CPU Scaling in Games with Dual & Quad Core Processors

A fantastic article has been published over at Guru3D! Hilbert Hagedoorn with the editorial help of John A. Johnsen have written a really helpful and informative article concerning CPU scaling in PC Gaming.

In order to compare the game performance differences between Dual Core and Quad Core CPUs, they benched the following games:

• Call of Duty 4


• Crysis


• Enemy Territory: Quake Wars


• F.E.A.R.


• Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2


• S.T.A.L.K.E.R.-Shadow of Chernobyl


• World in Conflict

The Verdict Section is especially interesting:

"The biggest bang for your buck is a faster Core 2 Duo dual-core processors preferably with a higher clock frequency. Next in line are the cheaper quad-core processors. But after four cores guys, I tell you, with the pending Intel Nehalem release going 6, 8 and maybe even more cores, we are bound to run into an issue. More transistors means more costly products. What really needs to go up is that processors frequency...No, the winner in this article has to be the 45nm Penryn based Core 2 Quad Q9450. At 300 USD this processor offers leading performance at a leading price."

This article reminds me of recent slides from NVIDIA and Intel claiming "they have the better product for gaming".

Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro Series PCI-E Sound Card

Available for pre-order for $149.99 is Creative's brand new sound card the Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro Series PCI-E. This new high end sound card packs a ton of great features!

*Please note that picture above refers to the Champion Series model of this card which includes an internal I/O drive for quick front panel connection to headphones and headsets. This model will be available soon and will retail for $299.99*

Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Pro Series PCI-E Sound Card

Realistic EAX® 5.0 sound effects that pull you into the game

Accurate 3D positional audio - even with headphones

Accelerated audio for unbeatable game performance

Clearer voice chat for better voice communications

Works with PCI Express equipped PCs

Chosen by professional gamers, the PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series sound card delivers the ultimate PC gaming audio experience. You'll hear realistic EAX® 5 sound effects and 3D positional audio that's so accurate you can locate opponents by sound - even over headphones. Plus, get unbeatable performance in your games with hardware accelerated audio and X-RAM.

Realistic EAX® 5.0 sound effects in games
Hear crackling gunfire and earth-shattering explosions, EAX® 5.0 delivers sound effects that pull you into the game.

Accurate 3D positional audio with X-Fi CMSS®-3D
Locate enemies by sound alone - you'll get amazing surround sound, even with normal stereo headphones.

Dolby Digital Live encoding
Connects directly to your home theater system through a single digital cable for compelling 5.1 surround sound.


Hardware accelerated performance
Get unbeatable performance in your favorite games with hardware accelerated audio that blows motherboard audio away.

X-RAM
Boost performance even further in games like Quake 4, Battlefield 2, Prey, Unreal Tournament 3 and others that take advantage of X-RAM.

Clearer voice chat
Plug in your headset or microphone and hear the difference. With high quality inputs and hardware audio processing, your teammates will hear you loud and clear.

Cinematic surround sound from DVD movies
Watch your DVDs in cinematic surround sound with PowerDVD software featuring DTS™ and Dolby Digital®-EX decoding.

Perfect for music
Make all of your music sound better with Xtreme Fidelity audio technology that restores the detail and clarity to compressed music files like MP3s.

Record your own music
PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium has fantastic inputs and low-latency ASIO drivers for great music recording.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280 to launch on June 18th!

In what is sure to be good news for hardware enthusiasts, gamers and NVIDIA fans everywhere...GT200 will launch June 18th! At the end of this month NVIDIA is holding an Editors Day to discuss and showoff GT200. The respective cards coming down the pipe will be named the GeForce GTX 280 & 260. Better start saving your hard earned cash. :)

FudZilla has the Details:

"We've found out what looks to be the launch date for GT200 cards. We are happy to report that both GT200 cards are single chip cards, something that we've suggested back in January.

The launch should take place on the 18th of June, just in the middle of week 25, and at current schedule that is two days after ATI's RV770 launch.

The name Geforce GTX 280 looks a bit odd, but I am sure that we will get used to it. The only other alternative was to use Geforce 9900 cliché but we believe that GT200 deserves better name. As its been suggested at many occasions GT200 chip will have significantly more Shader units and the most frequent number that we heard was 240. We still work on getting the confirmation of this bold spec.

Nvidia just ran out of numbers and it’s starting all over again. It's like reseting the odometer, more or less."

NVIDIA GT200 is 512-bit and Arriving in June?

There has been a very popular trend over the years concerning NVIDIA and trade shows...they really love to release new products coinciding with them. In fact this year at Computex 2008 (June 3-7) it appears that the trend will continue.

Now mind you owners of the GeForce 9800 GX2 and the like have only had their brand "new" products for a very short period. But as always is the case when AMD/ATI is looking to make a move in the graphics industry NVIDIA is there to try and counter. Plain and simple NVIDIA loves being the top dog. If you need further proof then check out the CEO's latest interview with CNET. Be it Intel, AMD or anyone else standing in the way, NVIDIA hopes to have its way with the market.

More good old Power Point tactics...this time from Intel.

Expect more news like what is found below becoming more and more frequent in the coming weeks.

NVIDIA GT200 is 512-bit

"We know that some VIP customers have seen and tried GT200. We also know that the card is fast and it is definitely faster than Geforce 9800GTX but we are not sure if it can beat Geforce 9800 GX2.

As we've said on many occasions GT200 based card is a single PCB card with a single chip and a big dual slot cooler. It naturally needs two power connectors but this is something that we are getting used to.

GT200 is something that Nvidia is preparing to show under NDA to many journalists in late May at its headquarters and we wouldn’t be surprised if we see it at Computex 08 as it should be ready to launch around that time...

We finally managed to confirm a few details about GT200. This is without a doubt a single chip card and as we said before its quite big one.

The second important detail is that the chip supports 512-bit memory and at least on the memory side it is ready to fight RV770XT.

We know that GT200 is a high performance part and it will certainly be faster than RV770XT but we are not sure if it will be faster than R700, a dual chip card. At this time, no one knows the answer to that.

It needs dual slot cooler and it will dissipate quite a lot of heat but it promises great performance."

ASUS Eee PC 900 Available to Order at Amazon!

What is certain to be another grand slam in sales, the ASUS Eee PC 900 is now available at Amazon for pre-order. Scheduled for release today (May 12th) in the US and retails for $549.99.

ASUS Eee PC 20GB (Linux)
ASUS Eee PC 12GB (Windows XP)

ASUS Eee PC Reviews:
-bit-tech
-CNET
-Trusted Reviews

The new Eee PC brings a lot of new features to the table including the following:

Shock Proof Mobility

-Built-in Solid State Disk (SSD) technology for quiet, energy saving and shock proof design.
-Guards against data loss or shock-related damage making it the perfect tool for reliable outdoor computing.
-Ideal companion for reporters, wildlife photographers and other like-minded outdoor enthusiasts.

FingerGlide and Other User-Friendly Features

-FingerGlide makes operating the Eee PC easy and convenient through simple finger movements on the touchpad that allows zooming in and out of pictures or screen scrolling for easier document viewing.
-Up to 20GB of storage allows you to easily store photos, music and data files more efficiently.
-A 1.3M Pixel webcam works synchronously with built-in wireless Internet options to provide web conferences anywhere, anytime for easier web communications and increased work efficiency.

New Perspectives with 8.9 inch Display

-Large 8.9" screen size for more screenspace making it more comfortable on eyes when in use.
-1024 x 600 resolution allows you to view a single A4 page without the need to scroll left or right for easier reading and editing of documents.
-8.9" screen does not affect the overall weight of the Eee PC 900, which remains below 1kg – allowing children and women to carry it with ease.

Different Environments for Different Needs

-Eee PC 900 comes in both Microsoft Windows® and Linux versions.
-The Microsoft Windows® version provides a familiar Windows® interface for experienced users – incorporating Windows® Live features like Windows® Live Messenger and Windows® Live Mail; and Microsoft Works for numerous office applications.
-The Linux version provides an intuitive user interface to accommodate both experienced and inexperienced PC users. With over 40 built-in applications, it offers dynamic computing to learn, work and play; while a fast boot-up time makes it ideal for quick Internet access while waiting for public transport or taking notes
on-the-go.

*FULL SPECIFICATIONS*

$10 OFF $200 Coupon in our Computer Store! New Customers Only! exp 05/31/08

Gears of War 2 Gameplay Trailer

WOW!! That was the very first thought that came into my head when viewing this new gameplay trailer for Gears of War 2. Simply awesome! Epic Games plans to release Gears of War 2 exclusively for the Xbox 360 this November.

Pre-Order Gears of War 2