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Can I use an OEM radeon 9800 pro.

I

iwantanewcomputer

Diamond Member
I'm building a new computer, want to buy a raedon 9800 pro 128, and i found one for $204 but it says OEM. Anyone know if this means it just doesnt have the drivers? I think I can download the drivers from ati's site.
 
No, it just means that it's without fancy packaging and bundled games. You'll probably just get the card and a driver CD in a padded brown or white box. I doubt you'll get a DVI-VGA converter, but you might get lucky!
 
Oem rocks. all my systems have been built oem, even my first. its alot cheaper, and even if you are missing drivers, you can download/get the from a PCGamer cover disk easy enough. One thing to watch though is how long the warrantie is, as many companies offer much shorter warranties on OEM products
 
Even if you get the drivers, you'll usually need to hit the vendor's website for the most up-to-date ones anyway. Even had to do that with the 9800Pro retail I picked up last month.

And the games really suck, so you're not missing anything there.



 
without drivers can you run the video enough to download and install the drivers? Or do you have to install them while using another video card
 
Half life 2 really sucks? Something to also keep in mind is you'll probably have a 30-90 day warrenty with OEM parts were as you get 1-3 year warrenty on retail there expections, but the Radeon 9800 pro doesn't fall into those... It's worth the extra 10-20 dollars getting retail videocards, sound cards, processors. Harddrives and stuff I don't really care about like my dvd-rom (mainly for being able to burn stuff straight from dvd/cd) and floppy drives I didn't bother getting retail.
 
Seeing as you're all on a similar topic, and I'm new here, I was wondering if anyone could answer my question.

I'm looking to buy a new graphics card; a Radeon 9800 SE, which is 128 MB DDR and 256-bit, or a Radeon 9600 XT, which is 256 MB DDR and 128-bit. The 9600 XT chipset speed runs 120MHz faster than the 9800 SE, and is more expensive. But which is better, 256 MB and 128-bit, or 128 MB and 256-bit?
 
One thing I learned from my good friend Reliant of these boards is that any ATI SE card is just the card toned down. So it'll be cheaper, but it won't run as good as the normal card. I'd go with the 9600 XT based off of that information alone. However, in all honesty, do you think you will need a 256 mb card? Sure it'll be nice to have and to brag about, but unless you're on a 2-3 grand budget it's really not worth the extra money. Just my 2 cents.
 
I'd go with the 96XT simply because it'll be a lot cheaper and more realistic. Then again, that's coming from a user of what has once been deemed the "worst video card ever" by some people. (GeForce 4 MX440) I'm looking to build my own system soon too and if it were me I'd go with the 96 for the reasons I stated in this post and the one before.
 
Actually, the 9600XT ran for $174, while the 9800 SE ran for $152.

I may not need all the power yet, but I have enough money to buy either one. Thanks for your help!
 
You can get a retail 9800Pro card right now for about $205-220.
If you plan on buying a new card, this is the best price point right now.

If you think the $70+ bucks will save ya alot in the long run, then go with the 9800SE
but if you're going to pay $175 for a 9600XT, you might as well go for a 9800Pro.

If I needed a new card, I would go with one of those right now (9800Pros) but I'll wait
til I can't run any of my games at the speeds I like.
 
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