PC Magazine

Cinebench is often a good predictor of our Handbrake video editing trial,
another tough, threaded workout that’s highly CPU-dependent and scales well
with cores and threads. In it, we put a stopwatch on test systems as they
transcode a standard 12-minute clip of 4K video (the open-source Blender demo
movie Tears of Steel) WR D S 03 ¿OH ,W¶V D WLPHG WHVW DQG ORZHU UHVXOWV
are better.

We also run a custom Adobe Photoshop image editing benchmark. Using an
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RI FRPSOH[ ¿OWHUV DQG H̆HFWV WR D VWDQGDUG -3(* WHVW LPDJH :H WLPH HDFK
operation and add up the total. As with Handbrake, lower times are better here.

It comes as no surprise that the Ryzen-powered m15 R5 is the leader across
these three tests. By and large, the Ryzen R7 and R9 chips have shown
supremacy over equivalent Core i7 and Core i9 CPUs for media creation and
editing. While the gap in some of these tests isn’t great, the AMD advantage in
Cinebench is telling. If you’re a content creator or media editor professionally or
as a hobby, and would like your laptop to serve as a workstation when not
playing games, the R5 is better suited than the others here.

Graphics tests: :H UXQ WZR WHVWV DSLHFH LQ WZR JDPLQJ VLPXODWLRQV 7KH ¿UVW
3DMark, measures relative graphics muscle by rendering sequences of highly
detailed, gaming-style 3D graphics that emphasize particles and lighting. We
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WR GL̆HUHQW W\SHV RI V\VWHPV %RWK DUH 'LUHFW; EHQFKPDUNV EXW 6N\ 'LYHU LV
more suited to midrange PCs and integrated graphics, while Fire Strike is more
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results are proprietary scores.

Another benchmark, Unigine’s Superposition, similarly For the most
renders and pans through a complex 3D scene but part, Ryzen
measures results in frames per second (fps). We run the processors
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image-quality settings, respectively; 30fps is a common haven’t shown
goal for smooth animation, but serious gamers prefer us as much of
60fps or higher. an advantage
in gaming as
The Alienware m15 R4 and Razer Blade 15 should they have in
surpass the m15 R5 in these tests given their stronger media tasks.
GPUs, but the R5 actually acquitted itself pretty well.
This has a lot to do with the wattage mentioned earlier,
as Alienware tends to push toward the max power for a
given GPU in its systems, which aren’t as thin as some
competitors. That turns into usable raw power in real-
world scenarios. Presumably, the CPU is no slouch in
helping boost these numbers as well, though for the
most part, Ryzen processors haven’t shown us as much
of an advantage in gaming as they have in media tasks.

Real-world gaming tests: The synthetic tests above
are helpful for measuring general 3D aptitude, but it’s
hard to beat full retail video games for judging gaming
performance. Far Cry 5 and Rise of the Tomb Raider
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benchmarks that illustrate how a system handles real-
world gameplay at various settings. We run them at
S UHVROXWLRQ DW WKH JDPHV¶ PHGLXP DQG EHVW
image-quality presets (Normal and Ultra for Far Cry 5
under DirectX 11, Medium and Very High for Rise of
the Tomb Raider under DirectX 12).

The m15 R5 looks even better here than it did in the
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bragging rights, but the Ryzen Edition achieves frame
rates reasonably close to those of much more expensive
gaming rigs. The latter’s extra 10 to 15 frames per
second may satisfy performance maniacs, but 103fps

and 115fps at these titles’ top settings is highly The Ryzen
respectable. The included Alienware Command Center Edition
software lets you squeeze out a few more fps with Full
Speed performance mode, but the added heat and fan achieves
noise make it not worth using, in my opinion. frame rates
reasonably
)RU VKRSSHUV VHHNLQJ WKH EHVW YDOXH WKH P 5 R̆HUV close to those
better bang for your buck than any of the more of much more
expensive systems. The smaller and less expensive
Predator comes close, but its smaller size and price expensive
bring a performance compromise despite using the gaming rigs.
same GPU. All told, the Ryzen R7- and GeForce RTX
3060-based Alienware comes darn close to delivering
high-end frame rates at a midrange price.

Battery rundown test: After fully recharging the
laptop, we set up the machine in power-save mode (as
opposed to balanced or high-performance mode) where
available and make a few other battery-conserving
tweaks in preparation for our unplugged video rundown
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airplane mode.) In this test, we loop a video—a locally
VWRUHG S ¿OH RI WKH VDPH Tears of Steel short we use
in our Handbrake test—with screen brightness set at
50% and volume at 100% until the system quits.

7KH 5\]HQ (GLWLRQ R̆HUV LPSUHVVLYH EDWWHU\ UXQWLPH There isn’t
It’s not quite a chart-topper in this group, but it’s not much to fault,
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WUDYHO RU EULHI JDPLQJ VHVVLRQV R̆ WKH FKDUJHU 6RPH RI other than to
these 15-inch alternatives, despite their thin frames and say the
(in some cases) lower weights, can’t really be used on
the go very much. The Alienware, as mentioned, isn’t system’s a
the most compact gaming laptop, so some use cases bit heavy, as
away from home won’t be practical, but it’s nice to have
the option when needed. modern
15-inch
A STRONG MIDRANGE CONTENDER gamers go.
The overall design and feature set of this system may be
familiar, but between its performance and specs, the
m15 Ryzen Edition is a good value. Our test
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high-refresh-rate screen, all wrapped up in an appealing
and unique chassis.

There isn’t much to fault, other than to say the system’s
a bit heavy, as modern 15-inch gamers go. The Predator
Triton 300 SE remains the best value in the midrange
tier, and we love its compact form factor, but if you have
a bit more in your budget, the AMD Alienware is a
worthy option.

PC MAGAZINE DIGITAL EDITION I SUBSCRIBE I JULY 2021

REVIEWS

HARDWARE

Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
Founders Edition: A
Muscled-Up Middle Child

BY CHRIS STOBING

I t’s been one heck of a year in the world of desktop graphics cards. From
silicon shortages to cryptocurrency craziness, the average price of a
graphics card in 2021 has surged past all expectations, with models both
used and new selling for multiples more than the original prices, even years
after their initial release. Realities of the current marketplace aside, though,
we’re here to talk about the objective performance of the latest object of desire
for GPU shoppers (and likely newest target for scalpers), the GeForce RTX
3080 Ti, and how it stacks up against its own (hopefully, one day!) objective
manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) of $1,199.

/HW¶V VWDUW R̆ WKLV JUDSKLFV FDUG UHYLHZ WKH VDPH ZD\ Nvidia GeForce
we’ve started many over the past 12 months: We know RTX 3080 Ti
\RX OLNHO\ ZLOO QRW ¿QG WKH *H)RUFH 57; 7L DW LWV
MSRP for the foreseeable future, and those who do Founders Edition
manage to get their hands on the card at a fair price
likely will have done so either through a quick trigger PROS Beautiful,
¿QJHU YLD WKH OXFN RI D GUDZ RQ D *38 ORWWHU\ RU E\ functional design, like
¿JKWLQJ ¿UH ZLWK ¿UH DQG HPSOR\LQJ D FDUG EX\LQJ ERW other Founders
of their own. Edition cards. Low-
noise operation, even
For those determined buyers, the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti under stress.
LV D JDPLQJ SRZHUKRXVH DOPRVW ZRUWK ¿JKWLQJ WKH Compact profile given
hordes for. Its high price is the only thing that keeps it the raw muscle.
from true greatness. It’s supposed to be a slightly less Improves upon
powerful, slightly less pricey GeForce RTX 3090 for original entries in RTX
gamers and creators. But that means it also comes with 30 Series Founders
the same caveat as the original: Even with a lower Edition lineup.
MSRP than the RTX 3090, the original Nvidia GeForce
RTX 3080 Founders Edition sets up the RTX 3080 CONS Only
7L IRU VRPH VHULRXVO\ RXW RI ZKDFN SULFH WR incrementally better
performance ratios. than original RTX
3080 for considerably
more money.

BOTTOM LINE
Nvidia’s GeForce RTX
3080 Ti Founders
Edition is another
stunning addition to
the RTX 30 Series
Founders lineage and
a monster for 4K
gaming. Just be
prepared to pay a
disproportionate
premium over the RTX
3080 for the extra
muscle.

If price is no object (and it had better not be, if you can’t get your hands on the
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fastest GPUs in the game today. For the rest of us, the RTX 3080 is almost as
good in many 1440p and 4K runs and costs around 40% less. Now that’s a
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RTX 3080 TI FOUNDERS EDITION SPECS: PLAYING IN ELITE

COMPANY
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the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition is, MSRP versus MSRP,
more than 70% more expensive than the original GeForce RTX 3080 Founders
Edition at $1,199 to $699. But glance twice at the specs, and you might start to
look at it another way. Despite sharing the same GA102 die and many of the
same specs (discounting some slower clocks and lower VRAM), the GTX 3080
Ti is just under 15% less expensive than the RTX 3090 Founders Edition.
With those numbers in mind, let’s see from where Nvidia might have pulled its
pricing inspiration.

For starters, as we mentioned, the specs of the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
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57; )RXQGHUV (GLWLRQ :KHQ WKH 57; )RXQGHUV (GLWLRQ ¿UVW
launched, the card seemed stuck between two worlds. On the one hand, content
creators at this price level had, for many years, defaulted to Nvidia’s Titan
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technology of the time allowed for, past a certain budget.

The gaming crowd then looked to the rest of the RTX and GTX lineup for cards
that catered to them, such as the GeForce RTX 2080 Ti, GTX 1660, and RTX
3080. Until the launch of the RTX 3080 Ti, any Nvidia Founders Edition
graphics card that called itself “for gamers” was priced under $999 at launch, a
ceiling set by the RTX 2080 Ti in September of 2018.

When the RTX 3090 debuted with the rest of the RTX 30 Series late last year, it
assumed the de facto mantle of “content creator card,” inherited from the Titan
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3090 lived above the clouds with the other gods of card Olympus at $1,399
MSRP, where it still sits today.

Of course, this is all in the current fairytale land of MSRP. Translated to today’s
prices via a quick scan of eBay? That “$1,399 suggested price” averages out to a
street price of about $3,200, or roughly a 130% increase. Carry that math over
to the RTX 3080 Ti, and we’re talking about an RTX 3080 variant that, if trends
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ZKHWKHU WKH VFDOSHU VWL̆V \RX IRU VKLSSLQJ RI FRXUVH

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gamers will spend for cards that have essentially been rebranded as “gaming
GPUs that also work for content creation,” and doing away with Titan and its
cachet. How bad could it be? Well, we’re afraid to check eBay in the days after
this launch, because who knows what the price of the RTX 3080 Ti (or “Titan
-XQLRU´ PLJKW EH RQFH WKH ¿UVW ZDYH VHOOV WKURXJK $QG ZLOO WKDW EH LQ
minutes—or seconds?)

THE LATEST FOUNDERS EDITION DESIGN: DON’T MESS WITH
SUCCESS
If you loved the design of previous models in Nvidia’s RTX 30 Series (as we
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design, save for some added weight and length. We could gush all over again
about how from both a technology and an aesthetic standpoint, the RTX 30
Series Founders Edition cards are artful marvels. It’s a familiar formula: PCBs
that have been shrunk by more than 50%, in some cases, according to Nvidia,
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WR WKH VDPH SXVK SXOO IDQ GHVLJQ ZH VDZ ZKHQ WKH 57; 6HULHV GHEXWHG
last fall.

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WKLUG SDUW\ 57; PRGHOV ZH¶YH WHVWHG VXFK DV WKH LQFK 06, *H)RUFH
RTX 3080 Gaming X Trio 10G (which you could also dub, were it a sandwich,
the “$1,000 footlong”). But the RTX 3080 Ti is just on the edge of what a
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and MicroATX cases.

Like the iPhone was for smartphones before it, Nvidia’s RTX 30 Series is, in my
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FDUGV FDQ RIWHQ FRPH R̆ DV DQ H[HUFLVH LQ H[FHVV ORRNLQJ DW \RX &RORUIXO WKH
RTX 30 Series Founders Edition cards remain a masterclass in restraint.

The idea that Nvidia has found a way to expertly balance the space needed for a
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FRPSRQHQWV LV D UHDO IHDW RI HQJLQHHULQJ %DVHG RQ UHFHQW H̆RUWV LW FRXOG EH
\HDUV EHIRUH $0' RU HYHQ 1YLGLD¶V RZQ WKLUG SDUW\ PDQXIDFWXULQJ SDUWQHUV
catch up.

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FRQQHFWRU ZKLFK RQ WKH 57; 7L QHHGV WZR HLJKW SLQ SRZHU VXSSO\ OHDGV
to jack into. As for the port selection on the rear plane, the design and the
number of available slots remains the same among Founders Edition cards in
Nvidia’s RTX 30 Series, with three DisplayPort 1.4b ports alongside a single
HDMI 2.1 output and a lot of backplane ventilation. (That port mix is just
VẊFLHQW WR NHHS XS ZLWK VRPH RI $FHU¶V QHZ PRQLWRUV VODWHG IRU UHOHDVH
this year.)

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DEVHQW WKH 86% 7\SH & ORRNDOLNH 9LUWXDO/LQN ,W¶V JRQH IURP DOO WKH $PSHUH
cards so far, we suspect forever. It never caught on with the VR headset makers
it was meant to serve. Adios, friend: Pour one out for VirtualLink.

Testing the RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition: Sparring With the RTX 3090
So, back to the card on hand. PC Labs ran the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti
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UHDO ZRUOG EHQFKPDUNV 2XU 3& /DEV WHVW ULJ LV ,QWHO EDVHG DQG HPSOR\V D
3&, ([SUHVV QRW PRWKHUERDUG ,W¶V HTXLSSHG ZLWK DQ ,QWHO &RUH L
. SURFHVVRU *% RI &RUVDLU 9HQJHDQFH ''5 PHPRU\ D VROLG VWDWH
ERRW GULYH DQG DQ $VXV 52* 0D[LPXV ;,, +HUR :L )L = PRWKHUERDUG
All cards were retested on this rig with their latest drivers at launch for an even
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the CPU out of the equation for frame rates.

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1YLGLD *H)RUFH 57; 7L ZLWK JDPHV LQFOXGLQJ &RXQWHU 6WULNH *OREDO
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to handle AAA games at the highest possible quality settings as well as how it
rides during synthetic benchmarks that stress the card in a variety of ways.

Also remember that almost every test we run (aside from the esports titles) is
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JDPLQJ PRQLWRU DQG \RX¶UH ZRUULHG \RXU FDUG PLJKW QRW PDNH WKH IUDPH UDWH
grade, it could still be possible with the right card and a combination of lower
settings. Not only that, but many of these titles (including Death Stranding,
Shadow of the Tomb Raider, and F1 2020) have both DLSS and FidelityFX CAS
with Upscaling integrated directly into the game. This can mean boosts of up to
40% more performance on top, depending on the setting and the card you’re
playing with.

And so, on to our test results. Our mix of AAA titles includes a mix of recent
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VWLOO UHOLDEOH SLOODUV RI WKH EHQFKPDUNHU¶V WRRONLW LQFOXGLQJ 6KDGRZ RI WKH 7RPE
Raider and Far Cry 5.

TEST RESULTS: SYNTHETIC BENCHMARKS
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SHUIRUPDQFH 8/¶V FLUFD )LUH 6WULNH 8OWUD LV VWLOO D JR WR DV DQ
approximation of the load levied by mainstream 4K gaming. We’re looking only
at the test’s Graphics Subscore, not the Overall Score, to isolate the card
performance. Meanwhile, we also ran 3DMark’s Time Spy Extreme test, which
LV D JRRG WHVW RI KRZ ZHOO D FDUG ZLOO GR VSHFL¿FDOO\ LQ 'LUHFW; JDPHV DW .
resolution. Finally, there’s Port Royal, which is strictly a test for RTX cards right
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RI *38 DFFHOHUDWLRQ WHVWV )XUPDUN /X[0DUN

As a “discount” RTX 3090 with half the available VRAM on board, synthetic
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rendering tasks between the RTX 3080 Ti and the RTX 3090. The results
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the RTX 3090. We don’t run the most extreme gamut of 3D rendering tasks
that the RTX 3090 and Titan variants are more famous for crunching through,
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3080 Ti as an impressive RTX 3090 alternative for roughly 15% less.

TEST RESULTS: RECENT AAA GAMES
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$$$ JDPHV WKH KLJKHVW LQ JDPH SUHVHW DQG LI DYDLODEOH 'LUHFW; 7KH
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up in the next chart group were set slightly below top detail settings to
maximize frame rates. We’ll talk more about them there.

If the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 is the perfect 4K gamers’ card (and in our
opinion, it is), the RTX 3090 holds a more specialized crown: best (or really,
RQO\ FDUG IRU VR FDOOHG ³ . JDPHUV ´

We don’t test at 8K yet (the monitors barely exist, and the game support is
hardly baked), so we can’t say for sure whether the RTX 3080 Ti is the world’s
best value for 8K gaming. But from our results in 4K, we can easily see that it’s
overpriced if it’ll serve just as a 4K gaming engine alone.

The results of these gaming runs cement the identity of the RTX 3080 Ti as a
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meets the road on just how much more powerful the RTX 3080 Ti is versus the
original RTX 3080. Note that on the AMD Radeon side, we haven’t had an
opportunity to test a Radeon RX 6900 XT for ourselves (stock of that card is
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3080 depending on the game, falls under the same category as an, ahem,
relative “value pick” versus the RTX 3080 Ti.

There will always be diminishing returns on value the higher you go in a
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just 14% more performance in 4K gaming, the value proposition for the RTX
3080 Ti would be tough to justify even with scalpers and GPU bots out of the
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3080 card versions such as the MSI Gaming X Trio 10G mentioned earlier.
While retailing just above the RTX 3080 Founders Edition at a $759 MSRP, it
comes within just a few frames of the RTX 3080 Ti in 4K, narrowing the value
proposition further still.

The RTX 3080 Ti so regularly matches up with the RTX 3090 in these same
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resembles a better RTX 3090 for 4K gaming, But no one should be buying an
57; IRU FXUUHQW GD\ JDPLQJ ULJKW"

TEST RESULTS: MULTIPLAYER GAMES
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the cards to their limit, multiplayer gaming is all about maintaining the best
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CS:GO, Rainbow Six: Siege, and Final Fantasy XIV tuned to the best
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lower shadows, for example), while still trying to keep frame rates for 1080p
games above 144fps.

Why 144fps? That’s a coveted target for highly competitive esports gamers who
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players with ordinary 60Hz monitors, a solid 80fps or 90fps at your target
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DJDLQ ZH DUH WDONLQJ DERXW D SOXV FDUG KHUH

TEST RESULTS: LEGACY AAA TITLES
Speaking of “way, way more than enough horsepower,” let’s see how the RTX
3080 Ti Founders Edition does with some AAA games that have long since
passed their prime as the most graphically demanding titles on shelves. We ran
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experience. These legacy tests include runs of Tomb Raider (2013), the original
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business still being as well optimized as it is here in 2021.

Do we even need to say it? It’s a blowout. This is another of those “So, how
much does it win by?” scenarios, rather than whether or not it wins at all.

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don’t buy an RTX 3080 Ti (or an RTX 3090, for that matter) just to play
Sleeping Dogs at a higher refresh rate than the developers could have ever
dreamed of!

OVERCLOCKING AND THERMALS: ALMOST AS COOL AS IT LOOKS
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Ti Founders Edition, and the card peaked at a temperature of 81 degrees C.
That’s a bit hotter than the RTX 3080 Founders Edition, at 77 degrees C, and
shows that as the RTX Founders Edition family scales and grows, temps grow
along with it.

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camera evaluation, much of the waste heat looks to be collecting in the middle
of the card rather than in an even dispersion across its length. The Founders
Edition cards have been nothing if not consistent in this regard.

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we could get out of the card using the EVGA Precision X1 utility. After some
tuning, I was able to achieve a stable clock of 1,915MHz, 225MHz over the
baseline, which brings it just over the boost clocks of the RTX 3090 and
translated to around a 5% bump in benchmark results. Founders Edition cards
are known for their overclocking stubbornness, so it’s nice to see anything at all
in this department, let alone a perceptible gain like that. Well played, Nvidia.

VERDICT: THE MOST MUSCLED-UP MIDDLE CHILD EVER
A card this small, light, quiet, and cool has no business looking as good as the
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition does. Nvidia is, once again,
VLWWLQJ SUHWW\ QRW RQO\ YHUVXV $0' EXW DOVR DJDLQVW DQ\ WKLUG SDUW\
manufacturer that produces its own RTX 3080 Ti models in tandem this
launch. The company’s Founders Edition cards are engineered beyond
what any other card maker seems capable of these days, and the RTX 3080
7L LV \HW DQRWKHU QHDU ÀDZOHVV H[DPSOH RI 1YLGLD¶V WHFKQRORJLFDO GRPLQDQFH LQ
the space.

%XW WKDW SUHFLVLRQ FRPHV DW D SULFH WKH 0653 SOXV ZKDWHYHU LQÀDWLRQ WKH
current market may wreak. The RTX 3080 Ti may be beautiful on the outside
DQG D . JDPLQJ EHDVW LQVLGH EXW LW GRHVQ¶W JHQHUDWH TXLWH HQRXJK H[WUD
SHUIRUPDQFH RYHU WKH QRQ 7L 57; WR MXVWLI\ WKH ELJ LQFUHDVH LQ 0653
+RZ WKDW SOD\V RXW LQ UHDO ZRUOG SULFLQJ LV DQ\RQH¶V JXHVV EXW ZH GRQ¶W H[SHFW
the price proportions to be any prettier in its favor.

7KLQN RI LW WKLV ZD\ ,Q WKH FXUUHQW VXSSO\ VTXHH]HG HFRV\VWHP FDUGV DUH
averaging between 1.25 and 4 times their retail price on some open
marketplaces. Hundreds of dollars added to the original price of a card—like,
say, $500 between the RTX 3080 and RTX 3080 Ti—put the cards even further
out of reach of your average buyer than they already were—and further from
each other in absolute price, as well.

The GPU market of today doesn’t tolerate gaps like that. In the current
If you’re buying an RTX 3090 or an RTX 3080 Ti, you ecosystem,
should really love creating and gaming. But if you’re on cards are
the hunt for a gaming card that powers games in 1440p averaging
and 4K at a superhero level, the RTX 3080 (despite
what eBay might say) is still objectively the better deal. between 1.25
and 4 times
That said, with crypto prices falling by the minute at
this writing, it may not be long before a wave of used their retail price
RTX 30 Series GPUs hits the secondhand marketplace. on some open
Soon after, we could see a stabilization of prices for marketplaces.
newer GPUs such as the RTX 3080 Ti, in which case it
may be only a few months before you’re able to get your
hands on an RTX 3080 Ti at the price of $1,199 that
Nvidia is suggesting to retailers at launch.

The RTX 3080 Ti isn’t a bad graphics card—far from it.
It’s a wild beast of a 4K card. But the RTX 3080 is a
great one. If the card market stabilizes in 2021, a $699
version of an RTX 3080 will still be the best thing to
happen to 4K gaming, perhaps surpassed in certain
situations only by the stellar GeForce RTX 3070.

The Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti isn’t a faster RTX 3080; it’s a
slower RTX 3090. As an $1,199 card, the RTX 3080 Ti
is a discounted RTX 3090 that, like that card and the
Titans before it, should be seriously considered only by
content creators and Powerball winners. As such, it
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content creators who might be able to take the VRAM
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their render times. But for gamers, the RTX 3080 (and
AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT, for that matter) are both
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options for 4K gamers headed into the second half of
this, the craziest of all GPU years.

PC MAGAZINE DIGITAL EDITION I SUBSCRIBE I JULY 2021

REVIEWS

HARDWARE

Apple iMac 24-Inch: Best
Mac Desktop for Everyday
Computing BYTOM BRANT

T he original Apple iMac, which was launched at the end of the last
millennium, is the archetype for the modern all-in-one desktop
computer. The most recognizable of all Mac desktops, its luster
diminished over the past two decades as it became less distinctive and more
OLNH LWV :LQGRZV FRPSHWLWRUV 1RZ $SSOH LV WU\LQJ VRPHWKLQJ GL̆HUHQW

The new-for-2021 24-inch Apple iMac takes the legend Apple iMac
back to its roots, adding customizable color options that 24-Inch
extend across the physical surfaces of the computer and
its accessories. Add in cutting-edge enhancements that PROS A perky
$SSOH¶V 0 VLOLFRQ HQDEOHV LQFOXGLQJ D ¿QJHUSULQW reimagining of the
reader and immensely improved image processing, classic iMac design.
DQG \RX JHW DQ H[FHOOHQW L0DF WKDW FRXOG GH¿QH WKH QH[W Color-matched
20 years of desktop computing. It wins our TechX accessories.
DZDUG IRU UHGH¿QLQJ ZKDW LV SRVVLEOH²DQG ZKDW Extraordinarily thin.
³VNLQQ\´ PHDQV²LQ DQ DOO LQ RQH GHVNWRS 5HDG WKH Available fingerprint
First Look column in this issue for more about our reader. Snappy Apple
TechX award program.) M1 processor.
Excellent camera
PICK A COLOR quality.
The new iMac’s headlining feature is color. Available in
seven hues, the new PC is a throwback to the whimsy of CONS Expensive as
designer Jonathan Ive’s original iMac case, which came configured, and for
in your choice of translucent, candy-colored plastic. screen size. Requires
There were a whopping 13 color options on the iMacs of external power brick.
WKH ODWH V %OXH 'DOPDWLDQ DQG )ORZHU 3RZHU Uncomfortable
among them), with keyboards and mice to match. keyboard. No touch
input on screen.
Limited port
selection.

BOTTOM LINE The
first major iMac
redesign in years
turns Apple’s classic
computer into a
gorgeous all-in-one
with the M1 processor,
multiple color
options, and a
stunningly thin
exterior. It’s neither
the most powerful nor
the most versatile
Mac desktop, but it’s
the best one for
everyday home
computing.

The seven current color options are more straightforward than the original
ones, an homage to Ive’s original approach rather than a return to it. You can
order the 24-inch iMac in green, yellow, orange, pink, or blue. There’s also a
purple option, very much au courant these days now that the iPhone 12 and
iPhone 12 Mini come in purple. And if you’re leery of a vibrant exterior, you can
order this iMac in classic silver.

This is a marked departure from the look of the previous-generation 21.5-inch
L0DF ZKLFK LV DYDLODEOH RQO\ LQ D VLOYHU ¿QLVK 7KH XQLW $SSOH VHQW XV IRU UHYLHZ
LV \HOORZ ZKLFK DW GL̆HUHQW OLJKWLQJ FRQGLWLRQV WKURXJKRXW WKH GD\ DSSHDUV
goldenrod to my eyes. And there’s a ton of color to behold on the new iMac, no
matter which hue you choose. The entire back of the device is clad in color-
PDWFKHG DOXPLQXP :KHQ GD\OLJKW ¿OWHUV WKURXJK WKH ZLQGRZV DERYH P\ GHVN
everything behind the iMac is bathed in a faint yellow glow.

Part of the reason for all the color, Apple says, is that it envisions you using the
new iMac in places throughout your house, from the kitchen to the bedroom.
That’s a departure from the previous iMac generation, which the company says
LV PRVWO\ XVHG LQ SURGXFWLYLW\ VHWWLQJV VXFK DV ṘFHV

The color extends to the prominent, oversized “lip,” “chin,” or whatever you call
the portion of the front of the iMac below the screen. Oddly, there’s no Apple
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just a vast expanse of color. The actual bezels of the 24-inch screen are white
regardless of which color you choose.

Your color choice also extends to the peripherals and cables. The Magic Mouse,
the Magic Keyboard, and the optional Magic Trackpad have color-matched
aluminum sides and surfaces that match the design of the new iMac. Even the
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wireless peripherals are made from a woven, color-matched material. No other
all-in-one PC I’ve seen in the past few years has such consistent colorways. This
is taking the Steve Jobs fence-repair parable to the extreme: Even if it will likely
be hidden from view, the design still needs to match the rest of the device.

THINNER THAN AN iPHONE
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AIO by the standards of previous iMacs. Even more impressive, it’s tiny by
phone and laptop standards. Not including the stand’s depth, the screen portion
of the iMac is an incredible 0.44 inch thick. This is thinner than Mac laptops
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beats the 0.48-inch thickness of the iPhone 3GS.

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L0DF PHDVXUHV E\ E\ LQFKHV +:' DQG ZHLJKV SRXQGV
Compare that with the previous 21.5-inch iMac, which is 17.7 by 20.8 by 6.9
inches and weighs 12 pounds. Apple continues to sell the entry-level version of
this preceding model. Starting at $1,099, it’s $200 cheaper than the base-model
24-inch iMac.

'HVSLWH KDYLQJ OHVV WKDQ KDOI DQ LQFK RI FKDVVLV This is a truly
thickness, the iMac still includes a robust sound system. tiny AIO by the
Two pairs of woofers pony up plenty of bass, and they’re
designed to be force-cancelling so they don’t produce standards of
distracting vibrations even at maximum volume. previous iMacs.
Meanwhile, two tweeters handle the higher range. The
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ORXG DV²WKH ¿YH VSHDNHU VHWXS RI WKH +3 (QY\ $OO
in-One, which has two tweeters, two medium drivers, tiny by phone
and one woofer. and laptop
standards.
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smaller and lighter chassis is the decision to jettison the
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it’s better to have a smaller AIO with an external power
brick or a larger one with a built-in power adapter and
one less item cluttering up your desk. Whichever side of
the debate you’re on, the laws of physics dictate you
can’t have a razor-thin AIO and a built-in power supply.

The new iMac’s power brick isn’t small, but it’s well
designed, and the color-matched part of the power cord
LV ORQJ HQRXJK WKDW \RX¶OO SUREDEO\ EH DEOH WR ¿W WKH
adapter under your desk and out of sight. As a
consolation prize, you can upgrade to a power adapter
with a gigabit Ethernet port built-in. It’s a shame that
feature doesn’t come standard, but if you spring for the
option, that’s one less visible cord to have sticking out
of your iMac’s back panel.

The new iMac’s dimensions are competitive with those
of Windows AIOs that have similar-size screens. The
+3 3DYLOLRQ $OO LQ 2QH DOVR ZLWK D LQFK VFUHHQ
is 17.1 by 21.3 by 6.5 inches. Like the iMac, the Pavilion
UHTXLUHV DQ H[WHUQDO SRZHU EULFN WKDW¶V FRQVLGHUDEO\
larger than the one you plug into a laptop.

STILL NO TOUCH SCREEN
Popping color and a slim chassis are what make the new iMac look at home
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VFUHHQ LV ZK\ \RX¶G EX\ DQ L0DF WR XVH DW KRPH LQ WKH ¿UVW SODFH LQVWHDG RI D
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pixel dimensions translate to 218 pixels per inch, which compares well with the
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:LWK QLWV RI EULJKWQHVV D JORVV\ ¿QLVK DQG VXSSRUW IRU ELOOLRQ FRORUV WKH
entire P3 gamut), this screen is a joy. Onscreen elements appear crisp and
brilliant, no matter what you’re viewing. Like the high-end 27-inch iMac, the
new 24-inch version has True Tone technology, which sets the white balance
EDVHG RQ WKH URRP¶V DPELHQW OLJKW , ¿QG WKLV DGMXVWPHQW WR EH ¿QLFN\ DQG KDYH
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GRQ¶W OLNH 7UXH 7RQH \RX FDQ WXUQ LW R̆ LQ 6\VWHP 3UHIHUHQFHV

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YHUVLRQ GRHVQ¶W R̆HU DQ RSWLRQDO QDQRWH[WXUH JODVV ¿QLVK WR UHGXFH JODUH IURP
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in a variety of lighting conditions. And given the extraordinary expense of the
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prospective 24-inch iMac users are missing much.

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macOS operating system isn’t designed for touch input, of brightness,
VR WKH L0DF GRHVQ¶W R̆HU LW 7KLV LV WKH FDVH HYHQ WKRXJK a glossy finish,
the new iMac’s ideal use scenario as a kitchen PC begs
you to touch the screen to swipe through a chicken and support
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constantly reaching for onscreen elements as though I colors (the
were using a PC running Windows 10, which has robust entire P3
touch support throughout the operating system.
gamut), this
Apple suggests an alternative: Use your iPhone or iPad if screen is a joy.
you need touch input. Continuity Markup lets you sign
documents, correct papers, or circle important details in
images. Updates to the document you make on your
mobile device appear in real time on the 24-inch display.
Meanwhile, Continuity Sketch lets you create a sketch on
your iPad or iPhone that automatically inserts into any
document on the iMac. These seem like unnecessary
additional steps to me, but they’re the reality that iMac
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iMac, you probably also have an iPhone or an iPad, too.

TOUCH ID AND FACETIME IMPROVEMENTS

Following in the footsteps of the Mac mini, the 24-inch
iMac is the second Apple desktop to ditch Intel
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computing performance, the M1 enables two welcome
improvements to the iMac’s keyboard and camera.

The camera is the more impressive of the two. Like the
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immediate advantage over the 720p resolution that most
built-in webcams use, including the one in the 21.5-inch
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improved image signal processing, with the happy result
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webcam I’ve ever used on a computer.

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the 24-inch iMac and the 1080p camera in the 27-inch iMac, which is already
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PRUH DFFXUDWH VNLQ WRQHV DQG D PRUH OLIHOLNH VHO¿H

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ORJ LQ ZLWKRXW W\SLQJ \RXU SDVVZRUG %XW WKH VHQVRUV KDYH UHPDLQHG DEVHQW
from the Magic Keyboards shipped with Apple desktops until now. The sensor
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RWKHU WDVNV $V RQ WKH 0DF%RRN $LU \RX FDQ XVH \RXU ¿QJHUSULQW WR DXWKHQWLFDWH
SXUFKDVHV DSSURYH DSS SHUPLVVLRQ UHTXHVWV DQG PRUH

1RWH WKDW WKLV LV QRW VWDQGDUG LVVXH JHDU $ 7RXFK ,' The giant
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versions, is an optional extra on the 24-inch iMac. trackpad is
Unfortunately, Apple left the rest of the keyboard the excellent,
same as before, which means shallow key travel that with hyper-
makes for uncomfortable typing sessions. On the
tenkeyless version that shipped with our review unit, accurate
the keys in the bottom row are shorter front to back tracking and
than the rest, leading to a typing experience that
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premium AIO. feedback.

The Magic Mouse and optional Magic Trackpad are the
same that ship with other Mac desktops, apart from the
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comes standard; you can swap in the Magic Trackpad
instead for $50 extra or get both bundled for $129
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trackpad is excellent, with hyper-accurate tracking and
haptic feedback that feels more precise than a physical
switch for clicks. The mouse looks great, but it’s a bit
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located on the bottom, which means you can’t charge it
while you’re using it. All three wireless peripherals
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color-matched cable.

The port selection on the 24-inch iMac is an
unfortunate step backward. The base model includes
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on the back, with a headphone jack more easily
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or special cables to connect to an external monitor or a
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3 support.

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(WKHUQHW MDFN HTXLSSHG SRZHU DGDSWHU

TESTING THE 2021 IMAC 24-INCH: SPOT-ON APPLE M1
PERFORMANCE
There’s no Intel version of the 24-inch iMac, which uses Apple’s M1 chip
exclusively. Since the M1 system-on-a-chip incorporates both memory and
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can’t swap out components yourself. As with the 2020 M1 version of the
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the M1 processor, which has the same number of CPU cores but adds one more
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6WRUDJH FDSDFLWLHV UDQJH IURP *% WR 7% RXU XQLW All use speedy
FRPHV ZLWK *% $OO DPRXQWV XVH VSHHG\ 66'V LQVWHDG SSDs instead
RI WKH VORZHU VSLQQLQJ )XVLRQ 'ULYHV WKDW ZHUH SUHYLRXVO\ of the slower,
available on the 21.5-inch iMac. Our iMac sample is spinning
$1,899 before the peripherals upgrades that came in the Fusion Drives
box; the Magic Trackpad-plus-Magic Mouse upgrade that were
bring it to $2,028. available
on the 21.5-
We’ve already tested the M1’s performance in the inch iMac.
0DF%RRN $LU WKH 0DF%RRN 3UR DQG WKH 0DF PLQL ,Q WKH
chart below, you’ll see how the 24-inch iMac compares
with the rest of the M1 stable, as well as the 27-inch iMac
and a few Windows competitors. Overall, the 24-inch
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benchmark tests, but it’s not meaningfully faster than any
of the other M1 models.

On one hand, that’s a good thing; the M1 is an
extraordinarily capable processor, and beyond the camera
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performance is a breeze. I experienced no sluggishness or
hangs when installing apps, whether they run natively on
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apps. In general, macOS apps that don’t have M1-native
versions will still run on the 24-inch iMac and other M1
Macs, but they’ll be slower. For more on this situation,
check our our Apple M1 chip explainer.

On the other hand, the fact that all the M1 Macs perform
roughly the same is a mark against the 24-inch iMac. If
you’ve already got a keyboard, mouse, and monitor, it’s
hard to stomach paying at least $1,299 for an iMac when
you can get similar performance from a $699 Mac mini.
And no matter how capable the M1 is, it still can’t hold a
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5700 XT graphics card available in the top-end 27-inch
iMac we tested, though that model rings up at more
than $4,000.

For more on how the 24-inch iMac’s performance stacks up, check out the
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general productivity tasks using the web browser.

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PHDVXUHV YLGHR HQFRGLQJ²YHUVLRQ LV ,QWHO RQO\ ZKLOH WKH EHWD UXQV
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our Adobe Photoshop test measures image editing by applying a series of 10
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The 24-inch iMac was tested using the M1-native version of Photoshop, while
the other M1 Macs were tested with an older Intel version that was the latest
available when they were launched. As a result, the 24-inch iMac appears to
shows a clear improvement in image editing, although this is likely due almost
entirely to Adobe’s software improvements.
The last group of tests measures graphics performance using a mix of
standalone benchmark simulations as well as the benchmark tools built into
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the 24-inch iMac if you turn down the game’s detail settings, but this AIO is far
from a graphics powerhouse.

VERDICT: IT’S ALL ABOUT THE PROFILE
The 24-inch iMac is a welcome tribute to the iMac’s origins. Color options are
just as important now as they were in the late 1990s when you want an AIO that
looks good on your kitchen counter. Previous versions of the iMac lost sight of
that; it’s good to see a brand-new design for Apple’s mainstream desktop PC.

Switching to an external power brick and adopting the M1 processor also
confers impressive design changes, from a chassis that’s thinner than early-
model iPhones to one of the best built-in webcams we’ve seen on any computer.

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roughly the same performance as an M1-powered Mac mini that costs less than
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argue that any design improvements or camera upgrades are worth that much.

So we’ll continue to recommend the Mac mini for people who need a versatile,
mainstream desktop. Meanwhile, if you’re a power user with deep pockets, the
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it sets a formidable goal for future designers to best. We think that the lower-
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to be the best value for most families and home users.

PC MAGAZINE DIGITAL EDITION I SUBSCRIBE I JULY 2021

REVIEWS

SOFTWARE

Masterclass: Masterful
Online Learning BYJILL DUFFY

I f you drew a Venn diagram showing the best ideas from TED Talks and the
high-quality production value from the best television of the past decade,
the overlap would be MasterClass, an online learning service in the form of
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you whispering, “How is this so good?”
The cast—or rather, instructor lineup—comprises A-list talent, whether the
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reviewed MasterClass in 2019, the instructor group includes more women and
people of color, which was an area we previously called out for needing
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PRICING Masterclass
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access pass, you can watch the entire catalog of content instructors.
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and also sold access to any single class for a one-time Great breadth of
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thoughtful material
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production values.

HOW DOES THE PRICING COMPARE?

Other, similar non-degree learning courses are priced
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upgrade to a Premium Skillshare membership, which
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sew or write a memoir or create 4D scenes in After
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The Great Courses Plus costs $20 per month, $45 for three months, or $150 per
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WHAT MAKES MASTERCLASS DIFFERENT?
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Second, the classes are supremely high quality in both production value and
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time working with the instructors to create an outline and sequence for each
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example she makes with the mics without losing your grasp on her normal
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Compared with other online learning sites, MasterClass has fewer courses and a
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WHAT (AND WHO) IS INSIDE MASTERCLASS?
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GETTING STARTED WITH MASTERCLASS
When you start a course, you can read an overview of everything it contains,
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Most lessons are anywhere from 6 to 20 minutes long, and most courses are at
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content, too, such as David Lynch explaining transcendental meditation for 17
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THE MASTERCLASS EXPERIENCE
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respected magicians of the last 100 years and a longtime consultant and
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Penn and Teller invite magic students onto the set to learn and practice
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Later videos in the course on magic bring in more experienced performers, and
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the craft, philosophical underpinnings, and showmanship culminate on the
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for television, but on MasterClass you get the full theatrical performance at its
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CURATION FOR INSPIRATION
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some of these hour-long sessions can give you insight into a particular
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PC MAGAZINE DIGITAL EDITION I SUBSCRIBE I JULY 2021

REVIEWS

SOFTWARE

Movavi Video Editor Plus:
Fun, Good-Looking Video
Production BY MICHAEL MUCHMORE

M ovavi’s goal for its video-editing software is to enable simple movie
and clip creation, avoiding the sometimes needless complexity of
the competition. That sounds great, but does it pan out in practice?
After all, creating compelling videos often requires lots of advanced tools and
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product quickly. The short answer? Yes. Movavi Video Editor Plus is one of the
best we’ve seen at packing a lot of capability into a non-intimidating interface.

PRICING Movavi Video
You can get Movavi Video Editor Plus for a one-time Editor Plus
payment of $59.95 or as part of a suite subscription that
includes other Movavi applications. It’s a good deal, PROS Easy-to-
compared with the going rate of $99 to $129 for the understand user
likes of Adobe Premiere Elements and CyberLink interface. Transitions
PowerDirector. The Movavi Video Suite adds a format with sound. Motion
converter, screen recording, and photo editor for tracking and picture-
$79.95 per year or a one-time payment of $199.95. The in-picture tools.
Movavi Unlimited plan ($129.95 per year or a one-time Chroma keying. Quick
cost of $259.95) adds photo and PDF editing. movie-creation tool.

Movavi runs on both macOS (version 10.10 and later) CONS Lacks
and Windows (from XP to 10). It’s available in the Mac advanced trim modes
App Store but not in the Microsoft Store, unfortunately. and clip pre-trimming.
Rendering on the slow
In a good harbinger for performance, Movavi installs side. Not compatible
about as quickly as a web browser and takes up a very with Apple Silicon M1.
reasonable 280MB of hard drive space. Most consumer
video-editing software requires more than a gigabyte of BOTTOM LINE
storage these days. Movavi packs a lot of
video editing power
As soon as you start the app, the upsells appear, with into a clear, simple
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$39.95. You could, of course, just buy the whole lot with chroma key, titling,
the Unlimited subscription plan. The same window that basic keyframing, and
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however. Fortunately, this popup appeared only the It’s not quite as
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icon at the bottom-right corner of the program window fast as some of the
led to this promotional dialog on subsequent runs. competition, but it
lets you easily
produce attractive
work.

A PLEASING INTERFACE

Movavi Video Editor Plus is refreshingly uncomplicated
and labels every element clearly. Buttons down the left
rail move you between modes for Importing, Filters,
Transitions, Titles, Stickers, and more. The last group
includes important features such as Color Adjustments,

Crop and Rotate, Pan and Zoom, Stabilization, Slow Motion, and Chroma
Keying. I’d put those above Stickers (fun as they are) if I were designing the
program, though.

The Import mode includes sections not only for importing but also the
traditional Media bin that includes all project content, as well as for sounds,
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The main section layout of the program resembles that of most video-editing
software, with a source box at top-left, timeline tracks along the full width
of the bottom half of the window, and a preview player at top-right. You can
undock only the video-preview panel, but the relative size of the other panels
is adjustable.

Above the timeline, which doesn’t limit the number of tracks you can add, are
buttons for Split, Rotate, Crop, Color Adjustments, Clip Properties, Markers,
Record Video, and Record Audio. You can stop and start playback with the
spacebar and rescale the timeline with the mouse wheel + Ctrl key. Movavi
supports some keyboard shortcuts, though not the standard pro J, K, and L for
playback and I and O for in and out edits.

The Undo feature is impressive in that it works between sessions. That means I
can close a project and still undo previous actions the next time I open it.

STARTING A PROJECT
To start your video project, tap the Add Files button or simply drag media from
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what the parts of the interface are for. To add a clip to the timeline, simply
double-click it. You can also drag it, or choose Add to current position,
beginning, end, or after the current clip from a right-click menu—which is
very convenient.

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the H.265 content newer iPhones can shoot. You can also use the program’s
integrated video-capture utility to record from a connected webcam or camera.

One feature vloggers and YouTubers should appreciate is Intro mode. This lets
you create preset sequences to use at the start of all your videos, ensuring
channel consistency.

Pros may miss the ability to pre-trim clips before dropping them into the
timeline, but that shouldn’t bother hobbyists. The same goes for trimming—you
don’t get options such as slip, slide, and roll. It’s simply trimming ends or
splitting clips. Again, this isn’t likely to annoy amateurs. You trim clips on the
timeline by dragging their edges in, which immediately snaps the new, shorter
clip to its neighbor on the timeline.

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more available. There are two ways to work with transitions. One is to switch to
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action. You can also click the Transitions button above the timeline to choose a
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houses the Pan and Zoom features.

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transition for all clip joins, or choose which transition is applied to the selected
clip. You can also set the duration, and one nice thing for amateurs is that the
program never scolds you about not having enough overlapping footage—it just
creates a good-looking transition with what’s on your timeline. One oddity,
however, is that the interface lets you select more than one transition, so you
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CORRECTING AND ENHANCING VIDEOS
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audio, most of which it downloads after you click on them. A search box lets you
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The real fun starts in the More Tools section (note that it changes to All Tools
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animation, chroma key, and audio tools. The Animation page’s Advanced tab
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start and stop, is limited to size, position, opacity, and rotation, but that’s a
plus for the program’s ease-of-use objective. On the other hand, those who
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you apply with keyframes.

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that overlap on the timeline in separate tracks. You don’t get all the video-
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can resize and position the pictures to taste. A plus is the guide that appears
when your inner picture is centered either horizontally or vertically.

The Stabilization tool lets you set the accuracy and shaking parameters and
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even a severe shake was smoothed out, and the overall feel of the video was
calmer than the original.

Speed editing happens in two places. The Clip Properties panel has a Speed
slider that lets you adjust the clip speed from 10% to 1,000%. The Slow Motion
option simply lets you reduce the speed. Though it’s not on either of these
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clip in the timeline and choosing Insert Freeze Frame. Reversing playback is
also possible on the Clip Properties panel.

Motion tracking takes place in the Highlight and Conceal section of All Tools,
but you can use it for text and stickers as well. First, you choose a mask that can
be either a black shape or a blurred shape. You then have choices for feathering,
opacity, and whether you want the shape to appear as an outline. Then comes
the tracking, which can be either Quick or Precise. The latter wasn’t that slow in
my testing, and it actually stayed with the tracked subject after she passed
behind a telephone pole.

The Chroma Key tool starts with green as the key, but a dropper lets you use any
background color in the shot. You can also adjust the tolerance, noise, edges,
and opacity. It works, but not as well as with some competitors. Corel
VideoStudio, for example, lets you choose more than one background color to
key out.

INSTANT MOVIES
Movavi’s Montage Wizard lets you throw some media at the program and have
it build a movie for you automatically, complete with a background soundtrack.
You start by choosing Create Quick Video and adding your media. You then get
a selection of templates including Family, Memories, and Travel, and you can
view a preview of the template’s look and feel before you use it. The last step is
to choose the music mood you’re looking for before you preview your video.

The tool adds striking titles to the start and end of the movie, and though it’s
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shooting with a smartphone in portrait orientation. After creating the project,
you can edit the creation in the full editor, save it as is, or upload it to YouTube
or Vimeo.

TITLES AND TEXT
You get a plentiful choice of tasteful and sassy titles, many with animation. As
noted above, you can motion-track titles. Resizing them and moving them
around the preview screen, thankfully, is WYSIWYG—something not all editors
are capable of.

You get a wealth of font and color choices, and you can choose a background
color and outline (aka stroke). Once a title looks to your taste, you can save it as
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AUDIO
A line on the timeline track lets you lower or raise clip
volume—a capability Adobe Premiere Rush lacks. You
expand the Audio Editing entry in All Tools to get to the
relevant controls.

Impressively, a Synchronization option lets you shoot
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multicam editing, which Movavi lacks. There’s also an
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Telephone, and Robot. Other programs, such as Adobe
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environments, such as a cathedral or stadium. Finally,
Movavi includes a Beat Detect feature that adds markers
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PERFORMANCE
Movavi did pause occasionally when I was working with
four-clip, picture-in-picture content, but it was responsive
on the whole for normal editing. It was also stable: I
experienced no crashes at all while working with it—
something that’s unfortunately rare in the video-editing
software world, even with apps from big companies like
Apple, whose Final Cut software used to crash frequently.

Movavi uses graphics hardware acceleration with all three
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proxies for high-resolution content for faster editing. In
my video project rendering text, the program turned in
decent if not leading numbers. For the test, I created a
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(some 1080p, some SD, some 4K) with a standard set of
transitions and rendered it to 1080p30 MPEG-4 at
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outliers). I tested on a PC running 64-bit Windows 10 Pro
with a 3.4GHz Core i7 6700 CPU, 16GB RAM, and an
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MOVAVI ON THE MAC
The Apple macOS version of Movavi Video Editor Plus has feature parity with
the Windows version, and happily, it’s available on the Mac App Store, to ease
installation, updating, and use on multiple computers. Movavi’s system
requirements state that the software requires an Intel-based Mac, but I had to
test on an M1-based MacBook Air, since my Intel-based MacBook Pro
succumbed to a fatal error while running Final Cut Pro.

The program looked the same as on Windows, but there was an issue with
previewing any video content aside from that shot on an iPhone. In Movavi on
the M1-based Mac, video previews became still images, aside from content shot
on the iPhone. The audio played normally, but I was unable to render the test
project. A Movavi rep told me that M1 native support would come “in a while,”
and I’ll update this review with testing results once the update drops.

MOVING PICTURES WITH MOVAVI?
I really enjoyed using Movavi Video Editor Plus for testing during this review
and recommend it for consumers who want to create fun, good-looking videos.
Unlike many consumer video editors, it’s not intimidating and overloaded with
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including chroma keying, transitions, title text, picture-in-picture, music and
audio editing, and even motion tracking. It’s not the fastest at rendering
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major drawbacks.

For the most power and performance in video editing software, check out our
Editors’ Choice winners, CyberLink PowerDirector and Corel VideoStudio Pro.
On the Mac, for easy editing, stick with iMovie, and for advanced work, look to
Final Cut Pro.

PC MAGAZINE DIGITAL EDITION I SUBSCRIBE I JULY 2021

FEATURES

BY ERIC GRIFFITH

The work-from-home era has truly arrived.
Fast broadband internet that keeps you
productive as well as entertained is
paramount. No matter where you live in
the country, we’ve pinpointed the ISP that
can meet your need for speed.

E very year at this time, we pull data collected from the PCMag Speed
Test and crunch the numbers for download and upload throughput to
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best speed, period—both national and regional. Let’s see what surprises await
in 2021.

WINNERS: THE FASTEST ISPs IN THE UNITED
STATES

MAJOR ISPs
Fios by Verizon
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PCMag Readers’ Choice awards from those who use it. And the results from our
PCMag Speed Test demonstrate why Fios has also been one of our top fastest
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cable providers are edging closer to the kind of speed only Fios once seemed
capable of on such a massive scale.

ALL ISPs
Empire Access
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northern Pennsylvania, has been around for 125 years. Now Empire Access also
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networks crank out the speed in the past, but this year they all fell to this small
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speeds are so epic, even Google can’t keep up.

HOW WE RATE ISP SPEEDS
You can skip this part if you already have a keen understanding of how we
calculate an index to rate speed. But if you don’t, give this a read; the charts
below will help illustrate our method.

“Internet speed” is a measure of the throughput from your computer to a web
server (upload) and from a web server to your computer (download). A lot of
online tools can help you measure speed. For this story, the only one that
matters is the personalized PCMag Speed Test, because we want speeds as
measured by the PCMag community.

Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings. Similarly, whenever a person
clicks Go on the PCMag Speed Test, it collects information on your ISP’s
download and upload speed, plus a lot of other information—such as your IP
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and ISP’s name.