Time to Upgrade GF3 Ti200?

[MJedi]

Hello,

I've been thinking of replacing my Asus GF3 Ti200 with one of the mid-range cards (around $200) but I'm wondering if now is a good time to upgrade, or is it even worth it if games don't take advantage of the newer cards' features. Also, will my CPU be the bottleneck for the new card? My CPU is an Athlon XP 1700+ and I have 512 MB DDR-RAM.

So, if I do decide to buy a new card, what card should it be? I can only afford the mid-range cards. I've liked NVidia's cards but I'm seeing better benchmarks with ATI these days. So, the cards I see within my budget is an NVidia FX 5700 Ultra, ATI 9600 Pro, or ATI 9600 XT. The reviews say the 9600 XT is not much better than the 9600 Pro but since I'll be replacing an old card, I would think that the XT would be the way to go.

Any opinions will be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[kinney]

Why does everyone go to the midrange cards? Pony up the extra dough and get a 9800Pro, it will last that much longer. I'd save up more money, its only $50-$100 more and unless you're returning pop cans to make your money that isnt much.

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I just tell it like it is and some can't handle it. If your experience is different, well congratu-fukulation.
<b>I’M NOT A ATI FANBOY, I’M NOT A NV FANBOY, I’M A STABILITY FANBOY</b>

 

[Michaelius]

I recently upgraded my g3ti200 to 9700np on a similar setup and I must say I'm rather unimpressed as I was expecting a bit more from a card which costs 3 times as much as g3. But in 200$ price range try looking for 9800np or 5900nu.