Cheap x700 NOW or wait for next gen R515

[JohnBee]

Hi,

Seems that the x600 and x700 are being discontinued - at least the guy at my local computer store was told that when he tried to place an order for me so I couldnt get one there...

So (at another place) I can get a cheap Ati x700 128MB (pretty decent card) for around $80 USD (exactly 100Cdn).
The card was released last Sept 2004
Now discontinued so its left over stock
But I can get it for kind of cheap. Here in Canada a crappy x300 is often around $80 USD

OR
Wait and see about the new next gen RV515 (or R530 or a similar newer card):

R515 specs:
450MHz Core Clock
800MHz Memory Clock
256MB Maximum Memory Support
128-bit Memory
4 Pipelines
Maximum 16x16MB 2.5ns GDDR2

ATI Mid and Low Performance Roadmap
RV530 Crossfire Single Slot Late October
RV515 "XL" Single Slot Late September

So do I wait or get the x700 right now ? To confess its not even for gaming I just need tv-out video out but who cares about a few bucks more if it speeds things up.

Will the new r515 (specs above) be close in performance and price to the x700 128mb ?

Thanks.

PS Heres the x700 specs:
GPU Radeon X700
Core clock 400MHz
PixelPipelines 8
Memory Clock 700MHz
Memory Size 128MB
Memory Interface 128-bit
Memory Type DDR

 

[M0RPH]

If that's really the card you want then you can get it here for $75. Might be a couple months (or more) before ATI's new cards are available.

 

[JohnBee]

Thanks for the link I appreciate it - I get free shipping at TigerDirect too.

Are the new ATI cards going to be THAT much better ?

Like faster, cheaper, better video quality, better cooling, do you think ?

Or is this x700 going to be pretty much the same as the new low end ATI the r515 ?

I just dont want to get obsolete stuff - you know what its like...

 

[M0RPH]

Nobody here really knows how much better the new cards will be. Of course there will be new features. On the 3D gaming side, you can expect the addition of SM3 and HDR, both important new features. On the non-3D side, h.264 hardware decoding (not sure if it will make it to the low end cards but I'm guessing it will). As for pricing, who knows, but with new products it usually takes a while for prices to drop to bargain levels, like that X700 card.

So, if you need the new vdeo card now, then buy it. If you can wait 1-3 months, then wait and see.

One more thing, that X700 card is a PCI-express. You didn't mention what kind of card you needed, but make sure that's the right one.

 

[Corporate Thug]

find a 6600 GT at FS/FT

 

[M0RPH]

Everyone loves to recommend the 6600GT, even when it's completely inappropriate. 6600GT's in the FS/FT forum are going for $130+. This guy said he was looking for a $80 card.

 

[Cheesetogo]

I'd go with the x700.

 

[coomar]

i have the x700 (asus version) it does better than i expected in gaming, mine is the slower version as well, the extra bandwith in the 350 memory version really helps (judging from my overclocking to 305)