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.
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eetnoyer - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
There will be some changes, however, with fewer reviews that will cover more than one card.Followed immediately thereafter by another single card review. And with so many other 7800GT cards on the market already, they just couldn't find enough to do a round-up. Newegg currently has 13 listings in stock for 7800GT and Anandtech still can't manage to scrounge up enough. This site is starting to slide.
bupkus - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Are there any games out yet that require this kind of rendering power?I only play UT2004, but with my new X800 and a new Venice @ 2.3GHz I'm rockin' right now at 1280x1024.
robere - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
I as well as 5 guys i know have a Dell 2405FPW that runs a native res of 1920x1200. I have a XFX 7800GTX ATH643700 SanDiego with 2G of RAM and currently run BF2 at 1920x1200 res with allmost everything on high and have a frame rate of 60-70. So when the next gen of games come out i am interested looking at SLI or next gen GPU. By the way BF2 at this res looks kick ass.JNo - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
I have a 2405 too and apparently widescreen is NOT possible for BF2 (check out widescreenforums.com) as the FOV hasn't changed. So even if you're 'forced it', you are getting the same width, it's just chopped off some of the top and bottom from the gaming world, and then zoomed in a little (giving you a little better visual impact but some gaming disadvantage). Let me know if you believe otherwise as a hell of a lot of people would like to know...Fluppeteer - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Hi Robere,You may be able to answer a question... Can you tell me whether you have any
problems if you run your 2405 from the single-link head of the 7800GTX? I gather
the timings are quite tight to the single-link limits, and there have been
reports of people struggling with the dodgy internal TMDS transmitters in
the 6800 series. I'd like to know if nVidia have fixed this with G70.
If the 2405 runs okay from that head (I'd expect it to work on the head with
the dual-link head anyway, because the Silicon Image parts tend to be pretty
clean) it presumably means nVidia have given their transmitter a redesign,
which *might* mean the G70 could run my T221-DG5 properly (from both heads).
It's kind of an expensive thing for me to find out without at least some
indication that matters have improved. :-)
(For people with less exotic - or at least, less discontinued - monitors,
there are people considering Apple 30" display + Dell 2405 rigs, who would
be equally interested in the answer.)
Thanks!
Rudee - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
I agree with the reviewer's final words that those looking for a higher end card need not look further than a 7800 GT, especially if you are playing in resolutions of 1600 x 1200 or less.Ozz1113 - Tuesday, August 30, 2005 - link
Put it this way, I am upgrading from a 9500np modded to a 9700. I think you can wait a little longer from your 6800u ;]Too bad this review wasn't of the evga...not that it is all that much different
Dmitheon - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Agreed, I'm more interested in the eVGA than any of the others right due to that Battlefield2 bundle or the free mobo offer.robere - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
How about some SLI GTX/GT numbers? I have a XFX GTX and are intersted in what the GT can do in SLI.ukDave - Wednesday, August 31, 2005 - link
Ditto, SLI numbers please. GT vs. GTX.From what i've seen the gap should narrow meaning even better money savings when choosing the cheaper GT option.
I have two Leadtek 7800GT's atm and the reason above is why i chose them.