Memory bandwidth seems rather pathetic, specially when compared to cards like the 7900GS, which do not only have faster memory (assuming the listed speeds are the effective ones), but a 256bit bus.

Man, I was really hoping for a 256-bit bus, to go along with 512 MB of ram...it seemed that nVidia was going that way with the 8800s, but it is the same ratio with the 8600GT, 128-bit to 256 MB, just lower than what I would like.

Well, it now looks more and more certain that nVidia will have a full range of Dx10-compatible cards in the marketplace, all hard-launched and fully available before ATi/AMD get a single Dx10-capable product out the door.

nVidia will have the OEM desktop PC market almost all to themselves as far as video cards are concerned for at least 3 months, considering the latest ATi/AMD roll-out schedules. For example, Dell is still shipping their high-end desktops only with XP installed - they are waiting for Dx10 video cards before offering models with Vista installed. Also, once the full range of Dx10 cards are available, then which enthusiast building a brand-new moderate-to-high performance PC would even consider a Dx9 card, unless it was being transferred from an older machine ?

From AMD's point of view, it seems that the marriage with ATi was one not "made in heaven", with the inability to execute any new ATi products, (chipset or GPU) in a timely manner ever since the acquisition.

that long? people should change their video cards on a monthly basis. good think costco has a nice return policy.

All I want to know is if they're ever gonna do single slot cooling again...

I've got a Shuttle & can't use a behemoth cooler & keep my sound card...

Interesting memory choice..
but this makes the memory interface exactly the same as the 7600. That probably simplifies things enormously for partners. Could the 8600 even be pin-compatable with the 7600?

The memory size and bus width seem downright crippled in comparison to the 8800. As do the clock speeds. This is only the mid-range, mainstream line right? Not the low-end? Does this mean they'll also be putting out an 8200ish line with a wimpy 64-bit bus? It seems more appropriate that the midrange ought to be up to the 256-bit at this point (and maybe a 192-bit for the lower end mainstream), when the high-end is at 384/320, and the cheapo versions could hit 128 or 96-bit. If they're permanently going to stick with the bottom models at 64-bit, it's going to mean a wider and wider gap between the top and bottom ranges. Maybe that's their plan though, maybe they want to stick in yet another level for marketing so they can come up with another set of random model numbers.

With a 128-bit bus, it's conceivable even the 8600GTS may be slower in some tests than the 7900GS, but the 7900GS is available for <$150 right now, and the 8600GTS is $199-$249. I'll be anxiously awaiting actual benchmarks!

Looks like 8600gts is the only one even worth getting on a 128bit memory bus. I rather wait for those 8900gs though.

Still these would give be a little faster than 7900gs.