Low End TNT Based Systems

As a solution for high end Pentium II systems, the nVidia Riva TNT chipset is beyond amazing and is definitely the best overall 2D/3D video solution out for now. Moving down the performance ladder to Socket-7 systems, the TNT becomes a potentially well rounded solution while offering above average performance, however the current batch of drivers and compatibility issues will keep that dream from becoming a reality.

For Socket-7 and especially Super7 users, the future will probably lie within the hands of either 3Dfx or S3. The very first cards based on 3Dfx's skeptically anticipated Banshee chipset as well as those based on S3's widely criticized Savage3D chipset will be shipping within the coming weeks, their introduction into the market should finalize the process of putting everything in their proper place.

How will the market break down in the future? Well, you can expect 3Dfx to hold the high ground with their Dual Voodoo2 SLI setup, the ideal situation being a system configured with a nVidia Riva TNT for its outstanding Direct3D performance and crisp image quality, with a Dual Voodoo2 setup for pure performance. While that configuration is a bit overboard, the next step down is a mass of confusion:

For high-end systems, the Riva TNT will probably be the top 2D/3D choice, however if S3 can pull through with the OpenGL drivers on their Savage3D then nVidia may be forced out of that position and into more of a price war between themselves and S3 for control over the rest of the high end market.

Mid-range systems will find that the absolute best 2D/3D solution will be divided fairly evenly between all of the contenders, and depending on your priorities, the favor can be tilted in virtually any direction, including that of Matrox's G200 which, although it doesn't offer the best 3D performance, does offer the best 2D acceleration out of all of the current 2D/3D cards in its class.

Low-end systems will probably have one clear option, the 3Dfx Banshee, and unless S3 can make their Savage3D a Super7/Socket-7 friendly device upon its introduction 3Dfx will have managed to hold both extremes of the spectrum, the low and the high ends, leaving Matrox, nVidia, and S3 to battle it out in the middle of the arena. Who would've thought that 3Dfx would be such great strategists?