The time for a good old fashion ATi vs. NVIDIA graphics card shoot out, has once again come. It may seem like an odd time to analyze the performance of the current generation graphics cards. However, I will not be looking at high-end solutions from these two manufacturers. Instead I feel there is no better time to take a closer look at the mid-range products. With the recent arrival of NVIDIAs GeForceFX 5900XT GPU, things really have become more competitive than ever in the mainstream market. This new card really has the potential to boost NVIDIAs mainstream sales. The GeForceFX 5700 Ultra has struggled to compete with the Radeon 9600XT in many tests, making it a less attractive solution. After very recently putting the GeForceFX 5900XT though a number of benchmark titles, I did not expect to discover such a powerful solution. Even knowing that the FX5900XT is based on the same NV38 core as all the other FX5900 based GPUs, it was still hard to believe the card could offer that level of performance at a sub $200 US price range. The average FX5900XT can be had for as little as $180 US however these cards still carry a price premium over the Radeon 9600XT. For this reason I have discovered that any graphics card boasting either of these GPUs presents the user with an excellent value solution.

Unfortunately though, most users can only choose one graphics card and although there are really only two worthy mainstream solutions available, it is still a hard choice. Luckily for the consumer I dont believe it is possible to go horribly wrong with either solution. Both the NVIDIA NV38 and ATi RV360 GPUs are quite mature, so most users know what to expect. Since the 9600XT is based on the same architecture as the Radeon 9600 Pro, with some minor frequency alterations, you really have a rough idea on what to expect.

The FX5900XT really is a killer product that gives the user a rare opportunity to enjoy the best of both worlds. While the user gets a little taste of FX5900 Ultra performance, they also get it at a fraction of the price. However similar claims could be made about the Radeon 9600XT and today we shall find out which solution gives the user a better bang for their buck.