When most people consider doing an upgrade to their existing PC buying a new graphics cards often seems the way to go but there are some considerations you need to take into account.
Do You Want To Play The Latest Games?
Inititally it is a good idea to take a step back before making a purchase and ascertaining the level of upgrade that would be most suitable i.e. are you an ardent games player. Find out whether the majority are in 2-D or in 3-D
If most of them are 2-D models, you’ll get the most from the graphic cards that are on the market today without needing the more expensive 3-D acceleration. Remember that the CPU speed is the variable that you’ll need to consider the most. Take care here before you buy anything. Buying a powerful new card may be in vain if your processor is simply not up to the task.
Not Universal
Bear in mind that different types of cards have different slot types so you need to ensure that the card you buy is correct for your mainboard. The type of card you need for a newer motherboard will vary compared to an older motherboard so you need to choose the right one, the different types are; AGP – Pci, and Pci-e
Does Your Computer Have Sufficient Memory?
In a lot of cases upgrading your computer graphics will mean a computer memory upgrade too!
Graphic Cards have their own GPU which is another name for a processing unit. With a faster GPU it has lots of memory, and if your computer system only has a small amount of system ram then you will run into a big snag as your computer will simply not have enough memory to support your new card and your computer may become vey unstable and crash or your system will suddenly get much slower than it was before the card upgrade.
Is Your Power Supply Good Enough?
Newer cards drink a lot more power than their older counterparts so you need to be aware of this as well, the older the power supply the smaller it may be, and it may only be around 350w or there abouts, so depending on on the number of other pieces of hardware you have attached, this may over strain the supply which can lead to computer instabilities. Also be aware of the fact that many newer and more powerful graphics cards may need an additional direct power connection so check your cabling before purchase and buy a splitter if your need one.
Is My Case Suitable?
Sometimes a cases internal layout can cause space problems when fitting a new graphics card or the layout out of the main board may simply not be conducive for larger cards and a newer card will simply not fit!
Typically newer cards are much longer and much deeper than older less powerful cards. Equally many will have larger fans to keep then cool as they work harder so check in your case to make sure there is enough space above and below the graphics slot.
A graphics card upgrade is worth the effort but you do need to take account of the above considerations, but if you have an older AGP based motherboard and want to play the latest games then you may be better investing in a new computer.
For more great advice about graphic card upgrades visit our Pc support website.