Power Supply wattage issue

[Leprechaun84]

I was wondering if my HP Pavilion Slimline s5304y Desktop PC with a 220 watt power supply will be able to support a MSI R4550-MD1GH Radeon HD 4550 1GB 64-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 graphics card that asks for a min of 300 watt power supply, i had heard that some manufacturers write overcompensating power wattage requirements on the package and that the graphics card takes up much less power from the psu, i really would not like to blow out my power supply, so if you could please help me, that would be wonderful.

 

[deadlockedworld]

Yes, it should be able to handle the 4550 without too much of a problem. This isnt going to give you great performance for gaming or intensive tasks, as its a low end card--but it will be a bit better than whatever integrated solution you have and will be good for playing videos or low-end games.

This should help you compare cards in this range:

As shown above, a newer 5450 card might offer slightly better performance if you can pay for it. A 5450 with DDR3 ram will be faster than one with DDR2 Ram.

 

[Leprechaun84]

I just want to say thank you very much, it really bothered me and i was a bit worried, but on to a second concern, do you think i should return that card and opt for a better graphics card and in the possibility that i may have the option for another graphics card, do you believe my psu will be able to handle a much better card if im willing to spend the money?

 

[deadlockedworld]

I wouldn't put anything more powerful than a 4550 or 5450 in your computer. HP is known for using poor quality power supplies in their computers--and slimline computers are even worse.

Your only option for a real performance upgrade would be to buy a new case for $20+ and a new power supply for $39 and transferring your parts to a normal-sized case. This would allow you to install basically any graphic card. Its not as hard as it sounds... just like 10 screws to detach everything and put it in the new case.