Reviewed on November 8, 2006This 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.TAGS:Nvidia GeForce, NVidia, power supply, pipe, card, ATI Technologies, architecture, DirectX, manufacturing, 3D, games
Reviewed on August 2, 2007If 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.TAGS:Radeon, ATI Technologies, NVidia, ATI Radeon, Nvidia GeForce, DirectX, card, video card, generation, 3D, games
Reviewed on November 9, 2006The 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.TAGS:Nvidia GeForce, NVidia, Radeon, card, power supply, DirectX, GPU, ATI Technologies, manufacturing, games
Reviewed on November 21, 2007Despite 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.TAGS:Radeon, DirectX, ATI Technologies, PCI Express, Nvidia GeForce, PCI, motherboard, card, video card, NVidia, games, PC
Reviewed on December 16, 2007Asus 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.TAGS:Nvidia GeForce, NVidia, ATI Radeon, ATI Technologies, AsusTek Computer, Radeon, ASUS, card, games
Reviewed on February 12, 2007Velocity Micro's first full-fledged home theater PC pulls very few punches in providing a complete digital media experience. It's big, it lacks a built-in audio receiver, and it invites PC gaming into the living room, which has never been the best fit. It's also the victim of a few Vista-related growing pains. On balance, though, Velocity Micro has as complete a home theater PC as we've seen.TAGS:Velocity Micro, home theater PC, Blu-ray, CableCard, NVidia, Microsoft Windows Vista, PC, movie, games, Microsoft Windows, video
Reviewed on June 4, 2008The Maingear Prelude has the best bang for the buck among midrange gaming PCs. It also has a certain stocky visual appeal. It's missing a few features, and you'll have to jump through a few hoops to make upgrades, but on balance, this system is a great deal.TAGS:Maingear, Voodoo, power supply, AMD, Dell XPS, CPU, 32-bit, chipset, NVidia, Intel, games, PC
Reviewed on February 12, 2007No 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.TAGS:XFX Inc, Nvidia GeForce, Radeon, NVidia, card, clock speed, ATI Technologies, DirectX, 3D, video card, AMD, Microsoft Windows Vista, games, Microsoft Windows