I’ve had the pleasure of testing out the game TITANFALL 2 together with 3 other influencers, they will be issuing their challenges in their own videos in the next few days, so make sure you click their portraits below and hop over to their social media.
Send me a 30s video clip of your best moment in TITANFALL 2 – it could be your frag highlights, or some sick grappling and wall-running manoeuvres – and I’ll choose the winner on 31st December 2016 by SGT 2359.
Challenge videos from Sodafiz, Yurith and Blysk coming soon [Now updated with their video links!], meanwhile click their portraits to be directed to their social media!
Before I begin my post, let me qualify that this is not a professional spec and stat review, I did not do the testing the hardcore way – shutting down background programs, repeated tests under the same conditions etc.
This review is more about real world performance, in real world games, and how the card performs in my computer.
My comparisons are also going to be very specifically vs the GTX970
But of course, I’ve needed to run tests, so that I can examine the numbers and use them to figure things out.
Here are some links for you, as well as the card specs
Key facts about GeForce GTX 1060
· Crafted for speed and optimized for performance per watt: GeForce GTX 980-level performance with only 120 watts of power
· GeForce GTX 1060 custom boards starting on-shelf July 19, MSRP starting at $249
· Great for overclocking: Easy to overclock to 2GHz, on average 15% faster and over 75% more power efficient than the closest competitive product
· Simultaneous Multi-Projection come to UE and Unity game engine: More than 30 games are already in development, (including Unreal Tournament, Poolnation VR, Everest VR, Obduction, Adr1ft and Raw Data.)
Here’s my unboxing videos, if you’re interested to see how the FE looks packaged
Let’s start with my computer hardware and set up.
I use a 3 monitor set up, you can see the models and how I set them up in the screenshots below.
My 1060 is connected via DVI-D to my BenQ XL2411T, which is a monitor that can go up to 144hz.
My 970 is connected to my BenQ RL2450H by DVI and by HDMI to my HP2311.
My XL2411T is running on 120Hz (any higher and my other monitor shuts off, I’m not sure why).
Overall table of comparison of Firestrike
Here are my OLD computer hardware specs, and some results based on 3D Mark tests that I ran.
As you can tell, I was using 2 gfx before this, I had a 560Ti on the 2nd PCIE x8 slot, and my 970 on the PCIE x16 slot.
Not shown is my 600w cooler master power supply.
Even a year + ago, on may 23 2015, my CPU was the bottleneck.
Fast forward to TODAY, these are my current specs and test results.
750w FSP power supply not showm
The 1060 shows up as a “Generic VGA” because I’m using direct downloaded drivers which don’t show the make and model.
As you can tell, I’ve shifted my 970 to the PCIE x8 slot, and put the 1060 in the PCIE x16 slot.
Looking at the numbers, there isn’t really THAT BIG a difference between my previous set up and this current one. There’s roughly a 200 point increase in the 3D score, and some decreases in the other scores.
And just for kicks, I did yet another test, taking out the 970 totally, and simply leaving the 1060 in.
And here’s where we see a bigger jump in the scores. I’m churning out 5 digit scores now.
So from this I can only conclude that the 970 might be throttling the performance of my 1060, and that my CPU is definitely bottlenecking my performance.
SO, that’s it for the number heavy bits… on to…
2. REAL WORLD PERFORMANCE
I play mainly 2 games right now, World of Warcraft and DOTA 2.
I also stream at 720p and 2000 bitrate.
All feedback is based on having my 1060 in the main slot, and 970 on the second slot, dedicated to physx
A) World of Warcraft
Here are my settings and in game FPS.
Running on full screen mode, at 120 FPS, my in game frame rate is a steady 90+, in fact, most of the time it hovers around 96-98.
On my previous set up, I was getting almost only half the FPS with a range from 40-60.
A fun fact about my XL2411T monitor : While most FPS gamers buy this for the 120/144hz refresh rate, I actually bought it specifically to play MMOs – Wow and FFXIV. I get “carsick” when I play MMOs on low FPS, because the tearing and floaty graphics kill my eyes.
B) DOTA 2
I don’t play DOTA 2 on the highest settings, and I don’t require it on 120Hz. I’m pretty used to 60Hz play, and it gives me a flat 120fps when my stream is not on.
With my 970, I wasn’t getting 120, I was getting around 80.
C) Live Streaming on Twitch
On my old set up (I removed the 560TI and use my 970 as a solo card), streaming was pretty decent, but still not up to standard.
Software wise, I’m using XSplit, but will probably try to do some texting on Shadowplay sometime in the near future.
I was streaming on 2000 bitrate, 720p @30fps, and my system would choke now and then.
It still could manage to run and stream 2 games at once – I would tax my system by playing WoW whilst queuing for
Streaming DOTA 2 is generally not a very intensive thing, and I was managing this with minor problems – my in game FPS would drop to 40 fps, which is actually pretty jerky to play, but not that bad to watch on stream. It thus wasn’t very enjoyable to stream and play simultaneously.
I tested the new set up on the old stream settings (2000 bitrate, 720p @30fps) as well as the new settings (2600bitrate, 1080p @ 30fps) for quite a few games each, and here are my findings.
With my 1060, I can do 80fps in game, whilst streaming at 2600/1080/30. Whereas streaming on 2000/720/30 gives me 90FPS.
Streaming WoW on 2600bitrate, 1080p @ 30fps gives me an in game fps range of 60-80+. It doesn’t go over 90 fps, but the game play is smooth.
3. Summary/Overall Thoughts
Overall, of course there’s a noticeable difference in the performance of my graphics, but it’s also quite obvious that my CPU is a bottleneck.
I think it would be really fun to see what kind of stats I can get with the latest gen i7. Judging by the 3D mark scores online, I’m about 5000 points off firestrike – I do see stats of 15k.
In the meantime though, the biggest differences I see are when I play WoW, and when I stream. So I’m going to go out on a limb and conclude that you will see the best improvement on mid-high graphics intense games with the new card, if you were using a 970 previously.
If you’re looking for a new laptop, I’ve got a special 20% discount code for readers of my blog, and my Facebook fans.
This is only applicable for purchases made on the Lenovo Singapore webstore right now though!
Details at the end of this post 😉
*************
I’ve had the pleasure of using the ideapad Y700 for the past couple of weeks, and even brought it with me on my trip to Japan.
I’m not sure about you, but when I heard “Lenovo”, I instantly associated it with “office notebook”, and all the images of a blocky black version immediately came to mind. I was pleasantly surprised to unwrap this beauty, which had red accents, and a backlit keyboard, together with some rather sexy curves and a rubberized surface.
The entire bundle of goodies that I received – the ideapad Y700, Lenovo Headset, Mousepad, Mouse, and Samsonite backpack.
Stock photo taken from Lenovo Singapore website
I do my work on a 13″ Macbook Pro, but I have found it impossible to play games on. I tried firing up DOTA 2, but my program dock refused to go away, and I didn’t want to change my settings because it’s a pain to change them back when I play on my desktop. Also… 13″… I might as well just play Vainglory on my tablet to scratch my MOBA itch.
I previously lugged around an 18″ dual graphic card Alienware laptop, but, let me tell you this, because I don’t think you’ll have the pleasure of doing so yourself, that carrying a 7kg laptop plus it’s 1kg adaptor around through customs, IS NOT FUN.
It’s kept my arms toned and my collarbones chiseled, but it’s also given me lots of literal headaches.
And there’s also the time when I stuck my very expensive headset in with it into the bag for a short while, and the laptop promptly fell over and broke one ear cup. 😥
SO.
I had more or less given up on travelling with a gaming laptop, and decided to just play fallout shelter for the rest of my life on my MIpad when I was offered a shot at the ideapad Y700.
Here are 3 reasons why the ideapad Y700 is my new go-to for gaming on the go.
1. Depending on the specs you choose, its weight starts at 2.6kg. While this might sound like quite a lot, it’s actually very manageable if carried in a backpack. And I’m not saying this just because I’m used to struggling with 7kg!
It leaves you with a sufficient amount of energy to carry a keyboard, mouse, mousepad and headset along with it in your backpack.
I normally opt to just bring a mouse and mousepad with the laptop though, because of the excellent sound system (reason no. 2) which negates the need for a headset;
and the tactile, backlit keys with numpad
Here’s a comparison pic with my Macbook Pro. [The comparison is purely just for size, I know there’s no real comparing a Y700 with a mbp in terms of specs simply because their purposes are so different. However, the mbp is considered a portable laptop, so putting the Y700 next to it will give you a better idea of what to expect.]
2. It’s very sleek and compact, but the screen is surprisingly expansive for a 15″ laptop. Coupled with the amazing JBL speakers, this makes your entertainment super immersive. I’ve been using the sound at 34, and I’ve been worried about disturbing my neighbours, until I realised that because of the way it’s built, you get the max experience from sitting in front of the computer, and quite little noise pollution from the sides and back.
Here are a few pictures which show you the locations of the speakers on the laptop:
The Subwoofer on the bottom of the laptop, which makes a HUGE difference to your media and entertainment!
The JBL logo on the dashboard
The view from the back of the laptop, you can see the honeycomb grilles extend all the way round to the back
3. Since it calls itself a GAMING laptop, the specs have to live up to the claim.
Admittedly, I haven’t managed to play much on it at this point in time other than music and DOTA 2, which arguably aren’t very intensive. Even so, It’s been a terrific experience. I will be adding more information into further reviews, after I’ve had more time with it.
Here is the spec sheet of the model that I’m using (there are 3 different sets of specs that you can choose for the ideapad Y700)
Intel® Core™ i7-6700HQ CPU @ 2.60GHz
Windows 10 Home
Up to 5 hours’ battery life with standard battery
16 GB DDR4 memory
15.6” frameless Full HD (1920 x 1080) 16:9 IPS, anti-glare display
1 TB HDD with integrated 8 GB
WiFi 2*2 AC + Bluetooth® 4.0, LAN 1000M
NVIDIA® GeForce GTX 960M graphics
Starting at 2.6 kg (5.7 lb) / 25.95 mm (1.02”)
2 x USB 3.0, 1 x USB 2.0 with always-on charging , 4-in-1 card reader (SD, SDHC, SDXC, MMC), 2-in-1 audio combo jack, HDMI
There are 3 ideapad Y700 that you can choose from, the main difference being the RAM and the HDD.
The most expensive model has just been added TODAY! So mine is the SGD$1899 one, right in the middle.
Here is a screen grab straight from their site for your reference
**************
20% DISCOUNT CODE FOR MY READERS!!
Step 1 :Click this link to go to the Lenovo ideapad Y700 *Important to complete your purchase through this link or you won’t get the discount!* Step 2 : Add your preferred ideapad Y700 model to cart and continue to customise, or add to cart directly Step 3 : enter FURRYFISH in the eCoupon field for your 20% discount!
Bethesda’s Fallout Shelter is a brilliant mobile game to keep you occupied when you’re waiting in line somewhere, at lunch alone or even as a game you can leave open next to you as you work.
If you are, like me, an Android user, you’ll be waiting impatiently for the launch of the games in August. Well, at least, I WAS, until I hijacked my boyfriend’s iPad.
I’m not going to go through the basics of the game, like the game play, or explaining what SPECIAL is, there’s plenty of those guides out there. What I’m going to do, is share VERY PRACTICAL ADVISE, and if you’re the kind that enjoys wiping out your population a few times while testing limits (like I do), then I suggest that you don’t read this article any further. This is more for those who have played the game and want to just… play it better?
So, here are my tips and tricks from a few days of playing the game.
1) impregnate your women.
Keeping many women pregnant is a great way to ensure you build your population. This is highly abusable once you realise that they don’t give birth if there are insufficient living quarters available. So, regulating the number of living quarters you build in relation to how much resources you’re producing gives you immense control over the game. For example, if I have insufficient resources, I can not let them give birth yet by not building any living quarters, and concentrate first on upgrading my resource producing structures and making sure I have a steady stream coming in before I build living quarters. Then the women will all magically, suddenly give birth at once.
Children remain children for pretty long. So remember to take this into consideration too.
Oh, and pregnant women are totally useless in incidents. So you might want to mix up your rooms with non-pregnant women, and men, especially if you want to rush that room often.
2) building similar rooms next to each other saves on the upgrade fee, but compromises on the efficiency
You’ll just have to figure out which one is more important to you, and whether you have enough high stat people to make it worthwhile. The discount in the upgrade fee is pretty substantial though. I put all my highest stat people into the larger rooms because that makes it more efficient eventually.
3) assign rooms function
If you cannot find the right dweller you’re looking for, click on a room, and there will be a little clipboard on the bottom left that pops up. It’s arranged by alphabetical order and you can scroll through looking at their stats there. I don’t really use this much, but I figured it might be worth highlighting because there are a few occasions when I’ve needed to use it.
I do prefer tapping on the top left number of dwellers and sorting them – you can click on the headers to sort accordingly. The selected header (LVL, SPECIAL, :), STATUS, JOB) will be highlighted.
4) choose the lowest happiness level to mate with each other
You can sort the dwellers according to happiness. They are happier when you assign them to a room that requires their highest level SPECIAL stat. But should your people get unhappy, no matter how low the happiness level is, just let them procreate and it will bounce right back up to 100% after they’re done with the deed.
5) unequip your items immediately after use
This is the most useful thing I’ve realised. Once you get more and more dwellers and you’re running them from room to room to fight incidents, or just to change their jobs, you’ll lose track of them. So I recommend ensuring all items are unequipped from the start, and only equip them when needed. Immediately after they are done with the incident, unequip the weapon so that you can equip it on the next person during the following incident. Nothing sucks more than having a room full of radroaches and being unable to find your weapons to kill them.
Similarly, for costumes and such, I unequip my dweller’s night wear as soon as they start running to the back of the room. This is because it won’t affect whether they complete the deed, and also, pregnant women all change to a yellow top and blue pants, so you can’t see that they are wearing a costume unless you click on them.
6) zoom out all the way to locate skivers
It’s nice to double tab and view each room close up, but now and then, its good to zoom out totally so that the whole map becomes 2D. When children grow into adults, there is a notification which is pretty easy to miss, and sometimes they’ll sneak into becoming slacker adults that just wander the halls doing nothing. If you want to ensure that all your people are earning their keep all the time, try zooming out totally. You’ll realise that the only people who still move around in 2D mode are the slackers and children. From there, it’s easy to identify them and drag them into a room to work.
Other useful tips
– you can see the dweller’s contribution to a room when you drag them over and hover. If it’s a + number I generally release the hover and the lowest stat person will run out and make way for the new guy to come in. If you change your mind about letting the dweller go into the room but cannot remember where you plucked him out from, just pull him out into the rocks (not out the vault door!) and release the hover and he will remain in the room he was in.
– If you’re sending people out into the wastelands, try to equip them with more stimpaks and radaways. Better weapons and outfits will help too. But most importantly, the higher the level, the longer they last out there. And the longer they last outside, the better the items they manage to find.
– as you’re loading the game, read the tips that pop up on the screen. Some are pretty useful.
– There will be objectives to fulfill, but not all of them are suitable to be fulfilled immediately. For example, sending 5 dwellers out into the wastelands early on when they are low level is just wasting your man power and resources.
– Raiders will break into your vault room, try to locate more men in the rooms near the vault door, or non-pregnant women. This makes it easier to activate your defenses as the people who are able to defend the vault are located nearer the door.
***
Well, that’s all the wisdom I’m imparting tonight… so… GL HF, and share in the comments if you’ve got a super tip!
The controller features removable and interchangeable parts, which allows users to customise it according to their own preference and feel, to maximise accuracy and responsiveness.
Here is a picture showing you the controller with the parts taken out.
All the buttons are from the front of the controller, except for the 4 longish metal paddles on the top right side of the picture. Those are situated behind the grips, 2 on each side.
The next few pictures are taken by me as I hold the controller, so you can estimate the size and positioning.
This is roughly where the back paddles will sit in relation to your grip
The Xbox Elite with the back paddles taken out and also showing the 2 levers/trigger locks behind
The hardware underneath the replaceable Dpad and thumbstick
The faceted Dpad attached to the controller
This is going to be a modders dream, I can forsee them creating custom paddles, Dpads, thumbsticks and buttons, and embellishing the controller.
There will be an app for Xbox One and Windows 10 which will allow you to customise features, and will allow you to save profiles that are stored on cloud, 2 of which can be uploaded to the controller and can be switched between using a mechanical profile switch.
It’s a good weight (roughly 350g), it feels solid, without being too heavy, and heavy enough so that it doesn’t feel cheap.
It will set you back 149 USD, and it is set to be available in October 2015. [For SEA users though, the controller will not be available as a standalone in the region. It will only be purchasable together with the Xbox Elite console.]
And these are the official product shots, for your viewing pleasure.
The view from the back of the laptop, you can see the honeycomb grilles extend all the way round to the back
