Only 900 points better on 3dmark05?
And only 400 points better on 3dmark06?
If those specs are what the current market is shooting for.. ATI is doomed, especially since the R600 is going to be priced higher then the (upcoming) 8900 series.. and the 8900 series is going to blow the r600 out of the water (going by what I read in those benchmarks) Sure, it did beat most of the benchmarks, but msot of them were VERY marginal, and youd never feel teh difference between 80 fps and 100 fps in a game.. pushing 70 the game is ats lagless as it can get
BTW, the quadcore sucks hardcore.. its only good for server managed groups... its support is nil, and it doesnt have the right process drivers to cope with any game sbeing written out. a dual cor eis all you need.. jsut take a look at the benchies
So, in short.. unless those benchmarks get any better, then the 8800 GTS/GTX are going to be the kings fo rprice/performance still.. and most especially when the 8900 series comes out.