Best Graphics Cards For The Money: January 2012 (Archive)

[outlw6669]

im asking about the r7 graphics in amd 10 7850k...r7 250 or 250X...and wat about 4th gen intel hd graphics??

The R7 250 is already included as both DDR3 and GDDR5 variants.

With fast memory, the A10-7850K's R7 is about 2/3 of the way between the performance of an R7 240 and R7 250.
It should end up either in the 9800 GT/HD 4830 tier or 8800 GTX/HD 4770 tier.

It is a little harder for me to place the HD 4600, but I would guess it is around a 7800 GTX performance wise.

 

[Mads Henriksen]

Highcharts have changed the location of some of their files, so the comparison chart is no longer visible 🙁

 

[vwmomo]

The chart isnt showing up anymore on the site here. Thank you for all your work I never buy a graphics card without checking your stats.

 

[Deleted member 1480971]

I need a 350$ (max price) 3GB gaming gpu (any size) for my desktop
which of them is best?I need really high speeds and a gpu which is able to run a game at top performance

 

[vertexx]

I need a 350$ (max price) 3GB gaming gpu (any size) for my desktop
which of them is best?I need really high speeds and a gpu which is able to run a game at top performance

You can get a 3GB R9 280x in the $320-350 range. Take your pick out of this round-up:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-r9-280x-third-party-round-up,3655.html

My own recommendation would be either Gigabyte, Sapphire Tri-X, or Powercolor (not in the article).

Another alternative is the GTX 770, but your choices are either 2GB or 4GB. 4GB versions start at $350 and range up to over $400.

The 770 is 5-10% faster than the R9 280x for gaming. Both are excellent choices for your price range & requirements.

 

[stazang]

Why not mention the 265 instead of the 260x price is not much different but has crossfire capability to add another card in the future or right away @ this price? Is there a review that highlights SLI and Crossfire vs higher end cards?

 

[Nevinvv]

im asking about the r7 graphics in amd 10 7850k...r7 250 or 250X...and wat about 4th gen intel hd graphics??

The R7 250 is already included as both DDR3 and GDDR5 variants.

With fast memory, the A10-7850K's R7 is about 2/3 of the way between the performance of an R7 240 and R7 250.
It should end up either in the 9800 GT/HD 4830 tier or 8800 GTX/HD 4770 tier.

It is a little harder for me to place the HD 4600, but I would guess it is around a 7800 GTX performance wise.

thank you outlw6669

 

[CaptainTom]

I seriously wonder if Tom's understands what "Best for the Money" means. The 750 Ti, and especially the 780 Ti are the definition of something that is NOT the best for your money...

 

[Someone Somewhere]

The 750Ti could be the best for your money if you include the price of a new PSU.

 

[Sakkura]

I seriously wonder if Tom's understands what "Best for the Money" means. The 750 Ti, and especially the 780 Ti are the definition of something that is NOT the best for your money...

The 750 Ti is not recommended, it only gets an honorable mention due to its low power draw and not needing a 6-pin PCIe power connector. The GTX 780 Ti also is not recommended, it gets an honorable mention for being the fastest single-GPU gaming card out there. They specifically address the price/performance of each card:

The GTX 750 Ti doesn't earn a full recommendation for value, but it just may be the best option for gamers upgrading old or small form factor systems.

A relatively high price tag prevents this board from becoming a value leader, but we're giving the GeForce GTX 780 Ti an honorable mention for its blazing-fast performance.

 

[de5_Roy]

it's kinda nice to see the radeon r9 295x2 sitting right in the middle of the top row of the 3 columns on the gpu hierarchy chart. alludes to "peak" performance.

I seriously wonder if Tom's understands what "Best for the Money" means. The 750 Ti, and especially the 780 Ti are the definition of something that is NOT the best for your money...

neither card received recommendations, only hon. mentions due to their specific advantages in specific cases. in those specific cases, both cards can be best for money.

 

[Guest]

Do you guys know if those prices will go down in Europe too?

 

[IRONBATMAN]

I was once choosing between the R9 270x / R9 270 and the GTX 760. The R9 270x comes with 2 free games that are way better than Nvidia's single Watch dogs promo which was eligible for US customers only.

At this price point, the alternate AMD , Nvidia ladder increases by 50 usd and Framerates aren't significantly better.

so I decided to get the 206 usd Gigabyte R9 270x , sell both game codes, and enjoy 40+++ FPS in all games. I'll probably get a new upgrade when the new line of cards from both companies.

sure , I don't get PhysX, but it basically adds more smoke, cloths, and clutter to explosions.

people say that AMD's drivers are horrible, but my HD 7770 driver installation was smooth as silk.

In conclusion, why pay 50 usd more for the GTX 760 and get around 5-8 FPS, and more clutter on my screen ?

 

[Sakkura]

Do you guys know if those prices will go down in Europe too?

They never really went up in Europe, so there's nothing for them to come down from.

 

[vertexx]

I was once choosing between the R9 270x / R9 270 and the GTX 760. The R9 270x comes with 2 free games that are way better than Nvidia's single Watch dogs promo which was eligible for US customers only.

At this price point, the alternate AMD , Nvidia ladder increases by 50 usd and Framerates aren't significantly better.

so I decided to get the 206 usd Gigabyte R9 270x , sell both game codes, and enjoy 40+++ FPS in all games. I'll probably get a new upgrade when the new line of cards from both companies.

sure , I don't get PhysX, but it basically adds more smoke, cloths, and clutter to explosions.

people say that AMD's drivers are horrible, but my HD 7770 driver installation was smooth as silk.

In conclusion, why pay 50 usd more for the GTX 760 and get around 5-8 FPS, and more clutter on my screen ?

I agree - the R9 270X is a better GPU for the $$ than the 760, but with AMD having the field covered everywhere else, I guess THG had to leave the 760 in there.

I have the MSI Gaming 270X for one of my boys' gaming PCs - it's in a Silverstone SG05 ITX build - and it has been a great buy. My nephew plays mostly Planetside II and wanted PhysX, so he opted for the 760. I think PhysX is mostly over-hyped, but who's to argue with an 8th-grader?

Enjoy the 270x!

 

[logainofhades]

The 750Ti could be the best for your money if you include the price of a new PSU.

Not to mention the PNY 1.20ghz model selling for the same price as models closer to the lower clocked models, generally.

 

[Onus]

The 750[Ti] needs to be released in a low profile, single slot version, like the HD7750.

 

[logainofhades]

The 750[Ti] needs to be released in a low profile, single slot version, like the HD7750.

I do not disagree with that one. I still want 3 of the PNY ones though to replace my HD 5850's and GTS 450 in my other rigs. Less power and heat would be welcome with summer coming. Has me considering selling my FX 8320's for something else also.

 

[netspiderz]

The best graphic card for the money are they one you get for free. As a gift or as a trade.

 

[Denis Stoikovski]

So why the 770 isn't in high end?

 

[vertexx]

So why the 770 isn't in high end?

Because R9 280X provides similar performance for less $$.

 

[folem]

Hey,the comments for the December guide are showing up on the page for the May guide.

 

[logainofhades]

That is because this is just one long continuous thread. Instead of a new thread every month, we have to deal with this monstrosity.

 

[Denis Stoikovski]

So why the 770 isn't in high end?

Because R9 280X provides similar performance for less $$.

Well i readed in other cites that 770 is high end

 

[de5_Roy]

That is because this is just one long continuous thread. Instead of a new thread every month, we have to deal with this monstrosity.

it's far more tolerable now with the sorting options. just select "sort by: most recent".

Well i readed in other cites that 770 is high end

it is high end but the recommended card is the better choice for money now. that's why that card got recommendation instead.