I have been in the IT industry, in one guise or another, for the better part of 7 years, and in the process I have encountered hundreds of instances where manufacturers try and fit a product to a type of customer. In the Philippines, that generally means cutting features, specifications and any extras a product may have so that it may be able to hit a certain price point reachable by the average consumer.

                                                    Less features = lower price
 

In the old(er) days this simply meant removing an extra IDE cable from the motherboard bundle, or perhaps subtracting that extra game-CD from the video card.  Now though, this activity of “cutting costs” has spread to manufacturers and chipset makers. Thus “special versions” exist, and whole families of video cards or motherboards exist to cater to each market segment identified. The latest family in the case of the video card market is the 8800 series family, of which roughly 6 different versions is a member of, including special and overclocked versions.

Now this begs the question: if there are so many versions, there has to be an appreciable difference between them, right? Especially considering price differences of P5000 or more between versions. Well, the quick answer is that it depends. The long answer is a heck of a lot longer – and more complicated.

                                                   Note the memory modules. Difference between the two versions center on these.

In this case, we set out to compare the 640 and 320MB versions of the 8800GTS video card – branded Inno3D and representing the typical choice for the budget-constrained tech-consumer. The memory numbers is what we call the “memory cache” or the “frame buffer” – this is where data is stored in preparation for displaying on the output device. Common sense tells us that the more there is, the better performance there must be, and in general, this assumption is proven true.

In our never-ending desire to save moolah on our purchases though, we have, in crime-speak, some “mitigating circumstance” that consumers need to consider before plunging into a purchase. The 640MB version of the 8800GTS is no doubt better than the 320MB version, performance-wise. Yet this performance delta between the two versions can only be seen in certain situations, situations that as of yet is not a common occurrence in our tech-enthusiast landscape.

There is only a select few enthusiasts who can afford splurging on video sub-systems that cost more than a typical entry-level computer. Of those who can, or do splurge on it, there still remains the question of properly making use of the amount of horsepower a hi-end video card can give – i.e. a high-resolution display that will be able to digest the video card’s output. Add everything else that must work together to achieve good performance – such as adequate memory, a good processor, quality cooling products, and the wattage needed to run it all – then we can see that getting the most out of a P15k to P20k video card involves considerable investment in the other components of the computer as a whole.

                                                                     = or > ??

In other words, a lot of users can probably afford one high end component or two, but probably not all of the high-end components. This will inevitably result in bottlenecks. A slow CPU will limit geometry calculations needed by the video card, and thus slow overall render of the screen. A limited amount of memory will cause a general slowdown due to handicapped transfer of data between components. The most obvious example would be that of the monitor – if your monitor is only capable of running 1024x768 or 1280x1024, then a video card purchase more in line with your rig’s specs should be considered.

To make things clearer, here is a performance graph depicting performance in the game F.E.A.R.:

                                                    Even if the FPS is lower,it's still totally playable...

In the graph, we can see that the 640MB version only shows a clear advantage starting from the 1600x1200 resolution range – and then only by 10 FPS or so. This game is eye-candy from the get-go, but it does not make extensive use of large and high-quality textures like many “next-gen” games (next-gen here referring to games released and probably optimized for DX10). Take note that FEAR is a game that is middle-age in the developmental sense – it may just be catching on in the local market but a host of newer and more technologically advanced games are already out in the market. One of these games would be Tom Clancy’s Advanced Warfighter – whose graph appears below:

                                                  Very notable differenes in FPS.

Comparatively speaking, the two games seems to be part of the same generation – yet Advanced Warfighter puts a bigger strain on all sub-components of a pc system due to advance features like long-range draw points in a big, loaded environment map, and character models with more textures and polygons than most other games.

So where does this leave the local consumer who just wants to get a good video card? Simply stated, one must buy according to your means. If this same consumer owns a lower-end PC with no prospect of an upgrade in sight, then a 320MB version is more than enough, due to its virtue of providing essentially the same performance as the 640MB version at lower resolutions. After all, if the consumer has no intention to game at resolutions approaching 1600x1200 or higher, it makes much more sense to invest in the lower-number card. Also as stated above, a substantial number of components must work well together for one to see the performance a bigger memory cache is capable of.

                                                  The Inno3D package.

But in the same vein, if you are one of those blessed hardware enthusiasts with access to or the means to get the latest and the greatest, then the 320MB version won’t be an option for you (if you’re a gamer). Come to think of it, the 640MB version won’t be an option either. If you have a 24” to 30” LCD screen, oodles of memory, Intel’s latest quad-core and a PSU with wattage to make Meralco swoon with happiness, then perhaps the 8800GTX 768MB would be the better choice. Make it two for some SLI action, and I’m sure to track you down and ask you what job you hold, and how you do it – ala’ “Pursuit of Happyness”.

Also take into account the FPS numbers on the graphs – playable FPS is around 30, and the 320MB version performs admirably for around P15k or below. Future-proofing is also a consideration you must make – if longevity of your hardware is important for you, then more demanding games and better hardware will surely give your new purchase a workout – be it the 320 or the 640MB version. Lastly, if its bragging rights that you’re after, ala’ this blog entry’s title, then – you know what to do.

                                                   Bragging rights? Get out your diamonds.

A final word: being defined a casual or serious gamer is entirely up to the individual. If you feel that you absolutely need to game at super-high resolutions at breakneck FPS, then by all means get the 640MB version (or higher). But if you’re the type who wants to get the eye candy and is satisfied with (not so low) resolutions of 1280x960 or below, then the 8800GTS 320MB is a very good investment that will still be able to play the next-gen series of games.

                                                    8800GTX and the 640MB GTS.

Credits:

www.guru3d.com - for the comparison charts and testing. Thanks!

www.viewsonic.com - the bling-bling LCD really exists.