Windows 10: VR will ignite a slow-burning desktop hardware refresh

Brink · Jun 19, 2016

After years of stagnation, there is finally a reason to upgrade your desktop, if VR and AR are your thing.

I have in my possession a symbol of why computing hardware manufacturers have had such a hard time in recent years. It's a desktop computer made up of a circa 2009 i7-920 processor, and over the years has been updated to possess a 2012 GPU, and a new dose of memory and SSD storage from 2014.

And frankly, the only times I am reminded of its age are when it comes to recent gaming and doing large amounts of compilation.

Despite the wishing of Microsoft, OEM vendors, and other associated hardware suppliers, recent versions of Windows have not pushed consumers to new purchases of PC hardware like they used to.

This isn't surprising when one of hyped features of Windows 10 is the ability to log in without a password, hardly something that drives hardware upgrades.

In the time since my 2009 desktop first turned on, chips have got faster and better with power usage, memory bandwidth has improved, and storage has come along in leaps and bounds. But for everyday usage, the sort that happens in the lower end of the market, there's been no application that has pushed that seven-year-old hardware.

At the recent Computex event earlier this month, there was a nice surprise. After years of trying virtual reality headsets and walking away disappointed by tearing, a frame rate that wasn't quite there, or simply watching a pre-rendered scene because the hardware couldn't keep up with real-time interaction, in 2016 it looked as though VR was finally ready for prime time.

Powered by the latest GPUs, and coupled with a number of handset options incorporating handheld controllers, from this point on the hardware is in place to make VR an option for the masses. To which there is no lack of interest, over the past 18 months at computing conferences across the globe, there have been few things that punters will line up for to give it a try. One is electric cars, and the other is to experience virtual reality.

While VR usage is currently residing with the enthusiast and gamer crowd, as other applications of the technology slowly appear, mainstream users will need updated hardware to get on board...
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Source: VR will ignite a slow-burning desktop hardware refresh | ZDNet

Trust_No1 · Jun 19, 2016

VR will have the same impact as BluRay. It is fine for a little bit, but no one wants to sit around all day wearing a piece of head gear just to interact with a PC. I think gamer enthusiasts will be the ultimate buyer here.

:)

Erdeslawe · Jun 19, 2016

desktop icon takes almost 2 secs to reappear after refresh

when i right click on desktop i immediately get the context menu but when i click refresh the refresh is slow and icons take almost 2 secs to reappear back on the screen
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Too many desktop icons always slows down any Windows screen refresh. That's always been a fact of life in any operating system, but 2 secs is hardly a long time unless your real name is Usain Bolt!

MohitSaxena · Jun 19, 2016

desktop icon takes almost 2 secs to reappear after refresh

when i right click on desktop i immediately get the context menu but when i click refresh the refresh is slow and icons take almost 2 secs to reappear back on the screen

alphanumeric · Apr 4, 2018

Ditto to gamers wanting to try it out. Might be useful for CAD design and 3D printing too. Once the price comes down.

Windows 10: VR will ignite a slow-burning desktop hardware refresh

VR will ignite a slow-burning desktop hardware refresh

VR will ignite a slow-burning desktop hardware refresh

VR will ignite a slow-burning desktop hardware refresh

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