OT: Deciding on a new graphics card

[PvK]

So Fyron, do you have any link(s) to offer that give what you consider relatively accurate summaries of what's been going on with built-in digital copy protection?

[Fyron]

I don't care to do an exhaustive search, but here are a few:

On Windows Vista, DRM, and new monitors - August 21, 2005

Talks about AACS protections dealing with "old" monitors and such.

"Any device—whether it be a PC or consumer electronic device—will need to ensure compliance with the specified policies otherwise they risk being unable to access the next-gen DVD content. Clearly we think that offering next-gen DVD content on the PC is much preferable to having the PC excluded from accessing this premium content.." (Marcus Matthias, product manager of Windows Digital Media at Microsoft)

The truth behind HDCP and video card support - February 14, 2006

References to problems with the ever-changing AACS spec while companies trying to make products to support it were coming out.

Blu-ray and HD DVD support in Vista out of Microsoft's hands - August 24, 2006

"The companies backing both HD DVD and Blu-ray are insistent on iron-clad copy protection. That means Microsoft, Apple, and anyone else that wants to be able to play high-definition Blu-ray or HD DVD video will need to support the kind of copy protection mandated by the studios: AACS+ and HDCP."

AACS DRM tentacles reach far into operating systems - August 12, 2007

"So, when thinking about this issue, we have to ask ourselves: is a company like Microsoft or Apple likely to tell Hollywood to jump off a cliff? No, because both companies know that users will want to play HD DVD or Blu-ray discs on their computers. Microsoft didn't tell AACS LA to stuff it, and Apple won't tell them to, either."

[Ragnarok-X]

Fyron, would you suggest me to upgrade from my 7900 GT to a 8800 ? (2 gb of ram, e6600).

[Kana]

I guess it would depend on what games you want to play, and what detail level you want to play at.

I had an ATI X300SE, which barely ran CoD4 at the lowest settings. Bought an 8800GT, and now I run it maxed out.

[Ragnarok-X]

Currently im running Stalker and CoD at 1280 * 1024 with max details, though no anti-aliasing at all. I dont really have the need for a better GFX since i dont even own Crysis (and i believe CoD 4 is already high-end) but who knows ?

[Fyron]

Ragnarok-X:
That depends; do you feel your 7900GT is sluggish, or is its performance acceptable for the games you play? Pricing on the 8xxx cards can only go down as more 9xxx cards are rolled out. If you don't feel an immediate need to upgrade, there isn't usually any purpose in upgrading.

[Raapys]

Right now is probably a very bad time to buy a graphics card. Within the next few weeks there'll be new drivers for ATI's 3870x2 (which could possibly take it all the way to the top; or confirm that the card really isn't all that great), we'll see the release of the 9xxx cards from Nvidia and we'll see the introduction of PhysX in Nvidia's cards via drivers. So many changes will greatly influence the market prices, although the performance difference between all these cards isn't too big since none of them are yet introducing new architechture.

Will be interesting to see the performance of Nvidia's X2, though.