Looking to upgrade your current video card? Looking to upgrade to something that looks cool AND has functionality for cooling? Asus has launched a few customized cards based on ATI and Nvidia GPUs that deviate from typical reference designs.
All new cards are named under Asus’ new Dark Knight (DK) name. The new Dark Knight cards come with varying specifications, but most notably the Dark Knight Fansink that will apparently deliver "extreme" cooling and "low noise levels." Other features include the EMI shield, DIP Spring Chokes, LF PAK MOS, and Japanese made Solid Capacitors.
The new Dark Knight Fansink is manufacturer from aluminum alloy, has four heatpipes and a larger surface area. From the description and available pictures at this time (see below), it looks pretty slick. Though we find it odd that Asus chose aluminum over copper. The aluminum definitely looks cool color-wise, but based on the target audience — where’s the copper?
Hopefully we’ll get our hands on some of these for a closer look soon. For now we will leave you with some eye candy to look at and the specs of the new cards to go along with them – draw your conclusions in the comments sections!
| ASUS Dark Knight ATI GPU | |||
| Model | EAH4870 DK/HTDI/1G | EAH4870 DK TOP/HTDI/512M | EAH4870 DK/HTDI/512M |
| Graphics Engine | Radeon HD 4870 | Radeon HD 4870 | Radeon HD 4870 |
| Bus Standard | PCI Express 2.0 | PCI Express 2.0 | PCI Express 2.0 |
| Video Memory | 1GB DDR5 | 1GB DDR5 | 1GB DDR5 |
| Engine Clock | 750 MHz | 815 MHz | 750 MHz |
| Memory Clock | 3.6GHz (900MHz DDR5) | 3.7GHz (925MHz DDR5) | 3.6GHz (900MHz DDR5) |
| Memory Interface | 256-bit | 256-bit | 256-bit |
| DVI Max. Resolution | 2560 * 1600 | 2560 * 1600 | 2560 * 1600 |
| D-Sub Output | Yes x 1 (via DVI to D-Sub adaptor x 1 ) | Yes x 1 (via DVI to D-Sub adaptor x 1 ) | Yes x 1 (via DVI to D-Sub adaptor x 1 ) |
| DVI Output | Yes x 2 (DVI-I) | Yes x 2 (DVI-I) | Yes x 2 (DVI-I) |
| HDTV Output(YPbPr) | YES, via HDTV Out cable | YES, via HDTV Out cable | YES, via HDTV Out cable |
| HDCP compliant | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| HDMI Output | Yes, via DVI to HDMI adaptor | Yes, via DVI to HDMI adaptor | Yes, via DVI to HDMI adaptor |
| Adaptor/Cable Bundled | 1 x DVI-to-D-Sub adapter 1 x HDTV-out cable 1 x DVI-to-HDMI adaptor | 1 x DVI-to-D-Sub adapter 1 x HDTV-out cable 1 x DVI-to-HDMI adaptor | 1 x DVI-to-D-Sub adapter 1 x HDTV-out cable 1 x DVI-to-HDMI adaptor |
| Software Bundled | ASUS Utilities & Driver | ASUS Utilities & Driver | ASUS Utilities & Driver |
| ASUS Dark Knight Nvidia GPU | ||
| Model | EN9800GTX+ DK TOP/HTDI/512M | EN9800GTX+ DK/HTDI/512M |
| Graphics Engine | GeForce 9800GTX+ | GeForce 9800GTX+ |
| Bus Standard | PCI Express 2.0 | PCI Express 2.0 |
| Video Memory | 512MB DDR3 | 512MB DDR3 |
| Engine Clock | 775 MHz | 740 MHz |
| Shader Clock | 1950 MHz | 1836 MHz |
| Memory Clock | 2.36GHz (1.18GHz DDR3) | 2.2GHz (1.1GHz DDR3) |
| Memory Interface | 256-bit | 256-bit |
| DVI Max. Resolution | 2560 * 1600 | 2560 * 1600 |
| D-Sub Output | Yes x 1 (via DVI to D-Sub adaptor x 1 ) | Yes x 1 (via DVI to D-Sub adaptor x 1 ) |
| DVI Output | Yes x 2 (DVI-I) | Yes x 2 (DVI-I) |
| HDTV Output(YPbPr) | YES, via HDTV Out cable | YES, via HDTV Out cable |
| HDCP compliant | Yes | Yes |
| HDMI Output | Yes, via DVI to HDMI adaptor | Yes, via DVI to HDMI adaptor |
| Adaptor/Cable Bundled | 1 x DVI-to-D-Sub adapter 1 x HDTV-out cable 1 x DVI-to-HDMI adaptor 1 x Power Cable | 1 x DVI-to-D-Sub adapter 1 x HDTV-out cable 1 x DVI-to-HDMI adaptor 1 x Power Cable |
| Software Bundled | ASUS Utilities & Driver | ASUS Utilities & Driver |
| Note | The card size is 4.376 inches x 10 inches | The card size is 4.376 inches x 10 inches |