Rogue Leader's Hardware Guide - February 20, 2004

[Rogue Leader 0]

Once again, here is the latest version of Rogue Leader's Hardware Guide. Let's get to the action!

 

Not much is new in the processor field since the last time I wrote a hardware guide, but exciting things are coming. Intel has decided to throw its hand in the 64-bit bandwagon by offering a server-side processor supporting 64- and 32-bit extensions beginning next quarter. Although this is specific to commercial processors, the lack of a consumer level 64-bit Operating System from Microsoft means that 64-bit processing won't realize it's full potential for some time anyways. Still, for those looking to purchase a new computer or upgrade an existing one, prices are very cheap for new processors.

 

In video cards, ATI continues to reign supreme with the Radeon 9800XT, although Nvidia is poised to strike at the throne next month following the release of their next-generation video card, code-named NV40. Stay tuned for more news when that is announced in March.

 

In other exciting news, PCI Express is poised to make its debut this year, hoping to completely replace traditional PCI and AGP slots by the end of the year. The advantage to this system is the scalability. The 1x speed runs at a maximum speed of 250 MB/s. Speed then multiplies from here, running to a maximum of 32x, effectively a maximum of 8 GB/s. AGP is being replaced by the 16x bus in this new system, doubling the amount of bandwidth available from the current AGP 8x standard. It also allows for all devices to be controlled by a single chipset bridge, rather than several different chips on the board. PCI Express will be making its debut with the launch of the new P4 chipset next quarter.

 

PCI Express is already being featured by Nvidia, which has announced PCI Express versions of the GeforceFX and Geforce 4 MX, and will undoubtedly be featured in NV40. ATI has yet to announce products to use this technology, but are planning to in the near future.

 

In RAM news, DDR2 is set to make it's debut, promising higher capacity and faster I/O cycles meaning more speed for gamers.

 

So what does all this mean for we gamers? It's going to be an exciting summer. While we should be outside enjoying the sun, we'll be working our behinds off trying to save up money for an upgrade with all this new technology available to us to make our games run faster, look better, and push the limits of gaming. Intel and AMD and Nvidia and ATI are headed into the ring for a summer of speed battles, and the winners will be us.

 

For the latest hardware news, be sure to check Tom's Hardware Guide and AnandTech for the latest.

 

As always, feel free to post questions or comments below. Unfortunately my PC is down (the downside to a liquid-cooled PC is having to wait a week to get replacement parts if a pump fails ) so I don't have access to my CNCNZ account right now, but leave a message here and I'll do my best to get back to you. Happy gaming, all!

[Shocker 0]

Good article . I'm really looking forward to the advent of PCI-Express. PC's have been saddled for far too long by AGP, which is nothing more than a hack (and not a particularly good one at that, either).

[Rogue Leader 0]

Yeah, I'm looking forward to it, too. I think this is going to be an exciting year for computers, and I bet the holiday season is going to have a great performance/price war. I can't wait to see what ATI and Nvidia have cooked up for us this year.

[Koen 2]

The current standstill in CPU country is typical. The 3.06 Ghz P4 has been for about 8 months the fastest CPU, and only recently have there been 3.2/3.4 models around. Higher speeds aren't coming too soon either...

[Phreakly 0]

do they really need to?

[Rogue Leader 0]

It's not typical, though. This is the first time since the 486 that clock speeds aren't being cranked up regularly. They've reached a plateau because they can't make them much faster without better, more expensive cooling.

 

CPU speed isn't as important these days to gamers. RTS games and load times are the only things that gain an advantage by a faster CPU, while grpahics power is taking center stage.

[Shocker 0]

The 3.06 Ghz P4 has been for about 8 months the fastest CPU, and only recently have there been 3.2/3.4 models around. Higher speeds aren't coming too soon either...

You're talking about pure clock speed though - and that's only one indicator of processor performance. IPC, cache etc are all very important as well. I personally feel the top of the line A64/Opterons are the fastest processors out at the moment.

 

They've reached a plateau because they can't make them much faster without better, more expensive cooling.

Or another die shrink (but it didn't help Prescott out that much in terms of heat, eh? )

 

CPU speed isn't as important these days to gamers. RTS games and load times are the only things that gain an advantage by a faster CPU, while grpahics power is taking center stage.

I disagree. The top of the line physics engines used in games today (like the Havok & Karma engines) are only the *palest* imitations of reality. The AI in new games is still far behind being actually 'artificially intelligent'. These things and more all require exponential leaps in CPU power before being anywhere near realistic. We have a hell of a long way to go yet

[DeadEye 0]

/me doesn't reall ywant a proper AI...... that uses teammates as bait / cover, flanks me, uses grenades, covering fire etc, then appears behind me a lone commando with a knife and guts me. No no no no no.

 

Nor an AI which knows its an AI, somehow hacks my comp to get itself out of the game without my knowing, then hacks into some random robot factory, implants itself in a robot, and then comes to kill me in real life :/

[Rogue Leader 0]

I disagree. The top of the line physics engines used in games today (like the Havok & Karma engines) are only the *palest* imitations of reality. The AI in new games is still far behind being actually 'artificially intelligent'. These things and more all require exponential leaps in CPU power before being anywhere near realistic. We have a hell of a long way to go yet

 

Point conceded