Eclipse Matrix i25z68 review
Eclipse's overclocked Matrix i25z68 has a decent set of components and room for expansion, but it's outclassed by similarly priced PCs with bigger monitors and Blu-ray drives
Specifications
4GHz Intel Core i5-2500K, 4GB RAM, 22in 1,920×1,080 display, Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
The advantage of buying a desktop PC over an all-in-one system or a laptop is that a PC gives you room for expansion, in the shape of drive bays, PCI slots and a wider range of outputs. Compared to most PCs we see, Eclipse’s Matrix i25z68 has more room for expansion, with a total of six PCI and PCI-E slots, 10 drive bays and a good range of outputs.
That’s not to say that it’s incomplete: you also get a fine BenQ 22in monitor, with a Full HD resolution, and it’s powered by the excellent Core i5-2500K processor. The K suffix indicates an unlocked multiplier: Eclipse has used this to boost speed from 3.3 to 4GHz. The Matrix’s overall score of 115 means it’s around 15 per cent faster thanks to this speed hike.
The G2220HD monitor won our Best Buy award almost two years ago, but it’s still a top display. Despite its non-LED backlight colours are strong and contrast very good. It’s a shame that Eclipse hasn’t included a DVI cable in the box to take advantage of the digital input, which generally produces a sharper image. Another worry was that the VGA port wasn’t firmly seated against the back-plate of the case, and the entire port assembly felt as if it might snap off from the motherboard if we pressed too hard.
Inside the spacious case, there are five free hard disk bays and three optical drive bays, as well as two PCI slots, three PCI-E x1 slots and one PCI-E x16 slot. The latter is for graphics cards, and there’s room enough for even the longest AMD cards. The 650W power supply should provide enough overhead to handle the extra power requirements. There are also two free RAM slots, so if you wanted to upgrade you wouldn’t have to dispose of the existing DIMMs.
Basic Specifications | |
---|---|
Rating | *** |
Processor | Intel Core i5-2500K |
Processor external bus | 100MHz (Sandy Bridge DMI) |
Processor multiplier | x40 |
Processor clock speed | 4GHz |
Processor socket | LGA1155 |
Memory | 4 |
Memory type | DDR3 |
Maximum memory | 32GB |
Motherboard | ASRock Z68 Pro3 |
Motherboard chipset | Intel Z68 |
Ports | |
USB2 ports (front/rear) | 2/6 |
Firewire ports (front/rear) | 0/0 |
eSATA ports (front/rear) | 0/0 |
Wired network ports | 1x 10/100/1000 |
Wireless networking support | none |
Internal Expansion | |
Case | tower |
PCI-E x1 slots (free) | 3 (3) |
PCI-E x16 slots (free) | 1 (1) |
Free Serial ATA ports | 4 |
Free memory slots | 2 |
Free 3.5in drive bays | 5 |
Hard Disk | |
Hard disk model(s) | Samsung SpinPoint F1 HD103SJ |
Interface | SATA2 |
Total storage capacity | 1,000GB |
Graphics | |
Graphics card(s) | Intel HD Graphics 3000 |
Graphics/video ports | VGA, DVI, HDMI |
Sound | |
Sound | Realtek HD Audio |
Sound outputs | 7.1 line out, optical S/PDIF out |
Speakers | none |
Removable Drives | |
Supported memory cards | none |
Optical drive type(s) | DVD+/-RW +/-DL |
Display | |
Viewable size | 22 in |
Screen model | BenQ G2220HD |
Native resolution | 1,920×1,080 |
Screen inputs | VGA, DVI |
Other Hardware | |
Keyboard | Logitech Deluxe 250 Keyboard |
Mouse | Logitech B110 |
Software | |
Software included | none |
Operating system | Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit |
Operating system restore option | Windows disc |
Buying Information | |
Warranty | one year RTB |
Price | £550 |
Details | www.eclipse-computers.com |