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Asus EN8800 GTS T.O.P 512MB

The Asus EN8800 GTS 512 box sticks out: its big, the color of a green apple, and features a babe with a bow. If you are looking for this video card in stores, be aware that the slightly more expensive T.O.P overclocked version, and the non-T.O.P version, have the same box -- the only thing that differentiates the two are the serial code and a small T.O.P sticker in the lower-center.

Here's the front of the box:

And the back, with information in 11 different languages:

As for the bundle, it is fairly standard. You get a molex-to-PCIe power adaptor, a S-video cable, and a DVI to VGA adaptor. The driver comes on a CD (of course) with the following additional programs: Splendid (a video player), Video Security Online (to visually monitor your home remotely), GamesOSD (overclocking, benchmarking, and video capturing program, and SmartDoctor (another GPU overclocking program.) Also with the Asus EN8800 GTS, comes a leather DVD case.

While there is nothing wrong with this bundle at all, an extra game would be nice. Less expensive Asus cards, such as the EN8800 GT and HD 3870, come bundled with the excellent RTS Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts, so I was half expecting it to be included here -- but no dice.    

XFX GeForce 8800 GTS 512 Alpha Dog Edition

The XFX box comes in a smaller black and green box, featuring the giant, green-eyed Alpha Dog himself on the front:

Serving the North American market, only English is on the back of the box. A chart going over the key features of the 7xxxx and 8xxxx series of XFX cards is featured:

The XFX bundle is a bit more interesting. Besides the standard cables (a molex-to-PCIe power adaptor, a S-video cable, and a DVI to VGA adaptor), driver CDs, and documentation booklets, the Alpha Dog comes with the game Lost Planet. Besides being a lot of fun, Lost Planet is also a good, graphically-demanding game that is a great way to burn in the stream processors of your new video card. Also in the XFX bundle comes a door placard, (the kind that's often found around a hotel door knob), that lets people know a gamer is doing his thing, and is not to be disturbed.    

Also standard with any XFX graphics card is the "Double Lifetime" warranty. This extensive warranty covers not only to the original owner of the XFX product, but also -- if the serial number is registered on XFX's website -- any second owner that might acquire the Alpha Dog down the road.