AMD Receives Scathing Editorial From Hardware Review Site Tech Report

[zekrahminator]

Scott Wasson is the proud owner of the hardware review site Tech Report. Much like techPowerUp!, the Tech Report seeks to review new hardware for informative purposes. However, he recently had some choice words to say about AMD, and how many product he's allowed to test from them: almost none. Wasson, in an editorial, chastises AMD for not letting review sites get their hands on new products before, or sometimes even after, a hardware launch. Wasson claims that when a company does this to a reviewer, it's "a classic and sure-fire indicator of a poor product." Wasson claimed that even Intel, who certainly had their fair share of not-so-hot products (namely, the Prescott series) was more than happy to provide a review sample of new products. Wasson concludes his editorial by saying AMD "would do well to handle its struggles with similar grace and class". Please follow the source link for the full editorial.

Source: Tech Report (http://techreport.com/discussions.x/13677)

[Solaris17]

or he's jealous cause he didnt get a phenom

[TUngsten]

"Wasson, in an editorial, chastises AMD for not letting review sites get their hands on new products before, or sometimes even after, a hardware launch."

Can't really argue with that....after all, we as consumers tend to depend on these sorts of reviews, and it puts the onus on the company to develop good stuff.

[crow1001]

Poor product hit the nail on the head.;)

[newtekie1]

Wasson claims that when a company does this to a reviewer, it's "a classic and sure-fire indicator of a poor product."

I couldn't have said it better myself.

[Steevo]

Damn straight.


Unless if those prices come down or ATI awes me with some form of hidden power I will have a Intel/AMD rig next.

[jydie]

Well, with comments like that they will most likely have even more trouble getting AMD/ATI samples... not a good move.

AMD is struggling a bit, and maybe they simply have to make cuts here and there... it happens all the time. Maybe they can no longer afford to send thousands of "free" samples out for review. That is no reason to attack their products. AMD/ATI is trying to keep things competitive in the mid and low level markets, and I am very thankful for that.

[W1zzard]

techreport is a very big and important site. they should be very very high on the sample allocation list.

and hey i'm still waiting for a hd38xx sample from amd :(

[FreedomEclipse]

Never have I heard of AMD refusing outright to alocate a sample to such a well known site. Or maybe they have but I havent heard them pulling that kinda stunt till now when their a little down in the dumps shall we say

[TUngsten]

AMD is struggling a bit, and maybe they simply have to make cuts here and there... it happens all the time. Maybe they can no longer afford to send thousands of "free" samples out for review.

And wouldn't some great press/reviews/benches generating excitement for upcoming products be a good thing?

Whatever business model AMD isfollowing right now isn't working for them. I applaud the editorial in the hopes that it smacks some sense into those folks over there...

[Kreij]

Not sure why AMD would be doing this sort of thing.
Even if their product is not a "Core 2 Killer", they should be trying to sow good will to the tech crowd. An attitude of "Here's our stuff. It may not be the winner but we aren't giving up." would go a long way in keeping people supportive of them.

We all know making a killer CPU (or GPU for that matter) is not easy.
(Just ask Intel while they were the underdogs)

[WarEagleAU]

Maybe they are cutting back. Or Maybe there is miscommunication in letting samples out. My main reviews of products come from here, newegg.com and maximumpc. I never even heard of techreport until today... :shadedshu

[hacker111]

since this product is a not-so-hot one shouldnt they be advertising or give up on the product because if there is no sales then whats the point?

[jydie]

Maybe they are cutting back. Or Maybe there is miscommunication in letting samples out. My main reviews of products come from here, newegg.com and maximumpc. I never even heard of techreport until today... :shadedshu

Dang, those are my three main sources for reviews as well. :rockout:

[Jizzler]

Meh. I could care less about internal drama or what some reviewer thinks about a company.

What needed to be said had already been said in their Phenom review, though, I cringed a bit reading the introduction.

[newtekie1]

Maybe they are cutting back. Or Maybe there is miscommunication in letting samples out. My main reviews of products come from here, newegg.com and maximumpc. I never even heard of techreport until today... :shadedshu

Never trust newegg customer reviews, you don't even have to buy the product to review it. I could go post a review for an FX-74 despite the fact that I have never even layed my eyes on a FX-74.

[zekrahminator]

Never trust newegg customer reviews, you don't even have to buy the product to review it. I could go post a review for an FX-74 despite the fact that I have never even layed my eyes on a FX-74.

Agreed...however, I think that the majority of the reviews are legitimate, and most people that don't own the product when they review it state that in the review.

[Kreij]

Agreed...however, I think that the majority of the reviews are legitimate, and most people that don't own the product when they review it state that in the review.

I agree with you Zek. Most of Newegg reviews are pretty technically accurate.

I do, however, enjoy the few that say "I don't own this but it ROCKS 'cuz I reads the internets!" :wtf: :D

[Ripper3]

I agree with you Zek. Most of Newegg reviews are pretty technically accurate.

I do, however, enjoy the few that say "I don't own this but it ROCKS 'cuz I reads the internets!" :wtf: :D

Worse still was when Athlon 64s were on top, and P4s were shite, but rocking massive clock speeds, people stating somethign like, "Don't buy AMD, they don't even make a 3.6GHz chip, and sell their 2GHz CPUs for the same price as this. It's not worth it.", and then added they were experts with technology.
I learnt the hard way never to trust reviews from clients of websites. It's usually just bollocks.

[EastCoasthandle]

Like W1z stated, he didn't get a 38XX to review. Does that mean he should publish an editorial like the one mentioned in this article? Come on, there are times were certain situations require a certain finesse and political know how in order to get what you want. Even if you don't get the product to review, you don't burn bridges because of it. How else will you channel future products from that company?

[TUngsten]

and hey i'm still waiting for a hd38xx sample from amd :(

He's still waiting for his...meaning (I assume) he has been told he would have a review sample, yet ATI has gone ahead and put them on the market (and a pretty weak release as well, with everything being sold out everywhere).

[newtekie1]

Exactly, which is what the guy was trying to point out. People want to make informed decisions when buying products like these, especially high end ones. And when ATI/AMD drags their feet in getting review samples out the door to reviewers it makes it harder to make informed purchaces. His point is that perhaps that is what AMD/ATI want, people making uninformed purchases, because chances are if they were informed they would be buying competitor's products.

[TUngsten]

When you add in the totally crazy (and seemingly incomprehensible) numbering system, it sure makes for some confused consumers indeed.

[Urlyin]

I can personally contest on how hard it is to get vendors to answer emails to send items for review... most have a set number of samples to send out and do have their personal favorites... often it's a matter of having an inside track to even get a consideration much less a response... but with any vendor I would think it was a business need to send out as many as you could...

[jydie]

Never trust newegg customer reviews, you don't even have to buy the product to review it. I could go post a review for an FX-74 despite the fact that I have never even layed my eyes on a FX-74.

Yes, that does happen on Newegg. I remember reading Newegg reviews for the HD 3870 on the day it came out... it was obvious those people did not have the card in their hands yet. :ohwell: I think that a vast majority of the reviews are legit though.

I buy a LOT of stuff from Newegg, and I like to read the reviews simply because they relate to people in my situation. I do not have a high end motherboard, CPU, video card, memory, or power supply... and thus, the "good" reviews on Newegg at least let me know what to expect with my setup. You can sometimes find out little things like whether a specific video card has a temperature sensor and fan control... or how far it will typically overclock. The reviews sometime point out possible errors in the product description as well.

[jydie]

Exactly, which is what the guy was trying to point out. People want to make informed decisions when buying products like these, especially high end ones. And when ATI/AMD drags their feet in getting review samples out the door to reviewers it makes it harder to make informed purchaces. His point is that perhaps that is what AMD/ATI want, people making uninformed purchases, because chances are if they were informed they would be buying competitor's products.

That does make sense... but in this case, it seems that ATI has nothing to be ashamed about with the HD 3850 and HD 3870. Both are wonderful video cards for the price. The choice between $180-$230 video cards will be tough indeed. Especially when the 256MB 8800GT rolls out.

[Mandown]

I think they are crying to their mommy that they didn't get what they wanted for Christmas. LMAO, reading that and its clear that this is just a lash out at AMD because they didn't get their product "on time". It was like reading a letter of complaint. so boring.

[Steevo]

I have read reviews on harddrives where users were complaining about only 137Gb being available. Obviously some know nothing, but being a expert is as easy as knowing how to run a screwdriver to them.


Moral of the story. Always wear your bullshit filter glasses.

[TUngsten]

Like anything else, reviews (esp. newegg's) are only good when multitudinous. Then you can sift out the garbage and look for real consistencies.

[erocker]

I'm glad someone came out and said it. AMD is obviously being run by monkeys at the moment. It's obvious frome thier products as of late that they are being run into the ground.

[FreedomEclipse]

I'm glad someone came out and said it. AMD is obviously being run by monkeys at the moment. It's obvious frome thier products as of late that they are being run into the ground.

with this in mind...

Ive heard rumours where before the AM2 platform was due to be released. that AMD knew about Intels Core 2 Duo but still didnt do anything about it. I think if they delayed the AM2 & refined it a little more then who knows, they could have done better as well as standing a better chance toe'ing the line Macho Vs. Macho with Intel.

& since AMD are struggling to keep up & Intel just keeps the good stuff rolling out. its hard to see/understand where AMD get their motivation from. & techreport didnt improve AMDs moral/tarnished reputation whatsoever which leaves us consumers at a crossroad inevitably wondering/thinking if AMD will ever be able to regain their once huge chunk of the market without having to resort to selling their souls & by souls i mean their assets. but theyve already taken the first step to doing that & if they keep going the way they are then they will either go into administration or they will put themselves up for sale & risk losing the AMD/ATi name(s) alltogether.

Since ATi were a pretty independant company before I dont see why they cant sell ATi or seperate the 2 companies & have ATi run as standalone so that it doesnt get dragged under with AMD. because the reality is that they cant keep releasing second rate goods without making a loss as Intel also has the budget market coverd with its low prices

so the saying goes... "theres a huge fire but only 1 small fire extinguisher. what are you gonna do...?"

[WarEagleAU]

Very interesting points FreedomEclipse. I would think two wholly independent companies working in unison would have been better.

Speaking of newegg.com reviews, most know what they are talking about and usually have the product. I sift through all the kick ass ones and then the ones that also say that had problems. Im checking out their DLink N wireless routers at the moment. Conflicting to say the least.


Nice to know I got some friends who rely on the same three as me. To them I give a ^5!!!

[Ketxxx]

Yawn. I got bored after paragraph 3. AMD do need to learn to advertise hardcore though, thats what kept sales of the P4 up for Intel.

[imperialreign]

Very interesting points FreedomEclipse. I would think two wholly independent companies working in unison would have been better.

Speaking of newegg.com reviews, most know what they are talking about and usually have the product. I sift through all the kick ass ones and then the ones that also say that had problems. Im checking out their DLink N wireless routers at the moment. Conflicting to say the least.


Nice to know I got some friends who rely on the same three as me. To them I give a ^5!!!

I don't really rely on newegg that much anymore, or at least I take the info with a grain of salt. MaximumPC, though, give really good, unbiased views, IMO - as short as their hardware reviews tend to be, they still tell you what is going to matter most to you. As far as trade publications go, I hold them in high regard, too. They're an awesome source of info (and cynical humor, too).

BTW, on D-link hardware, I've never had any issues what-so-ever. All 3 of our computers here at home use D-link equipment, and everything is a charm . . . sometimes I can even pick up our neighbors network :D - and they use Linksys!

[Mandown]

Yawn. I got bored after paragraph 3. AMD do need to learn to advertise hardcore though, thats what kept sales of the P4 up for Intel.

I notice that where i live the only advertisement i've seen from AMD was at the airport by the bathrooms.:laugh:
They could definitely use the publicity. would help them be more recognized.

[trog100]

i must be lucky i have a 3870 sat in a new msi 790X amd chipset board..

poor product.. well i would say at least a poorly prepared product.. the card comes with XP drivers that wont install in a proper way.. and wait for it.. so does the motherboard..

i have the thing running but it was major headache..

now its running what do i think... not a lot to be honest.. the very "entry level" abit 520 nvidia chipset board it replaced runs faster.. also i cant run the memory at the same timings as i could on the 520 board and overall have lost 10% of my memory bandwidth..

the amd overdrive thing that sounds so usefull crashes the system the moment i try and run it.. i had to uninstall it..

and two of the four sata sockets are covered up by the end of the dual slot 3870 card.. so only two sata slots are usable..

okay its a crossover board.. they have had to shoehorn pci and ide sockets on it.. but its really a one ide and two sata board..

i can live with the loss of memory bandwidth cos in real life it dosnt make a deal of difference but if this is what amd have to offer in the future they aint long to live..

trog

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

or he's jealous cause he didnt get a phenom

I woudlnt be losing any sleep over it thats for sure.

[zekrahminator]

i must be lucky i have a 3870 sat in a new msi 790X amd chipset board..

poor product.. well i would say at least a poorly prepared product.. the card comes with XP drivers that wont install in a proper way.. and wait for it.. so does the motherboard..

i have the thing running but it was major headache..

now its running what do i think... not a lot to be honest.. the very "entry level" abit 520 nvidia chipset board it replaced runs faster.. also i cant run the memory at the same timings as i could on the 520 board and overall have lost 10% of my memory bandwidth..

the amd overdrive thing that sounds so usefull crashes the system the moment i try and run it.. i had to uninstall it..

and two of the four sata sockets are covered up by the end of the dual slot 3870 card.. so only two sata slots are usable..

okay its a crossover board.. they have had to shoehorn pci and ide sockets on it.. but its really a one ide and two sata board..

i can live with the loss of memory bandwidth cos in real life it dosnt make a deal of difference but if this is what amd have to offer in the future they aint long to live..

trog

All the sudden my X850XT and A64 4800 @ 2.8GHz is looking awful good... :p.

[Greatpumkin628]

Perhaps AMD should look at Harley Davidson's approach to marketing slower, heavier, hotter running products; sell a lifestyle instead of performance/price.

Leather AMD jackets, $2000 cpu's, jeans, boots, coffee mugs.. they already litigate like Harley... just take the next step. Green and black instead of orange and black... I think I'll give em a call....

Don't get me wrong, my last 3 builds are amd, just sad to see em slide so far technically and the bad pr decisions. Their faithful can only take so much from the Intel fanbois. This K10 looks like a Prescotynom. Pity it would have fared ok a year ago but this late it's gonna get clobbered by the Penryns. Techreport gets whiney but his premise is sound.

[HAL7000]

Well I would have to agree with Tech Reports flame. I get sick and tired of waiting for AMD to release new hardware. Paper, press, paper and more press and yesterdays harware gets a bit sickening. I have used AMD products for along time for 98% of my systems. The release of the Phenoms was disappointing but the 790FX (unfortunately paired with the SB600) looks good but this still doesn't excuse releasing a sub par CPU, IMHO.
So for someone to rant about AMD and their poor Marketing/ Benching practices, well I wish more would do the same. With more Review Sites expressing their dissatisfaction openly and to the point just might wake up the sons of b***hes. AMD needs to respond with comparative hardware on the market today. I like their new video cards but they still are lagging quite a bit, they need to release hardware that will compete with the big boys to stay even or pull ahead. Enthusiast love power, raw power….and paper and press is getting very boring and repetitious. AMD…. wake up, its roll call and your late showing up AGAIN.