OK, now we're getting somewhere

This card is based on Nvidia's most current GPU architecture, the GT200. Priced at $200, it's the least expensive model we tested that's capable of running Crysis at 60-plus frames per second.

If you shop for a GeForce GTX 260 card, make sure you're comparing apples to apples: Core 216 models like the one you see here are manufactured using a 55nm process, and are outfitted with 216 shader processors. Conversely, cards based on the original 65nm GTX 260 GPU remain on the market but possess only 192 processors. Both versions have a 448-bit interface to 896MB of GDDR3 memory.

Buyer beware: There are two versions of the GeForce GTX 260. The original model has 192 shader processors, while the Core 216 has—you guessed it—216.

EVGA overclocks the core in this particular model to 626MHz (up from a stock 576MHz) and gooses its memory to 1,053MHz (Nvidia reference designs run at 999MHz). The shader clock runs at 1,350MHz (up from a stock 1,242MHz).

The GTX 260 Core 216 has two six-pin power sockets, and you'll need at least 500-watt power supply to run it. EVGA provides Molex adapters if your PSU isn't outfitted with the appropriate cables. The company also provides a DVI-to-HDMI adapter and the S/PDIF cable needed to pipe audio from your motherboard to the videocard.

This card served up Crysis at 64.9fps and Call of Duty 4 at an even more impressive 103.2fps. Oddly enough, it achieved only 58.7fps in Far Cry 2—but that's close enough for the guys we swing with.

<< Back to the Penny Wise Videocard Index

• PowerColor Radeon HD 4830

• PowerColor Radeon HD 4850

• EVGA GeForce 9800 GT

• HIS IceQ 4+ Radeon HD 4870

• EVGA GeForce GTX 275