Posted 02/07/09 at 03:27:09 PM by Justin Kerr

Nvidia’s promise last September to revamp and rebrand its product line by the end of 2008 sounded like a great idea, but has anyone else noticed any meaningful changes? The 200 series has helped somewhat. The larger number indicates the faster card, but that's the only pattern I have been able to figure out.  Well if esoteric GeForce branding trivia is a hobby of yours, then you’re in luck.

Leaked documents from Santa Clara based Nvidia suggest that GeForce 9800 GTX+ will be officially renamed to the GeForce GTS 250 during cEBIT in March. The 250 will still be made using the new 55 nm process and will clock in at the same frequencies as before. A similar fate awaits the 8800 GT which will be renamed to the GeForce 240. OEM partners were reassured in the memo by revealing that both cards can easily be converted simply by changing the VBIOS and packaging materials. It is still unclear what will happen to existing parts already in the supply chain, or if any other products are being considered for future rebranding.

Nvidia is clearly focusing its marketing resources towards the mainstream and entry-level markets. This is clearly the area they expect to be the most active during the economic crunch. As for their rebranding efforts, has Nvidia made this any easier for you to understand?

Hit the jump and let us know what you think.

Read More

Posted 06/29/08 at 10:46:59 PM by Justin Kerr

Nvidia is preparing to roll out full support for hardware accelerated physics on its high end graphics cards including the 9800 & 200 series. New beta drivers which enable this functionality can now be found using the advanced driver search tool. Version 177.39 installs PhysX drivers that will enable the graphics card to emulate Ageia hardware. Physics acceleration is part of Nvidia’s new CUDA initiative aimed at convincing gamers that graphics hardware is more capable and valuable then CPU’s. Games of note that currently support PhysX include Gears of War, Mass Effect, Rainbow Six Vegas, and Unreal Tournament 3. The list of supported titles is expected to grow exponentially as Nvidia rolls this feature out to older hardware in the coming months.

 Hit the jump to learn how to really put PhysX to the test.

Read More