If you’re looking for a new graphics card for your PC, then there are lots of different factors to consider. Whether you’re looking to upgrade your current PC or are searching for the best graphics card to use for your custom build gaming PC, it’s important to know what you are looking for and do plenty of research as this is one of the most important components.
AMD Vs NVIDIA vs Intel
The first thing to know about buying a graphics card is that there are three main manufacturers: AMD, NVIDIA and Intel. AMD and NVIDA are the main options with more graphics cards to choose from, while Intel mainly offers integrated graphics with some dedicated cards including Intel Arc Graphics at Lenovo. These manufacturers do also license other companies to sell their graphics cards, so you may find NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards for sale under brand names like ASUS, MSI, EVGA and Gigabyte.
Games You Play
The type of games that you are planning on playing is another crucial factor to think about when it comes to choosing the right graphics card for your needs. If you play a lot of graphics-intensive games, then you are going to need a more powerful graphics card for the job. For example, if you play games like Battlefield 1, The Witcher 3, and virtual reality games, then you are probably going to need a better GPU compared to if you spend most of your time playing less graphics-heavy games like Minecraft or League of Legends.
Your Monitor Specs
Another thing to consider when shopping for a graphics card is the specs of the monitor that you are going to be using. The resolution that you will be playing at is one of the most important factors to consider, since the higher the resolution of your monitor, the more pixels will need to be rendered on each frame. The more pixels there are to render, the harder your GPU is going to be working. A high-end graphics card is essential if you are planning to play games using a 4K monitor, for example.
Compatibility
Whether you are building your own gaming PC or upgrading a PC that you already have with a new graphics card, it’s important to make sure that the graphics card you choose is going to work well with all the other components in your PC. The two main things that you will need to check are your case and power supply. Since the graphics card is a component that uses a lot of power, it’s important that your power supply is able to handle it. Check what kind of PCIe connector the power supply and the graphics card have, as you will usually need to connect them directly using this. Finally, make sure that the graphics card is able to fit easily inside the computer case that you’re going to be using.
Whether you want better graphics on your existing PC or are in the process of choosing a graphics card for a new gaming PC build, these are some of the most important factors to think about.
