Domain: creative.com
Stories and comments across the archive that link to creative.com.
Comments · 337
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Standard Procedure?
IANAL, but isn't this is a normal step for the ITC to take if you're in a big patent dispute? It seems to me Creative is trumpeting it as a minor victory press releases, while the ITC is just following their normal procedure in gathering facts for the judge. Am I wrong?
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Recently Upgraded...Ooo! Is this where we get to compare the sizes of our dic^H^H^Hgaming rigs?
I just bought myself a completely new gaming rig -- my first such rig in about seven years. Prior to that I'd been upgrading various components in my old box. But the newest games were starting to far outstrip my machine's ability to play them (Doom 3/Quake 4 were the earliest offenders). Thanks to a pleasant year-end bonus from my employer (and rather serious prodding from my partner), I got a completely new box:
- ABIT AN8-32X SLI (nForce 4) motherboard,
- AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ CPU,
- eVGA geForce 7900GT CO SC graphics card,
- Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic sound card,
- 2 Western Digital WD2500KS SATA drives, 7200RPM, 250G each,
- LiteOn SHM-165P6S DVD-RAM/DVD+-RW/DVD+-R/CD-R/CD-RW drive,
- 2G (1Gx2) Crucial CT2KIT12864Z40B PC3200 RAM,
- Enermax Liberty 500W power supply (12V @ 22A for the gfx card),
- ASYS CK-1022-5 "Eiffel Tower" case, complete with chasing blue-LED rice
Sadly, the graphics card has turned out to be the biggest problem in the new rig. It seems that everyone is having trouble with the new NVidia 7900-based boards. My first card would display "exploding" geometry once it warmed up a bit. Happily, eVGA have been very good to deal with, and performed a free cross-ship RMA. The new card still exhibits a few glitches, but only when I expressly go looking for them. When actually playing games, it's been very well behaved. It's only done the exploding geometry thing once since then, during a game of Oblivion. I'll keep leaning on eVGA to perfect this card.
I have very mixed feelings about the Creative sound card. Creative has a very spotty reputation for drivers, especially when multiple CPUs are involved. However, virtually all the competing sound card vendors have gone away, or have chosen instead to go for a race to the bottom in terms of price (and, sadly, quality). So I got the Creative X-Fi. It makes the games sound pretty good (it's breathed new life into QuakeWorld), but I would have much preferred something that works with Linux. I have my eye on the upcoming Razer Barracuda sound card, though...
I'd have to say that I'm probably happiest with the case. I was very paranoid that I wouldn't have enough space for all the cruft I planned on putting in it, or that it would be very difficult to work with, but it's turned out to be just lovely. It weighs a ton, but no more than the old Antec tower it's replacing. It's very accessible, has a large interior, very well ventilated, very sturdy, has a clean appearance, and the blue LEDs don't hurt, either.
As I said, this is the first new rig I've put together in seven years (the last machine I built was a dual-Pentium III on a PC-100 motherboard). I'd appreciate commentary from a more experienced eye. Could I have selected better RAM? Better drives?
Schwab
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How About Someone Actually BEAT the iPod?!!!
You know what would really kill the iPod? A better product! iPod has one heck of a marketing campaign, but let's face it that isn't the only reason for it's sucess. I'm a techie just like most of you, and I'm borderline anti-Apple. I been wanting an mp3 player for a while now. After about 18 months of researching it, I went with the iPod for numerous reasons.
1)It has by far the most accesories of any portable player.
2)It's by far the thinnest of any Mp3 player. The closest resemblace to the iPod is the Samsung Z5. The only problem is the 4Gb Z5 isn't much smaller than my 30Gb video iPod.
3)Quality. Before video was a factor, the only serious competitor to iPod was the Creative Zen Sleek. I'm glad I didn't get one. It started out nice, but let's just say it wasn't built for durability. Consumers were posting all over the net (it should still be on CNet and Amazon) about rattling noises. It seems that the earphones jack wasn't soildered properly, and thousands of people where having problems about it comming loose and falling inside the player. That's a great way to steer people away from Apple.
But it wasn't only hardware quality that was in question. The "Plays For Sure" nonsense was wreaking havok, and several people weren't able to install the software on Windows 2000. If that wasn't bad enough, the people that COULD install the player complained about being forced to keep the songs on their harddrive (no manual update like the one present in iTunes).
Now before I hear any of the usual iPod propaganda, let me dispell some of the most common rumors:
1)You do NOT have to purchase music from iTunes. It sounds obvious, but I actually heard a saleman in Radio Shack tell someone that the only way to get music in the iPod was to buy it. You would think he was just trying to sell more pre-paid cards for iTunes, but once I spoke with him, he actually didn't know. As a matter of fact, you don't even have to use iTunes at all.
(Disclaimer: I must warn you that I've heard stories of 3rd party software corrupting iTunes.db. It works fine with everything else, but once iTunes detects the .db file has been edited by a 3rd party, it might not recognize the file anymore.)
2) You do not have to buy QuickTime Pro to import movies. That was true once upon a time, that was changed in iTunes 6.02. However, iTunes is still slow, and neither iTunes or QuickTime can encode muxed videoes with audio, so you're better off using a free alternative.
3)There is an easy way to get your music back off of your iPod, but it isn't free.
Let's face it people : The iPod isn't perfect by anyone's standards, but it's the best player on the market by a landslide. If you want to bring Apple's domination of the mp3 market to a halt - give it some decent competition. Creative started now, so hopefully after a few years they'll have all the kinks ironed out. Until then, I can't recommend anything else. -
Re:Battery life...
It also would be much thinner and lighter, complete with perfect Optical Zoom.
And with the current advancements in the digital sensors technology, soon cameras like the Creative CardCam will be possible with greater quality than today's cameras!
I wouldn't mind carring one in my wallet. =) -
Paten granted last August
Does the fact that the patent was only granted to Creative last August have any bearing on this case, especially since the iPod and it's hierachal usage has been in the market for 5 years?
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Re:Advertising Thru the Courtwhile Creative sales slide and profits sink
Creative profits may have shrunk last year as a result of writeoffs due to acquisitions, sales are not shrinking at all.
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Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Re:Advertising Thru the Court
Went to the link and links to the ads were broken. Typical. So I de-munged them to view them - now I wish I hadn't! *You have been warned.*
Windows Media Player (WMV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_320. wmv
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.wm v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.wmv
Quicktime (MOV):
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Shaolin_Brain_6 40.mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/about_face_640. mov
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/Mega_Ear_640.mo v
http://www.creative.com/tvc/Videos/battery_640.mov
Ugh. Only the battery ad isn't cringeworthy, but it's still lame. For Creative's sake, hopefully their lawyers are better than their marketers. -
Advertising Thru the Court
I think it's telling the Creative Nomad navigation referred to has been renamed the 'Zen Patent' (their current line) by Creative. Along with going only after Apple at this point (other makers have similar navigation), it seems like sour grapes to me. Creative CEO Sim Wong has repeatedly shown he has no idea how to manage this space, publically bad mouthing Apple, while Creative sales slide and profits sink. Finally when Creative decides to do TV spots, this is what they come up with??? http://www.creative.com/tvc/
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BOYCOTT SONY / BMG
Actually, boycotting Sony and BMG is hard, very hard.
With Sony - there are DVDs, and Music CDs, complete works of one artist or band, that must be boycotted.
But now when renting DVDs or buying CDs, or even downloading iTunes, I have to take that second look to make sure it isn't Sony or BMG. And yes, even if I wanted it, I'll put it back on the shelf. There are other suppliers of media that don't root kit infect your computer just to play some songs.
Boycotting the Electronics is easy, because lets face it, Samsung and Panasonic have taken the lead with TVs, Canon and Nikon have the lead in cameras, and if you like squandering your life, XBOX 360 will turn hours of productive time in to soul emptying wastefulness (as well as take away your extra spending cash.)
Skipping buying any VAIO computers is easy - HP Media Center PCs and Apple Macs are just fine for most tasks. Laptops, well pick your flavor - what ever you like.
MP3 Players - for the cheap ones, Creative is good, for all the extras, the iPod does a great job. And for the portable CD players - you can get good no-name players for like, $9 bucks on sale. If you drop it and break it, you wont be crying over the lost $70 for overly fancy CD-players.
Checking your components, Sony CD players, DVD players, and Sony media - as long as you double check before you buy, you should be able to live quite well, if not better, in a Sony / BMG free world. In fact, you might just save some money, since you're not paying for the 'Sony' name... -
Multifaceted analysis
You have to attack the bottleneck problem from all angles. This means using many utilities, but also using your gut feeling. To do so, you need a lot of data.
Benchmarking programs are a great start. 3DMark and PCMark from Futuremark are great tools for this. 3DMark plays scripted animations that use the latest pixel shaders and other effects. Because it's scripted it mostly taxes the GPU. PCMark benchmarks many components in isolated tests. Both utilities let you compare results with other people's machines online. Also, Sisoft SANDRA not only gives great info and benchmarks, but also offers advice based on your configuration at the bottom of every analysis. All free and all worth a look.
Numbers are great but they're not enough. Once you've benchmarked your PC, test the whole shebang altogether. Play a variety of games that stress different components. Play Bejewelled 2 or Guild Wars to test video. Play Sims 2 to test your CPU. Play Call of Duty 2 or Civilization 4 to test everything all together.
P.s., if you're an audiophile and budget is of little matter you should consider Creative's X-fi sound cards. They have an onboard CPU that offloads digital signal processing from the CPU, freeing it for other tasks. You can expect maybe a 5% relief in CPU power even in applications that are not optimized for X-fi (even the Windows desktop!) -
Re:Important Clarification + Rant
Here are some of the references. And your are right, it doesn't make any of the
situations less rediculous.
http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/12/08/15 6250
http://www.creative.com/zenpatent/
http://www.macworld.com/news/2005/08/30/creativeca ll/index.php
http://us.gizmodo.com/gadgets/portable-media/creat ive-set-to-sue-apple-your-mom-142104.php -
Re:huh?Exactly... check out this quote from creative for their new X-Fi soundcards:
X-Fi 24-bit Crystalizer enhances MP3s & Movies to sound better than they do on their original CD or DVD.
Once the CD->MP3 conversion is made, information is lost that can not be recreated...I guess this claim of "sound better" not "is more accurate" can be made, all they have to do is get a bunch of people and ask which "sounds better". A very subjective test and it may not be what the recording was meant to sound like.
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"Lesser music players..." -- ???
Proving that iPod users are either scrupulously honest or more paranoid they'll get sued by RIAA than owners of lesser music players."
Sounds like flamebait to me. Calling every other music player "lesser." Yeah, no other music player holds up to an iPod.
In my opinion, I think there is some competition to consider before making that bold statement. -
Re:I saw it at CES 2006
A little off-topic, but the Creative X-Fi (http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?cat
e gory=1&subcategory=208&product=14000) sound system in the same booth was very powerful, and I could feel the chaingun rounds pummeling my chest!That's not really helping, a sound card isn't supposed to be powerful (and isn't, really), it's supposed to
- offer a perfect rendering of the data with as few distortion as possible
- Suck the lowest possible level of ressources from your main CPU
- Have additional features (high number of voice channels, effects,
...)
Now the X-Fi line is VERY good at that (slightly lower perfs than the older Audigy lines, but much better quality, and can ramp up to 127 voice channels instead of 63 for the Audigys), but the power itself comes more from the amp and speakers than from the soundcard.
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I saw it at CES 2006
*sarcasm* Wow... a fancy mouse! *sarcasm*
I saw and touched it at the Creative booth at CES 2006. IMHO, it's just another Fatal1ty gimmick, mostly useless bells and whistles. The one touch sensitivity feature was kind of interesting, but seeing as how I only ever adjust the sensitivity ONCE in most games and don't change it much, it is not that practical. The weights might be handy if multiple people game on the same PC, but when I played with it I didn't find a reason to change the weight in the middle of my Quake 4 gaming, for example. I didn't seem to notice the extra accuracy too much. I did feel that the mouse was a little bit small though, somehow didn't have a place to really rest the hand comfortably.
A little off-topic, but the Creative X-Fi (http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?cate gory=1&subcategory=208&product=14000) sound system in the same booth was very powerful, and I could feel the chaingun rounds pummeling my chest!
-6d -
Re:The ONLY way they can make money...
The real answer is purple. It worked for Prince. You need purple devices. That'll differentiate your product. Plus Purple has the most RAM.
Creative does sell purple MP3 players! (see "360 demo") -
"Creative" seems to be a misnomer...1. Blatantly rip off iPod.
2. ???
3. Profit!...where "???" in this context is apparently "file a patent on hierarchical menus (!!!), almost literally identical in every way to the menu system iPod has used for several years prior". (And, if Creative's patent covers iPod's interface elements, then why were they also not denied their patent because of a preexisting Microsoft patent, as Apple was?)
Seriously, look at this thing:
Zen Vision:M demo
Click "Be entertained". and mouse over some of the items in the room. EVERY feature, except the FM tuner, is ripped off directly from iPod, and even looks almost identical to iPod. Every bit of the interface has iPod written all over it. Menu names, screen layout, and so on.
Product page
Specifications
(Not to mention that the Zen weighs 20% more: 5.8 vs 4.8 oz)
But what's missing?
Elegant integration with software (mostly iTunes, but also things like iPhoto, iMovie, and so on).
That, and about 92% market share. -
"Creative" seems to be a misnomer...1. Blatantly rip off iPod.
2. ???
3. Profit!...where "???" in this context is apparently "file a patent on hierarchical menus (!!!), almost literally identical in every way to the menu system iPod has used for several years prior". (And, if Creative's patent covers iPod's interface elements, then why were they also not denied their patent because of a preexisting Microsoft patent, as Apple was?)
Seriously, look at this thing:
Zen Vision:M demo
Click "Be entertained". and mouse over some of the items in the room. EVERY feature, except the FM tuner, is ripped off directly from iPod, and even looks almost identical to iPod. Every bit of the interface has iPod written all over it. Menu names, screen layout, and so on.
Product page
Specifications
(Not to mention that the Zen weighs 20% more: 5.8 vs 4.8 oz)
But what's missing?
Elegant integration with software (mostly iTunes, but also things like iPhoto, iMovie, and so on).
That, and about 92% market share. -
"Creative" seems to be a misnomer...1. Blatantly rip off iPod.
2. ???
3. Profit!...where "???" in this context is apparently "file a patent on hierarchical menus (!!!), almost literally identical in every way to the menu system iPod has used for several years prior". (And, if Creative's patent covers iPod's interface elements, then why were they also not denied their patent because of a preexisting Microsoft patent, as Apple was?)
Seriously, look at this thing:
Zen Vision:M demo
Click "Be entertained". and mouse over some of the items in the room. EVERY feature, except the FM tuner, is ripped off directly from iPod, and even looks almost identical to iPod. Every bit of the interface has iPod written all over it. Menu names, screen layout, and so on.
Product page
Specifications
(Not to mention that the Zen weighs 20% more: 5.8 vs 4.8 oz)
But what's missing?
Elegant integration with software (mostly iTunes, but also things like iPhoto, iMovie, and so on).
That, and about 92% market share. -
Re:Name sounds familiar
They pretty much did it already with the iPod Nano. Creative has had the Zen Nano Plus MP3 player for awhile now.
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Umm...
Can Open Source Outdo the ipod?"
I sure hope so, 'cause its about time those arrogant Ipod users learn that the ipod is not the only high capacity mp3 player out there. Actually, just the other day i was talking to (yes, i do talk to them...)an ipod user, who had never heard of any of the following, which i consider to be the best choices in portable audio:
Creative
iRiver
Samsung -
Re:Right-handed bias
this mouse is pretty darned nice if u are ambidextrous
I would have bought the Logitech MX1000 if it weren't so badly indented on the left side, but the Creative serves well enough :) -
Creative Zen Vision
For $399 plays videos such as Xvid, Divx. Can do pictures as well.
Official Site
Digital Life TV Review
Might be a worthy rival to the iPod. -
Operator Overloading> no PowerBook G5). They also introduced a new professional photography application known as Aperture, rounding out their software lineup for creative professionals.
...but when they do, they'll guarantee that the living hell is confused out of of camera buffs, Macheads, Photoshop users, and, well, just about every search engine on the planet."Your problem is that you didn't correctly set the aperture on your G5, which accounts for the bad results in Aperture on your G5. That's because aperture data isn't recorded in the Aperture suite, so creative professionals should use Creative Suite, and don't even think of swapping your iPod Photo for a G5 and the Zen player made by these guys, and be thankful that Creative doesn't make a sound card for the G5 either.
Who the hell hired Bjarne Stroustroup as a product marketing specialist, and why, dear, God, why, did he accept?
:) -
Microsoft ....been there and done that years ago.
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BOSE
>>there is no way to make a recording that is compressed by a lossy algorithm such as MP3 sound as good as the original without creating information out of thin air.
>>
Right. I bet Creative's gone the way of BOSE (damn their eyes) and made the audio "sound better." To lay-people at least. BOSE accomplishes this 'amazing' feat by boosting the level of certain frequencies and/or increasing the volume. In blind tests, many people say that a louder soundbyte sounds better, and so forth.
I personally just want accurate reproduction. I have a very nice receiver/speaker combo that does that trick, and a (now fairly old) Turtle Beach Santa Cruz card that has pretty accurate analog output.
Amusingly, Creative even has an affordable line of semi-pro cards that do a excellent job in sound reproduction. The tradeoff, of course, is that they don't have all the snazzy 3d game effects and so forth. I personally don't care. For my needs, if I were going to shell out $150-200 for a Creative sound card, the E-MU 1212M would be the superior choice.
Who knows though; I could be completely off-base. I'll reserve judgement until I read some professional comparisons and hear the thing for myself. -
Creative BloatYou're right that Creative's Windows drivers are bloated, unstable and downright nasty. But the open-source emu10k1 drivers for Linux are actually quite good, and I've found that with a little tinkering, I can get my Audigy2 sounding better in Linux/ALSA than I can in Windows/DirectX. The best part? Zero bloat, and the drivers just work with no extra crazy software required. I just want to hear sound for goodness sake, not run friggin' Creative OS. I wonder if this new card will also have open-source drivers?
-AT
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Re:Latency?
You know what? Forget the speaker---sell compact, portable, one-speaker wireless-enabled amplifiers and let people convert their existing speakers into packet-switched audio devices.
Then rejoyce, for Creative has been making it for quite a while now.
http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?categ ory=243&subcategory=247&product=9192
They even make a compact Bluetooth type
http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?categ ory=243&subcategory=248&product=14188 -
Re:Latency?
You know what? Forget the speaker---sell compact, portable, one-speaker wireless-enabled amplifiers and let people convert their existing speakers into packet-switched audio devices.
Then rejoyce, for Creative has been making it for quite a while now.
http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?categ ory=243&subcategory=247&product=9192
They even make a compact Bluetooth type
http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?categ ory=243&subcategory=248&product=14188 -
Re:My favortie board
Well, actually the Audigy 2 ZS is THX certified. Check out the Audigy 2 ZS features page.
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Re:You underestimate the role or image and iTunes."You overestimate how much of the market is sandal-wearing, coffee-drinking left-wing trendies who thing the ipod makes them look 'cool'. Most people don't really give a shit, most people won't want to spend such huge amounts of money on an mp3 player, most people hate white headphones. Stop making marketing conclusions based on what you see on Slashdot or in Starbucks."
Call me crazy - but doesn't Apple dominate market share for BOTH hard drive AND flash based players? I think people DO like white headphones and cool looks. I bet a fairly high percentage of plasma owners bought equally for the "cool looks of a TV on a wall" as for any technical or size considerations.
Also, the dominance will continue as long as Apple's music store is easy to use, and installed everywhere. Same reason Windows isnt going anywhere anytime soon - it's EVERYWHERE!
"Hasn't the shuffle been obsoleted by the nano anyway? I can't keep track of all these non-descriptive ipod names.
Shuffle is still on the market. The Nano replaces the Mini. And the full size sticks around. And Apple's naming seems at least as descriptive as the "DJ Ditty". Creative has a few names too, which individually are descriptive, but collectively seem a little confusing:
Zen Micro Photo, Zen Vision, Zen Micro, Zen Neeon, Zen Sleek, Zen, Zen Touch, Zen Nano Plus, Zen Xtra. And no I didn't make any of those up http://www.creative.com/products/mp3/, and no, Neeon is not spelled wrong.
If I was Joe Consumer, and not self-described Joe IT Geek, and I had to choose between 3 ipods, or think about 9 Creative products, that surely weren't ALL available in the same store - I'd buy an ipod too! Now I'll admit, I buy a lot of things for the novelty, but my Walmart purchased cube MP3 player (forget the name already, but it was a story on Slashdot awhile back) has never been used, because it's a hassle to convert M4A to MP3, and I've been ripping to Apple's default settings for a long time now, even though I used to use command-line LAME for "optimal audio quality." Apple's stuff just plain works -- and works WELL!
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not comparable IMO
This device doesn't have the contacts/calendar/sync features that the nano has does it? I would like to have MP3, FM, and Calendar/Contacts and possibly email sync (with Outlook). But I was looking for an alternative to the ipod. The only decent one I came up with was the Creative Zen Micro 5GB. http://creative.com/products/mp3/zenmicro/ Comes in a range of colours and there seems to be a few accessories for it. It is usually around the same price or cheaper than the nano 2GB, and is roughly the same size. Anyone have any experiences with that one? Or other suggestions for comparable devices?
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Watch out for Puff Daddy
1. "DJ Ditty" is a stupid name, and likely to get them sued by P. Ditty. (This is the same guy who threatened legal action against "Puffy" forcing them to change their name to "Puffy Ami Yumi.")
2. 512MB, FM Radio, 1 inch LCD screen... That sounds awefully familiar... You don't think Dell would just be rebranding and pretending they did all this great and competitive R&D, do you?
Nah. That wouldn't sound like Dell. (Which is to say, that sounds EXACTLY like Dell.) :-P -
Re:Worse... or better?
This got modded up +5?
Evidently so. I don't think your comment is particularly informative, insightful, or interesting.
Spare, clean OSes that don't try to do everything and be mediocre (Compare to the MP3 players that have FM tuners, replaceable batteries, and voice recorders)
Unless you actually WANT those features, then you're shit out of luck.
No, I think the point was, as I said, "and be mediocre". The iPod actually has access to ALL of those features through add-ons without altering the basic iPod design. There aren't any real standout multifunction mp3 players YET. I'm sure they will be designed, but there isn't even another standout mp3 player yet that is as good as the iPod (some are close, but they need to nail down the physical design, UI, and software, and I think they at most nail 2 out of 3)
Good software on said OSes (Compare to iTunes to all the other jukeboxes)
Unless you want to buy music from somewhere else (Napster, Wal-Mart, etc.) then you're shit out of luck.
Why the heck did you bring in MUSIC STORES? I didn't say, "Because the iPod is compatible with the iTMS". I said iTunes was the best jukebox, better than Sony's, Creative's, or iRiver's. Part of it is because it's free. I can't download and use the Sony, Creative, or iRiver jukebox, so I can't decide before I buy whether the product is any good. With iTunes I can/did, and knew exactly what to expect from my iPod.
Price competition forcing the #2 manufacturer to actually LOSE money to compete (Compare the fact that because Apple is cutting prices to maintain dominance, Creative is losing money to 'keep up')
Except this isn't true.
You are out of the loop. Unless of course you don't think Creative is number 2?
I seriously doubt that you have access to either Creative or Apple's internal accounting. I wasn't able to find Q4 results on Apple's site, but according to Q3:
Apple posted a net quarterly profit of $320 million, or $.37 per diluted share, and revenue of $3.52 billion.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2005/jul/13results .html
Sales for the first nine months of fiscal year 2005 were up 50 percent over the same period last year, at $919.0 million ... For the third quarter, net income was $15.9 million
http://www.creative.com/corporate/investor/release s.asp?pid=12078Here you go. Right on Creative's website, "For the fourth quarter, net income was a loss of $31.9 million with EPS of a $0.38 loss per share"
Apple's pricing structure prevents Creative from charging enough to make a profit. Read the press release, and you'll see them say "We had set our targets higher for unit volume and average selling prices for our MP3 players than we achieved in the period."
They wanted to sell more and charge more. Apple stopped them.If you do some math you'll see that Apple's business is far more profitable. Why I as a consumer should consider this a good thing is beyond me.
When did I say that?
Fast adoption of new technology (The iPod was the first with the 1.8" hd when everyone else was using 3.5" and 2.5" drive, the first to use CF drives when everyone else was using flash, and now the first to use flash when everyone else has adopted CF. The iPod was also first to use a fast serial connection.)
First to use flash? Methinks you are a little confused.Look it up. They are the first to do 2gb and 4gb of flash. The biggest
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Re:Worse... or better?
This got modded up +5?
Evidently so. I don't think your comment is particularly informative, insightful, or interesting.
Spare, clean OSes that don't try to do everything and be mediocre (Compare to the MP3 players that have FM tuners, replaceable batteries, and voice recorders)
Unless you actually WANT those features, then you're shit out of luck.
No, I think the point was, as I said, "and be mediocre". The iPod actually has access to ALL of those features through add-ons without altering the basic iPod design. There aren't any real standout multifunction mp3 players YET. I'm sure they will be designed, but there isn't even another standout mp3 player yet that is as good as the iPod (some are close, but they need to nail down the physical design, UI, and software, and I think they at most nail 2 out of 3)
Good software on said OSes (Compare to iTunes to all the other jukeboxes)
Unless you want to buy music from somewhere else (Napster, Wal-Mart, etc.) then you're shit out of luck.
Why the heck did you bring in MUSIC STORES? I didn't say, "Because the iPod is compatible with the iTMS". I said iTunes was the best jukebox, better than Sony's, Creative's, or iRiver's. Part of it is because it's free. I can't download and use the Sony, Creative, or iRiver jukebox, so I can't decide before I buy whether the product is any good. With iTunes I can/did, and knew exactly what to expect from my iPod.
Price competition forcing the #2 manufacturer to actually LOSE money to compete (Compare the fact that because Apple is cutting prices to maintain dominance, Creative is losing money to 'keep up')
Except this isn't true.
You are out of the loop. Unless of course you don't think Creative is number 2?
I seriously doubt that you have access to either Creative or Apple's internal accounting. I wasn't able to find Q4 results on Apple's site, but according to Q3:
Apple posted a net quarterly profit of $320 million, or $.37 per diluted share, and revenue of $3.52 billion.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2005/jul/13results .html
Sales for the first nine months of fiscal year 2005 were up 50 percent over the same period last year, at $919.0 million ... For the third quarter, net income was $15.9 million
http://www.creative.com/corporate/investor/release s.asp?pid=12078Here you go. Right on Creative's website, "For the fourth quarter, net income was a loss of $31.9 million with EPS of a $0.38 loss per share"
Apple's pricing structure prevents Creative from charging enough to make a profit. Read the press release, and you'll see them say "We had set our targets higher for unit volume and average selling prices for our MP3 players than we achieved in the period."
They wanted to sell more and charge more. Apple stopped them.If you do some math you'll see that Apple's business is far more profitable. Why I as a consumer should consider this a good thing is beyond me.
When did I say that?
Fast adoption of new technology (The iPod was the first with the 1.8" hd when everyone else was using 3.5" and 2.5" drive, the first to use CF drives when everyone else was using flash, and now the first to use flash when everyone else has adopted CF. The iPod was also first to use a fast serial connection.)
First to use flash? Methinks you are a little confused.Look it up. They are the first to do 2gb and 4gb of flash. The biggest
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Re:nothing new here
Creative has two video-capable portable players already. This one:
http://us.creative.com/products/product.asp?catego ry=210&subcategory=&product=12985&nav=technicalSpe cifications
has a nice set of supporting video file types and is similar in size and price to the bigger ipods that are already out. Then there's this one:
http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?categ ory=213&subcategory=215&product=14067
that is a smaller, flash-based player. -
Re:nothing new here
Creative has two video-capable portable players already. This one:
http://us.creative.com/products/product.asp?catego ry=210&subcategory=&product=12985&nav=technicalSpe cifications
has a nice set of supporting video file types and is similar in size and price to the bigger ipods that are already out. Then there's this one:
http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?categ ory=213&subcategory=215&product=14067
that is a smaller, flash-based player. -
Re:Worse... or better?
This got modded up +5?
Spare, clean OSes that don't try to do everything and be mediocre
(Compare to the MP3 players that have FM tuners, replaceable batteries, and voice recorders)
Unless you actually WANT those features, then you're shit out of luck.
Good software on said OSes
(Compare to iTunes to all the other jukeboxes)
Unless you want to buy music from somewhere else (Napster, Wal-Mart, etc.) then you're shit out of luck.
Price competition forcing the #2 manufacturer to actually LOSE money to compete
(Compare the fact that because Apple is cutting prices to maintain dominance, Creative is losing money to 'keep up')
Except this isn't true. I seriously doubt that you have access to either Creative or Apple's internal accounting. I wasn't able to find Q4 results on Apple's site, but according to Q3:
Apple posted a net quarterly profit of $320 million, or $.37 per diluted share, and revenue of $3.52 billion.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2005/jul/13results .html
Sales for the first nine months of fiscal year 2005 were up 50 percent over the same period last year, at $919.0 million ... For the third quarter, net income was $15.9 million
http://www.creative.com/corporate/investor/release s.asp?pid=12078
If you do some math you'll see that Apple's business is far more profitable. Why I as a consumer should consider this a good thing is beyond me.
Fast adoption of new technology (The iPod was the first with the 1.8" hd when everyone else was using 3.5" and 2.5" drive, the first to use CF drives when everyone else was using flash, and now the first to use flash when everyone else has adopted CF. The iPod was also first to use a fast serial connection.)
First to use flash? Methinks you are a little confused. Nor was it the first to use microdrives. It also wasn't the first to use USB 2.0, which was invented by Intel (First to use firewire, a dying interface, though). The iPods really have no "new" technologies, they simply have a good interface and design.
Computers people LOVE to use
MAC USERS love to use Macs, not people in general. Were this true, MacOS X' supposed superior interface would have dominated the computer industry. It hasn't. Real people also care about cost. Apple was charging $3500 for desktops when IBM, Compaq, etc were charging $1500. That's why Windows dominates the desktop world. -
Re:Non replacable battery???It's $59+$7 s/h to have Apple replace the battery. At that price, you may as well buy the Applecare contract at $59 and just figure the battery will need replacing within 2 years.
It's about $4 (for a two pack) to replace the rechargeable AAA battery yourself in a Creative Zen Nano.
Of course, a AAA battery makes the Creative Nano a whole
.51 inches thick (iPod nano is .27), but I think the GP's point is that an easily self-replaceable battery is a very nice feature. Maybe Apple cannot implement a replaceable battery without compromising the nano's fit and finish (even with a "watch type" battery). However, some people will accept these compromises and buy a competing flash-based player with this feature.Gotta love the battery life of flash, though.
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Sound Blaster Platinum
How about one of these?
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Re:upside of phone, downside of the wheel
i have limited rotational mobility [..] i wish they had a version with two arrow keys
Do you realise there are MP3 player products on the market that do not come from Apple? If you have problems with the controls, then you, sir, should not be using an iPod.
There are plenty of other MP3 players on the market besides the iPod. Like Creative's range, for example. They won't work with iTunes store-bought music, but that's your fault for purchasing locked-in DRM content. I use an old Diamond Rio MP3 player - I buy the CD, rip it and catalog the MP3 files in iTunes, then drag & drop copy directly from iTunes over onto the Rio. It works great for me. -
Re:Didn't Creative already do a 'Nano' mp3 player?
Is the Creative "Zen Nano" just a rebadged Creative Muvo Micro?
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Re:Didn't Creative already do a 'Nano' mp3 player?Didn't Creative already do a 'Nano' mp3 player?
Apple user: "Yeah, well, they probably just copied Apple."