They won the war of perception... When did 260+$ for a minimal card became cheap?

[taltamir]

It seems that by there being no mid range parts at all for the longest time and just the general pricing and technology and what not a shift has occured in peoples perception... They are not just rushing to buy the GT... they are gleefully getting price gouged for it by almost 100$ above what nVidia says it should cost... (200$ for the 512MB part...)

So this brings up an interesting point about how perception is reality.. I KNOW it is alot of money for basicallye enabling me to get DX10 (i could pay less, but then I couldn't enable any DX10 features due to the performance hit). Yet I still FEEL like it is an awesome great deal... something I would not have considered before...

I have been upgrading every less then a year, so I avoid expensive cards...
2 cards ago: 80$
1 cards ago: 150$
current card: 250$ (for a very HIGH end part... almost best performance for series, over year ago)
... and now a GT at 250+ feels like an awesome deal for a card where I could play on a decent size monitor with DX10 level stuff (no AA and the like) at reasonable (but not the ideal 60) frames per second...

Anyone else feel like their expectations went down alot and they now perceive the GT as an awesome price while before they would have thought it expensive?

The new midrange is now at 300$ and the high is at 700$

 

[AzN]

Definitely. I'm not buying these until they are sub $200. People are crazy paying almost $300 for a midrange card.

 

[lil buttercup]

Originally posted by: Azn
Definitely. I'm not buying these until they are sub $200. People are crazy paying almost $300 for a midrange card.

you shoulda seen 4+ years ago when a 5600ultra cost $260


its always been this way.



-swtethan on fiance's account

 

[nwrigley]

I agree with the original post. $250 is not a midrange price as far as I'm concerned, I've always thought that $150 is midrange. To me anything $250 - $300 is high-end and anything higher is for people with money to burn. When I look back at the previous several generations, there was always a part in the $150 range that was considered midrange.

Having written all of this I, like you, will consider buying one of these when the prices hit $200 or less. Perception or not, that is still good price/performance in the current videocard landscape, just not as good of a deal as what we have gotten in the past.

 

[ConstipatedVigilante]

I would never buy a video card for $300, because it's the most quickly advancing part in the computer. I've had my 3700+ for 2 years now and I'll probably keep it until upgrading to a dual core (or maybe I'll upgrade to an X2). But the thing is, my processor works great for most things. It's just my 6800 that can't keep up. I'll wait until the GT is $200 or less too.

 

[lil buttercup]

Originally posted by: nwrigley
I agree with the original post. $250 is not a midrange price as far as I'm concerned, I've always thought that $150 is midrange. To me anything $250 - $300 is high-end and anything higher is for people with money to burn. When I look back at the previous several generations, there was always a part in the $150 range that was considered midrange.

Having written all of this I, like you, will consider buying one of these when the prices hit $200 or less. Perception or not, that is still good price/performance in the current videocard landscape, just not as good of a deal as what we have gotten in the past.

please tell me what videocards you have purchased.


-swtethan

 

[nonameo]

Gee, I remember when the voodoo2 was top of the line. It was 200$ new. Yes, I did buy one.

edit: inflation, or just less importance placed on the video card?

 

[DarthV]

I guess it comes down to what display you are using. If you have a 17" CRT and play all games at 1024x768, then yes the 8800GT would be overkill and a cheaper solution would be your best bet. Once you hit 1280x1024 or 1680x1050 (20-22" LCD widescreen), then you'd probably want to pair up that $200-$250 display with an equal cost video card to get the most out of your viewing experience.

Before the 8800GT, the modern 'midrange' performance card was the $350 GTS. Dropping $100 and getting better performance seems like a good deal for those that are driving higher resolution displays.

And there's nothing to stop you from buying a 8600 and dropping the details, if that's your definition of midrange.

 

[AzN]

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn
Definitely. I'm not buying these until they are sub $200. People are crazy paying almost $300 for a midrange card.

you shoulda seen 4+ years ago when a 5600ultra cost $260


its always been this way.



-swtethan on fiance's account

Didn't buy a 5600ultra. Those were crap. I had a 9700pro. I think I paid less than $150 at the time. By that time though 9800pro were months into production.

There are deals always to be had.

Last year was 1950pro/7900gs. Year before it was 850xt or 7600gt. These were sub-$150 cards. They perform well and did exactly what the top end tier video cards did at mid-resolutions.

Now I look at these 8800gt and people paying $300 for them for some OC versions of the card. In 2 weeks they will depreciate by $50 when AMD has their part out. Most likely depreciate more by Christmas.

 

[lil buttercup]

Its not midrange anyway, its still highend.

 

[AzN]

Originally posted by: lil buttercup
Its not midrange anyway, its still highend.

For how long? 1 month when Nvidia has their updated 8800gts or 8800gtx.

 

[lil buttercup]

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup
Its not midrange anyway, its still highend.

For how long? 1 month when Nvidia has their updated 8800gts or 8800gtx.

okay? so itll drop to #3 in the ranks, thats not midrange.

 

[lil buttercup]

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn
Definitely. I'm not buying these until they are sub $200. People are crazy paying almost $300 for a midrange card.

you shoulda seen 4+ years ago when a 5600ultra cost $260


its always been this way.



-swtethan on fiance's account

Didn't buy a 5600ultra. Those were crap. I had a 9700pro. I think I paid less than $150 at the time. By that time though 9800pro were months into production.

There are deals always to be had.

Last year was 1950pro/7900gs. Year before it was 850xt or 7600gt. These were sub-$150 cards. They perform well and did exactly what the top end tier video cards did at mid-resolutions.

Now I look at these 8800gt and people paying $300 for them for some OC versions of the card. In 2 weeks they will depreciate by $50 when AMD has their part out. Most likely depreciate more by Christmas.

ROFL 850XT a sub $150 card? I PAID $300 for a x800xl, when it came out, thank you. Also, 7900GS has a msrp of $249 (pny) and 1950pro was $199. So what makes paying $250 for a 8800GT that is #2 without overclocking so bad?

 

[AzN]

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn
Definitely. I'm not buying these until they are sub $200. People are crazy paying almost $300 for a midrange card.

you shoulda seen 4+ years ago when a 5600ultra cost $260


its always been this way.



-swtethan on fiance's account

Didn't buy a 5600ultra. Those were crap. I had a 9700pro. I think I paid less than $150 at the time. By that time though 9800pro were months into production.

There are deals always to be had.

Last year was 1950pro/7900gs. Year before it was 850xt or 7600gt. These were sub-$150 cards. They perform well and did exactly what the top end tier video cards did at mid-resolutions.

Now I look at these 8800gt and people paying $300 for them for some OC versions of the card. In 2 weeks they will depreciate by $50 when AMD has their part out. Most likely depreciate more by Christmas.

ROFL 850XT a sub $150 card? I PAID $300 for a x800xl, when it cam eout, thank you.

That's your fault. You don't buy it when they are first released. You buy them when 7800gt/gtx is out.

 

[AzN]

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup
Its not midrange anyway, its still highend.

For how long? 1 month when Nvidia has their updated 8800gts or 8800gtx.

okay? so itll drop to #3 in the ranks, thats not midrange.

It will be. You just wait couple of months and see how much these cards will be. $150 you just flushed into the toilet because you can't wait 3 months.

 

[lil buttercup]

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup
Its not midrange anyway, its still highend.

For how long? 1 month when Nvidia has their updated 8800gts or 8800gtx.

okay? so itll drop to #3 in the ranks, thats not midrange.

It will be. You just wait couple of months and see how much these cards will be. $150 you just flushed into the toilet because you can't wait 3 months.

... I had my $400 GTS640 for 8 months and sold it for $300 for this card, a free performance upgrade.

 

[AzN]

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup
Its not midrange anyway, its still highend.

For how long? 1 month when Nvidia has their updated 8800gts or 8800gtx.

okay? so itll drop to #3 in the ranks, thats not midrange.

It will be. You just wait couple of months and see how much these cards will be. $150 you just flushed into the toilet because you can't wait 3 months.

... I had my $400 GTS640 for 8 months and sold it for $300 for this card, a free performance upgrade.

There was no competition at the time. No cards Nvidia or AMD released. I was still playing all my games @ max detail on every game with a 1950pro. By the time game catches up so do the price drops. Buying for the future is like flushing money down the toilet.

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup

Originally posted by: Azn

Originally posted by: lil buttercup
Its not midrange anyway, its still highend.

For how long? 1 month when Nvidia has their updated 8800gts or 8800gtx.

okay? so itll drop to #3 in the ranks, thats not midrange.

It will be. You just wait couple of months and see how much these cards will be. $150 you just flushed into the toilet because you can't wait 3 months.

I tend to agree...

The 256MB GT and the new AMD card are supposed to compete at the 150$ range with each other... and give almost the same performance...

Its really that the 700$ parts are the same parts that cost 700$ LAST year... games have advanced and cards didn't. So they are uoverpriced and underpowered...

But perception has shifted...

My current card is an evga 7900GS overclocked... scored on testing a few percent below the top of the line 7900 part (thanks to the insane overclock it COMES WTIH)... I did have to upgrade my PSU though and it is loud... It cost me under 250$ thanks to it being on sale.

The part before it was a radeon 9800Pro... it was such a good deal during the entire X line of AMD parts... it performed great on anything, and supported DX9... Only the top X parts topped it...

The part before it... I don't even remember anymore.


And yea I DO remember when it was nvidia vs 3dfx and the top of line card cost 200$. Thats part of my point... back then cheap was 40$, midrange was 90$. Top of the line was 200$...

The same thing happened with CPUs... the top of the line CPUs now cost 1000$... whats the point, they will be under 200$ in less then a year.
And it has nothing to do with inflation!

 

[Munky]

I don't care if the 8800gt is classified as midrange or performance or enthusiast, based on how it performs, at $250 it's almost a steal. If it wasn't for the upcoming cards and my 1920x1200 monitor and Crysis, I would have already picked 1 or 2 of these up by now.

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: munky
I don't care if the 8800gt is classified as midrange or performance or enthusiast, based on how it performs, at $250 it's almost a steal. If it wasn't for the upcoming cards and my 1920x1200 monitor and Crysis, I would have already picked 1 or 2 of these up by now.

thats the whole point... I "feel" that way too.. but when I logically think it out it doesn't make sense...

 

[DarthV]

With this cycle, taltamir, the top of the line cards HAVEN'T depreciated one bit. Which is downright amazing, if you ask me. It depends on how much spare money and your willingness to pay top dollar. Budget oriented gamers can get by with cheaper cards because they aren't overly concerned with eye candy or don't have large LCD panels to drive. I know a lot of people who game with 9600pro type cards still. Back when they bought them, they were over $200CAD. One friend is upgrading and going with a 8800GT. Almost the same price for the video card, but a hell of a lot more performance. To game at 1024x768 was pretty much the limit on the 9600pro on games of that era. Might not have been cheap, but that's what you had to pay to play games with a lot of eye candy. For around the same price point, he'll be able to play most games on his newer 1680x1050 LCD with everything turned up.

You get used to it. Or you buy last year's tech and turn down the details on new games. That's your own choice and I don't think anyone will argue with you on which path you take.

 

[lil buttercup]

Originally posted by: taltamir

Originally posted by: munky
I don't care if the 8800gt is classified as midrange or performance or enthusiast, based on how it performs, at $250 it's almost a steal. If it wasn't for the upcoming cards and my 1920x1200 monitor and Crysis, I would have already picked 1 or 2 of these up by now.

thats the whole point... I "feel" that way too.. but when I logically think it out it doesn't make sense...

because look at the games back when video cards were $X and now, the complexity of them has gone up x amount, you need more crap crammed onto the board.

 

[MichaelD]

Originally posted by: munky
I don't care if the 8800gt is classified as midrange or performance or enthusiast, based on how it performs, at $250 it's almost a steal. If it wasn't for the upcoming cards and my 1920x1200 monitor and Crysis, I would have already picked 1 or 2 of these up by now.

I was going to say this, but once again, Munky said it before me.

While the OP is most definitely entitled to his opinion, fact of the matter is as Munky stated.

Now, my own two cents.

$600 for an 8800GTX Ultra is just stupid (unless you've got fat pockets and don't care).
$500 for an 8800GTX is pretty stupid too.
$300 for 90% of the performance of the above while using 1/3rd less wattage? That's a damn smart deal in my book. :thumbsup:

The "midrange" in the 8800GT being a "midrange part" is in the PERFORMANCE, not the price. Most assuredly, NVidia's new high-end card will make the 8800GTX Ultra look like onboard video. From 1994.

The 8800GT slots in nicely b/t the 8600-series cards (crushes them completely, actually) and the 8800GTX and soon to be released new Big Daddy Card.

You have to look at what you're getting for your $270 (what I paid for my EVGA 8800GT SC): 90-95% of the performance of the current $500+ card.

If my MB was SLI capable, I'd have bought two.

 

[AzN]

Originally posted by: MichaelD

Originally posted by: munky
I don't care if the 8800gt is classified as midrange or performance or enthusiast, based on how it performs, at $250 it's almost a steal. If it wasn't for the upcoming cards and my 1920x1200 monitor and Crysis, I would have already picked 1 or 2 of these up by now.

I was going to say this, but once again, Munky said it before me.

While the OP is most definitely entitled to his opinion, fact of the matter is as Munky stated.

Now, my own two cents.

$600 for an 8800GTX Ultra is just stupid (unless you've got fat pockets and don't care).
$500 for an 8800GTX is pretty stupid too.
$300 for 90% of the performance of the above while using 1/3rd less wattage? That's a damn smart deal in my book. :thumbsup:

The "midrange" in the 8800GT being a "midrange part" is in the PERFORMANCE, not the price. Most assuredly, NVidia's new high-end card will make the 8800GTX Ultra look like onboard video. From 1994.

The 8800GT slots in nicely b/t the 8600-series cards (crushes them completely, actually) and the 8800GTX and soon to be released new Big Daddy Card.

You have to look at what you're getting for your $270 (what I paid for my EVGA 8800GT SC): 90-95% of the performance of the current $500+ card.

If my MB was SLI capable, I'd have bought two.

8800gt is definitely a good buy but not right now especially with inflated prices and still no competition from AMD. That will most likely by next card anyways. Personally I can wait. In couple of months these will drop to sub $200 anyways. That's when I'll make my move.

 

[yacoub]

taltamir is essentially correct, but he's not going to get a good response on a forum frequented by the extremists who throw away money constantly buying and selling the latest $500 GPUs.