HIS IceQ II X800GTO compared to the X800GT
 

HIS IceQ cards are right on top of the ATI-based pile of cards - the efficient yet smooth cooling and good design do add extra value on top of the otherwise standard reference ATI design. Usually, with the IceQ cooling benefit, you can add extra 10% - 15% on top of the rated GPU speed.
In the space of a month, HIS followed ATI's funny outburst of X800-based mid-range family chips to release the X800GT and soon after X800GTO cards. While I personally consider this as ATI's massive stock clearance before RV530 comes later in the year, it is worth comparing the two well-performing mid-range cards and see what happens when the GPU and memory speed are constant, and the only change is the increase in pixel pipelines from 8 to 12 (no, not 16, I don't have those Sapphire X800GTO cards with the BIOS to unlock the disabled defective pixel pipes).

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