Top three picks under $100

[infoiltrator]

We ALL know prices fluctuate, I'd prefer to spend $80 plus or minus $20. The requirement is superior to on board video for desktop (web surf, movies, business) and light gaming.
I've got a 4670 now, (so I'm not current, lol, maybe me too), near as I can tell 5670 or 5770 are best choices and overkill. Was looking at some Galaxy cards, and wondering.
Will choose cards and then price shop lowest price.
I prefer motherboards without on board video.
Reasons for choice would help. Low noise strongly prefered.

Upgrade for a friend, Earthwatts EA500D and Gigabyte 870 board, he has a 4350 now. Says not enough. Will let him make final choice but need reasons for choices
Athlon II X3 435 cpu, 4 GB G'Skill ram
Thanks and reguards

 

[Rhezuss]

What resolution is he light gaming at? 1680x1050? 1920x1080? 1920x1200?

If he keeps his hardware for a long time and would like something that can give him a little more performance, i'd recommend the HD 5670/5770 or a GT430/440, which ever he can afford.

HD 5670: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150504

HD 5770: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...2E16814131330R

GT 430: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130580

GT 440: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127571

With those he would see noticeable overall improvements.

 

[Vette73]

The 5770 is proabable the best bet right now.
The GTS450 would be the best on the nvidia side but still behind the 5770.

Skip the Gt430/440 cards and make sure what ever you get has DDR5. Some mid-lowwer cards cheap out with DDR3 and really hold it back.

 

[Rhezuss]

The 5770 is proabable the best bet right now.
The GTS450 would be the best on the nvidia side but still behind the 5770.

Skip the Gt430/440 cards and make sure what ever you get has DDR5. Some mid-lowwer cards cheap out with DDR3 and really hold it back.

Great advice. Sorry I threw some links (i'm at work) and didn't checked the specs too much.

Like Marlin said, 5770 or GTS 450 would be best for the long run...and GDDR5!

Thanks Marlin for pointing that out.

 

[Ghiedo27]

You're looking at the right cards, imo. For under $100 it's hard to beat a 5670. If your friend isn't too firm on the price an hd 5750 is a solid step up for ~ $110 (with some models under $100 after mail in rebate). 5670s go for ~$75, so it's a 45% increase in cost for over a 50% increase in performance. same value, you just need to pick your price point.

On the nvidia side there are some open box or 3rd tier vendors that have gtx 460s down in the $115 range. That card is a huge step up, but imo you're gambling a bit on the quality of the part. If he can stretch the budget to $140 (after shipping) then an EVGA model would be very easy to recommend.

But honestly, if the light gaming is done at 1680x1050 or lower, then your best bet might be to save some bucks and go for the $75 5670. If your friend wants to play at a 1080p + resolution or wants to be able to keep the card for 4+ years, then going up a bit in price makes better sense for performance and value imo.

 

[RussianSensation]

But honestly, if the light gaming is done at 1680x1050 or lower, then your best bet might be to save some bucks and go for the $75 5670. If your friend wants to play at a 1080p + resolution or wants to be able to keep the card for 4+ years, then going up a bit in price makes better sense for performance and value imo.

$77 4850 is > 5670.

Unless you can find an HD5770 for $85-90, I'd go all the way up to a GTX460 768mb.

 

[darkewaffle]

5770 is great a 1680x1050. Most of what's mentioned is closer to $100 than not, but for something below $50 but still capable I like the GTS 240, just don't overpay for it and get the GDDR5 version. Only worth it with a good rebate, but still worth keeping an eye on.

And that $80 5770 is a good deal, but it went out of stock very quickly.

 

[Ghiedo27]

The new link is pretty good deal if the $30 mir goes through, if it doesn't you're kinda stuck with $130 spent that could have gone towards a 460.

 

[RussianSensation]

That 5770 is sold out :|

Ya, I just noticed. Removed it from my post.

HD4850 > HD4770 > HD5670

From this review, the 5670 is definitely not the card you want < $100. The $100 HD5770 Arkadrel linked is a good pick for less than $100.

 

[Arkadrel]

5770 is around twice as fast as a Nvidia GT 440, in most games.
(So you wouldnt buy a 440 instead of a 5770 with a 100$ budget)

The question really is... can you find a 450 or a 5770 for under 100$?
The 5770 is abit faster than the 450, as far as I know, so its the better option.


This is the best card (performance wise) you can find for 99$ on newegg:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-338-_-Product

Also 5770 is one of those cards that overclocks like mad.. You can hit 1400mhz usually on the ram, putting it up around 90 GB/s memory bandwidth, and usually hit like 940mhz or so on the core.

A 5770 OCed to ~940mhz core, 1400mhz memory, is a very decent amount of performance for a sub 100$ card.

 

[cusideabelincoln]

5670 would be a decent upgrade from your 4670, but you should really look at something faster to get a more substantial upgrade. IMO the minimum you should be looking at is around the 5770 (5750 and GTS 450 would be acceptable upgrades).

How about you sell or give your 4670 to your friend? He could certainly get something better if he spends more, but the 4670 might be enough for him since he's only running a 4350. Maybe you can let him use your 4670 and see how he likes it. Then work out a deal to lower the cost for your upgrade if you do sell your card to him.

 

[Powermoloch]

5770 is your best option right now.

 

[infoiltrator]

Thanks all, I want to see him with a 5770, he keeps talking new monitor (you know!). Will use this page to hopefully lead him on..
I think he's just price choking again.
Thanks.

 

[dust]

Provided there would be another deal soon(90ish$) for the 460 768mb, that would spank all the other options mentioned before. Don't know about its current pricing over there, but it might be better to just get that regardless.