GeForce GTS 250 512MB vs GeForce GTX 480

Intro

Compare all of that to the GeForce GTX 480, which uses a 40 nm design. nVidia has clocked the core frequency at 700 MHz. The GDDR5 memory works at a speed of 924 MHz on this card. It features 480 SPUs as well as 60 TAUs and 48 Rasterization Operator Units.

Display Graphs

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Power Usage and Theoretical Benchmarks

Power Consumption (Max TDP)

GeForce GTS 250 512MB		145 Watts
GeForce GTX 480		250 Watts
	Difference: 105 Watts (72%)

Memory Bandwidth

In theory, the GeForce GTX 480 is 152% quicker than the GeForce GTS 250 512MB overall, because of its higher data rate. (explain)

GeForce GTX 480		177408 MB/sec
GeForce GTS 250 512MB		70400 MB/sec
	Difference: 107008 (152%)

Texel Rate

The GeForce GTS 250 512MB should be a small bit (approximately 12%) more effective at AF than the GeForce GTX 480. (explain)

GeForce GTS 250 512MB		47232 Mtexels/sec
GeForce GTX 480		42000 Mtexels/sec
	Difference: 5232 (12%)

Pixel Rate

The GeForce GTX 480 will be much (approximately 185%) better at FSAA than the GeForce GTS 250 512MB, and also capable of handling higher resolutions better. (explain)

GeForce GTX 480		33600 Mpixels/sec
GeForce GTS 250 512MB		11808 Mpixels/sec
	Difference: 21792 (185%)

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 (counted in megabytes per second) that can be transported past the external memory interface within a second. It is worked out by multiplying the card's interface width by its memory speed. In the case of DDR type memory, it must be multiplied by 2 once again. If DDR5, multiply by ANOTHER 2x. The higher the bandwidth is, the better the card will be in general. It especially helps with AA, HDR and higher screen resolutions.

Texel Rate: Texel rate is the maximum number of texture map elements (texels) that are processed in one second. This figure is calculated by multiplying the total number of texture units by the core speed of the chip. The higher this number, the better the graphics 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 maximum number of pixels the video card can possibly record to the local memory per second - measured in millions of pixels per second. The number is calculated by multiplying the number of colour ROPs by the the card's clock speed. ROPs (Raster Operations Pipelines - sometimes also referred to as Render Output Units) are responsible for drawing the pixels (image) on the screen. The actual pixel rate is also dependant on quite a few other factors, especially the memory bandwidth of the card - the lower the bandwidth is, the lower the ability to reach the max fill rate.