Home

News

Forums

Hardware

CPUs

Mainboards

Video

Guides

CPU Prices

Memory Prices

Shop



Sharky Extreme :


Latest News


- SanDisk's SSD As Rapid As It Is Reliable
- OCZ Launches Limited-Edition SSD
- AMD Offers Low-Profile DirectX 11 Graphics Card
- Microsoft Gaming Keyboard Has Awesome Anti-Ghosting
- Matrox Lets Multi-Monitor Fans Double Up
News Archives

Features

- SharkyExtreme.com: Interview with Microsoft's Dan Odell
- SharkyExtreme.com: Interview with ATI's Terry Makedon
- SharkyExtreme.com: Interview with Seagate's Joni Clark
- Half-Life 2 Review
- DOOM 3 Review

Buyer's Guides

- February High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide
- November Value Gaming PC Buyer's Guide
- September Extreme Gaming PC Buyer's Guide

HARDWARE

  • CPUs


  • Motherboards


  • Video Cards





  • Instead of going to the drivers for uniqueness, Gigabyte went to the old tried and true method of bundling games and software. The GA-GF2560 comes with a pretty darn good game bundle consisting of: Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit (the last good racing game in the NFS series), Superbike World Championship, Future Cop LAPD (third person action) and Populous: The Beginning (strategy). While none of these games are blockbusters, they'll keep most gamers happy for quite awhile.

    It also comes with a trial version of PowerDVD (a mediocre but mostly functional DVD playback) and a copy of PowerPlayer SE (a Windows Media Player replacement), but we'd rather see a full version of a better DVD playback program. Overall, the bundle is excellent but we'd like to see DVD playback software as well. If the bundle appeals to you, especially the games, then you should seriously consider the GA-GF2560.

    Several manufacturers are attempting to differentiate their GeForce cards from the products of other companies by bundling customized drivers with extra features. In this department, Gigabyte gives a little bit of effort. The GA-GF2560 uses slightly altered NVIDIA drivers. Essentially, they are the NVIDIA reference drivers with a few Gigabyte images scattered around and the addition of an overclocking slider. While the Gigabyte CD eases installation through a nice setup program, we still recommend you use NVIDIA's actual reference drivers just because you'll be assured of getting the most recent version. On our own personal systems, we usually do just that.





    Copyright © 2002 INT Media Group, Incorporated. All Rights Reserved. About INT Media Group | Press Releases | Privacy Policy | Career Opportunities