Microsoft has patched Windows XP to allow the operating system to decode Windows Media Video HD movies using an Nvidia GeForce 6 series GPU.

Nvidia calls its WMV-HD acceleration technology PureVideo, and it claims the system can reduce the host processor's video decode load by up to 40 per cent, by getting the GPU to shoulder the burden. The upshot, it says, are CPU resources that can now be dedicated to other tasks.