The cheapest I have found a GF4 Ti 4200 128MB is for $145. The cheapest for a 4600: $230. Substantially more. If the 4600 would last me a good deal longer (say at least four months) than the 4200, then I'd definitely plunk down the extra money for one now. However, I was thinking, by the time my 4200 is starting to get a bit outdated, with the GeForce FX and all, the 4600 really may not last me all that much longer by that time. So would it be worth the extra money now?
Also, a midrange option could be a Ti4400---if it's not that much more than a Ti4200. Also, consider what gaming your gonna do, how much, and what resolution you'll be doing it at. I've got a GeForce 3 that still runs everything smoothly, except the UT2003 demo at 1280x1024 in 32-bit color just fine. With some tweaking, that can achieve smoothness. The Ti4200 is a safe bet, but you may want to consider an ATi Radeon 9500 Pro card, as these are about the cost of some Ti4200's, but can compete with the Ti4600's. These are all good options, but just don't plunk down a wad of cash for a card just to have the fastest one if you're gonna spend more for a card that just gives you a higher benchmark score. In all honesty, I can still get by just fine in most games with a GeForce 2 Ti and play at an acceptable resolution to me with a number of enemies on screen. That's why I'm saying you don't have to spend the big dough for the Ti4600. You can probably OC it to Ti4600 speeds pretty easily, like Syngod said, if you want a speed boost later on and if you feel like it. There's always gonna be something bigger and better around the corner, and the prices will drop, but you may have to wait a bit for the GeForce FX to come out. ATi has the successor to the Radeon 9700Pro in the works as well, just so you know. It's a never ending cycle. /end
Yes, I completely agree with everyone's opinions. I'll get the 4200. I think I heard before that because of higher clock speeds the 64MB version actually outperformed the 128MB version, but I think they said with newer games that wouldn't hold true, so I should go with the 128MB version, correct?
What do you have for a video card now? If I remember correctly nVIDIA stated that after the FX the emphasis is no longer on speed but that they will be focusing more on improving image quality as their #1 priority. Because of that statement your probably best going off with a 128MB card. What's your budget for a card? With the FX about to hit in about a month if you can afford $399 it's probably better to just hold off and get it considering once Doom 3 is released everywhere you look titles will be released on it's engine.
Right now I have an ATi Radeon VE 32MB. No, $399 is not in my price range right now, mostly because I'm building the whole computer, so I'm spending a lot on other things, as well. I would like to stay under $200. And yes, Doom3-quality games will be common after Doom3 is released, however I think a 128MB 4200 with an Athlon XP 2100+ and 512 RAM should handle that just fine.
Go with the GeForce4 Ti 4600. Its much cheaper than the Radeon 9700. I just got the GeForce4 Ti 4600 myself. I'd like someone to relate with.
