GPU’s:
Define what is meant by a Graphics Card :
Graphical Processing Unit, Is a dedicated hardware piece inside of a computer to process every kind of graphic processing that a computer might be doing. This will mainly include processing graphics from video games, films, videos, words etc. This allows taking the offload off the CPU (Central Processing Unit) The stronger the graphics card the more it can process and therefore it can allow the computer to handle with much higher resolution and quality graphics. Graphics card can somehow be very tough for the PSU (Power Supply Unit) and therefore it is required for a PSU to be good to support a strong graphics card. Modern gaming PC’s will have the latest graphical cards to run the latest games in the highest quality with a lot of frames at disposal. Of course, a good graphical unit is worthless when we have a very bad monitor since the monitor cannot display in the fidelity that a graphical unit can generate. There are 3 main types of graphical cards. An on board graphical card on the mother board, which isn’t very strong but it is cheap and therefore is perfect for office work, then there is a mid range graphics card for casual gamers and then there is the super heavy and powerful top end graphical card for top end games and best quality.
What different types of cards are available in the marketplace and what price ranges do they sell at?:
There are many different types of graphical cards available for us and there are 2 main competitors currently on the scene, Nvidia and AMD are competing with each other for a long time now and are striving to beat each other. Nvidia and AMD have different ways of grading the cards in terms of numbers. For example Nvidia will usually use 3 digits while AMD can go up to 5. Both companies offer a range of graphics card, from simple, standard and weak office ones to super powerful ones for true gaming PC’s. Of course, their price range will vary, the cheapest graphics card can be found for 100 pounds while the most expensive one, the very top end one like Nvidia GTX780 can be bought for about 600 pounds. Of course both competitors are specializing their cards in different matters, for example, an AMD card will most likely be faster but not as powerful as an Nvidia card can be. This allows for diversity in the market and continuation of the competition which is always a good thing for the consumer, meaning the technology will be pushed forward as both companies will try to out do the other one.
What speeds do the cards run at and what impact does the speed have on the performance of the card?:
There are different types of speeds when it comes to graphical cards. The speed of a graphical card means how fast it can process data and therefore work better and be of a higher quality.There are however many factors involving this, a modern GPU will process millions of processes per second which is pretty good but that number can be either increased or decreased if you know what you're doing, there is a risk however. GPU's come from manufacturers with certain safety procedures, that means that the GPU is usually able to do more than it does but those possibilities are locked due to safety reasons and they will not be used unless the user modifies the card and changes those safety procedures. This means to either overclock the graphics card which means increase its performance, this means that the graphics card will work better since it will have bigger limits as to where to stop but it will also mean that it might brake (the inside parts might not be able to handle it) and that it might overheat, which therefore asks for a better heat sinks and ventilation systems. The graphics card performance can also be turned down (this is called downclocking or underclocking) to save electricity if we do not need the full power of it, the GPU will also release less heat and will be quieter, there is still a risk however that we might break the GPU while we decrease its performance.
GPU's also have many other factors that affect their speed such as:
-GPU clock speed (MHz)
-Size of the memory bus (bits)
-Amount of available memory (MB)
-Memory clock rate (MHz)
-Memory bandwidth (GB/s)
-RAMDAC speed (MHz)
The main way to distinguish if a GPU is good or not, is to look at its memory amount and how fast processor is, in many cases, the better the card is the better it will look, i.e. it will have special designs or custom looking fans on it.
What is meant by cache and why does a GPU often have it own cache on-board?:
Cache is something that is placed in several places within the motherboard, cache is a small square that allows to increase the speed of how fast the data is being sent between the key hardware elements of a computer structure such as the GPU and the CPU. It does by analyzing the data and then kind of 'thrusting' it forward, being a stop point in between the journey of the data. GPU has its own cache on board for a very similar reason. To increase its efficiency and effectiveness. When a cache is on a GPU it means that the data can be sent faster, processed faster and that the GPU in general receives a boost in terms of speed and efficiency. This therefore helps to improve the general performance of a computer.
What is the difference between a 2D card and a 3D card?:
2D and 3D cards are designated towards different markets. Usually a 2D card is designed for a multi screen solution (since they come with dual link adapters) and more of a professional rather than entertainment use. A 2D card is very good when it comes to doing stuff like graphical work on programs like Photoshop or Illustrator and is usually cheaper than a 3D card. 2D cards also offer more advanced drivers. A 3D card will be used for entertainment as well as for professional work. This means that with a 3D card you can make your computer into a gaming rig but also work on programs like 3DS Max or Maya. Of course, for that they are more expensive but also versatile and efficient.
What GPU is in the PS4 and XB1?:
The GPUs of PS4 and XB1 are very similar albeit it is said that the GPU of the PS4 is slightly more powerful. The GPU in the Xbox One is a, in computer terms, the Xbox One has a GPU that’s similar to the (entry-level) Bonaire GPU in the Radeon HD 7790 while the PS4 is outfitted with the (mid-range) Pitcairn that can be found in the HD 7870. In numerical terms, the Xbox One GPU has 12 compute units (768 shader processors), while the PS4 has 18 CUs (1152 shaders). This means that the PS4 is slightly stronger however the Xbox One has a faster clock speed and therefore the gap might not be as big as it seems. There is another thing with the XB1 however, because 10% of the GPU power is consumed automatically by the kinect.
Displays:
Home Gaming:
Displays available: Television, Monitors and Projectors
Resolutions: For the resolutions below HD, the resolutions range from 16x16 to 1152x768
For the resolutions that are HD, the resolutions range from 1280x720 (720p) to 1920x1090 (1080p - standard on modern PC's and consoles) and then ranking up to things like 4K resolution (4096x2304) and 8K (8192x4608) which are usually resolutions used in the cinemas, with variants ranging in between.
Connectivity: All 3 methods can be used on consoles and computers, with HDMI cables and lower quality ones as well. Multi Screen is available to Monitors and Projectors (with multiple projectors however) but not really to a Television.
Color or Monochrome?: All 3 use Color
3D: 3D is available on televisions and monitors however not available on projectors since it is hard to portray a 3D image out of a light source projecting an image onto a wall.
Portable Gaming:
Displays available: displays on pads (VMU) and handheld internal displays.
Are the displays liquid crystal?: Most mobile phones and displays on gamepads use the liquid crystal technology.
Color or Monochrome?: All modern devices use Color.
Written:
http://superuser.com/questions/161360/what-is-the-difference-between-a-professional-2d-and-a-mid-range-3d-graphics
http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/156273-xbox-720-vs-ps4-vs-pc-how-the-hardware-specs-compare
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_common_resolutions
Images:
http://www.totalgadgets.com/2008/05/02/best-of-the-best-graphics-card-nvidia-9800-gx2/
http://egmr.net/2013/04/a-guide-to-building-a-budget-range-gaming-pc/
http://www.geforce.com/whats-new/articles/introducing-the-geforce-gtx-titan
http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/171735-xbox-one-apu-reverse-engineered-reveals-sram-as-the-reason-for-small-gpu
http://guardianlv.com/2013/12/playstation-4-vs-xbox-one/
http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/12/triple-screen-gaming-rigs-analyzed-deemed-attainable/