Hello,
This will be a quite lengthy thread with a few questions I am seeking answers to . So if you have time and can offer me some thoughtful advice, please do so!
Here's my scenario. I'm not sure whether to buy a brand new custom system, or just upgrade a few vital components (mb, cpu, ram, vid). If I buy a brand new system, I'll have to wait quite some time since I would have to save money and also buy it at a good time. If I upgrade a few vital components, it could be a waste of money because I could just wait a few months to buy a new and better system. Anyways, let's just say I'm going with the upgrades and I've decided what mb, cpu and ram to get, but stuck with the vid card.
Here are my questions:
1) I'm not really a big fan of spending lots of money for the best things out there anymore (I learned my lesson after buying my Radeon 7200 the first fiew weeks it came out). I'm more of a saver and not a spender. I like to buy old, but still decent products, such as the Radeon 8500. If I were to buy a ATI Radeon 8500 128 MB DDR Retail Vid Card, how much does it cost nowadays? Since the product is discontinued but still supported by ATI, I believe the price should drop drastically. The last time I saw the prices, it was $250 Canadian. If my predictions are right, it should be only $125 more or less. I live in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by the way. Does anyone know how much the 8500 costs and where I can get one in Toronto Ontario?
2) I'm also curious about the newer video cards released these few months. I'm wondering how the Radeon 8500 128 MB DDR, Radeon 9000 PRO 128MB DDR, Radeon 9500 PRO 128 MB DDR and the nVidia Ti4200 128 and nVidia Ti4400 compare (all AGP 4x) cause if they all have similar performance and features, why buy the most expensive one when the cheapest one could do almost the same job? But obviously if there is a big performance difference, paying a bit more would definitely be worth it! So does anyone have any benchmark or comparison charts for the Radeon 8500 128 MB DDR, Radeon 9000 PRO 128MB DDR, Radeon 9500 PRO 128 MB DDR and the nVidia Ti4200 128 and nVidia Ti4400? If you do, please post the link here, I really need to research which one has the most value
Remember, I'm more of a saver, not a spender! If I had the money, I'd buy a Radeon 9700 asap, but my money is needed for other things as well. But at the same time I need a decent performing video card with great value! IF anyone could help, I'd appreciate it!!!!!!!!
This will be a quite lengthy thread with a few questions I am seeking answers to . So if you have time and can offer me some thoughtful advice, please do so!
Here's my scenario. I'm not sure whether to buy a brand new custom system, or just upgrade a few vital components (mb, cpu, ram, vid). If I buy a brand new system, I'll have to wait quite some time since I would have to save money and also buy it at a good time. If I upgrade a few vital components, it could be a waste of money because I could just wait a few months to buy a new and better system. Anyways, let's just say I'm going with the upgrades and I've decided what mb, cpu and ram to get, but stuck with the vid card.
Here are my questions:
1) I'm not really a big fan of spending lots of money for the best things out there anymore (I learned my lesson after buying my Radeon 7200 the first fiew weeks it came out). I'm more of a saver and not a spender. I like to buy old, but still decent products, such as the Radeon 8500. If I were to buy a ATI Radeon 8500 128 MB DDR Retail Vid Card, how much does it cost nowadays? Since the product is discontinued but still supported by ATI, I believe the price should drop drastically. The last time I saw the prices, it was $250 Canadian. If my predictions are right, it should be only $125 more or less. I live in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by the way. Does anyone know how much the 8500 costs and where I can get one in Toronto Ontario?
2) I'm also curious about the newer video cards released these few months. I'm wondering how the Radeon 8500 128 MB DDR, Radeon 9000 PRO 128MB DDR, Radeon 9500 PRO 128 MB DDR and the nVidia Ti4200 128 and nVidia Ti4400 compare (all AGP 4x) cause if they all have similar performance and features, why buy the most expensive one when the cheapest one could do almost the same job? But obviously if there is a big performance difference, paying a bit more would definitely be worth it! So does anyone have any benchmark or comparison charts for the Radeon 8500 128 MB DDR, Radeon 9000 PRO 128MB DDR, Radeon 9500 PRO 128 MB DDR and the nVidia Ti4200 128 and nVidia Ti4400? If you do, please post the link here, I really need to research which one has the most value
Remember, I'm more of a saver, not a spender! If I had the money, I'd buy a Radeon 9700 asap, but my money is needed for other things as well. But at the same time I need a decent performing video card with great value! IF anyone could help, I'd appreciate it!!!!!!!!