Pixelated Images On New Windows 7 PC


  1. Posts : 4
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
       #1

    Pixelated Images On New Windows 7 PC


    Hello,

    I'm not sure if this is the proper part of the forum in which to be posting this thread as I don't yet know if the issue is a problem with the hardware or software, so please excuse me if I've erred.

    I recently purchased a Gateway FX6860-UR20P Desktop PC with an Intel Core i7-2600 processor running @ 3.4GHz, 8GB DDR3 RAM & ATI Radeon HD 6750 video card. The OS is Windows 7 Home Premium, 64-bit.

    I'm experiencing an excessive amount of pixelation whenever I zoom into any photo file I happen to be viewing. I know that the pixelation is not native to the viewed files because when magnified in a similar fashion on my other machine, which is a ten year old Gateway 500X with Pentium 4, XP and NVidia GeForce4 MX-440 graphics card using the same monitor, the same files look fine, i.e., they exhibit a smoother graininess which is the way they look on other PCs as well.

    The pixelation is clearly being generated by some component of the new machine, but I cannot determine if the video card, some part of the mobo, the OS or even a bad driver or setting is at fault. The Gateway/Acer service technicians couldn't determine this either since they shipped the unit back to me and claimed they couldn't see any problems.

    I've posted two screen captures of a small jpg file, the first as it appears on the new unit with excessive pixelation, and the same file again as seen on the older machine, minus the pixelated distortion, which is how it should look:





    I also notice the same type of pixelation when viewing low quality, small frame videos similarly zoomed in and even some fonts of html pages exhibit subtle amounts of pixelation too, as does Weather Bug's temperature icon as viewed in the system tray (though other system tray icons seem strangely unaffected).

    I'm scheduled to send the tower back to Acer's service center once again, but I am worried about the very real possibility of the unit being returned to me once again in the same condition in which I shipped it out. Needless to say, I'm extremely upset about having purchased a brand new PC containing this issue right out of the box and sincerely hope that somebody in this forum might be able to offer some suggestions as to how this problem might be corrected, should Gateway/Acer fail to do so.

    Thank you in advance.
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 7,730
    Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-Bit
       #2

    Welcome to Windows Seven Forums.

    If I was a betting man I'd go for the graphics hardware.

    As it's a new machine you are absolutely right to send it back.

    If Acer can't fix the problem they should either replace the computer or give you a full refund.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 4
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
    Thread Starter
       #3

    seavixen32 said:
    Welcome to Windows Seven Forums.
    Hey, thanks mate, I appreciate that.

    seavixen32 said:
    If I was a betting man I'd go for the graphics hardware.

    As it's a new machine you are absolutely right to send it back.

    If Acer can't fix the problem they should either replace the computer or give you a full refund.
    I've already owned the unit for over 30 days, just about two months now, minus the original packing materials & box it originally shipped in (their service center discards those & ships the units back in generic packaging), so it's highly unlikely they'll refund anything now.

    I certainly hope Acer will ultimately do something to rectify the situation, but the very fact that they claim to be unable to even see the problem I'm experiencing is not encouraging, so far.
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 7,730
    Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-Bit
       #4

    You have consumer law on your side.

    The fact is you have been sold goods that are not fit for purpose and Acer are legally and morally obliged to supply you with a working system.

    I don't know what the trading standards laws are like in the US, but here in the UK they are very strict and give consumers protection for electrical goods up to a period of six years from purchase.

    If Acer won't play ball, your local trading standards department and local press are powerful weapons.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 1,814
    XP / Win7 x64 Pro
       #5

    This is a well-known issue with the graphics rendering engine for Win7 vs. XP. I've been there, done all that, and it has nothing to do with your graphics card. Win7's rendering engine "EVR" doesn't use the same rendering/smoothing techniques as XP's "VMR" does, so it's just something you have to get used to, unfortunately. This will also be noticeable with videos. In order to get better playback, you might want to check out Shark007's codecs:

    Win7codecs

    The good news is that it doesn't sound like there is anything wrong with your machine.
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 4
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
    Thread Starter
       #6

    FliGi7,

    I'm glad you posted here. I actually found this forum because of you. I started binging (googling) the subject of pixelation with Windows 7 and your threads came up in search. Since you obviously know a lot about this, I had actually wanted to PM you prior to starting this thread, just in case you had discovered some fixes or workarounds which would render this thread unnecessary. I didn't do it as there seems to be no PM function currently in this forum, at least not one that I can find.


    FliGi7 said:
    This is a well-known issue with the graphics rendering engine for Windows 7 vs. XP.
    I've needed to upgrade from my old PC for 3-4 years now, but I had heard so many negative things about Vista that I decided to wait a bit longer for Windows 7. Then I still held back until I could see what models of PCs were available for what price, then I made sure to read as many reviews as I could for the various machines. Frankly, I never came across one single reference to pixelated images with Windows 7 in any review prior to purchasing my current machine. Certainly none of the reviews I read for the Gateway FX-6860 ever cited this problem, as I would have further researched it prior to making the purchase. BTW, I'm just stating my experiences thus far, so please don't think I'm criticizing you in any way. Far from it.


    FliGi7 said:
    I've been there, done all that, and it has nothing to do with your graphics card. Windows 7's rendering engine "EVR" doesn't use the same rendering/smoothing techniques as XP's "VMR" does, so it's just something you have to get used to, unfortunately. This will also be noticeable with videos. In order to get better playback, you might want to check out Shark007's codecs:

    Win7codecs

    The good news is that it doesn't sound like there is anything wrong with your machine.
    Actually that's bad news, for me anyway. I didn't delay the purchase of a new PC for several years and then spend $900 on what I thought was the ideal unit for my purposes so that I could instead have a machine that's incapable of even properly reproducing various types of images as well as the decade-old machine I wanted to replace, did.

    It's incomprehensible to me that such a glaring defect could exist with a new OS in the second decade of this millenium. I thought that digital technology was supposed to improve, not regress! Seriously, does Gates actually field test any of his stuff before releasing it to the public??

    Thank you for the codec links. They'll be good to try if all else fails. However, there's no excuse for the existence of such an egregious, as well as fundamental defect in an OS. Equally troubling (for me) is that Gateway/Acer claims to not see the problem. Whatever the fault is, even if it's the OS, I still expect Gateway to rectify the situation somehow. Buying a unit which malfunctions out of the box, for whatever reason, is completely unacceptable!
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 4
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
    Thread Starter
       #7

    seavixen32 said:
    You have consumer law on your side.

    The fact is you have been sold goods that are not fit for purpose and Acer are legally and morally obliged to supply you with a working system.

    I don't know what the trading standards laws are like in the US, but here in the UK they are very strict and give consumers protection for electrical goods up to a period of six years from purchase.

    If Acer won't play ball, your local trading standards department and local press are powerful weapons.
    I may have to go that route since I do intend to pursue this further if that becomes necessary. Again, thank you for your input.
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 7,730
    Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-Bit
       #8

    You're very welcome, Bill.

    I noted your comments about Vista, which have some substance and it's often said that Windows 7 is the operating system that Vista should have been.

    Personally, I find Windows 7 is so much better in many ways, speed and reliability to mention two.

    I do hope Acer help you out in your predicament. It might even help your cause if you mention Windows Seven Forums in terms of bad publicity.

    The bottom line is that they should help you get what you paid for: a trouble-free operating system.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 1,814
    XP / Win7 x64 Pro
       #9

    bill77 said:
    Actually that's bad news, for me anyway. I didn't delay the purchase of a new PC for several years and then spend $900 on what I thought was the ideal unit for my purposes so that I could instead have a machine that's incapable of even properly reproducing various types of images as well as the decade-old machine I wanted to replace, did.

    It's incomprehensible to me that such a glaring defect could exist with a new OS in the second decade of this millenium. I thought that digital technology was supposed to improve, not regress! Seriously, does Gates actually field test any of his stuff before releasing it to the public??

    Thank you for the codec links. They'll be good to try if all else fails. However, there's no excuse for the existence of such an egregious, as well as fundamental defect in an OS. Equally troubling (for me) is that Gateway/Acer claims to not see the problem. Whatever the fault is, even if it's the OS, I still expect Gateway to rectify the situation somehow. Buying a unit which malfunctions out of the box, for whatever reason, is completely unacceptable!
    I know how you feel. Trust me. I've been there and thought/said the same things. How could this supposedly great, new OS have such a glaring error like this that seems so simple to correct? Fortunately, I stuck with Win7 and I absolutely love it. I've gotten over that and don't even notice it anymore. In fact, that's really the only major gripe I have with the OS, but it no longer matters because it is just so exceptional otherwise. I do hope you stick with it and realize all of the other benefits Win7 has to offer. It's a bit of a learning curve, as with any other OS change like this, but it really is worth it.

    All is not lost, though, if you really must have an image viewer that can zoom without pixelating. Some image viewers incorporate their own rendering engines that don't produce these pixelated images. I believe Picasa is one, along with Fastone Image Viewer and Irfanview. I would suggest you download and try one of these out to see if it helps. I know it's terrible to have to download a third party app to get some of the same core functionality as XP, but again, it's really just a small hurdle to get over, no matter how large it seems now.
      My Computer


 

  Related Discussions
Our Sites
Site Links
About Us
Windows 7 Forums is an independent web site and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation. "Windows 7" and related materials are trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

© Designer Media Ltd
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:16.
Find Us