kinda sounds like nvidia could have spent some time to get aa working with hdr and delay the release
but instead they released it ahead of time to gain market share
or Ati probably took so long to get the r520 out with a 90nm gpu that they needed to add features like this to look better then...
you also forget the secondary market
there are 2 kinds of video card purchasers...well 3 but low end doesnt matter :D
there are the ones that buy mid-high range cards once in a long time because they are satisfied with the performance in whatever they like to play
then there are the people...
lol
that's me....
i stuck with my 9700pro until i got a x800xt cheap
the x1800xt excites me because of the possibilities of IQ
but that doesn't mean i'm going to go out and spend $549 on it
or $400 for a 7800gtx for that matter
i usually just wait til a modable one comes out that gives me...
you know if they made an uber card that was good enough to handle any game that comes out in the next 2 years, then you guys wouldn't be spending $499+ USD every 6 months on a new card. Or sometimes $499 x 2 for Sli.
The truth is that you're paying $499+ for pieces of plastic with transistors...