Could this be the very first picture of NVIDIA's GeForce Kepler 104-based graphics card? This Mr. Blurrycam shot has been doing rounds in Chinese forums. While it may not seem convincing at first glance, several features of the card in the picture seem to match the layout of the GK104 reference PCB which was pictured, earlier. To begin with, on the top-right corner you can train your eyes to a deep cutout, for the unusual piggy-backed 6+6 pin PCIe power connectors. The rear panel bracket is a 100% match (in layout and design of exhaust vents), of the one with the true-color image of the GK104 PCB. The only feature that clouds the plausibility of this picture is "GeForce GTX 670 Ti" being etched onto the cooler's shroud. We're hearing more voices refer to the top GK104 part as "GeForce GTX 680" than "GTX 670 Ti". We're also hearing that NVIDIA will adopt a new GeForce logo, so that glaring "GEFORCE" badge on the top of the card looks plausible.UPDATE: Added less blurry picture.

Here are some key bits of information concerning the upcoming GeForce GTX 680, a performance single-GPU graphics card based on the 28 nm GK104 GPU by NVIDIA. The information, at face value, is credible, because we're hearing that a large contingent of the media that finds interest in the GPU industry, is attending the Game Developers Conference, where it could interact with NVIDIA, on the sidelines. The source, however, is citing people it spoke to at CeBIT.

First, and most interesting: with some models of the GeForce 600, NVIDIA will introduce a load-based clock speed-boost feature (think: Intel Turbo Boost), which steps up clock speeds of the graphics card when subjected to heavy loads. If there's a particularly stressing 3D scene for the GPU to render, it overclocks itself, and sees the scene through. This ensures higher minimum and average frame-rates.

Waiting on Kepler before making a new GPU purchase? Well, you have to wait a little longer. Thankfully, this wait can be eased with the latest leaks about NVIDIA's 28 nm chip and the GeForce GTX 680 it powers.

According to VR-Zone, the GTX 680 does indeed feature 1536 CUDA Cores and a 256-bit memory interface, but it also has hotclocks, meaning the GPU is set to 705 MHz but the shaders operate at 1411 MHz. The memory (2 GB most likely) is supposed to be clocked at 6000 MHz giving a total memory bandwidth of 192 GB/s.

NVIDIA's incoming card is 10 inches long and also has 3-way SLI support, and four display outputs - two DVI, one HDMI and one DisplayPort. The GeForce GTX 680 is expected to be revealed on March 12 and should become available on March 23rd.

Here is the first true-color picture of the GeForce Kepler 104 (GK104) reference PCB shot in full (well, almost, excluding the uneventful PCIe bus connector). The picture provides a panoramic view of the card's VRM as shown in a drawing posted earlier this day, and reveals the strange double-decker power connector. The card is loaded with a 5-phase NVVDC configuration, as detailed in an older article. It also confirms that the GK104 has a 256-bit wide memory interface, with likely 2 GB standard memory amount. This is also the first picture of the GK104 ASIC, which has square package, and somewhat square die. While the PCB is green in color, it's most likely an engineering sample. The final product (branded GeForce GTX 680 / GTX 670 Ti), could have a black-colored one.

Expreview cited sources in the AIC (add-in card) vendors in pinning the launch of GeForce Kepler 104 (GK104) based products to March 23. The products launched are expected to be NVIDIA's first in its next-generation. Some label the top part based on GK104 as "GeForce GTX 670 Ti", while others call it "GeForce GTX 680". A March 23 launch explains reports of hectic activity in the green camp starting this week. NVIDIA typically enters NDAs with its partners over a wide time range, probably this one extends to April (since the launch is now reported to be towards late-March), which led some to believe Kepler was "delayed" to April. NVIDIA recently posted on its Facebook wall that people will be rewarded for their patience with an "unbeatable" product.