Graphics card for cheap machine

Hi everyone, I recently bought the budget Zoostorm Desktop machine and I think I'd like to put a graphics card in just to bump up the specs a little bit. I say this because I assume the "Intel HD Graphics" aren't actually all that (not actually booted the machine yet).

I think the most recent game I intend on playing any time soon is Portal 2 or Fallout New Vegas (and maybe GTAIV). I'm not expecting super high res high quality graphics, but I'd like to play at a reasonable FPS rate.

Can I get a graphics card for about £50 that'd make a difference? If so, would you recommend anything in particular? Ideally I do not want to upgrade the 300W PSU either.

The last time I really looked in to buying PC components properly was about 10 years ago (Athlon XP 1800 and a PNY Geforce4 ti4200 !), so I really have no idea (I feel old and out of touch :( )

Thanks everyone!

What are the specifications of the computer?? Also open up the computer and see what PSU is in the machine,ie,what make is it and what power rating does it have.

For around £70 to £75, an HD6770 1GB would be a good start,although you do need a reasonable quality PSU.

A bus powered card would be ideal if you have a smaller PSU.

It seems supplies of the HD5670 GDDR5 have now dried up and the HD6670 GDDR5 is well over £60. The GT440 GDDR5 is also much slower than an HD5670 GDDR5. The HD5670 GDDR5 was around £50 for yonks but in the last few months all the cheap cards have gone.

The HD6670 GDDR5 should be fine with a smaller PSU:

http://www.dabs.com/products/sapphir...?q=6670&src=16

The HD6770 1GB is faster,but the HD6670 GDDR5 consumes far less power.

The HD7750 might be a good card to consider - it has lower power consumption than an HD6670 GDDR5 and similar performance to an HD5770/HD6770 1GB:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/HD_7750/26.html

The cards start at around £80 though. It might be worth waiting a few more months for prices to drop.

Edit!!

It might be worth checking if this is an HD6670 GDDR5 or not:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AMD-ATI-Ra...item4cfeed3ba8

Much appreciated Cat! :)

I'll have a proper look at the PSU when I get a chance and then attempt to begin making a decision.

Memories of trying to decide between a P4 or an Athlon XP are flooding back!

HD 6850s are getting much cheaper :P ScanFX HD 6850 is £86 on Scan. They might drop a bit more.

HD 4870/5770/6770, they are all in the same area of performance really.

Besides most cards you need a decent power supply for now don't you? All seem to ask 400+

I was going to mention the 7750, 7770, but they are all overpriced for their performance. About £120 for the HD 7770 unless its dropped?

I remember reading that the psu is 450w which wont be enough for a dedicated GPU

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bigdaz84

I remember reading that the psu is 450w which wont be enough for a dedicated GPU

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A 'proper' 450w is fine with most single graphic cards,even those very power hungry.The problem is that many cheap brands mislead the public by putting peak capability on the label ,whereas practically,the psu is the most stressed component of the pc and should be able to deliver the labelled power all the time in much higher than the room temperature.I have seen '700w' psu which were weaker than quality 300w.
Modern Cpu and graphics use 12v so the genuine number of amps delivered on this rail is the most important factor of good psu.

The card manufacturers inflate the power requirements because they know that many users buy the crappy psus which labels are far from the truth.That's generalisation but decent psu shouldn't cost less than £50 for middle wattage ie 450-500w and never weight less than 2kg.if you are unfamiliar with the market always search for independent reviews on internet.

GtaIV is quite demanding,what psu do you have in your case?I mean exact model, i am asking as some cheap 300w will not allow you for ANY upgrade.

Well just to feed back, I went with the HD 7750 Cat recommended and I am very happy with the results! I can actually play Minecraft now (having bought it about 3 years ago!) and Portal 2 runs really well. I have not upgraded the PSU. I'm not expecting miracles from GTA IV, but I will try that soonish (going from a 60Gb HDD to a 1Tb, is crazy :D )

Thanks again Cat!

Get ready for fireworks, that PSU is not up to the job

Out of interest what make is the PSU?? It would be useful to know!!

What HD7750 model did you get??

If you have some time,can you also contribute a score for the HD7750 here please:

http://forums.hexus.net/pc-hardware/...astest-pc.html

I have an HD5670 GDDR5 in there,so it would be nice to know how much faster it is!!

Edit!!

Managed to find these posts now:

http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/zoos...1#post13539773

http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/zoos...2#post13790561

This is the reason,why I wanted to know what the PSU was,it seems a generic PSU with around 12A(144W) on the 12V line. A Core i3 2100 and an HD7750 will require less than that but the main issue is the quality of the PSU. If it were an FSP or even an HEC PSU it would probably have been fine. I cannot determine the OEM of the PSU.

This would be the cheapest PSU I would go for:

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/350w-...mm-fan-atx-v23

There are a few 400W to 450W PSUs in the £35 to £45 which would be a better choice if you want a bigger upgrade at a later date.

Edit!!

Is the PSU a ZOOSTORM ZOO-6300HP??

I went with the Sapphire HD 7750.

For what it's worth, the PSU in my box is the same as that in the images you linked to.

Will run the 3dmark test now! - http://3dmark.com/3dm11/2939822