Gigabyte Z170MX-Gaming 5

While mini-ITX might be grabbing the headlines recently, there’s a slightly less drastic way to get a smaller PC. The micro-ATX form factor allows for cases that are significantly smaller than ATX chassis, yet you still have the option of using sound cards, PCI-E SSDs or other expansion slot devices along with your graphics card, which simply isn’t possible with mini-ITX motherboards. The Maximus VIII Gene from Asus is the micro-ATX king here, but the stunning-looking Gigabyte Z170MX-Gaming 5 costs a massive £40 less.

MSI Z170A SLI Plus

While Intel’s top end Core i7-6700K is currently retailing for silly prices that even make a decent X99-based system good value for money, prices aren’t too bad if you’re not looking for a highend motherboard and are happy with the Core i5-6600K. What’s more, with recent news about simple BIOS updates now allowing non K-edition CPUs to be substantially overclocked using just the base clock, budget Skylake builds are becoming a reality, which is where MSI’s Z170A SLI Plus comes in.

CodeBug

The CodeBug suffered from terrible timing when it launched on Kickstarter earlier this year. While the project had been in stealth mode for a significant period, it went live just after the BBC announced its own micro:bit microcontroller project – leading people to assume the CodeBug was ripping off the micro:bit, rather than the micro:bit having been inspired by the CodeBug. That didn’t prevent it from being successfully funded, though, and with the micro:bit now delayed into early 2016, the CodeBug is enjoying reasonable success in the education sector.

Ultra HD Blu-ray: The Last Format?

CES saw the announcement of new Ultra HD Blu-ray players, while studios are lining up to release movies on the format. But, David Crookes asks, is this the peak for optical media?

Whether you’re watching The Man in the High Castle on Amazon Prime Instant Video or catching up with Orange is the New Black on Netflix, one thing’s for sure: there’s no physical disc in sight. But this, as we’re often told, is the future. Netflix not only has an impressive 33.3 million subscribers, it’s growing fast, month by month, doubling its stock price in 2015 thanks to a push towards increased original programming. The simplicity of having thousands and thousands of titles at your fingertips without the need to move off the sofa and mess around inserting media is proving to be a major draw.

10 Good Reasons To Upgrade To Windows 10

Mark Pickavance presents the flip-side of sticking with Windows 7, and why you might want to consider upgrading

In a previous issue, I talked about many valid reasons why you might want to stick with Windows 7 instead of accepting Microsoft’s unique offer of a free upgrade to Windows 10. Yet there are a number of aspects to Windows 10 that might convince you to switch over and leave Windows 7 behind. Here are some of them: