Getting Inside the Creative Process
The bane of every creative professional is the sometimes painfully long wait time required to render an image, manage video and audio streams, and manage CAD content. If you're a creative pro, a slow computer can ruin your job — when your processor is stressed to the max, so are you. But before you run out and buy the latest and greatest PC on the market, consider: For all a PC's bells and whistles, it’s the processor (or CPU) that can make the most difference when it comes to dealing with demanding applications and rich media.
Fortunately, the latest generation of processors from Intel tout slick features that can help professionals who need to run multiple applications faster.
Take a look at some new features and benefits of the Intel® Core™ i5 vPro™ processor and the Intel® Core™ i7 vPro™ processor:
New feature: Integrated memory controller
What’s that? An integrated memory controller speeds up the transfer of data to and from memory.
Why is that cool? Because it decreases memory latency and increases memory bandwidth. More importantly, these CPUs no longer require that system manufacturers and consumers match them to a chip set in the motherboard.
Think of it this way: Imagine how much faster and more powerful your own brain would be if you could quickly commit and recall huge chunks of memory, say an entire day at once, rather than a list of single incidents on that day. That's how the integrated memory controller works.
Another bonus: Lower prices. For example, the quad-core Core i5-570 is aimed at applications that call for high-end multimedia capabilities in a sub-$1200 PC.
New feature: Turbo boost
What’s that? Turbo boost dynamically scales the processor’s power depending on demand.
Why is that cool? It’s an automatic way of tweaking CPU performance by speeding up or slowing down individual cores based on the way you use your computer.
Think of it this way: Turbo boost offers decreased power consumption when working on a non-CPU intensive task (such as email) and increased performance when working on a CPU intensive task (such as video editing).
New feature: Integrated PCI-Express controller
What’s that? The integrated PCI-Express controller describes the CPU's ability to push and pull data directly to and from a PCI-E graphics card.
Why is that cool? In an office environment where multimedia applications dominate, graphics card performance is critical, and this processor feature helps provide a massive increase in video performance.
Think of it this way: You’ll no longer have to worry about your blood pressure rising when your PC renders images at an unbearably slow rate.
