Hey folks, Valkor here kickin off post-CES week. Last year's show was a bit of a downer, but this year things picked up… immensely. The show floor was packed and enthusiasm was on overload, though I was a bit upset that The Sands Innovation was reduced to just meeting rooms. Bummer. But I was pleased with the overall show and after parties. CES officially started with Pepcom's Digital experience, but it really kicked off when I didn't get into showstoppers (again) but was blessed to attend Zalman's little Bash, which included an introduction to their products, plenty of wine and dine, and to top it all off, a DJ Hero contest. Though I went along with 2D-X's JayDub, he left the party early and I was left to my own vices. Muahahahaha. Ahem.
Valkor's Update: Sorry folks, I should have made a note about it before, but the images below are from the party and do not reflect the product description. Thanks and sorry for the inconvenience
First an intro. 10 years in the running, Zalman is to hardcore gaming as Snapple is the the Val-man. It's a must! And I was reminded repeatedly just how great they are (They are the number one cooling system makers in the world – and I wouldn't doubt that). But they don't just make cooling systems. If you wanna get the maximum performance from your PC rig than I would say look no further than Zalman.
CNPS10X (Performa, Extreme, Quiet) – All three offer superior design and capable of keeping your CPU at its coolest. Plus it's quiet, but if you're a hardcore gamer than you usually have a thumpin system. But if you have those days where you need quiet than here ya go. What's the differences? Well Quiet is meant to be extremely quiet, Performa offers Dual fan support, and Extreme offers more in controls. I'm not one to mess with overclocking my CPU (If you get it right you nail it, but if you get it wrong you screwed!), but if overclocking is your thing I'd definitely recommend Zalman.
ZM-M220W – CES was all about 3D TV and almost all the major players had representation of the format. But tucked away in a dark bedroom of the Zalman booth, the company was showing off the ZM-M220W 2D/3D LCD TV. With only 1000:1 contrast ratio and max resolution of 1680X1050, I would have thought less of the monitor. But the demos the company showed off proved that specs mean nothing! The 300 demo was watched repeatedly and it looked awesome! Spears looked as though they were coming out the screen, the colors were great and the picture was clean and crisp. Impressed? Yes. Yes I was.
GS1000Plus – You want a true rig with all the slots you'll ever need to handle all your hardcore gaming wants? Then look no further than the GS1000Plus. It's a beautiful rig with 6HDD bays (Terrabytes of storage people), it has a cable compartment for storing your cable mess, it's big enough to handle any cooling system, and damnit it's just beautiful!
ZM-NC1500/W – We all know that holding laptops on our laps, especially a guys lap isn't good. And Zalman has answered the call with their laptop cooling system that will keep your system cooler, up to a 17incher. And the cooler it stays, the longer it will last, especially if you're a power user, you'll wanna get the most out of that laptop. The design looks great and if I'm not mistaken they've won some awards? Jaydub? You wanna fill us in on that award in our comment section?
And did I mention the night ending with DJ Hero? Two rounds per person, one on easy mode and the other on medium. I've never played the game, but thankfully the reps allowed all players enough practice to get a feel for the game. In the end my main man Jason took home top prize: a 300 dollar Visa gift card you lucky sumbitch! Oh and dude, Michael Bay is kickin it into overdrive on Transformers 3 so this opens the floor to some serious debate.
Booooo!! Recount!! lol
I have to say I was pretty bummed not getting into Showstoppers, but the alternative wasn't a complete waste by far. Zalman, you guys know how to throw a swingin shindig (Great food, wine, products, and gaming! W00t!) and I look forward to dismant… oops I mean checking out your products in the confines of the Val-Cave.
Valkor out!
