Posts tagged with Multimedia
Windows 7 – The birth of a great OS
Posted by Ian McNaughton in 11:14 AM
(18 votes, average: 4.44 out of 5)
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Did you skip Windows Vista waiting for Windows 7 with bated breath?
Let’s call out the “white elephant” in the room: Gamers have resisted Windows Vista in favour of Windows XP. I have to admit, I was one of those gamers, just didn’t see the benefit vs. cost to upgrade my OS, especially given my usage model which was mainly gaming at the time.
Fast forward a year or two and it’s a totally different story, I still game, but I also am doing a lot more video consumption and creation (albeit creating n00b videos of my kids). It also helps that I have had early access to Windows 7 prior to the RC being publically available. This has completely changed my view and opinion on when (not if) a user should embrace and get excited about the upcoming release of Microsoft’s newest OS, Windows 7.
So, I expect the flames in the comments, and I am happy to have the debate. Maybe I am a lone voice in the world, perhaps I am drinking the kool-aid. I had a discussion the other day with a friend of mine, a hardcore gamer and content consuming machine, a true AMD enthusiast. This guy lives, eats and breathes AMD, and during this discussion he basically called me out as being a n00b for running Windows 7 on my main home PC and work laptop, he actually laughed. This made me start to question the experience I thought I was having, which by the way has been awesome, flawless and very favourable in terms of recommending to others to adopt. I questioned myself until I came across a Facebook post from another friend who is a true enthusiast – former AMD’er, now with the world’s largest PC OEM – a working dad, video editing guy and casual gamer, he summed up his experience with Windows 7 nicely, I thought I would share it with you:
So the debate will rage on, sides will be taken, lines will be drawn, artillery will be engaged and the battle will ensue. It’s funny how something as simple as an OS evokes such emotion in the PC enthusiast. MAC users will gush over the superiority of the “chosen ones” MAC OS X Snow Leopard, PC users will throw daggers at Redmond in hopes they will listen, the penguin community will continue to garner more and more OEM wins and mainstream adoption, but at the end of the day we have one major OS option and this time around, it’s a really good option!
Would like to hear from the community, how has your Windows 7 experience been so far? Please post in comments.
Cheers!
Ian “Cabrtosr” McNaughton
Ian McNaughton is senior manager of advanced marketing at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.
The Biggest Graphics Question of 2009!
Posted by Ian McNaughton in 8:43 AM
What is the best Mainstream GPU in the market?
Not surprisingly, the most asked question I get from end users is “What do you think is the best mainstream GPU to buy”? This is the place where that question gets answered…
Now, I am not going to start this blog off with “It’s not because I work at AMD that I say nice things about the product” or “Really, this is what I believe even though I work at AMD” or the best one I have seen is “This is my REAL personal opinion and not because I work at AMD”. I am not even going to give you a personal opinion, even though it would be honest, and not influenced by the fact I work at AMD, but even still, I am writing this blog 100% IAN OPINION FREE!!!
[Take it while you can get it because it won't happen often]
Here goes:
“ATI pulled a real coup with the 4600 series by releasing a GPU essentially as powerful as its previous high-end champion…” Don Woligroski of Tom’s Hardware Guide
“For the people who need a card that fits this niche and price point, the 4670 is the card to pick up.” Derek Wilson of Anandtech
“Gamers have honestly never had it so good… AMD has again pulled the rabbit from its hat with the HD 4670. NVIDIA is again scrambling to react…” Josh Walrath of PC Perspective
“The ATI Radeon HD 4670 proved to be an excellent performer, especially considering its low-power operation and affordable price.” Marco Chiappetta of HotHardware.com
“…I just don’t see the need to skimp on a card when the HD 4650 can entertain by day and still game the night away. Hard to believe we used to pay $300 for this kind of performance.” Scott and Darren of cluboverclocker.com
“If you are casual gamer, an HTPC user, or even looking to upgrade your existing system, this card is a pretty sweet card.” Sheldog23 on modder-inc.com
…and my personal favourite quote to sum it all up:
“…the HD 4670 doesn’t compete against the budget Nvidia card, it smashes the 9500 GT’s teeth in and then knees it in the nuts for good measure.” Michael “SKYMTL” Hoenig of Hardware Canucks.com
If you are looking for superior mainstream entertainment, both gaming and multimedia, the ATI Radeon™ HD 4600 Series is the reviewers top choice.
Cheers!
Ian “Cabrtosr” McNaughton
Ian McNaughton is senior manager of advanced marketing at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such linked sites and no endorsement is implied.