Editing GeForce 2 series (section)

==Architecture==
[[Image:GeForce2 Ultra GPU.jpg|thumb|GeForce2 Ultra GPU]]
[[File:NVIDIA@180nm@Fixed-pipeline@NV15@GeForce2 GTS@F30213.01 0031A3 Stack-DSC03235-DSC03247 - ZS-DMap (26370843253).jpg|thumb|Die shot of a Geforce 2 GPU]]
The GeForce 2 architecture (NV15) is similar to the previous GeForce 256 line but with various improvements. Compared to the 220 [[nanometre|nm]] GeForce 256, the GeForce 2 is built on a 180&nbsp;nm manufacturing process, making the silicon more dense and allowing for more transistors and a higher clock speed. The most significant change for 3D acceleration is the addition of a second [[texture mapping unit]] to each of the four [[Graphics pipeline#Scan conversion or rasterization|pixel pipeline]]s. Some say{{who|date=January 2013}} the second TMU was there in the original Geforce NSR (Nvidia Shading Rasterizer) but dual-texturing was disabled due to a hardware bug; NSR's unique ability to do single-cycle trilinear texture filtering supports this suggestion. This doubles the texture [[fillrate]] per clock compared to the previous generation and is the reasoning behind the GeForce 2 GTS's naming suffix: GigaTexel Shader (GTS). The GeForce 2 also formally introduces the NSR (Nvidia Shading Rasterizer), a primitive type of programmable pixel pipeline that is somewhat similar to later pixel [[shader]]s. This functionality is also present in GeForce 256 but was unpublicized. Another hardware enhancement is an upgraded video processing pipeline, called ''HDVP'' (high definition video processor). HDVP supports motion video playback at [[High-definition television|HDTV]]-resolutions (MP@HL).<ref>{{cite web |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=1231&p=2 |title=NVIDIA GeForce 2 GTS |publisher=Anandtech |date=April 26, 2000 |pages=2 |access-date=July 2, 2009}}</ref>

In 3D benchmarks and gaming applications, the GeForce 2 GTS outperforms its predecessor by up to 40%.<ref>{{cite web |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=1231&p=10 |title=NVIDIA GeForce 2 GTS |publisher=Anandtech |date=April 26, 2000 |access-date=June 14, 2008}}</ref> In [[OpenGL]] games (such as [[Quake III Arena|Quake III]]), the card outperforms the [[Radeon R100|ATI Radeon DDR]] and [[3dfx]] [[Voodoo 5|Voodoo 5 5500]] cards in both 16 [[color depth|bpp]] and 32 bpp display modes.  However, in [[Microsoft Direct3D|Direct3D]] games running 32 bpp, the Radeon DDR is sometimes able to take the lead.<ref>{{cite web |author=Witheiler, Matthew |url=http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=1281 |title=ATI Radeon 64MB DDR |publisher=Anandtech |date=July 17, 2000 |access-date=June 14, 2008}}</ref>

The GeForce 2 (NV15) architecture is quite memory bandwidth constrained.<ref>{{cite web |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=1298&p=2 |title=NVIDIA GeForce 2 Ultra |publisher=Anandtech |date=August 14, 2000 |access-date=June 14, 2008}}</ref> The GPU wastes memory bandwidth and pixel fillrate due to unoptimized [[z-buffer]] usage, drawing of [[Hidden surface determination|hidden surfaces]], and a relatively inefficient RAM controller. The main competition for GeForce 2 GTS, the Radeon DDR (R100), has hardware functions (called [[HyperZ]]) that address these issues.<ref>{{cite web |author=Lal Shimpi, Anand |url=http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=1230&p=5 |title=ATI Radeon 256 Preview (HyperZ) |publisher=Anandtech |date=April 25, 2000 |pages=5 |access-date=June 14, 2008}}</ref> Because of the inefficient nature of the GeForce 2 GPUs, they could not approach their theoretical performance potential and the Radeon, even with its significantly less powerful 3D architecture, offered strong competition. The later NV17 revision of the NV11 design used in the [[GeForce 4 series#GeForce4 MX|GeForce4 MX]] was more efficient.

===Releases===
The first models to arrive after the original GeForce 2 GTS was the ''GeForce 2 Ultra'' and ''GeForce2 MX'', launched on September 7, 2000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nvidia.com/object/IO_20010618_6038.html|title=Press Release-NVIDIA|website=www.nvidia.com|access-date=April 22, 2018}}</ref> On September 29, 2000 Nvidia started shipping graphics cards which had 16 and 32 MB of video memory size.

Architecturally identical to the GTS, the Ultra simply has higher core and memory clock rates. Meant to be a niche product, it was rumored that GeForce 2 Ultra was intended to prevent 3dfx taking the lead with their [[Voodoo 5]] 6000 that was ending up never released as 3dfx went bankrupt. The Ultra model actually outperforms the first [[GeForce 3]] products in some cases, due to initial GeForce 3 cards having significantly lower fillrate. However, the Ultra loses its lead when anti-aliasing is enabled, because of the GeForce 3's new memory bandwidth/fillrate efficiency mechanisms; plus the GeForce 3 has a superior next-generation feature set with programmable vertex and pixel shaders for DirectX 8.0 games.

The ''GeForce 2 Pro'', introduced shortly after the Ultra, was an alternative to the expensive top-line Ultra and is faster than the GTS.

In October 2001, the ''GeForce 2 Ti'' was positioned as a cheaper and less advanced alternative to the GeForce 3. Faster than the GTS and Pro but slower than the Ultra, the GeForce 2 Ti performed competitively against the [[Radeon R100|Radeon 7500 (RV200)]], although the 7500 had the advantage of dual-display support. This mid-range GeForce 2 release was replaced by the [[GeForce 4 series#GeForce4 MX|GeForce4 MX]] series as the budget/performance choice in January 2002.

On their 2001 product web page, Nvidia initially placed the Ultra as a separate offering from the rest of the GeForce 2 lineup (GTS, Pro, Ti), however by late 2002 with the GeForce 2 considered a discontinued product line (being succeeded by the GeForce 4 MX), the Ultra was included along the GTS, Pro, and Ti in the GeForce 2 information page.