Graphics Card for 350 Watt Power Supply

I searched Best Buy and the 9500GT 1 GB i saw was selling for $140 ! ouch, ouch and double ouch. 2 good cards for strictly video editing would be the HD4650 at $42-$43 after rebates.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

If you do light gaming, or MAY do a little gaming in the future i'd recommend a HD4670 at $70 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

all 3 of the cards would be just fine with a 300w-350w power supply.

Get a 4670 Radeon, No external power connector required and I have it running flawlessly in my friends computer with a 350 watt PSU. Also is your Dell a Slim or is it the standard ATX

why does everone suggest the 4600 series, when the 4830 is only $~82 these days and is miles ahead

Because a HD4830 uses 85watts of power and a 400watt + power supply is recommended. The HD4670 only uses 47 watts of power, needs no additional power from the power supply other then the PCIex16 socket and can run safely on a 300w PSU.

With the 350 watt psu the OP claims he has, a 4830, 9800 Gt or even the 9800GTX+ (55nm, single power connection ) would work.
All use 85 watts or less and only require a single 6 pin pcie power connector.

But for Pete's sake don't pay what one would cost at at BestBuy.

My Dell Desktop is the not the slim or the regular size, its in between. So I should get the Radeon 4670 because it not does not require a external power connector. Also this card recommended by BlueMountian got good reviews. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

Is one company better than the other and does it being a DDR2 or DDR3 matter a great deal if I am doing video editing. Thanks for all your feedback.

Sorry I meant dirtmountain response : If you do light gaming, or MAY do a little gaming in the future i'd recommend a HD4670 at $70 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814161252

I have gotten a few recommendations here so I was not sure if I should with I company over the other due to compatibility. If choosing a well know company such Radeon, would keep me from running into issues in the future that my card is supported or not with certain software?

DDR3 is appreciably faster in a graphic card then DDR2, it wouldn't have a big impact on video editing, but it does with gaming. Both DDR2 and DDR3 (and DDR5 in some graphic cards) are compatible with any system that has a PCIex16 socket. The HD4670 that i recommended has very good cooling that exhausts hot air out the back of the case helping to keep the system cooler. ATI/Radeon and Nvidia have partners that actually market their cards (HIS, Sapphire,Asus, Gigabyte, XFX etc.) each partner may offer their own warranty for any amount of time they care to. ATI/Radeon offer drivers regularly for all the cards that their partners put out, so support continues on an ongoing basis. You can shop around for better warranties, or check reviews, websites, support forums from different companies. The 9500GT is not a bad choice for you, but it is at $140. Here's a review of lower end graphic cards from www.hardwarecanucks.com that includes the 4670, 4550, 9600GT with recently released games, while it is only concerned with gaming, it shows the power and potential of each card.
http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-r...

It does not matter which company you choose it's just all about the warranty and how good there customer service is. I have had good luck with Sapphire, Visiontek, Asus, and HIS. I'd stay away from Powercolor- had many problems with there cards before. If your from the US or Canada look at some reviews from www.newegg.com and see which card suits your price range.

Thanks for all the great feedback, I have decided to go with the HD4670. I was looking at the minimum requirements on the ATI page and it says 400watt psu needed. Mine is a 350w, will it work okay on my dell machine?

http://ati.amd.com/products/Radeonhd4600/requirements.h...

Yes it will, the card makers often inflate the numbers of their system requirements because they don't know how old your power supply is or what quality it is. They have to cover their bases in case you have a cheap, nasty 5 year old $15 power supply with inflated claims. Dell uses very good quality power supplies in their systems, your Dell 350w will handle the HD4670 easily.

i would get the 4670 DDR3 not 4670 DDR2

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the information so far. I'm actually in a similar situation as the OP except (350 watt PSU) I will -only- use my computer for gaming and I have a slighty larger budget: about 200-300 range.

What would you guys recommend if this is the case? Thanks in advance!

If it's a 530 inspiron (not the slimline model) with your budget and it's used strictly for gaming, your best bet is to install a new power supply and get a high end graphic card. One caution is that the stock cooling in prebuilt systems is pretty poor, you need to DL a hardware monitor and keep an eye on your temps. A decent choice would be this OCZ for a PSU at $50 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
GPU- HD4870 $190
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

there's plenty of other options at your budget, just make sure they will fit and keep an eye on your temps.

Hi man. I am having a Dell Inspiron 530 with Q6600, 4 GB Ram, etc. and a 350W PSU.
Tommorow i will get a 9600 GT 512 MB DDR3. If if works perfect( it should as i have 25 A on 12V rail) i will post a topic on it. Wait if u can or else get 9600GT 512 Mb or a 9800GT 512 MB or HD 4830. They will give u the best performance.

I personally Recommend a Nvidia card for it.

....he posted this question five months ago...I'm going to go out on a limb and state he is no longer waiting.


P.S. I ran a 9600GT on a Dell 305w PSU, you will have no issues.

i have a 350w powersupply and it came with the gigabyte case . my gfx card is the 4830 from asus . ive put it under stress tests like fallout 3 and farcry 2 for several hours . is it a time bomb ticking or does this mean my psu has passed the test ?