I decided to over-clock my new Q9450 Core 2 Quad processor from its native 2.6 GHZ to 3.0 GHZ and the result of running prime95 to check my temperature scared the pants off me. With the stock cooler my CPU went up to an average of 74 degrees Celsius using Speedfan, CoreTemp, and RealTemp. I understand that no program I use will cause my CPU to get to that temperature but I would rather keep it cooler so I purchased a Zalman UltraQuite CNPS9700 LED CPU cooler. The immediate result after running prime95 for 2 minutes  was around 65 degrees Celsius. Currently at idle speeds I am around 51 degrees Celsius. Although I would like to be much cooler, this is below the threshold of 70 degrees so I am happy.

Assuming I applied the thermal compound correctly, I guess this is as low as I am going to get without going to water cooling. I would love to do water cooling but out of the two systems I have owned, the both sprung a leak and one resulted in the total destruction of a motherboard.

A couple of cool things about this CPU cooler is it comes with a variable speed control switch and a blue led in the fan. Also included is thermal compound which comes with a "nail polish like" bottle with a brush applicator making it pretty hard to screw up applying the compound.

The temperatures I gave were an average of all 4 cores and for some reason, the first core was hotter by roughly 10 degrees than the rest always. I do have a case airflow issue and am upgrading the case to something with better circulation. If anyone has any ideas as to cooling my computer down more, please let have your suggestions. Also note, Zalman says it may take about 200 operating hours before best cooling is achieved.

Recently after two really cheap electric shavers broke, I decided to invest a little more money in a better quality system. The Braun 8585 self-cleaning electric shaver was my solution.

I must say, this is the best electric shaver I have ever owned. The unit comes with a harness that serves as the washing machine to clean your razor while it also charges it. Yes, of coarse it is cordless too! The cord comes is detachable and the shaver comes with a case so you can take it with you while you travel. When you travel, you leave the docking station home because you will definitely spill out the cleaning fluid. The shaver has something like 20 different angled groves to capture hair and an adjustable trimmer for sideburns.

If you are interested, as usual, I got mine at amazon.com

When I first saw Macally’s G-S350SU, I had to have one! I am certainly not a Mac lover but I will admit, Apple is amazing when it comes to hardware design, it looks and feels like an Apple product. This little enclosure is the perfect addition for anyone’s computer but especially if you have a Mac Pro or MacBook Pro. The brushed aluminum case matches a Mac Pro perfectly and even has a cool blue led power button.

With that said, I still have good and bad to point out about the features of this drive enclosure! Not only does this drive plug in to your computer via USB, it also has an eSATA plug which will give you speeds as fast as having an internal hard drive. Seriously, if you have a computer with eSATA and transfer a lot of files, use it because the data transfer is much faster than USB. Ok now the bad… I would like a little internal fan. This drive enclosure gets a "+" because there are air holes for air flow, but a "-" because there is no fan to cool down the drive. Given the fact that most external hard drive enclosures are sealed with no air holes and no fan, this drive enclosure is still better than most. Heat is the number one reason for hard drive failure. By the way, if the eSATA part did not give it away, this drive enclosure is for SATA drives only. Overall, I feel this external hard drive enclosure is superior to most, in fact, I liked it so much I bought two. The base price for this guy is $50 but amazon.com lists it here under 3.5" Sata Case for $35 with free shipping.

I have tried many GPS trackers over time and have finally found one I will use permanently because of a mixture of ease of use and affordability. Easytrack GPS is the way to go.

First, lets take a look at the costs. $230 makes it one of the most affordable units but it gets better… You get the first year free and it only costs $20-$35 a year.

-You get unlimited updated tracking every 2, 5, 15, or 30 minutes for free and get notified by email or text message.

-You get an amazing web site to access 24/7 which utilizes Microsoft’s latest mapping software allowing for a physical birds eye view of the area or a 3D map where available.

-You can set up Geo fences which allows you to set up a virtual barrier that will notify you in the event your vehicle goes out of it’s fence. This will cost a track unit which I will explain later.

-Web based vehicle starter disable/enable is included for free if you know how to install. You will need some technical knowledge if you want to do this but should you not want to, the unit will function perfect without it.

-On demand locating in real time, costs a track unit.

When you sign up, you get 500 track units which should be more than enough unless you utilize the virtual fence feature or want to track immediately in real time. Note that tracking updated as low as two minutes is included and does not cost tracking units. Did I mention no monthly fee whatsoever!

The instructions that came with the unit were more than enough for me to figure out full installation including the starter disable function but free technical support is available if needed. This system uses a combination of GPS and Cell phone technology which both are required for the system to work. Coordinates are figured via a GPS antenna, a small box does the work and then communicates via the web site of your car’s location. The cell phone part uses AT&T so if you don’t have AT&T coverage, you will not be able to communicate with your vehicle. Note that you will probably not be able to use real time tracking or starter disable if you don’t have AT&T coverage in your area.

If you would like to try this amazing system go here: http://easytrackgps.net/fleet.html If you do get a unit from them, please know that I have no relation with them and they have no idea who I am but I would like you to tell them where you received your information.