GeForce GTX 285 to Lead Single-GPU Pack for NVIDIA

Friday, December 12th 2008

NVIDIA is planning a massive transition of the G200 architecture to the newer 55nm silicon fabrication process. With this, maintaining electrical constraints, the clock speeds of the GPU can be increased to levels that make them highly competitive, while also cutting manufacturing costs. With the newer G200b core running hypothetically cooler, the company is also planning a dual GPU card named the GeForce GTX 295. Its single GPU flagship offering will be called GeForce GTX 285.

While nothing substantially new is on the cards, GeForce GTX 285 has everything that makes it identical to the GTX 280, specifications wise, except for the clock speeds. This is where, NVIDIA gets to take the advantage of the superior electrical and thermal efficiencies of the 55nm core to step up clock speeds and thereby increase performance. While the clock speeds are unknown at this point in time, it is predicted that the new card has a 10% performance increase over the GeForce GTX 280. The card continues to be based on the NVIDIA P891 PCB the current cards use, and hence the GPU gets to use the high-grade power circuitry at its disposal to gain high clock speeds. The power consumption of the new card is pitted at 183W (down from 236W for the GTX 280). The card would need two 6-pin PCI-Express power inputs. The GeForce GTX 285 is slated for January 2009.

Source: Expreview

posted by btarunr - 12:09 PM | Related News |

User comments

by Tatty_One (12:14 PM) - Reply

Sounds good, thing is, the smaller fabrication process should make this card cheaper to produce, sadly this is probably going to be more expensive for the consumer than the GTX280 at 65nm, NVidia disguise that by saying it will be 10% faster, lets hope it is sensibly priced but somehow I doubt it.

by Swansen (12:43 PM) - Reply

why??? what point?? i don't understand Nvidia lately, they release a new card every month, but to what point. In two-thee months the next generation of video cards is coming out, so who in their right mind would buy these cards?? Even then, whats the point, a 3fps increase in performance over whats already availible??

by mdm-adph (2:09 PM) - Reply

Thank you, Nvidia -- anything to get that monster of a chip smaller and cooler is a good thing for everyone. That's a great reduction in power draw, too.

by Hayder_Master (2:19 PM) - Reply

so what about the price , did they go kill gtx280 with cool blood

by overclocker! (4:37 PM) - Reply

by: Swansen
why??? what point?? i don't understand Nvidia lately, they release a new card every month, but to what point. In two-thee months the next generation of video cards is coming out, so who in their right mind would buy these cards?? Even then, whats the point, a 3fps increase in performance over whats already availible??

+1 mate i dont see any points too!

by lemonadesoda (5:30 PM) - Reply

by: Swansen
why??? what point?? i don't understand Nvidia lately, they release a new card every month, but to what point. In two-thee months the next generation of video cards is coming out, so who in their right mind would buy these cards?? Even then, whats the point, a 3fps increase in performance over whats already availible??

The point is to people who havent yet upgraded to the latest gen cards. I'm one of those people. What has held me back? Price and power consumption (heat, noise, and genuinely, power for a 24/7 workstation). This thing packs more punch and with lower power usage means cooler and quieter. If they can do that one the "old" production lines, then it is obvious they cease producing the old SKU and only the new. REMEMBER, AND COMPARISON ATI is releasing "their" updated SKU on RV770. They are adding more shaders, which possibly will not give "real life" performance improvements, only synthetic shader benchmark improvements. AND their "upgrade" does not have and power requirement or cooling wins like nVidia are achieving here.

by imperialreign (5:52 PM) - Reply

by: Tatty_One
Sounds good, thing is, the smaller fabrication process should make this card cheaper to produce, sadly this is probably going to be more expensive for the consumer than the GTX280 at 65nm, NVidia disguise that by saying it will be 10% faster, lets hope it is sensibly priced but somehow I doubt it.

10% faster for nVidia means "new product" which equates to "enters market at typical nVidia retail values." I doubt as well these new cards once the cores are on them will be anything less than another green-camp wallet killer.

by: btarunr
While nothing substantially new is on the cards, GeForce GTX 285 has everything that makes it identical to the GTX 280, specifications wise, except for the clock speeds. This is where, NVIDIA gets to take the advantage of the superior electrical and thermal efficiencies of the 55nm core to step up clock speeds and thereby increase performance. While the clock speeds are unknown at this point in time, it is predicted that the new card has a 10% performance increase over the GeForce GTX 280. The card continues to be based on the NVIDIA P891 PCB the current cards use, and hence the GPU gets to use the high-grade power circuitry at its disposal to gain high clock speeds. The power consumption of the new card is pitted at 183W (down from 236W for the GTX 280). The would need two 6-pin PCI-Express power inputs. The GeForce GTX 285 is slated for January 2009.

for some reason - I started cracking up when I read that . . . somehow, it doesn't surprise me. So, then, is this the big "competitor" to the RV700 series that nVidia has succluded themselves in order to produce?

by newbielives (7:58 PM) - Reply

With each passing day, my dream of playing MS Pac-Man at 2,005 fps inches closer to reality. :respect:

by lemonadesoda (8:38 PM) - Reply

nV is adopting the tick-tock approach like Intel. Nothing wrong with that strategy. first design the architecture, then get process yields up, then shrink it. Wash and repeat

by btarunr (2:14 AM) - Reply

by: lemonadesoda
nV is adopting the tick-tock approach like Intel. Nothing wrong with that strategy. first design the architecture, then get process yields up, then shrink it. Wash and repeat

Only that they're not having a "next gen" coming out in 55nm, the "next gen" is to be out on 40nm. In Intel's model, each fab process milestone has a next gen product. You had 65nm Presler, and then Conroe. You had 45nm Yorkfield, and now Bloomfield. For NVIDIA, 55nm is just a means of them stepping up clock speeds to take the edge over ATI.

by wolf (7:22 AM) - Reply

to get 10% more performance than stock speed roughly 10% overclocking is needed. looks like a 660mhz core 1450mhz shaders card, all that and using 22.5% less power. im looking forward to seeing if this is backed up by the card apon release. :)

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