What Hardware Should I Buy? - Dec 2008

Graphics Card

Alternative: Nvidia GeForce GTX 280
UK Pricing: £309.67 (inc. VAT)
US Pricing: $399.99 (ex. Tax)

The Nvidia GeForce GTX 280 has had a rough time since its launch, thanks to Nvidia massively underestimating the challenge coming from AMD's RV770 GPU. This caused the GT200 family of cards to be overpriced by around £100 at launch.

However, things have improved significantly and now prices have been slashed and the demand for pre-overclocked cards has pushed those prices back up, stock GeForce GTX 280s can be had for less than £300. This Asus GeForce GTX 280 being the cheapest we’ve found in the UK at just £310, but like the GeForce GTX 260s, the prices can still bob about like a buoy in a typhoon.

Its performance is only a little less than the HD 4870 X2 in most circumstances and it’s still the fastest single GPU card on the market, which means less dependence on driver profiles for performance. If you don't trust CrossFire drivers, or your budget doesn't extend to the lofty heights of a 4870 X2, then make no mistake, this is still a fine ultra high end graphics card.

Case

Alternative: Lian Li V1110
UK Pricing: £187.54 (inc. VAT)
US Pricing: $315.00 (ex. Tax)

When you buy a premium case, you expect excellent build quality and a whole host of high end features, and that’s exactly what the Lian Li V1110 delivers in spades.

Thanks to a fully compartmentalised cooling system (similar to the Antec P182 and P190's design), which keeps the heat of hard disks and the power supply away from the motherboard and its components, the V1110 is able to run both cool and quiet. While we’ve seen cases perform better, these are usually “wind tunnels” with plenty of high CFM 120mm fans fitted and designed to torture your ears.

Because of its mammoth size, the V1110 has plenty of space for six rubber dampened hard disk drives, E-ATX motherboards and even the longest of power supplies. An enormous removable motherboard tray makes building systems into the case a snap, and the included dual 120mm cooling fans can be speed controlled from outside the case. What's more, they're extremely quiet when set to low.

All in all, it’s a fantastically high quality chassis that just oozes class and sophistication. If the Cooler Master ATCS 840 isn't to your liking than this is a fantastic alternative.