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3D Mark 2003 |
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Synthetic
DirectX 9 Gaming |
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At
1024x768, the difference between the competing
platforms is somewhat dulled. However, there is
still a discernable difference that seems to mirror
what we saw in the Quake III tests. That is to
say, the 875P board reigns supreme with the 865G and
E7205 systems following, in that order. The
nForce2 Ultra 400 system take last place, though by a
fairly narrow margin.
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Content Creation Winstone 2002 and Business Winstone 2002 |
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Simulated
Application Performance |
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In a
somewhat surprising twist of events, the Athlon XP
3200+ turns the tides on Intel's entire product
lineup, besting even the mighty 875P in both Content
Creation and Business Winstone 2002. The 875P
takes a second place finish in Content Creation, right
above the 865G and E7205 platforms, respectively.
Business Winstone actually favors the E7205 "Granite
Bay," which may be due to the 60MHz speed advantage
held by the 3.06GHz chip. 875P takes a second
place finish and the new 865G is forced to the back of
the pack this time around.
Conclusion:
With the
release of the 865 chipset family, Intel is making its
first venture into the world of mainstream chipsets
with dual-channel memory support. The E7205
"Granite Bay" chipset proved that Intel was serious
about eliminating RDRAM from its repertoire.
Then, the subsequent 875P release proved to be the
first time the 850E chipset had been eclipsed.
Both chipsets were, and continue to be, prohibitively
expensive for mainstream buyers, though. In fact, both
E7205 and 875P motherboards continue to sell for more
than $160 online. Intel 865-based boards, on the
other hand, promise to be much more affordable, and as
we just saw, performance isn't a far cry from the 875P
above it.
With
regards to Intel's entry-level D865GBF, the board
performs well, offers several useful features, and can
be found online for under $140. It isn't for
everyone, but the board does have some particularly
endearing features. The first, and most obvious,
is support for the new 800MHz front side bus. It
also features native Serial ATA support, though
Intel's ICH5-R is missing, meaning RAID 0 support
isn't available. Instead look to features like
USB 2.0 and integrated graphics to satiate the average
user who is more concerned with general Web usage than
Half Life 2. The included Gigabit Ethernet
feature may be a bit overkill, but it does allow the
platform to utilize Intel's CSA networking
architecture.
Of course,
there are downsides to go along with the D865GBF's
virtues. As we mentioned, there is no RAID 0
support on the Serial ATA interface (though Intel
claims there will be other boards to incorporate the
865G and ICH5-R components). Most obvious is the
integrated graphics performance, which is insufficient
for most 3D applications. Sure, it may keep the
casual user happy, but as we found, even an older game
like Quake III will reel from the lack of 3D punch.
If you're serious about Intel's new 865 chipset and
would like a little more flexibility as a power user,
consider Intel's D865PERL. It costs about $20
less (at the expense of the integrated graphics) and
is more closely tailored to the needs of an
enthusiast.
- Stable board,
Intel quality
- Feature-rich
(S-ATA, Gigabit Ethernet, 800MHz FSB support)
- BIOS options
allow memory tweaking and minimal overclocking
- Much more
competitive price than 875P and E7205 boards
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- We'd like to
see the ability to adjust front side bus
settings
- Integrated
graphics are fairly mundane
- Price is a bit
higher than some other attractive 865-based
motherboards
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