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Old 04-10-2008, 02:57 PM   #256 (permalink)
Cynthetiq
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the GT, GTS, GTX all don't mean much in the grandest scheme of things.

The most important things to keep in mind with the video cards are the same things that Las posted in the first post....

Quote:
Post #1
Let's start with a few basics about the actual videocard. First off, the memory on a videocard does not give a clue as to how powerful the videocard is! This is a common misconception that many videocard buyers have. A 256 MB NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 is not a good videocard. A simple 64 MB NVIDIA GeForce 4 TI4200 will run circles around it even though it only has 64 MB of RAM on it.

What really matters is the amount of pixel pipelines on the videocard (4, 8, 12, 16, etc.), the memory interface (128-bit, 256-bit, etc.) as well as the core clock speed and memory clock speed (MHz). This information is rarely given on videocard boxes...if it is, it's vague and misleading. So as of now, we all know to forget how much RAM the videocard has and concentrate on the pipelines, memory interface, and speed of the card.

For example: let's take a look at the high and mighty GeForce FX 5200 256 MB vs the little GeForce 4 TI4200 64 MB. The TI4200's speed is 250 MHz/500 MHz (core and memory speeds). It has 4x2 pixel pipelines. The FX 5200 has 4x1 pipelines, even though it's newer! The speed of the FX 5200 is 250/400 MHz...slower than the TI4200.

This is why a 64 MB videocard is more powerful than a 256 MB videocard.
I'm looking at the 8800GT as a replacement for my 7900GT some time this year, the price is hovering around 200-250 depending on if Britney Spears is wearing panties, hit some SUV, or doesn't have her kids.
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