BFG GeForce GTX 295 H2OC LE review test - Introduction

Aah yes, the pimp daddy of graphics BFG is at it again. Controversy at its best! What we often lament in the industry is the lack of companies doing something special with their mid-range and high-end products, but BFG always kicks back in with a little surprise. They have very nice OC products and then there's that ThermoIntelligence line of products that always brings a little `love´ to the product release.

This time around BFG did their magic again and teamed up with the guys and gals from CoolIT systems, a company designing sometimes awkward yet always interesting cooling products. As such BFG released two products based on CoolIT's cooling; the BFG GeForce GTX 295 H2OC (limited edition) and BFG GeForce GTX 285 H2O+.

Both cards feature (and here we go for the longest marketing phrase in history) `ThermoIntelligence Advanced Cooling Solutions´ which for this series simply boils down to this: a self-contained liquid-cooling loop. Hey, do you guys remember the CoolIT Domino ALC unit we tested? That was a self-contained liquid cooling solution for processors. When we tested it, we definitely liked it. Reasonable performance, great looks and it was easy to install.

What BFG and CoolIT have designed here is very much the same, they applied the very same basic technology behind that Domino ALC to the majestic GeForce GTX 295 we are testing today. So to be clear here... that's a self-contained easy to install liquid cooling solution preinstalled onto the GeForce GTX 295, filled with coolant and everything; this kit has a 120mm fan, radiator, pump, graphics card cooling block, tubing and reservoir all ready to be inserted into the PC for some tender love and care in your gaming experience.

But hey now (!) BFG upped the ante a little more. They clocked this GeForce GTX 295 MUCH faster than the reference model you can purchase in the stores. So this GTX 295 sports 1,792MB of GDDR3 memory - features core, shader and memory clock speeds of 675MHz (up from 576MHz), 1,458MHz (up from 1,242MHz) and 2,214MHz (up from 1,998MHz), respectively, making the BFG GeForce GTX 295 H2OC the fastest graphics card we have ever had in our lab...

Definitely cybernetic e-peen substance! And as such we just had to test a unit out. Ladies and gents let me show you the product, after which we'll dive into the review. We'll obviously cover all the basics of the GTX 295, look at its architecture, we'll do a nice photo-shoot and obviously some steamy performance tests that will get your groove on.

Gents, let me introduce you to... the BFG GeForce GTX 295 H2OC LE, it's full name really is GTX 295 H2OC ThermoIntelligence Advanced Cooling Solutions Limited Editon, but we'll cut that name down a little if you do not mind. It's the stuff that makes you smile, it's the stuff that belongs in the x-factor high-end market, yeah it's Guru3D style gear. Have a peek and then head on over to the next page please.