NVidia GeForce GTX 670 Launched

NVidia today launched the third card in the Kepler line-up, GeForce GTX 670. The card uses a GK104 core, with 7 of it's 8 SMX enabled, giving it 1344 CUDA cores. The reference clock speed is 915 MHz, with a boosted clock speed of 994 MHz. The 2 GB memory runs at 1502 MHz (6008 MHz effective), with a bus width of 256-bits.

The card is only 7 inches long, although the reference cooler and all the custom coolers we have seen in previews are at least a couple of inches longer. This could provide some interesting options for people wanting a small but powerful computer. Previously, an ITX build using a small graphics card would only have an entry level GPU, as that is all that would fit the size. With suitable custom cooling (such as perhaps a waterblock), it is now possible to build a powerful gaming computer or workstation in a very small case.

Many custom cards will be longer than the reference board, which only has room for 4+2 power phases, so boards designed to be overclocked will at least need room for the extra power circuitry. The reduced power circuitry on the reference design is made possible by the reduced power needs of the GK104 GPU.

Most previews we have seen indicate that the GTX 670 can outperform a Radeon HD 7970 in almost every benchmark tested. Suggested retail price for the reference card is $399.