HIS X1650 Pro IceQ Turbo Dual DL-DVI
Introduction and Product Specifications
Not long ago, when we reviewed MSI's GeForce 7600 GT, the closest ATI-based competitor available was the Radeon X1600 Pro. It was far from an apples-to-apples comparison from a technical standpoint, however. While both models sported the same number of Pixel and Vertex Shaders and had similar prices, the X1600 Pro's performance was hampered by fewer ROPs and DDR2 memory which was clocked significantly lower that the GeForce 7600GT's GDDR3 complement.
With the recent release of the Radeon X1650 Pro, however, ATI now offers a card that matches up better to the GeForce 7600 GT, with faster GDDR3 memory and a higher GPU clock speed. The question remains, however, does the X1650 Pro incorporate enough improvements to better compete with the 7600 GT with regard to performance?
Today, we aim to answer that very question with a review of the HIS X1650 Pro IceQ Turbo Dual DL-DVI 256MB PCI Express video card. Surely, no one will ever accuse HIS of having a concise naming convention, but we've established the quality of their products in numerous reviews here at HotHardware in the past. With the X1650 Pro IceQ Turbo, HIS tweaked the GPU with an additional 25MHz over ATI's reference specifications, giving it what appears to be a sizable clock speed advantage over the GeForce 7600 GT, as well as the X1600 Pro for that matter.
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Model Name: HIS X1650Pro IceQ Turbo Dual DL-DVI 512/256MB GDDR3 PCIe Chipset: Radeon X1650 PCIe Series ASIC: RV530 / RV535 Pixel Pipelines: 12 Vertex Engines: 5 Manu. Process (Micron): 90nm / 80nm Transistor: 157M Fill Rate: 7.5GPixel/s Memory Size (MB): 256 Memory Type: GDDR3 RAMDAC (MHz): 400 Dual Engine CLK (MHz): 625 Memory CLK (MHz): 1400 Memory Interface (bit): 128 Memory Bandwidth: 22.4GB/s Max. Resolution: 2560x1600 Bus Interface: PCIe VGA: x2 DVI: x2 TV-out: Yes HDTV (YPrPb component output) Yes |
Chipset Features
* RV530 90nm process Accessories
* Microsoft Dungeon Siege Full Cable/Adapters
* S-Video Cable (Bundle items are subject to change without prior notice) |
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The retail package of the HIS X1650Pro IceQ Turbo Dual DL-DVI 256MB was similar to other HIS products we've evaluated. The card came with a brief User's Guide, "PowerUp, Gamers!" drivers CD and a complementary gaming DVD. The drivers CD came with ATI's Catalyst 6.7 drivers, so users will want to be sure and check ATI's site for the most current release. The HIS Bonus DVD 3.0 included a full version of Microsoft's Dungeon Siege and demos of such titles as Half-Life 2, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 and more. HIS also included full versions of CyberLink PowerDirector 5 SE Plus, Power2Go 5 and Medi@Show 3, and trials of PowerDVD Copy, PowerBackup and other CyberLink products.
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Because the card features a double-wide cooler, HIS provides a perforated PCI slot cover to mate with to the card's custom cooling apparatus. Two DVI-to-VGA adapters are also offered for legacy support of older analog monitor connections. Lastly, an S-video cable was provided as well as an HDTV output cable for viewing video on a High-Definition Television.
