NVIDIA Brings Out the Big Guns -- a Dual Fermi GPU 430W Beast
Somewhere in Taiwan a power supply is weeping
Fermi was long delayed, but it is finally hitting the market and reminding ATI that it hasn't totally won the graphics war, even if it did get quite the head start on DirectX 11. At Computex in Taiwan NVIDIA unveiled an impressive portfolio of upcoming products that looks to jump start the struggling GPU maker. Highlights included upcoming Fermi mobile GPUs and a mid-range GPU, the GeForce GTX 465, which is based on GF100 chips binned aside for minor defects.
But NVIDIA saved perhaps the best for last. Today, along with board partner Galaxy it unveiled a beastly dual-GPU Fermi board designed to make even the toughest gaming rigs weep over some incredible high framerates -- and power draws.
The board carries two GTX 470 chips and draws over twice what a single Fermi draws -- which means that it sucks down loads of power, falling inside a massive 430 W TDP. It requires two (!) 8-pin connectors to feed its mighty cities of transistors.
Power supply manufacturers can breathe a brief sigh of relief, though; there's no word when or if the card will be officially released. The card is thought to carry 3 GB of GDDR5 memory -- matching NVIDIA's current Quadro card, which primarily retails for commercial use. And it can likely double for a portable space heater in a pinch.
The dual GPU spotting in the wild confirms months of rumors. Many rumors point to an upcoming release of a dual chip version called the "GTX 490". While there's no word from NVIDIA on whether this is indeed the official title, we can at least take the dual core Fermi off the list of mythical monsters, leaving behind dragons, sasquatches, and, of course, the ever-popular Kraken.
NVIDIA Brings Out the Big Guns
Galaxy's dual-GPU Fermi prototype board, complete with two 8-pin power adaptors. (Source: Engadget)
