Grahpics card help please!

[SoulFire382]

Well, it looks like my dad's finally going to buy a new graphics card for our PC. (Our current one is an Nvidia Gforce 5200.)
He's looking at the ATI X850 XT, but I think we could use a second opinion on what to get. I always thought an Nvidia would be a better choice, and maybe, just maybe, a 7800GT would be a good buy because it'd last for years to come.

So, what I want to know is this: Should we stick with an ATI X850 XT, or go with something else?

[SoulFire382]

Well, it looks like my dad's finally going to buy a new graphics card for our PC. (Our current one is an Nvidia Gforce 5200.)
He's looking at the ATI X850 XT, but I think we could use a second opinion on what to get. I always thought an Nvidia would be a better choice, and maybe, just maybe, a 7800GT would be a good buy because it'd last for years to come.

So, what I want to know is this: Should we stick with an ATI X850 XT, or go with something else?

[Jason-Bourne223]

If he has the money, I'd say to go with the 7800. It ought to last for around 3-4 years anyway. I'm not a computer expert though.

Btw I'm flattered that you used a quote from me in your sig! http://forums.ubi.com/images/smilies/11.gif

[quillan]

First, I'm not sure how long it's going to be before he'll be willing up upgrade again, and secondly, I don't know what his limit is on what he's willing to spend. It sounds like he isn't one to upgrade a lot, and if so, get the absolute best you can. There is one problem with the 7800, however. You cannot fit it in your computer, as that card is PCI-Expresss only, and yours (since you've got an FX5200, which came out well before PCI-E) is AGP. You'll have to go one step back from that. Personally, I'd still recommend nVidia this time around. The X850XT might well outperform the nVidia competitor (I haven't really been keeping up with the high end benchmarks), but even if so, the 6800 Ultra supports Shader Model 3.0, while the X850XT does not. It's not important right now, but in a year or two it will be.

[SoulFire382]

Just got something that will effect his decision. A LOT.
He has a friend in the industry who works at ATI who offered to buy a card for him with the employee discount as long as he pays him back. This means he could get an X850 Platinum edition for around $200-300.
Thanks for the input, though. I only think the 7800 GT would be a better purchase because he doesn't upgrade much at all. The last time was in 2002. But I don't exactly go nuts if I can't turn up a next-gen game to maximum, so I think an X850 would last a while.