NVIDIA GeForce

GeForce is a sub-brand of graphics processing units (GPUs) manufactured by NVIDIA.
==Product history==
===256===
The GeForce 256 was the earliest model of the NVIDIA GeForce lineup. It was the first consumer-level PC graphics card launched with hardware transform, lighting, and shading, although 3D games utilizing this feature did not appear until later on. Initial GeForce 256 models appeared with SDR SDRAM memory, and later models arrived with faster DDR SDRAM memory.
===2 series===
The next model was the 2 series, which released on September 7, 2000. It transitioned to a twin texture processor per pipeline (4x2) design, doubling texture fill rate per clock compared to the previous model. Later, the GeForce2 MX was released, which offered performance similar to the GeForce 256, but at a mere fraction of the cost. The GeForce 2 Ultra was the high-end model in this series.
===3 series===
On February 27, 2001, the GeForce 3 series model was released. This model introduced programmable vertex and pixel shaders to the GeForce family and to consumer-level graphics accelerators. It had good overall performance and shader support, making it popular with enthusiasts, although it never hit the midrange price point. The NV2A developed exclusively for the Xbox game console became a derivative of the GeForce 3.
===4 series===
On February 6, 2002, the GeForce 4 series model was released. This model had enhancements to anti-aliasing capabilities, an improved memory controller, a second vertex shader, and a manufacturing process size reduction to increase clock speeds. The GeForce4 MX, which was budget-friendly and based on the GeForce 2, was released along with the addition of some features from the GeForce4 Ti. It targeted the value segment of the market and lacked pixel shaders. Most of these models used the AGP  4× interface, but a few began the transition to AGP 8×.
===FX series===
On January 27, 2003, the GeForce FX launched, which turned out to be a huge change in architecture compared to its predecessors. The GPU featured the Shader Model 2 specification and performed well on older titles. However, initial models, including the GeForce FX 5800 Ultra suffered from weak floating point shader performance and excessive heat, which required infamously noisy two-slot cooling solutions.
===6 series===
On April 14, 2004, the GeForce 6 series launched. It added Shader Model 3.0 support, which helped correct the weak floating point shader performance of its predecessor. It also implemented high dynamic range (HDR) imaging. It evenly introduced SLI (Scalable Link Interface) and PureVideo capability (integrated partial hardware MPEG-2, VC-1, Windows Media Video, and H.264 decoding and fully accelerated video post-processing).
===7 series===
On June 22, 2005, the GeForce 7 series launched. It was the last Nvidia video card series to support the AGP bus. The design was a refined version of GeForce 6, with the major improvements being a widened pipeline and an increase in clock speed. This series also offered new transparency supersampling and transparency multisampling anti-aliasing modes. The GeForce 7950GT featured the highest performance GPU with an AGP interface in the Nvidia line. This era began the transition to the PCI-Express interface.
===8 series===
On November 8, 2006, the GeForce 8 series (codenamed Tesla) launched, becoming the first ever GPU line to fully support Direct3D 10. Manufactured using a 90nm process and built around the GPU, it implemented the unified shader model. Around the time, only the 8800GTX model was launched, while the GTS variant was released several months into the product line's life, and it took nearly six months for mid-range and OEM/mainstream cards to be integrated into the 8 series. The die shrunk down to 65nm and a revision to the 8 series design, codenamed G92, were implemented into the 8 series with the 8800GS, 8800GT and 8800GTS-512, first released on October 29, 2007.
===9 series===
On February 20, 2008, the 9 series of GPUs were launched. The 9800GX2 used two G92 GPUs, as used in later 8800 cards, in a dual PCB configuration while still only requiring a single PCI-Express 16x slot. The 9800GX2 utilized two separate 256-bit memory busses, one for each GPU and its respective 512MB of memory, which equated to an overall of 1GB of memory on the card (although the SLI configuration of the chips necessitated mirroring the frame buffer between the two chips, thus effectively halving the memory performance of a 256-bit/512MB configuration). The later 9800GTX model featured a single G92 GPU, 256-bit data bus, and 512MB of GDDR3 memory.
===100 series===
On March 10, 2009, the GeForce 100 line was launched. The 100 series was a rebranded update of the 9 series GPUs, but were not available for individual purchase, as they were available only for OEMs. However, the GTS 150 was briefly available to consumers.
===200 series===
On June 16, 2008, the 200 series launched. It featured a new GT200 core on a 65nm die. The first products were the GeForce GTX 260 and the more expensive GeForce GTX 280.
===300 series===
The 300 series first launched on November 27, 2009. It was a rebrand of the 200 series, but was only available for OEMs and not legitimately for the public market. The 300 series models featured an updated Direct3D 10.1.
===400 series===
On April 7, 2010, NVIDIA released the 400 series GPUs (codenamed Fermi). The GTX 470 and GTX 480 were the first GPUs to contain 1GB or more of GDDR5 memory. Despite the recent success, both GPUs were often criticized due to high power use, high temperatures, and very loud noise that were not balanced by the performance offered, although the GTX 480 was the fastest DirectX 11 card as of its introduction.
===500 series===
On November 9, 2010, NVIDIA released the GTX 580. It featured higher performance, less power utilization, heat and noise than the preceding GTX 480. Reviews were far better than the predecessors. Nvidia later also released the GTX 590, which packed two GF110 GPUs in a single card.
===600 series===
By the time NVIDIA announced the Kepler microarchitecture, various PC brands were starting to recognize the growing fame of NVIDIA. Especially with Dell's gaming subsidiary brand, Alienware, the subsidiary became one of the most exposed companies to partner up with NVIDIA to salvage the next set of upcoming GPUs. The 600 series officially launched on March 22, 2012. The lineup had significant improvements in performance, heat, and power efficiency. With the GTX TITAN, Nvidia also released GPU Boost 2.0, which would allow the GPU clock speed to increase indefinitely until a user-set temperature limit was reached without passing a user-specified maximum fan speed.
===700 series===
Just as the 600 series campaign was about to conclude, the popularity of NVIDIA grew even more. Some companies, especially those who manufacture custom-built gaming PCs, declared their intentions to sign sponsorships with NVIDIA. The 700 series launched on February 19, 2013. The GTX 780 was a slightly cut-down TITAN that achieved nearly the same performance for two-thirds of the price. It featured the same advanced reference cooler design, but did not have the unlocked double-precision cores and was equipped with 3GB of memory. Around the same time, Nvidia announced ShadowPlay, a screen capture solution that used an integrated H.264 encoder built into the Kepler architecture that the company had not revealed previously. A week after the release of the GTX 780, Nvidia announced the GTX 770 to be a rebrand of the GTX 680. It was followed by the GTX 760 shortly thereafter.
===800M series===
On March 12, 2014, NVIDIA launched the 800M series, a rebrand of the 700 series. Popularity for NVIDIA began to hit the summit, as ASUS, MSI, and other known brands entered the frame to partner up. The 880M model contained 8GB of GDDR5 memory as it was available for both desktops and laptops respectively.
===900 series===
On September 18, 2014, the 900 series (codenamed Maxwell) stocked the market. The first wave of the brand was the 970 and 980 models, both of which had 4GB GDDR5 memory, available for both desktops and laptops. Major online store brands, such as Amazon and Newegg, began selling gaming PCs far more often. On January 22, 2015, the GeForce 960 was released, having 2GB and 4GB models. On March 17, 2015, the Titan X was released, having 12GB of GDDR5 memory. Gaming PC sales began to increase immensely, while professional sports leagues, such as the NFL, signed endorsement deals with NVIDIA.
===1000 series===
The next wave of GPUs (codenamed Pascal) was the 1000 series, launches on May 27, 2016. Around the same time, Acer announced their subsidiary of gaming PCs dubbed "Predator". Gigabyte and Aorus were also on the run in joining the gaming PC competition. The first GPU during the launch was the GTX 1080, which contained 8GB GDDR5 memory available for both desktops and laptops respectively. On August 2, 2016, NVIDIA launched the Titan X, having 11GB of memory. The rest of the lineup featured 1060 and 1070 models, each with 6GB memory. Around the same time, various companies were producing monitors that feature a technology called G-Sync, which helps avert screen tearing and distortion while playing games, no matter how fast the refresh rate or frame rate are.
===2000 series===
On September 20, 2018, the 2000 series (codename Turing) launched. Both the 2070 and 2080 models had 8GB of GDDR5X memory, available to desktops and laptops respectively. In addition, the Turing lineup was the first series of GPUs to feature ray-tracing graphics. On December 18, 2018, NVIDIA released the Titan RTX, which had 24GB memory.
===2000 Super series===
On July 19, 2019, NVIDIA released a refresh of the 2000 series dubbed the 2000 Super series. The 2060 Super, 2070 Super, and 2080 Super were slight improvements of the previous 2000 series models, being available for desktops and laptops respectively.
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