i have heard(and still here) about compatability issues with ati hardware, i have witnessed it with the aiw, and have read aobut it with the updates to the 9700. i give props to ati for having fast silicon, but, nvidia hasn't had a problem with beating the compeditiors to the highest speeds... sure, they are about 20% slower then the 9700, but, the r9700 was release a few months later then the g4s. we all know how it works, the latest release is the fastest, then the next, which is faster... we all know that once we see the gf fx rip ati a new one, we(well, i already do) will all want one of them, casue no one is going to want a "seconf best".
all i can say is, we go for the best, and even if someone makes a slitly slower card, its better then any of us can do, unless some one here fabs 3d accelerator chips in there basements, but i'd like to see them pull off 300+ fps in quake 3.... i give ati and nvidia props for revolutionizing the industry, with the g4 ti 4600, r9700, the xbox, and the game cude.