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KillerNiC M1 review by raz |
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| Published by: raz on 17/06/2008 at 13:24 pm |
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The KillerNiC network card is a network Card that does many things to help the performance of your computer and also gives you stability with your ping when your CPU takes up a lot of your machine and causes ping fluctuations. In my honest opinon I can say this is one way of making your computer better without spending lots of money buying new processors and graphics card to try get that little bit more from your computer.
What can I say.... WOW!, I never thought that this would be possible and when I was told it would improve my FPS I didn't believe it one bit. When I was told I was getting one I was told to "TRY IT IF YOU DONT BELIEVE IT" so I thought I'd try this piece of hardware to see if it really does do what I've been told and this is how my doubts were quashed:
KillerNiC M1 Network Card
Recieving the Killer Card
When i recieved the KillerNiC card I noticed that the card itself was presented in a very nice and box.
Front: As you can see the front of the box is very well presented 
Back: As the back shows all the networking card features and all the functions that it does upon installing the card.
When I took the card out of the box it was in a protected cardboard casing which ensured that the product wasn't damaged. This I took a liking to because I hate damaged goods upon arrival and having to send them back and try to order a replacement. For the actual design of the box I'll give it a 9/10 because of the originality of the box and how common those types of boxes are. The graphics on the box I liked so it gets a 9 from me in that department.
Installing the Card
In most reviews of installing new equipment this section would be in an essay format with ways to slot it in and precautions to take when slotting the item in. I can safely say, with this product it's simply a "Plug n Play" function although before you actually put the card in you need to install the drivers which install the flash for the network. After this is done you just simply turn your computer off and slot the card in one of your PCI slots and plug the network card in, when you boot up you're already online and you just have to configure the program to auto so that it configures itself without having to get all complicated.
The configuration of the software is really easy too, below is a picture of how your 'configuration' should look like for the best result. As I've tested many computers basically it comes down to letting the hardware configurate it for you with this card.
As you can see all of the auto features are highlighted and shown, when you install the hardware you need to set it to these variables for the best FPS increase.
Overall the installation of the hardware was very easy and was no hassle at all. I had no problems installing the software and configurating it for the best outcome so overall I'd give the installation a 9/10 mainly because of how easy it is to install this.
Playing the Games
Now I've got my KillerNiC card installed and configured I thought I'd check to see if I was told the truth about how your Frames Per Second (FPS) would increase when installing the card. I loaded up Call of Duty 4 and thought to myself, I'd see if I was really told the truth by testing my fps without the KillerNiC card and looking at a certain point on the map to test the FPS increase but also with the KillerNiC card to see the difference.
Below are the results of both with and without the KillerNiC.
Without
With KillerNiC
As you can see the difference is OUTSTANDING, I could'nt believe my eyes when I went into the server and tested it. As you can see the fps increase is roughly 250~ for me and my ping was also lower. My ISP is really good and I ping 20 to most servers normally. I saw that my ping did not change by much as my ISP/router system is as good as it could be. For people without good ISP's and router systems I'd recommend trying to obtain one. For performance on this card I will give it a 10/10 as I was shocked to see my fps increase was so high.
Conclusion
I would say that this card is outstanding and is worth every penny; never have I seen a piece of hardware like this. I can say however that it is in the interest of gamers to get one, you will benefit by installing this card. Hardware like this helps gaming develop and become easier to play people on an equal level all around the world, so keep up the good work!
I've marked the killer card out of 30 points which are divided into 3 catagories such as
Presentation : 9/10
Installation : 9/10
Performance : 10/10
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Articles Comments |
Just wondering how a NETWORK card can improve your fps :S
Other than that, nice review. |
the card does it by taking some of the workload off of the cpu. the same happens with a soundcard.
cool review |
er........ wtf raz, you forgot to mention that it costs 180 quid :D
they will have to lower the price if they expect any people to buy them |
| No matter what price is, thats an amazing result, and indeed i could really use that as i need a FPS boost fast. |
| good stuff but too expensive Oo |
| Very nice review raz :) I wouldn't say 180 quid is too much from this card, because it its very good and reliable. |
| cool, hira seeing you have more money than sense could you buy me one :) |
| What ISP are you with Raz? |
| Anyone able to say what teh difference is between this one and the cheaper version? |
| Oh, and in reply to apezz.. the card has its own 400mhz processor which runs a small version of linux. You can run programs such as torrents and the cards very own built in firewall and soon ventrilo and many more programs straight from the card so there is no load on your CPU at all :) |
ZeoN, I just mean that the quality this card offers is outstanding. And for that kind of quality I think many people would be willing to buy this with 180 quid. Btw, how much is 180 quid in euros.
Ps: No, I won't buy you one, but I'm going to buy one for me ;P |
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