Asus EN8800GTS 320MB
Our Summary and Conclusion
Performance Summary: The Asus EN8800GTS/HTDP/320M performed on-par with a similarly clocked 320MB GeForce 8800 GTS reference card, but behind a pre-overclocked card from XFX. Overall, its performance was better than previous generation high-end GeForce 7 and Radeon X1950 cards, especially at resolutions of 1920x1200 and lower. At ultra high resolutions, the card's smallish 320MB frame buffer holds it back in some more demanding games, like Half Life 2: Episode 1 and F.E.A.R., for example.
We like the Asus EN8800GTS/HTDP/320M on many different levels. This card, and other similarly configured GeForce 8 series cards, satisfy the needs of a large segment of the market in our opinion. Their performance is high enough at mainstream resolutions that its worth upgrading to a card like this from virtually any last-gen product, and you'd end up with the added benefits of full HDCP and DX10 support, a better video engine, and a more complete feature set overall, that includes things like CSAA and higher quality anisotropic filtering. Asus' interpretation of the 320MB GeForce 8800 GTS in particular is a fine choice due to its price, good overclockability, and well appointed software bundle that includes two full games and a full version of the popular benchmarking tool 3DMark06. At about $300, the Asus EN8800GTS does fall at the upper end of the price range for standard clocked 320MB GeForce 8800 GTS cards by about $25, but the software bundle does offset the slightly higher price. Asus' warranty is also shorter than some others at 3 years, and it is not transferable, so that is something to take into consideration as well. Overall though, we suspect anyone in the market for a graphics card in this price range will be pleased by the Asus EN8800GTS/HTDP/320M. This card is fast, has plenty of next-gen features, and it's relatively affordable.
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