Verdict: Old-hat technology at an over-inflated price.

The X1800XT was ATi's first DirectX 9c, Shader Model 3 GPU, but it proved unable to take on the GeForce 7800 GTX and win. As a result, the X1800XT was quickly superseded by the X1900-series, and the X1800-series was relegated to the mid-range market, where it spawned two cut-down models, the X1800GTO and X1800XL.

The X1800XT and X1800XL have the same GPU architecture, which comprises 16 pixel processors, eight vertex pipes, 16 texture processors and 16 ROPs. The X1800XT is clocked at 625MHz while the X1800XL runs at just 500MHz. Both share the same 256-bit ring bus memory controller, but while the X1800XT has 512MB of on-board RAM, the X1800XL has 256MB. The memory on the X1800XT runs at 750MHz (1.5GHz effective) while the X1800XL's RAM is clocked at a considerably slower 490MHz (980MHz effective). In contrast, the X1800GTO is a far less sophisticated GPU, having just 12 pixel processors, eight vertex pipes, 12 texture processors and 12 ROPs, although it has the same 256-bit wide ring bus memory controller as found in the higher-end X1800 cards. The GPU is clocked at 500MHz, while the RAM runs at 495MHz (990MHz effective). In addition to supporting Shader Model 3, all the X1800-series cards perform HDR lighting and anti-aliasing simultaneously, unlike Nvidia's GeForce 7-series.

The X1800XT was the only X1800-series card capable of playing Need for Speed: Carbon and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. smoothly at 1,024 x 768. While the X1800XT and X1800XL were able to play F.E.A.R. smoothly at 1,680 x 1,050 with 2x AA and 8x AF, the X1800GTO could only play the game smoothly at 1,280 x 960 with 2x AA and 2x AF.

While the X1800-series was ATi's first DirectX 9c, Shader Model 3 GPU, no model in the family was ever going to be a serious competitor to the GeForce 7-series. Worse still, high-end X1800-series cards are still on sale at high prices, and the X1800XL costs more than even a DirectX 10 320MB GeForce 8800 GTS. The only X1800-series card worth considering is the X1800GTO, due to its low price, but you'll have to make do with poor performance in modern games.

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