In terms of value 3D video cards, the various price points have placed the advantage squarely in the GeForce2 Pro's court. The Ultra is still a bit out of our league, but for just over a $100 bill, a 64-MB GeForce2 Pro can be a reality.

While there are several manufacturers that offer GeForce2 Pro at this price level (or even a bit lower) we are picking the MSI GeForce2 Pro (MS-8831) as our value selection. MSI is the master of combining price and performance, while still maintaining a high-quality piece of hardware. Just be careful when buying a GeForce2 Pro board, as some manufacturers (like MSI) use the word Pro with abandon. In the case of MSI, the company has named their high-end GTS, the GeForce2 GTS Pro, which can be a tad confusing if you aren't paying attention. Just go by model number (MS-8831 for the GeForce2 Pro) to play it safe. Other manufacturers with GeForce2 Pro cards in the same price range, include VisionTek, PowerColor, or Inno3D, so feel free to choose a brand you feel comfortable with.

The $1,000 value PC gaming budget translates into either a quality, flat screen 17" monitor or a value 19" model, so we attempted find the best price-performance options within both ranges.

The LG Electronics Flatron 795FT Plus is a high quality flat screen 17" monitor which checks in at a price that won't break the bank. The 795FT Plus features the popular flat screen aperture grill design, with a 0.24mm Stripe Pitch. This monitor performs equally well when displaying text or graphics and makes a great match for a value home gaming/business PC. It also features exceptional refresh rates and resolutions, especially for a 17" monitor, and can hit a 75Hz max refresh rate at 1600x1200.This monitor is also fully MPR-II and TCO-99 certified and all these features come at a price of about $230. For our money, the LG Electronics Flatron 795FT Plus performs better than most 19" monitors and is definitely one of the best 17" monitor values on the market.

Or...

If you are looking for some full-sized, 19" power with your value menu, then the Samsung SyncMaster 950p is definitely a model to check out. The 950p monitor is of the standard shadow mask CRT variety and does not have a fully-flat display screen, but it's probably as good as you'll get with this technology. It also features excellent image quality and color depth while allowing a maximum refresh rate of 75 Hz at 1600x1200. The .26mm dot pitch is standard, as are the MPR-II and TCO-99 certifications. The SyncMaster 950p is a great mix of price, feature and overall quality, and these factors make it one of the best value buys in the 19" monitor class.