Graphics Cards - Page 90

Three years later, it's hard to deny that Cyberpunk 2077 is one of the most technically advanced and visually impressive PC games currently available. The upcoming release of the highly anticipated Update 2.0 and Phantom Liberty expansion on PC with full path-traced lighting, Frame Generation, and DLSS 3.5's Ray Reconstruction make it look like something from the future.

DLSS 3.5's Ray Reconstruction replaces traditional hand-tuned denoisers (a technique used to clean up an image and fill in missing details) with an AI denoiser trained on 6 times the data used to create Frame Generation.

The result is improved ray-traced reflection detail, lighting, ambient occlusion, and more - Bryan Catanzaro, Vice President of Applied Deep Learning Research at NVIDIA, believes it makes the game look better than what's possible with native rendering.

We're now at a stage where NVIDIA's DLSS rendering technology on PC has matured to the point where if it's not included in a major AAA-style release, many begin to wonder why. This led to the recent community backlash and speculation surrounding the PC launch of Starfield, which only featured support for AMD's impressive but inferior FSR 2 technology.

Was its omission a calculated move that was part of the overall partnership between Bethesda and AMD? We'll probably never know, but the good news is that DLSS is officially being integrated into Starfield. The better news? Modders managed to add DLSS Super Resolution and Frame Generation support into the game ahead of its full release in a single day.

NVIDIA is amazed by how easily the technology can inserted into games like Starfield and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (another example of DLSS being modded in), with Bryan Catanzaro, Vice President of Applied Deep Learning Research at NVIDIA, opening up about fan-made DLSS mods in a recent discussion.

Intel's latest driver non-WHQL driver release for Arc graphics (version 31.0.101.4826) not only supports some of the biggest PC game releases on the horizon but also dips into the back catalog to boost performance for a few classics. Namely, Hitman Absolution and Bioshock Infinite, two titles getting a sizable bump to 1080p performance when running on Intel Arc graphics cards.

Up to 17% for Hitman Absolution and 27% for Bioshock Infinite. This builds on the major driver update we got in August, which focused on improving performance on some of the most popular and most-played DirectX 11 titles, including Apex Legends, GTA V, and Overwatch 2.

At the time, Intel told us that the per-game optimizations were being approached from the perspective of what's highest on the Steam charts and then working their way down. Seeing more DirectX 11 titles get some Arc love is great, especially when it arrives alongside Day One support for new titles.

NVIDIA's next-generation GPU architecture, codenamed Blackwell, is the successor to the current Ada Lovelace generation and the beginning of a new era of GPU design for the company. This is due to Blackwell being used for both the company's data center and AI side in addition to consumer GPUs for PC gaming and creators - a shake-up from the Hopper and Ada mix we see today.

Information on Blackwell has been swirling around the internet for a few years, with the early word indicating that the next generation of GPU architecture will adopt a chiplet design similar to AMD's approach with RDNA and the flagship Radeon RX 7900 Series. New info from NVIDIA insider kopite7kimi points to NVIDIA's Blackwell being very different at the top end - between the data center and consumer versions.

GB100, rumored to be the flagship Blackwell GPU, will adopt a chiplet or Multi-Chip Module (MCM) design, pointing to NVIDIA making a major change to packaging. With new info outlining that the consumer flagship GeForce RTX 5090 will use GB202, the PC gaming side will remain monolithic.

Although the GeForce RTX 4090 is still considered to be the absolute pinnacle (and overkill) of modern gaming GPUs capable of delivering triple-digit 4K performance, rumors are already swirling around NVIDIA's next-generation GeForce RTX 50 hardware - specifically the flagship GeForce RTX 5090.

The latest round of information on what will be the top Blackwell architecture cutting-edge 3nm GPU for PC gaming comes via multiple sources: panzerlied at Chiphell, NVIDIA insider Kopite7kimi, and GPU news outlet Videocardz.com. The GeForce RTX 5090 is set to be as much of a monster and upgrade over the previous generation as the GeForce RTX 4090.

First up, though, it looks like NVIDIA will be producing two Blackwell GPU series, one for high-performance computing (HPC) and AI with the 'GB1' label, with 'GB2' GPUs for gaming. So, what's in store for the GeForce RTX 5090 and GB202 GPU? A lot, let's dig in.

FurMark is a lightweight but intensive GPU benchmark tool that pushes graphics hardware (and your system to its absolute limit) and has been a staple part of GPU reviewing for well over a decade. It has also been a source of controversy, or at least a mixed reception, with several instances over the years of GPUs and PCs allegedly failing during or after FurMark tests to the point where hardware required replacing.

To the point where some consider the benchmark a true test of the quality of hardware and a way to test to see if there are any defects in a new product. It's been 16 years since FurMark got its last Version 1.X update, with the developer Geeks3D set to launch Version 2.0 of the application later this month. The latest beta release, v.2.0.10, was released via the Geeks3D Discord channel in late August.

FurMark 2.0 provides the same lightweight user interface to initiate or run custom tests across various resolutions, with expanded support for modern GPUs and resolutions.

You might have seen ASUS's new flagship liquid-cooled ROG Matrix GeForce RTX 4090 all-in-one pop up in a few headlines in recent months. American overclocker Allen "Splave" Golibersuch used the ROG Matrix GeForce RTX 4090 to smash through the 4 GHz boost clock barrier back in July and then followed this up by beating the 3DMark Fire Strike Extreme world record with the same GPU.

So even though it's common knowledge that the GeForce RTX 4090 is the most powerful graphics card available in 2023, there are key differences between models - and some RTX 4090s are just more capable than others - with or without the aid of LN2. Enhanced power delivery and the best of the best components make the ROG Matrix GeForce RTX 4090 the sort of card overclockers look for.

Announced in May of this year, and we got the chance to see an early version of the card up close at Computex 2023, ASUS is finally ready to launch the ROG Matrix GeForce RTX 4090 - with the card's release date set for September 19.

Since NVIDIA debuted DLSS, its AI-powered upscaling technology exclusive to GeForce RTX graphics cards, there have been several ongoing discussions (see: conspiracy theories) relating to whether or not enabling DLSS requires specialized hardware.

Powered by the company's groundbreaking work on AI supercomputers, with the aid of AI-based Tensor Cores in GeForce RTX graphics cards, DLSS can deliver a substantial performance uplift to games without sacrificing visual fidelity. Even though competing technology like AMD FSR and Intel XeSS can run on a wide range of GPU hardware, DLSS is limited to the GeForce RTX lineup - which now spans three generations of NVIDIA hardware.

Looking to investigate just how DLSS uses Tensor Cores (and if required), Redittor 'Bluedot55' used NVIDIA's development metric tool Nsight Systems to see what happened when DLSS was enabled. It turns out that DLSS does require Tensor Cores to do its magic - with some fascinating results.

Several GeForce RTX 4070 models have dropped in price at US retailers, including Amazon and Newegg, with several variants currently available for USD 549 - a decent 8.3% discount compared to the MSRP of USD 599. This is the first time we've seen the GeForce RTX 4070 being sold at a substantial discount, with the $50 price reduction making one of the most attractive options in the GeForce RTX 40 Series lineup even more so.

In a statement supplied to Wccftech, NVIDIA PR notes, "Today, the GeForce RTX 4070 is widely available from just $549," citing brands like ASUS, GIGABYTE, and MSI. "This is a great choice for gamers looking to upgrade for Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty and other upcoming DLSS 3.5 titles, such as Alan Wake 2, at 1440p," the statement continues.

And with that, models like the GIGABYTE WINDFORCE GeForce RTX 4070 12GB, MSI Ventus GeForce RTX 4070 12GB, ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 4070 Twin Edge OC, and ASUS DUAL GeForce RTX 4070 have all seen their prices updated to $549.

The new ASUS GeForce RTX 4070 BTF is the first GPU to sport a power-cable-free design as part of the BTF (Back To The Future) collaboration between ASUS, Thermaltake, and SilverStone - and it'll be released in China on September 15. This means it will be available this weekend in the region for those looking to create a unique build.

The cable-free GeForce RTX 4070 requires a BTF "hidden-connector motherboard" that hides all of its connectors on the underside for clean cable management and a new form of power delivery to components like the GPU. To house the new GeForce RTX 4070, ASUS is also launching the new TUF GAMING B760M-BTF WIFI motherboard for Intel 12th, 13th, and 14th-generation processors.

Under the motherboard, you'll find ASUS's new GC-HPWR connector capable of PCI Express power delivery from 75W up to 600W. On the GPU side, this means an additional connector next to the PCI interface for the extra power delivery - which should be able to support everything from a GeForce RTX 4060 to a GeForce RTX 4090.

Last week, we reported on multiple sources claiming that Nintendo was demonstrating Nintendo Switch 2 hardware to developers at Gamescom. Showcasing an upgraded version of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and the visually stunning The Matrix Awakens Unreal Engine 5 tech demo for PlayStation 5, the internet is abuzz with speculation on what the Switch 2 will be capable of.

According to sources, the Nintendo Switch 2 demos also included ray-tracing and NVIDIA DLSS, pointing to a serious upgrade compared to the current Switch hardware - which first hit the scene in 2017. The existing Switch is powered by a custom Tegra X1 chip using NVIDIA's 20nm Maxwell architecture from 2014, so it's definitely starting to show its age.

And with that, we've got sources outlining what NVIDIA chip (heavily customized and optimized) will be found at the heart of the Nintendo Switch 2 - NVIDIA's T239 Ampere APU (via @Kepler_L2).

With the arrival of the Radeon RX 7700 XT and 7800 XT combo, AMD has stated that its lineup of RDNA 3 GPUs for the Radeon RX 7000 Series is complete - from an ASIC or GPU chip perspective. But, even with the long-awaited arrival of these two GPUs that have fleshed out the latest Radeon generation, it looks like there's another card on the way.

According to a Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) by PowerColor (via @harukaze5719 on Twitter/X), it looks like there's a Radeon RX 7600 XT on the way at some point in the future and it will feature either 12GB or 10GB of VRAM - with the filing pointing to both coming.

The list of PowerColor products covers a wide range of GPUs, including White models for the Radeon RX 7700 XT and Radeon RX 7800 XT. But this looks to be the first mention we've seen of the Radeon RX 7600 XT - as the card has yet to be confirmed as on the cards from AMD.

2023 has been a massive year for gaming, and it's showing no signs of slowing down - with one of the month's biggest releases due next week. And that is the reboot meets the latest installment in one of the most prolific fighting game franchises of all time, Mortal Kombat 1.

With a cinematic campaign, over-the-top action, and a long list of fan-favorite characters ready to dish up some Fatalities, Mortal Kombat 1 is on track for launch on PC and consoles on September 19.

As part of its weekly DLSS announcement and recap, NVIDIA has confirmed that DLSS 2 Super Resolution will be available on day one, with the tech ensuring "GeForce RTX gamers hit a locked 60 frames per second in every match, with every setting maxed out." And to celebrate the arrival of Mortal Kombat 1, be sure to watch the epic launch trailer.

Images for a prototype GeForce RTX 3090 SUPER have appeared online. Although NVIDIA ultimately shipped the GeForce RTX 3090 Ti towards the tail-end of the RTX 30 Series Ampere generation - the stealthy black design of the RTX 3090 SUPER is fantastic.

Like many of you out there, I'm a huge fan of the redesigned Founders Edition models that were first introduced with the GeForce RTX 30 Series, bringing a more stylish and sleek design to the standard GPU configuration, bolstered by a unique cooling setup with fans on either side. With a mix of various metals, with different models sporting different tones, it's a shame that that all-black look wasn't adopted for the more premium 'Ti' models.

NVIDIA's 'SUPER' GeForce RTX variants appeared during the Turing-based GeForce RTX 20 Series generation and have been missing since - with several reports indicating that NVIDIA has toyed with the idea of bringing the 'SUPER' range back over the years. If the Founders Editions end up sporting a stylish black look like we see here, I'm all for a GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER at some point in the future.

MSI's new GAMING SLIM range for the GeForce RTX 40 Series offers a refresh of the popular GAMING X models, re-designed to be slimmer and lighter - from the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti all the way up to the flagship GeForce RTX 4090.

"Despite its slim profile, the advanced thermal capability isn't compromised," MSI writes of the new GeForce RTX 4090 GAMING X SLIM and GeForce RTX 4080 GAMING X SLIM GPUs - which features the same impressive TRI FROZR 3 and TORX FAN 5.0 technology of the beefier versions. Plus, the same OC boost clock profiles as the GAMING X variants.

MSI will also offer the new GAMING SLIM models in both Black and White variants to suit more cases and builds. However, as we're talking about flagship models from the GeForce RTX 40 Series - they're still comparatively chunky compared to the mid-range offerings.

Another month rolls by, and we've got another month of juicy Steam Hardware and Software survey data to go through - this time for August 2023. On the graphics card front, NVIDIA still dominates with 74.93% market share, followed by AMD with 15.94%, with the big story being that both the GeForce RTX 4060 and GeForce RTX 4060 Ti desktop graphics cards have now made the list.

No doubt the market share for these GPUs will increase over the coming months as the 60-class mainstream GPUs from NVIDIA are all over the Top 10, which includes the GeForce RTX 3060, RTX 3060 Ti, RTX 2060, GTX 1650, and even the GTX 1060 - which is still going strong at number three. As of August 2023, the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti has a 0.37% market share, with the GeForce RTX 4060 sitting at 0.22%.

This means that there are now as many GeForce RTX 4060 GPUs (not including the RTX 4060 Ti) in PCs as there are AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX GPUs - which is the most popular RDNA 3 card, according to the latest data from Steam.

There's been a lot of discussion around the PC version of Starfield since the game officially launched last week, and a lot of it has centered on whether or not optimization looks to have been primarily focused on AMD GPUs compared to those from NVIDIA and Intel. And with that, the latter looks to be suffering the most, but Intel is hard at work releasing multiple driver updates for Starfiled on PC for its Intel Arc line of desktop GPUs.

The latest driver update from Intel fixes a few more Starfield issues, from improving performance and stability to fixing some visual bugs and glitches like missing character eyebrows. Per the release notes for the new Intel Arc 31.0.101.4676 Non-WHQL driver release, several outstanding issues remain to iron out.

Some are related to performance, while others are still associated with glitches like low-res textures loading instead of high-quality assets and flickering objects with certain light sources. So Starfield on Arc isn't a great experience (yet), and kudos to the Arc driver team for working hard to improve things. However, Bethesda's comments on Arc graphics are a little surprising.

The latest AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 23.9.1 driver release for Radeon graphics is big, as it adds Radeon Anti-Lag+ and AMD HYPR-RX for RDNA 3 GPUs. Coinciding with the launch of the new Radeon RX 7700 XT and Radeon RX 7800 XT GPUs, HYPR-RX is a new driver-based feature for the RDNA 3 generation that offers a significant boost to performance while lowering latency for all games at the driver level.

Anti-Lag+ is AMD's latest version of its Reflex-like latency reduction tool, optimized per game and exclusive to RDNA 3-based Radeon graphics cards. With the first wave of 12 Anti-Lag+ supported titles, including Apex Legends, Overwatch 2, Fortnite, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, AMD showcases the difference it brings compared to its existing Anti-Lag tech.

HYPR-RX combines Anti-Lag+, Radeon Boost, and Radeon Super Resolution into a single-click option to make access to these technologies easier. It will be expanded next year with the long-awaited introduction of FSR 3 and AMD Fluid Motion Frames - the company's answer to DLSS 3 Frame Generation.

Starfield is out this week, even though it seems like the whole PC gaming world has been playing the Early Access version over the past week, and with Intel Arc support reportedly spotty (at best), the driver team at Intel has pushed out a driver update specific to Starfield. And according to the Intel Graphics team, there's another one on the way later this week.

"The driver engineering team is still hard at work on further stability and performance improvements," writes Intel on Twitter/X. "We want to offer fixes for this title as quickly as possible." Stability issues specific to a single vendor are not great, though kudos to the Intel team for working hard to release a new driver and continue to improve the game's performance.

The Starfield driver for Intel Arc graphics cards that just dropped is a big one, as it significantly reduces loading times and resolves several "game instability and visual artifacts." However, as more work needs to be done, Intel advises playing the game using the 'High' preset or lower - so no Ultra then.

Ahead of the launch of AMD's new Radeon RX 7800 XT and Radeon RX 7700 XT, it looks like official benchmark results have leaked - via HDTechnologia and Videocardz. According to the publications, these detailed performance numbers (in that they cover a wide range of titles) come from AMD's official reviewer's guide for the new graphics cards.

With the launch so close, it's safe to assume that what we're seeing here is correct, though it's worth highlighting that the results allegedly come from AMD itself and not independent reviewers. Also, the exact system configuration isn't specified. Still, each game entry does note what settings are used - like 'Ultra High' for Assassin's Creed Valhalla and 'Epic' for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. And there's a separate section for ray-tracing.

Without RT enabled, according to these figures, the Radeon RX 7800 XT outperforms the GeForce RTX 4070 by around 7% on average, with that number dropping to a slight performance lead with RT effects turned on.