NVIDIA shows off Ion Windows 7 multitasking, confirms launch details
By Donald Melanson 
posted Feb 11th 2009 12:29PM
posted Feb 11th 2009 12:29PM
We've already gotten a pretty good idea of Ion's capabilities, but NVIDIA doesn't seem to be one to turn down an opportunity to show it off, and it did just that recently at a joint press conference with Microsoft. As you might have guessed, the pair was especially keen to show off Windows 7 multitasking on the platform and, judging from the video available at the read link below, it seems to be more than up to the task, with it able to convert a 1080p video file to a more portable size while the video was playing, and play Left 4 Dead at 720p resolution without any noticeable hiccups. In other news, NVIDIA also confirmed that the first Ion-based system would, in fact, be a desktop, and that it'll begin shipping sometime this spring. Unfortunately, there's no word as to who may be manufacturing said desktop, with NVIDIA's Drew Henry only going so far as to say that it'll be "very small" and "affordable."
Read - TweakTown, "NVIDIA demo Windows 7 multi-tasking on ION "
Read - Electronista, "First NVIDIA Ion system a desktop, due in spring"
Read - TweakTown, "NVIDIA demo Windows 7 multi-tasking on ION "
Read - Electronista, "First NVIDIA Ion system a desktop, due in spring"
I hope this desktop does not end up being a slower rumored Mac mini.
is that kevin spacey?
I hope it is better than the state of the grammar which mars this article. Christ on a bike.
Won't be an Apple, you must have missed the part where they said "affordable".
OH... MY.. GOD!!!
It's Lex Luthor! Played by Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey.
So, Ion is going to make portable gaming viable?
Well, 720p L4D is a pretty low standard to set.
"Affordable" is a relative term, so who knows how expensive it'll actually be. New processor + new OS... doesn't sound cheap.
L4D is a more system intense game than Bioshock. It's no Crysis, but it is pretty heavy on system resources. My P4 system could handle BioShock, but it couldn't handle L4D. A big mistake people make is thinking L4D's system requirements are the same as HL2, since it was made in the Source engine. Not true - they altered the engine and squeezed many more polys into the game. I can play HL2:Ep1 on my gf's single core Celeron laptop with integrated Intel graphics, but my 2.8ghz P4 with a dedicated (albeit not very new) graphics card can't handle L4D.
If it can run L4D, I bet it can run CoD4, maybe even some Fallout 3. Considering these systems are going in nettops and netbooks, that's pretty good.
1280X720 with no slowdown? damn, my X300 mobility is getting old, it runs L4D at 800X600 on medium but slows to 10FPS at times.
I thoroughly interested in this platform and cant wait to see it perform live.......
tsk tsk...
hmm... first he says it's a 1080p movie, then later he refers to it as 720p... tsk tsk
still, it's pretty impressive.
The reference to the 720 p content was towards a game called Left 4 Dead. The 1080p video was entirely separate. This is very reasonable. :-)
Read the article again (or read it at all rather), and you'll get it.
Reading fail....
Movie was 1080p, game was 720p
tsk tsk
I FAIL
you mean iFail
no... wait X.x
Like you really have to guess who the first manufacturer will be? I think we're ready for Yet Another Eee-branded PC from Asus!
If it's going to be in their Eee Tablet then good.
Hell yes! I so want an eee tablet with that inside!
@aznofazns: I believe the demo was referring to encoding/playing a 1080p *movie*, whereas Left 4 Dead is a 3D game that played at 1280x720 (i.e. they were demoing the video capabilities and gaming capabilities separately).
I think the Ion platform would be perfect for a small HTPC. I'm hoping Dell adopts this for their Studio Hybrid line, and it'd be cool to build a DIY set-top box for streaming media (where's OCUR when you need it??!)
Looks like NVIDIA has some kryptonite for Intel.
What's with the two superman references? Was there a superman commercial at 12:44?
not really... the chipset uses ATOM processors... Intel still gets to sell them, I don't see them crying about that. I see this as short lived for Nvidia because Intel's map for 2010 shows Atom moving to include CPU and GPU on the same chip... how would you connect that to ION?
why is lex luthor showing off windows 7?
1,000 internets to Deeznuts420 for an awesomely creepy avatar.
+1
He's not.
It's John Locke presenting ION as a platform to replacing the old island computer. With 10x the graphic power, they'll only need to press the button every 1,080 minutes.
Obscure "Lost" reference FTW!
slower mac mini? wtf
this is frigging wicked converting + playing + playing left for dead all at highdef resolutions on a ~299 pc... this things gonna be friggin wicked!
SIGN ME UP FOR ATLEAST 1 or 2
i hope thsy start shipping oem (to new egg that is hehe )
I wanna strap one of these with hackint0sh and install plex/aeon on it and strap it with 5 terra of space :) MUHHAHAHA
$299 for this? no thanks. I got my Dell vostro 200 (E4500 OC 2.93GHZ 2GB 250GB DVDRW) + NV 8400GS for $200 after I sold the monitor. It is a full-fledged computer!
Well it sure is noisier than this little Ion thing.
Not only noisier and larger, but you'll be paying a LOT more in electricity costs.
And this has better graphics too... You got robbed
I dont think he got robbed. At least he can work on it. You can't do serious work except writing on an Atom cpu.
It's amazing how far we've come in technology. I'm looking at my computer rig right now and my CPU & GPU alone cost more than what the Ion platform is looking at.
Sign me up for one. It'll be a media pc for my TV. :D
Will there be space to add a 3,5 HDDs? And Tv cards? I am asking this becouse this will be nice with Windows 7 Media Center!
I'd be more impressed if there was some dual monitor rig with 1080p playback on one screen and 720p gaming on the other. My core 2 duo chokes a bit on playing back 1080p 300 in MKV and playing WC3 at 1280x1024
Definitely sounds like the next Mac Mini.
My amex is waiting .... release the damn thing already.
But this Ion-based Mac mini would be less powerful than the current Core 2 Duo Mac mini... why is your credit card so ready for what is essentially (except for the video card) a downgrade?
but it's not because ION has a graphics processor. For server use the mini is nice. For home use, it's painful... stuck at GMA950 graphics! And update would be really cheap, play a few games, and neatly differentiate the price so it won't conflict with Apple's "real" machines. It would also make a good replacement for the Apple TV as it matches what's in there now. If we were really lucky, Apple would make a box that could do BOTH depending on the install DVD. The current Apple TV runs Tiger just without a "mac" GUI. A box that could be either (completely headless and no optical drive maybe add some USB) Sell it as an Apple TV but allow "hackers" to buy Leopard/Snow Leopard if they want to. I'd sell like hotcakes.
Good news with the release confirmation of Spring 09 which gives us only a month or two before we see the Ion on the market. The part that bothers me, however, is that they talk of it being put into a desktop. We don't want this in a desktop, make it into a netbook so I can game on a tiny laptop!
N, if your listening... I want this in a very small, quite, diskless and driveless chassis so that i can turn it into a front end for my TV's!!
...Ok maybe room for one small 2.5" SSD. :)
My thoughts exactly, however I'm leaning towards mini PCIe ssd's. They're almost fast and cheap enough to be useful.
On a kinda related note, does anybody have experience using purevideo to upscale dvd's to 1080p, how does it compare to ffdshow or a ps3?
PS3's DVD upscaling is incredible. If that's what they used for those interviews that showed many consumers can't tell the difference between SD and HD, I don't blame them. I walked in while my GF was watching a DVD, and my words were literally "This is a DVD?" Not that I can't tell the difference of course, but it's that good.
Then again, the only thing I have to compare it to is the standalone upscaling DVD player my friend's GF has, and the DVD we watched (300) had some serious compression.
Love the fact that they are still using the Sony XBR2 as a display for their technology!
Is that Kevin Spacey from the newer Superman movie?
is that a re-joke?
I just bought http://nvidiaion.com. Its for sale if you're interested. Just reply here.
- Tyler
loz, anything for a buck huh. If they wanted nvidiaion, theyd have got it before you even thought about it. ;) Still, you might score a redirect off them