Find The Right Graphics Cards

Diamond Viper Radeon HD 4850

AMD's new ATI Radeon HD 4850 is a solid midrange 3D card that will run pretty much anything, and it boasts some forward-looking features to boot. It might be worth waiting for the price to drop just a bit, at which point this card will become much more attractive.

Specs: ATI Radeon HD 4850, 2560 x 1600, 512 MB, PC, 2

Asus ENGTX280

Nvidia's new GTX280 graphics chip brings fast 3D performance and exciting new possibilities for speeding up certain kinds of multimedia applications. We'd be more enthusiastic about this card if the software was available to take advantage of the new features.

Zogis GeForce 9800 GTX

Nvidia's new GeForce 9800 GTX chip is fast enough, but if your PC is SLI-capable you can spend just a little more and get a significantly better high-resolution gaming experience. Consider your options carefully before upgrading to this card.

Specs: NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GTX, 2560 x 1600, 512 MB, PC

Asus EN9800GX2

Nvidia's new flagship 3D card delivers almost all the performance we expect for its price. If you can live with "almost," at this price range, then this is a solid PC gaming option. We also wouldn't blame you Crysis fans for waiting to see what's in store later this year.

Specs: 2 GPUs - NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GX2, 2560 x 1600, 1 GB, PC, 2

Asus EN9600 GT

Nvidia's new GeForce 9600 GT graphics chip gives the Asus EN9600 GT some of the best bang-for-the-buck we've seen in a midrange 3D card. If your goal is reliable frame rates in the latest PC games, you should pick this card up as soon as you can.

Specs: NVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT, 2560 x 1600, 512 MB, PC, 2

ATI Radeon HD 3870 X2

The 3D graphics card market changes too rapidly for us to get bullish about a card with premature driver software. The ATI Radeon HD 3870 X2 shows promise, even outscoring Nvidia on many PC games, but we would still wait until AMD works out the kinks before handing over your $450.

Specs: ATI Radeon HD 3870 X2, 2560 x 1600, 2 GB, PC

Asus EN8800GT

Asus and Nvidia have teamed up for a compelling midrange 3D graphics card with this EN8800 GT. It doesn't completely dominate a less expensive card from ATI like we'd hoped, so players of certain games should stay away. But if you can find this card for a good price, we recommend it, especially if you intend to use two of them.

Specs: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT, 2560 x 1600, 512 MB, PC, 2

ATI Radeon HD 3850

Despite the usual caveats of an ever-fluctuating 3D market, for the moment, at least, ATI's new Radeon HD 3850 graphics card delivers the best bang-for-the buck in PC graphics hardware. Until now we haven't had an acceptable sub-$200 option for PC gaming this year. Thanks to AMD, now we do.

Specs: ATI Radeon HD 3850, 2560 x 1600, 256 MB, PC, 2

ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT

If you're looking to build a home theater PC, we recommend ATI's Radeon HD 2600 XT as the midrange card to use, thanks to its nearly perfect HD video image and its no-fuss installation. But for 3D gaming, you'd be much better off looking for a good deal on a faster, older graphics card.

Specs: ATI Radeon HD 2600XT, 2560 x 1600, 512 MB, PC, 2

EVGA e-GeForce 8600 GTS (PCI-e, 256MB)

If you care more about HD movie watching than gaming and you need a new video card for the task today, we recommend a 3D card like this EVGA with Nvidia's newest mainstream graphics chip. Gamers can get more performance value from Nvidia's higher-end 8800 cards, but for anyone, it would be a good idea to wait to see what's new from ATI in just a few short weeks.

Specs: NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GTS, 2560 x 1600 / 60 Hz, 256 MB, PC

XFX GeForce 8800 GTS (320MB, GDDR3)

No other 3D graphics card comes close to this bang for the buck, making the 320MB XFX GeForce 8800 GTS mostly an easy decision if you need a midrange upgrade. Nvidia still has to polish off its Vista software, and the sooner-or-later arrival of competing cards muddies the waters a bit, but if you need a midprice graphics card today, this should be your pick.

Specs: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS, 2560 x 1600, 320 MB, PC, 2

Vista View Saber 2020

If you're looking for a dual analog TV tuner and have an open x1 PCI Express slot, the Vista View Saber 2020 offers the best image quality we've seen.

Specs: 32 MB, PC

Nvidia GeForce 8800 GTS (640MB)

The step-down GeForce 8800 GTS is no slouch compared to Nvidia's flagship GTX card. Like its powerful big brother, the slightly more affordable GTS supplies top-notch performance and sweeping architectural changes that provide a solid foundation today for the OSs and games of tomorrow.

Nvidia GeForce 8800 GTX (768MB)

This one is easy. Nvidia's GeForce 8800 GTX not only beats ATI to market with its next-gen 3D graphics hardware, it also eliminates ATI's image-quality advantage in current-generation titles. Throw in its sheer horsepower, and Nvidia gives the high-end enthusiast every reason to make this purchase.

ATI Radeon X1950 Pro

If you're looking for a gaming card to run Vista and play most games, ATI's Radeon X1950 Pro will get you there, but not perfectly, and its real-world pricing is higher than we'd like. We're more interested to see ATI's next-gen cards use the newly refined CrossFire dual-card technology, debuted here, but that will have to wait.

Specs: 1 GPUs - ATI Radeon X1950 Pro, 2560 x 1600, 256 MB, PC, 2

Nvidia GeForce 7950 GT

It can't hang with ATI's faster (and wider) Radeon X1900 XT in performance, but if you're building a small PC or you're concerned about noise levels, the GeForce 7950 distinguishes itself as the only single-slot 3D card in its price range. If efficiency is more important than speed, Nvidia makes it easy.

Specs: NVIDIA GeForce 7950 GT, 2048 x 1536 / 85 Hz, 512 MB, PC

ATI Radeon X1650 Pro (dual link)

We don't recommend paying even $125 for this new budget 3D card from ATI, but assuming you can find it for $100 or less, the Radeon X1650 Pro will meet your Windows Vista and basic gaming needs without overheating your PC or your wallet.

Specs: ATI Radeon X1650 Pro, 512 MB, PC, 2

PNY Verto GeForce 7900 GS

Featuring Nvidia's latest midrange GPU, the $200 PNY Verto GeForce 7900 GS offers a strong bang for the buck compared to its ATI rival. We recommend it if you are looking to play 3D games on an LCD monitor, aren't too concerned about sky-high frame rates, and won't be bothered if a next-gen replacement emerges in the coming months.

Specs: NVIDIA GeForce 7900 GS, 2560 x 1600, 256 MB, PC

ATI Radeon X1300 XT

ATI's Radeon lineup features a confusing array of cards. The budget Radeon X1300 XT is a good card for the money, but we recommend the faster Radeon X1650 Pro because it costs only $10 more.

Specs: PC

ATI Radeon X1950 XTX (512MB)

ATI's Radeon X1950 XTX is the fastest single-chip 3D card that you can buy. Unfortunately, with Windows Vista and its accompanying gaming technology, it's going to become obsolete in just five months. ATI adjusted the price of the Radeon X1950 XTX accordingly, but at $450, it's still not an insignificant purchase. We recommend it only if money is no object.

Specs: ATI Radeon X1950 CrossFire, 2560 x 1600, 512 MB, PC, 2