Hey I need to upgrade my pc but i don't know what to buy. My graphics/video card is an ATI Radeon X300 SE PCI-Express Graphics with 128 DDR video memory, but i would like to get one that can play todays high graphic games. I would also like to upgrade from my Samsung 512mb (2 x 256mb) 400MHz DDR SDRAM memory, but i would like to get a 2gb ram or 2 x 1gb. Thanks for any help
I have a HP Pavilion a1060a. I have been looking at this video card 'ASUS GEFORCE NVIDIA 8400 SILENT PCI EXPRESS 512MB DDR2.'
It's a shame, since that computer (from what i could find out) was REALLY expensive (i saw $2799)... The thing is, technology has moved on a lot since that computer was made, such as it only supporting up to 400MHz DDR RAM. Both the processor and the RAM would bottleneck a good graphics card. Now, i'm assuming your an American, so correct me if i'm wrong, but if you are, see here for RAM; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820609049 Your motherboard supports up to 4GB (4 x 1GB) of RAM, but a 32 bit operating system would only be able to see a little over 3GB of it, and it's twice as expensive as DDR2 memory (roughly the same price as DDR3 memory) - it would cost you a huge $128 to get 4GB of RAM for your computer. You have a PCIe x16 slot so you're covered there, but if you buy anything other than a low end card, you'd also need to purchase a new PSU to power it. The 8400 is one such low end card - i have one in the computer i use in my room and i haven't actually played a game on it in over a year (i don't even bother installing new games onto it to see if they run - the last was Medal of Honor Airborne and it ran as a snails pace at minimum settings). What i'm trying to get at is that it's a terrible card, and if you want to play games you should save the time and money and not bother. My advice is you consider building a whole new computer - if you want to play modern games on that computer you'll need a new graphics card, more RAM and a new PSU, and you'd be looking in the region of $250 to play games reasonably. I think with that computer you'd just be staving off the inevitable.
The 8400GS is PCI express, so it will fit in that PC. The bad news is that it's not a whole lot faster than the X300Se that the PC already comes with. You could get a much more powerful card that would work in that system even with the size and power limitations (An HD4670), but as Shokz says, the CPU is slow and outdated and will be the limiting factor in the system. If you want to upgrade the memory in that system, forget it and build a new system, DDR costs up to three times as much as newer DDR2, so you're throwing money away upgrading such an old PC. To play modern high-end games replacing the entire PC is compulsary - the age of that system will prohibit you from playing newer games, now matter how much money you throw at it.
Hey, Sam, am i the only one that wants to point lapjim to the build we just made for sentence? http://forums.afterdawn.com/t.cfm/f-216/advice_on_building_a_pc-781847/ Look over this, read everything we said, and take a look at the parts. It's a good build for a reasonably cheap price - you could also re-use your present DVD drive, keyboard and mouse, and possibly the monitor, but in your case i'd recommend a different PSU and GPU. First post back to see if $500-600 sounds like a price range you'd be willing to go for.
If i were to build a new pc what parts of my PC would i be able to keep. I've also been looking at this pc which i could get for $100 These are its specs: Intel Core i7 920 Gigabyte EX 58 Extreme 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 MHZ 1TB HDD DVD Writer GeForce GTX 295 graphics Thermaltake Spedo Case Thermaltake Qfan 750 Watts PSU + Microsoft Windows XP Pro OR Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64 Bit Is that a good buy. Oh and forgot to tell you that i am from Australia so i cant really use newegg.com
Speakers (if separate from the monitor), the monitor itself, hard-drives, optical drives, cables, mouse and keyboard. If you wanted a larger hard-drive then you'd obviously have to buy a new one, you'll need a new case (as the HP one will be poorly ventilated and most likely not a full tower), new PSU, new CPU, new GPU, new RAM and a new motherboard.
I've also been looking at this pc which i could get for $100 These are its specs: Intel Core i7 920 Gigabyte EX 58 Extreme 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 MHZ 1TB HDD DVD Writer GeForce GTX 295 graphics Thermaltake Spedo Case Thermaltake Qfan 750 Watts PSU + Microsoft Windows XP Pro OR Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64 Bit Is that a good buy.
Yeah, you couldn't build that for $1000, and it wouldn't make sense for someone to sell at a loss considering it's nigh on impossible to trade up from that, so they must be a builder (or someone that needs money quick )
lol - he's lying. That gear new is worth nearly $2000, nobody in their right mind would sell it for $100. I'm guessing it's an ebay sale, in which case you're probably bidding for where you can find that PC, not the PC itself, i.e. it's a scam.
No Its from an Australian company called ISTEK i know its not a scam because i have bought from them before.
No really, that PC isn't $100. if it is, it must be $100 per month on finance, or has a $100 deposit for a finance package. I found the exact same PC on their website, it's $2550.
Yes I see that, but i know i can get it for less than $200 not from there website. and thanks for all the help guys I think i know what i am going to do now.
No you can't. Please don't fall for a Scam, or sign up for a really pricey finance package, they only cost you more in the end. Why would anyone sell a PC for a tenth of what it's worth?
