RADEON X850 XT 512MB: Not a Significant Design Challenge

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ATI Technologies showcased on Thursday its first graphics card with 512MB of GDDR3 memory, especially noticing that the design challenge about the actual board was not that serious. Still, it is yet unclear whether and when such products are projected to emerge in retail. “I wouldn’t think this would be a substantial rework, certainly not like designing a new board design from scratch,” ATI’s spokeswoman Patricia Mikula said.

ATI RADEON X850 XT 512MB graphics card looks similar to ATI’s RADEON X850 XT 256MB flavour: both have nearly the same power supply circuitry, coolers, etc., the actual difference is in memory layout. ATI Technologies, the world’s largest supplier of graphics and multimedia processors, will demonstrate its graphics cards with 512MB of onboard memory at the Texas Gaming Festival in Dallas, February 25th to 27th, 2004.

News source: X-bit labs

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#1 M2Ys4U on 25 Feb 2005 - 15:44

bring on 1024

#2 Boogiman on 25 Feb 2005 - 15:45

Me wantzz...........................

(4 replies) #3 stezo2k on 25 Feb 2005 - 15:45

personally i don't see the need 128MB is fine enough as it is really

#3.1 jerry on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:03

nah 128MB chokes when I go higher than 1280x1024, so 256MB is fine enough for most games.

#3.2 ThaCrip on 25 Feb 2005 - 18:47

personally i think 128MB is pretty much the standard nowadays... 256MB i would get if it aint to much more money, cause the performance differance between 128MB and 256MB is MINMAL!... 512MB as of today is pretty much overkill.

cause the only game out there i know of that actually "can" use more than 128MB of ram on a video card is DOOM3.

and another thing... by the time games actually use 512MB of ram on a vided card, that card will be SLOW by that time anyways!!! lol... so whats the point in making 512MB cards now?

but hell, i aint complaining since like someone said... it will drive down prices of "older" video cards

p.s. i know we will "eventually" need 512MB cards but like i said above... i got some good points.

Last edited by 83525 on 25 Feb 2005 - 18:52

#3.3 todd` on 25 Feb 2005 - 22:46

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? The memory on the video cards or the games that use that much memory?

The point of introducing 512MB cards now is so game developers can start making games that take advantage of 512MB of video RAM. You can't expect a game that requires 512MB of video RAM to come out when no cards support it.

#3.4 Sub on 27 Feb 2005 - 04:29

Everquest 2 can take advanteage of 512

(1 reply) #4 Hills420 on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:10

A 512MB video card seems a little overkill. Games don't even take advantage of the 256MB on my X800Xt....

#4.1 ThaCrip on 25 Feb 2005 - 18:53

exactly... most games still aint even taken advantage of 128MB cards yet... theres a decent ammount but only game i really know of that uses the full 128MB is doom3.

instead of making a 512MB card... they should have made a faster 256MB card or 128MB card.

(7 replies) #5 iconboy on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:18

omg, people still have the whole "this is not needed, its overkill" mentality. Technology is only going to march forward and until we have colonies in the whaever solar system and humans and technology have so greatly melded together that we have cyborgs and people that can use technology with their minds, it will NEVER be enough. It reminds me of when bill gates said 640k of memory "should be enough for anyone". I remember 4 years ago i got 1G of RAM and people were saying i was crazy!

#5.1 Surr3al on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:22

Yeah, because you wasted your money on 1gb of memory.

All in all, this is just ATi's attempt to compete with coming out with the biggest and the best. Afterall, they've been out of the spotlight for a little while.

#5.2 Ryster092 on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:23

I think what people are scoffing at is that getting 512 now is not worth the expense seeing as you will see no benefit now. You are better getting a cheaper 256mb card now and getting a new one a few years down the line when you need it.

#5.3 nic on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:50

QUOTE

omg, people still have the whole "this is not needed, its overkill" mentality.

You're right. I think people don't like new technology to come out because they feel like their equipment is getting obsolete and they will have to drop a large sum of money in order to keep up-to-date. This isn't further from the truth. I try to use all the old equipment where I work. Just got some PIII 500 upgrade and now thinking about what I can use these "old" machine for (machines I would have killed for 10 years ago). If anything it drives down a lot of prices into an afordable range for some people.

#5.4 iconboy on 25 Feb 2005 - 17:02

Im in 3d animation, so 4 years ago 1 gig of ram in my machine didnt seem like a lot to other animators

and the truth of the matter is, noone and i mean noone NEEDS the latest and greatest, but if people dont start making new advancments now, when the new games that NEED this power come out, if the 512Mb havent been in production they will be A) TOO expensive for normal people to buy and B) Too new with flawed drivers.

#5.5 nic on 25 Feb 2005 - 18:37

noone and i mean noone NEEDS the latest and greatest

No one really needs most of what they have. We don't really live in a need based society. We live in a want based society, and there are plenty of people out there that are going to want this.

#5.6 ThaCrip on 25 Feb 2005 - 18:55

unless u have money to burn... people would be plain stupid to buy a card like this. cause it's probably gonna cost 400-600 dollars or so is my guess... this is just WAY WAY WAY overpriced... i would say anything over 200 dollars for a video card aint wise to pay... cause u can get the bulk of the performance at a fraction of the price.

#5.7 ThaCrip on 25 Feb 2005 - 18:56

double post.

(5 replies) #6 Surr3al on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:21

The world’s largest supplier of graphics and multimedia processors?

#6.1 Ryster092 on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:24

I was thinking the same thing... I thought nVidia still sold the most.

#6.2 jagedEdge on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:52

Notice it says graphics and multimedia processors, not boards. ATI Mobility chips are much more popular than the NVIDIA Go chips for laptops, and many OEM PCs today are sold with some ATI card in them.

In terms of standalone board sales, I believe NVIDIA is leading.

#6.3 jerry on 25 Feb 2005 - 18:36

Nah, ATi is still leading in Desktop AND Mobile GPU sales.(see latest Mercury Research reports)

Nvidia has a bigger share in the higher end market share which is what 20-25% of overall market.

#6.4 ThaCrip on 25 Feb 2005 - 19:01

either way myself ... i still prefer NVIDIA brand cards overall over ATI... cause i think they have less problems with driver issues etc.

there both clearly good cards but like i say i like nvidia better... although there is a possibility i "might" try a ATI card sometime in the future.

#6.5 Jason on 26 Feb 2005 - 12:49

I thought Intel was number 1 graphics chip makers, ok they may not be for games but I think they sell the most graphics chips.

#7 Richteralan on 25 Feb 2005 - 16:45

not a significant design challenge....
of course...just like 9700 > 9800 > X800 > X850

(10 replies) #8 ThaCrip on 25 Feb 2005 - 19:11

NEW FIREFOX IS OUT !

v1.0.1

#8.1 FuhrerDarqueSyde on 25 Feb 2005 - 19:21

Please stay on topic, besides we all know IE pwns your boat

and then you sez "OH NOES YOU SUNK MAI BATTLESHIP

#8.2 ThaCrip on 25 Feb 2005 - 19:51

just wanted to let everyone know is all.

dont worry i aint one of those harecore people that are obsessed with firefox... each have there flaws. neither is perfect.

#8.3 Jex on 26 Feb 2005 - 00:39

and YOU are staying on topic? haha.

#8.4 SquareSoft0 on 26 Feb 2005 - 00:46

Fanboyism at its finest. (I don't care if you're not a psychotic "USE FF OR I KILL JOO" noob, you're still a fanboy.)

#8.5 ThaCrip on 26 Feb 2005 - 18:37

ok so im a fanboy or whatever u want to call it... is that a bad thing? i dont think so.

i just like using computers is all... and i think firefox is obviously one of the bigger peices of software out there since webbrowser are something almost everyone uses alot.

so i just thought i would mention it.

#8.6 PCyr on 26 Feb 2005 - 22:30

so i just thought i would mention it.

Your original post is the very definition of spam

#8.7 ThaCrip on 27 Feb 2005 - 02:57

i dont consider this spam... as it's informing people that a new version of firefox is out is all (which alot of people like and use)... it aint like im telling people about bs that no one cares about u know?

... that would be spam if i was in here just advertiseing for some website or something like that, or sending everyone a PM about something.

i know i should have posted this elsewhere since it has nothing to do with the topic... but what the hell

#8.8 jerry on 27 Feb 2005 - 05:53

i dont consider this spam... as it's informing people that a new version of firefox is out is all (which alot of people like and use)...

Most often that not it does not matter what you think, it matters what others think or what the rules of the community are; which in this case is to stay on topic.

Hence mods are required; to keep people like you in line.

#8.9 ThaCrip on 27 Feb 2005 - 16:27

ok believe what u want to... dont matter to me. i still dont consider this "true spam" ... it's a little off topic so it probably dont belong in here but still i dont consider this the standard definition of "spam" ...

and like u said it matters what other people think... theres only like 2-3 of u guys going against me when im sure alot of the people that read stuff on neowin.net would probably want to know this information

im done commenting on this as it's taking up a good chunk of the posting on this topic... when all i originally wanted to do is inform people of a new firefox. lol

Last edited by 83525 on 27 Feb 2005 - 16:34

#8.10 PCyr on 27 Feb 2005 - 18:03

The only reason it may not be "hard core" spam, is because it's related to technology and this is a discussion on technology.

However, that's as far as it goes, there is nothing in this topic related to FF in any way. Hence, it's spam.

#9 sullysnet on 25 Feb 2005 - 20:17

this one came into work today but the 256 version, it a 500. card

DAMN

#10 timbo3 on 25 Feb 2005 - 20:26

will demonstrate its graphics cards with 512MB of onboard memory at the Texas Gaming Festival in Dallas, February 25th to 27th, 2004.

2004 huh?

#11 niel19_us on 25 Feb 2005 - 20:40

I wonder how much it's gonna cost x800 is 499.99 x850 999.99

#12 EduardValencia on 25 Feb 2005 - 20:42

that's the monster card :

(1 reply) #13 Richardo on 25 Feb 2005 - 20:44

So is this going to be called the X950 i've been hearing about today? Or x850 512mb?

#13.1 jerry on 25 Feb 2005 - 20:50

Its not an X950, its X850 XT 512MB.

#14 Mr. Dee on 25 Feb 2005 - 21:06

They must be testing it with the Longhorn Diamond tier.

This only gives me a better reason to put off my next desktop PC purchase until early or mid 2007.

#15 jerry on 25 Feb 2005 - 21:12

#16 robpears on 25 Feb 2005 - 22:03

nice screens i wuldnt mind havin that in ma pc lol

(1 reply) #17 cjrciadt on 25 Feb 2005 - 22:28

Here I'am stuck with my 64mb RAdeon Grpahics Card.

#17.1 Fat Tony on 25 Feb 2005 - 22:40

Nothing wrong with the 64mb card I had one for years and played loads of games with it and nver once had a problem with it... Mind you it was a high-end one...

#18 samriley on 25 Feb 2005 - 22:32

i think one of the reasons is that people that dont know anything about computers but for some reason want the best even though they probably only use it for solitare look at the amount of memory on the card, i work in a computer shop and the number of times ive been asked so which card has the most megabytes, and having to explain its not the memory that makes the difference its the processor on the card

#19 Fat Tony on 25 Feb 2005 - 22:39

I want one... I want one... I want one...

No I have to be patient and wait...

#20 Solarix on 25 Feb 2005 - 22:46

damn they make these cards so fast

(3 replies) #21 )(RockerBoy on 25 Feb 2005 - 23:04

how much dou you think it will cost?

#21.1 FuhrerDarqueSyde on 25 Feb 2005 - 23:07

1x Arm and 1x Leg
a.k.a. $499-$599 approx

#21.2 astrofaes on 26 Feb 2005 - 02:38

1x Arm and 1x Leg? Nah mate, it'll cost 1x Arm, 1x Leg and a couple of testes.

#21.3 b0b on 26 Feb 2005 - 04:37

..or a few fingers.

#22 wulfshayde on 25 Feb 2005 - 23:22

Yeah, I paid a lot for my X850XT PE but there is no way I'd replace it yet, I spent wayyyyy too much on it, Of course, my wife has a 6800GT... and even though I use this card a lot, Im still having problems deciding which card I like better. Both have their benefits and drawbacks, and 512MB pf GDDR3 would be another advantage that ATI could get and as far as 'no games utilizing 512MB of ram' thats from someone who obviously doesn't play EQ2. There is no system today that can run it on its highest settings, of course... this would bring it a lot closer.

#23 cooljerk_dv on 26 Feb 2005 - 02:21

some people here are saying it is overkill. I so no. If a card supports 512, games will so come out to make use of this. I've been hearing this overkill crap for the past 5 years or so. When 32mb cards where the norm, and 64 came out people screamed overkill, when 64mb cards were the norm and 128 came out, people be saying it was overkill to, again when 128 cards are the norm people said 256mb cards are overkill. I think that 256mb are becoming the norm, so as per the pattern, people are saying these 512 cards are overkill. Just wait, soon, probably a year away, 512mb cards will be the norm around these boards, and they will probably release a 1gig card, and then at that point it will be considered overkill aswell. Personally my 128mb 9800pro works just fine for me, but in probably november I wil built my self a new computer, and I will expect myself to get a nice new 512mb card to go along with it. More is never overkill, I just makes it that much more future proof (if there is such a term). I welcome the coming of this new generation of cards, and the games that will use them. I can garentee this card will be fast, and I want one, just not really the price tag that goes along with one.

(1 reply) #24 xMorpheousx416 on 26 Feb 2005 - 03:26

Well, at least there's one thing you can test besides your bank account (yet another $500 for a card that's just a bit faster, more memory...no other features)....you might be able to turn off your aperture settings so the card won't call for system memory.

#24.1 sevastopol on 26 Feb 2005 - 09:37

i would not mind paying that if im upgrading my whole system. also the diffrence i cards will be more noticeable as more demanding games are released.

#25 dhitb on 26 Feb 2005 - 08:11

I remember paying for a whole extra megabyte of local RAM on a Trident VLB card...

#26 Ecander™ on 26 Feb 2005 - 13:59

I like how no one takes notice of the two slot cooler...no more leverage using that bitches.

(1 reply) #27 LLivingLarge on 26 Feb 2005 - 21:58

Here we are at the TXGF LAN and we ran some 3Dmark tests on the ATI PIMP MY PC box.

Specs

ATI x850 XT 512MB Video Card
ATI Radeon XPress 200 Mobo
AMD Athlon FX 55 CPU
Cosair 1 GB PC3200XL Pro Dual Channel memory
2 x 74GB WD Raptor 10K SATA HD RAID 0
1 x 200GB Seagate SATA HD
480 Watt Antec NEO with custom sleeving
All American Computers DeltaT acrylic case with intergrated water cooling system.
Custom laser etching
SoundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS 8.1 sound card
Logitech MX510 red gaming mouse
Ideazon Zboard

3DMark 2005 - 6006
3DMark 2003 - 12751

Both default @ 1024x768 resolution.

Screen shots of results, the system, specsheet, and short AVI clip of the 3DMark 2003 test.

http://www.dfwfrag.com/modules.php?set_albumName=album44&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php

THE 256-BIT MEMORY BUS CHOKED THIS CARD!!!!!!

#27.1 jerry on 27 Feb 2005 - 05:54

Thanks for the scores LLivingLarge

#28 DodgeViper on 27 Feb 2005 - 00:11

Is this out yet?

#29 SU182 on 27 Feb 2005 - 04:18

Ugh, Bulky, I think it mimics the GeForce 6800 Ultra.

#30 EnIgMa-PenGuIn on 27 Feb 2005 - 06:32

I cant believe that cooler doesnt cover the ram, you'd think they'd do it considering.

#31 Logie on 27 Feb 2005 - 07:44

*wimper* I think I'll hold off until they get down to a couple of fingers..

#32 Dirtie on 27 Feb 2005 - 11:53

Seksi. Now SLI it.

(1 reply) #33 PGHammer on 27 Feb 2005 - 18:31

There are *at least* three games today that support that monster: HL2, DOOM3, and EQ II, but you would need to scale them up to Supremely Silly resolution/AA/texture settings (1600x1200 or higher with max detail and quality settings). From what I can see, this particular monster is a PCIe part. *However*, there is absolutely no reason a 512 MB AGP 8X part (based on the X800 XT, of course) isn't doable. (ATI didn't even alter the PCB size between the 256 MB and 512 MB parts!)

#33.1 DigitalFreedom on 27 Feb 2005 - 20:29

Ummm, When I had my uber good computer (which I had to sell *sniff*) I could play HL2 with full everything (EVERYTHING, Water, etc), @1600x1200 , 4xaa, and 8xaaa and it was fine at around 37-42 fps was my avrage, just to note I had a 9800pro clocked at xt speeds with 128mb of ram,

just to say AS LONG AS YOU KNOW HOW TO TWEEK, and set your pc up properly you don't need the greatest of the greatest top end stuff (mind you it doesn't hurt

) to get the performance that people with "normal" computer building skills get when installing a shiny new ati x800xt.

#34 oddcrap on 28 Feb 2005 - 01:03

How much is this retail again?

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