All those who know about these things knew it could not last for long. AMD is a scrappy company that pulled itself up from being a second source for Intel chips to a powerhouse that had Intel worried for more than a few quarters. It was only the inertia of the market that has kept Intel in such a commanding lead in market penetration.

Nearly everyone was discounting the latest chip from the ATi division of AMD, the 4000 series. Oh, they knew it would be a value leader, but they had no idea how far up the pricing ladder that value would climb. They also had no idea that the 4000, after some initial testing, would pull a couple of rungs from the nVidia ladder.

Last week, Tom’s Hardware Guide cautioned expectant buyers of the new GT200 series of nVidia offerings to hold back for a week or so, as the price cuts are coming. The AMD/ATi product has proven so formidable that the resellers who were hot to get hands on the first GT200s are now requesting pricing modifications, downward, that is. Also, some that went in a stocked heavily are looking for some sort of price protection on their early purchases.

The cuts will be modest on the GT260 series, but substantial on the GT280 series cards.  This is great news for the customers of nVidia, but it also signals the return of ATi/AMD into real competition. Now, there are probably more than a few that were going to line up for the GT280, and are now awaiting first testing of the twin processor offering from AMD.

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