The Old is New again
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Compute This
NVIDIA wants to take its GPU outside the graphics processing threshold. It has already taken steps to that end—the largest being the introduction of its C-like CUDA interface for programmers. Where NVIDIA would like to see its GPU (and ATI too, as a matter of fact) is more general computing. To this end some programs have already been showcased—traditional tasks which are either accelerated greatly or completely executed on the GPU. Adobe, for example, showcased a version of its Photoshop application which was GPU-accelerated and was capable of quickly loading and editing a 442MP file, at 2GB size. The edits done were rudimentary—zooming in and out, rotation and so on. But as a taste of things to come it was an impressive display, given how slow Photoshop can get while manipulating large images. Another piece of software used the GPU to encode video files faster than real-time playback, yet another was a ray-tracing application which made use of the GPU. Other tasks the GPU is being called for include protein folding via a Folding@Home client and physics simulations for liquids, soft bodies, and fabrics.
Compete This
There are to be two variants based on the GTX 200 chip—the GeForce GTX 280 will be the higher-end part (priced at around $650), and the GeForce GTX 260 will lose some of its components and be priced slightly lower (at about $399). Early benchmarks show the GTX 280 to be on par with the 9800 X2 cards on some tests, and ahead of the X2 in others. Going on the data that’s out there, NVIDIA might just lose its price to performance crown to its rival’s graphic chipset. ATI/AMD has taken a completely different approach to designing its graphics part. No technical information is available to make an objective analysis between the two approaches, but from a holistic point-of-view: while NVIDIA has taken the bigger, more powerful approach; ATI has gone down the smaller, scalable route. ATI’s new chip—the RV770 seems designed to run in pairs and efficiently. Early tests put the RV770-based, single chip solution the Radeon HD 4850 within range of the 9800GTX, and at $200 or less. The 4850 in crossfire configuration gets within touching distance of the GeForce GTX 280, and at $100 less. AMD/ATI will also release a $300 card the Radeon HD 4870 which will run two RV770 chips on the same graphics card and will come equipped with GDDR5 memory—about 80 per cent faster than GDDR3 used in the GeForce cards.
One thing’s for sure—things are certainly heating up in the graphics market. At one end you have the ATI and NVIDIA rivalry, which has already lead to price drops from the NVIDIA camp; on the other hand you have the upcoming challenger to the market—Intel. Who knows what that will bring to the scene? Well, cheaper prices for sure. This is exciting times for us consumers indeed!
agent001@thinkdigit.com
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