Zogis GeForce 9800 GTX review (graphics card - GF 9800 GTX - 512 MB)

We mentioned SLI above for the 9800 GTX, and it's definitely an option to use the 9800 GTX in a two-, or even three-card configuration. Two 9800 GTX's will cost you about $660, and we'd only recommend it for those with 24- or 30-inch LCD monitors and their high resolutions. The good news is that those two cards are indeed faster than the $600 GeForce 9800 GX2, Nvidia's own two-chip card design that came out just last week.

Of course when you bring up SLI you need to consider your overall system configuration, as well as the graphics cards themselves. Although its performance is respectable for its price, it's actually a bit high maintenance to install even a single GeForce 9800 GTX in your PC. Nvidia recommends a 450 watt power supply for a single 9800 GTX, a 750 watt power supply for two of them in SLI mode, and a 1,000 watt supply for three of them. That's about what we expect these days in terms of wattage, but we're surprised that just one GeForce 9800 GTX requires two six-pin inputs from your PC's power supply.

A typical 450 watt PSU should have the appropriate free connections, and Zogis is kind enough to include the plug adapters, but if one 9800 GTX requires two connections, imagine the mess of cables if you tried to build a three-way SLI system with this card. We're willing to forgive the two-chip 9800 GX2 and its requirement for two power inputs, but we're not quite used to the idea of a 3D card with a midrange price tag requiring two power supply inputs.

Aside from the possible hardware entanglement from such power demands, Nvidia offers some solace if you're concerned about the actual amount of power this card requires. If you own an NForce 700-series motherboard with an integrated graphics chip, this card (as well as the 9800GX2) will support Nvidia's HybridPower capability, which lets your PC switch to the motherboard's integrated 3D chip when you're not gaming or performing other tasks that require a graphics card. Nvidia is still working on the software side of the HybridPower equation, so we were unable to give it a try. But assuming it works, we appreciate Nvidia's attempts at conservation.