[marco]

La Gacilly, March 6, 2003 – Hercules® is delighted to announce the launch of a complete new range of its popular 3D Prophet™ graphics boards. This new 3D Prophet series, based on ATI®’s latest chipsets, features perfectly-adapted solutions for all PC users, from ultra-hardcore gaming to general family needs. As always, Hercules’ aim is to provide the very best solutions for every market sector.

“ATI is pleased to be working with Hercules to bring these high-quality products to market. Thanks to Hercules’ experience and its own technological know-how, this partnership has succeeded in delivering the ultimate visual experience for end users,” states Rick Bergman, Senior Vice President of Marketing, General Manager, Desktop, ATI Technologies Inc.

“Working in close conjunction with ATI, today’s undisputed leader in graphics innovation, we have created dedicated solutions to meet the needs of the full spectrum of PC users,” says Philippe Pecheu, 3D Graphics Product Manager at Hercules. “We are launching a full range of new graphics boards with a wide range of innovative features, making it easy for both end users and retailers to find just what they are looking for.”

Hercules will be launching the 3D Prophet 9800 Pro for ultra-hardcore users, 3D Prophet 9600 Pro for hardcore users, 3D Prophet 9200 Pro and 3D Prophet 9200 for enthusiast gamers and the 3D Prophet 7500 and 3D Prophet 7000 for home and office users.

3D Prophet 9800 Pro

Based on the RADEON™ 9800 PRO – the fastest, most visually advanced 3D chipset on the planet – the ultra-powerful 3D Prophet 9800 Pro graphics boards feature a 256-bit DDR memory interface and 8-pixel pipeline engine for the ultimate in hardcore fragging. As usual, Hercules has developed a set of customized features to exceed gamers’ already high expectations: Microsoft® DirectX® 9.0, OpenGL® hardware support, incredible core and RAM clocks, advanced filtering technologies (Anisotropic Filtering up to X16 and Full Scene Anti-Aliasing up to 4x) for high-quality rendering without a compromise in framerates. This technological wonder will definitively transform the gaming experience of demanding users, immersing them in a world of photorealism and visual amazement.

3D Prophet 9600 Pro

This board for hardcore users is based on the RADEON™ 9600 PRO chipset, with the latest 0.13 micron processing technology. The 3D Prophet 9600 Pro features a quad-pixel pipeline engine, a dual vertex engine, Microsoft® DirectX® 9.0, OpenGL® hardware support and advanced filtering technology for artifact- free images, fast framerates even in high resolution and high-quality rendering in current and upcoming games. The 3D Prophet 9600 Pro benefits from Hercules’ experience in advanced customized features, representing an optimized solution in terms of performance and stability for the gamer’s community.

3D Prophet 9200 Pro / 3D Prophet 9200

The 3D Prophet 9200 Pro and 3D Prophet 9200 boards are based on the highest-performance technology in their class, ATI’s RADEON™ 9200 and RADEON™ 9200 PRO chipsets. With advanced quad-pipeline rendering architecture, DirectX® 8.1 hardware support (the most common standard in today’s games), full AGP 8X support and programmable geometry and texture engines, the 3D Prophet 9200 series provides an impressive set of features for a solid performance boost for enthusiast gamers.

3D Prophet 7500 / 3D Prophet 7000

Built on the RADEON™ 7500 and RADEON™ 7000 chipsets, the 3D Prophet 7500 and 3D Prophet 7000 provide home and office users with a wide range of advanced multimedia features such as high-quality DVD playback, TV output and dual display support (extended desktop/clone modes) for unrivaled image quality in 2D applications and improved 3D gaming features at an unbeatable quality/price ratio.

More on Hercules can be found here

[Crusher]

edit: ah, nm, I'm too tired to bother with the replies

[Anonymous]

anyone know about when these hercules/guilimot cards will be released in the US, or about how long after the ati ones come out???

[Anonymous]

Okay why did they cut the 9600's balls off, Only 4 pixel pipelines!!!
like what in de heck, this thing could be as fast as a 9700 if they just had 8...EIGHT I TELL YOU!!!!, %$#@ id pay more just to get 4 more damn pixel pipelines you money hungry bastards, just cause you need a midrange card!!!! IM GOING TO BUY THIS PIECE OF CRAP ANYWAY!!!!.