Compare any two graphics cards:
GeForce 8600 GT 256MB GDDR3 vs GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3
IntroThe GeForce 8600 GT 256MB GDDR3 has a GPU core clock speed of 540 MHz, and the 256 MB of GDDR3 RAM is set to run at 700 MHz through a 128-bit bus. It also is comprised of 32 Stream Processors, 16 TAUs, and 8 Raster Operation Units.Compare all of that to the GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3, which has a core clock frequency of 540 MHz and a GDDR3 memory frequency of 700 MHz. It also makes use of a 128-bit bus, and makes use of a 80 nm design. It features 32 SPUs, 16 Texture Address Units, and 8 Raster Operation Units.
Display Graphs
Power Usage and Theoretical BenchmarksBoth cards have the same power consumption.Memory BandwidthBoth cards have the exact same bandwidth, so theoretically they should have identical performance. (explain)
Texel RateBoth cards have exactly the same texel rate, so in theory they should perform equally good at at anisotropic filtering. (explain)Pixel RateBoth cards have exactly the same pixel fill rate, so in theory they should be equally good at at AA, and be capable of handling the same screen resolutions. (explain)
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
Display Prices
Please note that the price comparisons are based on search keywords - sometimes it might show cards with very similar names that are not exactly the same as the one chosen in the comparison. We do try to filter out the wrong results as best we can, though. Specifications
Display Specifications
Memory Bandwidth: Memory bandwidth is the max amount of information (counted in MB per second) that can be transported past the external memory interface within a second. It's worked out by multiplying the card's bus width by its memory speed. If it uses DDR type RAM, the result should be multiplied by 2 again. If DDR5, multiply by 4 instead. The better the memory bandwidth, the better the card will be in general. It especially helps with AA, HDR and high resolutions. Texel Rate: Texel rate is the maximum number of texture map elements (texels) that can be applied per second. This figure is calculated by multiplying the total number of texture units of the card by the core clock speed of the chip. The better the texel rate, the better the card will be at handling texture filtering (anisotropic filtering - AF). It is measured in millions of texels applied in one second. Pixel Rate: Pixel rate is the most pixels the graphics card could possibly record to its local memory per second - measured in millions of pixels per second. Pixel rate is calculated 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 is also dependant on lots of 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.
Display Prices
Please note that the price comparisons are based on search keywords - sometimes it might show cards with very similar names that are not exactly the same as the one chosen in the comparison. We do try to filter out the wrong results as best we can, though.
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