Data interface Thunderbolt from Intel company entered the market in February 2011 in the Apple MacBook Pro laptop. By combining in the one interface PCI Express and DisplayPort, it now offers data rates up to 10 Gbit / s. On the more common personal computers the interface began to be applied recently, as part of the laptop and PC top price category.



Intel plans to introduce a new controller interface Redwood Ridge Thunderbolt for use in personal computers in the second quarter of next year. It is likely that the new controllers will form the platform of the Shark Bay for next generation processors under the name of Haswell.


Controllers Redwood Ridge will support completely the same data rate 10 Gb / s, interface DisplayPort v1.1 and function DisplayPort v1.2 Redriver. At present, even the cheapest chips Thunderbolt, 2-channel Cactus Ridge, cost motherboard manufacturers at about $ 20, and many consumers expect that emergence of new generations of controllers will reduce …

Thermaltake, a viable designer of versatile PC hardware components, has recently unveiled its new series of liquid cooling systems. Entitled simply Water 3.0, the products constitute themselves as all-in-one cooling solutions with high efficiency and low noise level. The series is introduced by three models, — Water 3.0 Performer, Water 3.0 Extreme and Water 3.0 Pro, — targeting different customer groups.



All liquid coolers included into the lineup consist of a pump integrated into a waterblock, a copper base, a couple of 120 mm fans, and leak-proof pipes which protect the liquid from leakages or evaporation. Heatsink design is individual for each of the models. One should mention that Thermaltake delivers its liquid coolers with dedicated Windows-compatible software for the monitoring and adjustment of all key parameters, including fan rotational speed, liquid thermal conditions, and pump efficiency.


The first model, Water 3.0 Performer, features 120 mm heatsink of a …

Xigmatek is on the verge of launching its new series of chassis, codenamed Alfar. The series consists of three models which differentiate from each other by the color of insertions on the frontal grid (black, white and orange). The casing itself is made of steel and painted totally black. All three enclosures are designed in mid-tower form factor and are ready to accept motherboards of mini-ITX, micro-ATX and ATX dimensions.



Xigmatek Alfar houses seven PCI expansion slots, can accept CPU coolers of up to 160 mm in height, graphics cards of up to 320 mm in length, and a standard power supply unit. The chassis are furnished with three external 5.25-inch drive bays, four internal 2.5-inch bays, and analogous number of bays for 3.5-inch drives. Interface panel is located on the top board and accommodates a couple of USB 3.0 ports and standard 3.5 mm audio sockets.


The nominal delivery set of Xigmatek Alfar contains two 120 mm fans, located on the frontal and rear boards; …