Best 150 Quid PCI-E Graphics Card?

[EvilFranky]

My mate wants to upgrade his graphics card and has asked his girlfriend to buy him one for xmas.

His/her budget is 150 quid, what would you lot recommend?

 

[Darkwave]

X1800XT, X1900GT, or X1950Pro.

The X1800XT is the fastest of the three in general, I think it's the cheapest too.

The X1950Pro is the coolest and quietest of the three.

So you basically have a card for each mood there.

 

[Sumanji]

There's also this quaint little company called NVIDIA, dunno if Ulfhedjinn has heard of them?

7900GT or 7900GS would also fit into his budget

 

[Darkwave]

There's also this quaint little company called NVIDIA, dunno if Ulfhedjinn has heard of them?

7900GT or 7900GS would also fit into his budget

Nvidia, hmmm... I think I have heard of them, don't they make that new Core 2 Duo I saw on the internets?

Seriously though; I didn't recommend a 7900GT because of the horribly high failure rate they had, so I couldn't do that in good conscience. Not to mention that the cheapest one I can see on OcUK is what, £190?

I also didn't recommend the 7900GS because it is significantly slower than all three cards I mentioned. I am not a fanboy, I just like to see people get the best value for money.

Everyone knows that ATI are highly aggressive in the mid-range and high-end right now, but not so much in the super high-end, it's no secret. If the guy has said his budget is stuck at £120 or so then I would have suggested a 7900GS or 7600GT without a doubt, but with a budget of £150 it would be dishonest not to give the nod to the X1800XT and X1950Pro.

 

[LoadsaMoney]

There's also this quaint little company called NVIDIA, dunno if Ulfhedjinn has heard of them?

7900GT or 7900GS would also fit into his budget

They would fit into his budget, but the x1800 XT is the fastest, and its cheaper, thats probably why they were not mentioned.

 

[Sumanji]

They had a high failure rate, past tense... and if you look around 7900GT's can be had for sub £150

It's quite game-dependant whether the 7900GT or X1800XT is faster, you should probably read some reviews and see which card suits him best

 

[Darkwave]

They had a high failure rate, past tense... and if you look around 7900GT's can be had for sub £150

They have a high failure rate, and from what I can see XFX 7900GTs are still not back at OcUK after they got banished for the failure rate and terrible customer service (Gibbo's words, not mine.)

That point is entirely moot though because, as I said, I can't see one for less than ~£190 (£187 at a guess from memory.) Maybe someone needs to read the FAQ, especially the part in regards to "Hinting about product availability at competitors and their pricing."

When asked for a product suggestion on the OcUK forums I assume that person is interested in buying from OcUK, and so I use their prices. Could you give me a good reason why I should break the forum rules on competitors?

It's quite game-dependant whether the 7900GT or X1800XT is faster, you should probably read some reviews and see which card suits him best

I've read enough reviews from sites like AnandTech and FiringSquad to know which is faster, heck I have had to make the same decision before (7900GT or X1800XT) so I know his situation perfectly well.

I am not interested in a fanboy fight, but the X1800XT is faster in most situations (especially with the AA and AF piled on) and I'm sure that he will now also look at benchmarks himself and see what takes his fancy.

Like I said; If he had a budget of about £125 then I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the 7900GS or 7600GT, but it's no secret that ATI are aggressive in the mid-range and (not ultra) high-end right now. With a budget of £150 the X1800XT or X1950Pro is an ideal choice depending on wether you want pure speed or practically the same speed on an 80nm manufacturing process.

 

[Sumanji]

7900GT's are EOL, they're being replaced by the 7900GS and 7950GT lines, which is probably why all etailors are a bit thin on the ground.

As for reading reviews, that line was aimed at the OP, not you. There are a fair few games where the GT is faster and it would be foolish to ignore this.

I'm just trying to give the dude more options in that price range... last time I checked that was the point of giving advice on a forum. If I was frst to reply I personally would have included all the previously mentioned cards, together with comments on heat, noise, drivers etc.

 

[Darkwave]

7900GT's are EOL, they're being replaced by the 7900GS and 7950GT lines, which is probably why all etailors are a bit thin on the ground.

What I said about XFX 7900GTs was practically a quote from Gibbo.

You can find the post I am referring to here.

I didn't know you were directing the benchmarks thing to him and not me, so I will just agree with you there that he would benefit from visiting sites like AnandTech, FiringSquad, Hot Hardware, Guru3D, Tom's Hardware etc. and seeing what takes his fancy.

I stand by my recommendations though because ATI are aggressive as of late in this price-range and, at least in my opinion, offer better value for money than Nvidia are doing.

Nvidia are dominating the budget range and ultra high-end right now though.

 

[pieman109]

X1800XT best value for money card and a stonking performer.

 

[thefishdude]

if you want low noise and lower power usage and still good performance then you can get a x1950pro an online retailer has saphhire version in stock at £129

 

[Technofr3ak]

if you want low noise and lower power usage and still good performance then you can get a x1950pro an online retailer has saphhire version in stock at £129

you need to learn reading the above posts dude and you misspelled the brand name its Sapphire.

You missed the whole point, if people ask questions on the OCUK forums how would you suggest to buy the card from another online retailer?

 

[Killajaz]

X1800XT. Fantastic bang for buck. Plays all games at 1280x1024 with eye candy enabled and yet to experience major slow downs.

 

[thefishdude]

you need to learn reading the above posts dude and you misspelled the brand name its Sapphire.

You missed the whole point, if people ask questions on the OCUK forums how would you suggest to buy the card from another online retailer?

ok i read it again and am i missing somethinmg i was just giving my opinion on the x1950pro.

also so waht if i spelt something wrong, everyone knows what card i ment

as for recomending another retailer i did not mention the shop i just said that the sapphire card wich i mite add ocuk do not even sell, could be bought else were. i was not aware that on this forum you were not allowed to mention any retailers other that ocuk. i assumed this was an open forum for people into pc;s were people can ask questions and get help and share opinions. i did not realise that it was completly linked to ocuk the shop and that you could not tell anyone that a part was cheaper else were to save them some money.

 

[melbourne720]

Yeah, that big OCuk logo at the top of the page goes straight to the shop

Rules:-

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/faq.php?faq=vb_faq#faq_vb_read_and_post

Its open to a point, but if I was running a online computer store and providing a discussion forum free of charge, I wouldn't want people using it to recommend my competitors!

 

[thefishdude]

lol i did see the logo just thought this was forum they stuck for anyone to use to discuss anything about pcs. not just stuff they sell.

just read the rules eeek i will refrain myself in future and will keep any bargains i find to myself muahahaha. sometime they are on ocuk as the large box i rieceved from them sitting in my hall way will testify

 

[EvilFranky]

So it looks like the X1800 XT, i'll be sure to let him know

Thanks for the info guys