In continuation of our article about the CPU, now we are looking at the graphics cards. We will give you a detailed explanation about what is written on the hardware boxes or the specs you will find at an online retailer. Here is how to decipher things so you know what your getting.
Introduction
Again, this is not an all-in-one solution article for graphics card shopping. In this article we will give you detailed explanations on the graphics processing units (GPUs), the amount of RAM on the graphics cards, the series numbers, associated drivers, etc.
In fact, a graphics card is no more than a computer fitted on a piece of electronics circuit: It has a processing unit (GPU), graphics memory (RAM), inputs and outputs, just like your computer does. However, these small computers are specialized in processing graphics data which makes them a little different from a big computer. If you are interested in this kind of thing, you can learn more about how graphics cards work here. - Dedicated graphics cards – Installed separately as a PCI Express (formerly there was AGP) in a PCIe (formerly AGP) slot,
- Integrated graphics – Permanently installed on the motherboard
Dedicated Graphics are more powerful and expensive than integrated graphics.
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)
The GPU is the same thing as the Central Processing Unit on your computer, with two (main) differences: it is geared towards graphical computations and it coordinates the work of the graphics card rather than the whole computer.
GPU is of the topmost importance on choosing the graphics adapters (but not everything) and the manufacturers NVIDIA and AMD/ATI have their own GPUs. The series to which the GPU belongs is displayed in big letters/numbers on the hardware boxes, such as Nvidia 9600 or ATI 4870. These numbers give a very detailed explanation of what’s inside.
In NVIDIA’s notation, the four numbers tell the following about the GPU (take 8600 for example)
- First digit: The chronological series to which the GPU belongs, for a 8600 card, this is 8000 series GPU. It came out after the 7000 and before the 9000.
- First digit: The series to which the GPU belongs, for a 8600 card, this is 8000 series GPU.
- Second digit: The segmentation. Usually 1,2, 3 and 4 point to entry level cards, 5 and 6 mid-range, 7 and 8 in the high-end GPUs.
- Third and fourth digits: 99% of the time the last two digits will be 00.
When NVIDIA ran out of 4 digits with 9000 series, they switched to 200 series. In the 200 series, the notation has changed slightly, 5 and 6 in the second digits point to entry-level cards, 6 point to mid-range and 8 and 9 point to the high-end.
In terms of features, the line-up is GS, GT, GTS and GTX in order from low performance to high performance.
Up Next: ATI Card Numbers and Graphics Card Memory
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) - continued
In AMD/ATI’s notation, the notation is as follows:
- First digit: The series to which GPU belongs, for example for a 4850, the card is in 4000 series.
- Second digit: Product category (segmentation). 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 point to entry-level cards, 5, 6 and 7 point to mid-range and 8 and 9 point to high-end.
- Third and fourth digits: Relative performance. For example a 4870 GPU is a better performer than 4850 GPU.
AMD/ATI dropped the PRO, GT, XT, XTX suffixes and began to use the last two digits.
In some high-end cards, you will see an X2 suffix at the end, for example ATI Radeon 4870 X2. This notation means that there are two 4870 GPUs on a single card.