If you’re thinking of upgrading your small home theater PC, Galax’s new line of graphics cards may have you covered.
Galax has introduced two half-height Nvidia GTX 1050 graphics cards that give more power than reference options.
The Galax GTX 1050 OC LP and the 1050Ti OC LP are slightly clocked-up versions of Nvidia’s reference options, albeit at half the height. The length of both of Galax’s offerings is a minuscule 68mm. It makes these cards perfect for HTPCs, which are small form factor builds that fit perfectly in a home theater setup.
The GTX 1050 model runs at 1,366MHz and can boost up to 1,468MHz while the GTX 1050Ti model runs at a slightly slower 1,303MHz but can boost up to 1,417MHz. Compare this to reference Nvidia models, its 1050 runs at 1,354MHz and boost to 1,455MHz and its 1050Ti runs at 1,290MHz and boost to 1,392MHz. Galax’s 1050 will come with 2GBs of RAM while the 1050Ti bumps it up to 4GBs.
In terms of display options, both cards will offer DisplayPot 1.4, HDMI 2.0b, and dual-link DVI-D. These cards will only have one port for each, so those with multi-monitor setups may need to look at more premium options. Cooling wise, both cards will stick with standard dual-fan coolers, but buyers will need to ensure their cases have room for two backplate spaces. Luckily, both cards can be powered via the PCIe slots alone, meaning no power connectors will be necessary, and even lower watt PSUs should be able to handle its 75W load.
Galax has not given a price for these new cards nor a release date. Cards in this range typically run for $110 for the 1050 and $140 for the 150Ti. It would not be surprising if Galax prices its cards competitively.
