TechieGroups

While we at AnandTech recognize that a good portion of our readership prefers to roll their own as far as desktops go, not everyone is that way. Sometimes there are also situations where we'd be better off just recommending a pre-built desktop to family than damning ourselves to being tech support at all hours for the next few years. With that in mind, we bring you our…

If you want to kick back for a change, send something to family or a friend, or whatever your reason for going with a pre-built system, we have a recommendation for you this holiday season.

The proliferation of mobile devices, multi-computer homes, broadband internet access, inexpensive mass storage, and the replacement of many other home electronics by the PC (such as media devices like DVD, BRD, and CD players by HTPCs) has resulted in ever-increasing interest in specialized file server computers.  Whether you're a typical home user with a desktop and a laptop or a power user with multiple desktops, laptops, netbooks, and tablets who also has remote access to home systems from work or on the road, your computing experience could likely be enriched by shared data access.  Whether your budget and storage needs are modest or extensive, we have you covered in the latest builder's guide to file server systems.

It’s that time of year again, when thousands of wide-eyed 17- and 18-year-olds will be setting foot on college campuses for the first time.  Many more students will be returning for their second, third, or fourth (or fifth or sixth or…) fall semester.  Whether you’re a student yourself, parent, other relative, or friend, this guide covers many aspects of college computing.  From DIY and retail desktops to laptops to peripherals to gadgets like ereaders to software, we discuss how students use technology and recommend many products, from budget offerings to more powerful gear that will hopefully make higher education more productive and enjoyable!

If desktop graphics hardware can be more than a little confusing, deciphering performance of mobile graphics parts can be (and has historically been) an absolute nightmare. Way back in the day it was at least fairly easy to figure out which desktop chip was hiding in which mobile kit, but both AMD and NVIDIA largely severed ties between mobile and desktop branding. They may not want to readily admit that, and in the case of certain models they still pretty heavily rely on the cachet associated with their desktop hardware, but it's by and large true. So to help you make sense of mobile graphics, we present to you the first in what will hopefully be a regular series of guides.

Almost a half-year after the launch of the second-generation Core processors, Intel’s newest CPUs remain dominant in the mid- to high-end desktop computing markets. Since the January release of the initial Sandy Bridge chips, myriad newer, niche-specific CPUs have arrived at retailers. Importantly, the Cougar Point chipset debacle is entirely resolved, with all Sandy Bridge-supporting motherboards available through reputable retailers free of the degrading SATA ports that plagued Sandy Bridge’s first few months.

Like the Sandy Bridge CPUs themselves, the Cougar Point motherboards have diversified into a range of budgets and feature sets. Given the recently announced delay of AMD’s upcoming Bulldozer processors for desktops, Sandy Bridge will remain unchallenged at the high-end of desktop computing until at least September. If you want to build a powerful desktop to use when you’re not lounging by the pool and grilling delicious meats this summer, this guide has you covered with a 0 budget build, a ,000 midrange system, and a ,000 high-end gaming-centered system (give or take).

Most of our Buyer's Guides focus on full desktop builds, but what about something a little smaller? Perhaps you're looking for an inexpensive yet sufficiently powerful system to function as an HTPC, or maybe you want a low power device so you can cut down a bit on power bills. Whatever the reason, if you're interested in building a mini-ITX system or a nettop we've got several takes on the concept to discuss.

In the second half of our Mobile Buyer's Guide, we focus on portable machines with screens smaller than 14". The market as a whole is getting a thorough overhaul over the summer, both because of brand new chips coming from Intel, AMD, ATI, and NVIDIA (for those of you keeping score at home, that's…everyone) and because of the rapidly approaching back-to-school season, which always means newly refreshed notebook lineups. With so many new systems out there, who's going to put in the groundwork to figure out which ones can hold their own in the market and separate the contenders from the also-rans? We did, and our findings are in this article. Read on for more details!

The back-to-school season is coming and refreshed product lines are already starting to appear on store shelves. Intel's dual-core Arrandale processors continue to dominate in terms of raw performance, but AMD K10.5-based notebooks are now available from every major vendor. Intel has also refreshed its mobile line and added some low-voltage kit. It's an interesting market full of options, and sifting the wheat from the chaff requires some research. We've decided to do just that and put together a mobile guide with options for everything from multimedia enthusiasts to mobile gaming powerhouses. We're splitting the guide into two installments, with this first part specifically focusing on the larger laptops and desktop replacement (DTR) options. If you're in the market for a new notebook, this article is for you.