Best graphics card currently avaliable by model and brand

Well, http://www.tomshardware.com/review [...] ,1987.html is going to be the best place for you. It gives you the best performing card at several different price levels. This way you can base your pick on your budget. If you just want the top of the line card, well.....find the one that costs the most, and you'll be in the right ballpark.

As to manufactuer, Evga, Asus, XFX have some of the best warrenties/Customer service departments I've dealt with. Beyond those, a dual slot cooler is usually better than a single slot if you have the space. Other than those two points, the cards are all essentially the same unless you get a factory overclocked card (which will obviously be faster, and most likly more expensive).

Oh, yeah....as rockyjohn says below.....I assumed you were looking for a gaming card. If you're not, and more into making a home theatre box or doing graphics work, than the list I pointed you to isn't going to be worth much. Good catch on that one Rocky.

"Best" is a very vague term. Depending on what sort of thing you're looking for, there's a wide range of what could be the "best."

What would make this a lot easier is if you told us what you wanted to do with it; what programs (games, movie editing software, whatever, name it) and what settings and performance you expect, as well as your budget. There's a wide variety of video cards out there for a reason: there's a wide variety of niches to fill.

Thanks for the quick replies guys. I already have a system to put it in, I built it recently and managed to fry my graphics card playing Crysis within a month , so I though I would actually try spending some money on a new graphics card instead of overclocking a cheaper one (it was fine during benchmarks but then i played Crysis and well....). And I would be need my graphics card to be primarily a gamer card rather than anything else.
My current system has the following spec:

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L Motherboard
Intel Core Duo 2 E8200
(No graphics card atm)
2 x 2GB Crucial Ballistix Tracer
Hitachi Deskstar 500GB
Apevia 500W Transparent Aluminium PSU
NZXT Tempest Case

Thanks

For me the best value is the Evga 9800GX2, I was able to buy it at a reasonable price of $290.

For that price is the best price/performance right now.

not sure 500w is enough for the 4870x2 though? don't know a ton about it but that will probably be pushing it.

What resolution are you gaming at? that will impact what is the best card for you as well?

A 4870X2 might also light up some fireworks in your PSU. Your looking at ~$100 on a new PSU as well if you go with the 4870X2. Your budget would be really helpful. The 4870X2 is the best video card available, but may not be what you need. You rig looks like a mid end build and suggests you aren't into spending premium money for premium components. If that is in fact the case may I suggest a 4850 for $150 after rebate from gigabyte:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814125224

But if you are into spending $580 on a video card + $100 on a PSU then the 4870X2 and a new PSU are the way to go. Of course that upgrade probably cost more then the rest of your rig.

Maybe not the best one out there, but here's a pretty good deal on a nice one.




HIS Radeon HD 4870 512MB PCI Express 2.0 x16 Video Card for $193 after rebate + free shipping
NewBiiz.com (formerly eWiz) offers the HIS Radeon HD 4870 512MB GDDR5 256-bit PCI Express 2.0 x16 Video Card, model no. H487F512P, for $213.13 with free shipping. This $20 mail-in rebate cuts it to $193.13. That's $77 off our mention from a month ago and the lowest total price we've seen. It supports CrossFire and features a 2560x1600 max resolution, 750MHz core clock speed, 1800MHz memory clock, dual DVI outputs with HCDP, HDMI adapter, and more. Deal ends August 31.
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