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| Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium Card Review |
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| Written by Christopher Greer -joker63- | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Saturday, 17 January 2009 00:00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Introduction
There is nothing worse than wanting to sit down and enjoy a television show only to find out that your significant other has locked in the television. Which also shuts down any opportunity to view any shows that you have recorded because most DVRs are coupled with cable boxes. So you go to sit down at the computer to keep yourself entertained until your significant other decides to resign the throne and then it occurs to you - “what if I could watch television on my computer?”. And then reality sinks in and you realize that you are out of peripheral slots thanks to that ancient graphics card you need to play your original copy of Counterstrike. The Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium Card is here to answer your call. The Diamond All In Wonder HD has a TV tuner and a HD 3650 graphics card in one streamlined card. Also, the All In Wonder HD has HD and DVI outputs on the card so you can get a crystal clear picture on your monitor or your HD TV. The Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium also comes with an I/O board that can slide an extra peripheral opening so you can connect more devices to the Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium Card.
Product View
The Diamond AIWHD Premium Card comes packaged in a simple box but with enough flare to convey the media extravaganza inside.
Product View (Cont.)
As you can see, the accessories come neatly wrapped and displayed on the sturdy plastic packaging of the All In Wonder HD card.
The instructions, CD, and promotions come packaged in a nice little sleeve. The I/O board, RCA to 3.5mm jack, two RCA to S-video adapters, DVI to VGA adapter, and remote control and receiver come packaged very well.
The I/O board does not go into a peripheral slot but just the opening and it has S-video in and out, the 3.5mm jack in, and component out connections.
Product View (Cont.)
The Diamond All In Wonder HD has a nice flare to it and supports HDCP, which allows it to play blu-ray movies.
The Diamond AIWHD card is a little over 8” long and a little under an inch high. Which makes it a nice low profile card for those cramped systems. It also has a coax in, and DVI and HDMI outs.
Software Installation and Configuration
As you can see, you have a standard ATI interface with software installation, documentation, maintenance, and registration.
Software Installation and Configuration (Cont.)Here's a closer look at the documentation and installation screens. You can see on the installation screen you get both the display drivers and the Catalyst Media Center.
The language selection screen is first and then you have the options to install and uninstall the drivers and on the next screen you can chose from custom or express installations.
Now the installer analyzes your computer to see what components you already have installed. If you choose the custom installation you get to look at what it is installing.
Software Installation and Configuration (Cont.)Next you get to look at, and agree to, the EULA and, if you accept, then it finally installs the drivers.
Then after it finishes installation, it has to reboot. After the reboot, you have the opportunity to register your product.
Catalyst Media Center Installation and Configuration
Now, on to the Catalyst Media Center. As you can see, once again you get to choose your language and then you get the wizard and the EULA.
Next you have to put in at least your name and then choose the installation location. Then it finally installs the Catalyst Media Center.
Now you get to setup the Catalyst Media Center, which you can configure for standard or widescreen and set up your speaker layout.
Catalyst Media Center Installation and Configuration (Cont.)Next is the type of tuner card you have and how you are connecting it. Then you select the region that you live in.
Then you get the option to do your scans for television, the programming guide, and the radio stations.
Then you're finished and your scans start. The scan screens for the television and radio are identical with the exception of choosing the type of input for the television.
Catalyst Media Center Installation and Configuration (Cont.)
The radio populates with station numbers and has the ability to record live radio and the television populates with the channel numbers and station information.
The configuration of the guide is a little confusing because it has two guide providers and there is no information to help you make your decision , so you have to play around with it a little bit. Then it asks for your zip code.
The Catalyst Media Center then detects the providers in the area. Then, it asks for your cable provider or signal source and that is it.
Specifications and Features
Catalyst Media Center Features
You do have the option to record live TV and schedule the tuner to change to the channel you want to watch during that time. The guide is also very handy for seeing what is coming up and scheduling shows.
From the main menu you can go in to settings and adjust many features.
And here is a closer look at each one of the settings pages.
And here is a closer look at the video settings and features. A nice perk is that it has the option to burn these to disc and select the quality of the recording.
Testing Methods
Testing Setup
Graphic Cards
Benchmarks TV Tuner
Graphic Card
Resolutions
To test the TV tuner side of the Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium Card I will test it with the Catalyst Media Center that it came with and review how the media center functions and the clarity of the picture. To test the video card aspects of the All In Wonder HD 3650 graphics card, I will put it through our standard benchmarks and compare it to the ATI Radeon HD 3850. But keep in mind that the HD 3650 is an entry level card, so set your expectations accordingly.
Benchmark(TV Tuner)
I first tested the cable and the antenna aspect of the card and they both turned out great. The picture was clear and crisp on both which is surprising for an antenna connection. I could pause, rewind, and fast forward through commercials with no problem during playback. Good bye, commercials.
Then I scheduled a show to to record and watch it playback. I had no problem with the playback with the exception of one hiccup where it skipped a second, but then I attributed this to my virus scan that had kicked in. It caused the hiccup while the computer was adjusting. Viruses ruin all the fun.
I also tried the HDMI out, the S-video in and outs, and the component outs. The HDMI was crystal clear and looked great even though the Diamond AIWHD supports only 720p. The component output was good and on level with where it should be. The S-video looked a little dark and when I tried to brighten the picture, I found that the options in the media center were limited to just the color profile seen in the TV settings.
Benchmarks ( 3D Mark Vantage)
3D Mark Vantage is a synthetic benchmark designed to test the performance of graphics cards. 3D Mark Vantage uses a score to gauge the card's performance rather than a frames per second (FPS) measure alone. 3D Mark Vantage uses several tests to gather information for the scoring. Two are purely graphical, two are to test the CPU, one to test the physics, and one to test the AI. For this test we will use three settings.
Settings Entry at a 1024 X 768 resolution. Performance at a 1280 X 1024 resolution. High at a 1680 X 1050 resolution.
Comparison
Benchmarks ( World In Conflict)
World In Conflict is a strategy game set in World War III on American soil against a Soviet Invasion. It is a Direct X 10 game and has great visuals and effects.
Settings AA X4 Graphics: Very High
Comparison
Benchmarks ( Crysis)
Now I have never heard a graphics card cry but I am pretty sure Crysis would be the one to do it. Crysis is a graphical masterpiece and punishes most graphics cards.
Settings AA x2 Graphics: High
Comparison
Benchmarks ( Brother In Arms: Hell's Highway)
Brothers In Arms follows the adventure of Sgt. Baker and this time it is during Operation: Market Garden. Hell's Highway uses the new Unreal Engine and is a very nice looking game. Settings Graphics: High
 Comparison
Conclusion
Price Point Price: $219.99
Class: High End TV Tuner/ Entry Graphic Card The price of $219.99 would have most people wondering about what the Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium Card can do. It is not just a TV tuner but also a decent graphics card. Not to mention the fact that it has HD output and is HDCP compatible. So you can display your Blu-Ray movies on your HDCP compatible TV with no problem. While the price may seem a little high, I think that with all the features and options, that it is a suitable price for the Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium Card compared to the cost of a graphics card and a TV tuner card. Plus, it is a space saving card if you do not have much room left in your computer.
Performance The television side of the Diamond AIWHD card performed very well, with the exception of not being able to brighten up the picture and that finding your way around the menu is a little clunky. The picture was crystal clear and crisp even at a 720p resolution. The programming guide worked great and I was able to schedule and record in advance. I was also able to pause, rewind, and fast forward shows during playback with no issues. The only problem I had with the Diamond All In Wonder HD card was that hiccup during recording when the virus scan started. But that is to be expected when you have to have memory intensive programs running and to only have the hiccup is great.
On the graphic card side, the card performed decently considering we were running games designed for more sophisticated cards. And compared to the HD 3850 it performed pretty closely. In Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway in the 1024 X 768 resolution, it performed at 32 frames per second on high settings, which is great, since, as a rule, 30 fps or above is considered good.
Reviewers' Opinion The Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium Card did a great job. I was very happy with the television side of it and the HDMI out allowed me to hook it up to my 47” LCD TV. I was also finally able to escape from my wife's viewing habits. Being that she is home when I get home from work she already has the TV locked in. The Diamond AIWHD card allowed me the freedom to come home and turn on my computer and watch what I want with no issues. I did find the Catalyst Media Center a little clunky to navigate and I was disappointed that it did not have an option to adjust the levels of the picture. But the card itself performed great. Although the I/O board needs to be screwed in, with a tool-less option, the card felt as though it could not take any pressure when cables where plugged into it. On the gaming side of things, I was happy with it. I had used the Diamond All In Wonder HD while I was testing the NZXT Avatar Gaming Mouse and with most games that I played, it performed well, especially with older games. I also had no problem playing not so graphically intense games like Civilization IV or Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3. But I can not stress enough that this card is not designed to be able to play the most bleeding edge games. It is an option for people who would like the option to watch television on their computers and do light, not graphically intense gaming. In conclusion, I think the the Diamond All In Wonder HD Premium card is a great little card and would be an asset to anyone who wishes to do a little light gaming and watch television on their computer.
Pros
Cons
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