budget gfx card

another vote for the ti4200

another Ti4200 vote here too.. Stay away, far away from the FX5200:dead:

I had one and it lasted me a good while... I could've still used it technically, but I got a 9600XT as a gift so I sold it to someone else.

You'll push better frames for the older games, but not sure how they fare when DX9 and the newer generation games come into play... Anyone know how they compare in that case?

Well, there won't be much difference between the ti4200 and the FX5200 in next gen (DX9+) games...

The reason is that whilst the FX5200 is indeed a DX9 capable card (meaning it supports the features), it doesn't do so fast enough... Thus most (if not all) developers treats it like a DX8 card, and has it running that path...


Also, if you're going for the FX5200, make sure you get the 128bit version, and not the 64bit version... The 128bit is an ok performer, whereas the 64bit is not...

My vote would definately go for the ti4200.
Some people claims it also has better IQ than the FX5200, but I can't vouch for that...

I also wanted to recommend the ATi Radeon 9100 should you not find a GeForce4 Ti 4200 for $80 or under. They are great cards too, and Newegg.com sells the for about $70 as well.

Just make sure you get the 250/250MHz-clocked version.

also if you find a radeon 8500le/8500 for around $70 you should take it cuz they are actually 9100s