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The 8800 GTS 512 fits nicely into the current video card landscape. For between $300 and $400 you can get some awesome performance. The performance of the 8800 GTS 512 is so high that it'll probably render the 8800 GTX and 8800 Ultra less attractive in the eyes of many gamers. If you were to buy a new card this week, there would probably only be two main reasons to go with a GTX or Ultra over a new GTS: either A) You want the best, no matter the cost; or B), you plan to be gaming at very high resolutions (1600x1200+), and like your AA. Not all that many people have monitors that can support resolutions at 1920x1200 and above. But if you do have a massive, high-res display -- then hey, maybe you should go all the way and get a GTX or Ultra. But for the rest of us there are now more attractive options.

So where does that leave the 8800 GTS 512? Is the new kid on the block the best deal of the 8800 class?

Some would say yes; some would say no. But it all depends on what your after. Both the 8800 GT 512MB and 8800 GTS 512MB cards are good deals. Perspective buyers will have to look at the framerate differences between the G92 GT and GTS at their target gaming resolution, and then, with their budgets in mind, judge for themselves how much those extra frames are worth. What about the other 8800's? Well, it should also be clear by looking at the charts that every prospective Christmas card buyers should look past both the 320 MB and 640 MB versions of the old GTS video cards, unless their prices drop significantly.    

At a suggested retail price of $379 USD, both the EN8800 GTS T.O.P 512, and the XFX GeForce 8800 GTS A.D.E 512 deliver. While the Asus GTS seemed to have a bit more omph than the XFX GTS, both cards are a good deal in my books. Why? Well, the XFX card comes with a game, and with a bit of coaxing, can be overclocked a couple of clicks into the realm of awesome performance. But either way, you can't go wrong. Any gamer purchasing either can expect to have the raw graphics processing power to see them into 2009 -- you can count on that. While both ATI and NVIDIA undoubtedly have new record-busting cards in the works, it will certainly be a long, long time (in gaming terms) before the horsepower of the Asus EN8800 GTS T.O.P, or the XFX GeForce 8800 GTS A.D.E, does not fail to impress.