By now we all know that NVIDIA is trying to transition their graphics cards to the 55nm manufacturing process. The transition began with the GeForce 9800 GTX+ and has made its way into a few hand picked GeForce 9800 GT models which have yet to find their way to retail. Many of us have been waiting for the shrunken down cores to eventually trickle down into the newer cards, namely the GeForce GTX 200 series. So let's be honest for a second, the GeForce GTX 280 and GTX 260 cards are power sucking monsters which are not only expensive for NVIDIA to produce but also don't fit very well with the environmentally friendly aspect of today's marketplace and consumers demanded it. - Hardware Canucks

EVGA e-GeForce GTX 260 (55nm) SuperClock Review

Has anyone else noticed that we have been seeing a large number of GeForce GTX 200 series card on sale as of late? The reason for this is that NVIDIA is trying to get rid of their 65nm cores and starting immediately, we should see 55nm based GeForce GTX 260 video cards make their way to retailers. Just remember, distinguishing a 55nm card from a 65nm one can be a daunting task since we have heard that some board partners will not be advertising the new core on their packaging or advertising materials. Even the name hasn't changed, this is still the GeForce GTX 260 which we have come to know and love.

The clock frequencies of the 55nm Core 216 SuperClocked card reflect those of its 65nm card to a tee but it is important to note that its speeds are not that far removed from a stock card. As such, its main performance boost will come from the additional 24 shaders afforded to it when compared to the older GeForce GTX 260 with 192 stream processors. Just a while ago EVGA changed its naming scheme and their SuperClocked cards went from some of the higher to those which are only moderately overclocked. It would not surprise us to see the SSC or FTW monikers make their way to these new 55nm cards but only time will tell.

The outer box art for this board is very similar to every other EVGA e-GeForce GTX 200 series cards we have seen to date but there is a bit of red added to the usual orange band across the front. Meanwhile, the back of the box holds a bare minimum of information which includes a brief glance at the card. Unlike some past EVGA cards which have used dense foam for protection, the 55nm card is encased in a plastic clamshell to make sure it gets to you in one piece. This sight will probably be familiar to many of you since the basic design of the 55nm based GeForce GTX 260 is very similar to the older card at first glance.

One thing is sure, it is definitely interesting to see red of all colors on an EVGA card and this color scheme will not appeal to everyone. The underside of the new GeForce GTX 260 is where there is a large departure from past GeForce GTX 200 series cards. Since there is no longer any memory chips on the back of the PCB, some money could be saved by not installing a heatsink on this side. Even though the GPU core takes less power than the older version, there is still a pair of 6-pin power connectors used. And the cooling solution is similar though has changed due to the smaller GT200 core and the memory chips.

Overall, overclocking was quite good for an older GeForce GTX 260. Many people were hoping that the transition to a 55nm manufacturing process would increase the overclockability of these cards but that does not seem to be the case. Even when bumping the fan speed to 100%, overclocking didn't increase one bit so it isn't cooling which is keeping this card back, rather it seems to be the voltage. Though memory overclocking went quite well but it actually stopped short of the mark set by that same GeForce GTX 260. In the end the overclocking experience with this graphics card proved to be a disappointment as we expected more.

All in all, if you have bought a GeForce GTX 260 with 216 shaders, then you have nothing to fear considering the 55nm version just doesn't give you any tangible benefits. With prices of the 65nm based GeForce GTX 260 cards falling through the floor, the card we got today probably isn't too appealing at this juncture but it shouldn't be written off too quickly as such. It occupies the tough position of a transitionary product that some were hoping would bring better overclocking and lower power consumption to the table. These hopes weren't fully borne out and that comes as a disappointment. It is as plain and simple as that.