At least some partners of graphics chip maker ATI Technologies are reportedly considering to increase the speeds of ATI RADEON X1800 XT-series graphics cards in order to make the products more appealing to customers in the light of the NVIDIA GeForce 7800 GTX 512 release.

Some manufacturers of ATI RADEON-based graphics cards are reviewing possibilities to increase the RADEON X1800 XT-series clock-speeds to 650MHz – 675MHz for the visual processing unit (VPU) and up to 1550MHz or higher for the memory. While no makers among those questioned by X-bit labs confirmed that they had made the decision, at least one confirmed the fact of considerations.

Sources close to ATI Technologies noted that the company is unlikely to forbid its partners to boost performance of ATI-based products, however, they said there are special product guidelines that contain maximum speeds at which ATI still provides warranties. If those frequencies are not left behind, manufacturers will still have the warranty on products supplied by the Markham, Ontario-based graphics chip designer.

RADEON X1800 XT is currently the highest-end product by ATI Technologies. The graphics processing unit features 16 pixel processors, 8 vertex processor, a brand-new architecture that supports Shader Model 3.0, high dynamic range (HDR) lighting and other innovations. Graphics cards based on the RADEON X1800 XT clock the chip at 625MHz and the memory on 1500MHz.

ATI Technologies’ RADEON X1800 XT 512MB graphics card earlier this year beat nearly all performance records in currently shipping games leaving behind NVIDIA’s flagship GeForce 7800 GTX product. However, NVIDIA Corp. recently managed to update its lineup with the GeForce 7800 GTX 512 that featured very high clock-speeds and increased amount of memory, which helped the company to dethrone ATI’s offering. Currently the GeForce 7800 GTX 512 is the fastest performing gaming solution on the planet.

ATI did not comment on the news-story.