After the Pro Duo, nVidia Responds with the GTX 1080!

Well, after the AMD Radeon Pro Duo surfaced and was given a soft launch, nVidia GeForce hits out with their first new Pascal GPU that will be made available to the market in 2 weeks. The GTX 1080 is going to be a nice interesting addition, and something which I plan to replace either my 2 GTX 970s I have in my gaming system, or start my i3 4330 build with it.

The coverage and the content of this card has been absolutely promising, to say the least. Although it uses the middle ground GDDR5X as to the HBM of the Fury and FuryX, and the current GDDR5 Standard. The differences between GDDR5X, HBM and GDDR5 cannot be defined just yet because HBM's clocks are rather slow in respect to its 1024-bit bus width while the GDDR5X 1080 can support higher transfer rates at a base of a good 10 Gbit/s.

With that said, the GTX 1080 has the following specs.

2560 Pascal CUDA Cores - Now Pascal Cores and Maxwell cores can't be compared but the performance has been said (with leaked benches) to surpass the 3072 Maxwell Core Titan X. I can definitely foresee a Titan in the future because on Wikipedia, their first NVLink chip which uses the GP100 core that is said to house 3584 Pascal Cores (40% more cores so there should be more SMX units on GP100 than it does on GP104 but don't quote me on this one).

1607 Mhz Core, 1733 MHz Boost Clocks - This is a VERY (Impressively) scary clocks out of the gate, even at stocks. There have been photos that it can overclock past even the 2.1 GHz mark, but whether it was done air cooled or water cooled cannot be determined just yet.

8GB GDDR5X VRAM: A new counterpart to Fiji's High Bandwidth Memory (HBM). Double of the predecessor, made even better thanks to a double clock off the GDDR5X RAM speeds. GDDR5X is a new memory standard which integrates an updated RAM controller. It requires a new PCB with it, having 190 vs 170 pins of standard GDDR5. With a Bandwidth of 320GB/s, that will be good for High Res / VR Gaming. It'll be 256-bit, same as a 980. I won't be surprised if the Ti version in the distant future would be 384-bit.

599 USD Standard, 699 Founders: Not too bad for pricing wise. Especially if you can find future AIBs on the base 599. Because that fits just between the Launch MSRP of the 980 and the 980 Ti. And it's no contest with the Titan X either. And even with that performance at the founder's price of 699, it seems pretty damn good. It's clear that a single 10 can already flat out beat a 980 Ti without a problem by 30%. It'll be behind the Pro Duo, but not all that much, say 15-20%. And pair two 1080s for a combined price lower than a Pro Duo, it is a serious contender.

API Support: Pascal will be the first to support the Vulkan API. What Vulkan is said to do, is to balance CPU either by lower the CPU overhead and dedicate full power of the GPU to the application while the CPU is free for its usual computation workloads. Or balance out the CPU load across most if not all the cores so the cores are used at the optimal level. Vulkan will also be supported on cards all the way back to Kepler GTX 600 series with a driver update.

180W TDP: The 180W TDP lies closer to the 165W 980 than it is to the 250W Titan X, 980 Ti, R9 290X which are still below the 275W of the Fiji and Hawaii based Fury and 390X. That TDP is even lower slightly than the respectably efficient Tongas. Power efficiency like Maxwell should be quite nice, and it requires a single 8-pin.

There have been leaked Fire Strike Benchmarks, made known by Overclock3D which you can see here:

The scores look to scale well with the Core Overclock. There's also been a recent leak of AIB partners that might release a Liquid Cooled one clocked at 2.5 GHz. And if that scaling is true, this may be a serious contender with the Radeon Pro Duo once you turn up the clock speeds past the 2 GHz Ceiling.


Having said that, I'm edging to see from the bigger tech reviews whether they can pit the GTX 1080 (Stock and Overclocked speeds) against:
R9 295X2
R9 390 Crossfire
R9 390X Crossfire
R9 Fury Crossfire
R9 Pro Duo
GTX 970 SLI
GTX 980 SLI
GTX 980 Ti / Titan X SLI

Then again, only time will tell!

Radeon Pro Duo: Worth the $1500???

Just a short while ago, the Radeon Pro Duo was launched. We have been anticipating this GPU (as the Fury X2) for quite a while now because of the power efficiency that Fiji provides compared to the Hawaii. The Fury line of GPUs have been super successful also to thermal efficiencies. Heat has never been an issue at all, as far as the Furies go, even when just air cooled. The Fury Nano is a good example of good heat control and power envelope, being similarly specced to the Fury X. Though it's a little bit of a power lock on stock, OC-ing it will bring it super close to the Fury X.

Don't expect it to come cheap, at 1500 USD. Now for 1500 American Greenbacks, it better damn well be fast. It's geared towards VR, but also Prosumers and VR developers so it's not for the meek of wallet. As a general gaming card though, one card will be enough to ensure your gaming system will last for years to come.

The pricing is a lot more than putting 2 Fury Xs in Crossfire. But I understand that cramping everything into a single PCB will definitely take the headaches out from fitting in 2 rads into the system if you're using 2 Fury Xs rather than Nanos. And it'll be the most powerful fit in an ITX system (in a small and long case like the Coolermaster Elite 130).

Having that said, what do you get for extra 400-500 bucks instead of 2 Fury Xs / Nanos put together?

- A Full Dual Slot card
- Double the VRAM on a Single PCB.
- 350W TDP instead of 550W TDP for 2 cards.
- VR Capable.


Now the card's raw power is totally ready for max scores in VR-gaming, with 8192 Stream Processors and 8 Gigs of HBM. This raw power will render itself way too powerful / overkill for standard 1080p gaming. 2 GTX 970s that I have is still tipping overkill already, let alone the Pro Duo. Good Hi-Resolutions like 1440p or 4K or Eyefinity is the way to go with this card.

Having said that, I would wait till they jack the pricing down because spending extra instead of going 2 cards is questionable. But this is not the first time they jack the launch prices so high. Because they did the same with the Radeon 7990, and the R9 295X2 also at the same launch price, only to later jack the costs down once nVidia Flagships enter the market. It's the same thing that nVidia did with their Titan Z. And now the Fiji based Pro Duo / Fury X2 kinda makes the old GK110 Z like a dwarf, don't it? Then they jacked the pricing down also in light of Maxwell. Jacking off huh? See the trend?

A Single 980Ti can beat a Fury X but No Doubt the Pro Duo gonna be way more powerful than a single 980 Ti. But no question otherwise that 2 980 Tis will still be cheaper and more powerful than a Pro Duo and with the overclocking dream too. Who knows? Maybe even 2 regular 980s when overclocked can even go head to head or at least come extremely close? I don't know!

At this tier of GPUs / configurations that are similarly powerful or similarly priced that are so many Single or Dual Flagship options available. So It'll be plenty interesting to see how the reviews will go head-to-head between these options:

R9 Pro Duo
2 R9 Fury Xs
2 R9 Fury Nanos
2 R9 Fury
R9 295X2
Single R9 Fury
Single R9 390X
2 R9 390Xs
2 GTX 980 Tis / Titan Xs
2 GTX 980 OC
Single 980 Ti / Titan X

I wouldn't be surprised that AMD will surely jack the pricing down later. However all that will depend on how good Pascal will eventually turn out as well as the reviews for this GPU.

Project: Secondary Studio Computer 'Lumberjack' and quick review of Zotac GTX 750 Low Profile

Well, I have a tiny project for this computer I just bought called 'Lumberjack' which I got in end October 2015.

This is based off a slim 6200 PRO desktop chassis from Hewlett Packard. It's a slim desktop, with an i3-2100, complete with a nice high capacity 750GB Hard Drive, Windows 7 Professional, Optical bay, 2 Gigs of RAM. As you can see I love me my Sandy Bridge. It has been an excellent, rugged and proven architecture despite the platform being like 5 years old. The setup will also have the USB Mike which I'm writing a post for it as well.

Let's run down on the specs pretty quick:

- Intel Core i3 2100
- 2GB DDR3 RAM (Which I swapped out to a 4GB GSkill Red RAM Stick in the photo below)
- 750GB Seagate Hard Drive
- Windows 7 Ultimate
- 240W PSU
- Optical DVD Burner
And 10, that's right, 10 USB 2.0 ports.

It's gonna be similar stuff to the sort of thing YouTube Channel Green Ham Gaming TV does, like recycle old hulls and bringing them to gaming order. Now the 6200 PRO, being a slim desktop and with a small 240W PSU, I can't afford to cramp a graphics card that would stress the PSU too much, and one that would be a low profile. It can still be a double slot though. I did manage to find the ideal one without breaking the bank. Although after deducting 65W from the i3 2100, I have about 175W to play with, but even with a decent GPU that can fit this power envelope, I needed to reserve for stuff like the Drives and the USB plugs. Theoretically I could put a GTX 750 Ti in but I'm going to be safe.

Then later, I came across this graphics card on eBay:

Zotac nVidia GeForce GTX 750 Low Profile

That's a tiny card with a small little funky orange fan. It's still a dual slot card which is fine by me and it may only have 1GB of GDDR5 texture memory on a 128-bit bus which limits bandwidth but don't let it fool you. It's still a pretty decent GPU. Having worked with Maxwells on my 970s in SLI, the baby GM106 is no slouch. This card fit the bill for a few reasons.

1. It's a nice mid-range card that is practically the most powerful low profile GPU behind the 750 Tis that are available in Low Profile factors.

2. It's among the 750s that don't require an external 6-pin PCI-E connectors.

3. It can still accept a slight boost tweak on the clocks even if I overclock it on such a wimpy Power Supply.

The card came assembled in its full size bracket with the standard VGA, DVI-I and HDMI ports. But Zotac was nice enough to include the brackets so you can split the 3 connectors from 1 full profile to 2 low profile slots should you have to cramp into a slim desktop like my Lumberjack. One bracket for the DVI and HDMI and the other one for the VGA. But if you don't need the VGA, you can unplug it out of its header on the card.

It comes with documentation and manuals and the usual Driver Disc which you don't need frankly. You can use the CD to get your started but it's best Download the latest GeForce Experience and use it to install the latest drivers available.

Close up of the Tiny Low profile GTX 750 that has been coping well with the overclocks

Shot of internals of 'Lumberjack' with that Graphics card and an extra 2GB RAM stick I put in.

Scores:

Now the GTX 750 is not the best of cards available. It's the most entry level to the GTX grade cards in this series but it can pump out some respectable scores on 3D Mark Fire Strike, Sky Diver and Cloud Gate as you can see below. It's also the 3rd most powerful Low Profile GPU that is available, and after overclocking it, it's quite the card really.

Zotac GTX 750 Low Profile Fire Strike: 3819 on Graphics Score with the Physics being a slight bottleneck

Zotac GTX 750 Low Profile Sky Diver 12575 Graphics score

Zotac GTX 750 Low Profile: Cloud Gate 28019 Graphics score

Now checking the graphics score in relation to the mobile GPUs using the GM106 core like the GTX 850M, 860M, 950M and 960M. We're right on the level with a GTX 860M. And after a +120 on the Core and +150 (Equates to 75 on GPU-Z) on the Memory Clock, we're hitting a Fire Strike 4162 score on the graphics, a 10% Increase. We're right on the level of a stock 750 Ti and the 960M which isn't too shabby even though the better GPUs have 640 cores, 128 more CUDA Cores than the 512 it has.

Despite being a small low profile card, the temperatures of 64 with the overclocks are good. It's pretty quiet too, partly due to a closed case and the fan is facing away from my ears.

An Overclock that boosts the GPU score to 4162

General Gaming Performance

As for general performance, Lumberjack doesn't disappoint. Even though it's operating on a hard-drive, it doesn't really feel all that slow and neither is it noisy. It's actually an Enterprise Level albeit old Hard drive, 750GB will be plenty for some videos that I plan to record and store there and the system is whisper quiet, both idle and at loads. Performance generally on Windows on a single 4GB Stick was abit sluggish since it was probably at the limit of hitting the page file especially on single channel. That was a bit of a pain since the windows install was clean without any Dell Bloatware that the seller did for me. But adding a 2GB Stick to make it 6GB on dual channel really help things along, bringing the Mem Score index of 5.4 to 7.5 on Windows Experience Index while also felt a heavy improvement by just adding a 2 Gig Stick on dual Channel.

In terms of Gaming, the card has demonstrated little difficulty running Life is Strange and Borderlands 2 at my set FPS Cap at 60 at maximum 1080p settings, made it even easier with the overclocks.

Other light titles like Counterstrike Global Offensive, Left for Dead 2, Diablo III, League of Legends, Dota 2, Path of Exile and perhaps even StarCraft II will be a breeze for the GTX 750 to handle.

With the recent acquisition of the 1440p QX2710 Monitor, the lighter titles can even be tapped up to 1440p, some at maximum settings.

Some of the current stuff can still be run if you'd lower the settings or resolutions down abit 900p / 768p will suit these just fine.

General Game Performance

Diablo III - 93 FPS - Max 1080p, 45 FPS - 1440p
Dota 2 - 65 FPS - Best Quality 1080p
StarCraft 2 -76 FPS  Maximum 1080p
Left for Dead 2 - 60 FPS Maximum including AF x 16 and MSAA 8X 1440p 

Some AAA titles of today will run quite well on Medium to High 768p

Metro Last Light: 1366 x 768 Medium 4x AA, 56 FPS
Wolfenstein The New World Order
Borderlands 2
Bioshock Infinite

CONCLUSION

'Lumberjack' actually gave me about the same power in terms of gaming maybe more than what my first DIY Rig was able to give. The GTX 750 when I overclocked, can exceed all my mid range GPUs I used before, like the Radeon 5850, the GTX 550 Ti and the Radeon 6850. For most of the games that are not so demanding, the GTX 750 just handles the job pretty well. And let's say you have an old pre-built system that doesn't have a large power supply and you still want to play games on, the GTX 750 will have your back. It can breathe new life to old systems, turning them to decent low-end gaming machines and a nice HTPC.

Future upgrades I can take with this without pushing the power envelope is to swap the Hard Drive with an SSD or unplug the DVD Writer and add the SSD. Upgrade the i3 to the Core i5 2500S or the 2500T or the i7 2600S. And maybe even upgrade to a GTX 750 Ti LP and give the GTX 750 to my bro.

MagicForce 68-Key MINI Mechanical Keyboard (Cherry MX-Blues)

My fully decked out Keyboard just arrived from Massdrop! This is probably the last keyboard purchase for a long time. This is my very first Cherry MX Blue Keyboard, and one of those keyboards whose form factor is not a standard one.

Not many words needed to describe this keyboard. The reason why this keyboard caused such a buzz is pretty much it represents the absolute size limit that you can shrink a tenkeyless form factor without compromising too much functionality. The close competitor with this similar size will be the Ducky MINI but it is more limited in functionality; the arrow keys, page up/down, Insert and delete keys (essential to my general workloads) missing compared to the MagicForce.

Be prepared to pay more as you deck this keyboard out. But this truly made this keyboard my own.

Differences between this keyboard and standard Tenkeyless Form Factor:

- 5 rows instead of the standard 6. F Keys are integrated to the Number Keys via Function key.

- The Home and End Keys are activated via Function Key on Page Up / Down.

Other Features:
- 9 Brightness LED Levels (Function + Up / Down keys)

- Pulsating LED effects (Function + Left Key to toggle. Function + Right to adjust pulsing speed)

- Available in all switches of Cherry MX, Gateron, or Kailh switches. (Currently, Kailh boards are out of stock).

- Media Playback Functionality (Via Function Key)

- Plug and Play.

- DIP Switches under its base:
Swap Left Caplocks for Left Control, Left Windows for Function Key (Awesome), Lock Windows Keys (Good)

Customizations:
Gold Chassis
White Keys
Gold LEDs on WASD and Arrow Keys.
Blue LEDs on the rest of keyboard
Cherry MX Blues.

Overview of the Keyboard that I received on the 26th January 2016.

Where to Get it:
If you want to get that keyboard from Massdrop, the link is as follows. Do support the drop if you want to get the keyboard at their lowest deals. Do allow some time for shipping, for around two and a half months as it does take a while to build it to user specifications.

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/magicforce-68-key-mini-mechanical-keyboard?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=influencer&utm_term=416&utm_content=randomfrankp


Gallery:

I'll shush up now. Take in the beauty of some of the photographs taken with both my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and Nikon L830.

New addition to the fleet

Backlights off. You can see the Chassis much more clearly.

Standard Cherry-MX Blue Switch

Another Shot.

Comparison to a standard Tenkeyless Form Factor

Tale of Two Keyboards.

Moving a little further ahead, I went to compare the sound and feel between Cherry MX Blues and Blue Outemu's. YouTube Video above.

I found the Cherry MX Blues on this keyboard outclass the Blue Outemu Switches in almost every possible way as typing feel is a lot smoother and less mushy than the latter and it sounds slick to type on too. Although the Outemus are an okay switch, it has a more obvious tactile bump at the bottom, abit heavier and clackier once you bottom it out.

For typists, The Cherry MX Blues is really a perfect blend. Although clicky, they are not much louder than MX Browns which I also have. (Photo above: Comparison to TK Form Factor)


Conclusion:

The bottomline is that this form factor, though with less keys, still retains most of the functionality of a Tenkeyless Keyboard. Going even shorter like say the Ducky MINI without the arrow keys and Page Up/Down Keys is too much a functionality compromise since I use these keys for office work. Thus I feel between the Ducky MINI and the MagicForce, The 68-key config is just the perfect limit. 

This form factor is a perfect fit for small and tight spaces on your desk as a main keyboard (Albeit without the Num Pad). And because I'm used to MacBook Pro Style configuration which allowed me to live without the F1-F12 Keys, it's a viable addition to your MacBook setup. In fact, you configure this to a fully white keyboard with white case and LEDs and all, making it a complement to a Mac Setup or any build that doesn't use a dark colour computer case.

However even better, also as a portable compact, lightweight mechanical keyboard to bring along to LAN events and it just looks good. Highly customizable, it can be suited to your tastes and needs.

QNIX QX2710 27" 2560 x 1440p IPS / VA Monitor Review - The Bang-for-buck 1440p

Synopsis

I was looking for a cheap 1440p monitor as a direct replacement to my 21" Philips 222 EL 2 as my main monitor when I came across this on Qoo10. I loved my 21" monitor but it was too small for my needs, seeing now I have to do with occasion photo detailing.

Delivery Process:
Qoo10 and QNIX wasted no time sending it to me. I sent the Request on Friday (8-Jan) afternoon. It reached Singapore in less than 48 hours and was sent to me on Tuesday. The box it came in was reinforced with an outer layer of cardboard. The reinforcement is tight with tape but it's easy to remove with a small steel ruler.

The review samples had these plain white boxes with Korean Text but this one comes with the standard consumer Box which on the outside describes a bit of some of the features that the monitor has.

The box is tightly reinforced...

But reveals some of the goods when revealed.

But lo and behold, you get yourself a mammoth like this big ol' QX2710 from QNIX. Even at that size, at just over 4 Kilograms, it is still relatively light for its size.

This is the same monitor that Kyle from AwesomesauceNetwork reviewed as being one of his best IPS panels he had ever used. I read somewhere it's more of a VA Panel than an IPS but I could be wrong. Other sources that this panel is based off the Samsung PLS panel. So some research is in order.

With that said, I'm taking a look at the QX2710.

My first 1440p monitor I own. It's relatively lightweight for its size.

To assemble the monitor is fairly straightforward. First you want to unscrew the key from the bottom of the monitor. They did this instead of putting in separately or shoved into the base so you know you won't misplace that key. Then you take the base and slot the monitor in and going back to that key, screw it through the treads of both monitor and the base to secure the monitor firmly into its mount.


Accessories Kit

QNIX include pretty much everything you need to get this monitor running. Apart from the monitor, you'll get:

- A Power Brick
- Power Connector that goes into the Power brick. It's a 2-pinned plug.

Included Power Brick which
uses a detachable standard power
supply cable.

- 2 to 3 pin Adapter
- 1 x Dual Link DVI Cable
- 3.5mm Audio Jack
- Manual

The thing that puts me off.... why QNIX?! Why is your manual in Korean only! At least have it in basic English! It's not that hard.

The jack of the power brick outputs using a detachable standard power cable which they included.  It is a 2-pin heavy plug. But it's nice that QNIX included the 2 to 3 pin adapter (already attached for you which is very nice) for easier plugging in to a UK Wall socket. Moreover I did have a tonne of standard UK 3-pin Power cables lying around that can be used with the Power Brick, so finding suitable cables for it isn't a problem. It's also good that the brick is external rather than a built-in Power Supply. So in an event the power brick goes bad like from a power surge, you just need a replacement brick without swapping the entire monitor.

It was also important that they throw in a Dual Link DVI Cable. I tried with my single link DVI cable which wouldn't work, the monitor will keep flashing upon getting the signal. The Cable is just not fast enough to receive all 3,686, 400 pixels at a time as compared to a 1080p one in which a single Link DVI works. So they did include one. And I did have one extra Dual Link DVI Cable now.

Basic Layout and Connectivity

Left: No I/O. 

Right I/O: 3.5mm Audio Jack, HDMI out, DVI out (Supports only Dual Link)
Below it hidden by the DVI Cable is the DC Power in.

The monitor I configured didn't have too much in a way of outputs. However for this money, I couldn't complain. And there's one thing that all monitors can follow, is the position of the ports. The great design cue is that they placed the I/O at the side instead of placing at the bottom either facing the back or worse facing the bottom.

The Right Side had an Audio Jack to connect between your computer's in built speakers. It had a Dual Link DVI out and a HDMI out. HDMI provides a resolution at the default 1080p at 60 Hz.

However at least for OS X Capitan, although it displays itself as 1080p, the scale will look as if it be a 1440p display. I could tell the difference while using a 1080p screen and a 1440p one side by side. What I can probably infer is that the pixel density retains itself over the resolution spectrum.

The base model comes with a single Dual Link DVI port but I bought the one that also had HDMI on it. Other output configurations are also available at varying prices with Display Port and Mini Display Port options also available on the market.

The monitor however doesn't support single link DVI which is why QNIX was nice enough to include a Dual Link DVI in the accessories box. Well, you can't have too many DVI cables as I did face a huge challenge buying DVI cables around here when I was facing a cable shortage.

The Left has nothing on it. But the similar looking plates do suggest provisions for more outputs but at a higher cost.

The rear houses both the integrated 2 x 5W Speakers which can be output from a standard 3.5mm Jack or the integrated controller using a HDMI Interface. The back also has VESA 100mm by 100mm mount for mounting to the wall or to a custom stand.

Stand

The stand that is provided is a bummer as it only offers tilt and no height adjustment. Completely removing its assembly including the neck of the stand requires the getting into the monitor itself. So it's not easy to remove that stand without a screwdriver. Sure it does get the job done but unless I plop it on a raised base on my desk, it's gonna be too low. That is why the monitor is placed on my Slim Desktop for that height that was the perfect for me.

Controls

Although it's hard to see the control indicators without a flash, it's quite easy to feel the buttons. The button controls on the monitor have a satisfying tactile click upon pressing and controls couldn't be made simpler.

'Source' to Toggle between DVI and HDMI in my case.

The back of the monitor: Speakers and below it
is a standard VESA mount.

'Menu' to bring up the On Screen Display to change the settings and calibrate your monitor. Also doubles as a switch to confirm settings.
Up and Down arrows to go through the various stuff.

I'd like to point out that the OSD is available if you have the option with more than 1 I/O port like mine comes with HDMI and DVI.

Controls on the bottom of the monitor are abit hard to
See without the flash. 

On Screen Display Menu

 The Menu is very minimalistic as what you'd come to expect from Korean branded monitors.

Gaming Mode and DCR Toggles are available.

Performance
For a VA monitor at that price, it is good. The viewing angles aren't shabby and washed out
when at those tight spots, gallery in the next section. The blacks aren't super black as it's supposed to be but I don't really see that much of a difference. And the brightness and contrast levels can be easily manipulated to one's liking. But in terms of brightness and out of the box experience, it is more than good enough even without any tweaking.

As for color reproduction, it is not the monitor for stuff like Photoshopping and editing. It can to some extent, but there are better monitors that are fit for graphics work. Well, for that price, what can you do anyway.

However as a general monitor for games, watching movies, videos, YouTube and stuff, QX2710 can take care of it very well.

Monitor using its HDMI Output on OS X El Capitan. HDMI is limited to 1080p at 60 Hz.

The on board speakers on the QX2710 are mediocre at best. It's soft even at maximum volume. It doesn't help that the speakers are facing the rear. Made worse for Mac OS X to output HDMI Audio to that interface by default, I'd prefer to just stick to my MacBook Pro's Speakers. Although it's enough for basic stuff like watching YouTube videos, you would want to plug in an external speaker solution anyway for gaming music and movies. Still it's there if you somehow want it.

Dynamic Contrast which is a way for the monitor to automatically calibrate itself when trying to bring out dark colors though unnecessary is nice to have.

The monitor is said to be able to overclock to 120Hz refresh rate which is very nice for gamers. I haven't got up to that stage since I don't really find the need for overclocking monitors. But the option is there though and users who have been using this monitor can easily push 100 Hz for a butter smooth and responsive gaming experience.


Viewing Angles Gallery:

From the bottom side

Acceptable viewing angle From the Top

From the right edge.

Pricing:

The pricing of this monitor is where it's at and it is what makes this a special performer. At launch in 2013, this monitor sells at around 360-375 USD (510-550 SGD) and that is just the model with a single DVI port. However just this week, I got mine just over 260 SGD with both DVI and HDMI and a matte screen. The Base model with a single DVI costs just SGD 219 from Qoo10 (150 USD) which for a 27" 1440p monitor with this performance, is very nice.



BOTTOMLINE
"Total Bang for buck 1440p!"

That's my quick quote to summarise the QX2710. Is it the best? Nope. But I can say that the monitor is right up there with some of the other best monitors available, especially in the IPS Panels and within this price bracket. QNIX has produced a solid performing 1440p monitor for the gaming masses without breaking the bank.

There is really no other 1440p monitor that I can ever find at this price, a solid one at that and at a 27 Inch Diagonal length. This price would have otherwise net you a smaller 1080p one from the bigger refutable brands like ASUS and BenQ. Not many features yes, but you get actually more than what you pay for. The screen estate coupled with good base color reproduction is nothing to laugh it.

The HDMI out is nice to have so it is possible to plug this into consoles like the PS4 and XBox 1 even though that they are locked at their own native resolutions.

Pros: 
Solid Color Reproduction at most viewing angles,
Real cheap and excellent price to performance ratio, especially at that size and resolution.
Cables and Accessories
Good out of the box color calibration
Decent Viewing Angles
Negligible colour bleeding.
Fairly light for its size.
Overclocking refresh rate is nice to have.

Cons:
Could have more outputs
Poor Speakers
No Height Adjustment on the stand
Requires digging into the monitor to completely remove the stand for VESA Mounting.
Why's the Manual in Korean?

Now having said that, for gamers who are looking at a cheap, but VERY worthy upgrade to old 720p, 900p and 1080p monitors, this is a Solid "Value-for-Money" and "GOLD" award contender if one doesn't need to care much for its shortcomings and limitations like the stand and speakers. It otherwise does have nice features for the gamers. This monitor may have been out for a while for over 2 years, but reviews have shown that it can still hold its own against the more expensive and more recent monitors and do so on the cheap. Not as good for like super extensive editing like Photoshop and Final Cut / Premier Pro but as a general use 1440p monitor? This monitor is a total steal.

Price:                  *****
Design:               ***
Features:             **
Performance:      *****
Overall:              *****

QX2710 - a Solid value for money proposition at 1440p

My Current Desk Setup: From small to medium 21" to Large 27".

8th August 2015: Carousell SG score - Nikon Coolpix L830

Boy, did I score an absolute killing at Carousell. The Nikon L830. Now people sell that set at 300 SGD for the body. But she quoted me a good price and the bundle which I will share later. I tested it when checking before paying and it works including the crucial card slot. With that I will be ready in time for the Canon Marathon on the 21st August. But here's the bundle.

Nikon Coolpix L830 Body
Nikon Lens Cap
8GB SD Class 10 Card
SD Card USB Adapter
Large Nikon Coolpix Grey Carrying Pouch for the Camera
Smaller Nikon grey pouch for cards and other small accessories
AA Batteries
Travel Tripod
USB Cable, nice to have a second one since it's a proprietary cable.

An excellent value find I must definitely say.

The most distinct difference between the L820 and the L830 that you'll notice is the popped out screen. The screen on the L830 can be adjusted and swiveled, which is handy if you're facing the camera from a high angle and you need to see what you're doing.

The L830 looks similar to the L820 with the distinct
difference being the adjustable screen.

The image / Video qualities of the camera are very similar to each other. The only other diff is that the L830 has improved zoom at 34X as compared to 30X.

Other updates include:
L830 capable of 1:1 Photo Aspect Ratio at 3456 pixel Square.
Ability to fiddle around the exposure as needed.
Added 2s Self-timer option.
Increased resolution options for Movie recording and support for NTSC 25/50 fps Recording.


Now even if the camera is an ounce heavier than its predecessor, it's still sufficiently light to be carried with one hand.

Now I loved the L820 if not for the dead memory slot and thank you to YouTuber LMull3 for delving to this point and shoot camera. And this was an awesome value find too. Since everybody else was selling the Camera from 300 bucks up to the ceiling of 370. So for up to 150 cheaper than any other dealers from Carousell, I got a worthy replacement for the L820.

IMAGE QUALITY
The Coolpix L800 series has been a good value line as far as a general use point and shoot cameras are concern and the L830 along with the L840 are no exception.

Now here are some samples. The quality is very similar to the L820. Just a general info, each photograph at the highest 16 Megapixel Quality is 6.5 Megabytes, which is quite heavy for a camera. So at the very least a bare minimum of a 8GB SD Card but I recommend 16GB - 32GB if you can afford it if you want to take a bunch. However if you're clearing your card every time and you want to keep your photoes as an archive, do sign for Flickr for a massive Terabyte will be made available to store your photoes there.

To test the Zoom, I Zoomed using the Close Up mode. Starting with the Optical Zoom then the Digital Zoom towards that flag. The zoom is not bad at all.



Having taken some pictures already, especially with that working Memory Card slot, I'm ready for an upcoming photograph marathon in a couple weeks. If you want the images, go check my Flickr Webpage.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/48826150@N08/sets/72157656669939538

This is Paul Signing off with the Nikon L830 quick Overview. Welcome to my fleet of cameras.

Complete with a Lens Cap and a working memory card slot, it's ready to go

A New Hobby for Photography: Nikon Coolpix L820.

I was made aware of this camera, by YouTube User Lmull3 / Luke Muller who replaced his Philips CAM110 Pocket Camcorder as a result of a shot battery. And he enjoyed his Nikon L820. And for the price, it's a solid point and shoot camera with only the Focus being the noticeable complaint. It has 30x Optical Zoom which is so much better than all my phones / cameras which all rely on digital zoom for long range shots. It's not the best among the Nikon Coolpix series, but it'll still be a whole lot better than the Galaxy S4 that I use.

Impressions:

Impressions on this camera were promising and for the last 2 months, I've been having a blast with it. Ever since my fellow Music aficionados / Biker Besties from Holy Fam got me into photography as a hobby, rather than a professional, this has been my primary camera.

L820: 30x 16MP Nikkor Lens 16 MP.
Two ways to operate the T/W Zooms: One around the shutter switch for your right hand or the T/W Rocker next to the
Lens for your left hand whichever way you prefer.

It works with both Windows and Macintosh (both of which are easy to grab photoes from). On the windows you can simply go to the DCIM folder and drag the photos out as you normally would from a Thumbdrive. Macintosh would require you to use the iPhoto to get these out but you can choose to import whichever ones you want and you can see the preview of your library of photos at one glance. The importing to Macintosh rather than windows is my preferred one.

It comes with a generous 65 Megs of Memory, which is enough for a dozen 16MP Max Quality Shots, 33 8MP Shots and up to a minute of 720p Video.

The camera does have some heft to it but it's not heavy. Its grip is solidly grippy enough to hold one-handed. Auto-Focus is a bit iffy as said by LMull3, but I normally prefer to switch to a dedicated mode for a much better focus. And the Flash helps that.... A LOT.

Sample Photographs:

Now below are some photos that I did since getting it. And I did want to test how much I can push the camera. Just on Sunday 26th July 2015, one of my uncles came by to do an in-house wedding photoshoot at home. So while Dad was using one of the big boys, the Nikon D7000 DSLR that he has as a primary camera, I was using this. My uncle gladly obliged to do my own set to see how it goes. Now how it stacked up against each other was surprisingly admirably quite close to a DSLR quality camera even for a sub 150 SGD Camera.

The Flickr Album for the Wedding photoshoot:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/48826150@N08/sets/72157654041679363

Now I am not, at any stretch, a professional photographer and you all know me as a musician. So any tips on how to improve my shots are welcomed. That said my uncle was surprised how good even the shots from the L820 turned out.

Meanwhile enjoy some of the photos.

Patio Shot

Shot of the Table which had some of the things the camera was shipped with: The Black Pouch, Proprietary USB Cable,
mini HDMI to Composite, 3100mAH AA Batteries from Xit, (4 in the Camera, 2 in reserve) 

Kitchen Shot

Shot from my Bedroom.

Singapore Esplanade Lighting: Taken during one of my Mahler 8th Rehearsals with the Vocal Associates
And the Orchestra of the Music Makers. That was by far probably my best shot till date.

Panoramic shot from my standing position.

Full Moon shot with the Lens Optically Zoomed in at 30X

Superzoom: Close Up Mode = 30X Optical + 30X Digital is about 60X Zoom.