Graphic Cards Buyers Guide

Getting the Picture Perfect Effect

The existence of graphic cards has taken graphics to a different level altogether. Whether you are playing 3D games, watching videos or working on extensively with graphics, graphic cards have the capability of providing you with a unique experience. Graphic cards estimate the way in which graphics feature and then transfer it accordingly to the monitor. All graphic cards are not the same and therefore there are several things you would need to consider before making the purchase.

Requirements

The primary question that you need to answer before you decide on buying a graphic card is whether you at all need one or not. Graphic cards are required only when you need to deal with intricate graphics and 3D images. 2D requirements can be easily satisfied with other simpler and cheaper graphic solutions. However, you will also find graphic cards coming in a varied range of prices. Different graphic cards will perform in different ways. Your needs will help you to decide on the ones you should buy. These days graphic cards come with their own processing units called the Graphics Processing Unit. Let us take a look at the factors that distinguish an excellent graphic card from a not-so-good one.

Speed of processor

This is an essential point of consideration. This is calculated by the total amount of pixels processed during one clock cycle. The higher this number the better is the performance of the graphic card said to be. This number of pixels processed in a clock cycle is affected by the performance of the GPU or the Graphics Processing Unit.

Memory

The graphic cards that you will be buying will each have their memory space. There are various different capacities that are available in case of graphic card memory. For high end graphic requirements you will require greater memory capacity. Also, the memory of the graphic card should have a high bandwidth so as to avoid delaying the transfer rate and therefore better performance.

Scalable Link Interface

The Scalable Link Interface, also known as the SLI, facilitates you to use a pair of graphic cards in your system. When a Scalable Link Interface is used it is possible for the two graphic cards to equally share the tasks and therefore perform twice as much as a single graphic card would have. However, the use of this feature would large depend on your requirement for high end 3D games and graphic applications.

Other features

There are various other features that make graphic cards perform better. For instance, a Shader model can introduce different types of special effects to the graphics and an anti-aliasing feature can smooth the images. Hence, care should be taken of these features. The rate at which 3D pixels can be colored is an important feature for consideration. This rate is known as the fill rate. The vertices per second and the triangles per second that create the 3D effect in an image are factors that need to be paid attention to. Presence of RAMDAC or the Random Access Memory Digital to Analogue Converter provides better resolution and allows the working of multiple displays. The ability to connect the graphic cards to a television with the help of the TV-out feature is something you could look for. Also, features like the Dual-head that allows the use of two display units and DVI monitor connectors are additional things many buyers opt for.

Now that you have come across all the important features that a graphic card generally has in order to perform well you can use this as groundwork for your research. You need to perform a thorough research and find out all you can about graphic cards. Compare and contrast all the options available in the market and then go on to decide on the graphic cards you wish to invest in.

Key Features

Key Features   Card Interface   Compatibility   Applicable Devices		With over 1400 graphic cards on the market, key features such as Card Interface, Compatibility & Applicable Devices are important factors when buying. These features not only effect the performane and quality of the graphic card you choose, but also the price. Shown below are price guides for a selection of graphic cards focusing on the key features: Card Interface, Compatibility & Applicable Devices.

Card Interface AGP 4x £107.00 AGP £132.00 PCI Express £187.00 * PCI Express £187.00

Compatibility PC, Unix £134.00 PC £166.00 PC, Mac £180.00 Mac £377.00 Sun, PC, Unix £546.00 * PC £166.00

Applicable Devices TV, DVD Player, Computer Multimedia £18.00

Price Guide

Min    £17.39 Avg    £164.00 Max    £4,100.74		Graphic Cards cost anywhere from £17.39 for a basic graphic card with few features to around £4,100.74 for a fully featured graphic card.

Brand Guide

Popular Brands     ASUS     Sapphire     MSI     PIXMANIA     SAPPHIRE TECHNOLOGY     Gigabyte		The most popular graphic cards brand is ASUS. The most expensive graphic cards brand is 512M. If you're looking for a bargain then look out for Various branded graphic cards as generally they offer the cheapest graphic cards.