Bfg NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 OC 1GB PCIe 2.0 Graphics card.Backed by Bfg tech's famous lifetime warranty and free 24/7/365 Tech Support the Bfg NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 OC graphics card is factory overclocked to deliver a free boost in performance over standard models. Experience true HD gaming and multimedia with up to 2560x1600 resolution. GeForce 200 series: GTX 285 for Mac GeForce 100 series: GT 120 GeForce 9M series: 9400M GeForce 8 series: 8800 GT GeForce 8M series: 8800M GTS, 8600M GS Quadro FX series: FX 5600, FX 4800 for Mac Additional information. To download and install the drivers, follow the steps below: STEP 1: Review the. Owners of Apple's Mac Pro workstations will have a second, high-end home video card option within weeks, as NVIDIA is planning to release a version of its GeForce GTX 285 chipset specifically for. NVIDIA has paired 1,024 MB GDDR3 memory with the GeForce GTX 285, which are connected using a 512-bit memory interface. The GPU is operating at a frequency of 648 MHz, memory is running at 1242 MHz. Being a dual-slot card, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 draws power from 2x 6-pin power connectors, with power draw rated at 204 W maximum. EVGA GeForce GTX 285 1GB FTW 01G-P3-1288: 0 / 1386: EVGA GeForce GTX 285 1GB FTW w/ EVGA Backplate 01G-P3-1182: 0 / 1323: EVGA GeForce GTX 285 1GB HydroCooper 01G-P3-1290: 0 / 1386: EVGA GeForce GTX 285 1GB Mac 01G-P3-1080: 0 / 1242 EVGA GeForce GTX 285 1GB SSC 01G-P3-1287: 0 / 1323: EVGA GeForce GTX 285 1GB Superclocked 01G-P3-1285: 0 / 1269.
Real graphics card competition on the Mac is not something that Apple users are accustomed to hearing about, but with the Radeon 4870 and now the NVIDIA GTX 285 available for the Mac Pro, it looks like we've got just that. While Mac gaming may not be any more viable than it was a few years ago, the ability to dual-boot Windows has been a huge win for those wanting high-end PC gaming without having to put another box next to their work Mac. With Core Image, CUDA, Snow Leopard and OpenCL just around the corner, a good GPU is becoming more and more of a mainstream need, and the Geforce GTX 285 looks like it has power to spare.
In this short review, we take a look at what the Geforce GTX 285 can do under both Windows and OS X. We even include some Windows gaming benchmarks, though our main focus here is on investigating the GTX 285's suitability for professional 3D rendering on the Mac.
System Requirements
Mac Pro 2008 or 2009 with OS X 10.5.7 or later
Mac Pro (Early 2009) or Mac Pro (Early 2008 with 800Mhz DDR2 FB-DIMM memory)
2 PCI Express slots (only one is used but the card is double-wide)
Price: $449
Card Specs
Core Clock Speed: 648MHz
CUDA Processing Cores: 240
Memory Clock Speed: 2,484MHz
Memory Bandwidth: 159GB/sec
Shader Clock Speed: 1,476MHz
Bus: PCIe 2.0
Interface: Two dual-link DVI with HDCP support
Warranty: 2-year warranty upon registration
Test machine: 8-core 2.66 GHz Mac Pro Nehalem
What's in the box
1GB EVGA Geforce GTX 285 (make sure your box came with one of these)
Two Mac Pro-compatible molex cables
DVI-to-VGA adapter
Driver disk
(Note that the SLI cable for two-card Windows gaming is not included.)
As you can see above, the card itself a bit shorter than the Radeon 4870. It doesn't lock into the Mac Pro 2009's plastic bracket, but it's held firmly in place by the notched card and Mac Pro brace. You'll also notice that the GTX 285 doesn't include the much-reviled Apple mini DisplayPort connector; instead, it has two standard dual-link DVI ports. If you're wondering why anyone would hate the mini DP, this image should speak volumes:
The elegant option for mini DisplayPort to HDMI, and the whole kit only costs you $40 + tax and delivery. From the Ars forum thread 'Apple, your mini displayport is stupid. I hate it.'
Nvidia Gtx 285 Drivers
Unlike the Windows-only GTX 285 cards, this card doesn't feature a TV out. This isn't a problem in my opinion. On the hardware side, the GTX 285 is reasonably future-proof thanks to its 1GB of DDR3 memory and OpenGL 3.0 spec compatibility. My biggest gripe with the Apple-compatible Radeon 4870 is that it only has 512MB of RAM, which is really the rock bottom for modern games and too little for high-end 3D application work. The 4870's only built for OpenGL 2.1 compatibility so there's also less room for growth with the Radeon. All we need now is for Apple to bring us OpenGL 3.0 support in OS X and someone to make an application that uses it. Real soon now.
Installation
Thanks to the Nehalem Mac Pro's brilliant design, 'installation' is nothing more than popping it in, fastening the card via a screwdriverless PCI Express mounting bracket, and attaching the two molex cords. Make sure to install the drivers before you install the card though—I learned the hard way that you will have no video if you don't. EVGA has posted a newer driver [DMG] that I recommend installing instead of the one on the CD.
All tests in this review are done with the newer driver.
June 1, 2009
GTX 260/285/275 on MacPro
Tired of waiting for GTX285 mac edition to appear?
you can try it already on MacPro, you will need:
1) working efi nvidia card (7300gt/8800gt/gt120), ati might work too
2) some gtx 2xx card you wanna get working
3) install Injector pkg – link
4) do not reboot after previous step, and install drivers from quadro 4800 disk (you can find them in irc , irc.osx86.hu #gt200 channel, link in topic)
Geforce Gtx 285 Drivers
5) now reboot.
Nvidia Gtx 285 For Mac Windows 7
if you are lucky enough, you will get this, some minor glitches yet, like wrong ram size(working on it), but it works: