GeForce3 vs ATI Radeon 9600 XT

Place in the ranking	1453	1505
Place by popularity	not in top-100	not in top-100
Power efficiency	0.29	no data
Architecture	Rage 9 (2003−2006)	Kelvin (2001−2003)
GPU code name	RV360	NV20 A5
Market segment	Desktop	Desktop
Release date	1 October 2003 (21 year ago)	27 February 2001 (23 years ago)
Launch price (MSRP)	no data	$499

Cost-effectiveness evaluation

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

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	500 MHz	200 MHz
Number of transistors	60 million	57 million
Manufacturing process technology	130 nm	150 nm
Power consumption (TDP)	22 Watt	no data
Texture fill rate	2.000	1.600
ROPs	4	4
TMUs	4	8

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 8x	AGP 4x
Length	no data	165 mm
Width	1-slot	1-slot
Supplementary power connectors	None	None

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	SDR
Maximum RAM amount	128 MB	64 MB
Memory bus width	128 Bit	128 Bit
Memory clock speed	300 MHz	230 MHz
Memory bandwidth	9.6 GB/s	3.68 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 DVI, 1x VGA, 1x S-Video

1x VGA, 1x DB13W3

API compatibility

List of supported 3D and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX	9.0 (9_0)	8.0
OpenGL	2.0	1.3
OpenCL	N/A	N/A
Vulkan	N/A	N/A

Synthetic benchmark performance

Non-gaming benchmark results comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.

Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

ATI 9600 XT 0.09
+800%

GeForce3 0.01

Passmark

This is the most ubiquitous GPU benchmark. It gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation under various types of load, providing four separate benchmarks for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11 and 12 (the last being done in 4K resolution if possible), and few more tests engaging DirectCompute capabilities.

ATI 9600 XT 35
+775%

GeForce3 4

Gaming performance

Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.

Pros & cons summary

Performance score	0.09	0.01
Recency	1 October 2003	27 February 2001
Maximum RAM amount	128 MB	64 MB
Chip lithography	130 nm	150 nm

ATI 9600 XT has a 800% higher aggregate performance score, an age advantage of 2 years, a 100% higher maximum VRAM amount, and a 15.4% more advanced lithography process.

The Radeon 9600 XT is our recommended choice as it beats the GeForce3 in performance tests.

Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.