Spec me a video card!

[Sankari]

OK, so I'm in the market for a new video card. Max budget is £160. Current card is my trusty little 512Mb Radeon HD 2600 Pro.

I won't be playing Crysis or anything wildly demanding; my most graphic-intensive game is World of Warcraft (WOTLK). I want a card that's reasonably quiet and reasonably cool. Overclocking is not a priority, but I'm happy to take a "factory-overclocked" jobbie. I want a dual-slot model with an exhaust fan.

Most appealing options in my price range are the 4850 and the 9800 GTX+. I'm aware that these cards take up a lot of space; will my Lian Li A-05B accommodate them? I have 520W on tap; will this be enough?

I'm confused about the whole "stream processors" thing. Is it a case of "the more, the merrier"? How can the 9800 compete with the 4850 when it only has 128 stream processors, while the 4850 has 800?

Thanks for the help.

 

[psychas]

4850 u might get 4870 512mb second hand for that price but im not sure.

get 4850 faster then 9800+

 

[PwnDirect]

get 4850 faster then 9800+

wrong the 4850 is faster than the 9800 gt but not the gtx+

Your case & psu will be fine with ether card & you really cant compare numbers between ati & nvidia so go by benchmarks & reviews & personal choice

 

[SlyReaper]

Actually I heard the 4850 is faster than the GTX+? Or am I thinking of something wildly different?

 

[psychas]

4850 is faster when using 8 aa
9800+ faster when using 4 aa

for me i would choose 4850 as 8 aa much better then 4 aa but then it comes what size rez u using and etc

 

[Tute]

There are a few 4870s popping up on the MM for around your budget, might well be worth getting one of those.