The Card

As we mentioned before the current availability for all GeForce 8800 GT cards in general is quite poor but the excessive demand is likely the reason. In the particular case of the Inno3D board because it's built following the Nvidia reference card design, we expect it to sell for around $260 tops. Other than the Inno3D label on the fan, there is very little distinguishing this Inno3D graphics card from the Nvidia reference board.

The smaller 65nm design of the GeForce 8800 GT allows it to operate at 600MHz, which means that the 8800 GT core is clocked 25MHz higher than the 8800 GTX.

Inno3D is shipping their 8800 GT with an overclocked core at 650MHz. The GDDR3 memory also works at an impressive frequency (1.8GHz) matching the 8800 GTX. The 8800 GT features 112 SPUs clocked at 1.50GHz. Then we have TAUs (Texture Address Units) of which the 8800 GT features 56, along with 16 ROPs (Rasterization Operator Units). All in all, these are extraordinary specifications for a sub $300 graphics card.

Compare those specifications to the high-end priced GeForce 8800 GTX which features 128 SPUs clocked at 1.35GHz. There are 32 TAUs (Texture Address Units) along with 24 ROPs (Rasterization Operator Units). This means the 8800 GTX features 14% more SPUs, though they are clocked 11% higher on the 8800 GT. Then the 8800 GT has 75% more TAUs while the 8800 GTX has 50% more ROPs, so comparing the two on paper is very difficult. The 8800 GTX does feature a 50% wider memory bus which will give it a significant advantage (but for a few hundred dollars extra, too).

Inno3D is shipping their GeForce 8800 GT with Qimonda ICs on-board (HYB18H512321BF-10 parts). These GDDR3 memory modules are rated at 2.0GHz, which should give you a bit of overclocking room given that the Nvidia specification is only 1.8GHz, and Inno3D clocks it at 1.9GHz out of the box. The card features 512MB of this memory on a 256-bit memory bus, allowing for a memory bandwidth of 57.6GB/s, which is less than that of an 8800 GTS.

The Inno3D GeForce 8800 GT we tested used the standard Nvidia reference cooler, which comes with its pros and cons. The biggest advantage is that it is a single slot job, taking very little room particularly when compared to the 8800 GTX, for example. The disadvantage is that the cooling efficiency is not optimized, there is less copper/aluminium and the fan is smaller which can also make it louder. The operating volume of this graphics card was not too offensive, though it was about as loud as our Inno3D GeForce 8800 GTX graphics card.

At the rear of the Inno3D GeForce 8800 GT there is the standard S-Video output along with dual DVI outputs. The DVI output supports dual-link interface for resolutions up to a staggering 3840x2400. There are also a number of cables supplied with the card which will help the user utilize some of these features. The GeForce 8800 GT is also the first 8800 series graphics card that can support two 30" LCD monitors, which is certainly an impressive feature.

The Inno3D GeForce 8800 GT comes in a compact little 8800 series box with all the typical cables and connectors. Once inside this box the user will discover a few CDs, cables and the user's manual. Also included is a full-version of the action title Tomb Raider: Anniversary Edition, valued at $40.