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Sapphire Blizzard X1900 XTX 512MB PCI-E Review |
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Written by Mavke
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Tuesday, 11 April 2006 |
Box Gods reports about a review on the Sapphire Blizzard X1900 XTX 512MB PCIe video card. Hardware companies would love for us to believe that, in their very heart, they are tweakers and gamers just like us. When we identify with them, we feel better about breaking out the credit cards. This usually means a PR team talking it up while handing out some gaming gadgets at a trade show. Then there is Sapphire, who has stepped up to the plate with their factory water cooled Blizzard X1900 XTX and let it quietly do all the talking. Sapphire must have had that inner child in mind when they turned their hardware engineers loose on the Blizzard X1900 XTX to put some of the enthusiasm back in enthusiast.
 Sapphire Blizzard X1900 XTX 512MB PCI-E Review
There is virtually no difference between the Blizzard variant of the Sapphire Radeon X1900 XTX and their standard air cooled version. None I could find anyway. When I say no differences, that excludes the aluminum ram heatsinks and the water block. This, of course, raises a few interesting questions for those of us who already own a Radeon X1900 XTX card... Will Sapphire sell this cooler as a stand alone drop in upgrade? If so, will it void any warranties? Well currently that doesn't seem an option as far as Sapphire has confirmed, and this somehow linked to ATI and their warranty policy.
Off the top of my head, I can't recall another tier 1 video card builder putting their reputation on the line and stepping into the market with a water cooled solution this innovative. BFG is the company you would normally expect to release products like this as they did with their NVIDIA powered GeForce 7800 GT OC H20. That card was just a water block equipped card though, Sapphire has gone all the way. The Blizzard X1900 XTX is set to hit Newegg and will be cost about $539. Currently, the Sapphire air cooled Radeon X1900 XTX is in the $500 range and the GeForce 7900 GTX can be had for $500-550.
If you're looking for a NVIDIA powered card that is factory overclocked, you may want to give this a read first. I am as impressed with Sapphire's gutsy innovation as I am with this card. The Blizzard X1900 XTX offers rock solid performance with greatly reduced noise at a decent price point with a combination of features that's just plain hard to beat. If you're in the market for some top of the line loving, you certainly need to put the Blizzard on your short list.
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