I was all set to get the EVGA 8800GT 512MB card when the ATI Radeon HD 3870 512MB GDDR4 went on sale for $10 more than the price I could get the only one for. Which should I go with?
I do some gaming but not extreme and lots of Photoshop processing and such. The board I am getting is a Crossfire board but I'm not sure if I'll ever do two cards (but who knows, right?) Running Q6600 (not overclocked) with 4 GB of ram.
Also, do either of them require more than 500-610 watt psus?? (I also run two optical drives and 4-5 HDs).
well considering your not an avid gamer and you use your computer for other things I'd go with the 3870. Its generally cheaper and has similar performance to the 8800 gt at lower resolutions. I'd also recommend it in case you ever do opt to go dual cards (by the time you do that a 3870 will be lke 100 bucks) you can. But what resolution do you use, because that in my opinion is the deciding factor
The 3870 isn't cheaper, it's a bit more than the 8800GT.
Currently I'm using a 19" LCS at 1280x1024 (that's the max resolution I can get out of my current card). Ultimately I would like to either get a larger monitor and/or a second one.
The one thing I didn't like about the ATI card is its one year warranty while the EVGA has its step-up program and a lifetime warranty.
Oh, and while I'm not an "avid" gamer, I do like to play whichever game I want without hardware concerns. Nothing worse than having a brand new machine that can't play current software.
I also read that the 3870 has greater power consumption when under load. Would that mean I'd need a larger PSU? (I'm looking at either Corsair 550 or PC Cooling 610 right now).
Get a 8800GTS (G92) besides being a better card and the fact your eyes will never tell it from a GTX it uses less power,gives off less heat.
All "makes" will OC basicly the same and you can find them for $220 or less. Newegg has one with a rebate that comes out to $199.
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*While we crash and burn, small, low tech, agrarian societies such as the Hmong in the mountains of Laos will continue on without so much as blinking an eye.*
