Which graphics card to choose for games

The main requirement for video cards designed for use in gaming computers is high graphics performance. And it is made up not only from the amount of video memory.

Content

1. Characteristics that need attention
2. Chip generation
3. Video memory capacity
4. Cooling system
5. Recommended models

Which graphics card to choose for games: features that need attention

High graphics performance graphics card consists of three parameters:

1. Chip generation (number of cores, their clock frequency);

2. The amount of video memory;

3. Cooling system (to avoid throttling - reducing the chip clock frequency when overheating).

Chip generation

With the generation of the chip, everything is simple - the higher it is, the greater the graphics performance of the video card. Large manufacturers update the configuration of computational cores about once every one and a half to two years, therefore, the “fresh” graphics accelerator, the faster it will work.

So, the most productive NVIDIA graphics cards for 2017 are from the 1080, 1080 Ti and TITAN XP generations. In AMD it is R7 and R9.

However, the newer the video card, the more it costs. So, the same NVIDIA TITAN XP in 2017 has a recommended price of about 90 thousand rubles, and the GTX 1080 Ti - 53 thousand rubles. However, they justify their cost, since they have not only productive chips, but also 12 GB and 11 GB of video memory, respectively.

Video memory capacity

The amount of video memory is one of the most important parameters of a video card. It determines how much data can be written to a graphics accelerator in order to process them immediately. And, the higher the video memory capacity, the more detailed and high quality the image on the screen will be drawn.

If only a few years ago there was plenty of 2 GB of video memory, today this is too little. For modern games, much more is required. The optimal amount of video memory on a video card (or a system of two cards) is 8 GB. It will allow you to run modern games in high resolution and with excellent detail.

Cooling system

In modern video cards, software and hardware technologies of distributed computing are used, which allow to place on the one chip several thousand (!) Computing cores. So it is not surprising that this processor gets very hot during operation.

Unfortunately, only top-end video cards are equipped with an optimal cooling system. A simpler and lower-end model of a native cooler is not enough - it is advisable to install another one. Or, that would be the perfect solution, put a liquid cooling system.

Recommended models

The following list is relevant for 2017.

Ultra budget class

Video cards included in this list can hardly be called gaming. Nevertheless, they will “pull” some old or undemanding projects to the chart.

This segment includes graphics cards based on AMD Radeon R7 or NVIDIA GeForce 730. Depending on the manufacturer, they can be equipped with 1-2 GB of video memory.

Budget class

This is the minimum suitable video card for modern games. Most projects will “go” at 30 fps with Full HD resolution.

This segment includes NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti and AMD Radeon RX 460 based graphics cards.Both of these configurations are equipped with 4 GB of video memory.

Middle class

The middle class demonstrates that with a good optimization of the computational core, you can get by with a smaller amount of video memory - and still achieve 60 fps on FHD at medium (and in some projects and maximum) settings.

This segment includes video cards based on NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (3 GB of video memory) and AMD Radeon RX470 (4 GB of video memory).

High class

Here are the video cards that will run 60 fps not only on FHD, but also on 4K. They are also suitable for deep VR experience.

This segment includes video cards based on NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (6 GB of video memory) and AMD Radeon RX 480 (8 GB of video memory).

Flagships

NVIDIA TITAN XP. This video card does not and will not have any competitors this year.

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Attention! This material is the subjective opinion of the authors of the project and is not a guide to purchase.