You mean the rants about how much people in 'foreign' countries pay for electricity. How much a month gaming the normal 23 hours a day- 8 days a week , costs !! Not the up front costs, but how much the annual cost would be with that power hog ! lol , couldn't resist.
I mentioned idle power in passing when comparing the 6850 and GTX 460 (which I said basically tied with each other, which was apparently offensive to some people who insisted on the GTX 460's apparently incontrovertible superiority... okay whatever), and someone jumped down my throat for it. So I gave an example of IDLE, not load, power consumption, and how the difference adds up over time to several dollars per year, every year, which could be a tiebreaker to some people and a non-issue for others.
The above is fact. The math is rock-solid though the exact dollar amounts would vary depending on the marginal electricity rates you pay.
But some people apparently have selective memories.
In any case, to bring this back ON TOPIC... I never got why these cards and others like it (GTX 295, 4870X2, etc.) got made except for bragging rights or for those people whose mobos can't do dual-cards... but if you can afford a dual card you can probably afford a new mobo too!
NVDA's GTX 680, at 28nm, should be enough to at least tie this card's performance at bare minimum, all for a lower price tag, and better thermals/power draw/heat/noise.
Edited to add: Okay fine, and Eyefinity is another reason for this card. What I said about the 4870x2, 295, etc. being for bragging rights and single-slot mobos still stands.
Facebook
Twitter