TechSpot compares today's top mainstream graphics products in single-card and multi-card (SLI & Crossfire) modes.

Last week Nvidia launched their first GeForce 9 series product and surprisingly it was not a $500+ high performance part. Instead, they unveiled the GeForce 9600 GT which is currently priced at $180 and already available in large quantities.

AMD/ATI were quick to cut prices across the mainstream Radeon HD 3800 series immediately after the GeForce 9600 release, and instead of going head to head with the HD 3850, the GeForce 9600 GT will have to meet with the more capable Radeon HD 3870. This card is now being sold in the $190 price range, which is a great value considering it was considerably more expensive just a month ago.

The great debate right now is which of these two graphics cards, the new GeForce 9600 GT or the Radeon HD 3870, is faster and represents the best value for gamers. We have put both products to the test in both single card and multi-GPU mode (SLI and Crossfire) to determine which product is king in the sub-$200 graphics market.

http://www.techspot.com/article/88-geforce-9600gt-versus-radeon-hd3870/

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I wonder if the dramatic price cut on this new GFX card from Nvidia has anything to do with the new gaming alliance they're with?

It is March 20th and I have yet to see the "dramatic price cuts" happen for the ATI parts. Might be time to revisit this write-up and fix that.

AMD/ATI were quick to cut prices across the mainstream Radeon HD 3800 series immediately after the GeForce 9600 release, and instead of going head to head with the HD 3850, the GeForce 9600 GT will have to meet with the more capable Radeon HD 3870. This card is now being sold in the $190 price range, which is a great value considering it was considerably more expensive just a month ago.

We said that the card was now being sold at $190 US which it was...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125086

Furthermore...

http://www.legionhardware.com/Board/viewtopic.php?t=3588

wonder how much better a 8800gtx is?

Well in the review linked below (GeForce 8800 GTS 512 review) we did test the Radeon HD 3870 and the GeForce 8800 GTX and since the GeForce 9600 GT's performance is very similar to the Radeon HD 3870 this should give you some idea...

http://www.techspot.com/review/79-geforce-8800-gts-512/page2.html