Gainward FX PowerPack! Ultra/1800 XP Review - Page 2 of 9
By Clay Angelly - February 1, 2004
PACKAGING
We already saw a few pictures of the box but here are some close-ups of
certain items that caught my fancy. It's a nice heavy weight cardboard box that
you'll feel safe having shipped around.
Mmmm...Barcodes...
Probably the most riveting photo you've seen all week right? I just know that
someone out there is giving me a virtual high-five (or maybe a virtual finger) for including a picture of the box's
barcode though.
Not Quite Right
This sticker on the box isn't entirely accurate. The main points are correct
in that this is, in fact, an Ultra/1800 XP Golden Sample with VIVO, DVI and it
is a GeForce FX 5950 Ultra with 256MB of DDR memory. However, the outer top and
bottom phrases are not accurate. There is no FireWire or 5.1 sound card
included. I can only assume that my box just received the wrong sticker. I've
not actually seen this card packaged with these two other pieces of hardware
anywhere on the web either. It's a minor quirk I suppose but for this card's
price tag including those would have been a nice touch.
Open Sesame!
As I indicated on the previous page, this is one big box! It's easily one of
the largest video card boxes I've ever laid eyes on (about 15" in length). I'm not sure
why it is so big as the contents don't really necessitate this kind of size.
Let's just say that you couldn't miss this gem on the store shelf!
Safety First!
As you can see, the card is snugly nestled in a nice thick brick of a densely
layered foam. The standard anti-static bag tops it all off. Not to pay undue
attention to the finer points of product packaging but it is nice to see a card
so well secured and protected. Hey, I've seen my local FedEx guy...and he's not
the nimblest fellow around. Oh yeah, I almost forgot the cool little case badge
sticker...you can see it there in the bottom left. It's a dome sticker too, not
one of those cheap, flat, paper variety.
Software Bundle & Accessories
This software bundle is getting a little long in the tooth. We have WinCinema,
Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project, Serious Sam (the original, not Second Encounter)
and Arx Fatalis. Gainward's EXPERTool software is on the driver disc which
permits GPU / memory overclocking without any registry hacking (i.e.
Coolbits).
So, it's better than nothing but that's about as exciting as you can put it.
There is also a Molex Y-adapter since you'll need to connect your power supply
directly to the video card. A nice quality VIVO cable is also included as is a
printed Quick Start manual, that snazzy puffy case badge sticker and a DVI-VGA
adapter (not shown above).
