XFX GeForce 8800 GT

...step better is this, the XFX model. XFX are well known for their releases of video cards running at higher clock speeds than the standard manufactured card, while still maintaining very competitive prices. This card is great for enthusiastic gamers, but those who aren't confident enough to start overclocking all on their own. Out of the box this card is ready-overclocked and set to really make the most of your system.

The XFX8800 GT, ...
...the most demanding of games running with Microsoft's Direct X 10 technology, such as Crysis and Far Cry 2. Coupled with a good processor and ram, also natural necessities of a gaming pc, this card can handle the latest games with stunning results. Obviously it can't pump out everything on the highest settings with insane resolutions, as of course, that's for the real enthusiasts who put their monthly pay check on a graphics card that costs £300+
more

The stereotypical view of a gaming pc is that of a ludicrously expensive, liquid nitrogen cooled, supercomputer that has a case that looks like something out of a sci-fi film. But these days computer components are getting cheaper and cheaper and more and more capable. And the 8800GT is no exception. One step better is this, the XFX model. XFX are well known for their releases of video cards running at higher clock speeds than the standard manufactured card, while still maintaining very competitive prices. This card is great for enthusiastic gamers, but those who aren't confident enough to start overclocking all on their own. Out of the box this card is ready-overclocked and set to really make the most of your system.

The XFX8800 GT, can quite simply handle anything you throw at it, even the most demanding of games running with Microsoft's Direct X 10 technology, such as Crysis and Far Cry 2. Coupled with a good processor and ram, also natural necessities of a gaming pc, this card can handle the latest games with stunning results. Obviously it can't pump out everything on the highest settings with insane resolutions, as of course, that's for the real enthusiasts who put their monthly pay check on a graphics card that costs £300+

But nonetheless this certainly does the job, and when coupled with a Quad core 2.4 ghz processor and 4gb ram, it certainly wowed me. I got impressive results running the likes of aforementioned games Crysis and far cry 2 on relatively high settings on a 22" monitor with a resolution of 1900 X 1200 seemlessly. it really depends on the pc as a whole what results you get, there are tweaks you can make in game such as turning on and off advanced settings like anti-aliasing, perhaps even lowering the resolution. It really just depends on tweaking until you find a balance of graphical prowess and a smooth framerate, but rest assured, this card will mean high settings are certainly what you'll be aiming for in any game.

tech wise, it's maximum resolution is 2560 x 1600.
It has a core clock of 625 MHz
RAMDAC Clock Speed 400 MHz
Memory, a total of 1GB GDDR3 SDRAM 256-bit
Memory Clock Speed 1.8 GHz

While not as fast as some more pricier cards, it still has some good power behind it, and is further overclockable should you be willing. The 1GB memory is of course enormous and more than enough for running whatever application you can throw at it.

It has dual DVI monitor connections, and can easily run two monitors simultaneously. Depending on which package you buy and where from, you may or may not get the cables you're after. Check what it comes with before purchasing. mine came with a DVI to VGA monitor adapter, but no cables. Most graphics cards are the same, no cable but an adapter to convert from DVI to VGA. It also came with an S-video cable, which the card also supports should you wish to use it.

It has a standard PCi-express X16 connection and is reasonably sized so you should be able to get away with it not covering any pci slots, but expect a bit of a squeeze on the smaller motherboards!

The only problems experienced were the odd crash mid-game, but this was more down to the Nvidia driver, as soon as i rolled back to a previous driver problems were solved. Nvidia thankfully update their drivers quite regularly, but admittedly they are often released in beta form so can have a few bugs in there!

All in all, when buying a new graphics card, if this is very much in your price range you cannot really go wrong, it's powerful, quiet up until when the fan is spinning really fast, and good value for money. 

...less