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NVIDIA reveals GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB
Not even two months after NVIDIA tempted gamers on a budget with the GeForce 8800 GT, the outfit has loosed a new beast just in time for those eleventh hour holiday shoppers. Based on 65-nanometer fabrication, the 8800 GTS 512MB boasts 128 stream processors, twin dual-link DVI ports, PureVideo HD technology, DirectX 10 support, a 650MHz core clock / 970MHz memory clock and hardware decode acceleration for smooth playback of "H.264, VC-1, WMV and MPEG-2 HD and SD movies." According to the company, this card provides some 25-percent more processing power than NVIDIA products previously offered at the same price point, which, if you're wondering, is around $299 to $349.[Via HotHardware]
HP's m8010y and d4890y desktops to sport HD combo drives, digital tuners
Just because HP has buried the Digital Entertainment Center doesn't mean that it's forgetting about the media-centric crowd, as the company's forthcoming m8010y and d4890y will offer up some fairly swank high-definition niceties. Aside from offering customers the option for an Intel Q6600 Core 2 Quad processor and NVIDIA's GeForce 8800 GTS graphics card, this duo will also include a mysterious dual-format combo drive to handle both BD and HD DVD responsibilities. While we can only assume that the GGW-H10N will be the drive of choice, both PCs will boast HD DVD / Blu-ray playback with burning abilities including on the latter, and as if that wasn't enough HD goodness crammed into a PC, moneyed consumers can also opt to have ATI's TV Wonder Digital Cable Tuner pre-installed as well. There's no word just yet surrounding pricing, exact configurations, or a launch timeframe, but word on the street suggests that the combo drive should be made available to the adoring public within "four to six weeks."
NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GTS reviewed
NVIDIA's GeForce 8600 GTS graphics card has been attracting a fair bit of interest with its relatively low price tag and promised performance gains, but we're guessing most of you aren't just going to go on NVIDIA's word to make your purchase decision. Helping out in that respect, the folks at PC Perspective have put the card through the usual battery of tests to see just how well it stacks up. While they certainly welcomed the $199-229 price tag, they were somewhat let down by the card's performance, with it getting out-performed in some cases by ATI's comparatively priced X1950 Pro. That said, the 8600 GTS does still have the edge when it comes to DirectX 10 support, which they say should be enough to at least garner it some consideration from budget-minded gamers.
