GeForce 9800 GT 512MB vs GeForce GT 430 1GB

Intro

Compare all of that to the GeForce GT 430 1GB, which features core clock speeds of 700 MHz on the GPU, and 900 MHz on the 1024 MB of GDDR3 RAM. It features 96 SPUs as well as 16 TAUs and 4 Rasterization Operator Units.

Display Graphs

Hide Graphs

Power Usage and Theoretical Benchmarks

Power Consumption (Max TDP)

GeForce GT 430 1GB		60 Watts
GeForce 9800 GT 512MB		105 Watts
	Difference: 45 Watts (75%)

Memory Bandwidth

The GeForce 9800 GT 512MB, in theory, should be much faster than the GeForce GT 430 1GB in general. (explain)

GeForce 9800 GT 512MB		57600 MB/sec
GeForce GT 430 1GB		28800 MB/sec
	Difference: 28800 (100%)

Texel Rate

The GeForce 9800 GT 512MB will be a lot (approximately 200%) better at texture filtering than the GeForce GT 430 1GB. (explain)

GeForce 9800 GT 512MB		33600 Mtexels/sec
GeForce GT 430 1GB		11200 Mtexels/sec
	Difference: 22400 (200%)

Pixel Rate

If running with a high screen resolution is important to you, then the GeForce 9800 GT 512MB is a better choice, and very much so. (explain)

GeForce 9800 GT 512MB		9600 Mpixels/sec
GeForce GT 430 1GB		2800 Mpixels/sec
	Difference: 6800 (243%)

Please note that the above 'benchmarks' are all just theoretical - the results were calculated based on the card's specifications, and real-world performance may (and probably will) vary at least a bit.

Price Comparison

Specifications

Memory Bandwidth: Bandwidth is the max amount of data (in units of megabytes per second) that can be transported past the external memory interface within a second. The number is worked out by multiplying the interface width by the speed of its memory. In the case of DDR memory, the result should be multiplied by 2 once again. If it uses DDR5, multiply by 4 instead. The higher the card's memory bandwidth, the faster the card will be in general. It especially helps with anti-aliasing, HDR and high resolutions.

Texel Rate: Texel rate is the maximum amount of texture map elements (texels) that can be applied in one second. This is calculated by multiplying the total amount of texture units of the card by the core clock speed of the chip. The higher this number, the better the graphics card will be at texture filtering (anisotropic filtering - AF). It is measured in millions of texels processed in one second.

Pixel Rate: Pixel rate is the maximum amount of pixels the graphics card could possibly write to its local memory in a second - measured in millions of pixels per second. Pixel rate is calculated by multiplying the amount of Raster Operations Pipelines by the the core speed of the card. ROPs (Raster Operations Pipelines - aka Render Output Units) are responsible for filling the screen with pixels (the image). The actual pixel rate also depends on quite a few other factors, especially the memory bandwidth of the card - the lower the memory bandwidth is, the lower the ability to get to the maximum fill rate.