Just how bad is GT 610, 620?

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maggie15

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I'm running a 300 W system and can't afford to upgrade the power just to upgrade the GPU too.

I play the Sims 2, Civilization V, Minecraft, and Portal 2.

Will I run any risks with playing those games on medium settings with a GeForce GT 610 or 620?

I am well aware that those are not gaming cards, but they have to be better than integrated graphics.
 
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It all depends on what resolution you wan to run them at, you SHOULD be ok running them at 1080p if you town down the settings to minimum. the GT 620 is a very weak card not really designed for gaming but with a bit of patience and toning the settings down you might just manage it

I'd recommend the EVGA GT 640 if you are either on a tight budget or building a low profile machine and must use NVidia, make sure you get the GDDR5 version and that should have you covered for what you want.

What ever card you get make sure you get the GDDR5 version. Also the GT610 is too weak to play the games you mentioned even at 1024x768 so I'd recommend giving it a wide birth
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Chaoss

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It all depends on what resolution you wan to run them at, you SHOULD be ok running them at 1080p if you town down the settings to minimum. the GT 620 is a very weak card not really designed for gaming but with a bit of patience and toning the settings down you might just manage it

I'd recommend the EVGA GT 640 if you are either on a tight budget or building a low profile machine and must use NVidia, make sure you get the GDDR5 version and that should have you covered for what you want.

What ever card you get make sure you get the GDDR5 version. Also the GT610 is too weak to play the games you mentioned even at 1024x768 so I'd recommend giving it a wide birth
 
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maggie15

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Essentially my budget is $100 or less ideally, but I know that is quite limiting.
 
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maggie15

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2048 by 1152
I'm not opposed to a windowed mode game.
 
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maggie15

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2048 by 1152

I am playing with several expansion packs and I realize the Sims 2 is often blamed for poor compatibility with many cards.
 
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fudoka711

fudoka711

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Definitely go for the radeon hd 7750 then. It's perfect for your PSU and budget.
 
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deadmaufive

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for 100 grab a 640 like someone suggested. You'll be so much better off. and idk if 300w will work with a 650 or not, but if you're not running a powerhungry cpu or anything it should be fine, and a 650 is only about 100 dollars give or take.
 
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fudoka711

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I should mention that another option is to get the GeForce GT640.

More specifically, get either the 1GB GDDR5 GeForce GT640 or 1GB GDDR5 Radeon HD7750. They perform very similarly, but the hd7750 uses 30% less power.

However, there aren't very many "good" reviews for the gt640 on newegg.com (if you're going to be shopping there), while there are many "good" reviews for the hd7750. If you are willing to spend more initially, there are some "better" options after rebates are factored in for both cards.
 
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maggie15

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Yeah, the 640's reviews are somewhat unfortunate.

My only fear with the 7750 is it's recommended power supply. Upgrading to 400+ watts will throw me out of my budget.
 
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Avro Arrow

Avro Arrow

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Yeah but that's assuming that it really is a 300W unit. I noted that the OP never did post a brand-name. It could be a no-name 200-250W PSU masquerading as a 300W. If it's a brand-in-the-box computer, then they would put only the absolute MINIMUM that is required to run the system and the on-board graphics.
 
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nukemaster

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Thus requesting more info.

This 300 watt has a 16 amp and 14 amp rail with a combined MAX of 22 amps. One can never know without ALL the info.

Click \/
psur.jpg

I have seen too many 250-300 watt power supplies claiming to be 500 watt power supplies too. It is a real problem in older systems. I think the word on quality over quantity is getting around more now.

I have beat the crap out of some 250 watt HP power supplies in the past(and they took it without failing) :)
 
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fudoka711

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Ignore the 400W recommendation. Just check the side of your psu and look at the sticker that should be there. See how many Amps it has on the +12V rail(s). I'm pretty sure you'll be fine though...the 7750 sips power and most 300W psu's (even the bad ones) can run it.
 
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maggie15

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I need a week to find the time to open our case.

I'm only 75% sure on some of the language being passed around. If you scroll down to the power section for my Dell, does this help identify anything about it before I open up the case? ftp://ftp.dell.com/Manuals/all-products/esuprt_desktop/esuprt_inspiron_desktop/inspiron-580_user%27s%20guide_en-us.pdf

Also, thanks for your input everyone. This has been a journey for me.
 
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fudoka711

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Thanks for posting the system manual. It doesn't really help, but I still feel like you should be fine with a 300W psu, even one that isn't too great. The HD7750 barely uses any power.

Can you list your specific system specs? The manual doesn't say exactly which parts you have.

Although, just by estimating, your system uses:

Cpu: core i3-550: 73W (I just chose the middle of the cpu options for your computer model)
Motherboard: 20W (this includes miscellaneous stuff attached to motherboard).
DVD-RW: 10W
RAM: 6W (2x modules)
Hard Drive: 10W
Keyboard/Mouse: 2.5W
Fans: 9W (3x fans)

Total: 130.5W

This is a REALLY rough estimate. It could be 10-20W higher. But what this tells you is that even if you add an HD7750, your total system power draw likely won't be higher than ~200W.

So even if your psu sucks, it only needs around 16.67A on the +12V rail. Probably 16A because not everything runs on the +12V rail.

Sorry if this stuff isn't totally clear. I'm just staying that you probably have nothing to worry about. But definitely check your PSU to be sure. I know you said it'll be about a week.
 
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maggie15

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Basically, all that makes sense. It seems like the consensus is that I need to see 16 amps (or more) by a 12 volt rail and I'll for sure be good. (Correct me if I'm wrong.)

I'm looking into the HD 6570 and 7750, I will check the inside of my case, and get back to this thread.

Thank you everyone!
 
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