ATI had nVidia beat on the picture quality I feel untill the 8800 came along.
If you can not afford the 8800 or newer series then best stick to the lastest ATI offerings

for better PQ
ATI's R600 should be best of course, if we can afford the price tag lol
but reckon I will buy another 8800GTX for an SLI system when R600 comes along
Simon