With State-of-the-Art Compaq 5600, the Future Is Now
I don’t often write about specific Windows desktop PCs because, frankly, most of them look pretty much alike to me. They all run the same software and most offer the same features. They vary in speed, memory and hard-disk storage but in most cases, not much else.
Once in a while a company comes out with a new system that stands out from the crowd. Compaq’s new Presario 5600 line of home PCs is noteworthy because the machines come standard with state-of-the-art features that you won’t find in most home or office systems.
Whether you actually need or can take advantage of some of these features is another matter.
While there is nothing revolutionary about this, or any other “Wintel” PC, the machine is made of mostly state-of-the-art components that exceed the specifications of most other systems and offer features not generally found.
Every system in the line comes with a DVD drive, a 56K internal modem, a 10-megabit ethernet card and a motherboard with a 100-MHz system bus and USB ports and a FireWire connector.
DVD, which stands for “digital versatile disc,” stores between 4.7 and 17 gigabytes of data, depending on how the disc is formatted. Either way, it’s enough to store a full-length movie. Eventually, DVDs will replace CD-ROMs for software distribution, games and data, but don’t hold your breath. Although you can now find movies on DVD (which you can play on a PC DVD player if you really want to watch a movie on a PC screen), DVD software is extremely hard to find. That’s partly because there aren’t yet that many PCs with DVD drives.
By equipping its PCs with DVD, Compaq could change that equation by providing software vendors with a larger market for DVD products.
The 5600’s two USB ports aren’t unusual (most new PCs have them), and USB is now supported in Windows 98. USB, which stands for “universal serial bus,” is a faster way to connect peripherals such as scanners, printers, mouses, keyboards and digital cameras. But USB peripherals are only now starting to hit the market.
The FireWire port, also known as a 1394 port, is still pretty rare. FireWire is an even faster way to connect peripherals and, not surprisingly, there are even fewer devices that support it. Developed by Apple (and available as an option on some Macs), it is capable of transferring data at up to 400 megabits per second. Up to 63 devices can be connected to a single FireWire plug. Having this on a home PC positions you to be among the first to be able to quickly move video in and out of the PC, presuming you’re also one of the first to get your hands on compatible equipment.
Apple has been putting ethernet ports in most of its PCs for years (there’s even one in the low-cost iMac that comes out this summer). But, as far as I know, Compaq is the first major Windows PC vendor to make one standard equipment in a home PC.
An ethernet card lets you connect your PC to a local area network (LAN) and serves as the interface between the PC and the two most promising means of high-speed Internet connection--cable modems and digital subscriber line (DSL) connections. Most cable modems and DSL systems require each connected PC to have an ethernet card. Most people won’t find this useful today, but, eventually, many of us will be connected to the Internet via one of these systems.
Personally, I was thrilled that Compaq came with an ethernet card because it let me quickly connect the machine to my cable modem and the LAN that connects my PC with the ones that my wife and kids use.
Another feature that’s standard across the product line is an AGP graphics adapter. AGP (accelerated graphics port) is faster and smoother than standard video adapters. Among other things, it allows for the use of the computer’s main memory to help render 3-D graphics. The AGP adapters used in the 5600 line come with either 4 or 8 megabytes of graphics memory; 4mb is plenty for standard applications while 8mb is enough for 3-D graphics.
Most PC vendors offer AGP adapters, but Compaq’s has an option that you don’t find in many machines. The 5600 machines are equipped with a PanelLink digital flat panel (DFP) interface that lets you connect specially equipped digital flat panel LDC screens such as the 14.1-inch FP500 flat panel monitor that Compaq offers for an extra $999.
*
Until now, LCD displays on desktop machines plugged into the same analog interface as standard cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors. CRT devices are analog, so PC display adapters have to convert the PCs digital signal to analog. All LCD monitors are digital, so when you plug an LCD monitor into an analog display adapter, the LCD monitor has to convert that image back to digital. That adds to the cost of the LCD monitor and adds a level of “noise” or distortion that you don’t get when you have a direct digital to digital connect.
I have the Compaq system sitting next to another PC with an LCD monitor plugged into a standard analog video card, and the Compaq monitor is noticeably clearer with less flicker. PanelLink technology is a new standard for digital LCDs and is now available in video cards from ATI, STB and Matrox as well as LCD panels from Princeton Graphics.
Starting at under $1,800 (for a 350-MHz system without a monitor), the new Compaqs aren’t cheap, but considering their features, they are very competitive. Even the top-of-the-line 400-MHz Pentium II system, at $2,395, is within reach of many of today’s home PC buyers. You can use them, like most PCs, with any brand monitor, but Compaq monitors include a 15-inch model for $299, a 17-inch one for $449 and the $999 14.1-inch flat panel digital display.
*
Lawrence J. Magid can be reached at magid@latimes.com. His Web page is at https://www.larrysworld.com or keyword LarryMagid on AOL.
