In the ever changing world of graphic cards, I can never seem to get a grasp on what is better, by numbers that is.I always thought that as improvements were made the number(s) of the card would increase...boy was I wrong!Okay, heres the bit:Currently run a GeForce 8600 GTS, Dual Core E8400 @ 3.00 GhzAsus P5GC-MX/1333 MB.I would like to upgrade my Graphics card, but is a 9800 series better than a 250? CPU is not the latest, but it has served me well these past Two years.And I would like to stay with Nvidia.Thanks in advance for your inputs.Neil Bonner

Nvidia changed their naming scheme after the debacle that was the 9800 series (renamed 8800 series). It's still somewhat of a convoluted mess, but things should be straightened out once the 400 series launches. Anyway, the GTS 250 is the exact same card as a 9800 GTX+, which itself is only ever so slightly faster than a regular 9800 GTX, which itself is only ever so slightly faster than an 8800 GTS 512.

Don

Higher numbers do mean better, but only within the same generation. For example, you can compare a GTX 285 to a GTX 275 and surmise that the 285 is faster, but you can't compare a 9800 GT to an 8800 GT and come to the same conclusion, as in this case they are actually identical. The same goes for ATi cards.

But GTX 290 gets badmouthed with regards to FSX (again...Jetline Systems)

I assume you mean GTX 295, which is *generally* faster than the 285 in most games. Games like MSFS which have pathetically ancient 3d engines and can't properly distribute 3d workload to multiple GPUs do not benefit from the extra performance cards like the 295 offer.

Yeah, sorry, meant the 295, and that was exactly the point I was trying to get across :( Thanks, tech.

In the ever changing world of graphic cards, I can never seem to get a grasp on what is better, by numbers that is.I always thought that as improvements were made the number(s) of the card would increase...boy was I wrong!Okay, heres the bit:Currently run a GeForce 8600 GTS, Dual Core E8400 @ 3.00 GhzAsus P5GC-MX/1333 MB.I would like to upgrade my Graphics card, but is a 9800 series better than a 250? CPU is not the latest, but it has served me well these past Two years.And I would like to stay with Nvidia.Thanks in advance for your inputs.Neil Bonner

Check the nvidia.com web site for specifications. The key ones relevant to FSX are Texture fill rate and Memory Bandwidth (in GB/sec), and foryour systems configuration, the power requirements (Heat output in W).