The Comparator

Academy · Advanced

Tier matrices and Best views

The tier matrix shows capability for every product with price left out. Best pages are ready-made views of the live market with their criteria written out.

Lessons · Tier matrix and Best

The tier matrix

A tier page lists every product, graded for each job, with price left out. It includes products with a current offer and products without one, because capability does not depend on whether a store sells it today.

The graphics card tier matrix with one column per job
Where to look: one column per job, one row per product. The filters above the table narrow the rows. The number after each grade is the rank.
  1. Find the column for the job you care about.
  2. Narrow the rows with the filters: chip maker, generation, video memory, segment, or only models with current offers.
  3. Read the grades down the column. The rank shows the order inside a grade.
  4. Use the market columns on the right to see whether the product is on sale now and for how much.

Best views

A Best page is a ready-made view of the live market: a category, a job, a minimum grade, a set of priorities, and sometimes a price band or a platform. All of it is written on the page. It opens in the same Explorer as every other market, so you can change anything, including the priorities.

A Best view often offers several ways to look at the same shortlist: higher Value, highest capability, lowest price that reaches the grade, lower power where it is known.

Terms used here

Tier matrix
Products graded for every job in one table, with price left out. Read the lesson
Grade (S–F)
A letter from S (excellent) to F for one job, such as 1440p gaming. Read the lesson
Scenario rank
Where a product stands among the others for one job. You read it; you cannot set it. Read the lesson
Preset
A ready-made set of priorities for a common job. A starting point. Read the lesson