GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3 vs GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3

Intro

Compare those specs to the GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3, which uses a 55 nm design. nVidia has set the core frequency at 550 MHz. The GDDR3 memory works at a frequency of 800 MHz on this specific card. It features 32 SPUs along with 16 TAUs and 8 Rasterization Operator Units.

Display Graphs

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Power Usage and Theoretical Benchmarks

Power Consumption (Max TDP)

GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		47 Watts
GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3		50 Watts
	Difference: 3 Watts (6%)

Memory Bandwidth

The GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3 should in theory be just a bit faster than the GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3 overall. (explain)

GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3		25600 MB/sec
GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		22400 MB/sec
	Difference: 3200 (14%)

Texel Rate

The GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3 should be a little bit (more or less 2%) more effective at texture filtering than the GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3. (explain)

GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3		8800 Mtexels/sec
GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		8640 Mtexels/sec
	Difference: 160 (2%)

Pixel Rate

The GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3 is a small bit (more or less 2%) faster with regards to AA than the GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3, and also should be capable of handling higher screen resolutions better. (explain)

GeForce 9500 GT 512MB GDDR3		4400 Mpixels/sec
GeForce 8600 GT 512MB GDDR3		4320 Mpixels/sec
	Difference: 80 (2%)

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 data (measured in megabytes per second) that can be transferred across the external memory interface within a second. It's calculated by multiplying the bus width by its memory speed. If the card has DDR type RAM, it should be multiplied by 2 once again. If it uses DDR5, multiply by ANOTHER 2x. The better the card's memory bandwidth, the faster the card will be in general. It especially helps with anti-aliasing, High Dynamic Range and higher screen resolutions.

Texel Rate: Texel rate is the maximum number of texture map elements (texels) that can be applied in one second. This number is worked out 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 graphics card will be at handling texture filtering (anisotropic filtering - AF). It is measured in millions of texels per second.

Pixel Rate: Pixel rate is the most pixels that the graphics chip could possibly write to the local memory in one second - measured in millions of pixels per second. Pixel rate is calculated by multiplying the number of Raster Operations Pipelines by the clock speed of the card. ROPs (Raster Operations Pipelines - also called Render Output Units) are responsible for filling the screen with pixels (the image). The actual pixel output rate is also dependant on lots of other factors, most notably the memory bandwidth of the card - the lower the memory bandwidth is, the lower the ability to get to the max fill rate.