I would really recommend the Radeon 9600XT at that price range - its an awesome card, fully DX9 compatible and will last you a while too.
Also it sits right in the middle of your price range.
You can find a review here...
http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NTMz
Not to mention that you also get a free coupon with this card that will get you Half-Life 2 when it comes out for nothing, nada, squat.
Tell me that aint a good deal?