Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Creative Labs shopping experience:
1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Creative Labs offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Creative Labs at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.
2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about
3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Creative Labs? Wrong! If the Creative Labs is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.
4. Questions - Got a question about Creative Labs then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Creative Labs? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Creative Labs and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.
6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Creative Labs wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your Creative Labs then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Creative Labs site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about Creative Labs, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your Creative Labs, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
{{Infobox_Company | company_name = Creative Technology Limited|
company_logo = ] |
company_type = [Public company
{{Sgx|C76-->, {{nasdaq|CREAF-->|
company_slogan = Fill in|
foundation =
July 1 [|
location = [Singapore|
key_people = [Sim Wong Hoo, Founder & CEO |
num_employees = 5000|
products = [Multimedia, [Information Technology, [MP3 players|
revenue = [United States dollar1.2 billion (2005)|
net_income = {{loss--> [United States dollar0.6 million (2005)|
homepage =
http://www.creative.com/ www.creative.com
-->
Creative Technology Limited (, ) is a listed manufacturer of computer multimedia products based in
Singapore where the firm was initially founded by Sim Wong Hoo (born
1957) on July 1, 1981. It has more than 5,000 employees worldwide. Sim is the CEO and the Chairman of the company. The US subsidiary of the company is known as
Creative Labs, Inc.; this name is commonly (but incorrectly) used to refer to the entire company.
Historically, Creative is most famous for their Sound Blaster line of audio cards. At present, they are best known for their line of
portable multimedia players. Creative has also gained some attention for a legal battle with media player rival
Apple Computer. Although, this rivalry has been put to rest with the settlement of said legal battle.
History
Creative began as a computer repair shop, where Sim developed an add-on memory board for the
Apple II family computer. Later, they started creating customized PCs adapted for the Chinese language. A part of this design included enhanced audio capabilities, so that the device could produce speech and melodies. The success of this audio interface led to the development of a stand-alone sound card.
In
1987 Creative released a 12-voice sound generator sound card for the
IBM PC architecture, the
Creative Music System (
C/MS), featuring two Philips SAA 1099 chips. Sim personally went from Singapore to Silicon Valley and managed to get
RadioShack's
Tandy Corporation division to market this card. The card was however not successful and lost the competition against the
AdLib card which was using the
Yamaha YM3812 chip (also known as
OPL2). In addition to being a capable gaming card, the AdLib version was also a passable music synthesizer, which was a task the C/MS could not do.
Later, another attempt was made with the
Sound Blaster, a card featuring the same chip as found on the AdLib card and with additional digital audio capabilities for playing and recording digital samples. Creative used aggressive marketing, like calling the card a "stereo" component even though the C/MS components offered stereo, or calling the sound producing microcontroller a "DSP", hoping to associate the product with a digital signal processor. This card soon became a
de facto standard for sound cards in PCs for many years, mostly by the fact that it was the first to bundle what today is considered as part of sound card functionality: digital audio, onboard music synthesizer, MIDI interface and a joystick port.
Present day
Creative's most lucrative products are the Creative NOMAD/Creative Zen digital audio players, which is in the same market as the
Apple iPod and other portable music players. The Sound Blaster line still exists with products such as
Audigy,
Audigy_2, Sound_Blaster_Audigy_4, and
X-Fi. The soundcard market continues to be a solid performer for Creative even with the inclusion of onboard sound on most PCs, some even featuring 7.1 surround sound. The continued success is due in part to the better sound quality and richer features of an "add on" sound card. In fact, Creative's Audigy 2 line featured the first sound card to be "THX" certified. The X-Fi line was launched in 2005, with four variations of the product, including X-Fi Xtreme Music for entry level, X-Fi Platinum, X-Fi Fatal1ty which is named after professional gamer Johnathan Wendel and features 64MB onboard RAM, and X-Fi Elite Pro which is Creative's flagship product and features 64MB onboard RAM, an external breakout box, and the highest audio
fidelity in the history of the Sound Blaster line.
The modern Creative Technology has diversified considerably; Their products include large lines of MP3 players, loudspeaker systems, webcams,
video cards, computer network components, and even a
Liquid crystal display (LCD).
Creative have promised a pioneering range of mobile wireless headphones using magnetic induction technology since at least 2004, and delivered in early 2005. The product has received positive reviews.
As a corporation, Creative has recently met with some stiff competition. In July 2005, Creative Technology's shares plunged to a new all-time low of $6.25 per share http://fyad.org/bdt9 as a result of poor sales in the 4th quarter of 2004 / 1st quarter of 2005 despite a US$100 million campaign to take on
Apple Computer and the highly-successful
Apple iPod range. This represents a significant change from the $50 their shares commanded in 1998. In August 2005, it was announced that Creative's losses for that quarter amounted to US$31.9 million, going into the red for the first time in three years. Q3 FY2006 losses were US$114.3 million. In June 2006, their stock price was $5.22 per share (up from a low of $4.64).
In May 2006, Creative sued media player rival Apple Computer, alleging patent infringement . Apple quickly filed a countersuit , following the suit again in early June with a second countersuit .
On August 23rd, 2006, Apple and Creative settled all their patent lawsuits out of court; with Apple paying Creative $100 million to licence a software patent, and Creative signing up to Apple's Made For iPod programme.
Products
TX FM 512mbCreative is most well-known for:
Criticism
Since the release of
Windows Vista in January of 2007, there has been a failure by the company to deliver "working" audio
device drivers for many of its Sound Blaster Audigy series set of sound cards for
Windows Vista . As a result there has been much outcry from customers.
See also
References
External links
- Official Creative site
- Creative Open Source site
- Yahoo! - Creative Technology Ltd. Company Profile
- USA Today article on Creative
{{Infobox_Company | company_name = Creative Technology Limited|
company_logo = ] |
company_type = [Public company
{{Sgx|C76-->, {{nasdaq|CREAF-->|
company_slogan = Fill in|
foundation =
July 1 [|
location = [Singapore|
key_people = [Sim Wong Hoo, Founder & CEO |
num_employees = 5000|
products = [Multimedia, [Information Technology, [MP3 players|
revenue = [United States dollar1.2 billion (2005)|
net_income = {{loss--> [United States dollar0.6 million (2005)|
homepage = http://www.creative.com/ www.creative.com
-->
Creative Technology Limited (, ) is a listed manufacturer of computer
multimedia products based in Singapore where the firm was initially founded by Sim Wong Hoo (born
1957) on
July 1,
1981. It has more than 5,000 employees worldwide. Sim is the CEO and the Chairman of the company. The US subsidiary of the company is known as
Creative Labs, Inc.; this name is commonly (but incorrectly) used to refer to the entire company.
Historically, Creative is most famous for their Sound Blaster line of audio cards. At present, they are best known for their line of portable multimedia players. Creative has also gained some attention for a legal battle with media player rival Apple Computer. Although, this rivalry has been put to rest with the settlement of said legal battle.
History
Creative began as a computer repair shop, where Sim developed an add-on memory board for the Apple II family computer. Later, they started creating customized PCs adapted for the Chinese language. A part of this design included enhanced audio capabilities, so that the device could produce speech and melodies. The success of this audio interface led to the development of a stand-alone sound card.
In 1987 Creative released a 12-voice sound generator sound card for the
IBM PC architecture, the
Creative Music System (
C/MS), featuring two
Philips SAA 1099 chips. Sim personally went from Singapore to
Silicon Valley and managed to get
RadioShack's
Tandy Corporation division to market this card. The card was however not successful and lost the competition against the
AdLib card which was using the
Yamaha YM3812 chip (also known as
OPL2). In addition to being a capable gaming card, the AdLib version was also a passable
music synthesizer, which was a task the C/MS could not do.
Later, another attempt was made with the Sound Blaster, a card featuring the same chip as found on the AdLib card and with additional digital audio capabilities for playing and recording digital samples. Creative used aggressive marketing, like calling the card a "stereo" component even though the C/MS components offered stereo, or calling the sound producing microcontroller a "DSP", hoping to associate the product with a digital signal processor. This card soon became a de facto standard for sound cards in PCs for many years, mostly by the fact that it was the first to bundle what today is considered as part of sound card functionality: digital audio, onboard music synthesizer, MIDI interface and a joystick port.
Present day
Creative's most lucrative products are the Creative NOMAD/
Creative Zen digital audio players, which is in the same market as the
Apple iPod and other portable music players. The Sound Blaster line still exists with products such as Audigy, Audigy_2, Sound_Blaster_Audigy_4, and X-Fi. The soundcard market continues to be a solid performer for Creative even with the inclusion of onboard sound on most PCs, some even featuring 7.1 surround sound. The continued success is due in part to the better sound quality and richer features of an "add on" sound card. In fact, Creative's Audigy 2 line featured the first sound card to be "THX" certified. The X-Fi line was launched in 2005, with four variations of the product, including X-Fi Xtreme Music for entry level, X-Fi Platinum, X-Fi Fatal1ty which is named after professional gamer Johnathan Wendel and features 64MB onboard RAM, and X-Fi Elite Pro which is Creative's flagship product and features 64MB onboard RAM, an external breakout box, and the highest audio fidelity in the history of the Sound Blaster line.
The modern Creative Technology has diversified considerably; Their products include large lines of MP3 players,
loudspeaker systems,
webcams, video cards,
computer network components, and even a Liquid crystal display (LCD).
Creative have promised a pioneering range of mobile wireless headphones using
magnetic induction technology since at least 2004, and delivered in early 2005. The product has received positive reviews.
As a corporation, Creative has recently met with some stiff competition. In July 2005, Creative Technology's shares plunged to a new all-time low of $6.25 per share http://fyad.org/bdt9 as a result of poor sales in the 4th quarter of 2004 / 1st quarter of 2005 despite a US$100 million campaign to take on Apple Computer and the highly-successful Apple iPod range. This represents a significant change from the $50 their shares commanded in 1998. In August 2005, it was announced that Creative's losses for that quarter amounted to US$31.9 million, going into the red for the first time in three years. Q3 FY2006 losses were US$114.3 million. In June 2006, their stock price was $5.22 per share (up from a low of $4.64).
In May 2006, Creative sued media player rival Apple Computer, alleging patent infringement . Apple quickly filed a countersuit , following the suit again in early June with a second countersuit .
On August 23rd, 2006, Apple and Creative settled all their patent lawsuits out of court; with Apple paying Creative $100 million to licence a software patent, and Creative signing up to Apple's Made For iPod programme.
Products
TX FM 512mbCreative is most well-known for:
Criticism
Since the release of Windows Vista in January of 2007, there has been a failure by the company to deliver "working" audio
device drivers for many of its Sound Blaster Audigy series set of sound cards for
Windows Vista . As a result there has been much outcry from customers.
See also
References
External links
- Official Creative site
- Creative Open Source site
- Yahoo! - Creative Technology Ltd. Company Profile
- USA Today article on Creative
Creative Labs : Home Page - The leader in Digital Entertainment for ...
Provider of multimedia products and peripherals for personal computers.
Sound Blaster - Creative X-Fi, Audigy, Live!, Accessories
Sound Blaster, the industry standard in PC audio, offers a full range of quality audio cards and accessories. A Sound Blaster solution exists for all demanding audio applications.
Creative Worldwide - Select your region and country
2008 Creative Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.
Creative | United Kingdom | Welcome
Creative is the worldwide leader in digital entertainment products for the personal computer and the Internet. Famous for its Sound Blaster and for launching the multimedia ...
Amazon.co.uk: Creative Labs EP-630/A Earphones: Electronics & Photo
Amazon.co.uk: Creative Labs EP-630/A Earphones: Electronics & Photo ... Was: £17.02 : Price: £7.99 & eligible for Free UK delivery on orders over £15 with Super Saver Delivery ...
Creative Labs
Sound Blaster - Hear to Believe
X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro Series Get the fastest performance. ... 2008 Creative Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.
Creative Worldwide Support
Welcome to Creative Worldwide Support. Get technical help for your Creative products through Knowledgebase Solutions, firmware updates, driver downloads and more.
Australia.Creative.Com - The leader in Digital Entertainment for your ...
Australia.Creative.Com - The worldwide leader in Digital Entertainment products for your personal computer and the Internet with Sound Blaster Sound Cards, NOMAD MP3 Players ...
Home - Creative Labs: Connect
Creative Labs: Connect allows our developers, end-users, and partners to connect to us and exchange feedback, previews, and resources.
