The 23 Greatest Graphics Cards Of All Time

[les_garten]

I think you missed at least 4 significant cards.

How about:

Hercules Graphics Card 1984

Original NEC MultiSync Graphics Card (1986) The Card that Really got this Party Started. Pay Homage!

TSENG Labs ET4000/ET6000 (1990)

Number Nine Graphics "Ticket to Ride" (1995)

 

[silverblue]

[citation][nom]stm1185[/nom]No 8800gt, no 4850, gtx 460... these were the greatest cards the ones that gave huge performance boosts at the midrange, power to the masses! Not those $1000 ovens almost no one has![/citation]
True, but they weren't the fastest cards at the time.

 

[cypeq]

[citation][nom]les_garten[/nom]I think you missed at least 4 significant cards.How about:Hercules Graphics Card 1984Original NEC MultiSync Graphics Card (1986) The Card that Really got this Party Started. Pay Homage!TSENG Labs ET4000/ET6000 (1990)Number Nine Graphics "Ticket to Ride" (1995)[/citation]
grandpa who let you use internet you may find some naked woman by accident and get heart attack ;D

 

[billiardicus]

Either the title or the article itself needs to be changed. These may be the most powerful cards in their respective time frame, but they are certainly not the greatest. If you want to talk about the greatest, no list that omits the 8800gt can be considered credible. Power alone does not equal greatness. Power, efficiency, ability to fit in a case, reliability, and value are also important. The 8800gt reigned supreme for quite awhile.

 

[checkout]

Expected to see 5870 on the list as well, since it took nvidia some time to put something against it.

 

[bak0n]

The best time I can recall in gaming was playing Quake team fortress with dual voodoo 2's and a newly release technology called the cable modem. Ahh, to be a high frame rate, 3DFX graphical enabled, low ping b....... Those were the days.

 

[bizzzorro]

I am waiting for my Voodoo1 to be considered a valuable collecting part, so I can sell it for millions. :lol:

 

[cleeve]

Either the title or the article itself needs to be changed. These may be the most powerful cards in their respective time frame, but they are certainly not the greatest.

That is completely dependent on how you define greatest, and that's clearly laid out on the first page.

As mentioned previously, we may follow up with a list of the cards that provided the best price/performance in their day. But this list remains quite valid.

 

[Guest]

Please, please spell check. "Independant," really??

 

[silverblue]

Amusingly, the forum thread for this article concerns the 23 greatest, whilst the article itself mentions 22.

In any case, this list is of the performance leaders throughout the past 15 years, not the most popular nor the best designed. Don't make my mistake and wish for something to go in there that doesn't belong... otherwise Cookie Monster will go to town on yo ass (or something).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WhuikFY1Pg

 

[godnodog]

The 8800 series are probably the all time (so far) best chip.

I have an old Athlon X2 4600+ with an 8800GT and I play everyhing Csisis 1 n 2, all thanks to the 8800 series.
Wish I could afford an upgrade.

 

[chudei]

Proud owner of a x1850xtx, that thing still packs.

 

[Miharu]

You forget all the ATi AIW. 3D wasn't that awesome by they have startrek functionnality that come include in most Nvidia card since TNT2.
Connect the tv cable or the vcr directly in your card and capture a video. Great old time.

 

[Guest]

I'm still running my 9800 Pro in my HTPC. Hasn't missed a beat.

 

[pjmelect]

You didn’t mention the Matrox graphics cards the G100, G200 and the G400. In its day the G400 was the best buy for a short while.

 

[JocPro]

How come nobody has mentioned that the 3dfx chips in the voodoo graphics make great keychains? Just drill a hole in a corner, put a ring and chain thingy in it, and ta-da you get two keychains for the price of a great 3d accelerator

 

[verbalizer]

XFX 8600GT XXX OC 256MB and/or 512MB versions.
I still have the 256MB version to this day.
My son uses it in his unit, he's almost 6.....

 

[clonazepam]

I owned 2-5, 7,and 9. None will be as memorable as the Geforce256. lol I remember when the Everquest patch came out that enabled hardware transform and lighting... lol... so basically torches on walls now gave shadows and better lighting effects... still ugly a$$ game, now with a what, $3-500 graphics card? Of course, the TNT card made quake II will standout too.

Ahhh.. the good old days when you had to spend over $300 just to get a good graphics card... /sarcasm

 

[Guest]

Not too suprising, as most of these cards are the first of each hardware design shift... If you're interested though, I wrote a nice paper about the history and evolution of GPU hardware, where most of these cards are mentioned in detail as well : http://mcclanahoochie.com/blog/2011/03/the-history-and-evolution-of-gpu-hardware/

 

[Mickel116]

really?? only the flag high end cards? how about the 8800GT or the the radeon 8500. or geforce 6600? they were awesome..

 

[clonazepam]

My laptop was a viable gaming machine there for a little while with its mobility radeon x600... 1280x800 w/ good settings lasted me a good while til I went back to the desktop setup and sporting a 7900 GT, and then later 2 of them, for a very short while til a PSU killed 1 'em off.

Thanks Don for the trip down memory lane...

 

[gidgiddonihah]

Interesting article .

 

[BeeDead]

Where is my old Trident 512KB on ISA or TSENG ET4000 W32I for Vesa Local Bus - a think the first with special 2D acceleration (for some pool games)? This are the most popular cards for very old times...

 

[bhaberle]

Mmm I enjoyed this very much. Though I didn't start following the video card marketing till the 8800gtx. And at that time, all I could do was the 8800gt.

 

[jaliska]

A Ti 4600 was what I used for my first ever build. Treated me right!