3870 or 8800 gs?

[Terzo]

I'm looking to upgrade my video card and trying to keep it under 100 dollars. I've found two good deals so far. My friend is also looking to upgrade with his video card, although we have two main differences.

His screen resolution is 1440x900 and he uses windows.
My screen resolution is 1680x1050, and I dual boot windows and ubuntu.

8800 gs ($90.00 AR shipped)

3870 ($100.00 AR shipped)

First off, I've looked around and it seems like the 3870 is a better card, if only slightly. At least, I gather it's worth an extra 10 bucks over the 8800. I'm still not quite sure which route to go though, so I have a few questions.

1. I assume that at 1440x900 they'll be about even, but that the 3870 will pull ahead at 1680x1050. Is this true, and if so would that mean the 8800 is better for the lower resolution while the 3870 is better for the higher resolution?

2. For linux it seems to me that nvidia has better driver support. Is getting a 3870 for linux just asking for trouble, or will it work just as well as a geforce?

So which card do you guys suggest? From what I gather the 3870 is a better card, but I'm can't figure out how much better.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

That 3870 has GDDR3 (as opposed to GDDR4), so its essentially a 3850 with the chip running at 3870 speed...that being said, I'd still definitely take it over the 8800GS. Not only should it offer superior performance, but that's a Zalman hs/fan so it should run relatively cool and quiet and even allow for some overclocking if interested. More memory bandwidth and buffer should help the 3870 on larger resolutions as well as outpace the 8800GS into the future.

Can't really comment on Linux, I know nVidia has been a big preference in the past but I've also heard AMD is really working hard to change things there

I can see the sort of conundrum though, @ 1440x900 your friend can't really go too wrong either way. But considering you dual boot, you might want to go ahead and bite the bullet and go for the 3870.

Do you need both cards right away at the same time? You could always get the 3870 first, try it, and if it doesn't work out, have that be the card for your friend...(although you'd want to make sure the 8800GS would work out better before you commit )

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

3870 with DDR4

recently i spotted a DDR4 3870 open box for 126 at the egg. the 3870 im using now was an open box 3870 from the egg

 

[lopri]

Can you imagine that we were paying ~$200 for 8600 GT and 2600 XT just a year ago? I bought one 8600 GT for $180. At least it wasn't for my system. (but my money was spent)

/end idiotic off-topic

 

[Terzo]

Originally posted by: bunnyfubbles
That 3870 has GDDR3 (as opposed to GDDR4), so its essentially a 3850 with the chip running at 3870 speed...that being said, I'd still definitely take it over the 8800GS. Not only should it offer superior performance, but that's a Zalman hs/fan so it should run relatively cool and quiet and even allow for some overclocking if interested. More memory bandwidth and buffer should help the 3870 on larger resolutions as well as outpace the 8800GS into the future.

Can't really comment on Linux, I know nVidia has been a big preference in the past but I've also heard AMD is really working hard to change things there

I can see the sort of conundrum though, @ 1440x900 your friend can't really go too wrong either way. But considering you dual boot, you might want to go ahead and bite the bullet and go for the 3870.

Do you need both cards right away at the same time? You could always get the 3870 first, try it, and if it doesn't work out, have that be the card for your friend...(although you'd want to make sure the 8800GS would work out better before you commit )

Thanks, I think we'll take the amd route. As for linux, I've looked around and decided that I should be able to handle whatever hassles may pop up.
Also, I don't really understand video memory; how much of a difference does ddr3 vs ddr4 make?

Originally posted by: BTRY B 529th FA BN
3870 with DDR4

recently i spotted a DDR4 3870 open box for 126 at the egg. the 3870 im using now was an open box 3870 from the egg

Is the ddr4 really worth a 25% increase in price? We're trying to keep this under $100.

Originally posted by: lopri
Can you imagine that we were paying ~$200 for 8600 GT and 2600 XT just a year ago? I bought one 8600 GT for $180. At least it wasn't for my system. (but my money was spent)

/end idiotic off-topic

Yeah, I'm grateful for the 8800gt and 48xx cards. I tend to skimp on graphics (I think the most I paid was ~125 for 9800 pro), so I wouldn't really be looking if those two cards hadn't driven prices so low.

 

[HOOfan 1]

how about a 9600 GT for $120-$10 Rebate= $109 after MIR

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814186037

 

[JPB]

Get this and overclock to HD 3870 speeds.

 

[Terzo]

The 9600 GT seems nice, but with shipping factored in it's an extra 20 dollars over the 3870, or 30 over the 8800.
Similarly, the 3850 comes in at roughly 100 bucks with shipping...why not get the 3870 in that case?

I'm trying to keep the cost at no more than $100. The only reason I considered the 3870 over the 8800 is due to the free shipping....if the 8800 had free shipping (which would make a 20 dollar difference between the cards) I would have jumped on that no questions.

 

[JPB]

9600 GSO

9600 GT priced the same as a HD 3870

9600 GSO ....$80 AMIR

 

[Jax Omen]

to add what JPB said, the 9600GSO *IS* the 8800GS, so get whichever of those two is cheaper, period.

 

[RussianSensation]

I'd go for the $100 HD3870 you linked. It has an aftermarket cooler already and more ram than the 9600GSO. 384 is just not sufficient anymore. Plus it has free shipping.

For linux, go with an Nvidia card though.

 

[GundamF91]

if you go under 100, then definitely the 3870. But if you're willing to go more, definitely get the 4850 for $145 after rebate. That's the best deal running, and you'll much more life out of it.

 

[taltamir]

if you are going to pay 130 for open box, might as well get an 8800GT 512MB with after market cooler...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...?Item=N82E16814121224R

Like that one from asus. It outperforms the 9600GT and the 3870.

I would look around, there has to be a better deal for it somewhere other then newegg.

Or you coul get:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814125089
100-30 MIR for an 8800GT with after market cooler but only 256MB of ram... not as fast as the 512MB version, but sitll pretty nice. For lower resolutions like 1280x1024 and some 1650x1080 as well) it should still outperform both the 9600GT and the 3870.

I somehow doubt you have a 24 inch monitor, so this might be a better deal for you.
If you DO, then the 3870 will win due to the extra ram. but it still costs more.

 

[Terzo]

taltamir-I have a 20" monitor, but everything I've seen says I'd ideally want 512 mb of ram. Besides, I thought screen resolution (not the actual screen size) was what mattered (i.e. 1680x1050 is no more taxing on a 22" monitor than a 20" monitor).

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

yes, the DDR4 is worth it, Advertising a 3870 with DDR3 is too close to the specs on a 3850 ... ATI's architect is more dependent on their memory for speed as we now see on the 4870 with the DDR5, but the 3870 with DDR3 is not the way to go.

 

[ike989]

Originally posted by: JPB
9600 GSO

9600 GT priced the same as a HD 3870

9600 GSO ....$80 AMIR

Just wanted to point out something interesting with the ASUS 9600GSO's.

The first one shown was the ASUS 9600 GSO TOP. It has 384mb of GDDR3 memory at 192-bit clocked at 1800mhz. The specs can be seen at the egg.

The second one shown was the ASUS 9600 GSO MAGIC. It has 512mb of GDD2 memory at 128-bit, clocked at 1000mhz.

Even though the MAGIC card has more memory, I would consider the TOP versions simply for the difference in memory. The core on the MAGIC is also 50mhz slower. And they are only $5 difference at the egg.

 

[schneiderguy]

Originally posted by: RussianSensation

For linux, go with an Nvidia card though.

ATI's linux drivers are on par with nvidia's.

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: schneiderguy

Originally posted by: RussianSensation

For linux, go with an Nvidia card though.

ATI's linux drivers are on par with nvidia's.

Most users that have used Linux seem to report that ATi drivers for linux are sub-par.

 

[Terzo]

An end to my tale, I came across a used 8800gt for $80 and that's what I'm running now.

 

[MTDEW]

Originally posted by: Terzo
An end to my tale, I came across a used 8800gt for $80 and that's what I'm running now.

Wow, thats an awesome deal. :thumbsup:

 

[bunnyfubbles]

yes, that is very good deal, congrats and happy gaming :beer: