Nvidia or ATI...that is the question??? Hardware Requirements Discuss Nvidia or ATI...that is the question??? in the Installing and Upgrading Vista forums; I'm on kind of a tight budget and was wondering which video card would work best with Vista, Nvidia's GeForce FX 5200 GPUs or ATI's Radeon X300? ...

[Nigel]

I'm on kind of a tight budget and was wondering which video card would work best with Vista, Nvidia's GeForce FX 5200 GPUs or ATI's Radeon X300? I know nothing about video cards as I am an audio junkie.

I'm just looking for a card to get me by for now because in about 6 months i'm going to rebuild my system.

[crabby]

There is a comparison chart here:

http://techreport.com/etc/comparo/graphics/

The ATI has a higher spec than the Nvidia. So may leak some extra performance, but Nvidia are known for better support of non-standard operating systems. For instance I just installed Vista x64 and it was fine until I installed my ATI beta drivers and now it wont boot! And I also use linux and ATI have a real problem creating xorg 7.0 drivers.

Both will work fine for vista desktop... if you are on a real budget get whichever is cheaper... if you want support go for Nvidia... if you want performance go for ATI.

crabby

[Nigel]

Who's better than you Crabby, thanks.

[Seansmit17]

Id always go for an nvida card.. even tho i know ATI is better some of the time. Ive never had an ATI card before, ive had either sis, nvidia or intel graphics. Its a case of sticking to what i know and i know nvidia cards! Think when i upgrade my 7300 in a few months ill get an ATI card and see how it goes

[crabby]

Do not grab an ATI card in the next few months. The top range cards are all in favor of Nvidia right now as it is, AND if you buy now you will miss out on GDDR4 (a new type of RAM) and the new DX10 cards just around the corner!!! (Oh btw, ATI are on a come back with next-gen cards)

Wait 6 months... maybe 8... definately no more than a year... just think if you can put up with what you have!

crabby

[Nigel]

Even though i'm buying a low level Vista compatiable card you still that that Nvidia is where it is at right now Crabby?

Sorry

[crabby]

Yeah... grab an Nvidia card and you wont be disappointed (at least I hope not). But before you buy, tell me... do you play games? Do you just use desktop apps? What IS your budget? And are you willing to buy off the net?

I'll find you a great card if you give me that info! For instance... I found a GeForce 6200 for £26!

crabby

[Seansmit17]

Take a look on ebay. also ebuyer.co.uk or .com if your in the US i got a new BFG 7300GS PCI-E for £50!! and thats cheap!

[crabby]

:O That is cheap!!! Buts that PCI-E. and I am pretty sure he needs AGP which arent as easy to come by on ebay, aren't certainly aren't such a bargain Oh and I just remembered... ITS EBAY!!!! They would steal your shoes if you werent wearing them

Lets wait and see what Nigel's answers to my questions are first?

crabby

[Nigel]

Originally Posted by crabby

Yeah... grab an Nvidia card and you wont be disappointed (at least I hope not). But before you buy, tell me... do you play games? Do you just use desktop apps? What IS your budget? And are you willing to buy off the net?

I'll find you a great card if you give me that info! For instance... I found a GeForce 6200 for £26!

crabby

I don't play games, I do some video editing of my daughter for DVD's and am a music junkie (I produce music mainly with my computer). My budget is about $50 - $70 so that when I get my beta copy from Microsoft I can use it because right now the picture in VMware is unusable with the torrent that you linked me to. I am also willing to buy off of the web.

I will eventually be spending some more money on a better video card once my wedding and honeymoon passes me by (which is in about a week and a half, ).