorageAwarded: Corsair X256 SSDBenchmark Reviews has carefully studied the enthusiast storage industry since SSDs first became available to retail consumers, and up to this point few products have delivered top-end speed representative of the enhancements SSD technology brings to computers: one of which is the Corsair Extreme Series. Tested this past September, we discovered that the multi-layer cell (MLC) Corsair X256 SSD offered the fastest read and write performance available from any Solid State Drive. Sharing similar Indilinx Barefoot construction, the Corsair X-series competes directly with the OCZ Vertex Turbo. However, the Vertex Turbo has had a difficult time actually making it to market and an even tougher time of sharing a similarly attractive price. Although prices have increased industry-wide over the past several months for all SSD products, Corsair's X-series still offers a better price than the OCZ Turbo SSD series. After factory rebates, the Corsair X32 CMFSSD-32D1 sells for $149.99 which is identical to the 30GB Vertex Turbo for $149.99. Although the Corsair X64 SSD model CMFSSD-64D1 sells for $239.99, OCZ adds a rebate to their 60GB Vertex Turbo to reach $239.99. The price difference become much more evident into the higher capacities, where the 128GB Corsair X128 SSD model CMFSSD-128D1 lists for $445 while OCZ's 120GB OCZSSD2-1VTXT120G lists at $599. It is the 256GB Corsair X256 SSD (model CMFSSD-256D1) that earns our Editor's Choice Award for top-speed enthusiast MLC SSDs, since their 256GB capacity is available for $739.99 while no high-capacity Vertex Turbo model is available from OCZ.
Honorable Mention: OCZ Vertex SSDCorsair may have one of the fastest MLC products on the market (for the moment), but OCZ is constantly offering new and unique Solid State Drive products. OCZ has certainly earned the title of SSD innovator, as they've been diligently working on Garbage Collection (GC) and TRIM support to improve long-term performance of these NAND-based devices. The earliest of these products is the OCZ Vertex, an MLC SSD product that Benchmark Reviews tested way back in February 2009 with version 1.0 firmware and no GC or TRIM support. Today the OCZ Vertex SSD offers two different firmware versions: one with GC support for non-TRIM Operating Systems (2000/XP/Vista or RAID array), and another with TRIM support for Windows 7. As of December 2009, the OCZ Vertex series of SSDs is available at NewEgg and other popular online retailers. A lower-capacity 30GB Vertex OCZSSD2-1VTX30G is sold for $99.99 after rebate, while the 60GB OCZSSD2-1VTX60G sells for $219 after rebate. The larger 120GB version we tested in this articles is offered for $409. A jumbo-sized 250GB version of the Vertex SSD is available for $829. Performance StorageAwarded: OCZ Agility-EX SSDTo many performance enthusiasts, MLC SSDs are a cost-cutting shortcut to high-performance results. There are some valid points to be made, which is why single-layer cell (SLC) still has a strong following in the performance storage sector. Making the argument more pointed is the OCZ Agility-EX SSD, which was tested by Benchmark Reviews to perform very close to the high levels of performance we found in the Corsair X256 MLC SSD. The primary benefit of an SLC SSD is the longer estimated MTBF and slightly lower response times. OCZ has released only a 64GB (60GB advertised) capacity for their Agility-EX series SSD. The OCZ OCZSSD2-1AGTEX60G Solid State Drive is currently sold at NewEgg for $409. The other alternatives are Intel's X-25E Extreme SLC SSD which sells for $799.99, although the Kingston SSD-Now E series clone costs slightly less at $715. Doing the math our decision is simple: OCZ makes a faster SLC SSD that costs almost half the price, and deserves our 2009 Editor's Choice Award for doing so.
Enterprise StorageAwarded: Seagate Cheetah 15K.7 SASBeing competitive in the storage industry isn't easy, especially with Solid State Drive products quickly taking up shelf space. Seagate has been the industry leader in Enterprise-class storage solutions for over two decades, and their leading products have dominated the landscape from SCSI connected hard drives to their latest Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) disks. Benchmark Reviews tested the Seagate Cheetah 15K.7 SAS Hard Drive ST3600057SS this past October, and confirmed that spinning magnetic media still has a home in the corporate market segment. For reference, not many other SAS drives exist, and some of the closest competition (the WD VelociRaptor for example) is nowhere near the same level. Because spinning disk media loses performance as in nears the inner-most sectors, it's difficult to compare HDDs to SSDs unless you disregard the linear loss of speed. The 600GB ST3600057SS model offered 201/168 MBps maximum read/write in Everest, followed by 208/207 MBps in Crystal DiskMark, then 199/182 MBps peak speed in HD-Tach, and finally ATTO Benchmark scored 204/203 MBps. Taken in as a whole, the Seagate Cheetah 15K.7 SAS hard drive ST3600057SS appears to perform at an approximate speed of 200 MBps read and 180 MBps write. These are the same numbers many SSD products fail to achieve. Although it's uncertain how long SAS drives will continue to dominate the Enterprise segment, it's certain that SSD's won't match capacity anytime soon. Even once they finally near the storage capacity, SSDs will still be cost-prohibitive for most applications. For only $645 the Seagate Cheetah 15K.7 SAS hard drive, model ST3600057SS, was is avialable from several online retailers. If your business requires high-capacity/high-performance data storage, the Seagate Cheetah 15K.7 is an industry-proven solution, and our pick for the Enterprise Storage Editor's Choice Award.
Best in Class: Video CardsVideo card manufacturers have never been boring to watch compete against one another. The epic battles between NVIDIA and ATI (now AMD) have filled history books. Yet, for some reason, most of the 2009 product year passed by without any major events worth noting... at least that was the case until ATI launched their Radeon HD 5800-series. Timed very well to piggy-back the Microsoft Windows 7 launch, AMD released the industry's only DirectX-11 compliant graphics accelerator. That in and of itself was monumental, but the real headline was that NVIDIA had nothing to answer back with for many months (the still yet to be released Fermi GeForce GTX 380 and GTX 360). In this section, Benchmark Reviews praises video card products in three categories: Enthusiast Gaming Graphics, Value Graphics, and HTPC Graphics. Enthusiast GraphicsAwarded: Sapphire HD5870 Vapor-XReigning as the most-power single-GPU video card for an entire calendar quarter (Q4-2009) is quite an accomplishment, and one the Cypress-XT GPU handles very well. Benchmark Reviews tested the Sapphire Radeon HD5870 Vapor-X 100281VXSR against a wide variety of modern video cards not long ago, and the Radeon HD 5870 was the frame rate performance leader by more than 30% against the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 in DirectX-10 comparisons. When DirectX-11 API's were tested the Sapphire HD5870 Vapor-X jumped to 125% or better performance. Temperatures were slightly lower than reference designs on the Sapphire HD5870 because of the Vapor-X cooling solution, and electrical power consumption was extremely efficient with only 23W consumed at idle and 220W under full 3D load. For the time being, Selling for $409.99 at NewEgg, the Sapphire's Radeon HD 5870 is the most powerful single-GPU product available and the one of the few graphics cards capable of playing DirectX 11 games. These accomplishments are more than enough to earn the 2009 Benchmark Reviews Editor's Choice Award for enthusiast gaming graphics.
Honorable Mention: Sapphire Radeon HD5850Benchmark Reviews was highly impressed with the Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 5850, and depending on the benchmark the Radeon HD 5850 often times matched performance with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 in DirectX-10 video games. Unfortunately, this video card has been a rare find on store shelves. The Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 5850 sells at NewEgg for $309.99 and other retailers online for around $300, which might explain its popularity. The other reasons include native HDMI output along side two DVI and DisplayPort interface, making it nearly identical to the HD5870 in all ways except FPS performance. Value GraphicsAwarded: XFX Radeon HD5750Everyone likes to play video games, even gamers on a budget. This is what made the XFX Radeon HD5750 so attractive when we reviewed it, and one of the reasons it earned our Silver Tachometer Award. For only $139.99, the XFX Radeon HD5750 (model HD-575X-ZNFC) shares similar performance to the ATI Radeon HD 4850 or GeForce GT 250 in DirectX-10 video games. The real advantage comes in the form of DirectX-11 video games, native HDMI 1.3a and DisplayPort interfaces, and Radeon HD CrossFireX Performance Scaling. That's right: put two of these together in CrossFire and you've got yourself top-level performance for about $260. In terms of value, the Radeon HD 5750 allows the cost-conscious consumer to spend a little now and then upgrade to a CrossFire setup when the time is right. It's a inexpensive mighty-mite, which is why the XFX Radeon HD5750 earns our Editor's Choice for value graphics.
HTPC GraphicsHonorable Mention: Sapphire Radeon HD4650No, the Sapphire 100253HDMI Radeon HD 4650 was not released in 2009... It's almost two years old. However, for all of 2009 there wasn't another low-profile PCI-Express video card released with native HDMI and DVI connectivity. Needless to say, slim HTPC buiilders wanting modern 1080p High Definition connectivity to their HDTV have had very few options to choose from. Hopefully AMD will see fit to announce a low-profile version of their ATI Radeon HD 5000-series, making all of dreams come true. Until then, the $63.99 Sapphire 100253HDMI receives our nod as the defacto low-profile video card for the PCI-Express interface.
2009 Editors Choice AwardsAs we celebrate the last final days leading into 2010, Benchmark Reviews is proud of our work over the past year. I would like to thank our writing staff and website visitors for helping to shape these choices, and in condensed format I present to you our 2009 Editor's Choice Award winners: Accessories
Computer Cases
CPU Coolers
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