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Nvidia's DX11 GF100 Graphics Processor Detailed
J. Dzhugashvili writes "While it's played up the general-purpose computing prowess of its next-gen GPU architecture, Nvidia has talked little about Fermi's graphics capabilities — to the extent that some accuse Nvidia of turning its back on PC gaming. Not so, says The Tech Report in a detailed architectural overview of the GF100, the first Fermi-based consumer graphics processor. Alongside a wealth of technical information, the article includes enlightening estimates and direct comparisons with AMD's Radeon HD 5870. The GF100 will be up to twice as fast as the GeForce GTX 285, the author reckons, but the gap with the Radeon HD 5870 should be 'a bit more slender.' Still, Nvidia may have the fastest consumer GPU ever on its hands — and far from forsaking games, Fermi has been built as a graphics processor first and foremost."
The days of needing the biggest, fastest, most expensive card are pretty much over. You can run just about any game out there at max settings at 1920 X 1080 silky smooth with a 5870, which goes for less than $300. Hell, even the 4870 is still almost overkill.
Unless you plan on maxing out AA and AF while playing on a 30 inch screen, there is no reason to drop $500-$600 on a video card anymore...
Living With a Nerd
When the differences are minute to the point where you have to pause a Gametrailers video and lean in close to your monitor, they may as well be the same...you aren't going to see that during actual gameplay, ESPECIALLY not in a frantic shooter like MW2.
That being said, there is one consistant difference between the 360 and the PS3 in terms of image quality: the 360 tends to be a little washed out, and the PS3 tends to be a little dark. Thank goodness for auto-switching color profiles based on the input selected.
Living With a Nerd