ATI Radeon 9200: review of the video card, features and reviews

ATI относились к сегменту разработок начального класса. At the time of sale in 2004, the Radeon 9200 graphics accelerators from the Canadian company ATI at that time belonged to the segment of the development of the initial class. и даже большинство игрушек на этом адаптере запускались. Their performance was quite enough to solve the most common tasks at that time, and even most of the toys on this adapter were launched. Now this video card loses performance integrated graphics solutions. It is its characteristics and capabilities that will be considered in this material.

Which segment of the graphic products market is the adapter targeted?

In 2004, only two manufacturers dominated the graphics accelerator market: Nvidia and ATI. And if before the release of the Radeon 9XXX series products the leading positions occupied the decisions of the first manufacturer, then the situation changed radically, and adapters of the second developer came first in terms of performance and speed. The market of discrete graphics itself was divided into 3 large segments:

• Video card entry level. Minimal productivity and very, very democratic value. In most system blocks of personal computers of that time, you can find exactly such adapters. для этой части рынка позиционировала продукты серий GeForce 4 МХ 4 ХХ и GeForce FX-5200. NVidia for this part of the market positioned the products of the GeForce 4 MX 4 XX series and GeForce FX-5200 series. им противопоставляла всего лишь один продукт - Radeon 9200 . In turn, ATI countered them with only one product - Radeon 9200 . FX-5200. If you compare the performance of these accelerators, then the hero of this review was faster than the MX 4XX, but worse than the FX-5200. But there was no cardinal advantage in terms of performance and speed in this part of the market. For the most part, the choice was formed based on the accelerator price and personal preferences.

• и FX-5700, а от ATI – Radeon 9500 и Radeon 9600. В этом случае тотальный перевес уже был целиком и полностью на стороне канадского производителя. To the middle-end graphics cards in 2004 were NVidia FX-5600 and FX-5700, and from ATI - Radeon 9500 and Radeon 9600. In this case, the total advantage was already entirely on the side of the Canadian manufacturer. видеокарте GeForce FX–5900. The computing power of its adapter 9600 was selected almost immediately to the then flagship from NVidia - the GeForce FX-5900 graphics card.

• и Radeon 9800 от ATI. The most productive discrete graphics accelerators were occupied by the previously mentioned FX-5900 and Radeon 9800 from ATI. And the latter demonstrated outstanding at that time performance and allowed to solve almost any problem for a long time.

This is how the video card market was divided in 2004.

Technical specifications

The parameters of the video processor considered in this material were as follows:

• The code name is RV-25.

• The technology of production of a semiconductor crystal is 150 nm.

• The frequency of the video chip is 250 MHz.

• Pixel pipelines were only 4 pieces, and each of them accounted for 1 block TMU.

• версии 8Х. The slot type for installation is AGP version 8X.

There was also a more advanced modification of this graphic product - Radeon 9200 Pro. The difference between them was that in the second case the frequencies of the graphics chip were increased to 275 MHz, and the RAM used to work at 500 MHz against 400 for a conventional accelerator. видеочип для ноутбука, и характеристики у него были идентичными. Also, a video chip for a laptop was released , and the specifications were identical.

Video memory

The Radeon 9200 was equipped with a 128-bit RAM bus. DDR с рабочей частотой 400 МГц. The type of video buffer used in this case is DDR with an operating frequency of 400 MHz. The amount of RAM in this accelerator could be 64, 128 or even 256 MB. In the latter case, the performance level increased significantly, but the cost of such accelerators was much larger. As a result - not so often they could be met.

Cooling system

This graphic solution, as noted earlier, is a product of the budget class and an impressive value of the heat package certainly can not boast. As a result, often such accelerators were equipped with a passive cooling system from a single compact radiator. But also often there were active cooling systems with small in size coolers. In the first case, the accelerator was recommended to be used only in the nominal mode, and in the second it was even possible to make a small overclock. Also there was a similar video chip for the laptop, which was equipped with only an active cooling system.

Analogues at the time of release

, как было отмечено ранее, конкурировала сразу с двумя семействами продуктов компании NVidia - МХ 4ХХ и GeForce FX-5200. The video card Radeon 9200 , as was mentioned earlier, competed with two families of NVidia products - MX 4XX and GeForce FX-5200. The first of them was released much earlier than the hero of this article, and was considerably inferior in terms of the speed of its direct competitor from the ATI camp. But in the case of using the GeForce FX-5200, you could get a slight performance increase in some applications, while in most software the parity was observed.

Features of drivers for this video card

Х 8.1. At the software level, this graphics solution conformed to Direct X 8.1 specifications . Radeon 9200. Windows 7 может целиком и полностью раскрыть свои возможности именно на последней версии Direct Х. Да и полноценного набора драйверов под эту операционную систему у 9200 не было. But already a later version of 9.0 of this software package did not support Radeon 9200. Windows 7 can fully open its capabilities on the latest version of Direct X. Yes, and a full set of drivers for this operating system in 9200 was not. But in practice it was possible to install the most recent drivers for XP and make this accelerator work with a newer operating system. The algorithm for their installation is as follows:

• Windows 7 для ХР под правами системного администратора и в режиме совместимости ХР/2000. Install drivers on Windows 7 for XP under the rights of the system administrator and in compatibility mode XP / 2000.

• Run the driver in the same mode and with the same rights.

• We can not restart the computer system.

• Windows \ System файл ati2dvag.dll в любое удобное место, например, на "Рабочий стол". We move the file ati2dvag.dll from the Windows \ System directory to any convenient place, for example, to the "Desktop".

• We leave the system and go.

• Return the file ati2dvag.dll to the original location.

• We are rebooting the PC. After that, the driver should already be normal, fully functional.

The cost. Owners opinion

Как результат, даже складские запасы его распроданы, и купить его в новом состоянии уже невозможно. Well, it's been a long time since the release of the Radeon 9200 video chip. As a result, even its stock is sold out, and it's already impossible to buy it in the new state. на различных торговых площадках в глобальной паутине. But here's second-hand can still be found on various trading platforms in the global web. The price they have is quite democratic and ranges from 240 to 500 rubles, depending on the state of the adapter. Consider such an accelerator as the basis for building a new system unit, even if it's out of date components, not worth it. AMD Radeon HD , которые нацелены на установку в более свежий слот PCI- Е, это позволит в дальнейшем при необходимости апгрейдить такую систему. In this regard, it's more appropriate to pay attention to AMD Radeon HD graphics adapters , which are aimed at installing into a more recent PCI- E slot , this will allow to upgrade such system if necessary. The only case when the purchase of the hero of this review is really justified is the need to restore the workability of the old PC with minimal costs in case of a breakdown of the video card. This is exactly what the reviews on most sites of this topic indicate.

Results

Both in terms of price and performance, the ideal entry-level graphics product in 2004 was the Radeon 9200 . And such video subsystems were still relevant for a long time. AMD Radeon HD. It can also be noted that based on video cards of the 9XXX series, later products were developed, which were named AMD Radeon HD.