Benchmark Results: Aliens Vs. Predator
Aliens Vs. Predator isn’t cutting-edge any more, but we still like to include it as an example of a GPU-bound game that generally isn’t affected by the rest of the platform.
Charting frame rate over time gets messy as a result of the way AvP’s benchmark captures data. We do see a few events that warrant mention, though. For example, the Radeon cards achieve more consistent performance, while the GeForce-based boards fluctuate a lot more. We also see that the minimum frame rates on the minimum/average chart don’t tell the full story, since most of the graphics cards drop performance for only a short moment at the start of the benchmark.
At any rate, Nvidia’s GeForce GT 640 DDR3 doesn’t perform that well at 1680x1050 and above, dropping below 30 FPS for a significant portion of the test. The Radeon HD 6670 GDDR5 handles this game better, although we think we’d recommend 1280x1024 for smoother performance. At 1920x1080, only the Radeon HD 7750, 6750, and GeForce GTS 450 stay above 30 FPS for the vast majority of the test.
This doesn't even get close to the card placed just 10 bucks above.
Cheers!
1. With the GT440 and GT240 offering it, I can't believe someone won't quickly release a GDDR5 version. With such an obvious improvement that would be, it does not bode well for yields or other costs that DDR3 had to be used, and the card still has a $100 initial price. Can it come down to where it needs to be without becoming a "loss-leader?"
2. Pretty decent settings were used in the charts. Considering how good most modern games look even cut down to "medium" settings, that HD7750 at or near the top of the charts makes people who insist you need a $300 graphics card to play games look silly. This makes me wonder all the more what this new card could do with GDDR5, assuming it's economically feasible. Of course if it isn't, then this card simply loses except in that niche market that wants to run three monitors.
3. I think the word you were looking for in reference to the absence of a PCIE power connector is "eschew."
4. Interesting, I noted that the box image is of a Seraphim from the game Sacred 2. Might that game be included with the card, is it meant to advertise that the card supports PhysX (which Sacred 2 will use), or is there a copyright lawsuit on the way?
I think nvidia doesn't want to kill amd outright and comes up with these really bad products.