1. GTX 750 Ti
CUDA Cores: 640
Base Clock (MHz): 1020
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec): 86.4
Max TDP: 60 Watts
It is the GTX gaming graphics card with the weakest specification in this list. Fortunately, it is still good enough for Full-HD gaming (1080p).
The most noticeable from GTX 750 Ti is its low power consumption thanks to its efficient brain, Maxwell GM107 GPU.
GTX 750 Ti ,which is first released on 2014, is significant upgrade from GTX 650 Ti, especially in terms of power consumption. The max TDP of GTX 650 Ti is 110 Watts while GTX 750 Ti draws less power, 60 Watts. Therefore, it can be run in a PC with 400W or 450W power supply.
Benchmark test (Battlefield 4 high settings 1080p)
 |
| image credit: anandtech.com |
According to the Battlefield 4 benchmark test from anandtech.com above, GTX 750 Ti is able to outrank 650 Ti, both boost and non boost version with 48 Avg FPS. A quite good result considering its affordable price.
But of course, you need to avoid GTX 750 Ti if you want to play Battlefield 4 on high settings (1080p) with solid 60 Avg FPS.
Overall, this video card is the best choice for a gamer who wants to build a decent 1080p gaming computer with the lowest power consumption as possible.
Click here to buy GeForce GTX 750 Ti from amazon
2. Radeon R7 260X
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec): 104
Max TDP: 115 Watts
Technically, R7 260X is a small jump over the previous generation of AMD cards it replaces like HD 7770 and HD 7790.
According to data above, R7 260X is supposedly can perform better compared to 256 bit AMD video card, HD 6870 and HD 7850.
R7 260X vs GTX 750 Ti, which one is the best??
If we see the price range and technical specification from The R7 260X, we can clearly assume if this video card is the biggest opponent of GTX 750 Ti.
But it's quite hard to tell which one is better cause each card may perform better depending on the tested games or the hardware where the benchmark is performed. Well, for better explanation, let see the benchmark test result from tomshardware.com below:
 |
| image credit: tomshardware.com |
R7 260X failed to beat GTX 750 Ti on Battlefield 4 benchmark test (ultra quality settings 1080p). Surprisingly, HD 7850 managed to beat both R7 260X and GTX 750 Ti while GTX 650 Ti scored the lowest Avg FPS.
 |
| image credit: tomshardware.com |
Both R7 260X and GTX 750 Ti scored the same Avg FPS but once again they failed to beat the old HD 7850 on benchmark test above.
 |
| image credit: tomshardware.com |
This is where R7 260X could show its strength. This graphics card could reach 43.7 Avg FPS, which is also the same Avg FPS reached by GTX 660. On this benchmark test, R7 260X successfully beat HD 7850 and GTX 750 Ti.
115 Watts max TDP
This is the most disappointing point of R7 260X. Obviously, with 115 Watts max TDP, you need to upgrade your power supply first to at least 500W if you want to buy this Radeon card.
3. GTX 950
CUDA Cores: 768
Base Clock (MHz): 1024
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec): 105.6
Max TDP: 90 Watts
If you think the GTX 960 is too expensive for you, then consider to get GTX 950, which is positioned to strengthen the the GTX 900 series. Fortunately, the specification of GTX 950 is not too different with its closest brother.
Yes, technically, the GTX 950 resembles almost every aspect of GTX 960. Well, GTX 950 itself is targeted for gamers who are looking for stronger video card than GTX 750 Ti but not as power hungry as GTX 960.
 |
| image credit: eurogamer.net |
Click here to buy GeForce GTX 950 from amazon
4. Radeon R9 270X
Stream processing units: 1280
Base Clock (MHz): 1050
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec): 179.2
Max TDP: 180 Watts
Positioned one level under R9 280X, this strong AMD card is the cheapest variant from Radeon R9 200 Series and is meant to replace HD 7870 GHz Edition. Now the question is, is R9 270X worth your money??.
R9 270X's brain is powered by Curacao GPU, the same GPU that powers HD 7870 GHz Edition. One of the biggest difference of R9 270X from the card it replaces is the use faster clock. Note that the biggest problem with this video card is, it draws a lot of power (180 Watts max TDP).
5. GTX 960
CUDA Cores: 1024
Base Clock (MHz): 1127
Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec): 112
Max TDP: 120 Watts
It is one of the best selling gaming graphics card on this year. Well, GTX 960 is really popular because of its performance and is meant to run most games titles with solid 60 fps.
Benchmark Video test
GTX 960 can reach steady 60 fps. As you can see on the video above, the GTX 960 is tested with GTX 970 and 980, and the different between them is just around 10 to 15 fps (GTA V high settings 1080p, CPU: i7 4790).
The secret why GTX 960 can have such a great performance is, this gaming card is powererd by new generation of Maxwell architecture, which is more efficient compared to Nvidia's old GPU, Kepler.
Without a doubt, GTX 960 has become the new standard for 1080p gaming at this time. Unfortunately, just like Radeon R9 270X and R7 260X, the biggest problem with GTX 960 is it also draws a lot of power.
Click here to buy GTX 960 from amazon
Conclusion
200 dollars is really ideal for a gamer who wants a good graphics card for 1080p gaming. GTX 960 is the fastest Nvidia card in this list, and one of the most recommended if you want to play the latest games titles with decent framerate. And don't forget about GTX 950, the economic version of GTX 960.
If you prefer to get an AMD card, consider to buy R9 270X, especially the 4 GB version. However, if budget is your main concern, consider to get either R7 260X or GTX 750 Ti.
Thanks for reading...
