my thoughts:
cooler and die look as big as the 8800GTX. pity that, smaller is better in those cases.
Onboard SPDIF connector is good - it was optional on G92 cards, and very frustrating if you wanted it and didnt get it (my card has them, but they arent connected to anything)
Rubber cap for SLI connectors is nice. Helps the looks, protects the pins.
removing the cooler appears to be a nightmare...
Speed seems good. close to the 9800GX2, but not quite there. Basically, its the fastest single GPU card out right now. (soon to be challenged by ATI)
power usage: great at idle, average at load. Great idle is better, because you wont chew a ton of power sitting in 2D desktop use.
temps/noise: seems hot/oisy to me. 3rd party coolers can fix that.
performance per watt is great... performance per dollar is not. the cards definately need a price drop.
"ATI tools succesor, work in progress" - Hellllloooooooo
