It only launched a few weeks ago, but it looks like NVIDIA could already be set to cut the price of its top-end GeForce GTX 280 graphics card -- a move that would be prompted, as you might have guessed, by AMD's cheaper but powerful Radeon HD 4800 series. According to HotHardware, that word comes from "multiple NVIDIA board partners," who say that the card could be dropping to as low as $499 (the same as AMD's competing card). One board partner reportedly added that the price "may be a little higher, or potentially even a little lower." Obviously, all of that is still up in the air until we hear from NVIDIA itself but, as HotHardware points out, it could certainly pay off to hold out a couple of weeks if you've been considering taking the plunge on one of these.

It's not all that often we see a video card get dissected, but it's also not very often that we see a card with as much hardware as NVIDIA's new top-end GeForce GTX 280, which proved to be enough to get the folks at Custom PC to crack one open for a looksee. As you can see above, after removing more than a few screws, they were able to take a peak at the card's lone, massive GPU, which not surprisingly produces enough heat to require the huge cooler and heat sink that conceals it. Of course, they also put the card through its paces and, while they did find that it's bar-none the fast single GPU card out there, the performance compared to a GeForce 9800 GX2 makes the situation a bit murkier, especially given the GTX 280's hefty price tag and lofty system requirements. That apparently wasn't enough to keep it from getting their seal of approval, however, with it earning a more than respectable 84% rating.

Read - Custom PC, "Taking apart the GeForce GTX 280"
Read - Custom PC, GeForce GTX 280 Review