Best video card; low budget

BurnItDwn

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
26,330
1,841
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You should be able to find a used TI4200 or maybe a Radeon 8500 used for $50. Those will probably offer the best performance at that price range.
 

DaveSimmons

Elite Member
Aug 12, 2001
40,730
670
126
I found these at Newegg:

$35 - Radeon 9250 - sapphire - Model #: 100583L-GN-H Item #: N82E16814102441
> dx8, UT2004 at medium, 128 MB, 4x/8x, core 240/mem 400, fanless

$54 - Radeon 9600SE - Sapphire - Item #: N82E16814102525
> 325/400 dx9

(there are a few more 9250's under $40, that's the only 9600SE I saw though)
 

birdpup

Banned
May 7, 2005
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which interface do you have for your motherboard: AGP, PCI, or PCI-E ?
You can look in Newegg's refurbished section for some good deals. Refurbished means it was originally considered defective by either the manufacturing assembly line or by a customer who decided to return it, after which the manufacturer repaired the card to sell again. I have an Asus NVidia 6200 refurbished that I purchased for $51 total and it works great with no problems. There is only a 15 day return policy though.
 

DaveSimmons

Elite Member
Aug 12, 2001
40,730
670
126
Originally posted by: birdpup
which interface do you have for your motherboard: AGP, PCI, or PCI-E ?
You can look in Newegg's refurbished section for some good deals. Refurbished means it was originally considered defective by either the manufacturing assembly line or by a customer who decided to return it, after which the manufacturer repaired the card to sell again. I have an Asus NVidia 6200 refurbished that I purchased for $51 total and it works great with no problems. There is only a 15 day return policy though.
That is "factory refurbished." As far as I know, Newegg tosses any card that comes back without obvious charring or broken-off-chunks into the refurb pile, without sending them back to the manufacturer for diagnostics.

So a Newegg refurb is rolling the dice. You have a warranty, but the card may or may not work (and you'll pay shipping back to Newegg if it doesn't).
 

Hacp

Lifer
Jun 8, 2005
13,923
2
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Check the Budget systems guide in anandtech... THe x300SE Hypermemory is around 50 bucks... PCIE
 

IeraseU

Senior member
Aug 25, 2004
778
0
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I assume you want a card for 2d video only, no 3d. For 3d applications a $50 budget is too low to be reasonable. I'd say a 6200 or X300 would suit your needs. I would look for a dual DVI version of either of those.