XFX is first out of the gates with the latest gunslinger for the NVIDIA family, the all new XFX GeForce 8800 GT 256MB Alpha Dog XXX edition card. This card is priced at the same level as the ATI Radeon HD 3870 and is rumored to be the card to have in the $200 price range. We are the first in the world to see this card and couldn't wait to get this card onto a test bench and see what is really up with this new introduction into NVIDIA's mid level lineup. Based on the new G92 chipset supporting PCI Express 2.0 this card sports 256MB of GDDR3 memory and draws 105W of power. So, lets just take a look at what the card looks like, what it is made of and what you can expect. - Motherboards

XFX GeForce 8800 GT 256MB XXX Video Card Review

If you get the reference GeForce 8800 GT 256MB version of the card from many manufactures the core, memory and shader clocks are slower than the ones on the XFX GeForce 8800 GT Alpha Dog edition card. The XXX version being a faster little puppy however is speed up right out of the box and its core speed is 650MHz, the memory is clocked at 1600MHz and the shader clock is set at 1600MHz. The key features of DirectX 10 includes Shader Model 4.0, Geometry Shading and more. Okay, DirectX 10.1 is a new standard but will not take shape for another year or more and not supported by the G92 chip.

The XFX GeForce 8800 GT XXX edition card is very thin in its design and can easily fit into a single slot in your case. One excellent thing is the lower power requirements of the GeForce 8800 GT over its bigger brother the Ultra. The Ultra is a power hog and requires the use of two 6-pin connectors to operate properly, the GeForce 8800 GT on the other hand only needs a single connector. Unlike many cards we have seen in the past the GeForce 8800 GT has nothing left uncovered from top to bottom of the card, no capacitors, no silicon, no nothing on the front side of the card where a plastic shield covers it completely.

When we first heard that a 256MB version of the GeForce 8800 GT was coming out at the $200 price range, our first thoughts were damn that is going to kick ATI in the shins. This has panned out to be true in more than one way, for one this is a 256MB card that uses GDDR3, not GDDR4 memory and has a third less stream processors than ATI's Radeon HD 3870 512MB GDDR4 card, and still keeps up, for another it's priced lower. The ATI Radeon HD 3870 is priced at $239 around the internet, the GeForce 8800 GT 256MB will be $200 this equals a big ouch for the boys in red and black, and puts the green team in motion again.

This card has a lot to offer from many different view points making it a very appealing 3D solution for those who don't want to spend a lot of money, but still want great graphics and game play. It exceeds for a card in its class range and should be a very suitable video card for most but the hardcore gamer, who only want thee best card available. The XFX GeForce 8800 GT 256MB Alpha Dog XXX edition is a clear winner in the mid level arena. If availability of these cards becomes as widespread as NVIDIA predicts this is going to most likely be the hottest selling 3D card this holiday season.