PCI Express (PCIe) Interface: $0 To $85
Best PCIe Card For $65:
Good 1440x900 performance in most games
| Codename: | RV730 |
| Process: | 55 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 320 |
| Texture Units: | 32 |
| Raster-Operation Processors (ROPs): | 8 |
| Memory Bus: | 128-bit |
| Core Speed MHz: | 600 |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 500 (1000 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 10.1/SM 4.0 |
The Radeon HD 4650 is a really attractive budget-gaming option that takes us past the old budget 1280x1024 limitation. The HD 4650 is simply an underclocked Radeon HD 4670, which by now has a reputation as being a very fast mainstream card with low-power requirements. Well, the HD 4650 requires even less power and offers very good gaming performance for the price.
The HD 4650 is also an exemplary choice for a home-theater PC (HTPC) because it can even accelerate HD video without breaking a sweat, and since it’s a single-slot solution, the card won’t use up too much space in your HTPC.
The only problem with the HD 4650 is that its price has gone up a few dollars while HD 4670 prices have been dropping a little. If you're serious about gaming, the HD 4670 is definitely worth the price difference.
Best PCIe Card For $80 : Tie
Good 1600x1200 performance in most games
| Codename: | RV730 |
| Process: | 55 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 320 |
| Texture Units: | 32 |
| ROPs: | 8 |
| Memory Bus: | 128-bit |
| Core Speed MHz: | 750 |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 1,000 (2,000 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 10.1/SM 4.0 |
The Radeon HD 4670 slaps previous-generation, high-end performance squarely in the jaw of mid-range pricing. With 320 shader processors, this card means business and will offer awesome 1600x1200 gaming. Compared to the 9600 GSO, its main advantage is a low-power requirement—the 4670 doesn’t need an external power cable, which for some upgraders is a really important feature.
| Codename: | G92 |
| Process: | 65 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 96 |
| Texture Units: | 48 |
| ROPs: | 12 |
| Memory Bus: | 192- or 128-bit |
| Core Speed MHz: | 600 |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 900 (1,800 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 10/SM 4.0 |
Previously a high-end card crippled and transformed into a high- to mid-range card, the release of the Radeon HD 4670 has forced the 9600 GSO to a lower price to remain competitive (which it does). It’s an excellent alternative to the HD 4670, as long as the buyer compares clock speeds and makes sure he or she has one of the desirable models (manufacturers seem to follow the reference speeds very loosely).
i have just bought a powercolor hd3850 agp for£82,last 1 broke down
What's the point of having prices in dollars on a UK site?
[citation]What's the point of having prices in dollars on a UK site?[/citation]
1 USD = 1 GBP in buying power so it's no big deal...
Bob
Well, Page 3 is certainly a bit different in Europe regardless of currency. Sapphire/Powercolour/HIS keep undercutting like crazy with the HD4830 heading toward €90 in some places, whereas all the other cards there are significantly more expensive on this side of the pond, so Page 3 in Europe is just the HD4830, nothing else worth mentioning until HD4850 on the next page. Sorry nVidia!
I used to read these articles with great interest but I think recently the GFX card market has gotten a bit too complicated for such a simplistic format now. I recently was in the market for a high end card, and this article would have pointed me towards ATI for my budget/needs. But I actually went for a GTX280, largely because of cuda, physx and the Linux drivers, all of which, for me, means that Nvidia have the edge over ATI in a big way.
Now, I know those things aren't of interest to some people, but there are those of us out there for whom gaming FPS stats are no longer the biggest consideration when going for a higher end card.
You could argue that this article isn't for them, people who are looking into cuda or who are Linux-literate are probably going to know their stuff when doing something like buying a GFX card, but I don't see the harm in at least mentioning these factors in passing, maybe on the first page or something.
There's a clear ATI bias towards the high end in this article, and that seems to be based on bang-for-the-buck, but quite frankly I wouldn't touch their cards at the moment. They may offer great value for money, but Nvidia has recently gone way beyond just gaming and is making great strides towards making the GFX card a more integral part of a desktop rig. It's no longer just about gaming.
^ Agreed. Just bear in mind that said facilities are probably contributing to the lack of gradual price drops (lots of enthusiasts have gone to snag cheap 9600GTO/9800GT for PhysX duty and bumped up demand and prices at the wrong time) and that they do not represent a major divergence in the brands - ATI has laid off the whole physics gig temporarily due to licensing issues rather than technology limitations.
nVidia's current domination in the physics acceleration stakes is a bit of a storm in a teacup; there's eff all decent PhysX games out that need the GPGPU acceleration, and there isn't quite as big a push toward using GPGPU capabilities for game physics as they make out. Reason? Its actually nVidia's own fault by trying to lock developers into a proprietary engine that only supports half of their target audience (nVidia owners) and thus puts ATI owners - possibly 50% of potential buyers - off the game, rather than opening the standard up for ATI to use then simply designing superior hardware that utilizes their better knowledge of PhysX to maintain a credible lead. Only then will developers embrace using GPGPU physics, as it won't instantly halve their return!
[citation]What's the point of having prices in dollars on a UK site?
1 USD = 1 GBP in buying power so it's no big deal...Bob[/citation]
Currently, 1 USD = 0.7 GBP. So if a card is $300 it translates to £210.00. Unfortunately, an awful lot of stores over here (including the online one's), charge much higher prices and when you convert that to dollars you'll probably gasp.
You guys in America get some real good deals over there, especially with rebates.
[citation]Currently, 1 USD = 0.7 GBP.[/citation]
Yeh but I SAID "buying power" not the exchange rate. The numerical value difference in prices between the US and the UK is fast approaching zero.
Bob
LOL @ THG broken website...