how do i go about selecting a video card?

[jamess82]

(I oringally posted this in the "Video" forum before I saw the Tech Support forum)

I'm sorry, I know you probably get about 500 of these messages a day. I know nothing about computers, and I'm trying to make mine better.

I have a Dell Dimension 3000. It has a Pentium 4 (2.80 GHz) processor. I play games on it, mainly World of Warcraft. When I first started playing, it was obvious that it didn't have enough RAM to run the game well, so I put 2GB in there and it worked a lot better. The problem is that WoW still only runs at about 12 frames per seconds, and I was told this was due to my lack of a video card. I was told that I need an NVidia GeForce 2 or better. There seem to be hundreds of products with the name "GeForce" in them, and I need some guidance

I have two questions:

1) Will a video card make the game run better or is my computer simply not powerful enough?

2) How do I go about finding a video card that is compatible with my computer and that will significantly enhance its performance?

I am willing to spend around $100 on a video card. Can you direct me to a good one?



b]Please don't cross post.
AnandTech Moderator[/b]

 

[amdskip]

You are currently using onboard graphics that are built into your motherboard and that motherboard does not have an AGP slot. It only has 3 PCI slots. What you need is a PCI video card. It will definately make a difference but there isn't a wide selection of PCI video cards out there. Try this link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi...8+1069609642&Submit=ENE&SubCategory=48

Read the reviews, great source of information.

 

[jamess82]

Thanks a lot.

Another question if you have time: I've heard something about making sure your power supply can handle the video card. What do I need to do to get one of these PCI video cards to work with my computer?

 

[phios]

For a PCI video card? I doubt you'd need to upgrade your power supply, mainly because you won't find too many high end PCI based video cards available for sale.

 

[jamess82]

I was looking through the PCI cards available from newegg, and I was wondering if you'd recommend a Geforce fx5200 or a Radeon 9250. I have no idea what either of these mean.

This one seems to be the best http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150061
But the reviews say that it needs a 300 Watt PSU. How do I know if I have this, and if I don't, where can I get it?