Testing and Results

To test the Zbox, we installed Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit from a USB memory stick, and proceeded to run a series of tests that we thought would best represent what the device was capable of. Graphs where applicable are provided below, and a more in depth discussion of the testing and results can be found on the next page.

Media Benchmarks

Download from: bit-tech.net

We've developed our own suite of benchmarks using real-world and open-source applications to simulate how PCs are actually used. The suite comprises an image editing test using Gimp, a video encoding test using Handbrake, and a multi-tasking test using 7-Zip to archive and encrypt a large batch of files while an HD movie plays in mplayer.

A score of 1,000 means that the test system is as fast as our reference PC, which used a 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 at stock speed, 2GB of Corsair 1,066MHz DDR2 memory, a 250GB Samsung SpinPoint P120S hard disk and an Asus P5K Deluxe WiFi-AP motherboard. The scoring system is linear, so a machine scoring 1,200 points is 20 per cent faster than our reference system. Equally, a system scoring 1,200 is 4 per cent faster than a system scoring 1,150.

Gaming - Skyrim

Publisher: Bethesda

Our Skyrim benchmark includes the latest version of the official high resolution texture pack, available as a free DLC. We record a sixty second manual play through just outside the town of Whiterun during a thunderstorm. We use a section where we are able to run forward in a straight line for a minute without being attacked so the benchmark remains consistent, and use the third person camera view.

We use FRAPS to record the minimum and average frame rates of three play throughs, and report the average figure for both.

Gaming - Left 4 Dead 2

Publisher: Valve

Our Left 4 Dead 2 benchmark is a sixty second manual play through during the opening section of the game's first level. Wielding dual pistols and keeping the flashlight on, we clear the first three rooms on the left of the enemy filled corridor as well as the right hand room. We leave anti aliasing disabled but set everything else to high and enable multicore rendering, recording the average minimum and average frame rates with FRAPS over three play throughs.



Read our performance analysis on the next page.