MSI Packing New 3DMark with Select Graphics Cards, Mobos
Two graphics cards and one motherboard will be bundled with the new 3DMark Advanced Edition benchmark.
MSI said on Monday that it has partnered with Futuremark to bundle select video cards and motherboards with the just-launched 3DMark Advanced Edition for Windows benchmark ($24.99) during the coming winter season.
MSI is actually the exclusive sponsor of the Fire Strike demo, the "showpiece" of 3DMark and a stunning demonstration of what high performance DirectX 11 gaming PCs can do. And thanks to the OEM's sponsorship, Futuremark is able to offer the 3DMark Basic Edition as a free download for all platforms.
"MSI is proud to, once again, cooperate with Futuremark on delivering a new and defining graphical benchmark with 3DMark," the company said. "The cooperation on the "Fire Strike" benchmark for high performance Windows gaming PC's is a continuation of our efforts in delivering the best Windows gaming performance with our current 3DMark 11 record holding combination of the Z77 MPOWER motherboard and R7970 Lightning graphics card."
Based on the announcement, 3DMark Advanced Edition will be bundled with MSI's N660 TF 2GD5/OC and R7950 TF 3GD5/OC BE cards, and its Z77 MPOWER motherboard. Bundle details may vary per country, the company said, but additional information can be found here.
The company has also opened the doors to an online overclocking competition called the "MSI 3DMark Challenge". From February 4 to March 3 (4 weeks), global overclocking professionals can compete by using MSI motherboards and graphics cards, and the Fire Strike test within 3DMark.
"The competition will be divided into two parts: the top two challengers using MSI Z77 MPOWER for the competition with the highest scores will each win great items such as the MSI R7970 Lightning Boost Edition graphics card and the Z77A-GD80 motherboard," MSI said. "The Z77A-GD55 Lucky Draw activity is opened to all challengers using MSI Z77 motherboards. To enter the Lucky Draw activity, all you have to do is upload your scores before February 10."
For more information about the competition and its rules, head here. Additional information about MSI's involvement with Futuremark and 3DMark can be accessed here.
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Kevin Parrish has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and product tester. His work focused on computer hardware, networking equipment, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom's Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others.
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ipwn3r456 Umm, I think Kevin is making a Typo here. On the 3DMark website, it saids the HD 7850 will be bundled with it, but here it's saying the HD 7950...Reply -
Soda-88 I'd rather have a game or 2 bundled with that instead of something I'll use once and forget about it ever came with the board/card.Reply -
blazorthon Soda-88I'd rather have a game or 2 bundled with that instead of something I'll use once and forget about it ever came with the board/card.Reply
It doesn't say that the cards won't come with free games. AMD has another Never Settle bundle back up and it's unlikely that MSI is not shipping that in addition to this from the article. -
demonhorde665 apache_livesMSI no thankyouReply
as some one else said what's wrong with MSI ? i've built 4 computers in my life time so far , the first was with an MSI mobo , the second was with an Asus , 3rd was with an MSI and 4th was with a Biostar , and while I had no major issues with either of those builds MSI was one of the easiest to get up and going with . -
apache_lives i have built thousands of pcs a lot with MSI productsReply
1) there ram slot colouring is incorrect most of the time (AMD and Intel slot setup for dual channel)
2) there usb colour coding is incorrect when they colour them
3) msi cd burner i used to have used to burn 1 disk and need a reboot to work again wtf
4) if you take the chipset heatsinks off there boards the thermal paste is applied very poorly
5) there products are poorly designed and cheap and nasty
6) they make red Nvidia cards and Green ATI cards WTF
7) the last MSI video card i used had a huge cooler that was so bad i replaced it with a factory nvidia cooler half the size to fix it
need i say more -
pcchip The title says: "Two graphics cards and one motherboard will be bundled with the new 3DMark Advanced Edition benchmark."Reply
That makes it sound like when you buy 3DMark Advanced Edition, you'll receive two graphics card and one motherboard.