ATI All In Wonder 9800 Pro PC ATI $415.99 Click Here Sean Gibson - email $399.99 @ UpgradeWorld

Introduction

All ATI did with its ATI All In Wonder 9700 Pro card was win an Editor's Choice award from NextGen Electronics (as well as every other review site of worth) and wow everyone with the incredible gaming performance, benchmarks, and features. When nVIDIA released the GeForceFX line we were promised that they would be back on top and that ATI didn't stand a chance to keep up. As you can see from our video interview with ATI's marketing manager Paul Ayscough (hosted by Gaming Illustrated), ATI's response to this was to "bring it on" because they had technologies ready to go head-to-head with their U.S. based competition. What's the difference in performance? Is this 9800 card everything it should be and more? Well, we put it through some of the newest and top benchmarking products in the industry against 3 nVidia based cards (the GF4 Ti4600, the GFFX 5600 Ultra, and the behemoth GFFX 5900 with 256mb of RAM).

Specifications & Features

Powered by the RADEON 9800 processor which ATI claims is the best performing and most technologically advanced visual processing unit in the world. This card offers second generation cinematic architecture, supporting Microsoft DirectX 9.0 and capable of real-time feature-film quality graphics. With 128 MB of high performance DDR memory, industry leading DVD/video playback, TV Out, and digital flat panel monitor (DVI-I) support in addition to TV in with Theater 200, ATI’s stereo encode / decode chip, the ALL-IN-WONDER 9800 PRO is aimed directly for the ultimate gamer – home theater enthusiast product.

Features

• RADEON 9800 PRO Visual Processing Unit
• Eight parallel rendering pipelines
• Four parallel geometry engines
• 128MB DDR memory
• 256-bit DDR memory interface
• AGP 8X support
• THEATER 200 Video decoder and stereo audio processor
• S/PDIF output
• Dual 12-bit ADCs
• Adaptive Comb Filter
• Stereo TV tuner with 125 channels
• TV-ON-DEMAND timeshifting
• Radio frequency remote control
• Video capture and editing including VideoCD and DVD Authoring
• Component Video output via a YPrPb adapter
• System Requirements: Intel® Pentium® 4/III/II/Celeron™, AMD® K6/Athlon®, or compatible with AGP... AGP 8X/4X/2X bus slot

Monitor & Display support

• One display (VGA or DVI) simultaneously connected with a TV or VCR
• YPrPb output adapter (available in North America only)

Connectors

• DVI-I (15 pin VGA adaptor included)
• Stereo audio, S-video, and composite video inputs and outputs
• External stereo connections to sound card's line input and output
• Dolby digital stereo audio output (S/PDIF)

Warranty

• 3 years limited

TV Features:

• Stereo TV Tuner with 125 channels.
• TV-ON-DEMAND
• The power to pause live TV, get instant replays, record live broadcasts for later viewing.
• Stay on top of the live action while in TV-ON-DEMAND™ mode with the Live Preview window.
• THRUVIEW™ – click thru the transparent live TV window to access your desktop – no more moving the TV window display to get to your other windows!
• VideoSoap™ - next Generation filtering options for Personal Video Recordings that improve captured image quality, particularly when capturing to low bitrates.
• mulTView™ – the ability to add a second tuner for PiP , PoP , and many more features.
• Gemstar GUIDE Plus+™ Interactive Program Guide- allows user to view and search TV listing by category, actor/performer, or date. Schedule and record programs at the click of a mouse – all the benefits of a PVR without the monthly fees.

Home Theater:

• Superior quality DVD playback with AC-3 Digital Audio output to enable Dolby® 5.1 Surround Sound.
• ATI’s VIDEO IMMERSION II technology integrates industry leading digital video features for unprecedented video quality.

Component Output and Video Editing Support:

• Watch DVDs, TV-ON-DEMAND™ on an HDTV ready television using component output.
• Capture still images and video for use in your own creations.
• Add effects, transitions, and sound to video footage.
• Save your authored videos to VideoCD and DVD formats.
• Bundled with Pinnacle Studio 8.0

RF Remote Wonder:

• Controls the TV, video, DVD, Interactive Programming Guide, Internet, and gaming features of the ALL-IN-WONDER 9700 PRO.
• No need to point the remote control at the receiver. Connect your PC to your TV and search TV channels, watch DVDs, surf the web, or record TV shows from your couch.

Industry’s Best 2D/3D Graphics Technology:

• Industry’s first 8-pixel pipeline architecture, providing twice the rendering power of any competing product on the market.
• Complete Microsoft® DirectX® 9.0 support and AGP 8X support.
• 128MB DDR memory accelerates the latest 3D games.
• 256-bit memory interface removes hardware performance bottleneck and provides users with faster 3D graphics.
• THEATER™ 200 provides exceptional video quality viewing during live TV, video input and capture.
• ATI’s new FULLSTREAM™ and VIDEOSHADER™ technologies provide sharper image quality and better-looking visuals.

Features, features, and more damn features! I get the same look on my face reading these features that the card supports as the look on my girlfriend's face when she sees Orlando Bloom on the big screen. There's no doubt if you're looking for a powerful video card that supports everything under the sun - such as video capture, home tv entertainment, DVDs, and more - then this card has definitely been targeted for you. Consider this also - the ATI All-In-Wonder 9800 Pro is priced around $415 at major e-Tailers around the net. The GeForceFX 5900 card will cost you about $450 or more. So, this card has more features, and costs less. Hmm ... maybe nVidia was smacking ATI a little prematurely?

The card requires a 300 Watt power supply in your computer system. For most of you , this won't be a big deal at all. The minority of you might have to replace your existing power supply with a new one , but that wouldn't run you more than $50 to $75 (decent model), and you'll have to buy one anyways down the road for future upgrading purposes. Nevertheless, the card requires you to "plug-in" a connector from the power supply into the video card (adapter included). Expect this of all new video cards in the future, the GeForceFX line is the same. Some might have heard of this and had some reservations, but in truth, it's no big deal at all.

Retail Bundle

Retails packages include...

ALL-IN-WONDER 9800 PRO Graphics Board
:: Back board Interfaces include DVI-I, Video In (s-video, composite), Video Out (s-video, composite, component), and CATV

Remote Control
:: 1 - RF REMOTE WONDER
:: 4 - AAA batteries included
:: 1 - USB Remote Receiver

Cables and Adapters
:: 1 - DVI-I to VGA Adapter
:: 1- Y-Power Extension Cable
:: 1 – Video/Audio Input Block
:: 1 – Component Video Output Dongle
:: 1 – Output Dongle
:: 1 – 6’ Composite Video Cable
:: 1 – 6’ S-Video Cable

Setup and Installation
:: 1 - Installation and Setup Poster
:: 1 - Installation and Setup Guide
:: 1 - Multimedia Center User Guide
:: 1 - ATI Driver and Utility CD (includes ATI Multimedia 8.0 software)

Bundled Software
:: Pinnacle Studio 8 – ATI Version
:: Matchware Mediator 7
:: Morrowind – The Elder Scrolls III

Test System

Test System Specifications:
- AMD 2100+XP Processor
- GigaByte GA-700N nForce2 Motherboard
- 512 MB RAM
- Windows XP
- DirectX 9.0

We used the following benchmarking utilities to the fullest:

- 3D Mark 2001 SE (It's old ... this is the last time you'll see it used here)
- 3DMark 03
- AquaMark 3 (just released!)
- Gunmetal 2
- Quake III (32-bit color, everything maxed out)

These five benchmarks show off some of the old and some of the new. Needless to say this will be the last time we used the 3DMark 2001SE benchmark, as the 3DMark 03 benchmark utility has rendered it obsolete.

3DMark2001 SE SCORES

3DMark2001 SE is the former installment in the popular 3DMark series. Don't read too much into these numbers because it is, in fact, and old benchmarking utility.



Showing the breakdown on the numbers...

3DMark 03 SCORES

3DMark 03 is the latest installment in the popular 3DMark series. 3DMark03 sets the new standard for easily and objectively measuring and comparing modern PCs’ 3D graphics performance. It supports the latest Microsoft DirectX9.0 and contains four new mind blowing real-time 3D game tests as well as advanced DirectX9.0 feature tests.



Showing the breakdown on the numbers...

Aquamark 3

AquaMark3 is a powerful tool to determine reliable information about the gaming performance of a computer system. Because the benchmark extensively utilizes DirectX9, DirectX8 and DirectX7 functionality, it represents the requirements of typical gaming applications in 2003 and 2004. The "total scores" benchmarking results:



Showing the breakdown on the numbers...

AquaMark3 demonstrates that the GFFX5900 and the ATI AIW 9800Pro are close in performance, with ATI edging out for the win.

CHECK OUT PAGE 2 of 2 :: More Benchmarks and Final Conclusions