Why the F would I want to pay for this?

[-B.A.Frayd-™]

Simple question. As an everyday guy, why would I want to pay for this? Used to be free.

[Fluff X]

Benchmarking is an important thing for people who love hardware.

[Ricardo]

I have the same question. Anyone know the answer?

[Attila Orion]

there is a demo... which is free, and lets you run the tests, much of the options are locked but it gives you something to compare with, it has been this way for some time now.

[Rubik748]

As an everyday gamer - nope.
As an obsessed OCer mad man - definitely.

[UL_James]

All our benchmarks have a free version, including the new 3DMark. Click "Download Demo" from Steam, or download 3DMark Basic Edition from our website.

For "everyday guys", the free version is all you need. It will give you a score for each of the three tests and our website will help you compare your score to others with similar hardware.

[Monsterfritteuse]

Noone needs 3DMark.
The minimum and recommended requirements of a game are described in the description of the game :/
I suggest creating some real games :P

[Lt.Smash]

Originally posted by Prof. Dr. Fukowsky:

Noone needs 3DMark.
The minimum and recommended requirements of a game are described in the description of the game :/

Actually a lot of people need 3DMark professor. Did you ever heard something of "overclocking"? You need to test if your system runs stable.

[Monsterfritteuse]

lolz, overclocking..
yes, indeed for people who do such things, it may be worth it :)

[Turkish Hair Graft]

This is a tool, not a game. I'm sure its very useful to people who build state of the art stuff and need to test stability.

[Nikijih]

Wouldnt "lolz" about OCing Fukowsky, its a great way to take last generation hardware beyond current generation capabilities without spending a penny (granted you have the MB and cooling for it).

As for this benchmark, i agree with the OP, its completely pointless, who would pay for it? Heaven DX11 benchmark is just as good, and completely free...

[Question-Mark]

3DMark has never been free. You can download the demo for free but to get all the features you need to buy it, like it has always been.

[Buon Tia]

Originally posted by FM_kingkatt:

All our benchmarks have a free version, including the new 3DMark. Click "Download Demo" from Steam, or download 3DMark Basic Edition from our website.

For "everyday guys", the free version is all you need. It will give you a score for each of the three tests and our website will help you compare your score to others with similar hardware.

Thanks!

[Rubik748]

Originally posted by Nikijih:

Wouldnt "lolz" about OCing Fukowsky, its a great way to take last generation hardware beyond current generation capabilities without spending a penny (granted you have the MB and cooling for it).

Which is more expensive? Over clocking one or two older gtx cards to catch up to a gtx 690. Don't forget the cost of the buying all the OC stuff as well as the larger case and higher watt PSU. Higher the OC the worse it is to faff around with all those pipes and wires.

Or

Just buying the gtx card with a smaller case and PSU.

And the older the hardware is, (especially if its not just the card(s) but also the cpu), the worse it gets.

[Monsterfritteuse]

Thanks Mr PonyTail Man :)
Agreed :)

[Nikijih]

Originally posted by Mr PonyTail Man:

Originally posted by Nikijih:

Wouldnt "lolz" about OCing Fukowsky, its a great way to take last generation hardware beyond current generation capabilities without spending a penny (granted you have the MB and cooling for it).

Which is more expensive? Over clocking one or two older gtx cards to catch up to a gtx 690. Don't forget the cost of the buying all the OC stuff as well as the larger case and higher watt PSU. Higher the OC the worse it is to faff around with all those pipes and wires.

Or

Just buying the gtx card with a smaller case and PSU.

And the older the hardware is, (especially if its not just the card(s) but also the cpu), the worse it gets.

Actually, I was talking about CPUs, not GPUs. i5 2500k @ 4.2gz, all it needed is an evo 212 (30$) in a regular case, never seen it go above 67 degrees and thats under max load for over 30 min (prime 95 stress testing). You can OC your GPU as well, but you are right that's limited. You wont get a 690 out of a 560 ti, for exemple, but you may very well get a bit more juice out of it nonetheless. got mine at 833 mhz and didnt need extra cooling.

Essentially you are making a hill sound like a mountain. You can OC in a regular case, with any small aftermarket cooler (which you should have anyway as the crap that comes with chips is usually barely above useless), and it wont cost you sqat if you shop smartly (don't buy locked chips then go "ooh it would be expensive to buy new ones to OC!", thats a Derp case).

As for the PSU: beyond the 680/690 requiring quite a bit of juice in itself, you should always buy the bigges PSU you can find on sale when building a rig (as long as its bronze rating or higher) in order to set it up for future upgrades. Otherwise your next GPU might cost you a new PSU as well, and for no reason when you can get a 800 watt for 60$ if only you shop a bit.