Group test: what's the best graphics card?

The Top 5 graphics cards you can buy

By | PC Advisor |

PC Advisor reviews and ranks the Top 5 graphics cards you can buy in the UK right now. 

5. nVidia GeForce GTX 560 Ti

nVidia GeForce GTX 560 Ti
  • Reviewed on: 26 July 11
  • RRP: £197.6 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 8 out of 10

nVidia's GeForce GTX 560 Ti is ultimately a victim of circumstance. The performance at its £220 price point is excellent, and the reduced power consumption shows that nVidia is taking energy efficiency seriously. But it was dropped into a crowded market. AMD decided it would rather drop its prices than give up the midrange GPU crown. Adding insult to injury, they also brought down the price tag on the Radeon HD 6950, bringing AMD's performance-oriented Radeon HD 6900 series within spitting distance of nVidia's GTX 560 Ti. With so many winning models on the table its a step the competition can afford to take, whereas those eyeing nVidia's wares are suddenly presented with a few more tantalizing offers from AMD's camp. There's only one clear winner in this bout: the consumer.

4. HIS 7970 3GB review

HIS 7970 3GB review
  • Reviewed on: 13 February 12
  • RRP: £480 inc VAT
  • Rating: Rated 7 out of 10

At the time of writing, the price of these HIS 7970 cards hadn’t settled. Around £480 seems par for the course, although it may be possible to get the card for around £20-£30 less. At these prices, the 7970 does seem a little expensive. The new architecture marks quite a change for AMD, although this hasn't yet turned into a card that'll blow away gamers. The 7970 is a nice card, but not one that's ground-breaking in terms of performance, and we suspect there is potential for nVidia. With that in mind, we'd recommend waiting a few weeks to see what the new nVidias can do.

 

3. Zotac GeForce GTX 570

Zotac GeForce GTX 570
  • Reviewed on: 11 May 11
  • RRP: £268 inc. VAT
  • Rating: Rated 9 out of 10

To beat the champion of the previous generation is no mean feat. Performance numbers close to the current-gen single-GPU champion (GTX 580) is an even better achievement. The GTX 570 is a great replacement for the GTX 480. All of that power, at an accessible price of around £268. The fact that this price is two-thirds that of the top-end GTX 580, yet offers performance not very much lower, means it is a sweet-spot purchase for high-end gamers. The energy efficiency savings versus both (the GTX 480 and GTX 580), and the ability to put together two or three GTX570 cards in SLI mode for far more performance than the GTX580 are additional sweeteners. This graphics card quite simply beats the pants off the cards in its price-zone, and is a worthy buy.

2. nVidia GeForce GTX 680

nVidia GeForce GTX 680
  • Reviewed on: 17 April 12
  • RRP: £419 inc. VAT
  • Rating: Rated 9 out of 10

AMD's 7000 series relies on a graphics architecture that is drastically different from previous AMD chips, so we may still see much better performance with driver improvements, but right now, if you have £400 to spend on a graphics card, the GeForce GTX 680 is the clear winner.

1. HIS ATI Radeon HD 6950

HIS ATI Radeon HD 6950
  • Reviewed on: 18 January 11
  • RRP: £240 inc. VAT
  • Rating: Rated 8 out of 10

The HIS ATI Radeon HD 6950 has some very interesting specifications and features. However, we’d hoped for slightly better performance than this. Given the price difference between this and the 6870, the latter still looks to be the better value choice for those shopping at the £175-£250 price point.

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Comments

Matt Egan said:  And now we have. Better late then never.

Matt Egan said: Don’t be sorry, that’s a good point. We’re in the process of testing it.

nonews good news said:  Sorry Matt.But where is GTX680? If the price and performance considered?

Matt Egan said: Wow. Bad morning? We take the view that the best confluence of price vs performance is not always the latest product. This is a round up of the best cards based on all of our reviews, decided late last week.

nonews good news said: What the hell is THIS? Why you giving us this year old review???If you haven't anything new then just shut up!

Shanehep05 said: hi just bought a gtx 560 ti overclocked  edition what an absolute brilliant card

Dennis McCormack said: Tech. It is unfair and not correct ,The XFX/ati/radeon 5970 leaves the 580 for dead ,when fitted with accelero ! NO CONTEST.

Matt Egan - Editor said: Thanks for helping linda guys - in the interests of balance can I also suggest CCL Computers as a good option too: they can recommend a good GPU, or an entire system, and everything in between. If you want specific advice on graphics cards, do feel free to drop me an email - matt_egan@PCAdvisor.co.uk , and I'll see what I can do. I remember only too well my mum's travails trying to buy me the correct Leeds United kit in the late 1980s...

Rob_08 said: Hi Linda,as Jate suggested ( in capitals!!) Novatech are a very good option, phone and have a chat as they are very helpful and wont bewilder you with jargon.Go here. http //www novatech co uk/novatech/dont forget the dots. Best of luck and happy xmas.

JATE ENELEF said: WHY NOT GO ON LINE WITH HIM AND TAKE A LOOK AT NOVATECH IN PORTSMOUTH, 1. YOU CAND BUILD A GREAT SYSTEM DOING JUST WHAT HE NEEDS FOR HALF THE PRICE AND THEY WILL ADVISE AND BUILD A SYSTEM TO SPECIFICATIONS FOR YOU AND YOU WONT BE PAYING FOR A SYSTEM AND THEN ADDING BITS TO GET IT TO DO WHAT YOU WANT ITiF I MAY SUGGEST, GO FOR AN ATHLON DUAL OR QUAD PROCESSOR WITH 2 GIGABYTES OF RAM ON BOARD, GET THEM TO SUGGEST A GOOD GRAPHICS CARD AS MINE ALTHOUGH RUNNING AT 30 FRAMES PER SECOND ON LINE WITH FLIGHT SIM, IS NOW OLD HAT.. I HAVE BUILT ABOUT 80 SYSTEMS SUPPLIED IN BITS TO ORDER FROM NOVATECH, I HAVE SENT 2 BACK AS FAULTY IN THE LAST 2 YEARS AND HAD IMMEDIAT REPLACEMENTS WITH NEW, WITH NO QUIBBLES, I RECKON YOU WILL GET VALUE FOR MONEY, AND A HAPPY YOUNGSTER AND HAVE SOME CHANGE FOR YOURSELF.. IF I MAY ADD, DEAREST IS NOT ALWSAYS BESTMERRY CHRISTMASJATE.

linda said: wanted to get my 15 year old son a new tower as a suprise, but the video card they suggested is manli gtx 285 1g dual dvi. ( I have no idea what any of that means) He plays all those new games and the machine he has just no longer cuts it, does anyone know frames rate per second for call of duty for example??? Thanks from a confused Mother

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