Comparison of video cards GeForce GTX 950, 960, 970, 980 and 980 Ti

Asus GeForce GTX 950 GTX950-M-2GD5

The youngest and, accordingly, the most affordable model in the 900 series of NVIDIA video cards is the GeForce GTX 950 (768 stream processors). De jure, this graphics accelerator is positioned as the optimal solution for MOBA games: Dota 2, League of Legends and Heroes of the Storm. But de facto, the GTX 950 does an excellent job with any modern AAA games at medium graphics settings and FullHD-resolution.

Directly Asus GeForce GTX 950 Mini is made with an emphasis on miniature size. The thickness of the graphics card is two expansion slots, and the length is only 17 cm (for comparison, the typical length of video cards is from 25 to 30 cm). Thanks to this, it will fit in any, even the most compact computer case. But now MiniITX gaming PCs, the so-called SteamMachine, are gaining popularity.

As a result, GeForce GTX 950 can be called a mandatory minimum for building a gaming PC. At FullHD resolution, it can handle popular multiplayer games (World of Tanks, CS, Dota) at maximum graphics settings and demanding AAA games (GTA, The Witcher, Fallout and Battlefield) at medium graphics settings. But the performance margin of the GTX 950 won't last long, so if you don't want to think about upgrading again soon, take a closer look at the video cards.

MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G

Models of NVIDIA video cards with the number 60 in the name, regardless of the series, are considered the golden mean for their time. And taking into account the fact that it is more reasonable to update video cards in just one generation, then to take a closer look at the GeForce GTX 960 (1024 stream processors) is, first of all, the owners of the already old GTX 660 (for reference, after it came out GTX 760, and the 800-series was only notebook).

Two modifications of the GTX 960 are available for sale — with 2 and 4 GB of video memory. On the one hand, modern AAA games at ultra-graphics settings can use more than 2 GB of video memory even at FullHD resolution, not to mention 2K. On the other hand, the GTX 960 graphics chip is not designed for such graphics settings, so you should not overpay for twice the amount of video memory.

The MSI GTX 960 Gaming 2G itself turned out to be very successful: high-quality electronic components of the power circuit , moderate length (27 cm) and thickness (two slots). And even after a significant factory overclocking of the graphics chip, the noise of the graphics card fans is indistinguishable from other PC components.

Asus GeForce GTX 970 TURBO-GTX970-OC-4GD5

The GeForce GTX 970 (1664 stream processors) is significantly more expensive than the GTX 960, but it is a graphics card of a completely different level . Here you have the obligatory 4 GB of video memory (more precisely, 3.5 GB of fast and 0.5 GB of slow memory), and a wider 256-bit bus that connects the memory to the GPU.

The ASUS GeForce GTX 970 Turbo model received a turbine cooling system, which is more characteristic of reference rather than modified graphics cards. However, such a Cooling system better, albeit with a lot of noise, handles with heat removal when two or three video cards are installed in one PC in a SLI bundle. Video cards will be able to draw in air from the bottom and top and then blow it out of the case towards the interface panel.

Palit GeForce GTX 980 NE5X980014G2-2042J

Before the release of the GeForce GTX 980 Ti, it was the GTX 980 (2048 stream processors) that was the flagship of NVIDIA's 900 line of graphics cards. Yes, now the GTX 980 is just a pre-flagship model, but it also costs much less than at the start of sales. And its performance is more than enough for "ultra" at FullHD and 2K resolution, and even has the potential for 4K.

Compared to the GTX 970, GTX 980 already has honest, without any reservations, 4 GB VRAM and a quarter more stream processors. For reference, playing GTA V at FullHD and maximum graphics settings, including 250% texture resolution and 16x anti-aliasing, uses 3.5 GB of VRAM.

Version Palit GeForce GTX 980 Super JetStream turned out relatively short (only two fans instead of three), although it occupies two and a half slots in thickness. The cooling system casing has a conservative design, but at the same time painted in bright red. The fans are made transparent and have a soft white glow.

Interesting fact: Palit Microsystems is the world's largest manufacturer of graphics cards. The second or third place is shared between ASUS and Colorful (Chinese brand). The fourth and fifth places are occupied by Gigabyte and MSI, respectively.

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 Ti GV-N98TG1 GAMING-6GD

Except for the Titan X (3072 stream processors, 12 GB VRAM), which is not so much for gamers as for PC enthusiasts, the GeForce GTX 980 Ti (2816 stream processors) is NVIDIA's most powerful Maxwell solution yet. The GTX 980 Ti has 6 GB of GDDR5 VRAM, which is half that of the Titan X, but at the same time one and a half times more than the GTX 980.

Same as other solutions based on the GTX 980 Ti chip, the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 980 Ti G1 Gaming graphics card turned out to be long and noisy (three rapidly rotating fans). And what could be expected from a flagship graphics card with power consumption of not much, not a little, 250W? In comparison, the pre-flagship GTX 980 consumes only 165 watts of electricity.

But GeForce GTX 980 Ti will certainly cope with any game at 4K resolution. In addition to owners of a 4K monitor, the GTX 980 Ti can be useful for those who have combined several FullHD monitors into one large “multi-monitor”. Fortunately, this graphics card has plenty of video outputs and a performance margin.