The gorgeous, glowing computer is really the ultimate gaming PC. For starters, it looks amazing. But under the hood, it’s a serious workhorse of a machine, that’ll surely pwn any computer you currently own.

At the core of the system is an Intel Core i7 975 Extreme Edition CPU, and a pair of nVidia GeForce GTX 295 graphics cards running in SLI mode. The system has 12 GB of DDR3 RAM, and 2.5 TB of hard disk. There’s also a Logitech G19 gaming keyboard, a custom Razer Boomslang mouse, and 13 video games thrown in for good measure. In total, there’s over $10,000 worth of components in this bad boy.

Parts and labor for this amazing system were donated by nVidia, ASUS, Crucial, Danger Den, Intel, Performance PCs, SilverStone, Smooth Creations, TigerDirect, Western Digital and the whole thing was put together by Out of The Box Mods.

Currently, the system is up for sale on eBay, with a bid price of $4,000 – but I’m certain that will climb as the auction nears its end on 11/24. For more details head on over to the Charity Case Mod website. 100% of the auction proceeds (after auction fees) will go directly to the charity – so bid early and bid often.

[via flickr]

Aside from the ION 330 ITX, the PC is equipped with an x64 SSD by Corsair,  4GB Twin2X4096-6400C5 DDR by Corsair, a 90-Watt Pico power supply unit by Logic Supply,  Windows Vista Premium, and an LG GH22 DVD Writer drive. Here’s a more thorough look at the little green thing:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The design is too loud – and too green – for my taste, but the fact that it rotates makes it one of the best mods that I’ve seen. Check out the Casemod Blog for more pics and info.

[via The Awesomer]

Don’t squint at the image, I’ll tell you what’s written on the card: the PC-in-a-vase runs on an Intel Atom 230 CPU, a Nvidia ION GPU and 1 GB of DDR3 RAM. The vase even has what netbooks don’t have: an optical drive, and it’s Blu-ray at that.

The refreshingly designed PC uses 2.5″ HDDs for storage. A power jack, 2 USB ports, an Ethernet port and an HDMI port can be found at the bottom of the vase, which justifies the raised wooden base. See? form and function.

The on/off switch as well as what looks like a vent can be found at the mouth of the vase.

Even though the PC-in-a-vase is just a concept, it’s proof of how far computer technology has come. And also how Brando-like ECS is. But seriously, ECS just made envisioning a future where computers are embedded into pretty much anything so much easier. I want a PC-in-a-wall.

[Engadget via Slippery Brick]

Alas, it’ll never get out of the starting gate. This heavily modded, liquid-cooled PC is strictly for use while parked (unless you want to strap a monitor to your lap while riding, and connect a really long extension cord). While it may not have serious racing horsepower, I’m sure it’s got plenty of processing speed.

Perhaps inspired by last year’s SLI-Machine wheel PC, The computer cycle was built by Russian casemodder Dennis Ilyin (a.k.a. “Xooler”) in a recent NVIDIA-sponsored case building contest. If you can believe it, Dennis only won the second place prize. I personally think he was robbed, but you be the judge.

The liquid cooled SLI-Machine Wheel PC is loaded into an 18-inch wheel from a Porsche Cayenne, then wrapped up in a Bridgestone Dueler H/P radial tire to round things out.

An intense green neon backlighting system gives the computer a bright glow as soon as the lights go out.

The system was sponsored by nVidia to show off their SLI video performance platform. Now all they have to do is make a networked set of four of these and bolt them on to my car. Then I’ll really be driving in style.

[via GizmoWatch]

Gamespot recently conducted a side-by-side comparison of the graphics in several launch titles running on both the 360 and PS3. At best the PS3’s visuals were comparable to the 360, at worst, the PS3 was trounced in both texture detail and frame rate. Included in the evaluation was EA’s Fight Night Round 3, which EA was saying would have much improved visuals when compared to the Xbox 360 (including an “amazing sweat modeling engine”). Not only are the backgrounds and crowds arguably less detailed, the HDR lighting is far less realistic, and the game takes much longer to load. Now before you start flaming me with “but the game is a port” messages, the fact that they share the same library of models and textures should mean that the games would be nearly identical if the NVIDIA chip in the PS3 was as capable as the ATI chip in the Xbox 360.

That said, some future games such as Motorstorm do show promise in the graphics department. As is the case in every generation, it takes a while for developers to learn all of the intricacies and tricks of a new console. There’s no doubt that we’ll see better graphics on the PS3 in the future, but it’s unlikely that they’ll ever achieve the cinematic quality boasted by Sony’s hype machine.