Nexus vs SAWAS Dashboard

Nexus combines PC hardware monitoring, fan and pump control, and RGB lighting in one free app. It shows live CPU, GPU, memory, network, disk, fan, and temperature readings, with per-game FPS history on Windows. Its GPU-rendered lighting engine offers screen sync, audio sync, and Game Sync. Users can set fan and pump curves from any system temperature sensor or leave selected devices on BIOS or firmware settings. Nexus uses its own device drivers and a bundled OpenRGB build; hardware support depends on the exact model. A phone browser can act as a remote panel, using an encrypted relay outside the home network and switching to a direct connection when possible. The app works locally and offline without an account, while optional anonymous telemetry can be controlled in settings. Nexus runs on 64-bit Windows 10 or 11, Apple Silicon Macs, and x86-64 Linux. It has no builds for Windows on ARM, Intel Macs, or ARM Linux. Companion iOS and Android apps are not yet in the app stores.

SAWAS Dashboard is a modular desktop widget that keeps clock, system, network, notes, browser favorites, and support-link modules visible behind ordinary windows. Its system module shows live CPU and RAM use, while the network module reports current download and upload rates. It records CPU, RAM, and network history locally in SQLite every 15 seconds and displays day, week, or month charts. Favorites can read bookmarks from Chrome and Microsoft Edge profiles, with search and pinning. The local-network scanner uses ping, ARP, and reverse DNS, and can scan every 30 minutes while the PC is idle. A speed test reports ping, download, and upload, and can run on the same idle schedule using speedtest-cli. Users can add Python modules in the dashboard’s modules folder. The maker says there is no telemetry, cloud service, or sign-in, and that dashboard data stays on the PC. Its plan is free, for private and commercial use, with no ads or subscription.