Windows 7 graphic cards help

[Izzie Castea]

I'm upgrading to Windows 7, and I need help selecting a modern graphics card that will support the Aero display. I have a list below that match my computer's specs (Compaq Presario RE468AA) but I can't tell which will support Aero.

EVGA GeForce FX 5200 128-P1-N309-LX
PNY GeForce FX 5200 VCGFX522PEB
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 2400PRO 100262PCIL
JATON GeForce FX 5200 Video-228PCI (Twin Video Card)

[Slacker85]

These would all appear to be PCI cards.
From the compaq/hp website, it appears that your machine includes a PCI express 16X slot.

Are you confusing these two? "PCI" and "PCI Express" are NOT the same.
PCI is very very old technology, and in fact there is no PCI video card that I would recommend purchasing for windows 7 or at all.
(If that was in fact the only video card supported by the machine, you should get a new machine entirely).

Instead you may want to look at this list:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-graphics-card,2387-2.html

The Radeon HD 4650, for example,is a PCI express card that will be more than powerful enough for windows 7. It is similar in price to your listed cards, but is vastly more powerful.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121338&cm_re=Radeon_HD_4650-_-14-121-338-_-Product

[Izzie Castea]

Well, my friend helped me find the specs for the brain of my PC, and when he gave me the link for it's specs (www.geeks.com), the only listed in the brain section where:
# One (1) PCI Express x16 slot
# Three (3) PCI slot
# Two (2) DIMM sockets

I guess I would of been wrong/the site could of been. I actually was searching Newegg and they actually didn't have many PCI Express x16 video cards.

[Slacker85]

Izzie Castea

Well, my friend helped me find the specs for the brain of my PC, and when he gave me the link for it's specs (www.geeks.com), the only listed in the brain section where:
# One (1) PCI Express x16 slot
# Three (3) PCI slot
# Two (2) DIMM sockets

I guess I would of been wrong/the site could of been. I actually was searching Newegg and they actually didn't have many PCI Express x16 video cards.

So you saw that it had a PCI express slot then? I'm a little confused why you would be looking for a PCI card then...

I see 350 results on newegg, that wasn't enough? O_o
Newegg PCI Express Video Cards


Regardless, my first link has a listing of best value PCI express cards for under $100. I recommend selecting one that meets your desired price and then search for it on newegg. You should definitely not get a PCI card.

[Minion4Hire]

Slacker85

I see 350 results on newegg, that wasn't enough? O_o
Newegg PCI Express Video Cards

My guess is that they searched for PCI-Express but clicked x1 instead of x16 (thinking they only need one) seeing as there are only three x1 graphics cards there.

[Izzie Castea]

To ask, is there a different graphic card under 100-300 dollars that will do for a medium computer lifestyle? As in like a mixture of RAM light and RAM heavy tasks such as browsing the internet, editing images, and more heavy tasks such as high end video editing and playing WoW.

[Slacker85]

Izzie Castea

To ask, is there a different graphic card under 100-300 dollars that will do for a medium computer lifestyle? As in like a mixture of RAM light and RAM heavy tasks such as browsing the internet, editing images, and more heavy tasks such as high end video editing and playing WoW.

At the risk of repeating myself... this is from my first post.

Slacker85

you may want to look at this list:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-graphics-card,2387-2.html

This will show you all of the best deals for under $100.

If you hit "next" on the article it will also show you best deals for cards for other ranges.

[Infinitypark003]

By looking at the GPU specs you need

Minimum Requirements

128 MB of Video Memory
2.0 Pixel Shader
and Windows WDDM driver