ATI Buyer's Guide, Part III: All Graphics Cards!

Features
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published

Power Consumption

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Header Cell - Column 0 Power Consumption (2D) in wattsPower Consumption (3D) in watts
eVGA 7800 GS AGP183238
Sapphire 1600 Pro AGP181220
HIS X1900 XTX143358
Powercolor X1900 XTX145360
Gecube X1900 XTX145360
Sapphire X1900 XTX145360
HIS X1800 XT iTurbo152344
Sapphire X1800 XT OC160352
Sapphire X1800 XL145270
HIS X1800 XL136266
MSI RX1900 XTX-VT2D512E140355
Sapphire X1300126225
Sapphire X1300 Pro125226
Powercolor X1300127226
HIS X1600 XT iTurbo IceQ130238
Powercolor X1600 XT130242
Sapphire X1600 XT132240
Gecube X1800 GTO133253
Asus X1600 XT Silent130240
ATI Radeon X1900 XTX Crossfire180520

The power consumption of our test system ranged from 124 to 398 watts. The GeForce 7600 GT marked the low end in 2D mode at 124 W; the 7800 GT SLI combo marked the high end at 398 watts in 3D mode, with the 6800 GS SLI duo and the Radeon X1900 XTX close on its heels with 385 watts and 360 watts respectively. Combining two Radeon X1900 XTX cards in Crossfire mode drew about 520 watts; overclockers can expect power consumption to rise by an additional one to three percent as well. The peak values represent the maximum power draw that can be expected and were measured under full load.

Heat

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Header Cell - Column 0 Temperature (2D) in degrees CelsiusTemperature (2D) in degrees FahrenheitTemperature (3D) in degrees CelsiusTemperature (3D) in degrees Fahrenheit
eVGA 7800 GS AGP5212668154
Sapphire 1600 Pro AGPTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
HIS X1900 XTX5212692198
Powercolor X1900 XTX5412994201
Gecube X1900 XTX5412994201
Sapphire X1900 XTX5412994201
HIS X1800 XT iTurbo6114291196
Sapphire X1800 XT OC6214491196
Sapphire X1800 XL6014074165
HIS X1800 XL5913870158
MSI RX1900 XTX-VT2D512E5312793199
Sapphire X1300Temperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
Sapphire X1300 ProTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
Powercolor X1300Temperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
HIS X1600 XT iTurbo IceQTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
Powercolor X1600 XTTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
Sapphire X1600 XTTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
Gecube X1800 GTO5513169156
Asus X1600 XT SilentTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayedTemperature not displayed
ATI Radeon X1900 XTX CrossfireRow 19 - Cell 1 Row 19 - Cell 2 Row 19 - Cell 3 Row 19 - Cell 4

Heat output has dropped noticeably on both the GeForce 7600 and 7900 cards, which Nvidia produces on an improved 90nm process. Even with its very high frequencies, the GeForce 7900 GTX only reaches a moderate 66°C, thanks to its very good cooling solution. However, it is the GeForce 7600 GT that produced the lowest heat in 2D mode - its large and silent cooler has no trouble coping with the card's moderate temperature of 44°C.

Graphics cards using Radeon 1300 and 1600 GPUs do not have a temperature sensor. The Radeon X1800 XT and X1900 XTX cards produce the most heat, operating at more than 90°C. The peak values represent the highest temperatures that are to be expected, and were measured under full load.

Tino Kreiss