Actually, I'm confused. I know the card is just a renamed 8800, and I'm pretty sure I posted an article about Nvidia's renaming scam that talked about it. I asked to make sure you posted the correct link since your title did not match.

From just one article on the subject:

However, not everyone can bother with keeping track of the numbers, as some actually do have a life, and these companies not only know it, but count on it. But what if we looked a bit closer? Doesn't it seem that they simply capitalize on confusion and lack of knowledge?

At the same time the rebranding tactic shows a signs of a weak roadmap and a strong competition and you can be sure that if a company would have a new chip it wouldn't simply reuse its old chip and rebrand it. This is also an important piece of the puzzle.

I’d say that this is probably the easiest way to build a sleazy reputation for a company, as many enthusiasts are simply disgusted by such tactics. On the other hand, it’s the unsuspecting non-experienced end-users that pay the price, and who are we to deny these companies their cash inflow?

Another

The pre-overclocked XFX Geforce 8800GS XXX card runs at 680MHz core and 1700MHz for Shader processors. 8800 GS XXX core speeds are the highest among the cards we tested today, but the crippled G92 core is just not enough to fight 8800 GT or 8800 GTS cards. 96 Stream processors and 192-bit memory interface with 384MB of memory made this card clearly inferior to 8800 GT.

and

Nvidia's Geforce 9 generation features a couple of low-cost cards, among which you’ll find 9600 GSO. This card is positioned above 9500 GT but it sells at a price similar, or a bit lower than 9600 GT. We’ve seen many new cards this month, but many of those were just rebranded old stuff. Sadly, Geforce 9600 GSO is not an exception to that rule, as this card is nothing but the old Geforce 8800 GS with a fancy new name.

Many of you probably never heard of 8800 GS, as only a couple of partners such as Asus and XFX incorporated it into their offer. We tested it and you can read the review here. Not long after it was announced, 8800 GS was rebranded into Geforce 9600 GSO.

Here is some actual review numbers
http://www.fudzilla.com/index.php?op...1&limitstart=1

Notice it only beats a stock 9600 if you overclock it and only if you stay low rez. And for the testing, they are playing Crysis at LOW.

And what I am saying above, since it seems to have struck a nerve with you, is if if I'm going to spend money on a card, I don't want to buy something that is going to make me wish still wish I had bought something better 5 mins. after I get it home. I can say that speaking from experience, and I do NOT "blindly " suggest cards to people. And you know I also do not suggest people buy top end stuff either, as that is just as much a waste as buying low end.

But your point is valid that this is a very affordable card. If a young guy reading this forum and really wants to upgrade his card, he could cut a couple of lawn and afford $50.