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Box of Goodies

     As always, the ATi box graphics are very impressive and a bit scary looking. However, we all know that it's what's in the box that counts.

     The XT850XTPE comes with all the cables you could possibly need, even DVI adapters. Of course you also get the handy User's Manual and drivers disk. Although the box advertises Half Life 2 and Doom 3, the one thing you wont find in this box is a game, or even a coupon. Not to be completely cheated, there are a couple utilities and a screen saver on the drivers disk...

Up Close

     One of the first things I noticed about this card is that is has dual monitor capability. This is something I have yet to personally try out, but I've seen dual monitors in action and the concept is limitless. If you do a lot of web editing, dual monitors will really change your life. It's right at the top in my list of upgrades for the next year...

     By looking at these pictures, you're probably thinking that this card must be huge! Well, it is. Similar to ABIT"s design, the card uses a large blower fan to pull air through the heatsink and flushes it right out the back of your system. I love this design because it not only keeps the card cool, it also helps to keep your case temperatures down. Unfortunately, the cooler ATi used on this card is not as heavy duty as similar coolers we've seen elsewhere. Don't get me wrong, this cooler works as advertised, but I think ATi could have made it much better by using a larger copper heatsink.

     At this angle, you can clearly see the solid copper VGA heatsink and air intake port. With this design, the air is forced through the fins of the heatsink and out the rear exhaust vent. On the far right is the black power plug. I can't confirm why ATi used a different power plug than the normal 4-pin we usually see, but the power adapter is included in the box. Personally, it makes no sense at all to change the plug forcing the user to use an adapter. The regular 4-pin plug had been working just fine.