TomsHardware reviews 6 video cards including:
MSI Radeon HD 2900 XT
MSI Radeon HD 2600 Pro Noise Free Edition
HIS Radeon HD 2600 XT Zalman
HIS Radeon HD 2600 XT IceQ Turbo
MSI Geforce 8600 GTS Diamond Plus
Colorful Geforce 8600 GT HD
"HD" is the buzzword of the moment, be it for hardware or content. HD resolutions, HD displays, HD movies. Even the graphics card market hasn't been left untouched by the HD hype, with an increasing number of products promising HD support. However, a consensus regarding what HD actually means seems to be far off, both in terms of actual functionality and product advertisements.
The cards' retail boxes sport many variations on the HD theme. Colorful, for example, promises HDMI support, which should theoretically include HDCP. Its cards come without the required HDMI cable, though, shipping instead with a DVI-HDMI adapter. Thus, the company doubles the number of HDMI connectors available on its board. Also, instead of a second VGA or DVI connector, the card already features one on-board HDMI connector.
HIS also uses the HDMI logo to advertise its Radeon 2600 Pro and 2600 XT products. Sadly, neither of the cards comes with an adapter or connector on-board, making the logo misleading. The HDTV logo, on the other hand, is justified, as the bundle includes a component cable. 1080p Full HD sounds pretty good as an output format, where Full HD means an output resolution of 1920x1080 pixels and "p" signifies a refresh rate of 50 or 60 progressive frames (as opposed to interlaced). In the case of a dedicated output device such as a player, the "p" could also represent a refresh rate of 24, 25 or 30 frames...
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