2004-04-14 Nvidia GeForce 6800 New high-end graphics processor, succeeding NV35 (GeForce 5900). Includes Pixel Shader 3.0 and Vertex Shader 3.0 to support DirectX 9.0c (previously known as 9.1) and to include 16 "real" pipelines instead of the 4x2 architecture used previously.
Named GeForce 6800 and was to be shown at CeBIT or GDC with availability in April or May, but unveiled on April 14th.
Draws a massive 110W from two power cables. Previously known as NV40.
- 6800LE: 8 pipes, 4 shaders
- 6800: 12 pipes, 5 shaders
- 6800GT: 16 pipes, 6 shaders
- 6800 Ultra: 16 pipes, 6 shaders
2004-11-XX Nvidia NV41 Successor to NV36 / NV36x, for the mid range performance or enthusiast chip sector. Supports PCI Express only.
Newer info claims it to be identical to NV40, except that only 12 pipelines are included.
The latest info indicates that this is rather a successor to NV40, with identical performace, but only for PCIe.
A notebook version called NV41M is also planned.