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Technology Stocks : 3DFX
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To: Eric Howard who wrote (9473)12/9/1998 9:20:00 PM
From: Michael G. Potter  Read Replies (2) of 16960
 
I know that the new ATi chip is good and the 32-bit option will
help. However, I see no reason to give up on 3Dfx.

Quake II Frame Rates

Demo Resolution Rage V3 V2
Demo1 640x480 72.0 97 85.2
Demo1 800x600 65.8 93 59.8
Demo1 1024x768 42.9 68 N/A
Demo1 1600x1200 none yet 32 N/A

Rage scores from voodooextreme.com on a PII 450 128 meg
V3 from sharkyextreme.com on a PII 128 meg
V2 from bluesnews.com on a PII 400 (slightly better on a 450)

At 16 bit, the V3 (which isn't even at full potential clock rate) is
better in frame rate. 32 bit is coming in the future, but V3 will be
the best when it is released. If you drop the V3 (or even the V2)
scores by 50% (the often quoted hit you need to go to 32-bit using
the V2 chip), they still would be playable.

DVD on the V3 is 60% CPU use on a PII 350. By the end of Q1 1999,
the PII 350 will be an even lower-end OEM machine.

Again, ATi has come up with a good chip (I'm wondering if the scores
will be as wonderfull at 16 meg since even their write-up mentions
the benefit of rendering from 32 meg of local memory @ 32 bit). I'm
not sure where all the praise for ATi drivers has come from in some
of the reviews I've read (almost sounds like ATi PR in the press kit
that comes with the review boards - the words are almost the same
from review to review). ATi is the company that delivered "50%"
improvement in a benchmark with drivers that made little or no
difference in actual games with their Rage Pro.

I see ATi and 3Dfx as the dominant chipmakers next year (in that
order) with 3Dfx's new Rampage giving them what they need to become
#1.

Michael
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