The graphics card market is moving so quickly that it is extremely difficult to keep up with it all, unless you are a real enthusiast and watch all product releases, price drops and updates carefully. For this reason we've introduced a monthly buyer's guide series for graphics cards called Best Video Cards for Your Money. Don Woligroski has a close eye on graphics products and retail prices, and assembles a list of best buys for you!

If you're looking for a serious graphics performance upgrade, we recommend going for products in the $300 price range, such as Leadtek's PX7950GT TDH. Should you be looking for something more affordable, or for AGP graphics, please have a look at this article.

Of course, the PX7950GT is only one of dozens of possible choices. It is based on Nvidia's GeForce 7950GT graphics chip (G71), running the graphics processor at 600 MHz and the 256 MB GDDR3 memory at 715 MHz (1430 MHz double data rate). Note that this is already somewhat overclocked, as Nvidia specifies 550/700 MHz. It is a current-generation graphics solution with 24 pixel shaders, and provides plenty of graphics power for the latest 3D games. To compare performance, please check out our Interactive VGA Charts.