Here we go again with more coverage of the fantastic NVIDIA 8800 GTX graphics card, this time we are looking at a card from Foxconn. Some may not realize that while Foxconn isn’t as well a known name in the USA as BFG, EVGA and XFX, Foxconn actually makes many of the cards branded by the other NVIDIA card partners.
As with the other 8800 GTX reviews since launch I recommend that you check out my launch day review of the XFX 8800 GTX for the full specifications on the NVIDIA 8800 GTX. All 8800 GTX cards share the same feature set and the Foxconn card is running at the stock NVIDIA reference clocks as well of 1800 MHz on the memory and 575 MHz on the core.
The one place that Foxconn does differentiate itself from the other card partners putting the 8800 GTX on the market is with their bundle. The 8800 GTX has been so popular that to date none of the card partners have offered any bundles of games or extras to entice buyers. However, Foxconn is offering a couple nice extras to get you to buy their card. The extras include USB gamepad and two software utilities to help keep your system running smoothly. The applications are RestoreIT 7 and VirtualDrive which are both on one CD.
Before we jump into the performance aspects of the Foxconn 8800 GTX I want to give the specs for my test machine, which is the same as the machine I used on most of the other 8800 GTX reviews save the first XFX 8800 GTX review where I used a different mainboard (abit AW9D-Max). Test system specs are as follows:
- CPU- Intel X6800
- RAM- Crucial PC2-8000 2x 1GB
- HDD- 1x Raptor 74 GB, 1x Seagate 750 GB
- OS- Windows XP Pro SP2
- Video- Foxconn 8800 GTX
- PSU- Top Power 1000W
- Display- Eizo CE240W
Now let’s get into the performance numbers for the Foxconn 8800 GTX. I used 3DMark06, FEAR, Battlefield 2142 and Oblivion for my test applications. The first test up was 3DMark06 which I ran at default settings on the card and 3DMark, the results were as follows:
- 3DMarks- 10665
- SM2.0- 4850
- HDR/SM3.0- 4922
- CPU- 2482
- Return to Proxycon- 40.487 fps
- Firefly Forest- 40.350
- Canyon Flight- 45.412
- Deep Freeze- 53.025
- CPU1- 0.792
- CPU2- 1.244
The Foxconn 8800 GTX was nearly identical to the XFX 8800 GTX I tested, which is to be expected since the two cards are pretty much identical. The next test was a gaming benchmark with Battlefield 2142. To get frame rate data from BF2142 I use Fraps and a single player map called “Fall of Berlin”. With all in game settings at max and the NVIDIA control panel at stock settings and a screen resolution of 1600 x 1200 Fraps recorded the following frame rate data:
- Min- 85
- Avg- 95.93
- Max- 101
Again this performance on BF2142 is exactly what you would expect from an 8800 GTX, fantastic and silky smooth. The next game test up was FEAR and for this game I ran every setting on max in game at 1920 x 1200 screen resolution and default settings in the NVIDIA control panel. Using the FEAR in game test loop I recorded the following frame rate data:
- Min- 36
- Avg- 61
- Max- 112
The percentages for this test looked like this; the frame rate never fell below 25 fps, 11% of the time frame rates were 25-40 fps and a full 89% of the time frame rates were greater than 40 fps. The final game test with the Foxconn 8800 GTX was with Oblivion.
Oblivion is one of the most demanding titles on video hardware around. When I bench with Oblivion I use Fraps to record frame rate data right outside the main city where you exit the sewers near the ruins on the opposite bank of the river. This location has virtually every effect Oblivion has to offer from rippling water, trees and plants to the distant mountains and clouds. I decided to go right for the hard stuff and ran Oblivion maxed out with all in game setting save AF because I used HDR. I then used the NVIDIA control panel to dial up 16x AA and 16xQ AF and the frame rate data recorded by Fraps was as follows:
- Min- 19
- Avg- 57.6
- Max- 64
I could play at these settings if I didn’t mind the occasional slow down normally associated with loading a new area in the game. I was impressed with the performance of the Foxconn 8800 GTX at the very high Oblivion settings.
Overall, the Foxconn 8800 GTX performs every bit as well as you would expect a high end NVIDIA G80 GPU to perform. To sweeten the deal and coax you from the other card partners like XFX and BFG Foxconn adds a decent bundle to the package as well.
