Ageia Tests Next-Generation PhysX Accelerators

SteveOBHave · 31 Aug 2007 at 15:49

I hope they don't succeed as I think they are only perpetuating the computer hardware industries marketing strategy with getting gamers to spend more money on individual pieces of hardware (i.e. SLi & Crossfire).

alastair79 · 31 Aug 2007 at 15:49

Doesn't matter to me if these are good or make the game look better, fact is I'm not going to spend even more money on my PC unless it is to upgrade something important.

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queamin · 31 Aug 2007 at 15:58

SteveOBHave said:
I hope they don't succeed as I think they are only perpetuating the computer hardware industries marketing strategy with getting gamers to spend more money on individual pieces of hardware (i.e. SLi & Crossfire).

Get a console then,to say hope they don't succeed because you don't want to buy one is selfish as you don't have to buy one even if they start getting good support in games.

Darkwave · 31 Aug 2007 at 16:12

Looks Fakey McFake to me, and if it's not then it's going to cost even more than current PhysX cards.

J.D · 31 Aug 2007 at 16:15

SteveOBHave said:
I hope they don't succeed as I think they are only perpetuating the computer hardware industries marketing strategy with getting gamers to spend more money on individual pieces of hardware (i.e. SLi & Crossfire).

Have you been raiding grannies medicine cabinet again you naughty boy.

C'mon, seriously?. You hope they fail?. Seems a bit harsh. You don't own one, seem to hate them and have had many debates on their existence. The fact of it all is that the PPU does a lot but it's the support that is lacking. It is slowly growing and with UT3 going to be using it, it can only be good for Ageia as UT3 will be one of the biggest games no doubt.

Give it time, I think it will slowly start to take off. The companies who do support PPU's have guys working for them that know more about PC's and hardware than most of us here. Do you not think they'll have a better insight in the plans of PPU's than we do?. I'm sorry but when so many people are shouting about the uselessness of them It makes me wonder about their integrity. Do I go along with all the people who think they know what they are talking about but don't even own them OR intend to buy them :confused:

. Or do I put some belief into the extremely successful and talented Unreal team & Pottsey?. (Pottsey bit was a joke, we don't all have to be thuper therious all the time)

Hen_Dawg · 31 Aug 2007 at 16:31

Pottsey. Please for the love of god use the quote button and work out the bits of code that let you do multiple quotes. Please!

elmuzzy66. · 31 Aug 2007 at 16:46

willhub said:
Can you take a picture of your 7900GT for comparision?

when the 8800 arrives on monday

J.D · 31 Aug 2007 at 16:50

Hen_Dawg said:
Pottsey. Please for the love of god use the quote button and work out the bits of code that let you do multiple quotes. Please!

On top of that being a bit of a pointless post. It's not really hard to read the bold text and to see it as quoted text?. I've never once had a problem with it or has it been hard to understand in any way at all :confused:

. It's not in the rules to use quotes and seems to be your preference which means nothing to anybody really except yourself

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Darg · 31 Aug 2007 at 16:51

That's not a 7900GT. Looking at google images it seems completely different. The AGP power socket being in the same place is about the only similiarity. The memory are in completely different places along with the PU in different places. The 7900GT doesn't need the strip heatsink for VRMs are whatever they are either.

From my slightly professional viewpoint that doesn't seem to be photoshopped.

As for the cooler is it any surprise that they might license the design from nVidia? If it's a good cooler then why not? The two PUs probably output roughly the same heat.

Pottsey · 31 Aug 2007 at 17:15

For those saying it’s fake just remember there really is a PCI-E card in the works as it’s was added to this months drivers. It wouldn’t surprise me if the imange was fake but at least half the news about the PCI-E card is real.

SteveOBHave · 31 Aug 2007 at 17:33

J.D said:
Have you been raiding grannies medicine cabinet again you naughty boy.

C'mon, seriously?. You hope they fail?. Seems a bit harsh. You don't own one, seem to hate them and have had many debates on their existence.

I'm only half serious, but it strikes me that they are being extraordinarily dense about the whole thing. Surely if the technology was suitable then either AMD or Nvidia would've snapped them up for an integrated solution. Instead they are developing this nonsense hardware and putting it out on the market when nothing utilises it and no-one develops for it. Simply put they have set themselves up to fail or at best made their climb to relevance unnecessarily difficult.

I've never suggested that the hardware is crap or that the API is rubbish mearly that it has no application and that they should never have released the hardware without the aforementioned support. I don't hate them I just think that Ageias business attempts are laughable.

Gerard · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:02

Hen_Dawg said:
Pottsey. Please for the love of god use the quote button and work out the bits of code that let you do multiple quotes. Please!

/cues the mission imposible music

MeatLoaf · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:05

Wernt nvidia working on a physx card?

I seem to remember reading that the reason the 8800GTX has 2 SLI connectors was for use with an upcoming PPU

Pottsey · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:06

“Surely if the technology was suitable then either AMD or Nvidia would've snapped them up for an integrated solution.”
It doesn’t work like that. You cannot just snap up a company that comes up with an idea that’s suitable. AMD and Nvidia both did copy Ageia idea and integrate physics into the GPU’s. They tried to do it them self’s so they must have thought the idea was good.

martin9887 · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:21

MeatLoaf said:
Wernt nvidia working on a physx card?

I seem to remember reading that the reason the 8800GTX has 2 SLI connectors was for use with an upcoming PPU

Yeah I remember this as well, even seeing pictures of 2 8800's with a PPU on the 680i board.

J.D · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:26

SteveOBHave said:
I'm only half serious, but it strikes me that they are being extraordinarily dense about the whole thing. Surely if the technology was suitable then either AMD or Nvidia would've snapped them up for an integrated solution. Instead they are developing this nonsense hardware and putting it out on the market when nothing utilises it and no-one develops for it. Simply put they have set themselves up to fail or at best made their climb to relevance unnecessarily difficult.

I've never suggested that the hardware is crap or that the API is rubbish mearly that it has no application and that they should never have released the hardware without the aforementioned support. I don't hate them I just think that Ageias business attempts are laughable.

I agree that Ageia have had a funny way of approaching this from the start.

You say there's nothing out that uses it but as I can see the list is slowly but surely growing. GRAW 2 and the next Unreal Tournament is a massive boost to Ageia. GRAW 2 might not be as huge as the next Unreal addition but it's still a pretty big game. These 2 titles alone speak volumes for support. Do you not think other game creators will see this and want it too?

.

I can see why some people might not like this product. It's started at a snails pace but it's moving along a little bit now. Another thing is people think the extra effects are not worth it but will go out and buy a DX10 card or Shader model 3.0/4.0 card and the differences haven't been huge on that either (Use Bioshock as a DX9/DX10 comparison and for now the swap hasn't really been made worth it yet). I bet half the people complaining about this PPU have upgraded there graphics for minimal things which IMO is just the same (People upgrading their cards for to be able to play a certain game are not included). We all upgrade for better effects and new features. It's weird why a lot of the enthusiasts in here haven't picked one up by now. I know the price was a bit much before but they are affordable now?. Also with Unreal and Graw 2 being able to use the PPU, is that not enough of a reason to think to yourself "If they trust them, then there must be something decent enough about them. I might be nice to myself this Christmas and see what it's all about and join Pottsey Ageia team" instead of sitting here waiting for Pottsey to post so the next stoning can happen

(You animals :eek:

).

leon4112 · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:27

lol in really don't see the point in these 100 quid + for a card that pushes boxs around when all cards about a year old can do the same hence how you can play the ageia demo etc

anyone who spends 100 quid so the boxs and stuff moves a bit more either needs to think about the money there spending or get a girlfriend!

i can justify spending 300-400 on a gfx card cos it DOES make a different but this well its all a bit loopy!!

there not gonna make a big enough impact for 100's of games to start supporting this and untill they do there always gonna make a loss!!

SteveOBHave · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:30

Pottsey said:
“Surely if the technology was suitable then either AMD or Nvidia would've snapped them up for an integrated solution.”
It doesn’t work like that. You cannot just snap up a company that comes up with an idea that’s suitable. AMD and Nvidia both did copy Ageia idea and integrate physics into the GPU’s. They tried to do it them self’s so they must have thought the idea was good.

I don't believe they did - their solution was utilising a 2nd or 3rd card. There has not been an integrated solution as of yet. Also I disagree, you can just snap up a company - it's the wonders of money and lots of it. My company regularly does it. Perhaps not quite as flippantly as 'snap' but pretty damn close. It's a very regular occurrence that a company seeking to gain a majority foothold off a good idea goes out and buys an already established entity - i.e. Google and Youtube.com

When you have billions of pounds to throw around you'd be surprised at what can be accomplished.

SteveOBHave · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:34

J.D said:
Another thing is people think the extra effects are not worth it but will go out and buy a DX10 card or Shader model 3.0/4.0 card and the differences haven't been huge on that either (Use Bioshock as a DX9/DX10 comparison and for now the swap hasn't really been made worth it yet).

I disagree, the purchase of the DX10 capable cards has come with the added bonus of having the fastest DX9 cards on the market. Simply put there is an instant gratification when buying an 8800 or one of those AMD/ATI thingys

, with the PhysX card there is not that perceptible immediate gain. This I see as the proverbial straw.

As an aside there must be some serious cash behind Ageia (or a very tolerant bank manager) for them to have held on this long.

PinkFloyd · 31 Aug 2007 at 18:48

It just doesn't look right to me.

I'd say bits of various graphics cards photoshopped together.
Why would you have the *hook / clip* that is on a non PCIe 16x card when it hasn't got a full size connector. 7900 style cooler...
SLI style connector....

It doesn't add up...

However looking at the pcb tracings it seems fairly convincing, but its still possible to photoshop something like that in.
If it is a geniune card, I think Ageia need to realise its not the hardware not being good enough, Cellfactor prooved it works well and looks good, they need to get more support from various games companies to make the technology more usefull.