3dfx Voodoo3

The Voodoo3 3000, offered in only an AGP solution (although it still doesn't take advantage of AGP texturing), bumps the clock speed up to 166MHz, and therefore begins to distance itself from the Voodoo2 SLI and the Voodoo3 2000, although not by a tremendous margin. Other than the added performance and the greater cost of the Voodoo3 3000, the only other advantages the 3000 model offers over the 2000 is the support for NTSC TV-Output and a 350MHz integrated RAMDAC instead of the 300MHz RAMDAC used on the 2000.

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The 2D image quality is not tremendously improved on the 3000 because of the 350MHZ RAMDAC, and doesn't justify the added cost, the only reason one would pursue the 3000 over the 2000 is for the raw performance enhancements; this is mainly because of the fact that TV-Output is simply not clear enough, on today's NTSC/PAL TV screens, to be considered a viable option for many. Even playing a game on a TV can be extremely harsh on the eyes when outputting from a video card. Most users will prefer a 17" monitor to a 31" TV because of image quality alone.

The Voodoo3 3000 should be priced around the $160 mark upon its arrival; unfortunately it seems like getting the 3000's out and in to the hands of vendors will be a bit of a problem. Chances are that you'll see more 2000 models than anything else, if you're lucky, a 3000 may float your way.

The Voodoo3 3500 is the true performance solution, clocked at an amazing 183MHz, the Voodoo3 3500 offers a noticeable improvement in performance over the 2000 and the Voodoo2 SLI, and as you might be able to guess, the card will be available at a premium cost. Initial estimates put the cost of a Voodoo3 3500 at around $220 to $250, too rich for the blood of most hard-core gamers.

Other than the increased clock speed, the 3500 comes with support for 3dfx's unique LCDfx Digital Output for Flat Panel LCD screens. Digital LCD screens are an interesting topic these days, the lack of a widely known and implemented interface standard will keep the Digital LCD screen from taking off in the desktop market, however in a couple of years, when one arrives, expect the days of the CRT to be numbered severely. Don't buy the Voodoo3 3500 simply because of its Digital LCD output support, you'll be wasting your money, the Digital LCD market has quite a bit of maturing to do before a move like that would be justified; and chances are that 3dfx's LCDfx won't become the standard the industry chooses to adopt, call it an educated hunch ;)

The Voodoo3 3500 features the same 350MHz RAMDAC as featured in the Voodoo3 3000, and the 2D quality of the 3500 is relatively unchanged from that of the 2000. The yield on the 3500's 183MHz processors and memory chips will make the availability of the cards limited for quite some time, don't expect to see the 3500's hitting the shelves at the same time the 2000's make it out of the doors of STB's plants. In the video card industry, according to those that are actually making the cards, 183MHz memory is difficult to come by, even if you happen to be 3dfx.