More Nvidia renaming!!

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

This is taking the p**s:

http://en.expreview.com/2009/02/04/n...ebit-2009.html

Basically:

8800GTS 512MB to 9800GTX to 9800GTX+ to GTS250

AND.... WAIT FOR IT...

8800GT to 9800GT to GTS240

Basically the major differences between all of these GPUs are:
1.)The 65nm to 55nm shrink
2.)Higher clocks
3.)A different BIOS

I think I will stay with ATI. Even their change from the R600 to RV670 was bigger than this(512 bit to 256 bit memory bus,55nm shrink,DX10.1 instead of DX10).

[PeterStoba]

Oh no

[matty-hodgson]

what exactly is wrong with nVidia changing to the new naming strategy?
unless you want a nVidia 10800GT, just doesn't sound right anymore

[GheeTsar]

I didn't know that a 8800GTS 512MB is the same as a 9800GTX! Lordy, I even thought about getting one and I have a 8800GTS 512! So yes - stupid naming in my book.

[shadowmaster]

Maybe this is a marketing ploy, no doubt some will think that the gtx 240/250 are better cards then the 9800gtx/8800gts, etc because they are newer.

[kalniel]

what exactly is wrong with nVidia changing to the new naming strategy?
unless you want a nVidia 10800GT, just doesn't sound right anymore

The point is they're changing the name without changing the card...

and at the same time when they change the card (like adding more shader units to the GTX260) they don't change the name. Then when they shrink the 260 to 55nm they don't change the name, but they do change the name of the 280 when they shrink that.

It's just needlessly inconsistent, and seemingly designed to create as much confusion as possible.

[mehmeh]

Its those who have invested in a 9800GTX or 9800GT, I feel sorry for. The masses will assume new name equals newer and better card, so its gonna kick you where it hurts on resale values. Optimizing and renaming the previous gen cards might work once and wouldnt be the first time its been done, but twice? Stinks of marketing driven profiteering and tbh a company stuck in a rut.

Was so close to buying a 9800GTX+ a few months back, even more happy with my new 4850 now lol.

[Uriel]

Yes. 8800 to 9800 was rediculous. Further renaming is a joke. Fine for those of us who actually pay attention but most people will think a different name means a sidnificantly different product.

Edit: It's better than the X-Fi XtremeAudio nonesense though.

[rs4847]

They took it too far when they rebranded a slightly tweaked GeForce 2 MX into the GeForce 4 MX.

I can remember those discussions now...

User: Help I can't play xxxxxx, it says can't locate hardware pixel shader, I have a Geforce 4 MX 440.
Me: That's your problem right there, you need a GeForce 3 or a GeForce 4 Ti series card.
User: But the salesperson said this card was the latest card for gaming, I paid good money for this card.
Me: Take it back, what you have their is a rebranded GeForce 2 MX that does not have the hardware support you need to run your game.....

At least the G92 and GT200 will run the same stuff without much issue.

[Pob255]

Ok I can forgive the 8800 to 9800 change.
The original 8800gt g92 was released early to counter the release of the ATi 3850 and 3870
They then hit the problem that it was better than the 8800gts g80 320mb and was neck and neck with the 8800gts g80 640mb while half the cost.
So they rushed out a 8800gts g92 512mb

They then hit the problem of what to do about the 9 series . . . so they tweek the clocks a bit and add in a couple of minor features that got left out (like the lower power idle) and re-released as the 9800gt and 9800gtx
the 4850 then proves to be faster, so they fiddle with it again get the clocks up higher and the performance roughtly the same and release as the 9800gtx+

However rebranding them yet again as gt240 and gt250 is takeing the **** a step too far.
Granted the g92 is a stonker of a gpu and I still think it performs amazing well but there is no real need to change the name again.*
Yet it still seems to me that nvidia is still working on knee jerk reactions to the next ati card release.
The whole adding more shaders to the gtx260 seemed to be a reaction to the release of the ati 4870, It seem that what ever the best current ati cards are nvidia looks at makeing there cards slightly better and more expensive, not how good can we make the card.

*ok there is a reason, people, hate to say it but people do tend to be rather stupid, I bet there were quite a few people who got a 9800gt to replace there 8800gt and will go on to buy a gt240.

[dagwoood]

And lets not forget the 8800GS/9600GSO (which has a least 2 variants) malarkey!

Getting beyond a joke now

[Uriel]

So what features have they added since Geforce 8 series? Up until the Geforce 6 series a new number revision used to mean something significant in terms of features (ignoring the Geforce 4 MX debacle). Usually at least a new shader or DX revision meant a new numbering scheme

I could argue that the Geforce 7 series was actually more Geforce 6 and everything since the 8800GTX should have been the Geforce 7 series. We'd need a lot of numbers to fit all that in. A GTX285 could be considered to be something like a Geforce 7985.5GTX or something...

I found the whole LE, Vanilla, GT, GTS, GTX, GTO, Ultra etc thing easier to follow. (Especially when it was just Vanilla, GT, Ultra).

[shaithis]

It's only a name......

No name reflects performance, even GeForce 6600GT to Geforce 8800GT gives you absolutely no idea of the performance gap at all. You may know, because you keep track of these things but then you know what the performance difference is between a 9800GTX, 9800GTX+ and a GTS250.

They could be called rod, jane and freddy, it makes no difference

I find it very funny how people get worked up over what a gfx card is called.

[Uriel]

As has been said - it's not so much the naming as the renaming. Worst case - you could easily get someone with an 8800GT, who gets rid of it to buy a 9800GT. They then might get frustrated at the lack of performance increase and buy a GTS240.

The new scheme has the makings of a consistent naming scheme. That's alright if they stick with it and it actually reduces confusion in the long term. In the mean time they should state the old names prominently on the box. That at least might stop the average muppet in PC world from buying the same thing several times.

[badass]

As has been said - it's not so much the naming as the renaming. Worst case - you could easily get someone with an 8800GT, who gets rid of it to buy a 9800GT. They then might get frustrated at the lack of performance increase and buy a GTS240.

Anyone that does that is a fool and will find another way to part with their money if Nvidia don't get it.

[Pob255]

Anyone that does that is a fool and will find another way to part with their money if Nvidia don't get it.

Unfortunately that's the point, many people are that badly informed and worse still stupid enough to think they are not.

It's only a name......

No name reflects performance, even GeForce 6600GT to Geforce 8800GT gives you absolutely no idea of the performance gap at all. You may know, because you keep track of these things but then you know what the performance difference is between a 9800GTX, 9800GTX+ and a GTS250.

They could be called rod, jane and freddy, it makes no difference

I find it very funny how people get worked up over what a gfx card is called.

But it not a name, it's a model number based on the performance of the card.
And that's the problem, you know that if you go from a 9600 to a 9800 then your getting a better card, not how much better but better.
going from a rod to a freddy would mean absolutely nothing.

So what features have they added since Geforce 8 series? Up until the Geforce 6 series a new number revision used to mean something significant in terms of features (ignoring the Geforce 4 MX debacle). Usually at least a new shader or DX revision meant a new numbering scheme

I agree with you here to some extent, the 8 series brought us dx10, the 9 series brought us dx10 cards that actually gave us better performance while not costing us 2 to 4 times the price.

I could argue that the Geforce 7 series was actually more Geforce 6 and everything since the 8800GTX should have been the Geforce 7 series. We'd need a lot of numbers to fit all that in. A GTX285 could be considered to be something like a Geforce 7985.5GTX or something...

yes you could say they were the 6.5series and it's all got messed up from there.