We can start off by saying this: the GeForce GTX 285 is the fastest single-GPU solution, period. Nvidia is in the business of making monster GPUs, and they definitely did not disappoint this round. While sure, it's basically an overclocked GTX 280, this by no means lessens Nvidia's achievement here. The GTX 285 offers high-end performance without the hassle that accompanies multi-GPU cards, such as micro-stuttering and the frustrating lack of support in some games.
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The new GTX 285 and the older GTX 280 share many similarities, and in fact, they both use versions of the GT200 core. The GTX 285 is based on the 55nm GT200b, a shrunken version of the original 65nm GT200 used in the GTX 280. Both cards have a full 240 stream processors, and both cards use a full 512-bit memory interface. Because the GTX 285 core uses a smaller manufacturing process, the chip itself is smaller and can be cooled more effectively, meaning that the GTX 285 can run at higher speeds than the GTX 280. The core clock speed of the GTX 285 runs 46MHz faster, at 648MHz, than the older GTX 280 which runs at 602MHz, giving it the edge in games.
