Crazy that it's been so long. Did any site used to have as in-depth reviews as AnandTech regularly does? My impression is that AT is what pushed other sites into having such detailed hardware reviews...
In the early days Tom's Hardware did and it pre-dates Anandtech, though gradually Tom's got worse and Anandtech got a lot better and regular. I remember in the even the early days (late 90s), I stopped reading magazine reviews of 3D graphics cards and CPUs because all the reviews were so bad compared to those sites. Also with the death of Byte magazine, we lost the architecture explanations too, which those sites then filled the void for.
I don't read AnandTech a whole lot, but whenever I did, I got the impression that the site was credible and can be trusted. I hope this continues as their leadership changes.
Damn, the one-of-a-kind Anand will be missed, he's been delivering the most analytical and technically in-depth content for new hardware, several years running.
Tech journalism has just lost one of its best technical writer greats.
I've been following Anandtech since my obsession with the first Athlons. Lasting 17 years as a public figure in an extremely divisive industry with the level of integrity he consistently maintains is an amazing accomplishment. Looking forward to seeing what comes next.
Specifically, "all this" is a 17-year legacy. Incredible at his age, regardless of his wealth. XX Thousands of techies looked to a kid as the authority on hardware.
His writing looked a little weird at times, which folks took to be a foreign accent, not him actually being a kid at the time.
As opposed to 45 or 50, considering the sheer volume of incredibly thoroughly researched content he produced, for 17 years. Anand was writing better articles at 17 than almost anyone could at 32. Some people's careers don't even really start until they're 32 or older.
I remember reading an article talking about how he started anandtech when he was a teenager (maybe 16 or 17) and had to argue with his parents to let him do it.
How about when he was just getting started though. There would have been a long period when the site wasn't making money, he had to pay for hardware (which was more expensive in 1997) and he was so young he likely wouldn't have had any of his own capital. It would be interesting to know how it worked. Maybe they did send him hardware right from the start but it doesn't seem likely.
If you knew the manager of a big box electronics store in the 90's it was not hard to come by a large variety of computer parts.
The scene in 40 year old virgin where they destroy all the returns is pretty accurate to what is supposed to happen. What actually happens is they only destroy like a quarter of it.
Cool, I had a no idea. I was only really getting started in the late 90's and fortunately had family that were big into computers and would give me free parts so don't know much about that scene.
Wow - I think it's us readers that should be thanking Anand for raising the bar on technical journalism over the last 20 years. I'll miss his hands-on contributions but look forward to seeing what he turns his hand to next.
Anandtech filled (continues to fill) an important place in the industry that opened up when Byte magazine fell down. It's the one place where you always know that the hobbyist can go to to get great technical details, in an entertaining and approachable manner.
I'm super interested in seeing what Anand is up to next - I'm sure it will be something interesting.
Thank you Anand, you honestly helped me select parts for so many PC's over the years. Your work was filled with so much depth yet concise at the same time. I always looked forward to your intel chipset reviews on pins and needles back when I was in college. Your writing was literally one of a kind and really helped so many people, even if it wasn't the most important work in the grand scheme of things. I am confident no one can fill the void you will leave. This is reminiscent of the loss of Huell Howser, in the sense that your work could only have been done by you. Good luck with your future, and if you are ever in the north bay I owe you a beer!
I'm also 32, and when Anandtech started I was building PCs for myself and others. It was an incredible resource, and it's been incredibly consistent in the years since. What always struck me was his discipline and dedication, even in those early years.
Whenever there's some nifty gear announced, I always wait for the Anandtech review to purchase, and whenever I want to compare something new with something old, I know the old Anandtech review will have just the details I'm looking for.
There have been other sites that dove into particular details in more depth, but none that provided a consistently deep level across so many topics.
As much as Anand may have received an education through this journey, I know he has educated so many of us, and through that, strengthened the tech community in ways that will reverberate for years to come.
Thanks for all you have done, Anand, and please let us know what comes next for you!
Anandtech essentially replaced Tomshardware as my go-to place for information on PC hardware. Oddly enough, Tom was a doctor turned tech writer as well. Go figure.
Although not primarily a review site, Lens Rentals has a very detailed blog about all things DSLR and mirrorless camera related (http://www.lensrentals.com/blog). Lens Rentals and its blog was also started by a doctor (Roger Cicala) and he remains the main contributor to the blog.
I'm around the same age and started reading Anandtech when I was a high school teenager in the late 90s.
We scrounged together cash to play the latest version of Quake, upgraded to the latest 3dfx Voodoo cards, and overclocked our Celeron 300A chips till they burned out. Most of the info on what to do came from Anandtech and associated forum discussions.
Thanks to you, Anand, you'll always be a legend for our generation.
Ahh, the 300A. I remember being blown away by the results people were getting with that. I didn't manage to get my hands on one for a few months, but when I did I lapped the heatspreader (the only CPU I ever lapped, thanks HardOCP!), and ran it at ~540 for several months. It did get unstable and had to be dropped down after that, but it was still >500.
As much as the actual performance was awesome, the important thing for me was really the achievement around it. I was just some kid in my parents basement, and through some reading and a little elbow grease, I was able to match the performance of the most expensive CPUs in the market.
I was empowered, thanks to Anand and his ilk.
He was a legend when I was going to NC State. Rumors By 2000 were that he had a Ferrari and multiple homes. He was around the social group I was in but never got a chance to meet him.
Best wishes to Anand. I do think the site has a little to worry about though. Whenever I read a particularly well written article on the site, I think "this must be Anand" and when I jump to the byline I'm correct. He sets a quality bar by example.
I agree with Anand, the other writers have indeed been doing a tremendous job.
I've been wondering for awhile now what exactly was going on with Anand at anandtech. It was either that he was locked away writing some epic articles, or he was stepping away from the site. Good to see the issue settled publicly.
Regardless, with it also being the case that David Kanter no longer produces pieces for Real World Tech [0], I'm a bit apprehensive about the future of in-depth architecture coverage.
I don't think I've ever seen a single thing at anandtech that would qualify as "controversial". I can think of very few other journalistic endeavors for which that's true.
Thanks so very much for your leadership over the years Anand.
You kept the tech industry honest, called them out on their benchmarketing, and championed the consumer. From display quality, to poor NAND performance, and questionable frequency unthrottling, you've been there the whole time calling them out on their shenanigans.
I want the staff of AnandTech to hold on to your integrity and this resolve of yours for decades to come.
I've been proud to be a reader of yours for over a decade, from my first Abit (what a sweet board) through to the crazy world of walled-gardens and locked down devices that we now inhabit.
Thank you oh so very much for everything. You are a shining star and a damn fine gentleman. And now you've made me all sappy and sentimental... :)
Wow. I was wondering how the last couple of months had fewer and fewer articles by anand himself. And how they also became less and less relevant to what I'm interested in. I've been particularly interested in their / Anands analysis of CPUs which has been somewhat lacking. Why was nvidias Denver CPU not mentioned at all?! Where has the analysis of upcoming arm64 CPUs been?! While the quality of the tech reviews might have been the same, the direction hasn't. Let's hope they can keep on revealing and analysing CPU designs such as apples A8, nvidias Denver or qualcomms comm chips. I'm doubtful they will.. Or at least the last half year they haven't.
Last but not least, hats off to an amazing accomplishment by anand. The number of times he has revealed some deep tech info/cheating/etc which was seemingly superbly hidden is unbelievable.
This. His twitter @nerdtalker still lists him as senior smartphone editor, no mention of his disappearance (of many months) from AAT, no comment from anyone, it's surreal.
He and Anand really had a passion that IMO surpassed all the others there. I think their absence will really weaken Anandtech, although I hope I am wrong.
I went to the same high school that Anand went to (albeit several years after he attended).
It was always interesting listening to my C.S. teachers talk about Anand and how he had gotten started and everything. It was the kind of thing that inspired me to keep working and improving my skills.
"Despite the disparity in size, this David has had some winning moments against the Goliaths. Just a year ago, Anand scooped everyone in reporting on a new processor from AMD, the K6-3, well before its release. AMD officials say they don't know how he got the chip, and Anand sure isn't telling. The incident drew considerable attention to AnandTech, including a sniffy reference in PC Magazine to tests "purported to have been run with a prototype of the K6-3.""
Think there's any significance in the title echoing Bill Gates' book?
I have appreciated Anandtech a great deal over the years; the coverage of AMD's rise to the top with hammer was especially gripping. Thanks and best wishes, Anand.
60 comments
[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 81.4 ms ] threadHe strikes me as a very clever fellow. I wonder what's next for him.
Tech journalism has just lost one of its best technical writer greats.
His writing looked a little weird at times, which folks took to be a foreign accent, not him actually being a kid at the time.
If I had access to all that hardware I might have done something like that as well.
I believe manufacturers at some point just send them free hardware pieces to get reviewed.
The scene in 40 year old virgin where they destroy all the returns is pretty accurate to what is supposed to happen. What actually happens is they only destroy like a quarter of it.
I'm super interested in seeing what Anand is up to next - I'm sure it will be something interesting.
for ssd and cpu arch, anandtech was/is has been delivering the best articles for years.
I'm also 32, and when Anandtech started I was building PCs for myself and others. It was an incredible resource, and it's been incredibly consistent in the years since. What always struck me was his discipline and dedication, even in those early years.
Whenever there's some nifty gear announced, I always wait for the Anandtech review to purchase, and whenever I want to compare something new with something old, I know the old Anandtech review will have just the details I'm looking for.
There have been other sites that dove into particular details in more depth, but none that provided a consistently deep level across so many topics.
As much as Anand may have received an education through this journey, I know he has educated so many of us, and through that, strengthened the tech community in ways that will reverberate for years to come.
Thanks for all you have done, Anand, and please let us know what comes next for you!
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/21/technology/21blogger.html
We scrounged together cash to play the latest version of Quake, upgraded to the latest 3dfx Voodoo cards, and overclocked our Celeron 300A chips till they burned out. Most of the info on what to do came from Anandtech and associated forum discussions.
Thanks to you, Anand, you'll always be a legend for our generation.
Good for him to move on.
I've been wondering for awhile now what exactly was going on with Anand at anandtech. It was either that he was locked away writing some epic articles, or he was stepping away from the site. Good to see the issue settled publicly.
Regardless, with it also being the case that David Kanter no longer produces pieces for Real World Tech [0], I'm a bit apprehensive about the future of in-depth architecture coverage.
[0] http://www.realworldtech.com/
Thanks so very much for your leadership over the years Anand.
You kept the tech industry honest, called them out on their benchmarketing, and championed the consumer. From display quality, to poor NAND performance, and questionable frequency unthrottling, you've been there the whole time calling them out on their shenanigans.
I want the staff of AnandTech to hold on to your integrity and this resolve of yours for decades to come.
I've been proud to be a reader of yours for over a decade, from my first Abit (what a sweet board) through to the crazy world of walled-gardens and locked down devices that we now inhabit.
Thank you oh so very much for everything. You are a shining star and a damn fine gentleman. And now you've made me all sappy and sentimental... :)
Shine brightly, good sir!
Last but not least, hats off to an amazing accomplishment by anand. The number of times he has revealed some deep tech info/cheating/etc which was seemingly superbly hidden is unbelievable.
He and Anand really had a passion that IMO surpassed all the others there. I think their absence will really weaken Anandtech, although I hope I am wrong.
http://recode.net/2014/08/31/veteran-tech-journalist-anand-s...
It was always interesting listening to my C.S. teachers talk about Anand and how he had gotten started and everything. It was the kind of thing that inspired me to keep working and improving my skills.
For some perspective, here is a link to a 1999 feature on 17 year old Anand. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fsb/fsb_archive/1999/12/01/27...
"Despite the disparity in size, this David has had some winning moments against the Goliaths. Just a year ago, Anand scooped everyone in reporting on a new processor from AMD, the K6-3, well before its release. AMD officials say they don't know how he got the chip, and Anand sure isn't telling. The incident drew considerable attention to AnandTech, including a sniffy reference in PC Magazine to tests "purported to have been run with a prototype of the K6-3.""
I have appreciated Anandtech a great deal over the years; the coverage of AMD's rise to the top with hammer was especially gripping. Thanks and best wishes, Anand.