does anyone know about ageia's or ASUS's PPUs?

Question

I've heard things about physics processing units in computers, plus i know that Alienware lists them as an option in their higher end desktops and i was considering getting one for my homebuilt computer. I just need to know what specifications are needed on the software side, along with what type of bus/motherboards they are compatible with. In addition: does anyone know where you can buy one besides ebay? I've seen a couple of auctions for them but havent been able to find them in a retail place or website (like Newegg)

Thanks!

Answer 1

I say hold off and wait. Right now there is only a handful of games that support any PPU, and what they do in those games really is lackluster. Until more companies adopt PPU's there is no need to drop $300 on a card. For one thing there are two PPU engines out there. If you buy an ageia based card it won't support the other engine called havoc. If game companies adopt the havoc engine or if a game you really want only uses the havoc engine your ageia based card won't do anything.
So hold off for a while, save the money and see what games go which direction. The tech is way too new at this point. If in the future you want a game and it supports the ageia engine then go ahead and buy one. if you want to learn more look here
http://hardforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=115
I hope this helps.

Answer 2

They're not worth it yet. They are poorly supported in the games that do support them and ATi and nVidia have just announced on-GPU physics processing using dual GPU solutions. Aegia's days are numbered and they didn't even get out of the starting gate. But truth be known, hardware physics acceleration is still young so it is anybody's game though, it is far too early, FAR TOO EARLY to even considering purchasing one of those things, they aren't worth the money and they are not supported well, if at all, in most games. I know that GRAW supports it but to be honest, you really can't tell the difference.