Well first off I'm new here so let me just say hi, now I was wondering which card should I buy I want to choose between these to graphic cards ATI radeon X1300Pro or should I take the Radeon X700 super they are both 512m and I am looking to play such games as Elder Scroll Oblivion, Fear, Heroes of might and magic V. I would like to know which one would run the games smoother and which one is going to last me the longest. Or if any of you have any better ones that you think are good and under $150 then please share with me.

Look at walmart for thier Geforce 6000

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hi

i would go with the Radeon X700, ive always had a radeon and its never let me down, it runs games gr8 and my card / system never overheats, hope this helps, urs dave

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Most Of Your Computer Problems Can Be Solved With A Sledge Hammer

OK, First off, what is the graphics slot on your computer. I'm assuming it is PCI Express judging by your choices. Please tell me otherwise.

By '512m', if you mean 512MB, that doesn't matter. For graphics cards the amount of RAM usually doesn't matter especially for those cards. It burns me up when people assume since it has 256MB it is faster than all other cards with 128MB. What you need to be concerned about is the graphics card you are getting. Don't worry about the amount of RAM is has.

From my own personal experience, I recommend the GeForce 6600GT. It is about $140 USD. That "GT" is important because without it, you won't get much better performance than that X700 or X1300 Pro. The GT will give outstanding performance. The X1300 is not the kind of card to buy and the X700 is along the same performance. You can get a much better performing 6600GT for the same or less the price. I had the pleasure of giving this card a test run at a friend's house and I was surprised to see that it performed better than my ATI 9800 Pro at lower resolutions (1024x768).

For only $100, you can buy this card at Newegg.

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.

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If you have any questions you can email me at zack.schmid@gmail.com.

So you are saying that if I get that Gefore 6600 GT that I will be able to play Oblivion smoothly?

Well, it entirely depends on your definition of smooth. If you are like me, you have a high framerate tolerance. I can find games playable at 20fps+, but others can't play games at less tha 40fps. But for less than or equal to $150 you'd be hardpressed to find something with the same amount of power.

A 6600GT is really pushing it on Oblivion, if you want the best graphics it has to offer. My 9800 Pro can sometimes sneak down to 4 or 5 fps in highly detailed areas. But in other enviroments it keeps a constant 30. Mind you, that is with all the graphics settings except antialiasing at there highest. The 6600GT should ordinarily do slightly better than my card. But if you seriously rack up the graphics, the bottleneck 128bit memory interface starts to show its true colors. After that, my card would slightly overtake yours due to its 256bit memory interface. I'd say that if you put the graphics on medium quality you shouldn't have too much trouble.

Another option is the GeForce 6800. I noticed that it has come down in price significantly but I don't have any experience with that card. If it is as fast as I think it is, for about $160 you could have much better performance. I suggest reading some reviews and benchmarks on the 6800. Keep in mind that I'm not talking about the 6800GT or XT, or Ultra, or whatever. Just the plain old vanilla 6800. If you like what you read in the reviews, I would definitely spend the extra money on the 6800.

If you have the time, compare the 6600GT and the 6800. Then if you have anymore questions just ask.

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If you have any questions you can email me at zack.schmid@gmail.com.

hi there i agree with Schmidget 6600gt is a fantastic card extreamly fast and will last you for a good couple of years!!!

The 7600 GS is a good bet; it should be roughly in the same price range and will out perform the 6600 GT. Having another pipeline quad gives it a bit more muscle, and it also has improved pixel shader efficiency, which is very positive in games like F.E.A.R and Oblivion. I couldn't comment on how well it will play current and future games, but if features are turned down sufficiently, it should be able to produce playable frame rates.