How to Upgrade your Video Card

Things You’ll Need:

• A computer to upgrade
• internet access for research

Step 1:
Determine the video socket type on your mother board. There are 3 main types. PCI, AGP, PCI-E Look at the photo comparison and write down the type of card you have. If you have PCI or PCI-E, you are set. You can jump to step 5.

Step 2:
If you have AGP, sit down and take a deep breath. Let it out. ok here wee go. You must determine which version of AGP you have. Over the many years of AGP, card-makers improved the technology and also changed the socket of agp along the way.

Step 3:
In the year 1999-2000, the agp style was brand new and was known as 1X. In 2002, the upgrade began and they came at a crazy rate. the only people in a jam are those who own 1X machines and there is hope for you. I have found at least 2 cards that work with 1X machines. I will share those card names in step 5. There are 3 main types. 1x, 2X-4X, 4X-8X many card makers will overlap many versions but some will only support a handful of speeds.

Step 4:
The best place to start is with the card connector appearance or your documentation from the computer maker. Since documentation can be hard to find, lets look at the video card's edge connector. The AGP standard uses notches in the card's edge to force the user to use the right card. Most of the time, this will be all you need, but there are times when you just need to know what your computer will support. (depending on what the video card maker lists as supported AGP speeds.)

Step 5:
The biggest (but not the only) difference between the AGP style is the voltage available to the video card. Some motherboards actually offer more than one voltage and can handle more card types. Luckily there are some card makers who offer video cards that can accept more than one voltage level and they auto adjust as needed. Very few cards will list 1X as a feature. Most will say 2x-8x or 4x-8x. So to sum up.. If you have a 1X card, look at the Matrox Millenium G450 16MB AGP Connect3D Radeon 9250se I have these 2 cards and they are both 1X-4x. Or just use a PCI Card if needed. If you have a computer with 4x-8x ability, you can pick most any new card.

web