Great graphics card for a good price.
Written: Feb 12 '01 (Updated Feb 17 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: 32MB, DDR, TV-out (optional), great value for what you get.
Cons: Leadtek's support could be better (answering customers' E-mail, for example, would be nice).
The Bottom Line: There are newer graphics chipsets and more memory available now, but the Leadtek Winfast GeForce256 DDR remains a strong, stable performer at a reasonable price.
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| like_gear's Full Review: Leadtek WinFast GeForce 256 DDR |
I bought the Leadtek Winfast GeForce256 DDR just after the GeForce2 Ultra came out, but buying an earlier generation chip didn't bother me. I play games at 1024x768 and don't overclock my system, so I knew that 32MB, DDR, and the still respectable GeForce256 chipset would combine to fulfill my needs admirably. According to the information I've gathered from several reviews, most games on the market today would run nicely on this card even if I did play them at a higher resolution and faster clock speed. I won't be doing that though, so we'll have to trust the professional reviewers on that point.
The Leadtek Winfast GeForce256 DDR comes with of course the graphics card, a driver and control panel installation CD, bundled software CD, a user's manual, and an S-Video cable. Although the enclosed user's manual was for the SDR model, a piece of paper was included that explained that the card in my possession was in fact the DDR model, but that all other variables remained the same. This was my first time installing a graphics card, but the clear instructions made it a cake walk. I think I had the card installed in under 10 minutes. The user's manual went on to clearly explain all of the features of the card and its software.
The Winfast software was a breeze to install. It adds three tabs to the display control panel that allow you to make adjustments and view information specific to this card--nothing too fancy, but certainly enough for 99% of us. A software DVD player and another graphics app is also included.
I've played a lot of hours of several games with this card, and I haven't noticed a single glitch. Games that wouldn't run on my old card (STB Velocity 4400) fly with the Leadtek. As is the case with any decent card today, 2D looks great too.
Another poster mentioned problems with the drivers. You can--and should--sidestep this by downloading and installing nVidia's Detonator 3 reference drivers (be sure to uninstall your current drivers first). You can get the Detonator 3 drivers at www.nvidia.com.
In short, you should consider this card for the same reason you ask the Ford dealer if there are any last year Mustang GT's left over. Market conditions will deflate the price for you, and you'll still get a really fast and very dependable vehicle.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 130 (Japan)
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Epinions.com ID:
like_gear
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Location: Pennsylvania
Reviews written: 11
Trusted by: 0 members
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