whats the best video card under $150?

[tokamak]

i'm looking to buy. i play some games, but nothing too fancy, and not a whole lot. 2d quality is important to me. i want something that will last.

 

[dighn]

add $4 to your budget and you can get the Gainward Ti-4200 64MB with 3.5 ns DDR SDRAM

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?submit=VGA

 

[rondeemc]

I would recommend the $99 8500LE from newegg with 3.3ns memory. There are a couple of threads on this unit here and also several detailed comments at newegg. Apparently you can easily overclock to retail speeds. I think you would be very happy with the 2D quality and it saves you $50

User's comment: As expected, the 2D quality is far superior to any NVIDIA based card I have seen, which is very important to me

ATI RADEON 8500LE 64MB DDR CRT/DVI/TV ,Dual Monitor support DVIS+CRT only, BULKPowered by the revolutionary RADEON? 8500 world?s fastest and most advanced graphics processing unit (GPU)
Specifications:
Memory 64MB of double data rate memory
Resolutions: 640-480 to 2048x1536 at 85Hz
playback w/tv cable only - DVI to VGA Adapter will not work Model#: RADEON 8500LE 64M S -OEM Special FedEx Saver Shipping $8.00


link

Anandtech Hotdeals Link

 

[rogue1979]

Agreed, 8500LE from newegg is a great buy for $107 shipped. It comes with 3.3ns ram and seems to hit 275/300 or more easily.

 

[Instagib]

Originally posted by: dighn
add $4 to your budget and you can get the Gainward Ti-4200 64MB with 3.5 ns DDR SDRAM

Linked for your pleasure

 

[DukeChestnut]

MSI GF3 Ti-200 128mb DDR $135.00 HERE

 

[rondeemc]

If you are not aware of it, Tom's hardware did a comparison recently including versions of these cards. Might help with the price/performance issues when making a decision. Good Luck.

Tom's

 

[tokamak]

i think i'm going to go with the 8500LE since by most account it can be overclocked to non-LE speeds.

 

[Chapter11]

Get the retail Radeon 8500 instead of the LE. There's been deals flying around all over the place for them.
I got a retail 8500 recently for $109. Radeon 8500 64MB retail

 

[Batti]

For instant gratification, get the 8500LE 128MB Retail from Best Buy for $149. Lotta card for the money.

Note it doesn't have the DVI connector, if that matters to you.

Batti

 

[MoonPie]

Hmm.... I would recommend Radeon 8500 128mb retail for $149

I bought it here

might want to look for $15 off if you're interested.
gl

 

[MithShrike]

If it's 2D you want definitely the 8500!

 

[AnAndAustin]

Right.

The GF4 cards image quality is much better than the GF2 & GF3 cards and EASILY on par with ATI cards.

The GF4TI4200 is a fair bit faster & excellent o/c, more so than any current Radeon and also has much better AA (enhances image quality for games by removing jagged edges).

The GF3TI200 WAS good value for money, but the Radeon8500LE is faster, cheaper and has better image quality (in the US & Canada, outside Radeons are a rip-off).

BEWARE! Non-ATI Radeons (eg Hercules etc) use cheaper RAM and seriously underclock the Radeon cards, unless a total bargain get an ATI Radeon!

I would say it comes down to price. The Radeon8500LE & 8500 are very good cards. Excellent image quality, very capable gaming cards and well priced (in US/Canada). The GF4TI4200 also has excellent image quality, is a fair bit faster and a great o/c, but will knock you more cash than the Radeons.

If an extra 10-20% in gaming perf is not the most important thing to you, then get an ATI Radeon8500LE.

I think this is a lot more informative than just giving biased opinion as many people seem to be doing.

 

[AnAndAustin]

Here's some links, make up your own mind:

TomsHW - Radeons, GF3 vs GF4

Tech Report - as above

AnAndTech - as above

FiringSquad - as above

HardOCP - as above

 

[tokamak]

does the 8500LE 128mb at newegg (or anywhere) come with the same 3.3ns ram as the 64mb version? i.e. would it overclock to 8500 retail speeds as well?

 

[AnAndAustin]

The ATI versions certainly should.

Non-ATI versions, I doubt it incredibly.

 

[dude]

Can't really tell. The image doesn't show the numbers on the memory chips itself very clearly.

 

[tokamak]

looks like the customer reviews are saying that the 128mb version comes clocked at 250/200. people are saying that they can overclock it to 275/230. seems to me like the 64mb version that comes 250/275 overclockable to 300/300 is a much better card. i think i'm gonna go that route.

 

[SS4Goku]

GeForce 3 ti500, then u can OC it

 

[AnAndAustin]

SS4Goku, the GF3TI500 isn't a great o/c. It's very near the limit of the technology. The GF3TI200 is a better but as it often o/c to within 5-10% of the GF3TI500 and should cost a lot less.

Also, the GF3TI500's price has fallen, but not very far when you consider the price of the far superior GF4TI4200.

In the US & Canada the Radeons are also well priced, the Radeon8500LE is great value and as mentioned is a good o/c.

Don't get me wrong, the GF3TI500 is still a great card, but I don't think it is a great o/c'ing card.

 

[rondeemc]

If you are considering the 128meg version of the LE you might want to take a look at the game pack version which with either the $15 or 10% off with discover is $140 with free shipping. Gets you the LE plus:
The n50 SpeedPad is the first gaming device of its kind, a completely new gaming tool that transcends conventional categories such as game pads, joysticks, etc. The SpeedPad can best be described as a combination keyboard and game pad. The 10 keys on the n50 act as keys on a keyboard with the advantage of being easily accessible and intuitively configured. The n50 also has an eight-way directional pad, much like the d-pad on a standard game pad. It?s an innovative, multipurpose tool that will lift your gaming experience to a whole new level.

The discounts are described over at j*mpondeals.com



buy.com

 

[spanky]

some dude is selling 2 ati radeon 8500's over on fs/ft for $102 shipped. i am sure u can haggle him down a bit.