Virtual reality is already here and knocking on our doors but, to experience all that it has to offer, you’re going to need a powerful graphics card to drive it. And that’s what NVIDIA has promised with its new release of the GeForce GTX 1080. This graphics card is based on the Pascal architecture, which is optimized for performance per watt, making it three times more power efficient than the previous generation of Maxwell processors. Furthermore, it’s designed for the 16nm FinFET process that uses smaller, faster, and densely packed transistors (7.2 billion, in fact) to deliver a dramatic increase in performance and efficiency.
The GTX 1080 is also the first card to utilize 8GB Micron’s GDDR5X memory. Its 256-bit memory interface runs at 10 Gb/s for 1.7x higher effective memory bandwidth when compared to regular GDDR5. This step-up in bandwidth and power efficiency enables the GTX 1080 to run at clock speeds of more than 1700 MHz while only consuming 180 watts of power. New asynchronous computer advances further improve efficiency and gaming performance while GPU Boost 3.0 technology adds advanced over-clocking functionality. At the forefront of VR focused GPUs, the GTX 1080 encompasses VRWorks for a new level of presence for VR. It combines what you see, hear, and touch with the physical behavior of the environment so everything is as real as possible.
With the GTX 1080, SLI functionality has also changed and now only supports two cards. The days of quad-SLI are over; however, NVIDIA’s new SLI HB bridges double the available transfer bandwidth, promising better support and silky-smooth gameplay. These bridges will not be backward compatible and are available in multiple versions for 2-, 3-, and 4-slot configurations. The GTX 1080 Founders Edition, or rather “reference edition,” will be available on May 27.
The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Founders Edition Graphics Card is available for purchase from EVGA, MSI, and ASUS.
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