Video card -update- what to ask?? and where to ask?

lol im being stupid here but o well

i need my video card changed to ati or nvindia

and i have no idea what to do really.

where do i ask? and what do i ask?

do i go to my store? or phone the pc technician we got a insurance thing and repair.. so what should i do?

Would kindly appreciated help.! ty

10points ill give ty|||Post all your computer specs in a new question, that way we can help you decide. Right now you're giving us zero to go on.|||What to ask? Video card for xxx model PC. No one knows what PC your talking about if you don't list the PC model number or the motherboard model number.



How much to spend? Video cards range from cheap low end cards to high end cards that sell for over $100.



You may also need to budget for a power supply upgrade to run a video card.|||Remember also that if you do have a PCI-e slot, you may be limited to what video card you can purchase. Some motherboards are either ATI or Nvidia only. You may want to start with your motherboard specifications to know what brand of video card you can purchase|||First of all, just to let you know.. Generally only desktop PC's can upgrade their video cards. If you are asking about a laptop, I'm afraid you are stuck with whatever it came with.



If you do have a desktop, go to your computer manufacturer's website. Pull up the specifications for your model of PC. Under 'Expansion Slots' you will be looking for one of the following- PCI Express x16, AGP, or PCI.

PCIe is the current standard for video cards. If you have one of these slots, you are in good shape. If not, AGP is next preferable, followed last by PCI.



Next, shop around at some online retailers. They offer much better selection and price than physical stores. Find a card that matches the slot you have and your budget. Plan to spend at least ~$70 to get an OK card.



So long as you buy a retail box video card (not OEM or anything), and carefully follow the directions included in the box, you can install the card yourself. There is only one correct way to put one in, so you'll know if you got it wrong.



I strongly, strongly urge to try doing this yourself before you pay someone to do it. Installing a video card is very easy. A 'professional' will charge you upwards of $50 for a ten minute job.



Any further questions feel free to shoot me an email.|||For video cards their are really only two requirements:

1) the power supply required( this can be found on your power supply unit by opening the side panel of your case and looking at the sticker on the unit) The number you want will be in watts and it will be the largest wattage number.

2) the slot of the card. This will be AGP, PCI, PCIE 2.0 x16, etc. You can find this information out by looking up your motherboard specs and sometimes if its a prebuilt( HP Dell Gateway) by looking up the model and serial on the manufacturers website( or google it). Usually it will also be stamped on the motherboard next to the slot what type of slot it is.

One other thing will be you will need the proper connector for your monitor. In most cases you can use an adapter to switch one of the multiple types of outputs to the type of your monitor. Some cards come with adapters for older types of monitor connectors.



You can buy a card from a store but its going to be more expensive with less of selection of cards. Also any sales people may push certain cards and they dont always know what they are talking about. Your best bet is to ask on here where answers are more peer judged and your likely to get a consenus on information from people who are probably alot more knowledgable than the salesperson at the store.



You can take it to a PC tech to have them install it if you dont think you can do it. Its not a difficult device to install if you have a card that is a proper fit. You simply unplug the power cord from the back of the pc ( the proper procedure is you should discharge the static off your hands prior to working on the pc but ive installed hundreds if not thousands of devices in a pc without doing so and never hurt the pc with static. but if you drag you feet across carpet or something first it might be a good idea:) ). Open the case and take the card out of the box. If it has an old video card in any slot remove it, if your video is intergrated insert the new card in any of the proper type of slots. It doesnt matter what slot its installed in if you have more than one of the card type. You will have to remove one of the slots on the back of the case where the outlets on your card will go. These may be screwed in or tooless or breakaway slots.install your card( it only goes in one way) sometimes you can slide it in evenly but most of the time you have to start it at the end toward the front of the computer and work it in. They arent extremely delicate but do use caution. it should have some resistance but it should in with a firm( NOT hard) push. Once in the slot secure the metal bracket with the outlets to the back of your pc( this will probably be a screw or tooless lock) .



Replace the case plug your power and monitor in and then boot up the pc. and use the installation CD to install the proper software( windows usually has drivers that will work but they arent great and dont let you get the full benefit of the card). You should be good to go. If you have intergrated graphics sometimes it will automatically disable the intergrated graphics and sometimes it wont. You can disable the intergrated graphics in the Bios which is similar to a simple version of windows. Just use your arrow keys to select and disable the intergrated graphics.