GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3 vs GeForce GTS 450

Intro

Compare that to the GeForce GTS 450, which uses a 40 nm design. nVidia has set the core frequency at 783 MHz. The GDDR5 memory runs at a frequency of 902 MHz on this particular card. It features 192 SPUs as well as 32 TAUs and 16 ROPs.

Display Graphs

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Power Usage and Theoretical Benchmarks

Power Consumption (Max TDP)

GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		47 Watts
GeForce GTS 450		106 Watts
	Difference: 59 Watts (126%)

Memory Bandwidth

Theoretically speaking, the GeForce GTS 450 will be 158% quicker than the GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3 overall, due to its greater data rate. (explain)

GeForce GTS 450		57728 MB/sec
GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		22400 MB/sec
	Difference: 35328 (158%)

Texel Rate

The GeForce GTS 450 is a lot (approximately 190%) better at AF than the GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3. (explain)

GeForce GTS 450		25056 Mtexels/sec
GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		8640 Mtexels/sec
	Difference: 16416 (190%)

Pixel Rate

The GeForce GTS 450 will be much (approximately 190%) more effective at full screen anti-aliasing than the GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3, and also capable of handling higher resolutions more effectively. (explain)

GeForce GTS 450		12528 Mpixels/sec
GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		4320 Mpixels/sec
	Difference: 8208 (190%)

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: Memory bandwidth is the maximum amount of information (in units of MB per second) that can be moved across the external memory interface within a second. It's worked out by multiplying the card's interface width by its memory speed. If the card has DDR type memory, the result should be multiplied by 2 once again. If it uses DDR5, multiply by ANOTHER 2x. The better the card's memory bandwidth, the better the card will be in general. It especially helps with AA, High Dynamic Range and higher screen resolutions.

Texel Rate: Texel rate is the maximum texture map elements (texels) that can be processed in one second. This number is worked out by multiplying the total texture units by the core speed of the chip. The better this number, the better the video 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 number of pixels the graphics card could possibly write to the local memory in one second - measured in millions of pixels per second. The number is worked out by multiplying the number 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 many other factors, most notably the memory bandwidth of the card - the lower the bandwidth is, the lower the potential to get to the max fill rate.