ATI AIW Radeon X800XT AGP Video Card Review :: The Bundle

• A-I-W X800XT AGP video card
• Output dongle
• Input dongle
• AVI/IO hub
• RCA cable
• S-Video cable
• FM Antenna
• Power cable
• Remote Wonder II
• USB receiver for RWII
• Guide+ Plus Extended Program Guide
• Pinnacle Studio 9 ATI version
• Muvee AutoProducer
• Matchware Mediator 7.0
• Visual Communicator Web

The bundle for the A-I-W X800XT is as comprehensive a bundle for a video card that I've ever seen. Hardware wise the A-I-W X800XT AGP board comes with a Input and output dongle (read the included instruction manual to figure out what goes where for your particular devices). Then you get an AVI/IO hub that connects to the card, a RCA cable, a S-Video cable, the FM antenna, a power cable for the extra power the X800XT needs, and a Remote Wonder II.

The Input and Output dongles are kind of cool and new to the A-I-W series. Input dongle provides 1 S-Video connection, 1 composite, and 2 RCA stereo audio connections, while the output connection dongle features 1 S/PDIF, 1 S-Video, 1 composite, and 2 RCA stereo audio connections. You can stack the dongles making for easy economy of space around your computer. You attach these dongles to the AVI/IO hub then connect the hub to the card.

The FM antenna is for the included FM radio. I like the fact that a FM radio is included with the A-I-W X800XT, as it's an added bonus. The AVI/IO hub has connections for both the FM radio and the cable TV. Simply attach an antenna or cable to the correct connector and you're good to go. Some amplified TV antennas also have the ability to get the FM signal as well, alleviating the need for using the FM antenna.

Software wise, the A-I-W X800XT comes with an excellent bundle as well. Pinnacle Studio 9 is the latest version of Pinnacle's video editing software. Pinnacle allows you to transfer your video to the PC, edit it with sound and titles, and play back the edited video. Matchware Mediator 7.0 allows you to create multimedia presentations using Flash, HTML and CDs.

The Remote Wonder 2 is ATI's second remote control device. To be honest, this remote is a lot bigger than I expected. The main new feature of the RWII is doubling in range from 30 feet to 60 feet. The available buttons on the RWII are similar to those found on a normal TV remote control. Aux 1, Aux 2, Aux 3, Aux 4 buttons that are backlit, programmable and can be set up to control user-defined devices. A, B, C, D, E, F buttons are also programmable bringing the total programmable buttons on the RWII to 12. The DVD and TV buttons are obviously to bring up the applications to turn on the TV and DVD. Other important buttons include the Aspect ratio button, TV on demand jump to previous/next program, close MultiMedia Center, and the various TV-On demand/DVD buttons. Most of those are self-explanatory.

Discuss This Article