Release date | 2004-2005 |
---|---|
Codename | Loki |
Architecture | Radeon R400 |
Transistors and fabrication process | 160M 130nm (R420)
|
Cards | |
Entry-level | X800 SE, X800, X800 GT |
Mid-range | X800 GTO, X800 PRO, X800 XL, X850 PRO |
High-end | X800 XT, X850 XT |
Enthusiast | X800 XT PE, X850 XT PE |
API support | |
Direct3D |
Direct3D 9.0b Shader Model 2.0b |
OpenGL | OpenGL 2.0 |
History | |
Predecessor | Radeon X700 Series |
Successor | Radeon X1000 Series |
Radeon X800 is a series of graphics cards marketed by Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), a well-known American company that manufactures computer core hardware components. Dedicated graphics cards help computers reproduce good quality videos and other heavy graphics used in computer games. This can be done without affecting performance of the main RAM, allowing it to be used for other basic functions of the computer.
The Radeon X800 "R430"-based 110 nanometer series was introduced at the end of 2004 along with ATI's new X850 cards. The X800 was designed to take the position X700 XT failed to secure, with 12 pipelines and a 256-bit RAM bus. The card surpassed the 6600GT with performance similar to that of the GeForce 6800. The new X800 XL, a similar product, was positioned to dethrone NVIDIA's GeForce 6800 GT with higher memory speeds and a full 16 pipelines to boost performance. R430 was unable to reach high clock speeds, having been designed to reduce the cost per GPU, creating a need for new top-of-the-line core. The new high-end R4x0-generation arrived with the X850 series, equipped with various core tweaks for slightly higher performance than the "R420"-based X800 series. The "R480"-based X850 line was available in 3 forms: the X850 Pro, the X850 XT, and the X850 XT Platinum Edition, and was built on the reliable high-performance 130 nanometer Low-K process.