While HD MPEG-2 and HD VC-1 can easily be handled by a modern Core 2 Duo, H.264 represents a substantial challenge. Even with the lower-quality broadcast H.264 sample, CPU utilization was already 63% on a Core 2 Duo, which probably the fastest SSE3 performance clock-for-clock. When it came to high-bitrate H.264, the CPU-only solution was inadequate. With H.264 likely becoming the preferred encoding CODEC for future Blu-Ray discs, clearly GPU-accelerated performance is needed. While CoreAVC has a reputation for high-performance H.264 decoding, it still wasn’t a match for PureVideo HD hardware. While we were unable to test CoreAVC with HD-DVD content due to AACS content restrictions, it seems unlikely that you will b able to play an ultra-high bitrate video clip such as Virtual Trip: Yozakura on even a Core 2 Duo Extreme.
Although we haven’t looked at picture quality in this article, it’s important to realize that while MPEG-2 decoding is easily handled with today’s CPUs, GPU-based decoding is still important from a picture quality perspective. To date, there are no software solutions that can provide high-quality content-based inverse telecine of 1080i sources. With hardware supporting content-based inverse telecine of 1080i HDTV, virtually every scripted high-definition TV show broadcast as 1080i60 can be reconstructed into the true 1080p24 image.
What about ATI’s performance? We’ll have those numbers for you in the future. Likewise, it will be interesting to see what sort of bitrates are going to be found in the upcoming H.264 Blu-Ray discs.
3D Performance with ARMA II Demo
Wondering which video cards perform best with ARMA II? Wonder no more. In this article we've combined GPUs ranging from the Radeon 3870 up to the GeForce GTX 295 across two different CPUs: a Core i7-965 Extreme Edition, and a Core 2 Quad Q8400. See how well the game scales across the various GPUs and CPUs inside!
ASUS Crosshair III Formula Review
With its $200 price tag, ASUS' latest Republic of Gamers board is designed to appeal to AMD enthusiasts looking for the best without busting your bank account. And thanks its dazzling array of LEDs, good cooling, and SupremeFX X-Fi audio, it's pretty feature-packed. Is it worth the premium ASUS charges though? See how it stacks up against the competition in our latest review!
Sapphire Toxic HD 4890 Review
With a beefier power subsystem, OC'ed clocks, and custom vapor chamber cooling, Sapphire's Toxic HD 4890 takes ATI's Radeon 4890 GPU to another level. In fact the card delivers performance rivaling the GTX 285 in some cases. But is it worth the price premium? Find out in today's review!
Gigabyte AM3 Motherboard Roundup
Whether you've got $80 to spend on a new AM3 motherboard, or $180, Gigabyte's got you covered. In today's article we take a look at Gigabyte's high-end and low-end AM3 offerings and find a lot to like. See how the board's compare to one another and perform inside!
Intel Core i7-975 Extreme Edition/Core i7-950 Performance Preview
Armed with higher clock speeds and a new D0 stepping designed to deliver improved OC'ing headroom, we were eager to see how far we could push Intel's latest flagship processor, the Core i7-975 Extreme Edition, and it didn't disappoint. See what happens when the 4GHz mark is easily shattered in this article!
AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition/Athlon II X2 250 Performance Preview
Packing two processing cores, 6MB of L3 cache, an unlocked multiplier, and a 3.1GHz clock speed, AMD's Phenom II X2 550 Black is targeted towards enthusiasts looking to OC. Its $102 price tag is inexpensive too. But is it a worthy competitor to Core 2 Duo? AMD's also unleashing a new Athlon II CPU today. See how both new AMD CPUs perform against the competition from Intel inside!
Logitech G19 Gaming Keyboard Review
Sporting a larger, higher resolution color LCD, configurable backlit keys, and reconfigured G-keys, Logitech's G19 offers a host of improvements over its predecessor, the G15. But is it worthy of its lofty price tag? Decide for yourself in our review!
Gigabyte GV-N275UD-896H GeForce GTX 275 Review
With its 2-ounce copper PCB and 1200MHz memory, Gigabyte's GV-N275UD-896H is one of the first GeForce GTX 275 cards on the market to deviate from NVIDIA's reference design. See how it compares to the stock GTX 275 in today's review!
ASUS W90Vp Review
With two Mobility Radeon 4870 GPUs, dual 7200 RPM hard drives, an 18.4" 1080p display, and 2.8GHz Core 2 CPU, the ASUS W90Pv packs more horsepower than most desktop PCs. Remarkably of all though the system retails for $2199-$2499 depending on the SKU. Is this really the ultimate gaming notebook? Find out in today's review!
ASUS ENGTX260 Matrix Quick Take Review
With its dual-slot cooler and support for voltage adjustment, we mananged to crank ASUS' excellent ENGTX260 Matrix to speeds we've never seen from a GTX 260 card before. In fact, once OC'ed the card outran the GTX285! Read on for the full details!
Test Setup
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