Computing Tips And Tricks – Installing A New Graphic Card
Upgrading your computer system often starts with a graphics card upgrade but as prices vary immensely you need to ensure you buy the right one.
What Do You Use Your Computer For?
One of the first things that you’ll need to do is a take a close look at what you use your computer for and at the collection of games that you’ve got. Are you a casual games player that perhaps prefers to save money and buy older or second hand games, or do you want the latest and greatest?
If the majority are older titles then you simply will not need a high end high memory card and will be better suited with a budget card especially in an older system. One thing to be on the lookout for is the power of your CPU as this may cause issues. Exercise caution before making a purchase. Getting the latest upgrade when you’ve got an older chip in your computer will be a waste since the two won’t be compatible.
Not All Cards Are The Same
You may not be aware but people are often caught out by the different card slot types available, simply put if you get the wrong one it will not fit in your system. 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; PCI, AGP and Pci-e
Do You Have Enough Computer Memory?
Quite often upgrading your computer graphics will mean a pc memory upgrade too!
Graphics cards have different amounts of memory and the better (in most cases) the card the greater the memory, and if your computer system only has a pretty small amount of onboard memory then you are bound to have issues as you will have insufficient on board ram to support your system devices and installation will either fail 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 so you’ll need to make plans for this as well, the older the power supply the smaller it may be, and it may only be around 300w give or take, so depending on on the number of other pieces of hardware you have attached, this may lead to excessive power drain which can make your computer very unstable indeed. Also be aware of the fact that many of the new breed of graphics cards may need an alternative direct power connection so you need to check to see if you have a spare connector (that will reach the card) available.
Will The New Card Fit?
Even some PC tech’s forget about this one as case design does vary from manufacturer to manufacturer or depending on the main board manufacturer, graphic card space may have not been a major consideration when the board was designed so 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 computer upgrades visit our business IT support website.
