From the get go, its clear that the GeForce 8600 series is targeted at mainstream users. Reviews and users' experiences alike show that these cards are only fast enough for 1024 x 768 with AA and AF with current games But then again, that's what its all about it, isn't? You don't buy the GeForce 8600 series (or the lower series like the GeForce 8500 and 8400) to get performance. For the most part, you get because (1) it's cheap, (2) it's DirectX 10 and Vista compliant and probably, (3) its video decoding acceleration. The GeForce 8600GTS comes as the premium part in this series because it adds that little bit performance needed to play games. This time, we're taking four GeForce 8600GTS and three GeForce 8600GT for a test drive. We're going to take a look at the ASUS EN8600GTS/GT Silent, the Gigabyte NX8600GTS/GT with Silent Pipe, MSI NX8600GTS OC Edition and Leadtek PX8600GTS/GT TDH Extreme.