NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT: The Only Card That Matters
by Derek Wilson on October 29, 2007 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- GPUs
Getting Cocky: 8800 GT vs. the GTX
We've already established that NVIDIA's new 8800 GT is better than the 8800 GTS, and we've just proved that the 8800 GT is a much better value than the 8600 GTS, but how does it fare against the current king of the hill - the GeForce 8800 GTX?
We would be out of our minds to expect the 8800 GT to even remotely compete with the GTX, but the real question is - how much more performance do you get from the extra money you spent on the GTX over the GT?
Because the 8800 GT does top the 8800 GTS, there is an even smaller gap between the 8800 GT and the GTX than between the existing $400 and $500 parts. With a smaller difference in performance than the GTS and about a $250 to $300 premium for the 8800 GTX beyond the part that falls one step down in performance, we really don't see much motivation to purchase the 8800 GTX.
Of course, there are exceptions to this, and people who own 30" displays and have deep pockets will still want the best of the best in their boxes, which means the 8800 GTX/Ultra SLI setup that will be necessary to get the most out of Crysis when the game finally makes its way on to shelves this fall. NVIDIA still owns the high end market, and while it's not for everyone, it is there for those who need it.
But back to the real story, in spite of the fact that the 8800 GT doesn't touch the GTX, two of them will certainly beat it for either equal or less money.
We've already established that NVIDIA's new 8800 GT is better than the 8800 GTS, and we've just proved that the 8800 GT is a much better value than the 8600 GTS, but how does it fare against the current king of the hill - the GeForce 8800 GTX?
We would be out of our minds to expect the 8800 GT to even remotely compete with the GTX, but the real question is - how much more performance do you get from the extra money you spent on the GTX over the GT?
Because the 8800 GT does top the 8800 GTS, there is an even smaller gap between the 8800 GT and the GTX than between the existing $400 and $500 parts. With a smaller difference in performance than the GTS and about a $250 to $300 premium for the 8800 GTX beyond the part that falls one step down in performance, we really don't see much motivation to purchase the 8800 GTX.
Of course, there are exceptions to this, and people who own 30" displays and have deep pockets will still want the best of the best in their boxes, which means the 8800 GTX/Ultra SLI setup that will be necessary to get the most out of Crysis when the game finally makes its way on to shelves this fall. NVIDIA still owns the high end market, and while it's not for everyone, it is there for those who need it.
But back to the real story, in spite of the fact that the 8800 GT doesn't touch the GTX, two of them will certainly beat it for either equal or less money.
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gamephile - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
Based on benchmarks and price this card is finally in the sweet spot for me which means I can finally ditch my ATI X300! I only have one question remaining and that concerns the noise level. How does it compare to the 8800GTS? Why was this omitted from your review?Vidmar - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
Ditto! Noise please!!!DerekWilson - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
we didn't measure noise, as it's a reference board which doesn't necessarily reflect final boards available from OEMs.of course, since you guys want this, we'll try to add it to future GPU launch articles.
For now, it'll have to suffice to say that it isn't a loud card, and it doesn't seem any louder than the 8800 GTS.
Missing Ghost - Tuesday, October 30, 2007 - link
Theses times most retail cards are pretty much the same as the reference cards...michal1980 - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
I want to know too. If its bettern then my 8800gts 640. I'll ebay that card now for the 8800. esspically with the smaller cooler and quiter.Dantzig - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
Tom's Hardware did a noise comparison and found that the 8800GT was as quiet or quieter than any of the other 8800 series cards, the 8600 series, and the 2900XT.gamephile - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
Yeah I saw that, I would just like confirmation from a source I trust.mpc7488 - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
Lol - nice.The Tech Report did a good review, they have noise figures on page 7. http://techreport.com/articles.x/13479/7">Tech Report 8800GT Noise Levels
gamephile - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
Also the power consumption image doesn't load for me either. I'm not behind any firewall or proxy.DerekWilson - Monday, October 29, 2007 - link
i'll look into the power graph thing