260 and step-up or 285?

[nyfirefly11]

So, I definitely want the EVGA 285 for my new i7 rig. The only question is, do I get a 260 now and step up if prices go down in the next 90 days? Or do you think the price difference won't be significant, and I should just get the 285 now?

Thx!

 

[garritynet]

When you step up you pay the difference between what you paid for your card and the MSRP of the card you want. While the street price of the 285 may drop the MSRP will not. Basically in the end you will pay MSRP for the 285 regardless. The best way to save money is to buy the 285 at Newegg. Thats the way it is at BFG and I am pretty sure its the same at EVGA.

Example: If I purchased a 9800GTX at 149.99 from Newegg and I wanted to step up to a GTX 260 I would have to pay the MSRP of the 260 which is 319.99. I send in my 9800GTX and then paid the difference in price which is $170. Total paid is still 319.99. Price of the same 260 at Newegg is $239.99 Not a good deal.

The only time it really makes sense to trade up is when the street price and the MSRP are the same like getting the 295 when it first comes out. Which is what I did.

 

[zagood]

The only time you should use the stepup program is when you pay full retail for the card you're going to stepup from. There are too many sales on the 260 to make that worth it.

Personal opinion. If you can afford the 285 get it now, if you can't, get the 260 then sell it off when you can afford a more expensive card.

edit: yeah, listen to that guy. friggin one second...

-z

 

[nyfirefly11]

got it...thx..will just get the 285!

 

[exar333]

Keep in mind that you get the step-up credit for the MSRP, and this doesn't count a MIR. If the MIR is more than the difference between the MSRP of the new card and the "street" price you can come away ahead. Also, keep in mind that a price drop could happen within the 90 days too. It's all in the timing...I have saved money with every step-up versus buying the more expensive card for the last two step-ups...

 

[geokilla]

What are you using for rig for? What's your system specs? What's your gaming resolution?

If you game at 1680X1050 and thereabouts, I advise you not to step up. If you game at a higher resolution, I still advise you not to step up. Why? ExarKun333 hit it right on the spot. You'll be paying for the MSRP instead of the market price at Newegg, NCIX, etc.

 

[nyfirefly11]

it will be i7 920 on an evga x58 w/ 6GB ddr3 1600 and 1920x1200. The game I primarily play is FSX, though I'm open to others.

 

[chizow]

As others stated, step-up only makes sense if you buy near retail MSRP as step-up prices rarely change. I'd say never but EVGA did change their MSRP prices in accordance with the initial June price drops on the GTX series.

On an X58 you have more interesting choices as the board supports both SLI and CF. A single GTX 285 on that rig would be perfect for 1920 although 2xGTX 260 or 2x4870 1GB for similar money would also be a compelling option. At worst you'd get similar performance to the GTX 285, but maybe 1.5-1.75x the performance in more intensive games that are GPU limited.