ATI FireGL X3-256 vs GeForce 256 DDR
Primary details
GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.
| Place in the ranking | not rated | not rated |
| Place by popularity | not in top-100 | not in top-100 |
| Architecture | Celsius (1999−2005) | R400 (2004−2008) |
| GPU code name | NV10 A3 | R420 |
| Market segment | Desktop | Workstation |
| Release date | 23 December 1999 (24 years ago) | 3 August 2004 (20 years ago) |
| Launch price (MSRP) | no data | $1,099 |
Detailed specifications
General parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.
| Core clock speed | 120 MHz | 491 MHz |
| Number of transistors | 17 million | 160 million |
| Manufacturing process technology | 220 nm | 130 nm |
| Power consumption (TDP) | no data | 57 Watt |
| Texture fill rate | 0.48 | 5.892 |
| ROPs | 4 | 12 |
| TMUs | 4 | 12 |
Form factor & compatibility
Information on compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For desktop graphics cards it's interface and bus (motherboard compatibility), additional power connectors (power supply compatibility).
| Interface | AGP 4x | AGP 8x |
| Width | 1-slot | 1-slot |
| Supplementary power connectors | None | 1x Molex |
VRAM capacity and type
Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.
| Memory type | DDR | GDDR3 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 32 MB | 256 MB |
| Memory bus width | 128 Bit | 256 Bit |
| Memory clock speed | 150 MHz | 454 MHz |
| Memory bandwidth | 4.8 GB/s | 29.06 GB/s |
Connectivity and outputs
Types and number of video connectors present on the reviewed GPUs. As a rule, data in this section is precise only for desktop reference ones (so-called Founders Edition for NVIDIA chips). OEM manufacturers may change the number and type of output ports, while for notebook cards availability of certain video outputs ports depends on the laptop model rather than on the card itself.
| Display Connectors | 1x VGA | 2x DVI, 1x S-Video |
API compatibility
List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.
| DirectX | 7.0 | 9.0b (9_2) |
| OpenGL | 1.2 | 2.0 |
| OpenCL | N/A | N/A |
| Vulkan | N/A | N/A |
Pros & cons summary
| Recency | 23 December 1999 | 3 August 2004 |
| Maximum RAM amount | 32 MB | 256 MB |
| Chip lithography | 220 nm | 130 nm |
ATI FireGL X3-256 has an age advantage of 4 years, a 700% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 69.2% more advanced lithography process.
We couldn't decide between GeForce 256 DDR and FireGL X3-256. We've got no test results to judge.
Be aware that GeForce 256 DDR is a desktop card while FireGL X3-256 is a workstation one.
Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.
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