Asus E3 Pro Gaming V5

Have you ever thought to yourself “gee, I wish I could stick a server processor into my gaming PC and see how it goes”. No? Well now you can. Introducing ASUS’s E3 Pro Gaming V5 motherboard. A gaming motherboard that lets you take an Intel Xeon processor and use it for your gaming machine. How does a Xeon processor compare? Well let’s find out.

How does one stick a server, aka a workstation processor into a desktop motherboard? Asus is using the Intel C232 chipset. This chipset not only supports Xeon E3-1200 v5 processors, but they also support the 6th Generation Intel Core processors, aka the Skylake line of processors.

MSI B150M Night Elf

While most of the gaming motherboards for the Intel 6th generation Core processor, aka the Intel Skylake, out there on the market right now is equipped mostly with the high end Intel Z170 chipset, some people do not really want all the features that are present in the chip. Some just want a no nonsense, good to go motherboard with a chipset that just does the job, as well as a bit cheaper.

ASUS Zenfone 2 Laser Z011D

ASUS’s Zenfone 2 is not just a mere smartphone, it is a platform on its own. There is the original Zenfone 2, the selfie-centric Zenfone 2 Selfie, the rear camera centric Zenfone 2 Laser, and the beefier Zenfone 2 Deluxe. Now, with the Zenfone 2 Laser Z011D, the company is giving the Laser a separate configuration of its own. So what is the difference between the standard Zenfone 2 Laser and the Z011D? The answer is size.

Up till now, all of the Zenfone 2 phones sported a smaller 5.5 inch screen. For the Z011D, ASUS has decided to ramp the screen size up to 6 inches. This officially puts the Z011D into the phablet category. Aside from the screen size though, nothing else has changed in regards to the overall design of the Z011D when compared to other Zenfone 2s. If you’ve seen any variant of the Zenfone 2 before, the Z011D is almost exactly the same, albeit bigger.

Microsoft Lumia 950 XL: Unfulfilled Potential

Then Microsoft unveiled Windows 10 mobile, it promised further blurring of the lines between phone and desktop, namely, that continuum would be coming to all Windows phones. The idea is that you can take your phone when you’re out and about, and when you come home, plug it into the display dock and instantly have a desktop experience with your mouse and keyboard.

After a slew of cheaper alternatives, the launch of the Lumia 950 XL is supposed to herald the coming of Microsoft’s dream to marry desktop and mobile. Did it pull it off?

Sony NW-ZX100

It was more than two decades ago that Sony released the first Walkman. It became a sensation as music listeners could experience music on the go. It is fair to say that the Walkman was the first ever product to give the music industry all over the world a major boost.

When Sony finally decided on infusing the Walkman culture into their not-so-popular cell phones, sales went bananas. However, the idea wasn’t difficult to imitate as Nokia, Apple, and Samsung took over the market throughout the last decade by including similar functions in their products.

Asus Zen AiO Pro Z240iC

As soon as the Asus Zen AiO Pro Z240IC arrived at our office, it immediately kicked off a conversation about a similar product from the other ‘A’ company. Deliberate or not, there is no question that the new Asus Zen AiO bears a striking similarity to some the Apple iMac.

Not a bad thing as both are certainly objects of great beauty. The Asus Zen AiO Pro Z240IC has a 23.8-inch glossy full HD LCD screen. We have mixed views on the screen. In regular office lighting conditions with fluorescent lighting, there will be a lot of reflection from many angles. You might want to consider getting a matte screen protector. The screen is also not touchenabled, a real shame as the minimalist design of this device cries out for a mousefree look.

Money can buy you friends, but at what cost?

Barry Collins is staggered by the money being wasted on social networks

So farewell then, Friends Reunited. Sixteen years after it launched and roughly 15 years since anyone last bothered to visit it, they’ve finally decided to switch off the site that arguably set the entire social-networking bandwagon rolling.

Use ANDROID without GOOGLE

If you’re not happy about Google accessing you personal information, you can simply remove the search giant’s influence from your Android device. Wayne Williams explains the alternatives

Use other app stores

Google Play is by far the most popular Android app store, but it’s not the only one. Amazon has its own app store (bit.ly/amazonapps390), which offers some excellent bargains and daily giveaways – not just for Kindle Fire users, but all Android phones and tablets.

Beat Internet Censorship

Want to Beat web censorship? Hate it that the government controls what you’re allowed to do on the Internet? You can fight back. Follow our insider secrets and you’ll learn how to beat web Censorship. Are you fed up with being told what you can and can’t see online? Robert Irvine reveals who’s controlling our web access and why, and tells you how to unblock unfairly censored content.

You shouldn’t really be reading this (don’t stop, though!) because what we’re about to tell you lifts the lid of one of the most controversial and contentious topics facing web users in the UK today: online censorship. You may associate the state control of what citizens can and can’t access on the web with countries such as China, Russia and North Korea, but it’s a sad fact that the United Kingdom has also been branded one of the ‘enemies of the internet’ for being at the “heart of censorship” (bit.ly/enemies390).