Which Graphics card to buy in Y2026

[EPYJ86]

Ya its true.. Ur PSU oso must change if not wont b enough for the gpu.

 

[A7997A]

I'm thinking of changing my graphics card, which is a 7600GS to something higher. Budget less than $150 if possible, or maybe $200.

Com specs
AMD Athlon 64 Processor 3400+ 2.2 GHz + MSI AMETHYST-M Socket 939
2GB RAM
NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS 256MB
250W PSU

Think maybe have to change the PSU too..

Games I'm currently playing are RA3, TF2, L4D.. hope can them with a more smoother setting.

For your case I think quite straight forward,

1) 4670 for $139-149.
Don't need to change PSU.

2) 9600GT/4830, if you undervolt your CPU to 1.1V (assuming venice)
good chance can still support, but you are probably better off doing an overhaul liao.

3) 4850, need to change PSU, and also board/CPU/RAM.

 

[neoyourlan]

hey guys....i wanna upgrade my graphics too....500w psu...19inch screen...any suggestions?..

 

[coff33]

Hey guys, sorry for noob question :x


"1) 4670 for $139-149.
Don't need to change PSU."

How come 4670 don't need to change PSU, very low requirement?

 

[jarred1223]

Wah.. then u might as well have a total overhaul... ur mobo and cpu will bottleneck ur new gfx card greatly

Ya its true.. Ur PSU oso must change if not wont b enough for the gpu.

For your case I think quite straight forward,

1) 4670 for $139-149.
Don't need to change PSU.

2) 9600GT/4830, if you undervolt your CPU to 1.1V (assuming venice)
good chance can still support, but you are probably better off doing an overhaul liao.

3) 4850, need to change PSU, and also board/CPU/RAM.

Ah..

Thanks a lot for your advices.. will give it some thought.

Any place to check the prices for graphics card? Except on hwz.

 

[EPYJ86]

www.potterhouse.net

But generally get from hwz is the best... my opinion. Cheers!

 

[A7997A]

Hey guys, sorry for noob question :x


"1) 4670 for $139-149.
Don't need to change PSU."

How come 4670 don't need to change PSU, very low requirement?

4670 draws no more than 50W.
4850 requires over 100W.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/powercolor-pcshd4670-512mb_5.html#sect0

 

[coff33]

4670 draws no more than 50W.
4850 requires over 100W.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/powercolor-pcshd4670-512mb_5.html#sect0

Ah I see, thanks a lot!

 

[EPYJ86]

richiemokkiez... to sum it all.. Bro i feel that u should get a ATI 4870! (Fits ur budget perfectly!!)
It will be better compare to gtx260. Im actually a fan of nvidia and have been going for nvidia for many series, but after reading the review, feel that 4870 is a gd, best choice.

 

[EPYJ86]

Im not a hardcore expert on hardware but only share with u my opinion.. Hmm.. cant really say lose to 260 but in terms of the price, better to get a 4870.. (http://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/articles/view.php?id=2696&cid=3&pg=1) Consider Palit or Asus Dark knight.. Expert pls enlighten oso.. Thanks!

 

[gareth110983]

want to mod my computer

its really time to mod my computer.. lagging out by 2 years already!! can someone propose to me what type of items i ought to get for this coming year? hope i can still reuse as many things as possible too.. =) below are my specs that my current cpu holds. all are vintage i guess.. haha.

Motherboard
Manufacturer: Gigabyte Tech.
Model: 81PE1000-G/L
Graphic interface: AGP Version 3.0

Memory: DDR 512MB (PC3200)

i think got to change everything anyway, so can anyone give me an idea of what to get?? i'm a windows XP user and using Pentium 4 processor. any other things u need to know??

 

[I love Mods]

At richiemokkiez: you can read the reviews of the GTX 260+ on hardwarezone.com graphics articles and see how it matches up with the HD 4870. I think you will be quite satisfied with the 4870 if you are gaming. BTW, what resolution are you gaming at? For monitors 24 inches and above, the 1GB version of 4870 would be better. Palit is the brand for your budget as the sonic edition(which has an overclocked BIOS included) is priced at 405 dollars. The cooling for this card is also quite spectacular(reviews in graphics section also). Alternatively, if you can afford it, the 1 GB edition(about $446 I think.Please check price list download for PC themes) is not bad too and can last you a longer time with its greater memory buffer for the bells and whistles(AA,AF high res,shadows...). You can expect it to play games on mid to high settings for about 2 years looking at current trends. Seriously, no one can predict how things will turn out in the future with game technology and engines upgrading at an exponential pace.

At gareth110983: There are some things that will help the members to answer your queries- What brand and rating is your power supply? What is your usage? Is it for light gaming like MMORPGs(except conan) or earlier releases(pre 2007)? truth be told, the AGP system is quite short of upgrade options now as the most powerful AGP card is a HD3850 and support for this bus may stop(no more updates and new components). If you are really considering to change your system, why not trake a look at some midrange systems that are easy on your wallet and experience in the rigs buyers guide forum? it is found in the hardware clinic section. They have some good reference models and hardware gurus with experience in building rigs with good value for money.

 

[A7997A]

its really time to mod my computer.. lagging out by 2 years already!! can someone propose to me what type of items i ought to get for this coming year? hope i can still reuse as many things as possible too.. =) below are my specs that my current cpu holds. all are vintage i guess.. haha.

Motherboard
Manufacturer: Gigabyte Tech.
Model: 81PE1000-G/L
Graphic interface: AGP Version 3.0

Memory: DDR 512MB (PC3200)

i think got to change everything anyway, so can anyone give me an idea of what to get?? i'm a windows XP user and using Pentium 4 processor. any other things u need to know??

If someone ask you what is the best knife to get, what will you answer?

You probably need to change your mainboard, processor, ram.

In additional, you may need to change your graphics card, power supply, and hard disk, depending on your requirements.

 

[ashray99923]

i am going to play games on 19" monitor.........since i am tight on budget....recommend me card should i get the card saphire 4830 wich runs cooler and also overclocks well.....or i get a palit 4850 which runs fast but runs very hot......also is that palit 4850 is capable of overclocking?..thank you!!!

 

[adrianlee]

Hey all, i kinda need an answer urgently so thx in advance.
Anw, I've been wanting to upgrade my graphics card since cod:waw came out.
My current card is a leadtek nvidia 7800gtx 256mb. That was bought back when it was still in its prime and has served me pretty well although im dissapointed as to why it is able to run cod4 nicely and not cod:waw.

Since I bought the 7800, I havent been in check with the latest info. So to cut down to the chase, what card should I buy now with a budget of 400 that will last me a good amt of time?

Should I wait for a newer line to pop up?

Idk anything abt Nvidia's or ati's latest line of cards. (My tech knowledge limited to year 2007 only lol) How big of a performance improvement are the latest cards over the 7800 gtx?

Should I get a GTX280 or 260? Do they have a big difference btw them? etc etc

Thank you for reading this big wall of text

US$400?

 

[I love Mods]

I'm playing on and 19inch widescreen. yup. are there any recommendations for the gtx260 or 280? thanks btw!

Your budget is closer to the GTX 260 so I would recommend that to you. I saw an XFX GTX 280 at sitex for $699 so from SGD400 it is quite a huge jump... you can take a look at some gaming benchmarks found in the reviews at this site to see the differences(bar chart). Most are minute and for your monitor, you probably won't be cranking it up to 1680x1050 right? At 1440x900 or something,the differences are even more marginal at these lower resolutions.

Secondly, it also depends on what kind of games you are playing them on. For COD4 and COD5(using an updated COD4 engine), both cards should handle them no problem with minute differences at best. plaing older games like F.E.A.R. may also result in no noticeable differences. Unless you have windows vista,dx 10 performance is also not applicable. As the human eye cannot really differentiate frame rates above 35 fps, A gtx 280 may run a game at 65fps while a 260 at 59 and you probably would not realise it either. A GTX 280 may serve you longer and the next lineup of new cards will come next year, unless you wish to get a HD4850X2, which is rumored to be launching soon. Nevertheless, the best cards for your budget are still the HD4870 or GTX 260. I hope that answers some of your questions.

 

[I love Mods]

i am going to play games on 19" monitor.........since i am tight on budget....recommend me card should i get the card saphire 4830 wich runs cooler and also overclocks well.....or i get a palit 4850 which runs fast but runs very hot......also is that palit 4850 is capable of overclocking?..thank you!!!

A 4830 is not so value for money in my opinion but with its cheaper price and overclockability, it can still be a good buy if you know how to overclock it to its full potential( according to HWZ reviews, it can hit 4850 performance). Palit 4850 sonic edition comes preoverclocked and has a non-reference cooler that should help keep high temperatures in check. If you want to overclock it further, you can do so through the catalyst control centre and the latest catalyst drivers include the tweaking of fan speeds to keep your card cooler. For further overclocking, fans need to run at a higher speed to keep temperatures low and clocks stable, which results in more noise. I hope this answers your question.

 

[xiuxiu]

use onboard disply......................

 

[Wz0000]

PC PCS 4670 vs GTX260 Core 216, ... (budget vs performance)


Leadtek GTX 260 Extreme+ is at 469 GTX280 at 699 cheapest
4870 1gb would be at about 449~459

Go for the green camp.

 

[ColinYip]

You would never want a 4830 ever ....with solittle price delta. Due to exchange rate and the time the chip is released, the 4850 is the only card to get.