PC Hardware News, Reviews & Buying Guides — Page 41 of 62
Daily news digests, deep-dive reviews, and long-form buying guides on GPUs, CPUs, home AI workstations, local LLM runtimes, retro PC builds, and the tools real builders use in 2026.
Showing articles 2001–2050 of 3058.
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- GameSir G7 SE vs 8BitDo Pro 2: Best Wired-Feel Controller for PC & Steam Deck — Wired beats Bluetooth for racing, fighters, and shooters by 14ms. We compare the GameSir G7 SE and 8BitDo Pro 2 for PC and Steam Deck use… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Gemini-Class Models on Local Hardware: How Much VRAM You Actually Need — How much VRAM do you actually need for a Gemini-class open-weight model in 2026? The numbers, the cliffs, and why an RTX 3060 12GB still… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- Imaging and Restoring Vintage IDE Drives in 2026: SATA/IDE-to-USB Adapters Compared — Three USB-to-IDE adapters that actually work in 2026 — FIDECO, Unitek, and Vantec — plus the ddrescue workflow that saves your vintage… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Intel's Bartlett Lake Core 9 273PQE Reportedly Loses to a Four-Year-Old CPU — Intel's Bartlett Lake Core 9 273PQE benchmarks below a 2019 Core i7-9700K on single-thread. For budget builders, that reinforces the AM4… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Intel llm-scaler-vLLM 1.4: vLLM Lands on Arc — How It Stacks Up vs an RTX 3060 — Intel's llm-scaler-vLLM 1.4 lands batched serving on Arc. We benchmark single-user and multi-user workloads against the RTX 3060 12GB to… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- SANSUI 27" 4K vs KOORUI 27" QD-Mini LED: Best Sub-$400 4K Gaming Monitor — Two sub-$400 4K gaming monitors compared: the SANSUI 27" 4K and KOORUI 27" QD-Mini LED. One wins on price-per-feature, the other on HDR… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- 1-Trillion-Param LLM on 768GB of Optane vs a 12GB RTX 3060: What's Practical — Yes, 768GB of Intel Optane can hold a 1T-param LLM. No, you cannot have a conversation with it. Why bandwidth — not capacity — wins for… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Can a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB Run Local LLMs in 2026? Ollama tok/s + SSD-Boot Setup — Can a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB run local LLMs in 2026? Yes — for 1-3B models at 2-5 tok/s with Ollama. We cover the BOM, SSD-boot setup, and… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Best Budget Gaming Monitor in 2026: 5 Picks From 1440p to 4K — Five 27" and 32" budget gaming monitors from $250 to $400, with real spec context, HDR reality check, and which one is right for which use… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- The Sound Blaster Monopoly: How Creative Still Shapes Retro PC Audio in 2026 — Creative's 1989-2003 monopoly on PC audio still defines how retro PCs are built and emulated. Inside the OPL3, MPU-401, and ISA legacy in… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- ComfyUI on an RTX 3060 12GB: Stable Diffusion Throughput and VRAM Limits in 2026 — Stable Diffusion on an RTX 3060 12GB: SDXL throughput, Flux feasibility, LoRA training limits, and the workflow tweaks that actually move… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Self-Host Jellyfin on a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB in 2026: Setup and Real Transcode Limits — Self-hosting Jellyfin on a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB in 2026 - what direct play and hardware transcode actually deliver, and where the box gives… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Hobbyists Are Self-Hosting a Nintendo eShop With Ownfoil on a Raspberry Pi — Ownfoil turns a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB into a private Switch game catalog. The hardware story is genuinely interesting; here's the realistic… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Lenovo G02 Retro Handheld Reportedly Ships Preloaded With Pirated Games — A retail listing surfaced the Lenovo G02 with copyrighted games preloaded. Here's what's known, what's not, and what it says about retro… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Logitech G920 vs HORI Racing Wheel: Best Wheel for Forza Horizon 6 — Logitech G920 has real force feedback; the HORI Racing Wheel does not. Here's exactly what that means for Forza Horizon 6, and when each… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Ryzen 7 5700X vs Intel Core i7-9700K: Best Budget Gaming CPU in 2026 — Ryzen 7 5700X vs Intel Core i7-9700K benchmarked at 1080p, 1440p, and 4K - plus platform cost, power, and the platform's upgrade headroom… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Codex Now Drives Windows PCs: The Local-Agent Rig You Can Build Instead — The honest hardware floor for a useful local autonomous coding agent, why the RTX 3060 12GB still rules budget builds in 2026, and… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- Build a RetroPie Console on a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB in 2026: A Complete Walkthrough — Build a full RetroPie emulation console on a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB in an afternoon — complete walkthrough, controllers, BIOS, performance… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- How to Install Windows 98 SE on a CompactFlash Boot Drive in 2026 (Retro PC Build Guide) — Install Windows 98 SE on a CompactFlash card via an IDE adapter — silent, vibration-free, near-instant boot. Full step-by-step build guide… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Forza Horizon 6 Is the Highest-Rated Game of 2026: What Metacritic's 94 Says About Where Racing Sims Are Going — Forza Horizon 6 hit Metacritic 94 — the highest-rated 2026 release. Here's what the reviews say and what hardware actually runs it well. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Someone Just Loaded a Sega Genesis Game from a Vinyl Record — Here's How (And What It Means for Retro Preservation) — A modder loaded a Sega Genesis ROM straight off a vinyl record. The technique is brilliant — and the preservation implications are real. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Ryzen 5 5600G vs Ryzen 7 5700X for Budget Gaming in 2026: Which AM4 CPU Wins? — Ryzen 5 5600G vs Ryzen 7 5700X in 2026: the 5600G wins for budget builds without a GPU on day one. The 5700X wins gaming and everything… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Best CPU Cooler for the Ryzen 7 5800X: Air vs AIO in 2026 — For the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X in 2026, the best cooler depends on workload: for gaming and mixed use, the Noctua NH-U12S CPU Cooler and… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 14 min read
- Ollama vs llama.cpp vs vLLM on an RTX 3060: Which Runtime Wins for a Single-User Local Setup in 2026? — For a single-user RTX 3060 12GB local-LLM rig, Ollama wins on convenience, llama.cpp wins on flexibility, vLLM is overkill — here's why. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Microsoft + NVIDIA's 'Agent PC': What Local Hardware Does an On-Device AI Agent Actually Need in 2026? — Microsoft-NVIDIA's Agent PC wants always-on local agents. The realistic 2026 floor: 12-16GB VRAM, 32GB RAM, 6-core CPU, NVMe — buildable… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Can a 12GB RTX 3060 Run Gemma 4 31B? Quantization & Tok/s Reality Check — An RTX 3060 12GB can load Gemma 4 31B only at low quants (q2_K, q3_K_M). Anything higher spills to system RAM and tanks tok/s into the… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- Best Game Controller for Couch & Big-Screen PC Gaming in 2026 — Five PC controllers that excel on the couch: the DualSense leads, the 8BitDo Pro 2 wins on value, and the Sn30 Pro nails retro emulation. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 13 min read
- Running a 3dfx Voodoo5 5500 PCI in a Modern Board in 2026 — Can the Voodoo5 5500 PCI run in a 2026 motherboard? Yes — here's the platform, CF storage, Win98SE install procedure, and what actually… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Samsung Odyssey OLED G9 Drops $700 — and a Cheaper 4K Path — Samsung's Odyssey OLED G9 just dropped roughly $700. Here's the deal, the GPU pairing math, and the 4K alternatives that beat it for most… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 6 min read
- Best Controller for Retro Emulation and Indie Gaming in 2026 — The 8BitDo Pro 2 is the do-everything pick for retro emulation and indies, with the DualSense, SN30 Pro, G7 SE, and HORIPAD Pro filling… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 8 min read
- Best SATA SSD for Gaming and Everyday Upgrades in 2026 — SATA SSDs aren't dead — most older desktops, laptops, and consoles still need them. Our 2026 picks, capacity guidance, and the case where… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 8 min read
- Blue Yeti vs HyperX QuadCast 2 S: Best USB Mic for New Streamers — We A/B-tested the Blue Yeti and the HyperX QuadCast 2 S in the same room. Which USB mic wins for new streamers in 2026, and when each one… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 8 min read
- Best SATA SSD to Upgrade a PlayStation 4 Pro in 2026 — Cut your PS4 Pro's load times by 35–55% with the right 1TB SATA SSD. Picks, the swap procedure, and benchmarks we ran on a stock console… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Shared ChatGPT & Claude Chat Malware: Why Local LLMs Cut the Risk — The May 2026 shared-chat malware story exploits hosted-chatbot features local LLMs don't have. Here's the hardware and workflow that… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 8 min read
- The $500M Claude Bill: What Local LLM Inference Actually Costs — After May's $500M Claude bill story, here's what an RTX 3060 + Ryzen 7 5700X local LLM rig actually costs to run, and where it beats cloud… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- Ryzen 7 5800X + RTX 5060 Combo Drops to $439 With Free Cooler — A Ryzen 7 5800X plus RTX 5060 plus free CPU cooler bundle has dropped to $439 — strong per-frame value for budget gamers this Memorial Day… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Ryzen AI Max 400 Gorgon Halo vs RTX 3060 for Local LLMs — The RTX 3060 12GB still wins on speed for 8B-13B models, but only Gorgon Halo holds a 70B model at q4 on a single consumer SKU. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Mount a 90s CD-ROM on Windows 98 Without a CD Drive (2026) — Image the CD on a modern PC to .cue/.bin, copy to CompactFlash, mount in Win98 with DAEMON Tools 95/98 — no working optical drive required. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 9 min read
- Can a Raspberry Pi 4 8GB Run a Local LLM in 2026? Realistic tok/s — A Pi 4 8GB runs 1B-3B parameter LLMs at q4 in a few tok/s — great for offline command parsing and always-on inference at 5W, not for chat. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 8 min read
- What Hardware Runs a Gemini-Class Model Locally in 2026? — A used RTX 3060 12GB, 32GB RAM, and a fast SSD run open-weight Gemini-class assistants at 35-55 tok/s for under $700 in 2026. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- FIDECO vs Unitek vs Vantec: The Best IDE-to-USB Adapter for Rescuing Retro Drives in 2026 — The three best USB-to-IDE adapters for rescuing data from retro PC drives in 2026 — FIDECO vs Unitek vs Vantec, with the imaging workflow… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- Samsung's 360Hz 4K QD-OLED vs Budget 4K Gaming Monitors: Is the Premium Worth It? — Samsung's new 360Hz 4K QD-OLED panel is exciting — but for most gamers a budget 4K Mini-LED at one-fourth the price delivers the better… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- Forza Horizon 6 on Steam Deck: Best Dock and Controller Setup for 2026 — The best Steam Deck dock and controller pairing for playing Forza Horizon 6 on a TV in 2026 — under $100, with real frame-rate numbers. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- Best Gaming PC Upgrades Under $200 in 2026: 5 Picks That Move the Needle — The most impactful upgrades to revive an aging budget gaming PC in 2026 — GPU, SSD, CPU, cooler, mouse — each ranked by frames-per-dollar. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 12 min read
- Best Game Controller in 2026: 5 Picks for PC, Console and Retro — Five game controllers covering PC, console and retro emulation in 2026 — picks from $40 to $75, with the trade-offs that actually matter. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 12 min read
- A LEGO Castle Case for the Raspberry Pi 5 Is Going Viral — Here's the Build — A maker's LEGO castle case for the Raspberry Pi 5 hit the top of r/raspberry_pi this week — here is how it's built and why these projects… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read
- Best Budget GPU for CNN and Image-Model Training in 2026: The RTX 3060 12GB Deep Dive — The cheapest GPU you can buy in 2026 to train CNN and image models locally without renting cloud time — real numbers from the RTX 3060 12GB. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 11 min read
- RTX 3060 12GB vs RX 7600 XT for Local LLMs: The Cheap Inference Card to Buy in 2026 — Which $300 GPU is the right buy in 2026 for running Ollama and llama.cpp at home — CUDA-easy RTX 3060 12GB, or the higher-VRAM RX 7600 XT. Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 13 min read
- How to Archive Your Old IDE and CompactFlash Retro PC Drives in 2026 — Step-by-step guide to imaging old IDE and CompactFlash retro PC drives in 2026: the right adapter, ddrescue for bad sectors, and 3-2-1… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 13 min read
- Voodoo5 5500 PCI Boots on a Modern Z77 Board: Retro-on-Modern Just Got Easier — A reddit thread shows a 3dfx Voodoo5 5500 PCI booting in an ASUS P8Z77-V Pro. Why a 25-year-old card still works — and what it means for… Mike Perry · 2026-05-31 · 10 min read