New G450 graphic cards from Matrox
| A modern graphics card for 3D gamers
has to provide high frame rates, it must come with fast memory and also
support as many 3D functions as possible - without being too expensive.
The Millennium G450 does not fulfill any of those criteria. |
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So, why does Matrox produce and sell
such a product? Only some years ago, their cards used to provide the best
2D performance and top notch signal quality. That's still the same today,
but the competitors gradually came closer. Today, graphics cards are usually
rated by 3D performance and features - something which leaves the Matrox
cards behind the times. The performance leader, Nvidai, releases graphics
chips on steadily shortened product cycles, outshining predecessors and
outclassing other companies' products. Todays graphics chips also come
with some functions to accelerate and to enhance DVD/MPEG2 playback. Back
in the times of the good old Matrox Millennium (MGA 2064W) or the Diamond
Fire GL 1000 Pro, the 2D or Windows performance had already reached its
plateau. No ultra-fast ATI Radeon or Nvidia GeForce 2 Ultra board is able
to draw windows and text faster.
| Matrox's new Millennium G450 does
not surpass the former top model G400MAX in terms of performance, even
though the name might imply it. Actually, the new model is as fast as the
standard G400, as the modifications merely concern optimizations for the
business and OEM market. |
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The predecessor was available in
several versions, as the G400 series was shipped with varying clock speeds
for chip and graphics memory. The addition "MAX" signifies higher clock
speeds. In addition, there are two models available, G400 SH and DH. SH
stands for Single Head, DH means Dual Head which is Matrox's technique
to drive two outputs using one graphics board (monitor/TV or monitor/monitor).
This variety is no longer available
since the Millennium G450 comes with two "heads" by default. A splitter
cable which is included lets you attach a TV or VCR via S-Video or Composite.
You can also get the G450 with a DVI port if you want to attach a digital
flat panel. The version coming with 32 MB or DDR memory is primarily meant
for the retail market. Bulk and OEM versions are also available, but with
only 16 MB DDR SDRAM or SDR SDRAM only.
By Star Boy
(Source: Tomshardware.Com
for more tech hardware news) |
