Need Video Card Help

[hkellick]

OK, folks. I need help of the kind that I think some of y'all can offer.

Three years ago, I bought my computer from CompUSA. At the time, the computer was pretty well loaded... with a whopping 64 MB Video Card (NVIDIA GeForce4 MX420 graphics card) and 512 MB DDR SDRAM.
That was three years ago... nowadays... nowadays, my computer tends to meet minimum specifications for the games I want to play and some of my games tend to get slow (both slow to load and slow to play, depending).

So.. what I want to do is begin refurbishing my computer. My computer doesn't run too slow and I don't have problems, for example, hopping in and out of Word or Excel, so I suspect it's not actually a RAM problem.. I think it's that with the new 3D games I'm playing (Sims 2, Zoo Tycoon 2, etc.), the 64 MB Video Card just isn't up to snuff anymore.

So.. I want to replace it.

The problem is.. I don't know a damned thing about Video Cards. I don't know HOW to compare and contrast and decide which is going to get me the most bang for my buck.
So... could someone with more knowledge of the intricacies of computer parts please instruct me as to the difference between video cards and how to tell which one is right for me?
Please?

Thanks!

Comments

[lite.livejournal.com]

Um.. reasonable? Probably up to $200, but can bend if it's really worthwhile.

Mostly what I'm looking for is knowledge of.. exactly how to tell the differences... what do I need to know to make an informed decision, instead of will someone else make one for me.

[peachtess.livejournal.com]

Yep totally. An easy way is to look at brand new PC games and see what the reccommended video requirements are. If you get something that meets or beats that you're card should be good for a few years.
Somethings to note. Try to stick with ATI or Nvidia. All the game makers use them so you won't have any weird driver issues with games. You'll need at least 128mb of RAM on the card. DirectX 9 is the current standard for new games. Interface deals with what slot your video card sits in your PC. Easiest thing to do is see what interface your old one is using and go with the same. SLI is Scalable Link Interface and that just means you can link two or more video cards together to get even more power. I haven't seen anything that actually requires this yet and your motherboard probably doesn't support it so you'll probably want to pass.
Its almost always cheaper to buy computer parts online. Check out sites like www.newegg.com or www.tigerdirect.com.
Let me know if you have any questions. ^_^

[vissith.livejournal.com]

newegg ftw