The Bottom Line
Introduction
Inno3D sent over their radically-unique GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card for review, which I quickly ripped out of the box and had it in my test bed in minutes. It's one of the most unique looking RTX 3080s so far, with great performance.
We have one of the better custom GeForce RTX 3080 graphics cards here, with one of the coolest-styled aesthetics that I've seen. If you can get your hands-on the Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics cards, you won't be disappointed with it at all.
It won't overclock that well as it's already hitting its ceiling, but you're getting better than NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Founders Edition performance which is all you want to hear.
- ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3080 (OC Edition) review
- MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO review
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Founders Edition review
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Founders Edition review
- MSI GeForce RTX 3080 GAMING X TRIO review
- ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3080 Trinity review
Everything You Need to Know About Ampere
- Ampere GPU architecture: NVIDIA has so much going on under the Ampere GPU hood, with the GA102 GPU packing a huge 28 billion transistors (that's 28,000,000,000) on the Samsung 8nm node. We have a huge 10496 CUDA cores on GA102, over double the 4608 CUDA cores on the TITAN RTX.
- RTX improvements: NVIDIA has effectively doubled everything when it comes to RTX, where it will rips and tears your games and delivers them to your eyeballs faster than ever before with Ampere. If you want to run any RTX-powered games, you'll want a new GeForce RTX 3080.
- GDDR6X memory: The new NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 has 10GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit memory bus, with a huge 760GB/sec of memory bandwidth. You should see the 4K gaming results for the evidence of the Ampere GPU + GDDR6X memory slaying it.
- PCIe 4.0 connectivity: NVIDIA's new GeForce RTX 30 series graphics cards are now PCIe 4.0 compatible, so if you're building a new AMD Ryzen 3000 series system with an X570 motherboard -- you will be ready to rock and roll with PCIe 4.0 connectivity.
- HDMI 2.1: 4K 120Hz + 8K 60Hz = single cable: If you are buying a new TV in the coming months or years, HDMI 2.1 is going to be something you want. It opens up the bandwidth floodgates to 4K 120Hz and 8K 60Hz over the single HDMI 2.1 cable.
- RTX IO: NVIDIA's introduction of RTX IO with Ampere is very similar to the ultra-fast game load times on the next-gen Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 consoles. You can read all about RTX IO right here, which is something we'll see build more foundation in 2021 and beyond.
Inno3D marketing
Inno3D wants you to AMP up your gaming with Inno3D GeForce and you can do just that with the GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card. Inno3D explains that it rocks programmable RGB lighting and a large triple 9cm fan cooler that is also quiet.
The programmable RGB can be tweaked, but just letting it go on its own it looks great -- cycling through all of the colors.
You can totally tweak the card through Inno3D's own TuneIT software.
Inno3D has some chunky heat sinks on its RTX 3080 iCHILL X3.
Some truly unique design aesthetic on the Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3. You either love it, or you hate it.
You even get an iCHILL X3 tail fin that can be installed onto the card for some even more radical styling.
Detailed Look
Inno3D has a wicked retail box for its GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card, fully engulfed in its ice-theme with ice cracking behind the graphics card itself. I really love the retail packaging here, it would stand out on a shelf easily.
From the front, the card looks great with its ice-themed military-style look.
The back of the card is one of those love-or-hate it designs.
From the top and bottom, it's a thick 2.5-slot design.
You only need dual 8-pin PCIe power connectors for the Inno3D RTX 3080 iCHILL X3.
The usual 3 x DP and 1 x HDMI 2.1 output on the card.
I actually really love the RGB lighting on the Inno3D RTX 3080 iCHILL X3.
Test System Specs
Latest upgrade:
Sabrent sent over their huge Rocket Q 8TB NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 SSD, which will be my new Games install SSD inside of my main test bed.
I've got a new upgrade inside of my GPU test bed before my change to a next-gen test bed, where I will be preparing for NVIDIA's next-gen Ampere graphics cards and AMD's next-gen RDNA 2 graphics cards.
Sabrent helped out with some new storage for my GPU test beds, sending over a slew of crazy-fast Rocket NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 SSDs. I've got this installed into my GPU test bed as the new Games Storage drive, since games are so damn big now. Thanks to Sabrent, I've got 2TB of super-fast M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD storage now.
Anthony's Test System Specifications
- Motherboard: GIGABYTE Z370 AORUS Gaming 7 (buy from Amazon)
- CPU: Intel Core i7-8700K @ 5GHz (buy from Amazon)
- Cooler: Corsair Hydro Series H115i PRO (buy from Amazon)
- Memory: 16GB (2x8GB) HyperX Predator DDR4-2933 (buy from Amazon)
- SSD: Sabrent Rocket Q 2TB NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 (buy from Amazon)
- SSD: 1TB Toshiba OCZ RD400 NVMe M.2 (buy from Amazon)
- SSD: 512GB Toshiba OCZ RD400 NVMe M.2 (buy from Amazon)
- Power Supply: InWin 1065W
- Case: InWin X-Frame
- OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64-bit (buy from Amazon)
Additional Images
Benchmarks - Synthetic
3DMark Fire Strike
3DMark has been a staple benchmark for years now, all the way back to when The Matrix was released and Futuremark had bullet time inspired benchmarks. 3DMark is the perfect tool to see if your system - most important, your CPU and GPU - is performing as it should. You can search results for your GPU, to see if it falls in line with other systems based on similar hardware.
3DMark TimeSpy
Heaven - 1080p
Heaven is an intensive GPU benchmark that really pushes your silicon to its limits. It's another favorite of ours as it has some great scaling for multi-GPU testing, and it's great for getting your GPU to 100% for power and noise testing.
Benchmarks - 1080p
DOOM Eternal is one of the best-looking, but superbly-optimized games of 2020 with the folks at id Software truly putting their all into the id Tech 7 engine for DOOM Eternal. We're using the Vulkan API on DOOM Eternal here.
You can buy DOOM Eternal at Amazon.
Another new entry into our regular graphics card benchmarks is Red Dead Redemption 2, which is powered by the RAGE engine by Rockstar Games. The RAGE engine has been tuned from its normal use in the Grand Theft Auto series. We're also running this on the Vulkan API.
You can buy Red Dead Redemption 2 at Amazon.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it's nothing.
You can buy Middle-earth: Shadow of War at Amazon.
Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games' latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.
Far Cry New Dawn was developed by Ubisoft, and is powered the Dunia Engine, an engine that has been modified over the years for Far Cry and last used in Far Cry 5. Dunia Engine itself was a modified version of CRYENGINE, scaling incredibly well on all sorts of hardware.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal R&D department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.
1080p Benchmark Performance Thoughts
Please, please do not buy the GeForce RTX 3090 for 1080p gaming... it is so, so beyond overkill for 1080p gaming. Even 1440p gaming isn't really where the RTX 3090 is aiming for, it's more for 4K gaming -- and even 8K gaming finally.
Still, you are getting unrivaled performance even at 1080p.
Benchmarks - 1440p
DOOM Eternal is one of the best-looking, but superbly-optimized games of 2020 with the folks at id Software truly putting their all into the id Tech 7 engine for DOOM Eternal. We're using the Vulkan API on DOOM Eternal here.
You can buy DOOM Eternal at Amazon.
Another new entry into our regular graphics card benchmarks is Red Dead Redemption 2, which is powered by the RAGE engine by Rockstar Games. The RAGE engine has been tuned from its normal use in the Grand Theft Auto series. We're also running this on the Vulkan API.
You can buy Red Dead Redemption 2 at Amazon.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it's nothing.
You can buy Middle-earth: Shadow of War at Amazon.
Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games' latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.
Far Cry New Dawn was developed by Ubisoft, and is powered the Dunia Engine, an engine that has been modified over the years for Far Cry and last used in Far Cry 5. Dunia Engine itself was a modified version of CRYENGINE, scaling incredibly well on all sorts of hardware.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal R&D department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.
1440p Benchmark Performance Thoughts
Please, please do not buy the GeForce RTX 3090 for 1080p gaming... it is so, so beyond overkill for 1080p gaming. Even 1440p gaming isn't really where the RTX 3090 is aiming for, it's more for 4K gaming -- and even 8K gaming finally.
Still, you are getting unrivaled performance even at 1080p.
Benchmarks - 4K
DOOM Eternal is one of the best-looking, but superbly-optimized games of 2020 with the folks at id Software truly putting their all into the id Tech 7 engine for DOOM Eternal. We're using the Vulkan API on DOOM Eternal here.
You can buy DOOM Eternal at Amazon.
Another new entry into our regular graphics card benchmarks is Red Dead Redemption 2, which is powered by the RAGE engine by Rockstar Games. The RAGE engine has been tuned from its normal use in the Grand Theft Auto series. We're also running this on the Vulkan API.
You can buy Red Dead Redemption 2 at Amazon.
Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it's nothing.
You can buy Middle-earth: Shadow of War at Amazon.
Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games' latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.
Far Cry New Dawn was developed by Ubisoft, and is powered the Dunia Engine, an engine that has been modified over the years for Far Cry and last used in Far Cry 5. Dunia Engine itself was a modified version of CRYENGINE, scaling incredibly well on all sorts of hardware.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal R&D department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.
4K Benchmark Performance Thoughts
Please, please do not buy the GeForce RTX 3090 for 1080p gaming... it is so, so beyond overkill for 1080p gaming. Even 1440p gaming isn't really where the RTX 3090 is aiming for, it's more for 4K gaming -- and even 8K gaming finally.
Still, you are getting unrivaled performance even at 1080p.
Benchmarks - RTX + DLSS
I've now got an entire section dedicated to ray tracing and DLSS benchmarks, where I'll slowly benchmark more and more titles and add them into future reviews. First up, we have 4A Games' Metro Exodus which is a constant pressure on our GPUs.
Metro Exodus
- Metro Exodus RT + DLSS performance: The Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 beats the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Founders Edition in every test with RT + DLSS enabled in Metro Exodus. We're looking at close to 4K 60FPS with all of the graphical bells and whistles enabled.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider RT + DLSS performance: We pass 100FPS average with RT + DLSS enabled in Shadow of the Tomb Raider, which is some magical performance at this resolution.
Overclocking
You're going to see around 1950-1980MHz out of the Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card, with virtually no wiggle room in overclocking. You're already enjoying some of the best out-of-the-box performance with this card.
I was seeing the GPU boost up to around 2070MHz but it wasn't rock solid at these clocks.
Power Consumption & Temps
Inno3D's new GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card runs at around 70C under load, ramping up to 73C depending on the room temps. For the most part it sat around 70C for me, 9C cooler than NVIDIA's own GeForce RTX 3080 Founders Edition graphics card.
The Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 inside of my Intel Core i7-8700K test bed consumes 470W in total under load and it uses 40W more power over the RTX 3080 FE and 30W more power over the RTX 3090 FE.
What's Hot, What's Not
What's Hot
Kick ass RTX 3080 performance: You're getting some kick ass GeForce RTX 3080 performance, with it swinging above the GeForce RTX 3080 Founders Edition, stays cooler, and runs quieter. The performance is going to beat everything on the market right now apart from the RTX 3090 which is much more expensive.
Totally unique Inno3D aesthetic: I really love the style, it is unique and stands out -- something that is a little different to the usual custom ASUS, MSI, and ZOTAC cards on the market.
What's Not
- No additional OC headroom: You're maxed out here on the Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card, and that's not a bad thing. It would be nice to have some OC headroom, but it's not worth the tweaking and messing around for maybe 15MHz overclocking.
- Hard to buy: This isn't exclusive to Inno3D, but rather all GeForce RTX 3080 graphics cards.
Final Thoughts
Inno3D has quite the card on its hands with the GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3, something that offers top-class performance but with a totally unique style. It will stand out, but the Ampere GPU underneath cranks along and offers out-of-this-world 4K gaming performance.
If you are a high refresh rate 1440p gaming monitor owner, or you want to step up into the world of 4K 60FPS or even higher-end 4K 120FPS gaming world then the Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 is a great choice.
It doesn't really matter which GeForce RTX 3080 you buy at this point because you're going to get mostly the same performance, but there are definitely some that are better than others. Inno3D is on the side of being better than the competition -- so far it stands with the custom ASUS and MSI GeForce RTX 3080s that I've tested -- and easily beats the ZOTAC RTX 3080 Trinity.
Inno3D's custom GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card is a treat from its retail packaging through to the unique style. If you can find one somewhere in the world and it's not more expensive than another brand you like -- you can't go wrong here with the Inno3D RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 graphics card.
Performance |
100% |
Quality |
90% |
Features |
100% |
Value |
100% |
Overall |
98% |
If you can find one, the Inno3D GeForce RTX 3080 iCHILL X3 offers that great, kick ass RTX 3080 performance, along with a unique take on its design.
What's in Anthony's PC?
- CPU: Intel Core i5-12600K
- MOTHERBOARD: GIGABYTE Z690 AERO-G
- RAM: Corsair 32GB DDR4-3200
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 24GB
- SSD: Sabrent 4TB Rocket 4 Plus
- OS: Windows 11 Pro
- CASE: Lian Li O11 Dynamic XL
- PSU: ASUS ROG Strix 850W
- KEYBOARD: Logitech G915 Wireless
- MOUSE: Logitech G502X Wireless
- MONITOR: LG C3 48-inch OLED TV 4K 120Hz
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