NVIDIA GeForce SDR Roundup (February 00)

So you have it narrowed down to a GeForce SDR as the setup you want in your next video card. The next step is to choose which card you want. Upon first glance, the cards in the SDR GeForce market may seem identical. Many have very similar features, due to the fact that they all are based upon the same processor. When the cards are compared, however, it is possible to distinguish the best from the rest. With this in mind, lets take a look at the best.

AnandTech's pick for best SDR GeForce card goes to ASUS V6600 Deluxe for many reasons. First off, the 5 ns SGRAM that the card uses provides great stock speed and even better overclocking speed potential. By choosing to use a non-reference design with the card, ASUS was able to fit in many extras that are not found on any other SDR GeForce card (as well as any DDR GeForce card, with the exception of ASUS's own V6800 Deluxe). The video-in features allow for any home movie buff to edit videos, write them to CD-ROM, or produce on-line videos. The built-in VR port and included glasses are fun to play with for a while and are always neat to show friends, but their true usability is easily questioned. The hardware monitoring and great cooling also make the V6600 Deluxe stand out from other SDR GeForce cards. The only negative side to a card having so many nice and useful features is the fact that its price runs nearly as high as some DDR GeForce cards. The advantage to getting this card over a DDR card is the video-input and output features. If these are important to you, the extra price of the V6600 Deluxe is easily justified.

For those out there with price concerns (which are many people in the SDR market), the Gigabyte GA-GF2560 seems to be the most logical decision, hence it places runner up in the roundup. As far a price/performance ratio goes, the high overclocked speeds (which may vary from card to card), good cooling methods, and low price all make the Gigabyte card a strong performer. The reference design and use of reference drivers may take away from the card's originality, but it also allowed Gigabyte to produce a card that is on par price wise with its competition. The major downside to this card is the fact that many Gigabyte products are in short supply. Even picking up one of there older TNT2 cards can be a challenge. If you can find the GA-GF2560, it is a very strong buy.

The decision of which video card to buy is often a difficult one. Prices are high and features are similar, traits which could leave the you, the consumer, with your head spinning. Hopefully, by reading the roundup, looking at the candidates, and seeing performance, your decision of which card to buy will be a bit easier.