The Nvidia GeForce 9800 GX2 1GB graphics card (starts at US$599) gets a barrage of testing from Tom's Hardware, AnandTech, and Hardware Zone.
Card Features:
- G92 x 2 Core Code
- 65nm manufacturing process
- 600MHz Core clock
- 256 Stream Processors
- 1500MHz Stream processor clock
- 2000MHz GDDR3 Memory clock
- 256-bit DDR memory bus
- 128GB/s memory bandwidth
- PCIe ver 2.0 x16
HardwareZone gives it 4 out of 5 stars:
"... the NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GX2 has pretty much lived up to expectations. ... The GeForce 9800 GX2 just represents a convenient and hassle free way of having it on any system, sans an SLI compatible motherboard. Our benchmark numbers (those that seem to be working fine) gave it the advantage over ATI's competing Radeon HD 3870 X2 most of the time and that should be counted as a mission accomplished by NVIDIA since that restored them to the top of the graphics perch." [HardwareZone]
AnandTech agrees that the 9800 GX2 is top (as of now):
"As far as single card solutions, the 9800 GX2 is currently the alpha dog. ... Despite the fact that this card does lead the rest of the field in performance, its price tag will be a limiting factor. There are advantages to having the fastest card around of course, and we expect that NVIDIA will use this card to position itself as the best option in computer graphics. ... Take each case as it comes and make a decision based on what is best at that price point at that time. If your price point happens to be $600 to $650 per card, by all means, pick up a 9800 GX2. If not, make sure you do your homework." [AnandTech]
Tom's Hardware thinks it is currently the best available card, but has some reservations with its price-performance ratio:
"The GeForce 9800 GX2 is the fastest graphics card at the moment and its performance easily and consistently surpasses that of the Radeon HD 3870 X2 (42% on average and between 33% to 57% depending on the resolution chosen). ... Having said this, we do not recommend buying a GeForce 9800 GX2 for those who rarely change graphic cards and want to invest in a very high end card and keep it for a long time." [Tom's Hardware]
The Nvidia GeForce 9800 GX2 may not be for everyone, but hardcore gamers with deep pockets would surely covet one (or two). If you are more sensitive to price-performance ratios, the GeForce 8800 Ultra could still rock your boat.
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