We have been reviewing all the possible fast and furious high-end AGP cards since some time now, but today we look at the new entry-level card from Asus. Reviewing an entry-level card was a pleasant change for a number of reasons, firstly we didn't have to go through a nervous break down after discovering its price and secondly the chipset itself is an interesting one.

The Asus A9550GE is based on the ATI Radeon 9550 chipset. The 9550 chipset is a fresh entrant in the value segment, slightly lower than the 9600 chipset, offering affordable DirectX 9 functionality. Targeting the value conscious gamers, the A9550GE is an attempt to inject new life into the value segment.

The Card, specifications and package
Housing the ATI Radeon 9550 chipset the Asus A9550GE is powered with 128 MB DDR RAM. The 256-bit GPU runs at a clock speed of 250 MHz and the 128-bit, 128 MB DDR RAM is clocked at 400 MHz. The RV350 core is exactly the same as the RV360 core, which powers the Radeon 9600 chip. The core clock speed for the Radeon 9600 (non-Pro) is 325 MHz, while the memory is the same at 400 MHz. Clocked 75 MHz lower than the Radeon 9600, the Radeon 9550 is placed between the 9600SE, which has a 64-bit memory interface and the Radeon 9600.

Powered with four pixel pipelines and two vertex pipelines, the Asus A9550GE is a DirectX 9 card supporting Pixel and Vertex shaders version 2.0. The back panel comprises of the usual VGA Out, an S-Video connector and a DVI Out connector for flat panel displays.

The Samsung RAM chips K40261638E-TC50 used in the card are rated at 5 ns and are hence clocked at their full potential of 200 MHz (DDR). There aren't any heat sinks on the RAM and the GPU is cooled by a modest sized cooler, which seems more than sufficient for the RV360 core clocked at 250 MHz. The overall build quality is pretty decent for an entry-level card.

Coming to the accessories bundled with the card, there is a DVI-VGA converter and the S-video cables for video-out. The software bundle comprises of the usual drivers and utilities disk, which also includes the Asus GameFace software and the Asus Video Security II application. There isn't any full version game bundled with the card.

Let's move over to the Benchmarks and find out whether this value card can take the heat.