GeForce3 VS Others
04/23/2001 1:11:09 AM MDT Albuquerque, Nm
By Dustin D. Brand; Owner AMO
The most advanced chip in the world is a graphics processor.
It's early, and I told my friend Joe I'd write this. He knows about the new GeForce3 GPU, but had no idea of it's capabilities vs other $500 - $2,000.00+ Video Cards. He said it would make a good article, and I agreed, so here we are.
Let me start by placing into the trash the argument that "Specs don't matter, they don't mean anything". Unless you're from another planet, and even if you are, Specs do matter. Specs, HardWare, or Software, or in any context, are synonymous with Features. Consumers buy products based on their SPECS which = Features, which are in essence the same thing.
Price is another issue, and the issue I'll be focusing on herein.
The GeForce3 Graphics Processing Unit by NVidia, is the worlds most advanced Processor ever created. This same, core technology is going into Microsoft's upcoming XBOX Gaming Platform. This new GeForce3 GPU is also going to make computer animators, graphic artists, game developers, and computer professionals everywhere take notice.
Currently there are seperate levels of Video Cards, as in most products which vary in price, and specs/features. On the Low end you can get the entry level GeForce2, which is 100 times less powerful than the new GF3. In the middle, you can get a higher end GeForce2, with added specs and features. At the High end, you can grab others competing directly against NVidia for around $500. At the professional level, you're looking at $500 and up for the Graphics Card, and in this particular case, the $2,099.00 Oxygen GVX420 128MB.
So how exactly can the GeForce3, which will cost $399.00, be better than a $2,099.00 Professional Level Graphics Card from 3DLabs?
1 word...TechNOL™ogy.
For the first time in history, Microsoft and NVidia worked together on making this processor, the GeForce3. Obviously, this denotes several technological advantages. NVidia, also recently acquired a leading Video Card manufacturers technologies known as 3Dfx, another advantage. More so, the GeForce3 being the worlds most advanced processor ever created, uses a .15umicron process, the first of it's kind, yeilding more transistors than Intel's most advanced chips...another advantage.
But lets get more detailed with the Specs. DirectX8, the Graphics Engine from Microsoft was designed with NVidia in mind, these added enhancement's give more boost to performance. On top of this, no other graphics processor currenty out utilizes DirectX8 fully, and all future games and applications are leaning towards this centralized utilization of DirectX8 and it's abilities, giving the GeForce3 a clear lead.
Lets focus now on the 3DLabs Oxygen GVX420 $2,099.00 Professional Graphics Card.
Advanced OpenGL graphic processors
Two new GLINT R4 rasterizers
New GLINT Gamma 2 geometry processor
128Mb graphics memory
256MB virtual texture store
2x VGA and 2x DVI-I Digital Flat Panel connectors
Stereo connector
AGP (requires free adjacent PCI slot)
Multi-monitor OpenGL support (WinNT and W2K)
PowerThreads OpenGL ICD
5 GigaFlops per Second
6.3 Million transformed/triangles per sec.
16 Simultaneous Light sources (not textures)
2048x2048x32bpp Maximum texture size/resolution
32 bit Z-buffering
Full Scene Anti-Aliasing
Anti-Aliased lines and polygons
Windows 2000 and Windows NT 4
Now, focusing back on the $399.00 MSRP GeForce3 with 64MB Ram
Over 800 Billion instructions per second.
BIG SMILE - 76 GigaFlops per second.
6:1 Texture compression ratio yeilding a conceivable 384 MB Ram, just for textures
Max of 50 Million transformed/triangles per sec.
120+ Million single textured triangles per sec.
Multi display support, Digital, Analog, and HDTV
Fully Programmable allowing custom effects, a first in history.
Focusing on DirectX8 and it's superior technology.
Windows 98, ME, XP, and 2000
I really shouldn't need to go on. Even with 64 Megs less of Ram, the GeForce3 from NVidia is not only technologically superior to any other graphic processing unit, it's better than the "Professional" Graphics card mentioned, and about 1/4 the price. As a consumer myself, I'm going to give you more good news.
If you just want to play games AND save money, get a custom version of this chip in the Microsoft XBOX for less than 1/2 the price. If you're an aspiring graphics artist or an experienced professional, get the GeForce3 for your PC and start your renders and original artworks.
For game players, nearly every game developer around has their eye on the GeForce3, most of them are already focusing on it, and if you want to play Doom3 you should get one.
If you want to learn much more about the XBOX GPU / GeForce3 GPU read my March 1st 2001 article:
The XBOX GPU, an inside look.
10/11/01 Tuesday October 11th, 2001 XBOX Launch Date...< PREDICTION
Ontogony Recapitulates Phylogony...
<___The Dustman___> out <:msg recv>
Microsoft Xbox Web-Site
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The Coming XBOX Storm.
XBOX, I'll explain Forbes...
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