HD 2400/2600 why no reviews

[mactronix]

Whats going on with these cards is it not normal for the press to get some to review before they go on general sale?Have googled and can only find previews
Have noticed on the forum that you can now buy one but i know i wouldnt get one without the benefit of a review.



Mactronix

 

[bfellow]

3 Letters to tell you: NDA

 

[burntham77]

I think these cards just came out. Reviews will follow shortly, I am sure.

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

Won't be any Benchies until the officially launch and remove the NDAs.

Official Launch Day is July 1st which makes no sense being a Sunday, however that it's Canada Day might be the reason the new AMD overlords picked it, but strange choice none the less (I would prefer to launch going into a weekend shopping frenzy rather than after), at least they have US independance day sales afterwards.

 

[mactronix]

Is this just because its a whole new design or is it normal im sure i have seen reviews done before time using referance boards.
Mactronix

 

[Track]

Why do u care?

The way I see it, the only people who should care about the 2600's are the ones who want to buy the AGP versions.
And the AGP version aren't due to be released with PCIe versions in July.

 

[rammedstein]

its because amd is trying not to reveal itself, be it because it has inadequacies or the inverse, is very good. everything generally has an nda but everything is so easily leaked usually

 

[mactronix]

Why do u care?

The way I see it, the only people who should care about the 2600's are the ones who want to buy the AGP versions.
And the AGP version aren't due to be released with PCIe versions in July.

Bit blunt dont you think? am i not allowed to be interested in whats happening in the gpu market place.

 

[mactronix]

Thanks for that seems they are being hush hush more so than usual which leads me to susspect the cards are duff as if they were any good there would have been an (unintentional) leak.

 

[Track]

Why do u care?

The way I see it, the only people who should care about the 2600's are the ones who want to buy the AGP versions.
And the AGP version aren't due to be released with PCIe versions in July.

Bit blunt dont you think? am i not allowed to be interested in whats happening in the gpu market place.

Do what you want. I was just pointing out that you shouldn't be interested in this particular product.

 

[yipsl]

What about if he wants an HTPC? The X2600 sounds perfect for that. As far as it goes, if AMD drops the price to as low as the underperforming 8600, then a mainstream buyer might want it instead of an X1650 Pro.

Though I'm getting an 8800GTS 640 in Sept/Oct. to replace the budget 7600GS for my gaming rig, I plan on also building an HTPC around an AMD motherboard with an X2600 by Christmas when I get a small HDTV.

If I had known there were going to be AGP X2600's I might have waited on the X1650 Pro I got to replace the Radeon 9800 Pro in my old P4 Northwood. As is, I don't think it will make enough of a difference there.

I just wish the X2900 wasn't to unrealistic in PSU requirements, heat and performance. Overall, I've bought more ATI cards than Nvidia the last five years.

 

[Hatman]

Why do u care?

The way I see it, the only people who should care about the 2600's are the ones who want to buy the AGP versions.
And the AGP version aren't due to be released with PCIe versions in July.

Bit blunt dont you think? am i not allowed to be interested in whats happening in the gpu market place.

Do what you want. I was just pointing out that you shouldn't be interested in this particular product.

These perform on par or better than the 8600gts for less money, why shouldnt they be appealing.

 

[SweetChilli]

Clearly your perception of him is incorrect. Complete the saying. 'Better to be thought a fool...'

 

[mactronix]

Hi sweetchilli noticed this was your first post so welcome to the forum.

 

[Track]

There is nothing to suggest that the 2600XT outperforms the 8600s.

Infact, due to it's inefficient architecture and small ammount of TMUs, I would put the odds in the 8600s' favor.

Thats coupled with the fact that the 8600 GT is available now for 120$, means that the 2600XT is completely worthless, excpet for AGP users. But because the AGP version won't be out for a few months, there really is no reason to be interested in this product.

I've bought more ATI cards than Nvidia the last five years.

Well, thats going to change.

 

[exarrkun]

do you work for nvidia or something?

 

[kukito]

Do what you want. I was just pointing out that you shouldn't be interested in this particular product.

Reported.

 

[Hatman]

Thats coupled with the fact that the 8600 GT is available now for 120$, means that the 2600XT is completely worthless, excpet for AGP users. But because the AGP version won't be out for a few months, there really is no reason to be interested in this product.

The 8600gt will not stand a chance against the 2600xt. The 2600pro will take that on at a MUCH cheaper price and the 2400xt just kicks the 8500gt all around the battlefield.

The 8600GTS will be its main competitor and the 2600xt is much cheaper, especially as there as going to be so many different variations. 256/512meg in gddr3/4 along with a dual chip version and some lower powered ones.

And aside from the fact that the XT version has higher clocks than the 8600gts, once they get its drivers sorted to make good use of its 120 shader possessors it will get a much needed performance boost along with the 2900xt.

Much more variety to choose from.

 

[curnel_D]

Seriously Track, you're being an extreme tool. What other people have an interest in is none of your buisness. If you cant be productive to this thread at all, please leave.

 

[Jakc]

Can someone ban that track dude allready.
What a moron.

 

[mactronix]

Just wanted to say a big thanks to all for input and support,dont know what tracks problem is but maybe we should cut him some slack could be having a bad day,happens to us all,i know its no excuse but id just as soon leave it.
Any way that aside i now have the answer to the question i first posted so thanks again all
Mactronix

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

Is this just because its a whole new design or is it normal im sure i have seen reviews done before time using referance boards.
Mactronix

It's rare you see anything more than 3Dmarks and crap-assed unscientific reviews before launch, from either company.

IT could be they aren't as good as the GF8600, or it could be like the HD2900 they don't want a bunch of dip$hits writing reviews on old drivers and then permanently etching in people's minds performance or issues that they may fix around launch. Also remember there was a problem with production that delayed launch and thus do you want people reviewing early flawed parts the way DT did or review launch product?

If you go back far enough you'll see the ONLY time companies leak launches is when they are losing that market. And the $150 market still belongs to the X1950 so why kill those sales when you want to move old product?

Personally I think the HD2600XT(X) GDDR4 model will do well against it's competition, but like the X1950Pro vs GF7900GS you are bound to see some back and forth between the two.

The main killer points will be HD playback acceleration and the how well these games handle the limited DX10 stuff out there now because the GF8600 has no killer DX10 need over an X1950Pro/XT or GF7900GS right now. So can the HD2600XT make it useable? Maybe, maybe not. But like the GF8600 it's likely to lose the DX9 race to the former higher end.

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

There is nothing to suggest that the 2600XT outperforms the 8600s.

Infact, due to it's inefficient architecture and small ammount of TMUs, I would put the odds in the 8600s' favor.

This last sentence to me proves you don't know WTF you're talking about with regards to the GF8600 and HD2600. The HD2600 can process the same number of maximum textures per clock and the HD2600 is clocked higher so it's max texture fill rate will be higher. The performance of the two will depend on the type of texture used since both benefit from different performance depending on the textures called for.

If you knew anything about these two architectures then you'd know the HD2600's weak point as I've mentioned it before, but it's not the TUs whose ratio to shaders in the HD2600 is twice that of the HD2900.

Thats coupled with the fact that the 8600 GT is available now for 120$, means that the 2600XT is completely worthless,

Except that the HD2600XT-256 is expected to sell for $99, so your price means nothing without an idea of comparative performance.

 

[LAN_deRf_HA]

Why doesn't everyone just can it till we see real benchmarks. When people speculate on performance around here they usually end up wrong anyways.

 

[yipsl]

The main killer points will be HD playback acceleration and the how well these games handle the limited DX10 stuff out there now because the GF8600 has no killer DX10 need over an X1950Pro/XT or GF7900GS right now. So can the HD2600XT make it useable? Maybe, maybe not. But like the GF8600 it's likely to lose the DX9 race to the former higher end.

I think they'll be an X2650 series that will improve performance like the X1650 series improved performance in that price range. By that time, there should be many native DX10 games out for a performance comparison.

Maybe I'm in a minority, but I don't get a new graphics card every 6 months to one year. So, I'm into future proofing. That's why I recommend an X2600 or 8600 over an X1950 Pro. If performance in the limited DX10 titles today isn't good enough to warrant an upgrade to such a low end card, then I recommend just waiting for the next generation.

I can tolerate the performance of my 7600GS in my AMD system and the X1650 Pro in my Northwood, but I'd like the best too, so I understand people not being able to wait. I just don't think an X1950 Pro or a 7900 GT will be viable for longer than a year, and even then it will just be the DX9 path in new games.