bit-tech.net

So here we are, at long, long last - delayed by timezones, product launches, snow, and even Christmas (who could have forseen that, coming, as it did, out of the blue on the 25th of December?), this is the end of the Asus Xtreme Global Summit (AX: GS) competition.

Well, not quite the end - because one bit-tech reader will be heading to Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan, to meet up with various members of the Asus R&D team, including motherboard designers, BIOS gurus and product managers. In addition, the winner will also bag themselves an Asus Sabertooth 55i motherboard. One runner up will also win one of these very sexy boards.

Over the last few months, the lucky readers who won the chance to attend the AX: GS event last summer in London have been blogging about the day and their hardware prizes. We've been scrutinising the blogs, posting highlights here on the bit-tech blog, and we've now picked an overall winner.

Drum roll - or mouse click, whichever you prefer - if you please!

The overall winner is Andrew Moore, aka andrew8200m!

Congratulations to Andrew! It was tough to choose a winner, but we were impressed with Andrew's blogs throughout the competition - they placed top in two out of the four weeks of blogging, but every single one of his posts was packed with detail and a sense of enthusiasm for new technology - as well as plenty of welcome humour.

Andrew was also vocal on the AX: GS forums on the site, and enthusiastic on the day - we can't wait to hear his reports back from the trip to Asus HQ in Taiwan. Andrew, we'll be in touch - in the meantime, you might want to read up on what Taiwan is like.

The runner up is Frederick Wightman, aka Skiddywinks - congratulations! We loved his photos (particularly of Harry) and the strong ideas and predictions he presented.

It's always hard to pick one or two winners, and we'd like to say that throughout the project, we've been really impressed by the blogs, and the energy and commitment of the bloggers. AX: GS has been a new experience for both Asus and us here at bit-tech, and while there have been a few bumps along the way, overall it's been a really enjoyable process - and a valuable one, too, both for us and Asus. Getting you, the readers better connected with the people who design and make PC technology beneficial and interesting for everyone involved.

As a way of saying thanks, everyone who blogged - and who's not scooped one of the main prizes - will be receiving an Asus Xonar sound card.

Stay tuned to hear from Andrew about his trip to the mystical homeland of the motherboard...