Matrix System Requirements & Recommendations

Updated February 10th, 2006

The following is a range-set of recommendations meaning that if you
choose a computer with specifications within these ranges, you will have
a good computer to run Matrix on. We encourage you to look around
before you buy to familiarize yourself with current prices and availability.
Since we are not able to test every type of processor, video card, and
monitor, please be aware that we are recommending the components that
we have had consistent success with when using Matrix. We recommend
that your computer has at least these specifications:
• 1.7 GHz Pentium M or better. Be aware that a Pentium M in a laptop will
prolong battery use but will result in slower rendering.
• 1 – 2 GB of DDR RAM
• 128 – 256 MB NVIDIA open GL video card
• 40 GB hard drive or larger
• 19 – 21 inch monitor (desktop)
• 15 – 17 inch monitor (laptop)
• 1280 x 1024 minimum screen resolution
• Windows XP Home or Professional. 64 bit and Media Center not supported.
• There are no current plans to port Matrix over to Apple Macintosh computers
pixels a monitor can display. The following detailed explanation of aspect
ratio, resolution, many of the acronyms, and their meaning are considered
advanced information intended to be self-explanatory. It is not essential to
understand all of the following to purchase a good computer for Matrix use.
For the purposes of the information below, Horizontal/Vertical (H/V)
is the ratio of the image width to height in pixels, display modes with an
H/V Ratio of 4/3 will appear to have square-shaped pixels, and distortion
occurs when the pixel size ratio differs from the physical screen size ratio.
Quad and Hex are emerging as terms for high-resolution displays.
Quad refers to 4 times as many pixels as a previous mode (2 times the
vertical and horizontal pixels). Hex refers to 16 times as many pixels as a
previous mode (4 times the vertical and horizontal pixels).
HDTV specifies an aspect ratio of 16/9 and digital broadcast HDTV
uses 1920×1080 pixels for high resolution mode. Computer display modes
are intended to be used with HDTV-style wide screen displays.Most of
the wide screen modes have a pixel width to height ratio of 16/10, which
yields pixel array dimensions easier to cope with in computer hardware
and software. The WXGA mode, with dimensions of 1366×768 pixels, is
within one pixel of a 16/9 ratio.

Processor & Memory

Matrix is processor-intensive, so getting a faster processor is always a Normal Screen Aspect Ratio (4/3)
Acronym W×H Total Pixels Name H/V Ratio
good thing. However, while a 3.6/3.8 GHz processor might be somewhat CGA 320×200 64,000 Color Graphics Adaptor 16/10
faster, there is usually a considerably disproportionate price difference EGA 640×350 224,000 Enhanced Graphics Adaptor 1.83
between them and a 3.4 GHz processor. Consider your budget when VGA 640×480 307,200 Video Graphics Array 4/3
making a choice on whether to go to a 3.6/3.8 GHz processor. Also, SVGA 800×600 480,000 Super VGA 4/3
XGA 1024×768 786,432 Extended Graphics Array 4/3
because Rhino does not take advantage of dual processors at this time, SXGA 1280×1024 1,310,720 Super XGA 5/4
Matrix cannot. However, dual core processors are supported. RAM is not SXGA+ 1400×1050 1,470,000 Super XGA+ 4/3
as critical as the processor speed for Matrix, and most pre-assembled UXGA 1600×1200 1,920,000 Ultra XGA 4/3
QXGA 2048×1536 3,145,728 Quad XGA 4/3
computers (through Tiger Direct, Dell, Best Buy, etc) contain the QSXGA 2560×2048 5,242,880 Quad SXGA 5/4
recommended minimum of 1 GB DDR RAM. QUXGA 3200×2400 7,680,000 Quad Ultra XGA 4/3
HSXGA 5120×4096 20,971,520 Hex Super XGA 5/4
HUXGA 6400×4800 30,720,000 Hex Ultra XGA 4/3
Video Graphics Card
Gemvision recommends any of the NVIDIA brand open GL video cards.
Visit NVIDIA’s website for detailed descriptions of the various models. Wide Screen Aspect Ratio (16/9 or 16/10)
Please contact Gemvision technical support if you have any questions. Acronym W×H Total Pixels Name H/V Ratio
852×480 or 408,960 or
WVGA Wide VGA 16/9
858×484 415,272
Monitor WXGA 1366×768 1,049,088 Wide XGA 16/9
A 19 inch monitor is a comfortable size for most people, but if you present WSXGA 1600×1024 1,638,400 Wide Super XGA 1.56
to a customer who is looking at the screen from a distance, a 21 inch WSXGA+ 1680×1050 1,764,000 Wide Super XGA+ 16/10
WUXGA 1920×1200 2,304,000 Wide Ultra XGA 16/10
monitor might be more effective. CRT, flat panel, and laptop monitors vary
WQXGA 2560×1600 4,096,000 Wide Quad XGA 16/10
in display appearance and quality - it’s best to visit a store so you get a WQSXGA 3200×2048 6,553,600 Wide Quad Super XGA 1.56
feel for the monitor before deciding on a size and resolution. WQUXGA 3840×2400 9,216,000 Wide Quad Ultra XGA 16/10
WHSXGA 6400×4096 26,214,400 Wide Hex Super XGA 1.56
WHUXGA 7680×4800 36,864,000 Wide Hex Ultra XGA 16/10
Resolution
The minimum resolution for Matrix is 1280x1024. Some computers may
have other resolutions that will work for you (wide, for example), but this Other Wide Screen Aspect Ratio Designations
is the most common resolution. Native Resolution is the number of pixels Acronym Alternative Designations
that the monitor was made with. Flat panel monitors are available with WSXGA W-SXGA : SXGAW : SXGA-W
WUXGA W-UXGA : UXGAW : UXGA-W : HDTV
almost any Native Resolution but must be run at that setting or else the WQSXGA W-QSXGA : QSXGAW : QSXGA-W
display will be blurry. CRT (tube-style) monitors, however, can be changed WQUXGA W-QUXGA : QUXGAW : QUXGA-W : QHDTV : HDTVQ
from their lowest to maximum resolution with virtually no quality loss. WHSXGA W-HSXGA : HSXGAW : HSXGA-W
WHUXGA W-HUXGA : HUXGAW : HUXGA-W
There are various acronyms that vendors use to designate how many

If you have any questions at all, please contact Gemvision technical support at 888.357.6272 or email matrix@gemvision.com