Whenever we changed our desktop HDD, we’d always think we could never possibly need a larger one… until we’d run out of space six months later. It’s similar with the speed of wireless networks today. The last thirteen years have seen wireless networks soar from the modest 11 Mbps (802.11b) to the I’m-never-possibly-going-to-need 1300 Mbps, proposed by the latest IEEE 802.11ac standard. With the latest cloud technology development trends in mind, as well as the fact that there are more and more online services offering unlimited storage space, it’s not going to be a question of how much room there is, but how fast it can be accessed. Besides, quality storage and use of new video technologies (such as 4K UHD) will require us to upgrade our quickly aging wireless infrastructure with a more serious and powerful one. It doesn’t come across as surprising, then, that the rate of improvement in wireless technologies seems to be increasing.

When Microsoft announced “Project Natal” at 2009’s rendition of the E3 fair, most presumed it would be some sort of response to the ultra-popular Nintendo Wii. Of course, from today’s point of view, compared to the Wii Controller, “Project Natal” was equivalent to a spaceship. About a year and a half later, the said project gave birth to Kinect, and the rest is history. Kinect is based on technology developed by the Israeli company PrimeSense, based on using cameras and depth sensors in order to enable object tracking and gesticulation. Although it all looks relatively simple, the fact remains that no one has managed to successfully copy the technology thus far (not even the Chinese), which shows just how complex this system is. Kinect brought a whole new dimension to Xbox 360 gaming, and the so-called Kinect hackers were quick to surface as well, using this add-on for a variety of purposes.

Ever since we first tested the ASUS Xonar STX soundcard, which passed our tests with flying colours, it was clear to us that ASUS has stepped firmly into audiophile waters. A number of soundcards and headphones have been presented in the series in the meantime, and the device we’re testing today is the latest addition to the fold in the high-end segment, namely Xonar Essence One. The device has a set of digital inputs, USB, coaxial and TOSLINK. These inputs accept digital signals in sampling rates of up to 192 KHz. The outputs consist of a pair of standard RCA (CINCH) connectors, and surprisingly enough, a pair of professional XLR-out connectors. The analogue signal is then conducted from the converter output to the integrated headphone amplifier input or the said RCA or XLR outputs, and then via appropriate cables to preamp, integrated amp, mixer or active speakers. The front panel contains all controls and commands, as well as analogue headphone output with the standard jack (6.3 mm) or a mini-jack adapter (3.5 mm). In a word, it’s a very versatile and compact gadget.

If we have a look at the history and evolution of PC components, one that's arguably changed most (and most drastically) over the many years in service is the one that we all use on a daily basis, one that's so essential to the concept of the PC that all know what it is. Yet this essential peripheral is being bluntly disregarded by most users nowadays, despite the fact that it's literally the key element to the use of the PC and that any graphical environment would be rendered useless without it. You've guessed it, we're talking about the mouse! This unusual electronic piece of equipment has gone a long way since its inception, over its introduction to the masses, to the widespread recognition it enjoys today; there have been radical changes, but also various sorts of cosmetic surgery, yet none of which managed to affect its operation and basis. Theoretically speaking, the mouse is a peripheral input device the basic function of which is to detect two-dimensional movement on a plane and converting it into an electrical signal used by the computer to define cursor movement on the display. This dry definition by itself shows that not much has changed in the mice world since the beginning; however, the evolution of mice is interspersed with battles against other sorts of input devices, concepts and technologies. Yet the mouse has proven to be a resistant little fellow, and we're pretty certain that it's going to stick to our desktops (in both meanings) for some time to come. This is why we've decided to have a look back at the fascinating history of mice, from the "ball" to the cutting-edge laser technology.

Sapphire has been attempting to reach out of the graphics card manufacturing business for a while now, albeit with limited success; yet they've managed to get some praise for the surprises they come up with every now and then. Their motherboards are solid, depending on the model, their mini PC solutions very good, and as the last in the line of entirely new devices, one that is bound to have a very limited audience, but deserves to be mentioned nevertheless. Say that you have a notebook with a single digital output, such as DVI or DisplayPort, but your work necessitates multiple monitors. This is a practically insoluble situation, bar the help of an external solution. Well, Sapphire's VID-2X is just that. Two versions exist, one with DVI and the other with DisplayPort, while both provide a couple of single-DVI outputs at the other end (which can be easily converted to HDMI outputs with the usual connectors you can purchase separately). We got the latter version for testing, which turned out great, since the author of this text has just such an output on his notebook.

Cooler Master has long built a reputation for excellent enclosures and PSUs, but they’ve been dabbling in the gaming market for a while now too, under the Storm brand name. What’s more, we can’t recall a single product from the said family that’s been hit-and-miss; all have performed magnificently, and that goes for mice, enclosures and other equipment alike. This time, however, we have a product that you won’t be seeing a lot of coverage on, as it’s something of a crossroads between old and new technology, with a final result that’s impressive to say the least, from a gamer’s point of view anyway. Meet the new mechanical keyboard, namely Trigger. What makes it so special, then? Well, it’s a mechanical keyboard in the truest sense of the word, something rather unusual and definitely not to everyone’s taste.

Does it appear to you that the hardware market is increasingly oriented towards the gaming population? The cycle for presenting new gaming products seems to have been reduced to a couple of months for some companies, and that’s the case this time around as well. Cooler Master has done their best to expand their offer of gaming products by inserting the Sirus 5.1 gaming headset into the Storm family. Aware that Cooler Master has rarely been the one to disappoint, especially with the Storm series, we’ve been more than eager to get down to testing the headset.

When you’re connecting your notebook to the already established and well-known network, everything runs smoothly. However, when you’re in need of a functional network on-the-go as quickly as possible, you may encounter numerous issues. D-Link’s DAP-1350 is one of those devices that’ll help you look upon detailed and numerous settings as a thing of the (ugly) past. With internet invading everywhere, wireless networks are a common feature of modern homes. During the past decade, networking gear was slowly finding its way towards home users, first by lowering prices all the time, then by adding the wireless networking features, and finally by improving performance, both in terms of speed (B, G and N standards) and security (WEP, then WPA and MAC filtering). When everything was optimised enough, manufacturers turned their attention to simplifying the setup process, in order to make the technology as user-friendly as possible. We can freely say that D-Link has always been one of the leading companies in this respect.

Cooler Master. Enclosures, coolers, fans, even PSUs. All of these, segments where they set new standards, one might say. However, about two years ago, they bit well into another major market segment - gaming mice. They went in very offensively, with the intention of presenting the Cooler Master Storm series to the widest gaming audience, particularly the Sentinel model, the heir to which we’re now reviewing. At first sight, one might ask - so where are the advancements? But let’s have a more thorough look...

In order to create a good SOHO wireless network environment, one always has to provide reliable equipment. In order to avoid the regret of not having chosen equipment more wisely when first setting up the network (unlike some of us), make sure you look comprehensively at the current market situation. If you don’t have a personal contact that would provide adequate advice, cruise the internet a little and take a look at what others are recommending. It’s likely in both cases that you’ll end up in the default product gamma of a large manufacturer, but at times, you may be surprised by the quality of the solutions offered by other familiar names in the IT field. This is one such occasion, and we’ve had the chance to thoroughly examine two of ASUS’ wireless solutions, namely DSL-N10 (modem/router) and a dual-band router RT-N56U.