Move Aside, GTX 680: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 Review

Well, I must give kudos to NVIDIA. No – not for releasing the GTX 770, but for releasing a GPU that’s so easy to write a conclusion for. One reason is that it’s familiar (it’s in effect a GTX 680, just beefed-up). Another is the fact that it’s priced right, at $399. I’m in a situation where it’s more difficult to find a downside than an upside – a good one to be in.

Plain and simple, the GTX 770 is faster than the GTX 680 that was released just over a year ago for $500. It also bundles in some special 700 series technologies, like GPU Boost 2.0. That feature enables overclockers much greater flexibility, and those who don’t overclock, the assurance that their GPU is never going to overheat, given its default peak of 80°C.

Another 700-specific feature we haven’t talked much about is the “adaptive temperature controller”. As its name suggests, this manages the GPU’s fans to make sure that no speed fluctuation is taking place, in effect annoying the user. I admit that since the GTX 480, I haven’t even noticed this as being a problem, but if you have, this feature should appease your frustration. In addition, the updated cooler has enabled a drop in sound level from about 47 dBA to 43 dBA.

While we didn’t test the GTX 770 head-to-head with either the GTX 670 or GTX 570, NVIDIA’s claims state that the 770 is 65% faster than the 570 – so those who happen to own one of those cards would undoubtedly enjoy the performance boost here.

To sum up, we’re dealing with a GPU that keeps up to or surpasses AMD’s Radeon HD 7970 GHz, costs $50 less, features GPU Boost 2.0 and other 700 series features, and has one of the sweetest looking GPU coolers going (and glowing, with its green LED GeForce GTX logo). If there’s a downside, it’s that the GTX 770 sees a power increase over the GTX 680. It’s not too much of a surprise given the increased performance, but an 18% increased TDP for a ~5% performance boost doesn’t quite align.

With all that it brings to the table and the price-point at which it brings it at, NVIDIA’s GTX 770 has earned our Editor’s Choice award.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770