In the graphics business, there are chip makers and there are board makers. Whereas nVidia supplies GPUs and drivers to card makers to integrate, ATI plays both ends: It sells its chips to board makers but also sells its own branded bundles. For this roundup we tested the ATI Radeon 9800 XT board, which is based on the company's top-shelf chip of the same name. This GPU offers a slight performance edge over the nVidia GeForce FX 5950 in some tests, but in general the race is too close to call.

Bundled software is on the light side in terms of volume but not quality: There's a coupon for Half Life 2, one of the most-awaited new games and a $50 value. (The coupon code lets you download from game developer Valve's Steam online service when the game ships.) Aside from that, the only other included application is ATI's DVD player. You can also download ATI's Multimedia Center from the company's Web site, which includes a CD player, a video file player, and a media library management tool, as well as ATI's new EazyLook full-screen interface.

Installation of the Radeon 9800 XT is simple enough: Plug in the card, feed your PC a driver disc when it asks for one, and one reboot later you're in business. The Radeon 9800 XT's performance was excellent on all of our performance tests. It slightly outpaced the nearly identical VisionTek offering (which is based on the same GPU) on the Call of Duty tests. That slight edge combined with the promise of a great game make the ATI Radeon 9800 XT our current favorite card for serious gamers.