Journal Dark Lord Seth's Journal: Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger 2
Okay, this is generally aimed to all manufacturers of computer equipment. The latest trend for the past few years has generally been Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger. (© Daft Punk) The latest Intels reach into the 3ghz boundary and AMD is happily hopping after Intel with a few months to catch up like always. Motherboards get more complicated/expansive and generally get faster as well with stuff like AGP x8 en faster then ever FSB speeds. Videocards get faster (and bigger) as well, with some clear example being the latest nVidia Geforce NV30, which is quite huge and most likely sounds like a Boeing at take off during a cold day and all of this is simply to get more "Oomph!" out of your PC at ridiculous prices.
Am I the only one here who thinks it is time for a change in the mindset of at least some of the manufacturers? I mean, one of the biggest markets is the one where Pcs are supplied to offices and schools/colleges. A good example would be my college, where we recently got a batch of Dells. 256Mb DDR memory with a 1,6ghz proc, running Windows NT with Office 97 and a bunch of apps of pre-2000 applications. What do you mean, a waste? Suppose someone wanted a PC merely for official use, like writing letters, reading email, occasionally browsing the net and chatting, with no new games... A 500mhz PC with 128mb SDRAM and some Matrox VGA card would be ideal for this, but those simply arent made anymore, nearly everything is up to the latest specs...
That is what I feel that should change, some companies need to start manufacturing stuff based on already existing technologies. Instead of making CPUs/RAM/VGA cards/TFTs faster, larger, more powerful and flatter, why don't they make something smaller, quieter, cooler and less expensive? Do you really think AGP x8 is needed for IRC? Or 512mb DDR 333mhz for browsing? Would any word processing application benefit from 1,6+ ghz of power? Of course not, it might save you a few seconds at boot perhaps, but that is largely OS dependant anyways. But what about efficiency? Modern day CPUs/GPUs use allot of power, allot of which goes to waste on heat, which requires MORE power in order for the heat to be cooled... We need cheaper, more efficient Pcs. So where are these Pcs? Where is this elegant solution that offers enough power to do what one wants and still doesn't sound like a continuous sonic boom? Where is the ideal 500/600mhz office PC which is quiet, efficient and sleek? (Did I just think of Macs?) Would anyone buy a 2000+ ton capable cargo ship to ship around 250 ton (max) of goods? Would anyone rent a 15.000 square foot office for a 15 person company? Then why do people buy an expensive 1,6ghz tower case machine while a 500mhz brick would be enough?
Yeah. (Score:2)
This can be likened to sports cars: sure, your new turbo'd Mazda RX-7 can pull 150+ mph, but you can only drive 65 mph on highways. (Barring any kind of racing, although that can then be likened to researchers who really do need that much power in a computer.)
It is more of a "I'm richer/better than you are!" than a "Wow, I really can not play this game," sort of deal. Except for some people, like me, with 500MHz processors and Radeon 7000's...*sigh*
Although something new that I have seen and appricated a lot are the Mini-ITX motherboards from VIA. These things are designed for low power consumption and small space usage, instead of immense power. (nobody calls 800MHz and integrated graphics fast, do they?). The processor alone takes only 5 watts, contrary to the 90+ from the new P4s. I personally want to get one of these and install Win98 (for "gaming") and Debian on one of these...check out my journal [slashdot.org] in which I touch upon these awesome boards.
I agree with you completely; at least until Doom III comes out.
Orange