Despite the failure a few years ago of Windows RT, the limited version of Windows that ran on ARM systems when the first Surface devices were around, Microsoft has had another crack at putting their OS on the ARM architecture. But benchmark results suggest poor performance and limited compatibility.

When you're buying a new gadget, you want the fastest, most powerful one you can get for your money. Benchmarks can help you figure out what devices have the most power, but sometimes they're just a distraction.

The Raspberry Pi 3 was released this week and while the big talking point is built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, it still gets a bit of a speed bump. So, let's take a look at just how much faster it is, comparing it to the Pi 2 and a Model B+.

Determining how much processing power a computer offers is a lot more complicated than it used to be. Nowadays multiple benchmark tests are used to determine the power of your machines -- this video shows the differences between the three most common types of tests out there.

We all know companies try to present benchmarks that show their gadgets in the best light possible, but you can only fudge the numbers so much before they graduate from mere flattery to flat-out lies. Anandtech decided to take a look at Android benchmark claims and found out most were way off.

So you've picked up a new video game, but playing it is like dancing under a strobe light. The graphics look awful, your character moves slowly, and too much on-screen action brings the game to a halt. Here's how some of the most popular gaming tweaks actually rank at improving that performance.

Windows: Auslogics BenchTown is a simple and free benchmarking tool that tests your system's hardware and gives you a rating score that you can compare with others.

Windows/Mac/Linux: Last week Google announced a free DNS service designed to speed up your browsing, but just because Google wants to be fast doesn't actually mean they're the best option for you. Namebench finds the fastest DNS server for your connection.

ZDNet's Hardware 2.0 blogger stacks an early beta build of Windows 7 against 32-bit Vista (and an SP1 upgrade) on the same hardware. In three out of four tests, even a non-optimised Windows 7 trumps Vista. As Adrian Kingsley-Hughes points out, it's just one system's benchmarks on test that, for the most part, throw a range of apps at a system and see how they fare. But given that Windows 7 will likely be optimised a bit for final release, it's promising to see it beat Vista's speeds in all but one rendering-related test—and even that one was close.

Windows only: Free application PC Wizard is a portable tool that analyzes and benchmarks your PC. At its most basic, PC Wizard gives you an in-depth look at your hardware and system specs. But the app has a surprisingly rich feature set beyond that, including a password recovery tool for apps like Outlook in the System Information tool and a slew of cool benchmarking tools. The benchmarks measure everything from your processor and RAM to hard drive performance and even MP3 compression speeds. As a cherry on top, PC Wizard is available in a portable version you can carry on your thumb drive. PC Wizard is freeware, Windows only. PC Wizard