I remember long ago when ATI had about 20 different video cards to choose from. Every card had a similar name and the end-result was that ATI confused the crud out of it's customers. Driver compatibility became a big issue not long after. Is history repeating itself? What are your opinions of ATI's recent fragmentation of their product lineup? Are the new 850 series video cards going to be good or bad for the consumer? How diverse is ATI's product lineup?
In my opinion, with the recent GPU yield problems of the X800 XT PE, a more diverse video card lineup drives up the cost of production which transfers over to the consumer. ATI may be in more financial trouble than most people are aware. Despite the successes of the 9500 - 9800 series, ATI has been offering sizeable discounts on many of their graphics cards in an effort to push new products to an otherwise uninterested consumer. If Soyo is any indication, rebates and discounts galore do not bode well for ATI.
What is your opinion?
In my opinion, with the recent GPU yield problems of the X800 XT PE, a more diverse video card lineup drives up the cost of production which transfers over to the consumer. ATI may be in more financial trouble than most people are aware. Despite the successes of the 9500 - 9800 series, ATI has been offering sizeable discounts on many of their graphics cards in an effort to push new products to an otherwise uninterested consumer. If Soyo is any indication, rebates and discounts galore do not bode well for ATI.
What is your opinion?