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When did you get your MacBook and what is your battery's health and charge cycle count? I received my MacBook on November 18, 2023 and have been using it plugged in 100% of the time. Optimized Battery Charging is enabled and in effect, limiting the charge to around 80%. All my charge cycles were...

Edit: Sold locally. Selling because I sold my desktop PC. Everything is in flawless condition. Price: $230 $190. Note that I am in Dubai, UAE. We could work something out shipping wise.

Which coating do you normally prefer?

What is the "optimum" speaker setup for PC gaming? Is it 2.1, 5.1, 7.1, etc.? Basically, do modern PC games support multichannel setups like 5.1 or 7.1? What about a full-blown Atmos setup? How many PC games support Atmos?

What's the difference between a sound card and a USB DAC? Would both be the same when it comes to gaming or would a sound card be preferred in this case?

I'd get a console for gaming but I'm not too sure about playing first-person shooters on a controller. What's everyone's opinion on playing first-person shooters on a controller?

I have a MacBook Pro 14" and the screen is absolutely amazing. Black levels are awesome, blooming is practically unnoticeable, goes up to 1600 nits for HDR content, supports Dolby Vision, and color accuracy is excellent. Why is it so hard (or nearly impossible) to find a similar quality MiniLED...

Few questions regarding the Chord Qutest which I might be getting for my MacBook: 1. How much latency is there with the Qutest? Would fast paced gaming be possible with it? 2. Can I use the Qutest through a USB hub like the Caldigit Element Hub or would it be better to connect it directly to...

Budget is around $1,000. Want to stick with MiniLED for now instead of OLED. Also, it should be high refresh rate (144 Hz+) and G-SYNC compatible. Should be bright enough for good HDR performance. Lastly, would prefer if it is NOT curved.

This is just for the case and everything inside. Already have monitor, speakers, sound card, keyboard, and mouse. Currently have a 1440p 165 Hz G-SYNC monitor. Could upgrade to a 4K monitor later down the line. Edit: Graphics card should be NVIDIA but I'm open to both Intel and AMD CPUs.

Is future-proofing a computer purchase by getting the best of the best at the time of purchase actually mean the computer will last longer without upgrades? For example, back in 2011/2012 when I built the PC in my sig, I was deciding between the 2500K, 2600K, and 3930K. I picked the 3930K and it...

Considering how good the trackpad is on MacBooks, I wanted to know how many of you use a mouse with your MacBook? Based on what I've seen/read, the trackpad is actually better than using a mouse (for daily usage and obviously not gaming).

Thinking of buying a base model MacBook Pro 14" with the M2 Pro, 16 GB RAM, and 512 GB SSD. However, based on the MacRumors Buyer's Guide, the MacBook Pro 14" and 16" are currently categorized as "Caution - Approaching End of Cycle." My question is, are new 14" models due soon in January? I've...

Bought a 65" X95K today. Will be delivered on Tuesday. However, I am having second thoughts that I maybe should have gotten an 65" C3 instead which was the same price. I saw both TVs but not side-by-side. The C3, didn't seem very bright in the store while the X95K definitely had more "pop." My...

What are the main differences between using a TV (such as an LG C3) vs. a "real" gaming monitor?

I've been (trying) to get good at Apex Legends since I started playing in 2019 and have a little over 700 hours of playing (or suffering in) this game. The issue is that there seems to be some really bad mouse input lag in the game which really hinders my aiming and tracking. I've tried...

If you had to pick one over the other, which do you usually find more impressive in games: HDR or ray tracing?

Generally, is HDR gaming better on PC or consoles? Based on what I've read, setting up HDR on PC requires quite a bit of effort and even then it might not work properly whereas on consoles it is pretty much "plug and play". Is this true?

Talking about the physical condition.

I have a 3930K running on a GIGABYTE GA-X79-UD3 since January 2012. Wanted to know how long do motherboards generally last? I have no use for a new PC right now and don't want the motherboard crapping itself forcing me to buy new. I already had to replace the power supply couple years ago as it...

I got it last Tuesday and have been using it for a week now. I'm coming from an iPhone 6s and hot damn at the difference. The 120 Hz screen of the 14 Pro makes the 6s look like a stuttering/jittery mess. Some questions: 1. Does the 14 Pro's screen support HDR10+ or only Dolby Vision and HDR10...

Just wanted to put up a general poll regarding this.

How effective are soundproof server/amp racks in terms of suppressing noise while also keeping the equipment inside cool? If they are soundproof, does that mean they are completely enclosed/sealed? If yes, how do they handle ventilation/cooling? Note this is for using such racks for pro audio...

Father wants to spend around $800-$1,000 on a work (Microsoft Office, email, etc.) laptop. Any recommendations? Screen should be around 14".

We always talk about games with the best graphics but what about audio/sound design? What are some games that have excellent audio/sound design? One I can think of is Alien: Isolation.

There's an increase of OLEDs being used for PC use (whether it be an OLED TV or the ever increasing availability of OLED monitors). But isn't burn-in a concern? Those using LG OLED TVs as PC monitors, have you experienced burn-in? Do you do anything "special" to prevent burn-in or just use it as...

I have the Corsair 650D case and the front fan (which is 200 mm x 20 mm) has stopped working. Any recommendations on a fan with the same dimensions? I don't want a LED/RGB fan. I've read that the case can support 200 mm x 30 mm (which is the more common dimension) but will need to be modded in...

I don't know what is causing this but it could be one of the March updates for Windows 10 as I don't recall this happening before that timeframe. Basically, gamma and/or brightness seems off in Windows 10 now. For example, in Apex Legends while in the Firing Range, the place you spawn in is a...

I've noticed most new games now recommend having a SSD. Will they perform poorly if I play them on a HDD?

Mine is Apex Legends where I currently have 486 hours of playtime.

When you open Safari on iOS, you see icons/shortcuts for your most frequently visited websites. Say https://hardforum.com is one of them. If I use that HardForum shortcut but keep visiting the General Gaming section most of the time, the HardForum shortcut (https://hardforum.com) will eventually...

I was playing Apex Legends yesterday night. I quit the game and shut down my PC. After about 5-10 minutes, I turned it on again. It powered on but turned off after about 2-3 seconds. I pressed the power switch many times again and nothing happened. I switched off the power supply, left it off...

Will downloading large files (8-10 GB) regularly (maybe every couple of days) to an SSD cause too much wear and tear on the SSD? I am asking for situations where you only have SSDs in your PC vs. also having HDDs.

Any recommendations for an "affordable" 2 TB SATA SSD? I'm on X79 and can't run NVMe SSDs (and don't want to do the add-in card thing if it's even possible). Currently have a 256 GB Crucial m4 for OS/programs and a 2 TB Western Digital Caviar Black for games/pictures/downloads/files/etc. Want to...

First of all, I am located in Dubai, UAE. I do not have the original packaging anymore as I had to get rid of it as I didn't have any space to keep it. If you are serious, maybe we could work something out in terms of shipping and packaging. Seaton Sound usually is able to provide...

Like 5.1, 7.1, Atmos, etc.? I remember back in the early 2000s, game audio used to be a pretty big thing with the likes of Sound Blaster Live! sound cards and whatnot. Based on the limited stuff I've read, while PC games these days might support multichannel audio the implementation might not be...

I noticed some people stated that they prefer a desk + monitor for PC gaming over a home theater because they like to be up close to the screen and/or prefer having a desk. The games I mostly play on PC are first or third-person "shooters" (I said "shooters" because they can be first-person...

I'm on X79 with a 3930K. The latest motherboard drivers for my GIGABYTE GA-X79-UD3 are from 2015 as per the GIGABYTE website. My question is, if I do a clean install of Windows 10, do I install these drivers from the GIGABYTE website or just let Windows 10 do its thing and install everything for me?

If I place my sound card in a PCIe x16 slot, it has the same IRQ as my graphics card and some other thing. If I place my sound card in a PCIe x4 slot, it gets its own IRQ not shared with anything else. I remember IRQs used to be something to worry about back in the day. Is having the same IRQ...

My Titanium HD is now EOL and won't receive driver updates to support the latest versions of Windows 10. There are many reports that the Titanium HD does not work well or at all in Windows 10 version 2004. Because of this, I decided to just get a new sound card (I have yet to upgrade to Windows...