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Help Buying a new Video Card

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p0tat03

Junior Member
Well, I had the last straw with my Voodoo5 yesterday, when it refused to play Jedi Knight 2, along with C&C Renegade, and just about every title that's come out in the last 3 months. I am now looking into buying a new video card.

Of course, the problem is that I don't have that much money, or I'd have a GF4 already.

Right now I'm looking at the ATI Radeon 8500 (64MB version). Has anyone here used one before? Thoughts? How good is the driver support on ATI's part?

And then, there's the GeForce3 Ti200, which is about the same price - but to my understanding, a bit slower. Again, how good is nVidia's driver support, and compatibility in general?

And should I choose between the two, which one should I pick?
 
Nvidia cards seem to be compatible with everthing, at least in my experience. I'd still go with the radeon 8500 right now though. What I plan on doing is waiting for the ti 4200 to come out, then I'll just overclock that.
 
I went from a Voodoo 5 5500 AGP to a Radeon 8500 64mb Retail. Only 140 at Best Buy like 2 months ago. I had to get it. I love it. I can OC up to about 299/292 before I get any artificats or probs, but thats without cooling or ramsinks. Its a great card! Better then all that Nvidia crap 🙂
 
I've said it once... will say it again. 🙂

The Gainward Ti200 Golden Sample overclocks to beyond Ti500 speeds.

Until the Ti4200 is mainstream, this is the best bang for your buck video card on the market.
 
I have a r8500 and I LOVE IT. ATI has good drivers now, so that issue is moot. Get one, you won't regret it... especially for the price/performance.
 
How good is ATIs driver support versus nVidia's? I recall there was a time where ATI driver support was horrid, where even slightly outdated products have no new drivers to keep them going. Is this still true?
 
Pick up a GF3 Ti200 or a GF4 Ti4200 when it arrives.

How good is ATIs driver support versus nVidia's?

ATi still has some serious problems with regards to fluctuating framerates and severe slowdowns.
 
Are you sure ATI still has problems with fluctuating framerates and severe slowdowns? I havent seen or heard anything about that recently.

To answer the question though, if you are just looking at a card for gaming, then the GFTi200 is your best bet, if you cant wait for the GF4Ti4200. If you are planning on using the card for things other than gaming, then go with the ATI8500.
 
ATI's drivers are just as rock solid as Nvidias in my oppinion.

Also, all the new reviews ive seen of the 8500 put its performance smack in between the Ti500 and Ti200 for a price equal to the Ti200... and you get better 2D, DVD, and (arguably) better AA. True, the Ti4200 is looming, but it will be at least 3 months before its in the area of $150, and by that time, you would have gotten alot of good use out of that Radeon.
 
The AA on the ATI8500 is clearly superior to the GF line as shown here, where the 2XAA Quality mode from ATI provides superior quality over NVidia's Quincuxx AA + ansio. Then looking at the results, the performance is comparable when you look at the actual visual quality.

That doesnt even begin to take into account the 2D and DVD quality.

But for alot of people, they cant really tell the difference in visual quality, so the Geforce line is the way to go. It just up to personal preferences.
 
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