The Quadro FX3000 is based on the same NV35 core that powers the latest GeForce FX 5900 cards, but with a few new additions to cater to the professional market. Compared to the older Quadro FX2000, which was based on the NV30, or GeForce FX5800, the FX3000 has double the memory, at 256MB, as well as a 256-bit memory interface, giving double the theoretical graphics bandwidth, hitting just over 27GB/s. It also supports other features from the NV35, including a 128-bit floating-point precision graphics pipeline, 128-bit colour, 12-bit sub-pixel accuracy, 16x full-scene anti-aliasing, 3D volumetric textures, and of course support for all the latest OpenGL, DirectX and NVIDIA’s own Cg graphics language versions.

An interesting concept But performance is determined by drivers and ultimately it smacks of gimmick.

A little over a year has passed since releasing the GeForce 6800, and right on cue, NVIDIA’s new chip is hitting town in the form of the GeForce 7800 GTX.

A real bargain. If you don’t need to capture video, its gaming performance makes it a great choice.

Silent, powerful and cheap: the ideal card for media centres.

A full $300 less than the flagship 7900 GTX, but still a damn fast card for extreme gaming.

It’s NVIDIA’s flagship, but still trails behind the top ATI cards.

Playable frame rates at 1600 x 1200 and the latest features for under $460. A great-value choice.

A cheap mid-range card but with budget performance.

Good value — until you compare it to the superior 7600 GS.

More bang-per-buck than the 7300s, but the 6600 shows its age.

Lack of power and features make it one to avoid, despite the price.

Poor 3D performance but a good choice for HD video playback.

Poor performer but worth a look if building a media centre.

Not bad value for an older card, but it’s too noisy.

The 7800 GT is hard to find and is being usurped by the 7900 GT.

Too expensive for the performance on offer.

Yet another older GPU that’s eclipsed by the 7600 GT.

An old card that’s resoundingly beaten by the new 7600 GT.

The nForce2 is the only dual-channel memory controller available in the AMD pantheon. There are two Northbridges to choose from: one with the Integrated GeForce4 MX-class graphics (nForce2 GT) and one without (nForce2 ST). Both offer support for AGP 8x and up to DDR400 memory, although we recommend you use DDR266 or DDR333 memory in synchronous mode (DDR266 for chips with a 266MHz FSB, DDR333 for those with a 333MHz FSB) for best performance.