I have seen a lot of reviews of the Geforce FX 5600 Ultra but I didn't see many reviews of the lower cost option, the non ultra. Today I will be reviewing the MSI FX5600-TD128 (MS-8912).  This is my first chance to take a look at the Geforce FX and I had some really high expectations. I will be comparing this card to a Geforce 4 TI 4200.

The MSI MS-8912 is based on the NVIDIA Geforce FX 5600 GPU also known as the NV-31. The NV-31 GPU is the successor of the NV-30 that NVIDIA released earlier this year and this GPU was intended to be a lower cost alternative.

The photos above are of MSI's box. I have always liked the boxes MSI video cards come in.  The rear of the box goes over the video cards specs well and even has a photo of the card. Inside the box MSI has always made everything fit well, it's not like other manufactures that just let everything move around in the box, everything has its own place to fit secure. The final photo shows the boxes contents.  From top left, Game CD's, Driver and software CD's, Video card, Manual, Video out cable, DVI to D-Sub adaptor, and MSI case badge.

At first look the video card doesn't look very flashy. It has a standard chipset looking cooler and comes with dual video outputs, one D-Sub and one DVI.  It also has an S-Video TV-Out port.

Starting from top left. Bundle MSI developed software, MSI Media Center Deluxe II, InterVideo WinDVD 5.1 & Supreme Foreign Language Learning Machine, Virtual Drive Professional and RestoreIT! Professional, MSI 3D Desktop, 7-in-1 Games Collection, Duke Nukem Manhattan Project, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon, Morrowind Disk I, and Morrowind Disk II.

• MSI Live Update Series ( Live VGA BIOS & Live VGA Driver)- Automatically online download & update VGA BIOS & Drivers, reduce the risk of getting the wrong files, and never have the trouble on web site searching.
• GoodMen- Automatically release the system memory space, reduce the risk of system hang-up.
• LockBox- Instantly enter the data lock mode when you must leave your system for a while.
• WMIinfor- Automatically list the detail system configuration, it helpful for engineering service people.
• ThinSoft BeTwin
• MSI Secure DOC
• E-Color
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• Trend Micro PC-Cillin 2000
• Microsoft® DirectX 8.1

• Browse all your multi-media resources in a single integrated platform
• Make your PC a Multi-media Center of your home.
• Simplifying your PC controls for the Elders and Kids: Only arrow and number keys needed to control MSI
  Media Center.
• More amazing functions: Watch TV (Support MSI TV Tuner only), Listen to Music, View Pictures, Play Video
  Clips, Play DVD, Game Zone, Applications Collection
  Notice: Only supported WinXP/2000 platform

• Support up to Dolby 5.1 Channel audio complete entertainment.
• User-defined Playback Duration (ex. If you have a 1.5 hours title, and you hope to finish the title playing
  during 1 hour air-trip, it can accelerate the playback in a non-sensible way.)
• All feature on previous version are still remain.
• Multi-language Support (26 Languages)

•  Easy click "Enter" key, repeat 8/4/2/1 second program automatically, to learn foreign language. After you well understand the sentence, you can click "Enter" key again to continue the playback.

• Support "Virtual Drive" x 3, "Virtual Disk" x 5
• User can duplicate licensed CD as a image into HDD, to get best Read/Write speed. (Users don’t need to
  keep licensed CD anymore)
• User can use one Virtual Drive to play MP3, use another VirtualDrive to read CD data, and use
  another Virtual Drive to duplicateCD (ex. if the user has a physical CDRW installed).
• Multi-language Support: English, French, Japanese, Netherlandish, Traditional/Simple Chinese.

•  Support "Static Restore Point" x 1, "Incremental (Dynamic) Restore Point" x 15.
• More than WinXP "System Restore", not only can restore system files & registers, but also can
  recognize & restore all files made by all variant utilities.
• Furthermore, if your HDD been format or damaged by virus, it still can 100% restore.
• Multi-language Support: English, French, Spanish, Japanese, Traditional/Simple Chinese.

• Fantastic 3D Desktop Experience.
• Embedded 2 Shooting Game onto MSI 3D desktop (Crime Alley & Target Practice)
• Embedded 1 Hidden Room (to store your home pictures, video, web-link...etc.)
• Screen Saver effect support !!
• Changeable 360 degree surrounded Sky.
• Changeable Theme & Music.
• Put all desktop Shortcuts/Icons onto your 3D space.
• Put all "My Favorite" 1st page onto your 3D space.
• Easy transport inside the space by using quick teleport.
• Automatically update the Advertisement-Posters, when user link to the internet

• The Sum of All Fears
• IL-2 Sturmovik
• Serious Sam 2 lite
• Rally Trophy
• Beam Breakers
• Zax: The Alien Hunter
• Oni

• Full retail version of newly released, exciting Side-Scroller-3D-Adventure.

• Full retail version of newly released, Open-end Role-Play experiencing.
• Hot in worldwide pre-ordering market.

• Full retail version, 1st person shooter.
• More excited than CS, support network fighting also.