NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti: Gamer’s Weapon of Choice

Conclusions

Back in July 2010, with its remarkable price-performance ratio, NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 460 stole everyone’s attention. High performance and affordable price were its main selling point, and, with the GeForce GTX 560 Ti, NVIDIA follows that recipe to produce yet another mainstream product which should prove to be equally appealing to users, especially gamers in general. GeForce GTX 560 Ti is set to replace the venerable GeForce GTX 470 in NVIDIA’s current lineups. Their previous flagship, the GeForce GTX 480, has been replaced by the GeForce GTX 570 last December.

According to our observations, GeForce GTX 560 Ti currently retails at an MSRP of US$ 249 (online price). The US$ 200-299 price range has already been occupied by a vast number of DirectX 11 graphics cards, including the GeForce GTX 465, GTX 470, AMD Radeon HD 6870, HD 6950 2GB, and HD 5850. GeForce GTX 560 Ti’s direct competitor is the Radeon HD 6870 from AMD with its US$ 239 price tag. Now, let’s compare the GeForce GTX 560 Ti with some of its most obvious adversaries.

Performance Comparison: GeForce GTX 560 Ti VS Radeon HD 6870 – In our DirectX 9 and DirectX 10 game tests, the Radeon HD 6870 coud still keep up with the GeForce GTX 560 Ti and even surpassed it at times. DirectX 11 is a different story, though, with the GeForce GTX 560 Ti leading in almost all tests with an exception for 3D Mark 11 where it was slightly outperformed by the HD 6870.

Performance Comparison: GeForce GTX 560 Ti VS GeForce GTX 470 – As a replacement for the high-performing GeForce GTX 470, the GeForce GTX 560 Ti should at least be able to match the performance of that previous high-end card from NVIDIA. Our test results provide positive confirmation. The GeForce GTX 560 Ti is indeed faster than the GTX 470 in most of our game tests. The GeForce GTX 560 Ti also performs better in games enhanced with NVIDIA’s PhysX feature. Another advantage that the GeForce GTX 560 Ti consumes less power compared to the GTX 470. Owners of the GTX 470 need not be disappointed though, since it can still outrun the GeForce GTX 560 Ti in several titles, such as Metro 2033.

Performance Comparison: NVIDIA GTX 560 Ti VS NVIDIA GTX 460 – If the GeForce GTX 560 Ti is faster than even the GeForce GTX 470, it’s only logical to assume that it should also be faster than the GeForce GTX 460. Our test results confirmed it. However, it’s worth remembering that the GeForce GTX 560 Ti is not meant as a direct replacement for the GTX 460. So, the GTX 460 should be safe enough, for now at least. To secure GTX 460’s position, NVIDIA has slashed the price as well. The 1 GB version of GTX 460 now sells for US$ 199, while the 768 MB variant ships with a reduced price tag of US$ 169.

If you’re planning to get a GeForce GTX 465 or GTX 470, then by all means you should go for the GeForce GTX 560 Ti instead as now there is no reason to justify the purchase of those two cards. In another case, if GTX 460 is your target, a far more powerful card (GeForce GTX 560 Ti) is only tens of dollars away, so it’s best to seriously consider the GeForce GTX 560 Ti unless you’re highly restricted by your budget. It is also possible that NVIDIA will release GTX 460’s replacement soon enough.

For a gamer, the flagship GeForce GTX 580 and GTX 570 are still the best choice if money is no object. However, those two cards require an equally powerful system to be able to perform optimally. Opting for either one of these will increase your overall cost, which could otherwise be allocated to buy other gaming equipments.

All in all, the GeForce GTX 560 Ti is perhaps the most interesting specimen from NVIDIA today. It’s fast enough to perform wonderfully in your games, and cheap enough to be affordable for a large majority of gamers. In addition, you don’t need a very powerful system to allow it to give its best in terms of performance. If you’re a gamer who wants a card that will run all of your games without draining your bank account, the GeForce GTX 560 Ti might just be the perfect choice.