X1600 XT

Looking for more news on a solid card that won't break the budget? The Radeon X1600 XT may be the answer to your problems. Check out the review of card from HiS.

Guru3d Review

7800GTX Go!

I know some of you out there have the cash to afford a good gaming laptop and want gaming power on the go. Is the 7800GTX Go the best choice for you?

Check out Extreme Tech's review

X800GTO roundup

One of my biggest choices for budget cards right now is still the X800GTO. With good clock speeds and *sometimes* unlockable pipes, it's a solid buy. Our friends over at AnandTech has a good roundup if you're looking to buy.

X800GTO roundup

Can your budget card keep up?

Is your sub 200 dollar video card keeping up with today's games? Is it starting to feel a little stale? Tom's Hardware has some advice for you!

Improving your budget card

ATI reveals information about the X1900

ATI recently began releasing some information about the X1900. From the sounds of it it could be out within the month and sports faster clock speeds and more pipes.

Check out the whole article
Another look from Hexus

HardOCP Checks out ATI Radeon X1800 XT Crossfire

HardOCP released an interesting article comparing the x1800 Crossfire against the 7800GTXs in SLi. You might be a little surprised to see some of the results. From the sounds of it, ATI is finally starting to get itself back into the ballgame. Check it out.

Crossfire

ATI Radeon x1000 series

Guru3d has a post taking a look into the ATI Radeon x1000 series. The article goes in depth at explaining what each audience the card is targeted at. It has some nice graphs showing number of pipes and clock speeds.

Check it out

Asus Dual 7800GT

Two cards crammed into one. SLi speed but only is one slot. Is it possible? Asus thinks so and enters the dual graphics card market. But does it really work? It seems that question is still up in the air. Check out cooltechzones review.

Asus nVidia 7800GT Dual Review

Anandtech nVidia 7800GT

For those of you who can't quite afford to drop enough money on the GTX, Anandtech takes a look at the nVidia 7800GT.

nVidia 7800GT

Tom's Hardware VGA Charts

Another great reference to keep bookmarked is Tom's Hardware's VGA charts. They list the most common cards from ATI and nVidia and how they benched.

PCI-E Cards
AGP Cards

Guru3d Does the nVidia 7800GTX 512MB

As part of this site I'll keep you informed on articles and reviews from some of the best sites out there. Guru3d takes an in depth look at the nVidia 7800GTX 512MB


nVidia 7800GTX 512MB

AGP Video Card Roundup

Now I'll look at some AGP video cards. As usual, I'm giving you what I feel is good advice, but I don't take any responsibilty for anything that may go wrong should you follow it.

High End (no price limit) - ATI Radeon X850XT PE ~$500

I wouldn't recommend dropping this much money on a card if your rig is still held back by AGP. Money would be better saved so you could get a newer rig. Still, if you really want to get a high end card, I'd recommend the X850XT PE. AGP cards can be hard to find for sale these days, so I can't really give you a good idea on where too look for them. This 16pipe, 540MHz core, 1180MHz memory card will give you good performance in any new game. If you read the PCI-E roundup, I'll bet you're thinking, "Wow, those PCI-E cards were way better for cheaper." That's 100% true, which is why I suggested not spending this much money on a card that's running off a dead interface.

Mid Range video card ($200-350) - ATI X800XT ~ $300

Running 256MB of RAM, 500 core, 1000 memory, and 16 pipes, this card is a much better buy. It's honestly not much slower than the X850XT and way cheaper.

Budget Video Card ($100-199) - nVidia 6600GT ~ $150

The 6600GT is quite a step down from previous cards that we've seen. Running with only 128MB of RAM, 8 pipes, 500MHz core, 900MHz memory and a bandwidth limiting 128bit memory interface, it's not quite the card we're used to seeing. Still, unless you need 1600x1200 and antialiasing, this card will run any new game with good frame rates. It's also known to be a decent overclocker, cores usually hitting 550 or more, and memory almost hits 1050 by default. If you have a video card in the 9600pro or less area, this card will be a decent upgrade to please your appetite for a year.

PCI Express Video Card Roundup!

Here's a look at what I feel are the best buys at the moment.

*Note: I do my best to research whatever I can. Accidents will happen, problems will occur. I promise you I will do my best to only give you quality components, but to cover my own hide, I take no responsiblity for any problems you may encounter*

High End Videocard (Sky is the limit for price tag): BFG Geforce 7800GTXOC 512MB ~ $750

For those of you out there who have as much money as you need to buy a new videocard there is no reason to not grab the BFG. Is it huge? Yes. Is it super high in price? Yes. Is it the fastest video card on the planet? Yes. If you really want to go broke, put two in SLi mode. What makes it so special from other 7800GTXs? 512MB of RAM. 580MHz core clock. 1750MHz memory clock. No, that isn't a typo. That's nearly as fast as many modern processors. This thing will rock your world and your wallet.
Firing Squad Review

High End $500 limit - eVGA 7800GTX 256MB ~$450

I chose the eVGA as a less expensive alternative. As it is, no game is really pressing enough to push any 7800GTX around and you could save $300 and not really see much of a frame loss. While I can't ignore the amazing job BFG has done, it's irrational to think that even the biggest of enthusiasts will be willing to drop down an extra 300 smackers just so that their favorite games can run at 80FPS instead of 75FPS (especially considering games start to become very smooth around 45FPS and, unless you have a very keen eye, almost anything above 60FPS is usually not noticable.)
Review

Midrange Video Card ($250 - 399) - eVGA 7800GT n518 ~ $379

eVGA makes it back into my list. They delived a nicely overclocked 7800GT at a great price. Its core runs at 445MHz and memory at 1070MHz. 20 pixel pipes. Very nice indeed. It's a darn good looking card and will shred any game you throw at it all for a price that's not out of the ballpark.


Budget Gamer Video Card ($170 - 249) - Asus EN6800GT/2DT/256MB ~ $249 OR for more advanced users (and cheaper) Sapphire 100130 Radeon X800GTO2 256MB ~$215


Very, very impressed with this one. The 16 pipe, 350Mhz core, and 1000MHz memory makes this thing a pretty good performed. I picked out the Asus one for the A-Mazing price. I have read some issues with heat and the stock heatsink, but heck...for the money you saved, go buy an aftermarket cooler.


The Sapphire x800GTO2 is one HECK of a buy, if you're willing to gamble a bit. Its stock speeds of 400MHz Core, 980MHz memory are nothing to snear at. Its biggest drawback is it is only a 12 pipe card. The catch is, many GTOs can be bios flashed to be 16 pipe cards!!! The Sapphire one is noted to have a very good success rate with this, while also being a great overclocker. Many are getting the core to at or over 500 and the memory (Thanks to GDDR3) easily to 1100MHz. I'd suggest it over the 6800GT if you're willing to flash it and gamble that it will succeed.
X800GTO2 Review
Review and Unlocking tutorial

Opening Day

Welcome to Video Card Roundup. I have a lot of PC knowledge under my belt and enjoy checking out all the latest reviews and prices of video cards. Often times people have a hard time deciding what card they want to pick. I'm here to solve that. I'll be posting what I feel is the best video card in your price range. Many picks will remain for months, some may change frequently, such is the life of the PC. Fortunately for you, I'll be the one doing all the research.

While I'm doing all these, feel free to disagree with me. A healthy debate may change my mind, or at the very least, enlighten the buyer with alternate opinions. On the same token, feel free to pop in and agree with me, a little bit of reassurance always makes a buyer feel better.

I've got some pretty busy days coming up in the future, so it'll take me awhile to get the ball rolling, but once I do I'll keep it updated.