[H] Consumer - MXM Failure

[Jawed]

http://consumer.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTI2NiwxLCxoY29uc3VtZXI=

As far as we know, this is the first type of article that has been done like this, and there is about two years of dirty laundry being aired out. We think you’ll be amazed at what they have to say.

Jawed

 

[digitalwanderer]

[H] Consumer? Is that some new site for REAL WORLDâ„¢ consuming info?

 

[Geo]

I rather liked that interview piece, and found it useful. Good job, [H].

Not noticed the 4 tabs at the top of [H] front page, Digi? Or they IP banned the state of Indiana for you?

 

[Geo]

For comparison, here's the original Nvidia MXM press release from May 2004:

http://www.nvidia.com/object/IO_13288.html

If we were to engage in some cherry picking of quotes as to how this misunderstanding on the part of the public about the goals of MXM happened, let's see what we can find.

MXM can also be used to upgrade notebook PC graphics.

The MXM specification is designed with several key objectives:

-Fast time to market for PCI-Express-based notebooks
-Multiple notebook configurations based on a single motherboard design
-Flexibility and choice between multiple graphics vendors or solutions
-Optional capability for enduser upgradeability [my bold]

And yet [H] reports:

What surprised us most about this investigation is that NVIDIA told us that they did not have the end-user in mind while they were developing this technology. They said that it was never a goal and the entire notion developed as a side effect of the opportunity they were presenting to OEMs.

Which is direct contradiction of the original press release, it seems to me. The press release would suggest it was on the table at least, if not at the top of the priority list. So I'm torn a bit between did [H] over read what they were told, or did their NV correspondent smudge the lines of history there a bit?

 

[Skrying]

Can you really trust into a press release? Its just marketing. I would never trust a press release for a true design goal.

 

[Geo]

Can you really trust into a press release? Its just marketing. I would never trust a press release for a true design goal.

Oooh. "Option 3" rears its head. :smile: Could be, I suppose. Tho I hate to let companies off the hook for their public pronouncements, of whatever fashion.

 

[Jawed]

ATI's AXIOM promised much the same, so I think we can point to both and say that the enthusiast community was led-on.

http://ati.amd.com/uk/companyinfo/press/2004/4755.html

"By adopting ATI's AXIOM module for PCI Express now, OEMs, ODMs and end users can easily upgrade to ATI's future family of exciting PCI Express products for the best in graphics and video."

OK, so you can have a bit of an argument about strict interpretation - but back when MXM and AXIOM had their tussle, no-one was saying "oh, we don't intend end-users to upgrade their laptop graphics".

It's a shame that not even desktop replacement laptops seem to have benefitted from MXM or AXIOM - the one class that stood a chance, perhaps?

Jawed

 

[Zaphod]

Which is direct contradiction of the original press release, it seems to me.

Well, it could mean that they presented the option of end user upgradability to the manufacturers, but that they (understandably?) haven't been all that interrested in it.

I never really expected MXM and AXIOM to be about end user upgradeability, so I'm not at all surprised that some of the enthusiasts’ hopes have not panned out. There are just too many variables to the stable operation of a notebook that any real upgrade path is viable.

However, I wouldn't say the tech has been a complete bust for the consumer either, as modular GFX has led to an increased model turnaround in the mobile space (newer GFX available faster), and in some cases more options at purchase time (where parallel product lines, with entirely different motherboards, would not have been viable for the manufacturer).

 

[Tim Murray]

Really, did anyone expect to be able to upgrade their laptops' video cards with this? Really?

 

[Hanners]

Really, did anyone expect to be able to upgrade their laptops' video cards with this? Really?

Yes.

Seriously though, with notebooks fast catching up to desktops in the popularity stakes across the gamut of users, I can see there being a time when certain factors of end-users will be demanding more upgradable laptops, in the graphics department particularly.

 

[Acert93]

Really, did anyone expect to be able to upgrade their laptops' video cards with this? Really?

Yes and No. Yes, in that I hold out hope someday there will be a universal format for such upgrades. No, because the writing was on the wall for proprietary market grabbing and price controlling (closed platform).

 

[Tim Murray]

Yes.

Seriously though, with notebooks fast catching up to desktops in the popularity stakes across the gamut of users, I can see there being a time when certain factors of end-users will be demanding more upgradable laptops, in the graphics department particularly.

MXM was originally a proprietary NV bit. ATi had their own thing in AXIOM. You *really* thought that they would be able to kiss and make up and have good card support without the weight of groups like Intel, PCI-SIG, or Dell behind it?

Maybe I'm just cynical, but until there is a serious push by several of the OEM manufacturers for this (and I don't really know why there would be at this point), we're not going to see upgradeable cards. And even then, it'll probably be locked down via the BIOS exactly the same way a lot of mini-PCI cards are.

I am completely resigned to having a laptop where I can upgrade nothing except the RAM and the hard drive. It's not fun, but if that's what it takes for me to be able to pay $1000 for a C2D laptop with two gigs of RAM and a decent screen, eh, I can deal with it.