x850 PRO or x800 XT

The 850Pro has only 12 pipes, the rest are locked. To the question "how to unlock those damn pipes???", check this out.
The 850 does have higher stock clocks than the 800XT.. not much, but still. Stock performance should be almost identical.. but if you unlcok and overclock the 850 to XT or XT PE speeds, It would win by 5-10%.

I actually sat in your shoes a few weeks ago, but i found an 850 XT for a good price, so I got that instead. LOVE it. I finally can play fear on my 19" with (almost) all settings at max  

well, just my €0.02 (€ naturally cos I live in Finland   )

Thanks for the info StigHelmer! Sounds like a decent card and an excellent way to go while not breaking the bank  

Thanks again!