MSI GeForce 8500 GT and 8600 GT Comparison - Page 2 of 8
Review By Jonathan Martini - July 13, 2007
RETAIL PACKAGING
The MSI GeForce 8500 GT ships in a thin but sturdy box, which displays info about the card on the backside.
MSI GeForce 8500 GT Retail Box - Front
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The PCB is fairly small in size, measuring in at just over 7 inches. The layout of the card is very clean as it contains few visible components, due to not requiring sophisticated power management circuitry as is the case for the more performance-driven cards.
The layout seems a little busier than the XFX GeForce 8500 GT we reviewed here, but that's due to MSI opting for a more traditional style GPU cooler that covers only the GPU.
MSI GeForce 8500 GT - Front
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The MSI unit doesn't have the SLI connector along the top of the card, as the XFX unit had, as the SLI bridge is not needed to enable SLI on the GeForce 8500 GT.
MSI GeForce 8500 GT - Back
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The card features both a VGA out for analog monitors and a Dual-Link DVI out capable of driving monitors up to 2560x1600.
MSI GeForce 8500 GT - Side View
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MSI has taken a new approach to coloring their DVI connectors yellow to display which are capable of driving a Dual-Link DVI capable monitor and which are not. MSI has opted to provide HDCP capabilities on their card, which is much appreciated as HDCP capabilities are optional on the 8500 GT.
MSI GeForce 8500 GT - Contents
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Included with the video card are 2 quick user guides, a VGA-to-DVI converter, Driver CD, TV-out splitter and S-Video extension cable. The TV-out splitter breaks out into a single S-Video connection, or the three cable component connections. The splitter is much appreciated by those planning to place the card in a media-center PC paired with a TV. Not only will they be able to choose the proper connection for their TV, but the low 40W power usage of the 8500 GT is great in keeping the PC running cool and with very little noise.
