ElementalDragon

possibly front-page-news worthy (least i think it may as well be)...... but if you ask me..... it's ABOUT DAMN TIME some video card manufacturer started to think INSIDE the box (the box being your computer case). Asus is going to be releasing a new version of the 6600, called the Extreme N6600TOP. what's so "new" and front-page-news worthy about it? well...... Asus finally thought about video card designs a little more (realising that heat rises), and put the GPU on the OPPOSITE side of the card where you normally find it now. yep..... that's right....... they finally decided "Hey..... let's make GPU coolers a little more efficient.... as well as a little more logical". I, for one, think it's one of the most obvious things that took forever to be realised in QUITE a long time. too bad it probably won't be adapted as of yet to newer, higher end cards.... due to the fact that most of them are either a) dual slot coolers, or b) single slot coolers that extend back WAY too far, and may block off more than our current video cards do (such as RAM clips). Interesting looking card too (though it only shows what's typically the "business end" of the card, and not the cooler/GPU that's on the, what guru3D would probably call, the "tail end" of the card. would probably be more interesting to look at in your case too.... since as of now, unless you have a Lian-Li case, or some other case with a reverse mounted motherboard, all you would see is either a bare back of the video card, or possibly a backplate heatsink over the back of the card (which would be the case with my current 6800GT). anyway.... think i ranted enough. here's the link to the article at X-Bit Labs.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/video/d...102220053.html

edit: after google-ing around a bit.... turns out there's BEEN an Asus Extreme N6600TOP..... just that this new one uses something they call ReverseCool Technology (dunno why they call it "technology". all they did was turn the card over. my dog coulda figured that one out. :-/) here's the link to the card actually shown on the Asus website. funny how they don't even show the other side of the card........ huh.

http://www.asus.com/products4.aspx?l...53&modelmenu=1

edit #2: found a tad more info after browsing their site a bit more. actually semi-demonstrates the ReverseCool stuff. pretty interesting having a GPU heatsink with heatpipe design and an adjustable secondary heatsink for more air contact and cooler temperature.

http://event.asus.com/vga/www/index.html#

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Aprox

Wow, what a completely logical idea.... I too always wondered why this was never done. Good find, hopefully it will be adopted in the next gen cards down the road.

It will also be interesting to see if future motherboard standards take note of this and perhaps use this as a standard, thus adding the extra room needed on the reverse side of the GPU for the actual cooler. Just an idea...