In this page you will take a first view on how to pick the best video card for your computer. The choice is the result of many factors that you must take into account before choosing which card is the best for your needs. You may find more specific information about choosing a graphics card to the “Related Pages”.
What is a Video Card?
A computer video card or graphics card is the hardware part responsible for the depiction on the computer monitor. The cable from the monitor goes straight to a port (interface) of a video card which is located at the back of your computer.
There are two video card types. The video card can be an integral part of the motherboar
GPU of a Video Card
d or it can be an extra hardware part. People who choose to buy an integrated to motherboard video card usually need their computer for basic use and definitely not for games or special graphics applications.
A PCI express video card or AGP video card (AGP is old technology and it is abandoned) is a card that looks like a tiny motherboard. It has many chips on it and a central chip which is the GPU. The GPU stands for the Graphics Processing Unit and this is the most important chip of the graphics card. Everything else comes second. We will see more on these on the parts of a video card.
There is also a new third type of graphics cards which is the external video card. This type is for use with laptop when someone needs to connect an extra display. We will analyze only the first two cases which are directed for desktop computers and also they are the most common options.
How to Search for the Best Video Card.
The search for the most suitable video card looks like the search for the best CPU. In fact the PCI express video card integrates a processor that is dedicated to process only graphics and video. This processor is the GPU we talked earlier.
An extremely expensive video card
When you look for the best video card you actually look for the best GPU that you can buy. PC video cards also cover a long price and performance range. You can find a PCI express video card at a price as low as $40 and as high as $1400. The target here is to select the video card that its performance is at a similar level with the rest hardware of your computer.
For example, if you have bought a mid-range motherboard, without many capabilities, and an average CPU then the best video card would be a mid-range one. There is not point to buy a high-end PCI express card as it cost more and you will face a “bottleneck”, meaning that the card has the potential to offer a lot more but its performance will be limited by the rest computer components. Remember that you want to achieve the best deal and not to spend a fortune for your custom pc.
Indicatively the price ranges of the pc video cards are as follow:
A Low-end Video Card
- Low-end < $80
- Mid-Range (Average User) $80-$300
- High-End (Gamer) > $300
In graphics cards you cannot determine which the best is by just comparing their specs. You have to check graphics card reviews, comparison charts and performance benchmarks in order to get a correct view on the performance of PCI graphics cards. As it comes to the specs these are useful for you to acquire a first view, just like with CPUs.
A Mid-Range Video Card
When looking for the best video card the first thing you have to do is to select the GPU. After that you can check for the rest of the details. The GPU is responsible for the performance and the cost of the computer video card. The two major graphics chipset manufacturers are ATI( recently purchased by AMD) and nVidia. Just like Intel and AMD, GPU manufacturers produce their products in Generations and Series. We talked about generations and series in the Comparing CPUs section.
The GPU with the highest number of the last generation is the “flagship” and it offers the best performance while it is the most expensive as well. Though it is possible that top products of previous generations to perform much better than the low-end products of the current generation.
The steps that you need to follow in order to choose the best video card for your system are the following:
- Determine the role of your computer and decide the price range of the pc video card.
- Set a desired price you are willing to spend.
- Compare GPUs and decide which one will serve you the best taking into account the first step.
- Compare video card brands and their technical specs.
- Compare prices and select the best performance/price ratio.
- Buy the card from a trusted seller. You want fast and reliable service in case of trouble.
A few clarifications about the above steps.
The role of your computer reflects the use of your computer. If you want to build a gaming computer you must focus on high-end cards. If you want a multi-role (entertainment, browsing, office applications etc.) computer you should look for a mid-range PCI express video card that it can cope with your demands. If you don’t care about graphics and games and you just need an office computer then you don’t have to search for any graphics card, you can just buy a motherboard with integrated graphics or any low-end PCI graphics card.
The third step requires making a brief analysis of the market and acquiring a first view about the available GPUs from the top manufacturers. You can also compare technical specs between GPUs.
PCI express video card brands are different from GPU manufacturers. The companies that create and sell a video card select a GPU and build a graphics card around it.
So in the market you will find the cards under a brand name. For example some famous brands are Asus, PNY, Sapphire, Gigabyte, ECS, EVGA, Sparkle and more. You can see the GPU type in the technical description of the card (it is also called chipset) and it can be ATI or nVidia.
Of course there are also other companies that produce chipsets like S3 graphics but there are very limited choices and that’s why I do not count them as an option.
Choosing the Best Video Card Key Points
- Computer Video Cards are responsible for graphics and video representation.
- There are two types of video cards; Integrated to motherboard and independent PCI express cards. First are cost-effective solutions while second are mostly performance oriented.
- The most important part of a PCI graphics card is the chipset or GPU. The chipset determines the price and performance range of the card.
- The best video card is the one that its performance does not get limited by the rest of the hardware.
- You get a correct view about PCI graphics cards only when you compare them in real applications and benchmarks. Their specs is only for getting a first idea.
This page is general talking about selecting the best video card for your needs. Follow this link to learn how to install a video card. For more specific information follow any links you can find here or check the “Related Pages” section on the left.
