The GeForce 9800 GTX has been around for some time now and the maturing of the product brings with it a new selection of cards which look to improve on the reference specification or design. We have one such card on our test bench today, XFX's GeForce 9800 GTX Black Edition from a handpicked range of cards which feature enhanced core and memory speeds for exceptional performance and stability. We will be running the card through a selection of the latest games at resolutions up to ultra widescreen mode as well as delving into some Blu-ray video playback testing and overclocking in order to establish how much of an improvement it is over the reference model. - DriverHeaven

XFX GeForce 9800 GTX Black Version Board Review

XFX package their Black Edition card in a box which has a completely different styling to their other GeForce eight and nine series cards. As well as the main cosmic graphics we have various sections of information such as the core speed and amount of memory used. Inside the box is a very thorough bundle which caters for the media enthusiast as much as it does for the gamer. Both HDMI and component connectors are included as default, as is a free copy of the excellent Assassins Creed game. We also find the now standard door hanger but still wonder if anyone would actually use it. A cool gimmick though.

The card draws power through the two 6-pin power connectors at the top of the PCB and features the same core configuration as the standard models. This means a G92 based 65nm chip with 128 unified shaders, 16 raster operation units and a 256-bit memory bus. Support for DirectX 10 and Shader Model 4.0 as well as PureVideo HD including high definition video acceleration are all included. At the back of the card we again find nothing to differentiate the Black Edition from any other GeForce 9800 GTX but it is easier to see the two SLI connectors which tell us this card is capable of 3-Way SLI gaming pleasure.

Under the cooler there are eight Samsung 0.8ns memory chips which are rated at 2400MHz clock speed and it is in paper specifications such as these that the product begins to show us why it deserves the Black Edition title. XFX clocks the memory at 2280MHz, being 80MHz above stock. The core, which XFX tell us is basically handpicked, runs 85MHz above stock at 760MHz and the shader clock is set to 1900MHz, 212MHz above stock. It is rather unusual for XFX not to push the memory to the maximum rated 2400MHz speed however. The Black Edition customers also receive priority live support from XFX if the need ever arises.

When looking at the overall package that XFX provide, it is somehow hard not to be impressed. The video card is supplied in a cool box with plenty of product information and the bundle provided is perfect, from the HDMI connector to the free copy of Assassins Creed, there really is nothing left out. The card itself follows the reference design and so is quiet running and has good build quality with no real issues to speak of. XFX also offer priority live support on this card along with a good warranty which adds further value to an already stellar product. Having the special look and color just adds more value to the hardware as such.

We were very impressed by the performance of the card overall and the core and shader clocks take this GTX to a great performance level but despite this we still feel that XFX could have pushed the memory a little further than they have, though there is nothing to stop consumers doing this manually. Overall the GTX was already a great product. It has some excellent 3D performance, good video features, runs quiet and is very well priced. The XFX Black Edition improves on this performance but still manages to retail an attractive price point and so is without doubt the best GeForce 9800 GTX we have seen to date.