Which video card should you choose? Will it be good enough?

Well, this article will help you make some sense of this fast changing technology
and enable you to choose the best video card for your computing needs.
The best way to see what video card to buy is to consider how you're using your computer now.
There are several categories:

There are several categories:

• Server
• Simple Applications
• Complex Applications
• Workstation Graphics
• General Gaming
• Hard-Core Gaming

Server
If you're using your computer as a mail server, FTP server, print server,
or even a game server, you definitely do not need a high-end video card.
Look for a low-end card like the
ATI Rage XL, nVidia GeForce 7300 GS 256MB.

Simple Applications
Say you're using the PC for simple applications only, for example, word processing,
email or web surfing. Again, you do not need the best video card out there.
A cost-efficient  and decent one will do the trick.

Complex Applications
If you need to perform more complex tasks like 3D computer aided design
or video editing, it will make more sense to go for a heavy duty card.
Screen resolution and image quality tend to be important factors for this type of work.
Look for a video card whose processor
which supports a high screen resolution, with ample graphics memory.
A good choice would be the nVidia Quadro FX4500.

Workstation Graphics
These cards combine world leading OpenGL & DirectX programmable
graphics technologies with application certification to enable professional users to gain
100% accurate graphical representation and rock solid application stability.

Two main manufacturers produce dedicated professional graphics cards for the
CAD, CAM, CAE, DCC & VFX markets. These are ATI & NVIDIA; both manufacturers produce
high performance consumer based graphics cards (ATI Radeon & NVIDIA GeForce)
for gaming and multimedia use for which they are most commonly know,
however both manufacturers have a unique workstation division that specializes
in the research and develop of ISV certified workstation class graphics cards
(ATI FireGL & NVIDIA Quadro).

Both the ATI FireGL & NVIDIA Quadro Graphics cards have similar hardware features
to that of their consumer based cousins (to help reduce manufacturing + R&D costs etc),
however they are radically different it terms of power and offer unique OpenGL & DirectX
programmability that enables them to unleash ultimate application performance
(Autodesk Inventor, 3D Studio Max, Viz, Maya, Bentley Microstation, Dassault Catia,
Solidworks, Navisworks, UGS Solidedge, NX, I-Deas, Team Center, PTC Pro Engineer,
Newtek Lightwave, Maxon Cinema4D, Avid SoftImage XSI, Autodesk Maya,CAD,Autocad,3D tools,DCC,CADsign,CircuitWorks,Cosmic Blobs,CosmosWorks,DesignCAD,
Designer Elements SAshlar-Vellum,Drive Image,Dynamic Designer,
EMbassyWorks Linius Technologies,Endnote,FloVENT,FloWorks Flomerics NIKA,FloEFD,
Dimentor Inspector,IntelliCAD,Inventor,IronCAD,Maple,Mechanical Desktop,Micro Saint Sharp,
Structural Alliance,Plastics Advisers,Plastics InsightT,Plastics Xpert,Moldflow,Plot2PDF,ProDesktop,
Solid Edge,Strand7,SurfaceWorks,TASys Tolerance Analysis System,Tecplot,VX CADCAM,Zipcad,eDrawings,SolidThinking.
 and many more) and provide 100% ISV certification for the ultimate graphics workstation experience.

General Games
If you'll only play simple games like Minesweeper, Tetris or Backgammon,
then just get a simple video card. No need for the latest 3D graphics gizmo.

Hard-Core Gaming
On the other hand, if you live on intense, real-time 3D games
like Unreal Tournament and Battlefield 2, you'll want to get the latest 3D
graphics card like the nVidia GeForce 8800 GT. These games require extremely
powerful cards which support a variety of graphics effects like anti-aliasing, Z-buffering, vertex shaders, etc.

Conclusion
In summary, you should always consider your needs first before going out to buy that video card.
Video cards, especially the latest models, tend to be prohibitively expensive.
If you only need to do general computer stuff, then don't shell out cash for the newest cards like the
ATI FireGL V8650 Go for some of the less expensive video cards like the nVidia GeForce 6600.
Do your homework, read up the manufacturer's online manuals or feel free to contact compeve.com
staff before making your purchase decision.

nVidia Video Card Datasheets:

quadro_2000D_datasheet 
quadro_2000_datasheet 
quadro_4000_MAC_datasheet
quadro_4000_datasheet 
quadro_400_datasheet
quadro_5000_datasheet 
quadro_6000_datasheet 
quadro_600_datasheet
quadro_FX1700_datasheet   
quadro_FX1800_datasheet 
quadro_FX3800_datasheet 
quadro_FX380_LP_datasheet 
quadro_FX380_datasheet 
quadro_FX4800_MAC_datasheet 
quadro_FX4800_datasheet 
quadro_FX5800_datasheet 
quadro_FX580_datasheet 
quadro_NVS280_datasheet
quadro_NVS285_datasheet 
quadro_NVS290_datasheet 
quadro_NVS295_datasheet 
quadro_NVS300_datasheet 
quadro_NVS420_datasheet 
quadro_NVS440_datasheet 
quadro_NVS450_datasheet 
quadroplex_2200_D2_datasheet 
quadroplex_7000_datasheet 


At compeve.com you will find a wide variety of graphics adapters:

NVIDIA:
Quadro4 980 XGL,Quadro4 900 XGL,Quadro4 750 XGL,Quadro4 700 XGL,
Quadro4 580 XGL,Quadro4 550 XGL.
Quadro FX5600,Quadro FX5500,Quadro FX4600,Quadro FX4400,Quadro FX4500,
Quadro FX3700, Quadro FX 3500,Quadro FX 3450,Quadro FX3400,Quadro FX 3000,
Quadro FX1700,Quadro FX1500,Quadro FX1400,Quadro FX1300,
Quadro FX1100,Quadro FX1000,Quadro FX500.
Quadro G-Sync II,Quadro FX 5800 SDI,Quadro FX 5600 SDI,Quadro FX 4600 SDI
Quadro Plex 2200 D2,Quadro Plex 2100 D4,Quadro Plex 1000 Model IV,Quadro Plex 2100 S4.
Quadro NVS 280,Quadro NVS 285,Quadro NVS 290,Quadro NVS 400,Quadro NVS 440.
GeForce GTX 280,GeForce GTX 260,GeForce 9800 GX2,GeForce 9800 GTX,GeForce 8800 GTX,
GeForce 8800 GTS,GeForce 8800 GT,GeForce 9600 GT,GeForce 8600 GTS,GeForce 8600 GT.
Quadro FX 3700M,Quadro FX 3600M,Quadro FX 2700M,Quadro FX 1700M,Quadro FX 1600M,
Quadro FX 770M,Quadro FX 570M,Quadro FX 370M,Quadro FX 360M      

ATI:
FireGL V3600,V5600,V7600,V7700,V8600,V8650,V3300,V3350,V3400,V5200,V7200,V7300,V7350,
V3100,V5000,V5100,V7100.
Radeon HD 4870 X2,Radeon HD 4870,Radeon HD 4850,Radeon HD 4800,Radeon HD 4600
,Radeon HD 3870,Radeon HD 3850,Radeon HD 3650,Radeon HD 3450.
Radeon HD 3800,Radeon HD 3600,Radeon HD 3400,Radeon HD 2900,Radeon HD 2600,
Radeon HD 2400,Radeon X1950,Radeon X1900,
Radeon X1800,Radeon X1650,Radeon X1600,Radeon X1550,Radeon X1300,Radeon X1050,
Radeon 9550.
FirePro V3700,FirePro V3750,FirePro V5700,ATI FirePro V8700.

Matrox:
Millenium G200,G450,G450 MMS,G450x2,G450x4,G550,P650,P690,P750
G45X4QUAD-B,PH-P256F,PH-A8X256
Parhelia,Quid,RT.X2 LE,RT.X2,Axio LE,MXO,MXO2
DualHed2Go,TripleHead2Go.

and many other: