just some chatter....

http://rage3d.com/board/showthread.p...916399&page=53


"Hi Man,
According to me, if the 4870 is 3/4 the speed of the 280, there are
major problems for nvidia. Not just this round, but next round. This
round, single GPU performance crown is already handed to Nvidia, for
good reason, that chip will be a beast. Enter...the wild card.
CrossfireX.
Lets say you have $425 you are going to spend, and you want yourself
some kickass graphics. If the 260 manages to plummet that far, there
is that option....or these readily available HD 4850's in crossfire.
Thats like having two supremely overclocked 9800GTX's in SLI.
3950/3970. If these cards come out, and clock high enough to match a
8800GT, and be cheaper....balls. Here are the definites..

****G92b IS A 9800GT! NOT A 9800GTX! A MID TO LOW END GPU!!!!! It is
not the savior of everything single-core nvidia!!****
-4850 annihilates an 8800GT/9800GT, but will cost more.
-4850 is 5-10% better than a 9800GTX(from henceforth the 9800GTX will
be known as rye bread), and will cost less than the rye bread I speak
of.
-4870 is in its own class, and quite possibly could be as fast as a
GTX 260.
-3870X2. Where do I start? If this cards drivers are enhanced enough
to make it perform close to two 3870's in crossfire, and be
consistent, CURTAINS. It is now officially over. $300-350 for a card
that will be faster than a 4870, and faster than a GTX 260, without
the need for crossfire....please. Its cheaper to make than two 3870's,
and nVidia will have this stigma of losing to a previous gen, dual GPU
card that STILL uses less power. I am telling you man, if this
situation comes to pass, I think the 3870X2 availability might vanish
because of the popularity. It won't take the place of the 4870, but it
will evenly round out ATI's price points.
-2 x 4850's own a GTX 260, and compete with a GTX 280.
-2 x 4870's mop the floor with a GTX 280, and have time to smoke a
cigarette to calm down afterwards.

Those are just the facts man.

But now the hitch. Nvidia's price drop will make it so two 4870's are
more expensive than a GTX 280. Smart, but costly. That means that
Nvidia loses money for each and every sale. No breaking even, if parts
fail(which they will with that kind of heat), you have replacement
cost. One thing you gotta say about the 2900's....they didn't croak
that often. Not 7900GT, 8800GT, or 8800GTS kind of problems. Anyway,
if the cards fail a bunch...consider the GTX 280 a rehash of the
7800GTX 512, and the GTX 260 a top end part. Making ATI a contender
for the crown. Overclocked 4870's....I think so. Now think about
this...a previous generation 3870X2, defeating a GTX 260...the highest
performing available card in nVidia's arsenal....at $350~.


What did the five fingers say to the face???? SLAP!!!!"