NVIDIA: a new generation of graphics cards in 2011

NVIDIA's GTC (GPU Technology Conference) is currently being held in San José. An opportunity for the company to bring us up to date on forthcoming graphics card architectures.

While not so long ago graphics card manufacturers brought out two generations of card every year, it now looks as if AMD (ex-ATI) is focussing on one new architecture per year and NVIDIA one every two years.

2011: Kepler generation, 3 to 4 times better performance per Watt

According to the graph presented at GTC, the successor to Fermi architecture should be here next year. Kepler - its codename - should offer 3 to 4 times better performance per Watt than you get with the GeForce GTX 400s, the current generation. To manage this feat, NVIDIA will have to greatly optimise energy consumption on its new architecture.


Two years down the line, in 2013, the Maxwell architecture will see the light of day. Here again, the jump forward will be in the order of a 3 to 4 times increase in performance per Watt on the preceeding architecture (Kepler for those who aren't following).

First of all, Fermi will be developed

We should however highlight several points. First of all, NVIDIA says that the Fermi architecture dates from 2009. In practice, the GeForce GTX came out in March 2010. Moreover, NVIDIA counts on introducing an intermediate stage for each of its architectures. This means that before Kepler comes out, we'll first see an evolved form of Fermi.

NVIDIA, then, isn't giving us any really precise information at the end of the day. AMD however will be unveiling its new generation of cards before the end of October.

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