ATI 9700 Pro or Geforce Ti 4200?

[Tujay]

I am about to invest in a new computer system. I will use it for primarily for gaming. It will be a relatively high-end system with a 2.53 P4 processor, SIS-648 motherboard, 512mb of pc2700 DDR memory, etc.
However, I am torn when it comes to which graphics card to get. At first, I was leaning towards an ATI-Radeon 9700 Pro since it is the most powerful card out there. Still, if no current games require that kind of horsepower, would I be better off buying a much cheaper 128mb Geforce Ti-4200, while waiting for the Geforce FX boards to be released? I've read that quite a few games such as, EverQuest II, will be designed to take advantage of the features of the GeForce FX.

Any input would be helpful,

Tujay

 

[jclw]

Have a look at the 9500 pros as well.

*Dual PIII-800 @900 i440BX and Tualeron 1.2 @1.74 i815*

 

[Crashman]

I'd say the 9700 Pro. It's a DX9 card just like the GeForceFX will be, so those new games using DX9 features will like it.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[uther]

This is the same issue as "should I wait to upgrade". If you always wait, there will always be something else new and better on the horizon. The "problem" you mention with the 9700 is that there is no software to take advantage of this card. Why won't the same hold true with the Nvidia FX? True, they will both be DX 9.0 compliant, but based on the specs I have seen, the FX will go beyond that, again leading to no software currently available for the capabilities of that card.

 

[EENiX]

i'd say ATI 9700 Pro. BUT, ATI mades sucky drivers, so be careful.

NVidia's products are more stables.

--
Regards,
EENiX Hardware team
http://hardware.eenix.com

 

[bloaty]

Some people will never change the way they see something =P ATI has had good drivers quite some time, nvidia's detonator driver is not much better if at all anymore. If your going high end you should really buy a 9700pro, the difference between itself and the Geforce4 is significant and thats without all the DX9 crap. Nvidia is also the debil remember.

 

[AndrewT]

same here, so far I see no problems with the ATI card or driver other than sometimes dumb user (yeah I screw up once a while and can't blame that on anything else).

<b><font color=blue>Press 1 if you want to be on hold, 2 for disconnect, 3 for a representative who will put you on hold before disconnecting.</font color=blue></b>

 

[Lamoni]

I would go for the ATI 9500 Pro or the GeForce 4 Ti4200 myself, but that is because I never buy the best that is out. I used to, but realized that I could only upgrade my computer very seldom because it cost so much.

So I would not recommend waiting and getting the GeForce FX when it comes out. When nVidia releases the GeForce FX2 or whatever they call it, then maybe the GF FX will be cheap enough.

But hey, if I didn't have such a small budget I would go for the ATI 9700 pro. Like was mentioned earlier, if you always want to wait for something else that will come out in 3-4 months, you will never buy anything. The ATI 9700 pro is a great card and will last you for a very long time.

 

[rubikian]

Agreed, lamoni. By the time GF FX is out, you are going to wait for R350. This is going to be a never ending wait...

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Boot on 12/02/02 03:11 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[johnoh]

There is always a smart point somewhere near the knee of the price/performance curve that lets you be fast now but also cheap enough to upgrade in the not too distant future. The Ti4200 has been ruling this spot for months and I do not foresee it being replaced anytime soon unless ATI wants to create a price war with the 9500 which I doubt. Months from now the smartest buy will Ti4200s for $60, and only then maybe something better and faster for $100 will take over. This does not make 9700 buyers dumb by any means, it just means they spend $200+ a year to stay slightly ahead of those who spend $90 a year. You've got to figure out what you want and what you want to pay for it over a several year horizon.

<i>Reason the only absolute. Irrationality the only enemy. </i>

 

[marneus]

When the Nvidia FX comes out, another R300-based card will be coming out & then the R350 in another couple of months... plus the FX will be probably even more expensive than the R9700...a 9500Pro looks good, but a standardd 9700 is just a slightly slower clocked version of the pro (you can gain this back by overclocking) and coms in at a v. reasonable price (around £100 sterling here that I have seen)

ie I say GET a std 9700 & oc to Pro levels, you save money & get v good performance

no-one shouts louder than someone who is being ignored, or in the case of techies, to be heard over the noise of their PC's ;-)

 

[billytronix]

Go for the 9700 pro. You can get an OEM for about $275 or the retail for about $310. They smoke and the N30 is still smoke until it hits the street at about $500. 1st quarter next year, if Nvidia is lucky. The card is a bit finicky so make sure you have a compatible mobo.

We be jammin XP2400/9700Pro/7VAXP/XP Home

 

[10GHZ]

ye i agree, you can't always wait for the greatest, so just bite the bullet and go get a 9700pro