A. Can your computer power supply handle the graphics cards??
Most Modern graphics cards consume a lot of power. Radeon HD 7970 for example, can draw power more than 200 Watts. Please visit Nvidia and AMD official site to see the system requirement of each video cards.
However, there a few cards that consume less power like HD 7750 and HD 6670. Since the power consumption of those cards is only 50-60 Watts, you can run the cards properly into a computer with 400 Watt power supply.
B. Will the cards fit into your computer case??
Certain graphics cards like EVGA GTX TITAN 6GB with 12 x 2.1 x 8 inches product dimensions won't fit into a mini tower computer. So, it's really important for you to see the size of graphics card you want to buy.
Note: for a mini tower computer, video card with small size like HD 7750, Radeon R7 250, or GTX 750 Ti is the best choice for you.
C. Is your CPU strong enough to handle the graphics card??
As a PC gamer you need at least triple core processors like AMD Phenom X3 to run gaming video cards, or else, it will cause bottleneck. Note that dual core processors are still capable to handle modern games, on 720p resolutions of course.
D. DDR3 or GDDR5 graphics card??
Compared to DDR3, GDDR5 graphics cards come with faster memory bandwidth and memory clock. HD 6670 GDDR5 for example, can run Battlefield 3 on highest settings while the performance of DDR3 version is limited to medium settings.
So if you want to get optimal performance for gaming, getting GDDR5 graphics cards is a must.
E. 1 GB or 2 GB graphics card??
1 GB graphics card is enough for HD gaming (720p) . But, if you are using multiple monitors or you want to play on 1080p resolutions, get 2 GB graphics card or better.
F. What is the resolution of your monitor??
It's one of the most important factor you need to consider. Obviously, the larger the resolutions, the stronger card you need. For medium resolutions, HD 6570 or HD 6670 is enough. For larger resolutions, you need at least HD 7750, GTX 650 Ti or faster gaming cards.
Good graphics card for gaming i recommend:
1. GTX 750 Ti
The GeForce GTX 750 Ti is powered by GM107 GPU chip with the first-generation of Maxwell architecture. Maxwell architecture does carry a significant changes to the GeForce GTX 750 Ti, especially in terms of performance. Interestingly, the price of this video card is under 200$ and is positioned to face the R7 Radeon 260X. Not only that, the GeForce GTX 750 Ti will also replace the GeForce GTX 650 Ti.
Technically, The GTX 750 Ti has been equipped with 1.87 billion transistors, 28 nm Process Size and 148 mm² Die Size.
Well, the best thing about GTX 750 Ti is it draws less power and it doesn't require any additional power connector. So, the GTX 750 Ti is the best choice for you if you wanna get a new video card without have to upgrade your computer power supply.
TDP: 60 W
Pixel Rate: 16.3 GPixel/s
Texture Rate: 40.8 GTexel/s
Bandwidth: 86.4 GB/s
Recommended resolutions: 1080p
Click here to buy Nvidia GeForce GTX 750 Ti from amazon
2. Radeon R7 260X
According to AMD website, the tagline that is brought to the R7 series graphics card is: "The power to do it all". The AMD believes if the R7 260X which has been powered by "Bonaire" GPU could be a solution for gaming computer today. Not just good to run games on good quality settings, this video card is also suitable for editing photos and videos, or if you just want to watch the high-resolution movies.
This graphics card supports DirectX 11.2, OpenGL 4.3, and of course, Mantle technology. AMD stated that the R7 series are also ready to support up to 4K resolution monitors.
Technically, the R7 260X GPU is based on 28nm Process GPU, with 56 Texture Units and 896 Stream Processors. Unfortunately, this video card requires more power if compared to its predecessor, Radeon HD 7790.
TDP: 115 W
Pixel Rate: 17.6 GPixel/s
Texture Rate: 61.6 GTexel/s
Bandwidth: 104 GB/s
Recommended resolutions: 1080p
Click here to buy Radeon R7 260X from amazon
3. Radeon HD 7750
HD 7750 uses Cape Verde Pro-codename GPU chip with GCN (Graphics Core Next) architecture, the same architecture used by the HD 7900 series. Unlike its closest brother, the HD 7770 which has been equipped with ten Compute Units, the HD 7750 is equipped with only eight Compute Units. Well, with max TDP around 55 Watts, the HD 7750 does not require additional power through PCIe power connector.
AMD Radeon HD 7750 is a part of AMD's Southern Island family with the lowest specification and the cheapest price compared to its bothers, fortunately, the HD 7750 is still good for gaming. In high-resolution (1920 × 1080), the HD 7750 is still powerful to run DirectX 9 games with good settings.
Obviously, the HD 7750 is more powerful on lower resolution such as 1600 × 900, 1360 × 768 or 1280 × 720 and can even run "heavy" games like Battlefield 4 on highest settings with those resolutions.
TDP: 55 W
Pixel Rate: 12.8 GPixel/s
Texture Rate: 25.6 GTexel/s
Bandwidth: 72 GB/s
Recommended resolutions: 720p and 900p
Click here to buy Radeon HD 7750 from amazon
Thanks for reading the article...
FAQ:
Q: I want to build a super gaming computer, what graphics card will you recommend??
A: Get GTX Titan, with 288384 MB/sec memory bandwidth and 6008 MHz memory clock, is the strongest card you can get in the market today. But now the question is, are you really willing to spend more than $1000 only for a graphics card??. The GTX Titan is not not needed, unless you want to play for 4K gaming. I suggest you to save your money and get a cheaper gaming video card like GTX 750 Ti which can run any games on good quality settings!! (1080p res) and the price is under $200.
Q: I want to build a gaming computer equivalent to my PS3, what graphics card will you recommend??
A: PS3 is equipped with modded nvidia 7800GTX 256mb. Not a powerful GPU actually, so even a slower card like HD 6570 DDR5 can outrank the GPU of PS3 easily. But for a better result, i suggest you to get a cheap low profile graphics card like HD 6670 DDR5.
Q: My budget is limited to $100, what is the right choice for me??
A: Get HD 7750 or HD 6670 GDDR5, those graphics card are powerful enough to run modern games like Far Cry 3 or Battlefield 3 at high setting on 720p or 900p resolutions.
