help with graphics card

pc10

My friends son tells her that he needs an upgrade to his computer (Dell Inspiron 3100) which is some years old. He wants to play some games on it but the graphics card isn't up to scratch and from what I can find out, its not possible to upgrade the graphics card in that particular machine.

This is what he needs:

128 MB nVidia FX 5900 Ultra, ATi Radeon 9800, Intel 82915G/82910GL or equivalent.

Could someone let me know then if the Inspiron 546 machine on this page would be ok? It has a 512MB ATi Radeon HD 4350 card.

http://www1.euro.dell.com/uk/en/home/desktops_great_deals/fs.aspx?refid=desktops_great_deals&s=dhs&cs=ukdhs1&~ck=mn

Obviously there are more expensive machine around but trying to stick with a tight budget.

If this isn't the right kind of graphics card, could someone point out an actual Dell PC that would be suitable please?

Thanks

crampo_2

Does it have to be a Dell Machine?

pc10

Not necessarily I guess but I know she has always had Dell before but feel free to suggest any other brands that seem suitable - she doesn't need a new monitor.

Thanks

crampo_2

www.ebuyer.com They have a great range of computers. im just going to have look on there. Whats You Budget?

pc10

budget is no more than £400 - to include delivery to NI

pendulum

"128 MB nVidia FX 5900 Ultra, ATi Radeon 9800, Intel 82915G/82910GL or equivalent."

Pretty old cards. That upgrade might let him play the old games he already has a little better, but its not going to help him play the newer ones!

If you decide to spend the £400 on him, you're going to want a used gaming PC off eBay (Pointless to buy new when your on a budget IMO, & really silly to limit a new buying decision to one manufacturer e.g. Dell). £400 can see you with a used quadcore system with TWO pretty decent graphics cards running in SLI, a healthy amount of RAM, all originally built with good spec components etc. It'll last him years and be ten times better than what he has at the moment. The NI thing may make things a bit harder though, most sellers offer pickup only, but some send courier. Fancy a trip?!

jaydeeuk1

A used gaming PC is something I would never buy from ebay. Chances are, being a gaming PC and all, the graphics card, CPU and even memory might have been overclocked, which will shorten lifespan anyway, and if the owner doesn't know what they're doing regarding cooling etc, then it could be a very short lifespan.

As mentioned, check Dell/ebuyer/aria etc.

pc10

Thanks for the replies.

I will take a look at ebuyer.

So would the Dell that I linked to be ok with regards the spec of graphics card that I quoted?

I'd be wary too of buying a computer from ebay apart from the difficulty and cost in getting it across the water!

pendulum

The graphics card in the Dell Inspiron 546 you linked to is a far better video card than what your sons friend requested. However, it's only a dual core and the components that make up the system won't be of the same quality or performance as those which someone building a machine for gaming would choose. If he wants to play games, and wants a really good gaming experience, you really ought to be buying a machine that was BUILT for playing games, and you can only do that with your budget if you bought used.

Components in high end gaming PCs are chosen for their performance and reliability, and their potential for overclocking. That a high-end gaming PC has been overclocked would certainly not put me off buying it. That's what they're made for. The fear expressed about buying used gaming PCs in this thread must explain why there are so many good deals to be had.

With that Dell you are thinking of, he can play most games, but maybe not some of the newer ones very well, and it's not very future proof. I'm sure he will be happy with it though.What kind of games does he want to play?

pc10

Thanks pendulum

As far as I know its games like football manager rather than fast fighting games that he uses the pc to play - hes got an xbox and PS3 which he uses for them!

I know the budget is tight but its good to know that the Dell one would do the job so if thats what she wants to go for a least it will work.