Package and Contents

This package comes with the basics to get you running, plus a few extra cables such as power cable to give the VGA card that extra boost, an s-video to Y-Pb-Pr cable for high quality video playback on TVs and also a DVI to VGA adaptor. Be careful because they have a manual deceivingly called SpeedSetUP, I think what they mean is Quick Setup.
There is also a leather CD holder included in the package that we received showing their consumer care is of high standard.

Installation

The conservative size of the heatsink unit is probably one of the best and sensible one I've seen for quite a while. Its low profile and absorbs the heat from the GPU and the RAM and also from the little resistors too. It also incorporates heatpipe technology that further draws heat away from the GPU core to up in to the array of fins.

The photo below shows the underside of the heatsink unit. The polished copper block that sit right on top of the GPU core and the surrounding aluminium base that draws heat away from the RAM chips, an effective design due to its maximised surface area.

 
Click to enlarge

When it came to install the EAX1950Pro onto a motherboard it was easy and simple, its low profile heatsink unit causes no concern with other components in the lower expansion slots. The heatsink vents the hot air towards the back of the system but not outside of the system like its bigger brother EAX1950XTX. Heat may gather at the back of the system which maybe a slight concern, but can be rectified by leaving a blanking space open.

Driver installation was very unusual as these cards used Asus' own modified Catalyst 6.9 drivers, so you cannot download and use ATI's reference drivers..