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Top 5 solid-state drives: It's upgrade time

Now that you have learned all about solid-state drives (SSDs) and even know how to take care of one, the only thing left is buying the SSD itself.

Any of the following drives will be a single upgrade that makes your computer feel like new, if the machine is currently running on a hard drive. Some of these drives can prove to be great upgrades even when your system is running on a budget or older-generation SSD. In short, it's upgrade time for many of you out there, especially when most of the drives listed here now cost less … Read more

Plextor M5 Pro SSD goes Xtreme

LAS VEGAS--Plextor just added a touch of "extreme" to its existing M5 Pro solid-state drive.

The storage vendor demoed the M5 Pro Xtreme SSD at CES 2013, as a replacement for the M5 Pro that was released just five months ago. The new drive is on the same lines as the previous model, from the housing to the available capacities, which are 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB.

The only thing that's different, which is also the most important thing, is the performance. The new drive now offers, for the first time among consumer-grade SSDs, random read and write … Read more

Plextor M5 Pro Xtreme makes performance affordable

Fans of the Plextor M5 Pro, prepare to fall in love again! Showcased at CES 2013, its successor, the Plextor M5 Pro Xtreme, is not just faster, it also costs slightly less.

Other than the fact there's no included USB-SATA adapter, which very few SSDs come with, the new M5 Pro Xtreme has nothing else for me to complain about.

If you're looking to replace your computer's existing main storage device, be it a hard drive or a budget SSD, the Plextor M5 Pro Xtreme is an excellent buy, ranking near the top among the best internal drives to date.… Read more

Acer Timeline Ultra M5 ultrabooks with Nvidia graphics arriving this month

How big can an ultrabook be before it stops seeming like one? Back at CES, the Acer Timeline Ultra M3 looked like a lot of other Acer Timelines: thin and full-featured, but not particularly "ultrabooky."

A few months later, we got some in-depth hands-on time with the Acer Timeline Ultra M3-581TG, featuring impressive Nvidia graphics and last-gen Intel processors. It turns out that that M3 won't see the light of day in the U.S., but its successor -- the Timeline Ultra M5 -- will, and it'll be available to order by the end of June.

Read our first take of the Acer Aspire Timeline Ultra M5.… Read more

Top 5 internal drives of 2012: Your system deserves a worthy upgrade

No matter how big or small your computer is, there is at least one internal drive to host its operating system and programs. This drive is almost always a standard internal drive, which comes in the form of a regular hard drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD). The former is affordable and offers lots of storage space, while the latter is generally more expensive but superfast. The good news is, 2012 marked the time SSDs became more and more popular, thanks to the reduced costs and the increased number of vendors joining the storage market of this type.

That … Read more

BMW M5 generates fake engine noise using stereo

For a driving enthusiast, there's nothing like the throaty roar of a well-tuned engine. However, as vehicle noise regulations, technological advances, and general increases in build quality have continued to make vehicles ever quieter both outside and inside, some automakers have been seeking ways to preserve and enhance the visceral sound of an angry engine for their performance-oriented models. For example, Ford includes a sort of sound pipe that channels induction noise into the Mustang's cabin. BMW, on the other hand, has taken a different approach with the new M5's Active Sound Design technology, which artificially replicates … Read more

German luxury brands plan key debuts

The German automakers' battle to dominate China's luxury market is about to spread to a new product segment: small cars and crossovers.

Mercedes-Benz and Audi have chosen the Shanghai auto show for the world debut of two models: a small hatchback dubbed the Mercedes Concept A-Class and the Audi Q3 crossover.

The four-seat Concept A-Class, which is positioned as a sporty rival to the BMW 1-series and Audi A3, is powered by a turbocharged, direct-injection 2-liter gasoline engine that generates 210 horsepower.

The front-wheel-drive car's four-cylinder engine is mated to a dual-clutch transmission.

Other features include a radar-based … Read more

Video: BMW M5 versus M6

We know that the BMW's M6 is lighter, faster, and more expensive than its sibling the BMW M5. But just how much faster is it really? Is it worth $16,000 more and two fewer doors for a slightly faster lap time? Fifth Gear's Vicki Butler-Henderson aims to find out in this video. Though I think she's slightly more interested in powerslides than price-points.

BMW M5 Truck?!?

We've all thought of some prohibitively expensive or impractical vehicle customization that would convert our daily driver into a dream car. For example, I've always wanted to convert my Acura RSX Type-S into a midengined, rear wheel drive sports coupe, but for the money, it'd be cheaper to just buy a Porsche Cayman S and be done with it. But what happens when there is nothing vehicle on the market that fits your dream? What if your dream car is an M-Powered pickup truck? Australian golfer Stuart Appleby found himself in this situation, so he built his … Read more