General questions about Video cards and the future

[Shirosaki]

Ok so I've been reading a ton of articles and comparing a lot of different GPUs and I recently read about OCing the 460 gtx. From what I can tell, you can overclock it to perform about as good or just as good as a 5870. For about $230 that sounds incredible considering the 5870 is like $400.

What I haven't heard is whether nvidia is upgrading the 470 or 480 with that gf104 chip. So how do I find out what Nvidia's future plans are and whether they're doing this?

When I upgrade I want to get a video card or cards that can last for 4 to 5 years. I've had this 8800GTS for about 4 years but I think I made some mistakes when I purchased it and could have gone better or cheaper for close to the same performance. I'd like to not make the same mistake again.

I was thinking I could get a 460 gtx now and fit it on my computer and then when I upgrade to a new pc soon I'd get a second one for SLI and have them both overclocked. Unfortunately, I haven't read any articles that give the results for OCing 2 of these cards at the same time.

I guess I'm trying to figure out if there is a way to get more information about the future video cards coming out so I can make a more informed decision regarding my purchase. If anyone has any insight into this, I'd appreciate it.

 

[notty22]

There is no purchase that will ensure 4-5 years of mainstream gameplay.
Nvidia positioned the 460, in the market to best gather sales and not compete against its own BIG Fermi cards, the 470, 480.
So they volted, clocked a card for the 200 dollar price point, where ATI was a little weak with competition. Nvidia needed a community opinion 'win'. Wikipedia helps to collect rumors and company press releases. ATI is working on a refresh of their 5 series.
In four years.......
AMD, and Intel are both working on next generation cpu's with internal graphics. When that happens, it could change the landscape of discreet graphic cards.

 

[Shirosaki]

I guess you can never be too sure but you want to get the best graphics card that is going to hold up for the next few years that's the lowest price.

For instance I bet the Radeon 5970 will last for the next 4-5 years or 2 in crossfire would. Graphics have never been really important to me. Personally I think games have suffered because people are always complaining about graphics in games instead of paying attention to gameplay and more important aspects of the game.

It can be difficult for me to notice differences. I read these reviews on monitors where people are complaining about lighting and colors that I probably can't evem recognize.

I know there will be newer graphics cards out soon but game producing companies don't really want to make their games unplayable without upgrading to the newest graphics card. They're going to wait a few years before requiring consumers to use today's best graphics cards.

I was looking at getting 2 5870s for Crossfire but if I can OC 2 460 gtxs and get similar results, then it sounds like it would be better to get the 460s and save a couple hundred dollars.

I didn't know about Wikipedia or what AMD and Intel were doing. Might be nice to not have to worry about graphics card and only get a cpu.

 

[jyjjy]

You should always buy a card appropriate for your current system, resolution and budget. Spending large amounts for marginal gains in hopes of "future proofing" is invariably a mistake.
If your resolution is 1920x1200 or below then a single overclocked GTX 460 should be excellent for a while to come. At stock the card is approximately 3x as powerful as an 8800GTS 320/640mb and can usually OC 30%+ on top of that.
If you will be moving it over to a new system then getting a motherboard with SLI as an upgrade path for when you need something better is a good idea.

 

[jaguarskx]

Well if you have the money, then simply buy two HD 5970 and be done with it.

 

[Shirosaki]

You should always buy a card appropriate for your current system, resolution and budget. Spending large amounts for marginal gains in hopes of "future proofing" is invariably a mistake.
If your resolution is 1920x1200 or below then a single overclocked GTX 460 should be excellent for a while to come. At stock the card is approximately 3x as powerful as an 8800GTS 320/640mb and can usually OC 30%+ on top of that.
If you will be moving it over to a new system then getting a motherboard with SLI as an upgrade path for when you need something better is a good idea.

I'm starting to see what you mean with spending too much. It does make sense to spend less and upgrade a couple times for cheap.

Do you mean get a better card than the 460 when going SLI? Like having 2 different cards because I thought that wasn't a good idea?

I need to look at this another way and make sure I get the best low price card. 460 still seems like a great option.

How often is it best to upgrade then? Every 2 years or something, or do you just have to always keep an eye on it?

 

[gerardb]

I would get the GTX 460 from palit since its the best from the rest. (the Sonic Platinum that is...)
I would say, upgrade once every year, sell your old card and just invest little money to get the best performance for your current sistem as someone else stated :lol:

 

[Shirosaki]

I thought MSI would be best because it overclocks better.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127510

I am aware of the Sonic Platinum. It looks like the best one already OCed, but I've read that the 460 overclocks further.

 

[Tamz_msc]

within 2yrs gtx480 will sell for 100 bucks

Within 2 years you will have a hard time FINDING a GTX 480, let alone finding one for 100$.

 

[Tamz_msc]

I think that currently a GTX 460 will last for around a year at least, if you are gaming at 1920x1200 resolution.In the future adding another GTX 460 1gb in SLI will definitely last for three years from now at least.

 

[jyjjy]

Do you mean get a better card than the 460 when going SLI? Like having 2 different cards because I thought that wasn't a good idea?

No, I meant getting another GTX 460 when you end up desiring something better, but only if it makes sense at that point. By then the GTX 460 may cost half the price it does now and adding a second will offer great value. Alternately there may be a new card that offers better performance/features/power efficiency/ect. at a price that is right for you and you'll want to go that way. Just review your options when you get to that point and do what makes sense for you.
Keep in mind that most PC games are actually console ports. I doubt games will get all that much more graphically intensive in general until there are new consoles. There will be some games that are PC only that will end up pushing the limits(like Crysis) and some others where the PC versions embrace the current technological advances of PC cards(like Metro 2033) but those will be fairly rare. Usually new consoles are announced about 3 years ahead of time and there haven't really been anything but minor rumblings about MS or Sony planning their next console so it is going to be a while.

 

[Shirosaki]

Ok thanks guys. Yeah I realize most are console ports and not very graphically intense. I missed Crysis but after seing the gameplay trailer at E3 for Crysis 2, I'm thinking of getting both games. Never played a sandbox shooter before.

I'll probably wait about a week and do a little research and make sure I have the money, but looks like I'm going with the 460.

 

[Shirosaki]

Best answer selected by Shirosaki.

 

[jyjjy]

Ok thanks guys. Yeah I realize most are console ports and not very graphically intense. I missed Crysis but after seing the gameplay trailer at E3 for Crysis 2, I'm thinking of getting both games. Never played a sandbox shooter before.

The Stalker games and FarCry 2 are other good ones.

 

[ezjohny]

knowing that PCI-SIG is around the corner, you think manufactors are waiting too see what they could come up with are to be compatible with the PCI-SIG 3.0

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey