How to choose a graphics card

The wide variety of graphic resolutions that we can find today, especially if we take into account the second-hand market, and the tricks that some sellers, both private and professional, use to try to sell their models It doesn't make things possible eitherIn addition to all of the above, we must also add the presence of certain myths that may end up pushing us to make a bad decision if we do not take special care.

Several of these myths are of recent creation, and were shaped from the fanaticism of individuals who They care much more about the brand they love than about themselves. It is something that can reach absurd levels, so you must be very careful in this regard. To choose a graphics card well, it is essential to have a completely unbiased approach, because otherwise we will be having a "contaminated" purchase intention that will make us forgive faults just for the love of a brand.

A long time ago I shared with us a guide in charge of grabbing a sequence of keys that, as a general rule, were really useful to choose a graphics card well, and today it is time to renew it and adapt it to today's panorama. That guide It was among the biggest hits of all the content we have announced., so I think it deserves this renewal. As always, I hope you like it and I like it, and I invite you to leave any questions you may have in the comments.

How to choose a graphics card – Keys to choosing a good graphics card

1.-Think about the device where you are going to use it

And do it in a broad sense, as using a high-end graphics card with a low-end processor. range It makes no sense, and the same would be true when using a high-end processor with a high-end graphics card. If you have any concerns about this topic, don't miss this guide.

Stability is essential to choosing a good graphics card, and for this reason you need to make sure that your device will be able to provide the performance that your graphics card needs to perform to its full potential. If not, you're going to have a bottleneck.

Clue: from a processor Core i5-10400F or a Ryzen 5 3600 You can use virtually any graphics card without having to deal with a serious bottleneck.

2.- Assess the use you will give to your graphics card

You won't need exactly the same graphics card for playing in 1080p as for playing in 4K, and you won't need exactly the same model if you plan to turn on ray tracing. If you're only going to watch multimedia content and play easy titles, a low-end graphics card will suffice. range economic.

Clearly state your claims, It is essential to choose a graphics card well, because otherwise you may end up buying a model inferior to what you needed.

Clue: with a cheap graphics card like the GeForce GT 1030 or the Radeon RX 550 You will not be able to play recent games in 1080p with guarantees. You will need, at least, a GeForce GTX 1060 6 GB or a Radeon RX 580 8 GB.

3.-Forget fanaticism, but don't lose your feet on the ground

It is not worth saying that NVIDIA is preferable because it is NVIDIA, or that AMD is preferable because it is AMD. The two companies They offer confronting and also attractive articles in the graphic field, but we must be aware that each of them has different values, and that certain ones yield better in certain games for a simple matter of optimization.

The Radeon RX 6000 proposes really good performance in rasterization, they have much more graphic memory and are progressing in technologies highlighted thanks to the upcoming arrival of FSR 2.0. For its part, the GeForce RTX 30 They are also very powerful, perform better in ray tracing and they play with the benefit of DLSS.

Clue: If ray tracing is important to you, you'll be better off choosing a GeForce RTX 30, since they perform better. If you don't mind that technology, the Radeon RX 6000 are an incredible alternative option.

4.-Don't get lost with the ranges and series

Understanding how to properly detect each model, series and range is key to selecting a graphics card well. For this, we must understanding the nomenclature of a graphic card, something that fortunately is not difficult, now that NVIDIA and AMD use certain similar patterns.

NVIDIA difference between GTX and RTX, the first ones do not accelerate ray tracing or support DLSS, and the second ones do. The first number indicates the generation, the rest the range where they are located, and the "TI" and "Super" themselves refer to a superior model, in the first case, a much stronger variation of the original. In the case of AMD, the "XT" itself is used to refer to higher models. Let's see some examples:

• GTX 1060: does not make ray tracing faster or support DLSS (it is GTX), it is part of the ten series, and in standard quality (60).
• RTX 2080: does faster ray tracing and DLSS (it's RTX), falls into the 20 series, and in the high range (80). The RTX 2080 Super is a much stronger version of the original, and the RTX 2080 Ti is a higher-end model.
• Radeon RX 5600 XT: It falls into the 5000 series, so it does not do faster ray tracing, and in standard quality (600). It is a high-performance model (XT) in its range.
• Radeon RX 6600: It falls into the 6000 series, so it's faster ray tracing, and in standard quality (600). It does not come with the XT itself.
• Radeon RX 6600 XT: it is a superior model to the previous one due to the XT itself.

Clue: If the number indicating the range, which always comes after the first, which indicates the generation, is less than 5, you are looking at a graphics card not recommended for gaming.

5.- Be careful with the finishes: It is not always worth paying more.

The price difference between a graphics card with a simple design and one with a premium finish can end up being colossal, but this does not mean that the second one will always compensate for the greater investment it represents. You have to be very careful with this issue, since some graphics cards with a premium finish They can cost you almost the same as a higher-end one with a basic finish.

A standard quality graphics card does not require a colossal cooling system to work perfectly, and high-end models don't need complex designs or giant radiators either. The difference will usually be very small, and home overclocking won't make a difference in performance that justifies a huge price difference, so be careful.

Clue: Compare the costs of the same graphics card you want. Never opt for the most expensive ones, since they do not compensate in terms of quality and price, and try to avoid designs with fans Turbine type. In standard quality, inexpensive models with modest heatsinks are not a bad idea, but in high-end models they can be.

6.-Don't fall for the traditional "this card has X gigas"

Many retailers, and many individuals, remain stuck in the myth of gigabytes. It is true that, to choose a graphics card well, we must take into account the total memory graphic that integrates, since in the end this is an essential requirement in several games, but We must not fall into the mistake of thinking that quantity is the only thing that matters.

A graphics card can have several gigabytes of graphic memory and be worse than one with less gigabytes. For example, GeForce RTX 3060 has 12GB of graphics memory, while the RTX 3080 has 10GB of graphics memory, and yet The second one is practically a much stronger 50%.

Clue: before you get carried away by the memory ratio sets the generation and range which the graphics cards you are looking at belong to. The one that is part of the newest generation and in the highest range will be superior, even if it has less graphic memory.

7.-Do you really need a new graphics card?

Don't limit yourself to the first-hand market, i.e. new models. To select a graphics card well, it is sometimes convenient Also take into account the second-hand market, because in this one we will be able to find much more powerful graphic resolutions for less money.

For example, several years ago I wanted to upgrade my GTX 970, but I didn't have enough budget to buy a GTX 1070, so I went for it. a GTX 980 Ti that I found on the second-hand market for less than 300 euros. It lasted me quite a long time, and it was one of the graphics cards that gave me the most joy, since I really appreciated the change compared to the GTX 970.

Clue: It is essential that you be careful about several points if you buy second-hand. You need to be well aware of the costs to avoid being ripped off, you should avoid graphics cards that have been used for mining, and also try to test before buying.

8.-Upgrade to a perfect level and be careful not to go backwards

Selecting a graphics card well also forces us to be clear about what level we should look at if we want to upgrade the model we have. This is essential because we could end up buying a graphics card that only optimize to which we had, or even represent a step backwards.

For example, Upgrading from a GTX 970 to a GeForce GT 1050 Ti would be a step backwards, and upgrading from that to a 6GB GTX 1060 would be a change that we wouldn't really appreciate. The ideal would be to jump to at least an 8GB GTX 1070 or an RTX 2060.

Clue: The topic we discussed about ranges and generations is essential in this regard. A graphics card from a higher generation does not necessarily have to perform much better than a model from a previous generation but from a higher range. To avoid confusion, use this common method: always look for at least a graphics card that is from a higher generation and that is at least one range above. For example, if you have a GTX 1060 the RTX 2070 would be a good upgrade (generation 20 versus generation ten, and range 60 versus range 70).

9.-High range and low range: Is it worth paying the difference?

It is another very hackneyed topic. Now we have a clear idea of why the topic of the ranges at the time of choosing the graphics card well, but as we go up the range in the same generation we will realize that performance does not increase proportionally, which causes its price-performance ratio to decrease.

This means that a high-end model may be an acceptable option compared to a standard quality one, but a mid-range model will not be an acceptable option compared to a high-end one.. Do you think it's worth paying double for a higher performing 10%? Since it is now here, there is not much more to do.

Clue: In this case, it is not essential to understand the performance of each and every graphics card, it is enough to keep in mind that, as a general rule, the top-of-the-range graphics cards are the most expensive and have the worst cost per frame value. Thus, for example, the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti offers a much higher price-performance ratio than the RTX 3090, and the same goes for the RTX 3080 compared to the RTX 3080 Ti.

ten.-Caution with the collective of memory, and with the genre of memory

The two points have always been fundamental to choosing a graphics card well. The memory bus and the type of graphics memory determine the bandwidth of a graphics card. The higher the bandwidth, the better. Greater agility in communications between the GPU and VRAM, which translates into greater performance.

The larger the bus, and the faster the memory, the better. However, keep in mind that Not all models have exactly the same requirements. A standard quality graphics card will be able to offer good performance with a 128-bit or 192-bit bus if accompanied by memory GDDR6, while a high-end graphics card will require a 256-bit or 320-bit bus and either GDDR6 or GDDR6X memory to work properly.

Keys: The issue of memory buses and memory type is much less of an issue since the arrival of the RTX 20 and RX 5000, but be careful if you decide to buy older models. Avoid configurations with buses smaller than 128 bits and with memories that are not GDDR5. In the case of AMD, keep in mind that the RX 6000 series uses unlimited cache, and that this compensates for the low bus of some models, such as the RX 6500 XT, which uses a 64-bit one.

Read Also: NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards comparison 2022