The Fermi cards have now been out (and only just available) for the just over a month. Like the AMD 5xxx series, the first cards used reference PCBs and reference coolers - the only way you could distinguish between the different companies was by the branded sticker on the large chunky cooler. Given time, and knowledge of the system, custom coolers were just around the corner. This is what we see in the new Inno3D GTX 470 Hawk.
What we have is essentially an Arctic Cooling Accelero Xtreme cooler on top of a GTX 470 chip - three PWM controlled fans that run from 900 to 2,000 RPM on top of aluminium fins in a five-heatpipe design. Inno3D claim the Hawk gives a maximum noise level of 30dB, and is 22ºC cooler than the reference design. Two DVI-D connectors and a HDMI with integrated audio port are provided as standard.
This is, in our opinion, a bit of an ugly card (at least compared to the Galaxy 470 reported on earlier), that won't be taking home many beauty awards. By taking up three PCI slots with a massive cooler, the Hawk may annoy those wishing to run other peripherals that require slots, or even running 2 or 3 in SLI, as the layout of most motherboards gives two slot spaces between PCI-E 2.0 x16 connectors. The last caveat is that this card comes out the box at stock speeds, however, with any luck, Inno3D will also market a pre-overclocked version.
No word of exact release date or pricing at this time, but expect to pay the cost of a normal GTX 470 + $30~50 on top.
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JonnyDough - Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - link
Nope. Didn't miss a thing. I was putting this in the same "ridiculous" category as those cards. I'm excited to see what AMD comes out with next, and am hoping that Nvidia does some real work and plays a little catchup. It would be great to see them leap ahead and slash their little heat issue for good. Maybe you're forgetting all the overheating laptops, the G80, etc...Nvidia doesn't seem to be able to keep their temps under control, that's why we have such ridiculous cards like these. There's a little word I like to throw around called sustainability, and I'm sorry but with the dependence on foreign oil, our little Chevy Volt being released, etc...its really time to start paying attention to power consumption. Nvidia is a tad behind the curve.Ikshaar - Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - link
I want something with powerful and silent... I don't care about look or even use of other PCIe slots... GFX card is the only card in my PC.Will wait for confirmation that it can really stay silent on load but that would be the winner for me.
Hrel - Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - link
As long as it's quiet, cools efficiently and fits in the case it's fine by me.I guess I just like that industrial look.