| For the "July best gaming cards for the buck" article, they do indeed list the 8600gt as best card for ~$115, but list the 7900gs as best at $140:
8600gt:
Prices of the new midrange DirectX 10 video cards have dropped like a rock in the past month. The 8600 GT was a terrible buy at $150, but now, as it approaches the $100 price point it's much more attractive. The 8600 GT will slightly beat the old 7600 GT and X1650 XT in raw performance in the $115 price category. In addition to speed, the 8600 GT has the added bonus of being DirectX 10 compatible, as well as being a good overclocker.
7900gs:
Essentially, the card is an overclocked 7800 GT, sporting a 256-bit memory bus and decent clock speeds; it's a very good performer and a solid card for the money.
This, of course, does lead to the neverending discussion about ram vs clock speed vs memory interface on a video card. Stock core clock on the 8600gt is 10mhz slower than the 7900gs, ram speed is the same, and for about $20 cheaper, MSI has a 8600gt with half the ram of the above 7900gs and half the memory interface bandwidth. So.... I'd save $40 but be able to do Dx10? Nah, I think I'll pass. MSI also has an overclocked-out-of-the-box 8600gt, and while still cheaper than their 7900, is still half the ram and ram interface.
as close to apples=apples comparason as I could get |
