The main characteristics of ATI's current DirectX 10 graphics architecture are all present, with features like Avivo HD technology, integrated HD audio controller, HDCP and HDMI support, a hardware tessellation unit and new anti-aliasing modes.
Based on a 65nm process, the GPU of Radeon HD 2400 XT uses a RV610 core with a relatively modest (by modern GPU standards) transistor count of 180 million. Representing the 'pinnacle' of the low end DirectX 10 series (Radeon HD 2400 series includes a slower Radeon HD 2400 PRO) from ATI, this graphics card will be available shortly (practically all the major graphics vendors had them on display at the recent Computex 2007) and already there have been sightings of these cards on the Internet. This is the focus of today's article, where we have managed to get our hands on a budget Radeon HD 2400 XT from PowerColor for benchmarking. In short, the money is in the potentially huge volume of the mainstream segment, for both desktop and mobile versions. More importantly, with the rapid growth of the notebook segment (with a corresponding slowdown of the desktop PC market), it is the mobile versions of these mainstream SKUs that are usually featured in notebooks. It is the mainstream cards that will be found in more systems, particularly from the big OEM builders. While there will be no doubt some loss of prestige and brand awareness as a result of not obtaining the pole position, yet as analysts will tell you, the high-end is usually not where the majority of the profits are derived. Hence, ATI has been forced to concede the performance crown for now and has targeted the more manageable GeForce 8800 GTS instead with the Radeon HD 2900 XT. However, given the complex architecture of the R600 and the constraints imposed by its 80nm manufacturing process, going directly against NVIDIA's extravagant but powerful GeForce 8800 Ultra is foolhardy and unlikely to be successful.
With NVIDIA dominating the fledgling DirectX 10 scene so far, having a decently competitive ATI for balance's sake is probably a good thing. As numerous reviews and benchmarks have shown, the highly anticipated ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT (R600) has not been the world-beater that some enthusiasts have been hoping for.
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