Thoughts, HEXUS.awards & HEXUS.right2reply
For just under ˜£170 where you can find it in stock in the UK -- *cough* eBuyer *cough* -- the Radeon X1800 GTO is an interesting proposition. On the one hand it's a hot, noisy board that's matched by 7600 GT performance wise, dulling its appeal, while on the other hand it's able to offer higher overall IQ if that's what you covet. Depends how much you crave the best looking pixels since that's where ATI beat NVIDIA these days.Otherwise it's a puzzling SKU. Mid-range products made from big expensive bits of silicon, especially when they just manage to hold a frames per second candle to chips half the size (and with power profiles to make the big chip look silly), never really make sense. NVIDIA are beating on ATI in a perf-per-area and perf-per-watt scenario here at comparable IQ levels, and that usually translates into nice margins.
While the consumer is mostly ambivalent to the silicon drawing the pixels, this time you're well served to pay attention. ATI can't make the Radeon X1800 GTO much cheaper without giving it away, while NVIDIA can match any price shift ATI have for this SKU while maintaining a margin, so you won't win on price with the Radeon X1800 GTO because ATI can't stomach it.
And you certainly don't win on heat, noise and power, all of which are top-tier considerations when you really think about it. So we're back to the statement at the top of the page. If you chase the best looking pixels, give the Radeon X1800 GTO a look. Otherwise the NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT is definitely what's deserving of your pennies, all other things considered. It's cheaper to run, quieter, smaller and offers up the same comparable IQ performance (and the IQ levels we test are on the radar if you consider either product) for less money.
ATI whisper that the Radeon X1800 GTO will be less than £160 in Blighty soon enough. Shame the 7600 GT is already there and Sapphire's example offers little to sway.
HEXUS Awards
Sapphire Radeon X1800 GTO
