Lasereth's Mega Videocard Buyer's Guide!
 

I figured since there were so many threads on TFP about which videocard to buy, I may as well start a videocard buyer's guide. This will be updated when newer videocards come out (if they're worthy of my list!! :thumbsup: ).

An explanation of NVIDIA and ATI's naming schemes is needed. Let's pretend NVIDIA and ATI have three levels of one videocard. A lesser version, a normal version, and a super version. ATI's videocards are named like the following:

ATI Radeon 9600 SE
ATI Radeon 9600
ATI Radeon 9600 Pro
ATI Radeon 9600 XT

Those videocards are better in performance as the list goes down. The SE is the worst and the XT is the best, even though they're all Radeon 9600's.

Here's NVIDIA's naming scheme:

NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 XT/LE/SE
NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600
NVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 Ultra

The XT is the worst of the cards instead of the best concerning NVIDIA! Keep in mind that this is a general naming scheme. It does vary on certain videocards, but typically follows the aformentioned guidelines.

*EDIT* ATI is beginning to go against their standard naming scheme and is introducing completely new names such as XL and GT/GTO. If you have a question about any of these types of cards, just send me a PM.

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.

Now on to the real fun part: the actual videocard buyer's guide! I'll divide each section into prices for every budget gamer. This guide is designed COMPLETELY from www.newegg.com . I consider NewEgg to be the very best in PC reselling, mainly due to their incredible RMA policies and tech support. If you use www.pricewatch.com , make absolute sure to check the company on www.resellerratings.com first.





Every card on this list is worthy of a purchase but the bold videocards are the best deals out there right now for that price point.

• $50-$99
• Radeon HD 4650 ($45)
• Radeon HD 5670 ($65)
• Radeon HD 4850 ($99)
• GeForce GTS 250 ($99)

• $100-$149
• Radeon HD 5750 ($130)
• GeForce GTS 450 ($130)
• Radeon HD 5770 1 GB ($145)

• $150-$199
• GeForce GTX 460 768 MB ($160)
• GeForce GTX 460 1 GB ($185)
• Radeon HD 6850 ($190)

• $200-$299
• Radeon HD 5850 ($220)
• GeForce GTX 470 ($260)
• Radeon HD 6870 ($270)

• $300-$399
• Radeon HD 5870 ($340)

• $400+
• GeForce GTX 480 ($440)
• GeForce GTX 580 ($520, most powerful video card on the market)

Like I said before, this guide will be updated as soon as new videocards worth mentioning come out. If there's any errors in the guide, or if anyone has any questions concerning videocards in general, feel free to ask! This isn't meant to eliminate videocard threads, but it'll at least give people a steer in the right direction.

Thanks Lasereth, since I have learned my one thing for today I can now fold up my tent and go home.

I was wondering when you'd do this. Nice list.

Hear hear, I call for a damn sticky for this business!

I'd suggest adding the Nvidia 6800LE in the $200-$250 range. If you can find it... :)

I dunno how it compares to the 6600, but it beats the 9800 pro hands down (6900 vs 5700 3Dmark03 score). We sell them for 199 Euros a pop, the same as the 9800 pro.

superb job!

i was really starting to get confused with all the seemingly random names of all the video cards.... for me, picking out a video card is almost as stressful as picking out a great bottle of wine.

thanks for sharing the knowledge!

If you can find me gaming benchmarks on a reputable site, I'll definitely add it. I haven't seen any 6800LE's benchmarked, so I can't give an opinion on it. Considering how powerful the 6800 is price-wise, the LE is probably a contender.

-Lasereth

I love you.


Mr Mephisto

Great guide, it certainly helps clear things up. Why do they bother adding all these non-sensical initials to the same number? Instead of having a 9600SE, regular, pro, and XT why not do a clear naming scheme like 9600, 9620, 9640, 9660 or something similar that can be easily understood and differentiated by consumers?

I think they want confused customers. You have to remember that a large portion of computer buyers have absolutely no clue, will see a brand and go yep!

Classic (but old) example - Nvidia put out the Gforce4 mx440, which from my understanding was a gforce2 card with a 4 chip on it. I bet they sold heaps on the name alone , plus it was significantly cheaper than the 4 ti4200 cards they were REAL gforce 4's.

spindles has it right. They do it to let the people who spend $70 on a new videocard think they're getting a blazing fast Third Echelon model. My favorite is the GeForce FX 5200 256 MB that I mentioned in my guide...a true instance of "Wow mom, that card has 256 MB's of memories!!!!! let me have it please!!!"

-Lasereth

hey mods!!! sticky this!!!

Great guide man, I hope its made sticky!

you forgot the AIW Radeons :(

This guide is meant for gamers. Anyone who's getting an AIW knows what they're getting anyway. :) Most gamers wouldn't wanna pay $300 for a 9800 Pro just to have the AIW options.

-Lasereth

a mod should definately sticky this thread.. there's always q's about vid cards

This is a great thread, good work Lasereth! Can't think of anything to add to it, except a possible explination of PCI-X cards.

I got my Geforce 3 Ti500 for $30.. however it was a refurb and I had to mod the fan for it to work.

Nicely done.

You can flash x800 pro radeons to the 16 pipe XT PE if your into that, saves some cash and pushes it ahead of the 6800GT nvidia in the price range

My 6800 GT is overclocked to 420/1150 without a flash. Just coolbits settings. :) That puts it ahead of 6800 Ultra status. Both are still good deals.

-Lasereth

Here is your test then: I don't want to spend a lot and was hoping to spend around $50 to upgrade my GeForce3 Ti200. I found this on NewEgg for $85. Although it is more than I wanted to spend, it seems like a great deal. Any thoughts?

Albatron nVIDIA GeForce FX 5600 Video Card, 128MB DDR, 128-Bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP Model "5600CP" -RETAIL

Thanks a lot for the guide. You are the SOURCE for all that is video cards. Good luck keeping this updated.

I second the sticky motion . . .

Nice job on the list. This is definitely a very useful tool for all of us.

Nice information in this thread. My only suggestion would be that you take each video card name and make it a hyperlink to newegg's picture or page for that particular card.

Also, STICKY!

That card isn't worth $85. Not when ATI offers a Radeon 9600 Pro for under $100 anyway. A GeForce 4 TI4200 will perform as good if not better than the FX 5600. NewEgg doesn't sell GF4 TI's anymore ( :( ) but you can find them at other Internet stores. The FX 5600 wouldn't be a bad choice for a low budget, I'm simply saying that there is better for under $100. If you don't want a Radeon 9600 Pro or GF 4, then the FX 5600 is fine. Don't expect it too perform too much better than your GF3 though!

-Lasereth

Lasereth, nice fricken writeup! Wish I had seen this before I blew 100 bucks on a brand new Savage4 =) :thumbsup:

thanks for the list man

Good stuff anyways man, hopefully it'll be kept updated as things like this tend to go out of date reasonably quickly.

Heh, just ordered me one of these babies: http://www.gainwardusa.com/products/vga_2400dt.htm

Enjoy. :) It's quite disturbing how powerful the 6800's are. My GT OC'ed past Ultra status with no BIOS flashes...just using the driver options. When I paid $450 for mine, I STILL didn't expect it to be this powerful. A year ago people were saying that only supercomputers will run Doom 3 and now everyone is screwed. Well, now there's a videocard that'll run Doom 3 at 45-60 FPS at the highest settings at 16x antialiasing with a simple $70 processor.

-Lasereth

Ok then - I took your advice and my cheap ass to TigerDirect and got a PNY GeForce4 Ti 4200 / 128MB / AGP 8X / VGA / DVI / TV Out Video card. It was $59.99 with no tax and a $20.00 rebate and total on shipping was $13.76 which also covered the 512mb stick and the two new case fans I bought. I don't really game that hard anyway, but if I did, I would get something like your current card. Since I don't, I just wanted an upgrade to what I had and $59.99 seemed near free compared to kicking down the full $400 for something decent.

Thanks for the expert advice.

Oh yeah - and as prices are changing all the time, you should expand your guide a bit more with some of the cards that are too expensive right now to be worth it. As those cards prices fall, maybe they will outweigh others that have not dropped as much. Just a thought.

Apart from the awesomeness of the GF6800 series, you have the Gainward 6800 GT thats as fast, and in some cases even faster than the Ultra.

I like having a warranty over my overclocked video card.

The 6600 is looking damn good, add it to your price guide since its cheap and the most powerful by far in its price class.

I'm definitely gonna keep up with price-to-performance ratios. If I find a card that all of a sudden has a huge decrease in price and is a kick ass card, I'll add it (first example is the Radeon 9800 Pro). This is certainly a perpetual guide...it'll be updated!

-Lasereth

I have the 6600 GT on my list as a VERY good contender (beats out the 9800 Pro easily...at the same price!!). Are you talking about the regular 6600? I can't find prices for the GeForce 6600. It'd definitely be on the list if I could find a damn price! I imagine it'll be around $150.

-Lasereth

*EDIT LIST*

Added the ATI Radeon X700 series into the list. At $150 and $200, they just beat out the Radeon 9600 Pro and Radeon 9800 Pro as being the best mid-range cards on the market. NVIDIA's competition will be added as soon as I can find some damned prices!

-Lasereth

So remeber when I ordered that Ti4200 128MB card the other day. Just got am email from Tiger Direct. I was wondering what I should do.

Ok so, Option 2 is just silly.

Option 4 kinda bugs me b/c it requires me to go to the UPS Store and have this thing shipped back so I can get my money back. So they got to hold my money for XX amount of time and I have to put forth effort since they screwed up? Doesn't feel right.

Option 3 may appeal to me, since the card I got (will get next week acording to UPS) may be worth it for $39.95 rather than $59.95. I dunno.

Option 1 though is the weird part. It leaves them open to the "you get f*cked at the drivethrough" part. I leave it up to them to define comparable and it will be over.

I called them to find out the details of Option 1 and of course I need to catch them during east coast business hours.

So what should I do here? If they want to give me a BETTER card (compareable) that is fine. Can I MAKE them do this? I have a great relationship with my credit card company since I use it for work and charge $3000+ a month on travel expenses (that are reimbursed by the company I work for). I bet they can play hardball and did it once before to a company that was non-responsive on an order.

You're not in as big of a predicament as you think you are! Most of the tests I've seen have actually shown the 64 MB TI4200 pull ahead of the 128 MB version in some games!! The 64 MB version has a higher memory speed than the 128 MB version resulting in better performance. Overall, they're basically the same card. I'd pick option 2 and get a free flash drive (those things are really, really useful...I use mine all the time).

-Lasereth

Added information regarding the GeForce 6200, 6600, 6600 GT, and the Radeon X700. All PCI-E, and all due out in AGP form "soon" according to my sources.

-Lasereth

this isnt a sticky yet? very sticky worthy! thanks for taking the time lasereth :thumbsup:

I'm getting a computer built for me soon, Dell, and they only offer 3 cards. I saw the two 256 cards on the list, but they were both appearing to be good cards. I'm pretty confused on witch one to pick.

:: 128MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon™ X800 SE
:: 256MB PCI Express™ x16 Nvidia® GeForce 6800 GTO Graphics Card
:: 256MB PCI Express™ x16 (DVI/VGA/TV-out) ATI Radeon™ X800 XT

Thanks,

SM Deluxe