It seems that this generation of graphics cards has just about reached its peak with ATIs X850 XT Platinum, announced recently. It has now been confirmed that nVidia has scrapped plans for an intermediate NV48 board, deeming the 20-30 MHz gain as an insignificant improvement. Strangely enough the NV48 boards were expected by Q1 2005, something which suggests nVidia had a hard time deciding whether to continue or scrap the project. In the end, the decision to not go down the NV48 road may have to do with a few details of the status of the graphics war this time around. Due to, much discussed, intricasies of the battle between ATI and nVidia, the latter company has an edge regarding certain technologies such as Shader Model 3.0 meaning that its flagship board, 6800 Ultra, cannot be outperformed by any current ATI board in Doom 3 and UT 2004. While you would think that ATI can still claim the speed crown since its X850 XT Platinum will outperform all rivals in most other games, that remains a matter of opinion. nVidia's SLI setup, allowing 2 graphics cards to work in unison, may give the U.S. company an edge, even though that is not a clear card-to-card battle but a comparison of two systems.
Leaving the politics aside, ATIs X800 XT PE board is expected to clock in at 540/1180 offering a small improvement over the X800 series but also a very small price increase.
The fll list of new models includes the Radeon X850 XT Platinum Edition, Radeon X850 XT and Radeon X850 PRO. The boards will offer processing capabilities of a 16 pixel pipe and 6 vertex engine architecture. The new Radeon X800 XL and Radeon X800 products take the same, Radeon X800-series, features and capabilities and drive them to new, low price points.
The new Radeon X800-series products will be available in 16 and 12 pixel pipe configurations with a 256-bit memory interface and will feature technologies and capabilities such as:
- 3Dc technology for increased performance and improved image detail;
- GDDR3 memory for lightning fast memory speeds;
- VIDEOSHADER HD with programmable video performance;
- Flexible multi-display options, including dual-DVI for customers using multiple flat panel displays; and
- VIVO (video-in, video-out) options for customers wanting to take advantage of the amazing multimedia and video-capture capabilities of the VPUs.
The Radeon X800 XT Platinum Edition will begin shipping immediately and the full family of RADEON X800-series products will be available by the end of the year.
