ATI präsentiert Radeon X800-Serie

Die im Vorfeld veröffentlichten Spezifikationen entsprechen in groben Zügen den Tatsachen. So besitzt die Radeon X800 XT sechs Vertex-Shader und 16 Pixel-Pipelines. Im direkten Vergleich zum Kontrahenten NVIDIA unterstützt die neue ATI-Generation allerdings noch nicht Pixel Shader 3.0, sondern muss sich mit der Version 2.0 zufrieden geben. Anders als vorhergesagt wird der Chip mit 520 MHz getaktet, der Speicher mit 560 MHz (20 bzw. 60 MHz über den Erwartungen). Erste Tests bescheinigen der neuen Serie eine sehr gute Performance, sodass ATI mit NVIDIA gleichziehen kann. Wieder sind unsere Kollegen von 3DCenter vorne mit dabei, was einen Test anbelangt. In einem 30 seitigen Review tritt die Radeon X800 Pro gegen die GeForce 6800 Ultra an. Auch wenn die Kontrahenten nicht ganz ebenbürtig sind, ziehen unsere Kollegen ein positives Fazit für ATIs Gegenangriff: "ATi hat mit dem R420-Chip erst einmal exzellent nachgezogen. Zwar besitzt dieser keine Shader 3.0 Fähigkeiten, doch die verbreiterte Architektur samt den hohen Taktraten ergeben eine Performance, welche absolut ausreichend erscheint, um es mit dem NV40-Chip aufzunehmen." Andere Tests unter anderem bei CHIP Online zeigen, dass diese Aussage zutrifft. In den meisten Benchmarks liegt die Radeon X800 XT deutlich vor der GeForce 6800 Ultra, in seltenen Fällen ist sie fast doppelt so schnell. Im Handel dürften ATI - trotz des späteren offiziellen Launches - die Nase vorn haben, denn die Radeon X800 Pro soll ab heute bereits verkauft werdedn. Pressemitteilung ATI revolutionizes PC gaming with introduction of RADEON™ X800, the world’s fastest visual processor MARKHAM, ON – To the delight of gamers everywhere, ATI Technologies Inc. (TSX: ATY, NASDAQ: ATYT) today launched its RADEON™ X800 Visual Processing Unit (VPU) which will deliver the industry’s most awesome gaming experience possible on a PC. With the introduction of the RADEON X800, ATI continues its two year reign as the industry leader in high-end graphics for gaming and ushers in a new era, High Definition Gaming. Worldwide system integrators, original equipment manufacturers and board partners are excited to deliver RADEON X800 powered systems and boards beginning immediately. Gamers using computers powered by RADEON X800 will enjoy a higher performance, immersive gaming experience that looks better than ever before. This High Definition Gaming experience is the PC equivalent to watching a sporting event on an HDTV. This is made possible by the highly scalable and efficient architecture of the RADEON X800 that uses 16 parallel pixel pipes and 6 vertex pipes to process more than 8 billion pixels and almost 800 million vertices per second. “The RADEON X800 builds on the great success of the RADEON 9700 and RADEON 9800, the most sought-after high-end visual processors in the world," said Rick Bergman, Senior Vice President Marketing, General Manager, Desktop, ATI Technologies Inc. “With the RADEON X800, the design team has accomplished something that no one thought was possible. Not only have they developed the highest-performing and most efficient graphics architecture in the world, they have done so while maintaining high levels of stability, reliability and manufacturability.” ATI has used the most advanced technologies available to design and manufacture its new RADEON X800 graphics chips. Using the successful low k .13 micron semiconductor process from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd., ATI created a scalable, highly parallel and powerful visual processor that is twice as fast as today’s performance leader, the RADEON™ 9800 XT. The advanced fabrication process and leading-edge GDDR3 memory have also enabled ATI and its board partners to deliver high-performance, user-friendly graphics card solutions which will work in customer’s existing PCs without requiring radical and costly power supply or cooling upgrades. ATI will offer two RADEON X800 products, the RADEON™ X800 XT Platinum Edition and the RADEON™ X800 PRO through retail, system integrator and OEM partners. For the competitive gamers who demand the best performance bar-none, the RADEON X800 XT Platinum Edition will be powered by a 16-pipe pixel processing engine clocked at 520MHz. To take advantage of the massive pixel processing power of the RADEON X800 XT Platinum Edition the product has been paired with high-speed 1.12GHz data rate GDDR3 memory and a 256-bit memory interface. The RADEON X800 XT Platinum Edition will ship later this month with a suggested retail price of USD 499. The RADEON X800 PRO, with a suggested retail price of USD 399, will be powered by a 12-pipe pixel processing engine clocked at 475MHz. A 256-bit memory interface and GDDR3 memory with a 900MHz data rate will deliver unmatched performance in its price category. The RADEON X800 PRO is shipping immediately and customers can purchase it online through major retailers in North America starting today.