buying a graphics card?

bioluminosity · Jul 10, 2015

so i recently bought AC Unity for $20. It took about 24 hours to download completely- but after it said it was "playable" (after about 10 hours), it kept informing me it was "unable to run the game because your video card doesn't support DirectX 11 or video drivers need to be updated".

i checked, i am updated to windows 8.1 and DirectX 11.
i have an hp envy 20 all-in-one, with touch support
it has an Intel Pentium CPU G640 @ 2.80GHz 2.80GHz processor
RAM: 4.00 GB (3.69 usable, it says)
and a 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor

but the minimum requirements for AC Unity are:
Supported OS: Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8/8.1 (64bit versions only)
Processor: Intel Core i5-2500K @ 3.3 GHz or AMD FX-8350 @ 4.0 GHz or AMD Phenom II x4 940 @ 3.0 GHz
RAM: 6 GB
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 or AMD Radeon HD 7970 (2 GB VRAM)
DirectX: Version 11
Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card with latest drivers
Hard Drive Space: 50 GB available space
Peripherals Supported: Windows-compatible keyboard and mouse required, optional controller
Multiplayer: 256 kbps or faster broadband connection

(i know i met the minimum requirement of 50 GB because i actually had to uninstall some other stuff in order to make room)

so. i already know i fall short in several places. i don't know much about graphics cards, just that most of them are installed via a tower, which-go me-i dont have; and their prices run pretty high. what i'm asking is, what is the amount of "fixing" i need to do and what's the lowest price i can get to achieve it? should i even bother using the computer i've got? i paid $20 for this game, i can't refund it, and i don't want to have to ask my parents about new stuff right before senior year of high school unless i can make it look reasonable.

BFG1nsane · Jul 10, 2015

So are you saying your going to build a pc or wondering if you can do something with your current all-in-one? Honestly in my opinion, I think you should build a budget gaming build to play AC Unity which is a decently demanding game as well as other games, but I don't know what your budget is. All-in-ones don't have a lot of room for upgrades just like a laptop plus you only have a Pentium dual core which is great for internet browsing, facebook, app games, and probably older games but not current gen. Also from what you've told us it appears you don't have a dedicated gpu so your using your integrated igpu in your pentium which isn't strong. So what were you thinking about doing exactly?

Golcsae13 · Jul 10, 2015

The HP Envy All-In-One uses a MXM graphics card. MXM graphics cards are pretty expensive, a MXM GTX 765M goes for over $200 and probably less than half the performance of a GTX 680. Also, 8GB of DDR3 SO-DIMMs probably goes for another $50. A new 1155 i5 would probably go for $150. It is probably not worth upgrading just to play a $20 game. Your best option would be to just build a new pc when ever you have the funds.

Larry Litmanen · Jul 10, 2015

A good graphics card cost $200, let's say GTX 960. You can't even use it because you have an all in one. My solution is simple.............save for a console. There are so many people who build or buy cheap PCs with weak components and later say they can't run games like Witcher 3 or Unity.

If you can't afford a high end PC (which is the best option) go for a $350 XBOX One, i played Unity on my XBONE, looks amazing (i liked Black Flag much more)

The thing with a console is you can play any game and it always runs perfectly, most big titles are released on consoles as well as PCs.

You can go ahead and build a new gaming PC for say $700-$900 but you will have 2 PCs, or you can keep your PC and use it as a PC but also get a $350 XBOXONE.

I think it is just easier to get a console (they do way more than just play games these days).

bioluminosity · Jul 11, 2015

BFG1nsane :

Larry Litmanen :

i was asking if i could add-on to my current PC or, if it would be simpler, buy a new PC (laptop maybe) or console. my personal budget is <$1000, maybe a bit more if my parents are feeling generous. if i get a new PC they will probably arrange for my brother to get the hp (which is fine since he doesn't really have a computer to call his own). both my brother and i want a console, all we have right now is a standard wii. i've been considering a ps4, i've read about a lot of problems with xbox one so i'm pretty reluctant to try it (the decision may come down to whichever has the best deal with mass effect andromeda next year). however, i don't plan to be living with my parents during college so i want something portable and decent for gaming (and drawing, but that's a completely different story). i'm really in the dark on what gaming laptops/ pcs (with towers, now that i'm aware) and graphics cards add-ons would work best for under $1k, and which ones would even work with unity. as for consoles, i haven't used them very much (a little at friends' houses), but i'm assuming i can access my games through steam, origin, and uplay apps, since many of them were bought digitally and the few that weren't are PC cds.

bioluminosity · Jul 11, 2015

Golcsae13 :

thanks, i needed to know this. my uncle is really savvy with computers, he fixes them for a living. i'm not really used to building them, but if it's cheaper than buying a new one i will look into it.

BFG1nsane · Jul 11, 2015

Thanks for the info, in your situation you can't go wrong with a ps4 but the fact you already have AC Unity for pc and you probably wouldn't mind having something to game on once your at college maybe you should build a mini itx build. A gaming laptop wouldn't be bad especially cause you could probably take it to class if it's a 15.6" one however like Golcsae previously said hardware in a laptop is much weaker than a desktop for both gpu and cpu wise. If you went that route I would see what MSI has to offer and make sure it has an i5 and at least 6gb ram and probably a gtx 950m or higher. Honestly what I would do if I were you is build the mini itx like I said. EVGA has a case called the Hadron air that is roughly the same size of an xbox 360 and already has a built in 500w psu. Coolermaster also has the elite 120 and 130 that is the size of a shoebox and can use any standard atx psu which is a good choice as well. Pair it with a mini itx motherboard preferably with built in wifi and any i5 cpu (example a B85 or H97 mini itx motherboard with an i5 4440) along with 8gb of ram and a decent card like the GTX 960 or R9 380 and a hdd or ssd and you got a solid gaming pc that should stay within your $1k budget, probably even cheaper. You might be even able to get a better gpu possibly. But I don't know if your budget is including the monitor, keyboard, or mouse or is it just for the tower. You don't want to go buy a Dell, Hp, Lenovo, etc. tower because you get a lot less for your money, your better off building your own. There's plenty of guides on here and youtube videos from newegg and teksyndicate that can help you learn how to build a pc. Hope this helps!

Larry Litmanen · Jul 12, 2015

BFG1nsane :

Thanks for the info, in your situation you can't go wrong with a ps4 but the fact you already have AC Unity for pc and you probably wouldn't mind having something to game on once your at college maybe you should build a mini itx build. A gaming laptop wouldn't be bad especially cause you could probably take it to class if it's a 15.6" one however like Golcsae previously said hardware in a laptop is much weaker than a desktop for both gpu and cpu wise. If you went that route I would see what MSI has to offer and make sure it has an i5 and at least 6gb ram and probably a gtx 950m or higher. Honestly what I would do if I were you is build the mini itx like I said. EVGA has a case called the Hadron air that is roughly the same size of an xbox 360 and already has a built in 500w psu. Coolermaster also has the elite 120 and 130 that is the size of a shoebox and can use any standard atx psu which is a good choice as well. Pair it with a mini itx motherboard preferably with built in wifi and any i5 cpu (example a B85 or H97 mini itx motherboard with an i5 4440) along with 8gb of ram and a decent card like the GTX 960 or R9 380 and a hdd or ssd and you got a solid gaming pc that should stay within your $1k budget, probably even cheaper. You might be even able to get a better gpu possibly. But I don't know if your budget is including the monitor, keyboard, or mouse or is it just for the tower. You don't want to go buy a Dell, Hp, Lenovo, etc. tower because you get a lot less for your money, your better off building your own. There's plenty of guides on here and youtube videos from newegg and teksyndicate that can help you learn how to build a pc. Hope this helps!

College kids need laptops in class these days, so your ITX solution could be good. You can get a relatively cheap laptop for class for basics and have a nice beefy ITX PC that is mobile.

Here a PC case with a handle and it takes in a full size GPU.

http://www.corsair.com/en-us/graphite-series-380t-portable-mini-itx-case

BFG1nsane · Jul 12, 2015

Ya you have a good point Larry, I use my laptop a lot at school though I could've gotten by with one of those tablets with a keyboard as well, so either a cheap laptop or a tablet with keyboard support would work great. Still probably should go for the ITX build though and that Corsair 380t case is a great option for a case too especially with the handle.

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