If you’re a Gamer, you would definitely know what importance does graphic cards have. Graphics cards have the most impact on your gaming PC’s performance. Graphic cards are also known as Video cards and they come in so many different models now. And so, you have a huge variety to choose from.
Graphic cards play a major role in your PC’s performance when it has to bear a huge workload or has to continue processing for long hours. Other than being a gamer, even if you are a Content Creator or a Digital creator, you would definitely need a Graphics card to enhance your Desktop’s performance.
With the support of a Graphics card, you can easily edit high-resolution photos and videos, save them without any fewer storage issues, create Digital Artwork and build 3D Models as well. A good quality Graphics card will speed up your work processes and will make you earn more money as well.
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Types of Graphic Cards
Although Graphic cards come in a variety of different models and sizes, there are four basic types of Graphic cards.
Integrated/On-Board
The Integrated or On-Board graphic cards are the most basic type. They are present in most of the PCs which are designed for basic use or you can say, the ones designed for everyone’s use. If your PC has not been built or upgraded by you, it would probably be containing the Integrated-type Graphics card.
The integrated graphic cards are basically related to the motherboard of your system. They are the default graphic cards that come along with any standard motherboard and your system uses them for displaying the images on your screen.
These On-Board graphic cards can be upgraded but they are the least powerful and the most basic type of GPUs. So, if you plan to upgrade your On-Board graphics card, you’ll have to plug a new one into your motherboard and neglect the old one.
If you’re a Gamer or somebody who had a lot to do with digital creations, then the Integrated graphics card isn’t for you. You would have to look for a better option that would work for you in a better and powerful way.
PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) and PCI Express
PCI graphics cards are connected to the computer system through the PCI slot on your motherboard. These are a bit older versions of graphics cards and are not much preferred because motherboards with PCI slots lack many newer connection options.
But if you want a little bit of up-gradation in your system, rather than a huge modification, you can go for the PCI graphics card to upgrade your older system.
An advanced version of PCI is the PCI Express, often called PCI-E. NIDIA and ATI are the two most famous and the largest graphics card manufacturers which are only producing PCI-E cards.
The best thing about PCI Express cards is that they support the sharing of graphics processing with other graphic cards. The condition is that the computer motherboard and graphics card must support SLI for NVIDIA cards or Crossfire in the case of ATI cards.
There are three architectures for PCI Express. The latest one is the PCI Express 3.0.
AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port)
The third type of Graphic card is the AGP. Just like the PCI slot, the AGPs are also connected through a slot on the motherboard. AGP cards come in a variety of speed limits and you can choose the one according to your requirements and your PC’s enhancing ability.
The AGPs come in for different speeds; 1x, 2x, 4x, and 8x. However, 8x is the fastest speed that an AGP can support. But the condition for a high-speed AGP to work well on your PC is that your motherboard must support a high-speed graphics card.
If your motherboard supports low speed, then your graphics card will also work lower in speed, regardless of its real speed (even if it is a high-speed card).
External Graphic Cards
As the Laptops do not have any slot or available space for the add-on graphics card, so the External graphics cards are the ones that work for them. Just as Graphic cards are a need for Desktop systems in order to improve their performance, they are a need for laptops too.
This is why the External graphic cards have been manufactured to give a boost to laptop graphics as well. They are either based on the Express Slot or are used in-line with external monitors.
Importance of Graphic Cards
Graphic cards are of great importance for the powerful working of your PCs. The more powerful the Graphics card, the more information would be displayed and managed in a shorter time, with even better experiences.
Here are a few most important reasons that you need a Graphics card.
Gaming
Today’s PC games are more realistic and powerful than ever before. This increased performance of the PC’s demand modern GPUs in order to support even more complex games. Hence, if you’re a gamer and you plan to upgrade your PC according to your needs, a good quality GPU would be your most important purchase.
Buying a good quality GPU is very important to future-proof your build in gaming. Most of the high-level games demand a worthy GPU and if you’re a passionate gamer, your system cannot survive without a Graphic card.
Videography and Professional Digital Creation
Other than gaming, Graphic cards support so many other heavy tasks for your PCs as well. For example, if you’re somebody who uses his/her PC for complex tasks such as Video Editing, Game Development, and 3D Models Creation, then GPUs are a must-have for you.
That is why GPUs are specifically designed for professionals. They support faster processing and more efficient workflows.
Others
Even if you aren’t a Gamer or some other Digital Professional, Graphic cards are still of great use. If you’re dealing with different Web pages and Applications all the time, your system might need a higher speed to manage all this productivity.
Hence, if you’re mainly running productivity apps, then sufficient storage and speed should be your first priority. This is when you know you need a Graphics card for your system’s efficient working.
Are the Graphic Cards Worth Buying?
Well, priorities may be different. But yes, Graphic cards are worth buying as enhance and improve the performance of your PCs. Their presence matters a lot, especially if you’re a gamer or some sort of Digital Creator.
For most Gamers, a good quality Graphics card is the first priority. This is because gaming is a very hardware-intensive task and requires a lot of your desktop’s energy. Professional gamers actually spend a lot of time searching for the best suitable graphic cards in order to upgrade their Graphics Processing Units (GPUs).
As the performance of GPUs gets better, the performance and capabilities of your PC are also enhanced. Almost all professional applications make use of GPUs, but just in different ways. So, we can say that the GPUs are built especially with professional applications in mind.
Hence, choosing the right GPU for your PC is very important for a better building and upgrading of your system.
Conclusion
There are some basic things that you need to consider while you’re looking for a suitable Graphics card for your system. If you prefer working on a higher resolution, that means you need more memory. For example, if you are working with a 4K resolution, you’ll need a graphics card with larger memory (maybe 8GB).
It is recommended to look for the newest cards for the best possible performance. Because, the better the performance of your graphics card, the better details, and advanced graphical effects you’ll be able to enjoy.
FAQ’s