Best Graphics Card Buying Guide
Nowadays, planning which graphics card to buy is one of the most essential things to consider when setting up a new gaming rig. Long gone are the days when a decent CPU and RAM could handle the latest gaming experiences in seamless immersion.
However, with so many options to choose from, and such a diverse spread of costs, knowing what card is the right fit for you can be challenging. That’s where our guide can come in handy.
What to Look for When Buying A New Graphics Card?
Memory
Now, this is a crucial part of the graphics card assembly. The gigabytes of memory your graphics card has determines how much processing it can do at once. Generally, this number scales with the performance and price of the card and is a good measure of what range of card you want to go for.
Reasonable cards on the market these days start with around 1 gigabyte of memory, with lower than 512 megabytes of VRAM not recommended. With that being said, the number maxes out at 24 gigabytes for the most premium cards on the market. Another thing to watch out for is also the type of memory being marketed, as older technologies are cheaper to purchase and are often hidden to confuse buyers. The current latest memory technology is GDDR6, so make sure to keep that in mind while selecting a graphics card.
Core Clock Speed
The bread and butter of any processing unit. The rate at which information is computed, the reason you are going to be using this card in the first place. Measured in GHz (gigahertz), clock speeds for reputed graphic cards today start around 1.4 GHz and max out around 1.9 GHz. While a more distinguishing factor might be boosted clock speed or overclock limits, it is recommended not to go for those numbers as they can be very situational.
Ability to handle temperatures
A higher-end gaming unit will have its own liquid cooling system to make sure all system components are operating at maximum efficiency. However, most PCs will forego this daunting and expensive setup and rely instead on airflow cooling. Having effective thermal dissipation via fans while overloading your system is highly necessary as any overheated system will instantly start to drop in performance.
What Will A New Graphics Card Cost You?
Graphics cards, like all things tech, come from a diverse spread of costs and their related benefits. While the performance needed might be defined by your requirement, the average graphics cards recommended today can cost anywhere from $250 on the low end up to $3000, which will guarantee you the cutting edge of gaming technology.
What We Rank Our Top Picks By
Brand
Interestingly, the graphics card market is not as diverse as the product ranges might suggest. The industry is dominated by two players, namely Nvidia, which is a product of Intel, and AMD. However, this is no reason to be dismayed as the cutthroat competition between the two technology giants is fierce enough to have them one-upping each other consistently, frequently breaking records, and dethroning one another.
Sticking to these brands is recommended, but other options such as Gigabyte and MSI are also making headway in occupying more market share.
Price
Now, this could be quite an important factor when making your decision.
Entry Level
$250-$400 is where you can find the most basic, entry-level graphic cards. These are rudimentary cards that complement your existing hardware. Ideally, this kind of card should be considered when other components are lacking or your system does not have any integrated graphics.
Midrange
If you can justify a slightly larger budget, the $400 to $2000 range will open up much more options. This is where most of the market lies as this also includes former high-end products that are no longer available at lower prices. There is something in this range for everyone who wants a fluid and high-resolution gaming experience.
High End
This range where it stops being about what you want out of your graphics card and into the realm of how far can graphics card really go? Spending more than 2 grand on a single part of your gaming gear may seem extreme to non-enthusiasts, but it’s a small price to pay for the very best, the ultimate visual gaming displays.
Spending this amount on a quality card will make sure 4K, VR at 120 FPS is achievable, granted the other parts of your system are also up to the same standard.
Graphic Card FAQs
Will my graphics card become obsolete soon?
There is a running gag among the PC enthusiast folks and is referenced frequently in console vs. PC debates as well. The joke goes that by the time you’ve saved up for your dream PC build, that build would have become so obsolete that its performance could be compared to that of a potato.
Of course, this joke is just that, a joke. Speaking from both personal experience and quantitative evidence, graphics cards can very reliably last you anywhere in the 3–5 year range, before you feel the need to upgrade to the latest standard again. Even purchasing a budget graphics card will not disappoint over the years, if the product is right for the price and the rest of your build and software are up to standard.
Is a graphics card necessary if I have integrated graphics?
Every year, stock PCs and laptops are being released with better and better integrated graphics. It is often argued that graphics cards are not needed for most enjoyable gaming experiences, and to that, we say it depends completely on you.
If you feel like your PC doesn’t need a graphics card for it to do what you want it to do, then enjoy it as it is, but don’t expect any 4K gaming or framerates higher than 60 FPS (frames per second) on any of the latest AAA title games.
Can a graphics card ensure a smooth gaming experience?
No matter how good your graphics card is, it won’t solve every issue you can face regarding lagging frame rates. While there are amazing graphics cards that will more than stand the test of time, trying to fix a bottleneck concerning another component of your build is not possible by upgrading your graphics card.
If your FPS (frames per second) lags due to a shortfall in RAM (random access memory), a better graphics card will not solve the problem, rather it will just end up a waste of money and perform just the same. It is important to make sure that the factor missing from your ultimate computing experience is a less-than-favorable graphics card before you think of investing in a new one.