Video Card Superlatives

Fastest Single Card PCI-E Price: Unlimited

Based on a pair of GeForce 8800 GTS 512's, it's no surprise that the 9800 GX2 steals the performance crown from the Radeon 3870 X2. The only down side is the price.

Previous Title Holders: Radeon HD 3870 X2, GeForce 8800 Ultra, GeForce 8800 GTX, GeForce 7950 GX2, Radeon X1900 XTX

Fastest Single Card AGP Price: Unlimited

Radeon X1950 XT AGP

Availability of this card is sparse to say the least. But it is, without a doubt, the fastest agp card ever released.

Previous Title Holders: GeForce 7950 GT AGP, Radeon X1950 Pro AGP, Radeon X850 XT PE AGP, Radeon X800 XT PE AGP, GeForce 6800 Ultra AGP

Upper Midrange PCI-E Price: < $350

GeForce 8800 GTS 512MB

The 8800 GTS 512 is currently sitting a little over MSRP at around $320. Even at that ever-so-slightly inflated price, it's a unbelievable deal. I *highly* recommend it to anyone looking to spend a little more to get an appreciable performance increase over the 8800 GT.

Previous Title Holders: GeForce 8800 GT, GeForce 8800 GTS, Radeon X1950 XT PCI-E, Radeon X1900 XT, GeForce 7900 GT

Upper Midrange AGP Price: < $350

GeForce 7950 GT AGP

The 7950 GT AGP clocks in right around the $280 mark, so it grabs the title of fastest AGP card on the planet, as well as the fastest AGP card under $350.

Previous Title Holders: Radeon X1950 Pro AGP, GeForce 7800 GS AGP, Radeon X850 XT PE AGP, GeForce 6800 AGP, GeForce 6800 GT AGP

Midrange PCI-E Price: < $250

GeForce 8800 GT

Availability and pricing have ironed themselves out over the past month or two and the 512MB 8800 GT is now available for less than $250. The Radeon 3870 has leveled out at a price slightly higher than its MSRP which makes the 8800 GT a better deal. The 3870 definitely gets a big honorable mention here.

Previous Title Holders: Radeon HD 3870, Radeon X1950 XT PCI-E, Radeon X1950 Pro PCI-E, GeForce 7900 GT, GeForce 7600 GT PCI-E

Midrange AGP Price: < $250

Radeon X1950 Pro AGP

The X1950 Pro AGP is the best value out there right now if you're stuck with an AGP slot. However, I encourage anyone to do a system upgrade instead of dropping $200 on an AGP card.

Previous Title Holders: GeForce 7800 GS AGP, GeForce 6800 GS AGP, Radeon X800 GTO AGP, GeForce 6800 AGP

Lower Midrange PCI-E Price: < $150

Radeon HD 3850 PCI-E

I know I know, the Radeon HD 3850 currently lists for $179. However, I can't in good conscience recommend anyone spend $150 on a video card right now, when you can get nearly double the performance from a 3850 for only about $30 more!

Previous Title Holders: Radeon X1950 Pro PCI-E, GeForce 7600 GT PCI-E, Radeon X800 GTO PCI-E, GeForce 6600 GT PCI-E

Lower Midrange AGP Price: < $150

GeForce 7600 GT AGP

While there really is no one card that stands out at this price point, I'm giving the nod to the 7600 GT AGP, mostly because it's the easiest to find. Also take a look at the x1950 GT AGP, and the 7800 GS.

Previous Title Holders: GeForce 7600 GS AGP, GeForce 6600 GT AGP

Low End PCI-E Price: < $100

GeForce 8600 GT

The 8600 GT is now available for less than $100 and it's one of the best performing cards at this price point. Toss in great video decoding performance, and you have a winner. It's also been one of the most popular cards on the site for quite some time.

Previous Title Holders: GeForce 7600 GT PCI-E, GeForce 7600 GS PCI-E, GeForce 6600 DDR2 PCI-E, Radeon X700 PCI-E

Low End AGP Price: < $100

GeForce 7600 GS AGP

The 7600 GS takes a pretty decisive victory at the $100 price point. Things get really fuzzy at any price below this. Though the Radeon X1650 and the GeForce 7300 GT aren't too bad if you're looking for something a little cheaper.

Previous Title Holders: Radeon X1600 Pro AGP, Radeon X700 AGP, GeForce 6600 AGP