- One Gigabyte PC3200 Memory
- Large Capacity Hard Drive
- Poor 3D Graphics
- No FireWire
- Intel Pentium 4 3.0 GHz with 800 MHz Frontside Bus
- 1GB PC3200 DDR Memory
- 160GB 7200rpm Hard Drive
- 4x DVD+/-RW Burner and 16x DVD-ROM Optical Drives
- Integrated AC'97 Audio with Amplified Stereo Speakers
- Integrated Intel Extreme 2 Graphics with 64MB of Shared Memory
- v.92 56Kbps Modem and Intel 10/100 Ethernet Port
- Eight USB 2.0 Ports
- Windows XP Home Operating System
2/13/04 - WinBook has not been in the desktop market for very long, but with the PowerSpec 8980 they are trying to offer something others do not.
The 8980 is powered by an Intel Pentium 4 CPU with 800MHz bus. The amazing thing abount this system though is the standard 1GB PC3200 memory configuration. This is much larger than what is offered by competing systems and should help immensely in tasks such as gaming and desktop video.
Storage is provided by a 160GB 7200rpm hard drive, 4x multiformat DVD burner and 16x DVD-ROM. This configuration is very well suited for those looking to do desktop video. The large storage space of the hard rive helps store projects while editing and the multiformat burner allows for high compatibility with consumer DVD players.
Graphics are not the strong suit for the PowerSpec 8980. It is limited to the Intel Extreme 2 integrated graphics which is not suitable for 3D applications such as gaming. While it uses a shared memory architecture as well, this shouldn't be a problem with the amount of system memory. Audio is also lackluster with the integrated AC'97 sound and basic amplified stereo speakers.
The PowerSpec 8980 is a very good system for those looking to do desktop video with a few caveats. Foremost of these is the lack of FireWire ports. Anyone trying to use digital camcorders will need to get a Firewire card extra. The software applications are also limited. But with a few upgrades, this could make an excellent DV system.
