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The graphics chip designer's new addition is seen as a move to brace itself for competition from Nvidia's latest GeForce FX 5900 series (NV35) chips, introduced the same day.

Unlike their predecessor GeForce FX 5800 series (NV30), which adopts a 128-bit memory interface and DDRII memory, Nvidia's GeForce FX 5900 Ultra and GeForce FX 5900 chips are designed with 256-bit and DDR memory standards and reportedly deliver much improved performance. According to graphics card makers, when tested on the Doom III game, the GeForce FX 5900 Ultra also delivered better performance than ATI's Radeon 9800 PRO.

The latest offerings from the two leading graphics chip designers are only a prelude of a fiercer chip war ahead for the high-end sector. According to graphics card manufacturers, ATI is planning to launch an updated R360 chip in the third quarter, which will be manufactured on the 0.15-micron process at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). Nvidia will introduce an NV36 chip - a simplified, four-pipeline version of the NV35. The company's first 0.13-micron-processed product made by IBM will be its new-generation NV40, card makers said.

Apart from products for the top-end market, graphics card makers said that ATI also recently released a simplified Radeon 9200 SE chip for the entry-level sector and started volume shipments of its mainstream-oriented Radeon 9600 chips, continuing its effort to fill the market with products before Nvidia's NV35 extensively hits stores in June.