So - 6800u - Low Volume Review Board...

[whql]

... and 6800ue even lower availability review board?

http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=2076

But, just because it's on the show floor, it doesn't mean it will be showing up at your local 7-11 anytime soon. We've had quite a few interesting discussions about the availability of new parts, especially with respect to NVIDIA.

The underground buzz we heard is that the 6800 GT parts wouldn't be that scarce in the near future, but that channel allocation of the 6800 Ultra parts was somewhere between 50 on the low end to 100 on the high end. Not that such small numbers really need perspective, but when we heard that allocation was low, we expected to hear that it was only a couple thousand. This begs the following question: NVIDIA launched the 6800 Ultra in May, and if less than a hundred cards are in the channel today with mass production coming in July, are we talking about a paper launch? To be fair to NVIDIA, although ATI's supply of X800 XT Platinum Edition parts isn't that low, it's still nothing to write home about.

Launch two weeks before ati and ati already has higher availability of xt's - and people were moaning that the Platinum Edition were going to be nothing but review boards!

 

[Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.]

That level of supply is almost just engineering samples.

This is just Nvidia playing the PR game again. Paper launch, chips clocked to the maximum, big coolers, high power, yield problems, etc. It's Nvidia's way of begging people not to buy ATI cards, by promising their own offerings are "just around the corner, honest they are", no matter how many weeks/months before we see any kind of quantitiy shipping.

 

[K.I.L.E.R]

That level of supply is almost just engineering samples.

This is just Nvidia playing the PR game again. Paper launch, chips clocked to the maximum, big coolers, high power, yield problems, etc. It's Nvidia's way of begging people not to buy ATI cards, by promising their own offerings are "just around the corner, honest they are", no matter how many weeks/months before we see any kind of quantitiy shipping.

Doesn't NV have a history of doing this? Discluding the NV3X scenario.

 

[Rodéric]

nVidia looks more and more like 3Dfx... maybe it's gonna go the way of 3Dfx/ the dodos ^^

I'm not sure I would mind given NV behavior in the past...

[quick thought, I wouldn't if PowerVR takes their place, otherwise I would]

 

[digitalwanderer]

Is anyone at all surprised? Seriously.

 

[ZoinKs!]

I can't help but notice they're predicting mass production will start in...... July!

 

[MuFu]

The underground buzz we heard is that the 6800 GT parts wouldn't be that scarce in the near future, but that channel allocation of the 6800 Ultra parts was somewhere between 50 on the low end to 100 on the high end. Not that such small numbers really need perspective, but when we heard that allocation was low, we expected to hear that it was only a couple thousand. This begs the following question: NVIDIA launched the 6800 Ultra in May, and if less than a hundred cards are in the channel today with mass production coming in July, are we talking about a paper launch? To be fair to NVIDIA, although ATI's supply of X800 XT Platinum Edition parts isn't that low, it's still nothing to write home about.

This "underground buzz" has been around for ages. It was what I was referring to when I made this post a few months ago:

http://www.beyond3d.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=244169#244169

Specifically, I heard of an agreement made by a large AIBM that catered for an 80-100 board (IIRC) allocation of units for June. No doubt rather begrudgingly!

 

[keegdsb]

So when is the "near future" when the 6800GT will be less scarce?

 

[Evildeus]

nVidia looks more and more like 3Dfx... maybe it's gonna go the way of 3Dfx/ the dodos ^^

He, don't compare Nv/3DFx with dodos, it's my country emblem!

 

[digitalwanderer]

So when is the "near future" when the 6800GT will be less scarce?

Well, since everyone is probably tired of hearing me say it by now I'll let someone else:

I can't help but notice they're predicting mass production will start in...... July!

Man, I gotta dig up the thread that I started saying that in just to get the names of everyone who was saying I was out-o-my-mind....

 

[Pete]

What's pitiable is that the 6800U looks like a much more desirable board than the 5800U. It seems like the market can support quite a few 6800Us; more than 100, anyway.

 

[digitalwanderer]

It seems like the market can support quite a few 6800Us; more than 100, anyway.

I don't think 100 would be enough for any major city in the US!

 

[aapo]

I can't help but notice they're predicting mass production will start in...... July!

I'll be damned if Digi has been right about that all the time. But still, day after day his guess (?) seems more and more convincing...

 

[digitalwanderer]

Don't worry, it won't go to me head or nothing.....

 

[Fodder]

Australia got <5 S-Media (perfectly reference) 6800U cards, and no sign of any more to come. Folks who had placeholders for the Leadtek cards have taken them off their sites.

 

[Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.]

There are two things that could be going on here:

1. Nvidia have been lying to us from day one. They knew they were not going to beat ATI to market, but ran a comprehensive spoiler against R420 as a delaying tactic, and might be tweaking up the NV40 to compete better. Nvidia are in total control and know when they can deliver - they are just not telling us yet.

2. Nvidia's had unforseen problems. Yields are awful, and they haven't a clue what or when they can ship in reasonable quantities. Pretending they are shipping "real soon now" is just a rearguard action while they run around with their hair on fire trying to get *something* out the door, and figuring out what they can do to make an underperforming or poorly yielding part profitable.

Actually, I hope they are lying to us, as the alternative is another NV30-esque comedy of errors. What incentive will ATI have to cut prices on R420 then?

 

[BRiT]

lol!

This is just to damn funny...

 

[ANova]

There are two things that could be going on here:

1. Nvidia have been lying to us from day one. They knew they were not going to beat ATI to market, but ran a comprehensive spoiler against R420 as a delaying tactic, and might be tweaking up the NV40 to compete better. Nvidia are in total control and know when they can deliver - they are just not telling us yet.

2. Nvidia's had unforseen problems. Yields are awful, and they haven't a clue what or when they can ship in reasonable quantities. Pretending they are shipping "real soon now" is just a rearguard action while they run around with their hair on fire trying to get *something* out the door, and figuring out what they can do to make an underperforming or poorly yielding part profitable.

My guess is it's number two along with the first part of number one. I doubt they are in 'total control' of anything.

 

[BRiT]

My guess is it's number two along with the first part of number one. I doubt they are in 'total control' of anything.

I agree. It seems to be a bit of both.

Could you imagine how terrible things would really be if they didn't avoid the evil low-k 0.13 micron process?

 

[K.I.L.E.R]

High K is going to be standard for future microchips.

Does the NV40 use high-k?