The TR Podcast 103: Down and dirty with the 7970

	Date: January 8, 2012 Time: 1:37:08 Hosted by Jordan Drake Co-Hosts: Scott Wasson, Geoff Gasior, Cyril Kowaliski, and special guest David Kanter Download: MP3 (70.1MB) | M4A (95.3MB) Subscribe: RSS (MP3) | RSS (M4A) iTunes (MP3) | iTunes (M4A)
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Show notes
We ring in a new year of tech reporting this week with listener mail, a monster review, and special guest. After answering questions from listeners Mike and Daniel, Scott and guest co-host David Kanter of Real World Technologies get down and dirty with AMD's new Radeon HD 7970 GPU—a monster of a card that prompts some intense discussion and dissection.

Then, we take a look at the games we can't wait for in 2012, including Mass Effect 3, Far Cry 3, and a slew of other exciting titles. Finally, Geoff and Cyril discuss Geoff's review of Asus' Eee Pad Transformer Prime tablet.

Send in listener mail, and we'll answer on the podcast. - jdrake@techreport.com

Follow us on Twitter - Scott - Jordan - Geoff - Cyril - The Tech Report

Listener mail/tweets:

Antivirus? (0:01:45) - from Mike:

"Hey guys, I'm the "computer guy" among the people I know so I get asked to repair computers and remove viruses quite often. I typically use SuperAntiSpyware (SAS) and MalwareBytes along with AVG to clean out an infected system. SAS has a special download where I can run a single .COM file and it is entirely self contained. The last virus I tried to remove eluded SAS but not MalwareBytes. MalwareBytes is the best in my experience but it requires a directory in My Documents to store the virus definitions. Is there a better, portable antivirus program like SAS that I can run off of a flash drive? And what do you typically use to clean out an infected system?

P.S. Jack Stack BBQ is the best in the KC area....just so you know"

SSD for my MBP?(0:11:20) - from Daniel:

"Hey guys, First, I want to let you know I have listened to The Tech Report for the past several years. It has always been a treat to hear every episode because the group manages to explain very complicated topics in a manner that is discernible to affluent geeks.

Second, my question. I have an aging Late 2006 Macbook Pro that has never given me a problem. It's another testiment to the Mac. I still have the same harddrive that originally came with the Mac. A 120 GB. I know I want a new Macbook Pro but if this laptop is still humming I need to purchase a new drive. I have multiple ways I backup...no worries there. I would appreciate knowing what is the best SSD I can install in my old Macbook Pro to give it an extra boost while knowing it will be used when a new Macbook Pro is needed. My SATA link speed indicates 1.5 Gigabit. Old..I know. If I get a SATA drive with 3 Gigabit speed, will it work with my older Macbook Pro? What brand, price, and other indicators should I look for in a new SSD drive? 120 GB seems the most affordable bang for my buck. Agree? BTW. I am fully capable of installing the SSD in the 2006 Macbook Pro. It's a pain but I got it. (Geoff suggests that Daniel check out the SSDs from this site)

Thank you so much for the response and the show!!"

Tech discussion:

AMD's Radeon HD 7970 graphics processor - (0:17:16) - Read more

2012 to bring a bounty of new PC games - (1:01:02) - Read more

Asus' Eee Pad Transformer Prime tablet - (1:08:21) - Read more

That's all, folks! We'll see you on the next episode.