Final Words

While still not quite being what we would call a “mid-range” card, the 7800 GT comes a step closer to it. At about $390 (at the time that this article was written), the XFX 7800 GT puts a noticeably smaller strain on your wallet than the GTX. Meanwhile, it still provides comparable performance at decent resolutions. The lowest priced 7800 GTX that we could find was the MSI NX7800 GTX for about $480; almost $100 more than XFX's factory overclocked 7800 GT. Considering what we've seen in our performance tests, this is a pretty sweet deal, and we feel that those looking for a high end card would not be missing out by choosing the 7800 GT over the GTX.

Those who might still want the GTX over the GT are those who like playing at the highest resolutions possible (and have the monitors to do so) with AA enabled. The majority of gamers, however, will be more than pleased with how well this card handles at 1600x1200 with or without AA. We even found that when enabling ultra high quality in Doom 3 at 1600x1200, the game ran just as smoothly on the GT as on the GTX.

If you are on a tight budget though, it's a sad fact that this card is still quite a bit out of your reach. It will be hard for some to justify paying $400 on a graphics card, but if ever there was a reason to do so, then this is it. Coming in at the same price point that the 6800 GT occupied at its launch, the 7800 GT is quite a worthy replacement. Because of the great performance that we see with this card, we feel that it's worth the splurge if you can manage it, especially if you want to make newer games look good and run smoothly. We feel that this card (the XFX GeForce 7800 GT Overclocked) is also a particularly good deal at $390 because of the factory overclock, which puts it closer to the GTX in terms of performance.

We'll be looking at how the different 7800 GTs compare to each other as we review them, so be on the lookout for another 7800 GT article soon. We want to make these reviews as helpful as possible, so any comments or suggestions that you have regarding tests, cards, or anything else, please let us know.

Power, Heat & Noise
Comments Locked

33 Comments

View All Comments

  • KayKay - Tuesday, August 30, 2005 - link

    I had made up my mind well before this article, but it pretty much seals the deal for me now. definitely going with this video card
  • g33k - Tuesday, August 30, 2005 - link

    How do I know if this is a worthy upgrade from a 6800ultra? How much of a percentage increase would I see?
  • GhandiInstinct - Tuesday, August 30, 2005 - link

    It's not, as for percentage increase, you know there are about a hundred or more benchmarks on this card all over the internet, if you care to even look.

    If you have an ultra, the 7800 won't make your games that much better looking, if you're concerned about future games, wait for more next-gen gpu offerings.

Log in

Don't have an account? Sign up now