Gigabyte GTX980 G1 Gaming Review

We have reviewed many of the more prominent custom GTX980 solutions available on the market today and our findings have shown that it is almost impossible to end up with a poor, ill performing card. There are of course some key differences between the models available today.

Regular readers will likely remember our review of the monster INNO3D GTX980 ‘iChill Herculez X4 Air Boss Ultra' – hard to forget as it has one of the most ludicrous graphics card names in history. Tacky naming aside, the INNO3D card is fitted with one of the most incredible air cooling systems known to man. The appearance will certainly split opinion, but the cooling efficiency isn't in question. The Gigabyte GTX980 G1 Gaming may not exhibit quite the same cooling proficiency, but it does manage to outperform both MSI Gaming 4G and ASUS STRIX versions of the GTX980.

Performance from all of the GTX980's is stellar, and the Gigabyte G1 Gaming ships with one of the higher core clocks – set at 1,228mhz. At these speeds, 1080p, 1440p and 1600p frame rates are smooth – however if 4K gaming is your main goal then you will need to budget for two of them in SLi.

The Gigabyte GTX980 G1 Gaming is a fantastic graphics card, and we like the understated black design – it will slot into any system build without creating a conflict of colours. The addition of a great looking backplate will also appeal to the discerning enthusiast audience.

You can buy from Overclockers UK for £499.99 inc vat – although there is a sale this week with a price reduction to £469.99 inc vat.

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Pros:

• nicely understated design.
• backplate looks great.
• outperforms the coolers on both ASUS and MSI cards.
• superb performance, high core clock speed.

Cons:

• MSI GTX980 Gaming 4G is still the ‘looker' of the bunch.
• will still need two of them for super smooth 4K gaming.

Kitguru says: High clock speeds, great cooler and built to very high standards complete with backplate.

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