... I finally opted for Sapphire's version of the Ati Radeon 7000 model.
It cost about 28 pounds at the time, and is possibly the finest budget card I've come across. One of its main advantages is its stability, I used a tool called Riva Tuner to overclock it somewhat, the heatsink handled ... Read review
Advantages: Fantastic budget card. Disadvantages: Limited overclocking facilities. Fails to run the latest titles.
Last December, I was assigned the task of building a low -cost PC for a relative. With only a maximum of 35 pounds to spend on a video card my choice was limited. I finally opted for Sapphire's version of the Ati Radeon 7000 model.
It cost about 28 pounds at the time, and is possibly the finest budget card I've come across. One of its main advantages is its stability, I used a tool called Riva Tuner to overclock it somewhat, the heatsink ... ...marked improvement, the only benefit being a slight increase of frame rate on Counter-Strike and Medal of Honour: Allied Assualt.
This aside, the card is fantastic for the price. It runs popular games such as Counterstrike (Non-source of course) aswell as any game predating the year 2002. However, it doesn't run more recent graphically intense titles such as Elder Scrolls III or Battlefield 1942 at all.
Last December, I was assigned the task of building a low -cost PC for a relative. With only a maximum of 35 pounds to spend on a video card my choice was limited. I finally opted for Sapphire's version of the Ati Radeon 7000 model.
It cost about 28 pounds at the time, and is possibly the finest budget card I've come across. One of its main advantages is its stability, I used a tool called Riva Tuner to overclock it somewhat, the heatsink handled it fine! Sadly though, the overclocking didn't produce any marked improvement, the only benefit being a slight increase of frame rate on Counter-Strike and Medal of Honour: Allied Assualt.
This aside, the card is fantastic for the price. It runs popular games such as Counterstrike (Non-source of course) aswell as any game predating the year 2002. However, it doesn't run more recent graphically intense titles such as Elder Scrolls III or Battlefield 1942 at all.
Installation is a doddle, you simply slot the card into one of the motherboards agp slots, and secure it using the screws provided. When I received the card, there was no instruction manual to speak of, instead there is a disk which installs a program that allows easy tweaking of the screen resolution and color depth.
While its speed is minescule compared to the models available for 4 times the price, the 7000 remains the king of budget video cards. If your constructing a PC on a budget, I highly recommend you purchase this great card.
Advantages: Excellent mid-range card. Compatable with most recent games. Good overclocking capabilities Disadvantages: None to speak of.
Last January, after my aged Nvidia TNT2 card finally bit the dust I realized it was time to purchase a new graphics card for my own PC. I'd previously bought and tested out the Radeon7000 from Sapphire on a different PC, due to the good results I acheived with that model, this card represented a natural progression.
The 9200SE card is by no means a top of the range model, when I purchased it it cost 37 pounds. Upon receiving it promptly through the post I proceeded to install it in the usual manner: Inserting it into one of the Agp slots on the motherboard and fastening the card using the screws supplied.
The motherboard I used it on was a cheap Syntax / PC Chips board equipped with a 4x AGP function. Just likes its lesser counterpart it possesses no manual.
The software supplied was identical to that which came with the 7000 ...
Previously know as RADEON VE, RADEON 7000 delivers enhanced 3D and 2D graphics performance for today's demanding applications. Powered by the RADEON 7000 graphics processor and up to 64MB DDR memory; this adapter features Hyper Z technology to increase effective memory bandwidth and Pixel Tapestry for fast image rendering. Plus RADEON 7000 has an industry leading, built-in DVD playback capability.
