ATI All-In-Wonder X800XL PCIx Video Card Review :: The Card

ATI All-In-Wonder X800XL
Brand	ATI
Model	All-In-Wonder X800XL
Graphics Chip	R430
Graphics Memory Type	DDR3
Memory (MB)	256
Graphics Core Clock (MHz)	400
Memory Clock (MHz)	980
Memory Speed (ns)	2
RAMDAC Frequency (MHz)	Dual 400
Active Cooling on Graphics Chip	Yes
Heatsink on Memory	Yes
Video Capture	Yes
Ports
Dual Monitor Support	Yes
VGA Out	DVI-I, D-Sub
Video In and Out	CATV-In, FM Radio
Package and Support
Printed Manual	Yes
Driver CD	Yes
Performance Tool Software	No
Major Games	None
Major Software	Muvee AutoProducer, Matchware Mediator 8, Pinnacle Studio 9
VR Glasses	No
DVD Player Software	ATI DVD
Video Recording Software	ATI MMC, Pinnacle Studio 9

The A-I-W X800XL is a normal length PCI Express x16 video card. It's about 2 inches longer than the PCI Express x16 slot on a motherboard. As the card is clocked at only 400MHz and is on .11 micron technology, ATI chose to make it a single-slot solution rather than the 2-slot X850XT PEs and their upcoming R520 cards needing 2 slots.

Rear

The cooling on the A-I-W X800XL is a standard heat sink covering over 60% of the surface area of the PCB. There's a picture of Ruby on the heat sink and the words "All-In-Wonder" prominent on the right side of the heat sink. ATI provided a 13-fin radial cooling fan on the video card to cool the graphics chip. In operation the X800XL did not get hot to the touch as some cards do.

Cooling Fan

Ruby

Microtune TV Tuner

PCI Express

The TV tuner on the card is the Microtune 2121. Previous A-I-W cards had long tuner cans that dominated the graphics card. Had ATI chose the old tuner can, the graphics card would probably be clocked lower, giving lower performance than the standard X800XL. Input and output ports on the A-I-W X800XL include a CATV connector, a FM connector, and the connector for the I/O and a DVI-I connector.

I/O

No External Power

One distinguishing factor of modern high-end video cards is the need for more power than the slot the graphics card is placed in can provide. The AGP standard could provide a maximum of 15W of power to the video card, with the AGP Pro slot providing up to 50W. The new PCI Express x16 standard provides 75W of power. Most modern high-end PCI Express video cards like the x850XT PE or the 7800GTX require more power than the 75W and need an external power connector. The A-I-W X800XL does not.

Discuss This Article