Labs

The last generation of mid-range graphics cards before today's latest crop were the first affordable DirectX 10 models released, but their performance was generally disappointing in both DirectX 9 and 10. This HD 2600XT is one of those cards, though a drop in price over the last few months has helped it stay interesting.

It's a pretty standard design, with two DVI outputs and a video out as well. Like all the cards here, the video socket can output composite, S-video or component video signals. This means you can connect it to most TV sets if that's something you'll want to do. If you're wondering why these cards don't come with the Scart connections found on most tellies, it's because Scart is a European-only standard, and none of these manufacturers caters for it.

Frame rates in Call of Duty 2 and Prey were both just below playable. This was easily rectified by switching off anti-aliasing, though of course the graphics then lost their smoothed appearance. Disappointingly, the 2600XT was too slow to run DX10 games at all. This card is quickly becoming outdated, and the HD3850, despite being twice the price, is better value in the long term.