Heya guys just got a new PC from dell , an inspiron 530 with 2GB ram, an E4500 @ 2.2 (stock) and Vista H. P. 32bit (not sure of PSU) but it came with intergrated graphics, the Intel(R) G33/G31 Express Chipset Family, which is poop for games so i want a new gfx card for under £110, but im torn between the new 3850, the 2600XT or 1950 pro because i can only play at 1024 by 768 (my HDTV) so which is better value? beacause the latter 2 cards are about £30 cheaper
You don't need to bump the thread when it is 49 minutes old lol. People will read it, don't worry about that. I would have asked, why did you buy a Dell, but considering that you won't be running the thing at a high resolution, you won't need to overclock the processor. As for the cards, the HD3850 is faster, but uses more powah! It also gets hotter. I would recommend in this case the X1950 Pro, it is not as fast but overall a better choice, and you won't need all the power, it would be a bit of a waste to go for the 3850.
The HD3850 no question. Its clearly the fastest card there in all circumstances. The X1950Pro is a good card, but the HD3850 is miles faster and supports DX10. Getting the X1950 Pro now would be shooting yourself in the foot compared to what you can get for a little bit more.
But we have both power and heat considerations here too - I agree with lamboman: X1950 is the best choice for you.
OK thank you all, just 1 question, what kind of performance would i get in modern games with the 1950? (like UT3, COD4,Sup Com???) Edit/ my PSU is only a 300W, i just took apart the case, will it be able to handle any of the cards??
300W might be enough for the X1950 Pro. Those of you that are saying that the HD3850 is the best choice are not thinking about heat, power, size and other factors.