MSI's EFI BIOS
Conclusion
Published: 7th February 2009 | Source: MSI | Price: - |
Conclusion
The BIOS is starting to show its age, and navigating all of the options available on current motherboards certainly isn't quick. EFI changes this completely, and is a joy to use. It also looks a lot more friendly, and should no longer scare off first-time users.
The ability to download and update the BIOS without having to boot into Windows is very impressive, as is the ability to run and play games within the BIOS, albeit very simple ones. As a first attempt, MSI have done a good job, and there were no obvious errors apart from the update and everything appeared to work.
What we have seen today is just the beginning, and it seems genuinely exciting. With MSI hinting at the possibility of creating third-party apps and utilities, the possibilities could quite literally be endless. The change from the Legacy BIOS is radical, but one that we feel is needed. We simply can't praise MSI and their EFI technology enough.
On the whole, we were very impressed with what we have seen today. We can only hope that MSI push on with this and enthusiasts reward them by taking the technology under their wing.
The Good
+ Nice looking GUI
+ Easy to navigate and displays data nicely
+ Massive future potential
+ Can download and update the BIOS without needing an OS (within EFI)
+ Games can be played within the BIOS
+ Possibility for third-party applications
The Mediocre
* BIOS update dumps you back into a console interface
* We couldn't get our simulated update to work (Legacy BIOS to EFI)
The Bad
- More motherboards don't use the technology!
Overclock3D would like to thank MSI for providing today's sample.
Discuss in our forums here.
The BIOS is starting to show its age, and navigating all of the options available on current motherboards certainly isn't quick. EFI changes this completely, and is a joy to use. It also looks a lot more friendly, and should no longer scare off first-time users.
The ability to download and update the BIOS without having to boot into Windows is very impressive, as is the ability to run and play games within the BIOS, albeit very simple ones. As a first attempt, MSI have done a good job, and there were no obvious errors apart from the update and everything appeared to work.
What we have seen today is just the beginning, and it seems genuinely exciting. With MSI hinting at the possibility of creating third-party apps and utilities, the possibilities could quite literally be endless. The change from the Legacy BIOS is radical, but one that we feel is needed. We simply can't praise MSI and their EFI technology enough.
On the whole, we were very impressed with what we have seen today. We can only hope that MSI push on with this and enthusiasts reward them by taking the technology under their wing.
The Good
+ Nice looking GUI
+ Easy to navigate and displays data nicely
+ Massive future potential
+ Can download and update the BIOS without needing an OS (within EFI)
+ Games can be played within the BIOS
+ Possibility for third-party applications
The Mediocre
* BIOS update dumps you back into a console interface
* We couldn't get our simulated update to work (Legacy BIOS to EFI)
The Bad
- More motherboards don't use the technology!
Overclock3D would like to thank MSI for providing today's sample.
Discuss in our forums here.
Most Recent Comments
Wow, that looks pretty cool, I've got expressgate on my P5Q-E and it would be good if someone released something which was like a combination of the two, it's great being able to check something on the net in a hurry without booting into windows.Quote
I've actually had this on my MSI P45 Platinum for a couple of weeks. It's extremely simple to use, and it looks great. I'm interested to see how they will develop this for the future. What it really needs now is an Internet browser 
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Originally Posted by name='AntiHeroUK'
I've actually had this on my MSI P45 Platinum for a couple of weeks. It's extremely simple to use, and it looks great. I'm interested to see how they will develop this for the future. What it really needs now is an Internet browser
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I used a memory stick on which I had installed DOS so I could boot from it. Then I put the BIOS files on the stick, powered on, booted from stick and typed msiflash "bios name" /p. It worked it's magic and I rebooted. 
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QuoteQuote:
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Originally Posted by name='AntiHeroUK'
I used a memory stick on which I had installed DOS so I could boot from it. Then I put the BIOS files on the stick, powered on, booted from stick and typed msiflash "bios name" /p. It worked it's magic and I rebooted.
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