Well then, are you tired of squinting trying to read fuzzy print and workout blurry out of focus pictures? In that case, maybe a new graphics card is just what your computer needs.
I wouldn't recommend upgrading your graphics card unless you have a invested in a decent monitor. So first things first make sure you have a good monitor otherwise you will not benefit from the changes.
You need to bear in mind that graphics card connectors come in two main formats, PCI and AGP.....
I highly recommend NOT installing the card yourself if you don't know the difference between the two. If you have any qualms at all the best thing to do would be take it to a professional or friend who has some good IT knowledge. If you make any mistakes not only could it be really annoying but cause some expensive damage to your system - you have been warned!
I had decided to upgrade my old graphics card from an ATI Radeon 7000 to the ATI Radeon 9000 Pro with 128 MB DDR SDRAM. I wasn't having many problems with my old graphics card but I wanted to expand the 3D capabilities of my gaming and edit graphics/photos. Seeing as I have a reasonably fast computer (3.2 Gig Hz Pentium 4) with 1 Gig of RAM, I realized that the card, with only 32 MB of DDR SDRAM was the only thing I would need to optimise.
I'm not going to bore you too much like most reviews on graphics cards which tend to focus on frames per second, refresh rates etc. The type of mumbo jumbo info, while really important to die hard gamers, is useless to the majority of us. I am going to try and focus on image quality which is more important to you graphics designers and photographers out there.
Installation was real easy I had to first uninstall the driver for the old graphics card and then restart the computer. Unplug the old graphics card and install the new one in it's place because it was AGP it only needs 1 screw (but remmeber not to lose it) Replace the cover, and plug it back into the wall socket. I then had to install the drivers off the CD - the instructions were much easier to follow on the Cd than in the booklet.
Also, ATI have a well deserved reputation for excellent customer support just in case your questions or troubleshooting is not taken care of by the user's guide.
After I had installed the graphics card, I was amazed, I really wasn't expecting that kind of visual improvement, as my main reason for buying this card wasn't because I was unhappy with the appearance of my old card. The maximum refresh rate was 2048 x 1536 @ 85 Hz.
This card is considerably sharper and clearer than the Radeon 7000 that I used before. If you have a card that is worse or similar, be prepared for a huge improvement. I didn't see quite as huge an improvement in colours as I did in the image sharpness.
The two biggest areas of improvement as far as colours are concerned is that blacks are quite a bit darker and whites appear as if my monitor just got bleached. Skin tones are much more realistic and vivid colors really seem to jump out now.
I will admit that I'm not a really big gamer, I can't comment in details on this cards 3D capabilities as far as speed is concerned. But the 3D visual quality of my games do look considerably more realistic. Images now have more depth and look more realistic and not as flat, this certainly is a great advantage for people who are looking for an all round better image from their photo's and games.
DVD and video playback are absolutely amazing. Sharp, crisp, vivid and, depending on the image, incredibly realistic and when I open pictures and games now they open almost instantenousely which makes a great change to my computer usage. This is definitely a must have for less than £100 and if you import it from the USA it could cost as little as $50... and far better than the 7000!
Highly Recommended
More details
Ease of use
Very easy
Instruction manual
Satisfactory
Memory / capacity
Good
Manufacturer Support
Excellent
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