Unboxing and Review of Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB

By

Anson

-

March 11, 2017

Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB

Is this the best Keyboard-Mouse bundle money can buy now?

Unboxing

Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB

There are not much going on in the packaging. The back of the box outlines the main features of the combo in different language, with a picture of the keyboard cross-section, such as the key switches and steel middle plate.

Inside the box are the keyboard, mouse, and a quick start guide. No keycap removal tool is included. The guide shows you the function shortcuts to customize the lighting. Both the keyboard and the mouse have a 1.8 meters USB 2.0 cable with a noise reduction filter (Ferrite Bead) at the end.

Review

Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB

Design

The Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB has a very minimalistic appearance, with no aggressively styled parts and keycaps. It is a full size 104-key keyboard. There are no extra media keys and macro keys. The mouse is designed to be symmetrical, which left-handed users should be able to use it without any issues. Two side buttons and a DPI button are also equipped.

Build Quality

Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB

In my opinion, the Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB is solidly built. With a steel middle plate, the keyboard is very rigid and does not flex at all. The keycaps are UV-coated ABS, which can withstand more wear than other normally uncoated ABS keycaps. According to Cooler Master website, the exclusive Mem-chanical switch is tested to last for about 12 millions clicks in the product life cycle, doubling the number for normal membrane switches. Also, the inclusion of the water splash resistant capability make one less way for you to damage the keyboard.

The Mouse is equipped with notable Omron switches, tested to last for 10 millions clicks, for the mostly used left and right keys to increase durability. The large surface area of the bottom Teflon feet also prevents quick wear.

The exclusive Mem-chanical switch developed by Cooler Master is aimed to improve the typing experience of ordinary membrane switches. The switch is compatible for normal Cherry MX keycaps, which widely expands the keycaps that users can buy to customize their own keyboards.

The Mem-chanical switch do have better feedback when typing. It does not have a tactile click when you press the key. It is a linear key switches like a Cherry MX Red switch, which both require very light force to actuate key strokes. However, the Mem-chanical switch still feels a little mushy, probably because of the rubber dome at the bottom.

To conclude, the switch does a great job for its membrane nature, adding some linear tactile feedback. Also, it has a transparent plunger, which can shine more light to the keycap. The keycaps can be remove easily without the need of any tools, if you want to change your own keycaps.

RGB Lighting

The Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L‘s Keyboard has six-zone RGB lighting, while the mouse has two RGB light strip in the scroll wheel and at the bottom. You do not need any drivers from Cooler Master to control the lighting, which saves a lot of trouble from software’s bugs and compatibility problems.

There are different effects for the RGB lighting on the keyboard, from static, wave to breathing and ripple. You can easily customize to what you want by pressing the the function keys on the top row. On the mouse, there are only two effects, static and colour cycle. Overall, the RGB lighting control is the best you can do without a specific driver installed.

Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB

Cooler Master has to find ways to cut costs in this budget combo product. This is the reason why the keyboard chooses zone lighting instead of individual LED on key switches. It reduces the number LEDs and the manufacturing processes included. However, the zone lighting makes the brightness of the lighting harder to shine through the keycaps, although Cooler Master adds a translucent backplate to reflect more light to the front.

Mouse

Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB

The Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L‘s mouse is simple but yet pretty well-constructed. It does not feel cheap at all, even though it is mainly made out of hard plastic. The RGB lighting adds some aesthetic improvement with the almost invisible dark black Cooler Master logo.

The mouse has an optical AVAGO 3050 sensor, which does a very solid job for an entry level sensor. It can track on almost any surface without issues, even without a mouse pad. But remember that any glossy surfaces, such as glass, are not suitable for optical mouses. No mouse acceleration is noticed when using it. All the keys on the mouse have very tactile feedback. It is a nice touch to include a driver-less DPI button.

Comfort

Both the keyboard and mouse are comfortable to use for a long time. The Mem-chanical key switches are a little bit louder than normal membrane keyboards, if you are concern about noise when typing at night. It is no where near the sound that mechanical key switches produced. It will be better if a wrist rest is included to reduce the stress on the elbows.

Extra Feature

There are also a windows key lock and a keyboard lock. The G logo will light up red or blue respectively. This feature can prevent accidental clicks when playing computer games, which is helpful for gamers.

Conclusion

The Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB is in fact a really great budget product with premium features. The Mem-chanical key switches with Cherry MX keycaps support provide better than normal typing experience. The RGB lighting lets you personalize your PC desk as you wish. The build quality is extremely solid and is backed by a two-year warranty. The lack of macro keys and wrist rest does not affect the overall user experience very much.

Therefore, the Cooler Master MasterKeys Lite L Combo RGB is suitable for gamers on a budget. I recommend this product to you, if you want some better peripherals than those stock ones.

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3 Best AMD Ryzen 7 CPU – AM4 Motherboard Combos

By

Anson

-

March 4, 2017

New type of Socket and Chipsets for Ryzen

AMD Ryzen CPUs use the completely new AM4 socket with different pin layout, and 5 models of chipsets (currently only 2 available to buy – B350, X370). Remember that older AM3, AM2+ motherboards are NOT compatible with the new Ryzen processors.

AMD B350 and X370 Motherboard Chipset — Comparsion of the main features of the new chipsets

The main difference between the X370 and B350 chipsets are in number of PCI Express lanes, number of SATA and USB 3.1 Gen 1 native support. X370 is the top of the line chipset, which has more PCIe 3.0 lanes with Nvidia SLI support and more native USB and SATA ports.

Both X370 and B350 support NVMe drives at PCIe 3.0 x4 speed and Crossfire for AMD Graphics cards. They are overclocking enabled to allow users to squeeze more performance out of the Ryzen 7 CPUs.

Three Combinations with Ryzen 7 CPUs and AM4 Motherboards

Please note that I have not used any of the following products. All of the recommendations are based on their current prices and features. At the current time, there are only a few brands available to purchase online, limiting the choices.

Budget Combo at around $400-500 USD

In this combo, budget gaming is the main target of the users. The Ryzen 7 1700 has 8 cores, 16 threads, and can boost up to 3.7 GHz. This processor is the least expensive one in the Ryzen 7 series, but its performance still packs a punch. It can match or even outperform the Intel Core i7-7700K. You can overclock the CPU to get more out of it.

For motherboard, I have selected the ASUS Prime B350M-A. It is a mATX (uATX) motherboard, with enough features. It has 4 DDR4 DIMM Slots for up to 64 GB of RAM, running at Dual Channel. Also, it has a Gigabit LAN port by Realtek, 8-Channel HD Audio, and native NVMe M.2 SSD socket. 4 SATA 6 Gbps ports are more than enough for gaming.

The ASUS Prime B350M-A has 2 more RAM slots, compared with other similarly priced model, for future expandability, if you want to have more capacities for some memory intensive programs. Moreover, its 6 USB ports on the back panel are all USB 3.1 Gen 1 or up, giving you faster transfer speed. Its subtle colour scheme with grey and black can fit most system nicely.

Alternative Option:

MSI B350M GAMING PRO (with 2 less RAM slots, Max 32GB) (its review here)

Gaming and Editing Combo at around $600-700 USD

A Ryzen 7 1700X is also a 8 cores, 16 threads with boost clock speed up to 3.8 GHz. Its Intel counterpart is the Core i7-6800K. It can handle both gaming and editing pretty well with its multi-core power. Of course, you can overclock it too.

The ASUS Prime X370-Pro hits a rather sweet spot in the entry level X370 chipset’s market. With its ATX form factor, it can pack more features than normal mATX boards, which is helpful if you have many expansion cards or devices. 4 DDR4 DIMM slots can support up to 64 GB of RAM in Dual Channel. It has an Intel powered Gigabit LAN port, USB 3.1, NVMe M.2 Socket and a displayport on the back panel. For storage, it gets 8 SATA 6 Gbps ports, giving you tons of space to store your editing footage.

Compared with other products in the same price range, the ASUS Prime X370-Pro has the AURA Sync RGB Lighting, with an additional header on the board. This enables you to control and sync your RGB lighting with your machine easily, if you have AURA compatible devices. It has 2 more SATA ports than competitors, allowing for more expansion in storage options. It can support both Crossfire and SLI, along with its stainless steel plated PCIe slots for heavier graphics cards.

Alternative Options:

MSI X370 GAMING PRO CARBON (Mystic RGB on heatsink and I/O Shield, 6 SATA ports, SLI support)
GIGABYTE GA-AB350-GAMING 3 (B350 chipset, 6 SATA ports, no SLI support)

Top-Tier Workstation Combo at above $800 USD

MSI X370 XPOWER GAMING TITANIUM — Photo from MSI

The Ryzen 7 1800X is the best performed CPU in the series. Using its 8 cores, 16 threads at boost speed up to 4.0 GHz, it can deal with everything you throw at it without breaking a sweat. It can stay on par with the Intel Core i7-6900K.

When choosing expensive motherboards, it tends to become more difficult, as most of them have similar specifications and features. The MSI X370 XPOWER GAMING TITANIUM has striked a great balance between price and features.

The motherboard is in ATX form factor, with its all white PCB. It looks pretty awesome, in my opinion. Its 4 DDR4 DIMM slots (Max 64 GB) are plated with stainless steel to prevent breaking. It is also equipped with 2 M.2 slots supporting PCIe 3.0 x4 and 2.0 x4 speed respectively (SATA M.2 compatible), with a little plate to cover up the actual drives. It can support up to 3-way Crossfire using the third additional PCIe 3.0 slot at the bottom. The on-board power button and debug code LED are welcome additions for easier, more convenient overclocking.

Alternative Options:

GIGABYTE GA-AX370-GAMING 5 (higher price tag, RGB on RAM and PCIe slots, dual LAN from Intel and Killer Networking)
ASUS ROG Crosshair VI Hero (AURA RGB on heatsink and I/O shield, 8 SATA ports, up to 12 USB ports on back panel)

Conclusion

Choosing the right motherboard solely depends on how you rate the importance of specific features. For example, if your are a video editor, you will value more on RAM and SATA storage support to render videos faster and store the source footage. Therefore, all the above products are just recommendations. You can change them to whatever that fit your needs and preferences. Hope you all have fun enjoying the new AMD Ryzen Platform.

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Nvidia finally unveils the GTX 1080Ti

By

Anson

-

March 1, 2017

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti

With rumors all over the places, Nividia launches the GTX 1080Ti today. However, most of the rumor specifications are not correct. The 1080Ti has some special update compared with its “brother”, 1080.

The GTX1080Ti surprises everyone with its very similar specifications to the Titan XP. Normally, the Ti version will be a cut down version of the more powerful Titan cards, with less CUDA cores, memory size and memory bandwidth.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti

NVIDIA GeForce TITAN X

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080

Interestingly, the 1080 Ti has the same number of 3584 CUDA cores, with a even higher 1582 MHz Boost clock. The Titan Xp has more ROP units than the 1080 Ti, 96 units compared with 88 units. Both of the cards are extremely similar, 1080 Ti only with 1 GB less VRAM and less ROP units.

The 1080 Ti has a TDP of 250W, same with the Titan XP, 70W higher than the 1080. Nvidia also claims there are improvements to the reference Founders Edition’s vapour chamber cooler design, which leads to better cooling and quieter performance.

According to Nvidia, the GTX 1080 Ti will be sold at the MSRP $699 USD, while the GTX 1080’s price will be dropped to $499 USD. This makes the 1080 Ti kind of competitve with its much less price but similar specifications to the Titan XP.

Updated:

According to Anandtech’s review, the GTX 1080 Ti is over 30% more powerful in 4K gaming, and about 28% more in 1440p than the normal GTX 1080. The leap in performance is a bit better if not similar to the upgrade of GTX 980 – GTX 980 Ti.

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How to crimp your own Ethernet Cable

By

Anson

-

February 28, 2017

How to crimp your own Ethernet Cable

It is extremely common for everyone to have a whole bunch of cables, especially those Ethernet cables around the computers, routers and access points. It is absolutely fine if you only have a couple devices or just use wireless gadgets. However, when you get multiple people in the house that use all kinds of devices, there will be a big mess of cables.

Using those Cat5E or Cat6 Ethernet cables from the Internet Service Providers is one of the main reasons for the clutter. The cables are mostly pre-cut into fixed length. This causes every cables’ connections to have excess length of wire clogging the area.

Therefore, crimping your own Ethernet cables can help a lot to tidy up your cable mess.

How to crimp your own Ethernet Cable

These are all the basic tools to crimp your ethernet cables. You will need some RJ-45 Connectors, a spool of Cat5E or Cat6 cables, a crimping tool, a pair of scissors and a wire stripper (optional). You can also choose to have some strain relief boots if you like.

You have to set all the tools on a brightly lit surface. Note that you can replace the wire stripper with a pair of scissors. Carefully cut the plastic on the tip of the cable, exposing the 8 wires.

4 pairs of wires (8 wires) in different colours

Then, you will need to straighten out the wires, if you have twisted pairs in your Ethernet cable. You line the wires up in the correct order, white-orange on the left and solid brown on the right.

In the photos, my cables are red=orange, white=white-orange, light green=white-green, light blue=white-blue, and light brown=white=brown.

You can use the blade of the crimping tool to cut the wires’ end, making them easier to get in the connector.

After you put the wires in correct order, gently push the wires into the RJ-45 connector. Please ensure that all wires get into their respective slots in the connector. Check the order again before proceeding to the next steps.

Put the connector into the crimping tool

You need to push all the wires to the very end of the metal contacts in the connector, or the cables will not work. Please be reminded that once you crimp the connector, you will not be able to reuse it for the next time.

Repeat the above procedures until you have enough length or number of cables. You can now customize your desired cable length to get rid of the unwanted cable mess. Start cleaning up your cables!

Tools Required:

RJ-45 Connectors
Cat5E or Cat6 cables
a crimping tool
a pair of scissors
wire stripper (optional)
strain relief boots (optional)

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Huge Price Drops for Intel’s CPUs to combat AMD Ryzen !!

By

Anson

-

February 28, 2017

Intel's processors start to have price drops.

The higher end Core i7 models have up to $300 USD price cut on Micro Center.

According to the prices shown on Micro Center, most of the recent generations CPUs (Broadwell-E, Skylake and Kaby Lake) are having a massive price cut, including the highest end model (i7-6950X). It is believed that Intel has started to react with the launch of the AMD Ryzen 7 CPUs on 02 March.

Details of the Price Drops (in February 2017):

i7-6950X ($300 Less)

i7-6900K ($200 Less)

i7-6850K ($150 Less)

i7-6800K ($140 Less)

i7-5820K ($100 Less)

i7-7700K ($80 Less)

i7-6700K ($140 Less)

i7-4790K ($90 Less)

i7-7700 ($50 Less)

i7-6700 ($90 Less)

i5-7600K ($70 Less)

i5-6600K ($90 Less)

i5-4690K ($70 Less)

i5-7500 ($30 Less)

i5-6500 ($50 Less)

i5-4590 ($60 Less)

i3-7350K ($20 Less)

i3-7100 ($15 Less)

i3-6100 ($20 Less)

G4400 ($20 Less)

G3258 ($27 Less)

The Price drops are from $15 USD up to $300 USD.

The prices on other online stores are not yet adjusted, but if Intel wants to stay competitive with AMD, more retailers must begin to change the prices to attract consumers. Now, Intel has made its first move to start the 2017 CPU’s Price War, which is always beneficial to every consumers.

(Updated)
The price drop for the Intel CPUs seems to be only happening in Micro Center, not a world-wide strategy for Intel.

Sources from http://wccftech.com/intel-amd-price-war-ryzen-processors/

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AMD Ryzen 5 CPUs will be launching in April 2017

By

Anson

-

February 26, 2017

As we all know from the event by AMD, the Ryzen 7 CPUs are the top of the line processors with 8 cores and 16 threads. We get the performance numbers and the prices of them, too. However, we hear nothing about the mainstream line-up CPUs — the Ryzen 5 and Ryzen 3.

AMD Ryzen 5 CPUs will be released in Q2 2017

There is now not much information about both the Ryzen 3 or Ryzen 5 processors at this point. It is confirmed that Ryzen 5 will be released in Q2 2017 (April to June), and the Ryzen 3 will be in the second half of 2017.

Ryzen 5 1600X 6C,12T, 3.6Ghz, 4.0Ghz Turbo

Comparing with Intel Core i5-7600K, 69% higher score

The Ryzen 5 CPUs will have 6 cores, 12 Threads, up to 4.0 Ghz Turbo boost frequency. This tier of processors is aiming the majority of the mainstream consumers, which is directly competing with Intel’s Core i5 line of products.

How the Ryzen 3 and Ryzen 5 CPUs will perform is still kept in secret by AMD. But if it at least matches the level of the Intel’s equivalents, we will have a whole new market and competition going on in the not too distant future.

(Updated)

The AMD Ryzen 5 CPUs will be available worldwide on the 11th April, 2017.

AMD Ryzen 5’s prices ranging from $169 up to $249 USD

As the mainstream tier of processors in Ryzen, the Ryzen 5 have at least 4 cores, 8 threads, and a maximum of 6 cores, 12 threads. The 4 cores variants have a boost clock speed up to 3.7 GHz, while the 8 cores can boost to 4.0 GHz.

The prices of the Ryzen 5 are set very competitively. With the +69% performance than the Intel Core i5-7600K that AMD claims, the highest clocked Ryzen 5 1600X is priced similarly. The 1600X has 2 more cores, 4 more threads, but a slightly lower clock speed (200MHz).

For such an aggressive pricing, the Ryzen 5 CPUs are more accessible to mainstream gamers and casual users that do not require Ryzen 7‘s higher performance.

Sources and Photos from https://www.techpowerup.com/230928/amd-ryzen-5-six-core-processors-to-launch-in-q2-2017 and AMD’s youtube channel.

Related Websites

https://www.pcper.com/news/Processors/AMD-Launching-Ryzen-5-Six-Core-Processors-Soon-Q2-2017

http://www.fudzilla.com/news/processors/42959-amd-ryzen-5-and-ryzen-3-cpus-come-later

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Logitech Stepping up to 4K in the Webcam industry !!

By

Anson

-

February 24, 2017

1080p webcams have been in the market for many years now. The innovation of webcam seems to not moving fast enough, while TVs, monitors are blazing through 4K or even 5K in professional market. In February 2017, Logitech releases its flagship webcam product in 4K — the BRIO.

The world first 4K webcam from Logitech, with Windows Hello capability

Photo from Logitech

The new Brio 4K webcam has a simplistic design that Logitech tries to implement in recent products, with rounded edges all around. The webcam is suitable for both home and business users. It supports Windows 7 or up, macOS 10.10 or higher.

Photo from Logitech

The Brio webcam is capable of capturing 4K (up to 4096 x 2160) at 30 fps, or 1080p at 30/60 fps, with a larger 90 degrees field-of-view. It also features an additional infrared sensor that enables Windows Hello to work. It has RightLight™ 3 with HDR, which aims to improve low light performance.

You can order one right now online.

Related Websites
http://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/brio
https://support.microsoft.com/en-hk/help/17215/windows-10-what-is-hello

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AMD Ryzen 7 CPU Launches with Price and Performance

By

Anson

-

February 23, 2017

In June 2016, AMD released some information about their newest, long-waited generation CPU — Ryzen. AMD showed the world about how Ryzen is capable of competing with Intel. People have been waiting for so long that AMD can return to glory.

Finally, today, AMD unveils the Ryzen CPU detailed performance and prices of the top tier Ryzen 7 CPUs.

All the CPUs in the Ryzen 7 line-up are 8 cores, 16 threads. They are aimed to compete with Intel Core i7-7700k. i7-6800k and i7-6900k. According to AMD’s benchmark statistics, all Ryzen 7 CPUs match the i7 equivalents or even outperform them with a much lower price. A REAL LOWER PRICE !!

If the Ryzen CPUs are really what AMD claims it can be, then Intel may have to pay more attention to stay at the top of the processor industry.

The Ryzen 7 CPUs can be pre-order on various platforms in the world on February 22, 2017. They will be shipped starting from March 2, 2017.

Updated:

AMD also teases about the upcoming releases of the mainstream Ryzen 3 and Ryzen 5 CPUs in later 2017. With AMD Ryzen launch coming, Intel starts making their products cheaper to stay competitive.

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Unboxing

Review

Design

Build Quality

RGB Lighting

Mouse

Comfort

Extra Feature

Conclusion

New type of Socket and Chipsets for Ryzen

Three Combinations with Ryzen 7 CPUs and AM4 Motherboards

Budget Combo at around $400-500 USD

Gaming and Editing Combo at around $600-700 USD

Top-Tier Workstation Combo at above $800 USD

Conclusion

Updated:

Details of the Price Drops (in February 2017):

(Updated)

Updated:

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