Maximum PC (May 2006)

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(Edited)


Cover of the May 2006 issue of Maximum PC


Here's another issue of what was my favorite PC magazine. It hung on longer than most PC print magazines but sadly it too died off a few years back. The May 2006 issue includes:

Features

  • Hardcore Hardware - What to know about transitioning to your next motherboard/CPU/memory upgrade which at the time would likely include transitioning from an AGP to a PCI Express based system. Includes advice for choosing the right number of corse, choosing Intel or AMD, which AMD or Intel processor to get, RAM choices, and more.

  • Geek Quiz - Maximum PC's annual computer quiz.


Table of Contents from the May 2006 issue of Maximum PC


Dapartments

  • Quick Start - Intel introduces the Conroe which was the first iteration of the Core architecture as a replacement for the Netburst architecture of the Pentium 4; a look at Vista's release plans; Intel plans removal of PATA interface; AMD introduces AM2 socket; and more.

  • Head2Head - A comparision of VOIP and regular analog phone service.

  • WatchDog - HP settles lawsuit over defective Pavilion motherboards; problems with the Minolta Dimage X1 digital camera; and more.

  • How To - Solving playback errors, missing sound, player crashes and more when attempting to play back video.


Table of Contents from the May 2006 issue of Maximum PC (continued)


Reviews

  • Videocard - A look at nVidia's new flagship GeForce 7900 GTX featuring 512MB GDDR3, a 650MHz clock speed, and SLI technology for only $500.

  • Desktop PC - A review of the Omen A:121 Crossfire featuring an Athlon 64 FX-60 CPU, two ATI X1900 XT videocards, 2 GB RAM, four 150GB Raptor 10,000 RPM hard drives in RAID 0, and more for $7500.

  • Notebook PC - A review of the Alienware Aurora M7700 featuring an AMD FX-60 CPU, 2GB DDR400, two 80GB hard drives in RAID 0, an nVidia GeForce Go 7800 with 256MB, a 17-inch screen and more for just over $5000.

  • Backup drive - A review of the Maxtor One Touch III Turbo external drive which features two Maxtor 500 GB drives in a RAID 0 or RAID 1 config in an external enclosure ($900).

  • Compact digicam - A review of the Kodak EasyShare One digital camera ($500).

  • A/V streaming box - The Sony LocationFree TV LF-X11, meant to compete with devices like the Slingbox.

  • VGA coolers - Arctic Cooling Accelero VGA Coolers. These were aftermarket heatsink/fan combos designed for better cooling than what came stock on most cards at the time.

  • Powerline Wi-Fi adapter - The Netgear XE104. At 85b/s it was quite a bit faster than most wi-fi at the time.


Back Cover of the May 2006 issue of Maximum PC


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(Edited)

A review of the Alienware Aurora M7700 featuring an AMD FX-60 CPU, 2GB DDR400, two 80GB hard drives in RAID 0, an nVidia GeForce Go 7800 with 256MB, a 17-inch screen and more for just over $5000.

$5000 USD?

My first laptop, a Toshiba Satellite A110-110, which we bought also in 2006 was around $1000 USD.

And I saw/see even this laptop overpriced at that time.

It had an Intel Celeron M410, 1.46 GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM (later extended to 2 GB, which was its maximum), 60 GB HDD, Ati Radeon Xpress 200M, and Windows XP Home Edition SP2.

Of course the mentioned Alienware laptop was more powerful, but seeing the $5000 USD price tag on it, it was still very much overpriced at that time, like most laptops at that time.

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The bit about the Gigabyte i-RAM took me right back. Even at just 1 GB, a battery‑backed RAM disk on a PCI card that appeared over SATA felt like a budget time machine to the SSD future. XP booted like a rocket, then you ran out of space the second you installed, well, anything. Did you ever benchmark it against a Raptor back then?

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