Graphics card for casual gamer

[Nickma]

Hello all,

I just bought a i72600k with 16 gig of ram. I'm mostly going to be doing the following graphics wise:

Facebook games
Viewing pics
Light editing of pics
Processing home movies from camera to pc and make dvd's
Viewing movies from DVD to mpeg,avi
Very casual games.. Maybe play diablo 3 a few times in a month

Should I just use the integrated graphics of the I7 or use a graphics card? And if it's a graphics card what would you recommend?

Thanks

Nick

 

[Arkadrel]

http://www.game-debate.com/games/index.php?g_id=17&game=Diablo%20III

Sep-08-2011Here is a big one we have all been waiting for. Diablo 3 system requirements have been revealed through the Beta launch.
Lets just get in there and have a look at what Diablo III requirements look like shall we...
Diablo 3 Minimum System Requirements

PC Requirements
OS: Windows® XP/Windows Vista® / Windows® 7 (Latest Service Packs) with DirectX® 9.0c
CPU: Intel Pentium® D 2.8 GHz / AMD AthlonTM 64 X2 4400+
GFX: NVIDIA® GeForce® 7800 GT or ATI Radeon™ X1950 Pro or better



Diablo 3 Recommended System Requirements
PC Requirements
OS: Windows Vista®/Windows® 7 (Latest Service Packs)
CPU: Intel® Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz / AMD AthlonTM 64 X2 5600+ 2.8 GHz
RAM: 2 GB
GFX: NVIDIA® GeForce® 260 / ATI Radeon™ HD 4870 or better

So something like a 6770, and your slightly above recammend GPU.
That ll cost you like 90-100$.


I think you should get the card, playing D3 on the IGP probably isnt gonna be as fun.

 

[Concillian]

On the one hand, I can't imagine playing with IGP, even Diablo III, which should be about the lightest PC game you'll see. I want to recommend something in the same range of Arkadrel...

However, if you have the system sitting there, you may as well try the IGP to see if it suits your needs. I doubt it will, but it doesn't hurt to wait and try it out.

I think you should still plan on a ~$100 card, because I think you won't want to use the IGP long term, but you may as well try it.

 

[frozentundra123456]

Are you doing some other heavy CPU dependent work with the PC? Otherwise seems like 2600K and 16GB ram is kind of overkill. So personally, if I had a system that good, I would want at least a mid-range graphics card like a 6770 or above.

 

[Nickma]

Hello all,

Thanks for the updates. I'll go with at least a 6770 card. Microcenter has a lot more Nvidia choices than AMD. is the GTX 560 overkill?

Thanks

-Nick

 

[Fallengod]

I would say so. A gtx 560 is pretty high end. For what you stated you plan to do with it, that is kind of overkill. If you look at the requirements for D3, its fairly conservative. A 7800GT is freaking old. That is like the speed of a GT 240 these days which is like a $30 video card.

In other words, you could get almost any video card and be able to play D3 still. Of course, thats the minimum system requirements, not "recommended" meaning, you might have to tone down some details but...

I do agree though a 6770 or the nvidia equivalent(gtx 550 ti) are pretty good cards if you can find them for below $90. Thats plenty of speed. Honestly, since you have 16GB of memory(overkill), and a i7 2600k(also overkill for what youre doing), might as well complement the system by giving it a decent video card.

 

[PrincessFrosty]

That is pretty light use in terms of anything that actually needs graphics power, it's a bit of a shame because otherwise it's an extremely awesome PC which a good graphics card would compliment well...in any case if D3 is all you're likely to play resist the urge to go overboard since blizzard are well known for not having very demanding games in the first place.

recommendations for 6770 seem solid maybe at a stretch something like the 560, it sets you up better for any potential future gaming on other games.

 

[Broheim]

if you don't need the card right now, then wait until the midrange 28nm cards start hitting the market, they should be right around the corner.

 

[Corporate Thug]

if you don't need the card right now, then wait until the midrange 28nm cards start hitting the market, they should be right around the corner.

This. DIII isn't coming out for a while and you don't need anything with any sort of power for the other tasks you mentioned.

 

[ocre]

Hello all,

Thanks for the updates. I'll go with at least a 6770 card. Microcenter has a lot more Nvidia choices than AMD. is the GTX 560 overkill?

Thanks

-Nick

No way. Your setup is pretty amassing. I mean your extremely beefed up. The 560 is not an overkill. If your not budget limited why not buy a card that complements your powerful system. I mean your amount of ram might be considered an overkill to some but i wouldnt consider a gtx 560 as extravagant as 16gb of ram.

 

[Nickma]

Thanks for your updates. I'll assemble the system and see how the IGP works out. I can wait until the 28nm cards are available.

-Nick