NVIDIA's Dual-GPU Fermi to be GTX490
Two GF104 cores, 375W TDP
It appears that Nvidia's upcoming dual-GPU card will end up with the GTX 490 brand.
As we previously reported, Nvidia canceled the original dual-Fermi D12U-50 because it was a bit too complex and generated as much heat as a medium yield nuclear warhead. Hence, Nvidia apparently chose to use GF104 cores for its new dual-GPU card. Despite this, the rumoured GTX 490 will end up with a 375W TDP.
According to KitGuru.net, the new card will be branded GTX 490, but there's still no info on exact specs or launch dates. We can only speculate that Nvidia will launch the dual headed beast by the end of the summer, just in time for the nag-fueled-back-to-school shopping spree.
However, it's still far from clear how the new card will measure up to AMD's HD 5970, as the high TDP could limit its clocks and recently introduced HD 5970 cards with 4GB of memory could give AMD a fighting chance.
Behind closed doors at Computex, nVidia is likely to be showing its most important partners a very serious piece of new kit. The GTX490. Remember when the 7950 GX2 was considered power-hungry for pulling 110w in 3D testing? Looking back at that era, it seems that ATI and nVidia just weren’t trying hard enough.
As we continue to look under the rocks in Taiwan, more interesting information about nVidia’s new high-end card has come to light. To be honest, water-damage and exposure to UV rays means the ink has run in places and we’re looking at this document over a weak video link, but we’re pretty sure that the key info is intact. Question remains: Is it accurate?
Firstly, it shows that the GTX490 is a dual-GPU card.
It’s likely to use the Fermi GTX470 processors, but we’re unable to confirm the exact clocks etc.
GTX490’s power draw looks to be around 375w.
Given that the GTX470 is a 215w part when shipped on its own PCB, there would appear to be some serious down-clocking in action.
We know from the big notebook manufacturers that nVidia sells GTX chips that can run on as little as 100 watts (if you have plenty of spare money and can wait for them to be speed binned).
The key question won’t be “Can the GTX490 beat the original 2GB Radeon HD 5970?”.
The actual question will be “Can GTX490 beat the new 4GB Radeon HD 5970?”.
KitGuru says: Like watching a 20 year old Mike Tyson looking to re-unify the heavyweight belts, we just can’t wait for these boyz to get into the ring and knock seven shades of crap out of each other!
Sources:
http://www.fudzilla.com/content/view/18906/1/http://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/faith/gtx490-throws-down-to-5970/
