Our today's menu features XFX GeForce GTX 260 XXX edition, an overclocked GeForce GTX 260 card based on the same GT200 core from NVIDIA like the rest of the recently released GeForce GTX 200 series. The 640M suffix in the official name stands for 640MHz and XFX made sure to point that out clearly on their box. The company overclocked the core by 64MHz and boosted the stream processors from 1242MHz to 1363MHz. These GeForce GTX 260 cards uses the same dual slot cooler we've already seen on the GeForce GTX 280, the stronger card in the GeForce GTX 200 series, so telling the cards just from looks is not an easy task as they are looking almost identical. - FudZilla

XFX GeForce GTX 260 XXX SLI Ready Edition Review

We have already checked out the XFX GeForce GTX 280 XX edition, and the only visible difference is the 8-pin connector. The GeForce GTX 260 uses two 6-pin connectors whereas the GeForce GTX 280 card uses one 6-pin and one 8-pin connector. Both coolers run silently when graphics card is idle, but they get quite audible under a workload. XFX painted their GT200 based cards nicely. In case you're not familiar with it, the GeForce GTX 260 is a weaker version of the current single GPU champ known as the GT200. Full versions of the GT200 are found on teh GeForce GTX 280, which are the fastest around.

One thing we have to mention is the goodwill of XFX and the respect for their American customers. Apparently, some faithful enthusiasts paid an arm and a leg for the GT200 cards right after they were announced, only to be shocked by recent sudden price drops. Fortunately for their customers, XFX has a program where they will rebate $120 per a card. The XFX GeForce GTX 260 has a frame buffer of 896MB GDDR3 memory with 448-bit memory interface. If one GeForce GTX 260 card doesn't strike your chord then don't worry as the GeForce GTX 260 supports 3-way SLI. For that purpose, two SLI connectors are provided.

Maximum consumption is around 182W, but it's unlikely that this will be the case as this card supports HybridPower technology. This technology enables the GPU to power down and thus leaving non demanding tasks to be rendered by the integrated graphics. The GT200 can also power down certain unused parts of the chip as well as dynamically regulate frequencies and voltages. For those of us that still use the GPU exclusively for gaming, XFX went that extra mile and included Assassin's Creed with their card. The packaging is nicely assembled and painted, so walking by without noticing it on the shelf will be difficult.

XFX Geforce GTX 260 XXX version is an overclocked card running at 640MHz core and 1363MHz shader speeds. XFX decided on a safe overclock of 64MHz over the reference 576MHz, but they clocked the memory to high 2300MHz speed. We've seen that this card is in average about eight percent faster than the reference GeForce GTX 260, and it's priced at around euro $399. With the card you also get Assassin's Creed, which is not bad at all. The card's cooler is dual slot and it runs quietly in idle, but it gets a bit loud after some gaming. The card packs 192 shader processors and a 448-bit interface with 896MB memory.

This card packs one serious punch, and since the GeForce GTX 260 runs a bit behind of much more expensive GeForce GTX 280's power, XFX will improve that result with their overclocked cards. If you are hungry for one of the best cards around today, the overclocked XFX GeForce GTX 260 XXX edition will be a great choice.