Is buying a GPU like buying a CPU?

rpeters83

rpeters83

Gawd
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Jan 11, 2009
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I'm asking if basically any time is a good time to buy a new GPU. CPU's usually go through major milestones for each architecture change (e.g., from Pentium to Core to Core 2 to i7) where people would wait until the next "big thing".

Is this the case for buying GPUs? I'm looking at a new card but have not been following the trends to see if there is something coming up on the horizon that I should wait for.

Thoughts? Thanks.
 
I'd say so. Its been speculated that the new generation on both sides wont be here till later this year, possibly early next year. I think the best way to approach it is to set a budget, decide how long you need it to last you and see what the future has to offer. Some people are holding off on purchasing a new card because the one(s) they have now performance well enough for them for the moment.
 
Yeah, each new generation of chips introduces new low, medium, and high end cards. Sometimes tweaked variants are released in between major releases to fill certain price niches.

Whether or not to buy now depends on what you're currently using. If you post your budget and current hardware I'm sure someone can make a reccomendation.
 
All I can add is that I've spent a pretty large amount of time waiting for "the next big thing" and then being disappointed when I get something on the bleeding edge, only to find it's $200 cheaper and nearly obsolete within half a year. Like DeathFromBelow said, maybe post what you have, what you want, and how much money you can spend and you'll get quite a few informed, educated opinions on what may be best for you. Though, in the end, it's your choice.
 
thanks. I'm looking at the 4850 from ATI and it looks like it's going for about 110-130 on newegg. I'm not looking to go SLI (or whatever it's called having dual cards).
 
rpeters83 said:
thanks. I'm looking at the 4850 from ATI and it looks like it's going for about 110-130 on newegg. I'm not looking to go SLI (or whatever it's called having dual cards).
Click to expand...

With ATI/AMD cards that'd be CrossfireX. What size screen / resolution will you be running? 1680x1050 and below, a 4850 is fine. Above that, look at a 4870 1GB or 4890 1GB instead. The extra video memory will be very helpful at higher resolutions.
 
The best times to buy are just before/after the release of new faster cards from either NVidia or ATI.
All prices will drop on lesser cards.
So you wont be buying cutting edge performance (unless you go decent SLI/Crossfire) but you will still get very good performance that will remain high for at least a year.
At the moment graphics hardware is outpacing nearly all games that are released for most display resolutions.
The exceptions are Crysis and GTA IV, both of which can now be maxed by a single GPU 1GB card for Crysis or single GPU 2GB card for GTA IV, or decent SLI/Crossfire.

If you game at 1080p or 1920x1200 res, you will likely be happy with a GTX260 or 4870 card, both overclock well, especially the GTX260 and you can get close to GTX280 performance.
To maximise the settings in the toughest games, a GTX275/4890 overclocked should do or a GTX285.
Many single GPU users that have changed from a SLI/Crossfire setup report that gaming is a bit smoother. This is due to microstuttering that can occur on SLI/Crossfire.
Not everyone has the problem and different people perceive things differently too.

If SLI/Crossfire is an option, 2xGTX260 or 4870 will fly but you will need 2GB cards to max GTA IV.


I took so long writing that, you already declared you dont want SLI etc, but hey you might want to read it anyway :)
 
silent-circuit said:
With ATI/AMD cards that'd be CrossfireX. What size screen / resolution will you be running? 1680x1050 and below, a 4850 is fine. Above that, look at a 4870 1GB or 4890 1GB instead. The extra video memory will be very helpful at higher resolutions.
Click to expand...
my screen is 1680x1050. I don't plan on upgrading since it's a really nice screen.
 
4850 is an optimal card for your resolution.

Take a look at this [H] that shows you what performance you get with the 4850 vs more expensive card at various resolutions including yours at 1680x1050.

Read it or just go ahead and get the 4850. awsome card for your res.

If you find you have a bit more cash, go with the 1 Gig version.

If you are worried about future games, don't. You can always get another 4850 and crossfire it later at a much lower price.
 
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