[Ash]

If you have a desktop PC case from Optiplex, don't bother to upgrade your GPU, because i am sure, there is not much space in there, and you only option is to buy a low profile GPU - that's not capable to play today games fluently.

Except that, your use DDR2 memory modules - not the fastest around with today standards. !!!!

-------------

Verdict: You should buy a new PC, not necessarily the fastest around, but easy upgradable, if you want it too, in the future. !!!

Computer build:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/m4BGbv

That's a top notch PC for $ 888

[GLOW...]

If it comes to that, I will consider it (May do that due to Dragon Age Inquisition coming out later this year). Now that you mentioned it, are there any good pc deals? (the ones that could run games properly, not necesarily a "gaming pc")

[Marcin Tomkow]

If you want to play newer games, you should see it as a gaming PC. That what counts on a PC build is, how well can it operate if you install a game on it. Otherwise every cheep PC build would to the trick actually. !!!

The thing is, how you want it to be !!!! (for the above game you mentioned, it should be a GTX 650 minimum for sure, to archieve a good gaming experience with this game)

So that what's count in first place, and preferable in that order: GPU - CPU - Ram (i put ram in the last place, for the reason that nobody buy a PC today with less that 4GB of ram)

--------------------

That's an allrounder pre-build PC for $ 625 -> http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/AMD_Six_Core_Configurator/ (Just add a better PSU ***)

*** Thermaltake SMART Series SP-650PCBUS (You don't need a 650 Watt PSU for that configuration, but it costs 29 dollars more, and it's a good investment for an future upgrade)

Total Price: $ 654

[stephanie eastwood]

So I've really been reading up on this wireless mouse/keyboard case for two days now and I'm honestly baffled. We really don't have the technology to make a wireless mouse/keyboard that works with games? My Xbox 360s controller has never once had lag and that thing came out in 2005. In NINE YEARS we can't make a wireless keyboard that works with games? I'm so confused.

[IsAiah AkA figgy]

Matter of taste. PC gamers are a lot more picky about latency due to the prevalence of higher framerates. For a lot of people wireless M&KB would work, but likewise for a lot of people (mainly players of fast paced FPSs but others as well) the latency introduced by wireless communication is intolerable.

Additionally (though I can't confirm this in any way) there might actually exist a difference in the handling of wireless signals and peripherals on PC that introduces additional latency. Stuff like API and driver overhead, etc.

[Michelle Smith]

Yeah I notice when playing something like FC3 Blood Dragon or Metro LL my character will be fine for a couple of minutes and then the keyboard will start to hiccup and the character will move whenever he feels like it.

I just don't know what to do considering I built this computer solely for my living room and now I'm reading that wireless doesn't work for gaming. What would you guys do in this situation?

[Harry-James Payne]

Wireless works fine for gaming (provided the lag doesn't bother you). The problem is either related to your environment (interference) or your setup (poor quality wireless gear).

[GLOW...]

Actually as DEFRON^P say, and...

I have logitech wireless keyboard and mouse, works like a charm. Logitech is the only good producer of wireless stuff.

My opinion, never buy microsoft wireless products or trust other cheap wireless devices. !!!

Where you have your reciever ??? Do not place it underneath your desk, keep it in line of sight with both devices,

and do not place it right next to other wireless devices (cellphone, wifi antenna's etc. etc.).

RF interference from other stuff you have close to it may be the reason you're getting the lag.

I'm playing 2 meters away from the receiver, and it works fine, maybe your hardware is most likely defective. !!!

I even have the receiver connected in the back of my case.

---------------

Those are the recommendations from Microsoft about lag and lack of response from Microsoft Wireless keyboards and mouses

• Try a clean boot procedure
• Re-synchronize your device with the receiver
• Try different USB ports
• Re-insert the batteries or install fresh batteries
• Check for interference
• Install the latest software

[Maria Garcia]

I need to update the firmware of my Samsung 840 Evo SSD, but I am not sure how and I don't want to risk deleting everything. If I understand correctly you must download the firmware update from the site and burn it to a disk, then boot from that disk to update the firmware?

On a side note, I have been noticing random stutter in games, it will only happen after my PC has been on for a few hours, if I restart my PC it will be back to normal. Any Ideas on what could be the cause of this?

[Noraima Vega]

Just do it myself, on my Samsung 840 128GB SSD drive.

I report back !!!!!

UPDATED

========

You did it with Samsung Magician. No need to burn it to disk.

Either way you download your Firmware yourself, from this site, or Samsung Magician downloads it from internet automatically if you want to do it on the fly.

http://www.samsung.com/global/business/semiconductor/samsungssd/downloads.html

You will be informed, on the bottom right corner, with a message box if you have a firmware update, after you install Samsung Magician.

How i did this:

• Downloaded Samsung Magician (version 4.4) from the above site, installed it, and after a couple of seconds ι was informed about a new firmware update.
• I did a backup (but i didn't deleted my files, only to see if will lose my files after all.) It took me ca. 8 minutes to move 59.8GB from one SSD to another.
• Did the update, it took a couple of seconds, and then the computer shuts down.
• I restarted, and i checked that my firmware was indeed updated with Samsung Magician.
• My firmware was indeed installed, and i don't lose any data at all. !!! (So i deleted the back-up i did on my other SSD - it took me 5 sec. to delete 59.8GB - impressive. !!!)

--------------

> On a side note, I have been noticing random stutter in games, it will only happen after my PC has been on for a few hours, if I restart my PC it will be back to normal. Any Ideas on what could be the cause of this? <

It could be heat related, do you get any error messages. ???

[kasia]

Just FYI - you can't tell how fast a CPU is based on its clockspeed. Different CPU architectures are able to perform a different amount of work per core at the same clockspeeds. In some cases these differences can be very, very large.

Consider these two dual-core processors that both run at 2.6GHz:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/33?vs=406

As you can see, in the CPU benchmarks (not games), the Pentium G620 is roughly twice as powerful as the Athlon X2 5000+. Just an example. You really have to look at benchmarks. The clockspeed doesn't tell you how the CPU is going to perform unless you're comparing identical CPU architectures at different clockspeeds.

[Lilit Ager]

No error messages, and my temps are all normal. When I say it goes back to normal after a reset, I literally mean right after a reset it is normal. Takes about 15-20 seconds for my comp to turn off then back on. Then there is no stuttering at all. I also get a lot of screen tearing in some games when Vsync is off. Is that normal? I always turn on Vsync to avoid screen tearing. (BTW the games I am noticing stutter in aren't the ones with Vsync on so that is not the cause.)

[Quick Draw]

> I also get a lot of screen tearing in some games when Vsync is off. Is that normal? I always turn on Vsync to avoid screen tearing. <

Those artifacts occurs when the video signal isn't synchronized with the display's refresh rate.

It is normally caused by the video card sending another frame to the monitor or tv before the last frame has been fully drawn on screen.

You get part of one frame and part of the second frame displayed at the same time.

If you are having lots of screen tearing, you probably want to turn V-Sync (or vertical sync) on.

[Katie Pollard]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833124190&cm_re=linksys-_-33-124-190-_-Product

So I found this router, outstanding reviews, any one have any personal experience with it?

[sw1ss]

Why would you want to buy such an outdated, old, router? If you're looking for a wireless router, you don't want to buy anything without support for wireless-n. Depending on how much you like being a pioneer/futureproofing, you may want to buy something with wireless-ac

[Shirley BEltran]

is the PowerColor Radeon R9 290 4GB PCS+ Video Card better then a Gtx 780?

If so, this build looks very good. http://pcpartpicker.com/p/7qLpzy

Opinions?

[Roy Harris]

Wi-Fi 802.11ac is not really going to give you gigabit speeds, and the theoretical maximum peak of 1.3 Gbps - will most likely work in laboratory conditions and not in your office or home.

802.11ac only supports the 5GHz frequency. The good thing is that, there's more room in that frequency than with the older used 2.4GHz. The bad thing is that a 5GHz signal has less range. !!!

And even with the beam-forming feature, that you can get around the 5Ghz range problem, if you are on a environment with few 802.11ac devices, you will see excellent range.

But if you are in a environment with hundreds of 802.11ac devices, I thing you need to be much closer to an Access Point to get a signal.

And always you should remember that any network is only as fast as its slowest link. For example, if you're buying 802.11ac to improve your Netflix and your Internet connection is 10Mbps, it won't do any good.

802.11n, or even 802.11g, is all you'll need.

[James Wilson]

Looks good. Actually i would suggest as an PSU, either the XFX ProSeries 650W or the Seasonic X-Series: X-650, but obviously i can't find them on the list.

The EVGA NEX650G is an example of a "good enough" power supply.

But you could just take the Corsair HX650 PSU instead.

-------------

Those cards are quite close.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1068?vs=1036

[Greg Cavaliere]

My experience is that 802.11g will often be slower than your Internet. It's theoretical speed is 54Mbit/s, which is cut in half due to that being the aggregate of both to-and-from. Furthermore it'll be divided between each device currently communicating, and you can expect the standard 20-30% loss from the environment. I've never seen above 2.5 MiB/s on wireless-g

[Emma Parkinson]

Yeah, that's true. Well, i had my network configuration in mind, so i just wanted to point out, that maybe he don't need an supercharged version of 802.11n. lol

I don't even get close to 1.0 MB/s with my wireless b/g/n.

[lucile davignon]

I'd hardly call it supercharged. wireless-n is the baseline IMO. If it doesn't have that, don't even consider it.

If you have fallback enabled, it could have dropped down to wireless-g speeds. That will happen if your router isn't set to N-only and a singular G-only device conects. In order for the router to communicate with a single device using the 802.11g standard, all devices must be communicated with it.

[Connie Thomas]

On the subject of Routers, do you think the Linksys WRT1900AC is worth it? My Linksys E3000's 2.4GHz Antenna is broken (possibly due to overheating). I can only get about 5mbps out of it, even when I am next to the Router. the 5GHz Antenna gives better performance 25-40mbps depending on the device and distance from Router, however this device's 5GHz Antenna is older and doesn't have good range. I only get 1bar (unstable) to my basemant (Router is on 2nd floor).

My Internet is ~105mbps download/10mbps upload and I have an XBOX 360 in the basemant so a good connection there would be helpful.

Note: It only a wireless issue with the current Router, as I get proper speeds via Wired connections.

[Stefanny Cardona]

I'm not a big fan of Linksys routers anymore. I don't like the cloud-based aspect of their firmware*. I've been happy with Asus routers and lately Netgear's been showing some interesting bits with the use of open source firmware by default (which is also something Buffalo does, but I've never had a buffalo router).

Edit: to clarify, I of course know you can often flash custom firmware over (I do that with my asus routers), but rather I don't want to vote with my wallet for a company that is pushing cloud-based router firmware.

[kasia]

I just don't want to spend 200 bucks, I want a very good router that wont drop my wifi every 3 hours without paying an arm and a leg. Do you have a suggestion?

I also didn't notice how old it was, or that it was only b/g.

On a side note, my ASUS PCE Wifi Adapter came today, so far so good. i don't notice a difference in speed from the wired connection.

[HARDHEAD]

Here's my current router: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833320038

Here's one for the same price as you were thinking: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833122334

both allow custom firmware, both have gigabit ethernet, both have wireless-n support.