"Hello",After reading many comparisons between these two cards, not one mentions FS2002. So please help.I`m considering upgrading to this new card but as it`s VERY expensive (

I just did this recently. Not because I wanted to, but because my GF4600 died. I have been happy with the ATI 9700 pro. For me it has been totally stable (read- no crashes). My gf4600 was never perfectly stable on my system (I never overclock). Of course I'm sure you will find some people who say the exact opposite. I think it is more luck than anything else these days.Anyway as for performance, I didn't run any benchmarks, but I can now turn anti-aliasing on and still run smooth. I didn't notice anything much in fps increase other than that. Of course since it wasn't a planned upgrade I didn't run the numbers. The ati did improve fps on more video oriented games such as Unreal Tournament 2003. There is a review which does some fps for the 9700 at :http://www.simhq.com/simhq3/hardware/reviews/radeon9700pro/They also have 4600 reviews so you could compare fps in fs2002. They usually use fs2002 as one of their benchmarks. I can't speak for you, but I would think it would be best to wait until the prices come down a bit before I upgraded. The performance increase really can't justify the huge cost.

No comparison. I went wit hthe 9700 and have been tremendously happy.You can run 4x aa 16 x ansio and still get a significant frmame rate boost all things being equal (alot of benchmarks around--checkout simhq.com). Just be sure to completely delete old driver files (use detonator destroyer from guru3d.com).

Hi Robbie, I do not have a 9700 Pro, but I do have a 9500 Pro. I have been very happy with it so far. Here is one screen shot and a link to more. All taken with the 9500 Pro. Hope this helps a bit. http://www.pbase.com/ront/screen_shotsRon

Hey Robbie, Buy a Radeon 9500 and follow the link below for something interesting.......... :-)http://www.guru3d.com/comments.php?categor...4b93c09dba8ff4fBill :-wave

Now that's funny. I can just see the threads in the near future. Video Card: $150 9500 hacked and overclocked to 9700 specs. hehehe. Go for it.

"Thank you all very much",Your replies were very, very helpful. I have decided to upgrade to 9700 Pro.Next problem is how to persuade my wife that I need to upgrade, so I`ll do another post "How to ask wife ?" & see if you come up with more helpful advice !!!!!!!!!!!!!Please check next post.Thanks again,Rob

Rob, Come on boy! You TELL the wife, not ask her!PS. Of course I'm at work typing this, ARE YOU MAD!:-eek :-lol

The thought of being able to buy a 9500 and simply patch it to make it as fast and powerful as a 9700 might just tempt me away from Nvidia - especially as the new FX card is going to be so out of my price range I'd need a lottery win to be able to afford it. There are some great deals on ATi 9500's but it is important to buy the right one if you plan on modifying it, not all the 9500 cards can be upgraded to 9700 specification.Chas

And, of course nVidea will counter with a new card, and ATI will counter with a...you get my meaning. It's much cheaper to remain a "day late, dollar short" than try to have the latest, greatest.p

What, exactly, do you mean by "died"? I've never had a graphics card "die" on me. What happened?

I hate these threads now..people always are dumb and say the gf4 is better..NONONONONONONONO!!!!If you have the money and are willing to spend a damn lot for a video card, get the radeon 9700. It IS!! the best right now. Everything about it is better, mem and GPU speed are all higher.With almost all benchmarks the radeon 9700 has similar performance with AA on and Off.. Like no differnce.. What this means is better graphics withough the fps hit.And if you can wait a little geforce FX is out very soon. I saw a preorder for it the other day. So If money is no object get that, or the radeon 9700 if u cant wait.

I've had 2 ATI cards...both stunk. One I bought and one came as a chipset on another manufacturer's graphics card. Go nVidea all the way. I tried my bought ATI with Silent Hunter 2...when surfaced and in the conning tower I could not see the waves let alone the moons reflection. Stuck in the PNY Verto nVidea ti4600 and BAM! Waves with moon reflection rolling off of them...it's awesome! Makes a Florida boy in Colorado miss the ocean...it was that good. Go nVidea, forget the "benchmarks"...you'll never know the diff anyway...and the WHQL drivers work with XP.p ps. Congrats to OSU...what a game! We will get you next time!

Ati used to make ##### for cards.. they have come a long way.For a long time they made onboard video on motherboards, which performed #####..But their last 3 generations of cards have been real good. Always stepping up with nvidia. Each time they are getting better and better.Ohh also 9700 suppots DX 9. No nvidia card does yet. so its gona save u money in the future