W7 Video Card for Non-Gamer

[nathaningram]

I've seen a few threads on this but none that answered a couple of questions I have...

I have a recently rebuilt computer running Windows 7 Home Premium an Athlon II x4 on a Gigabyte Mobo with 4GB RAM and integrated ATI Radeon HD 3300 with 128 MB DDR3 Sideport memory.

I originally thought the integrated graphics would be enough for the basic things I'm doing. I do not do ANY 3d gaming. The computer is used for graphic and web design and occasional light video editing. But the Aero performance on the Windows Experience is 2.0 and I'm seeing sluggish window transitions.

So, I'm looking to spend as little as possible for a new card. What's the best bang for the buck on a dedicated video card for a non-gamer? Here's what I need:

* Low price
* HDMI out
* Support 1900x1200 for my 27" monitor
* Great Aero performance

Any suggestions?

Thanks!
Nathan

 

[shadow187]

The HD4670 is a great card, and has good performance. I'd rather not tell you to buy anything under than, however the HD4650 (which is little more than half as good) is $10 cheaper.

 

[Wolfshadw]

^+1

I'm currently running an HD4650 @ 1680x1050 on Windows 7 and not having any problems. For 1920x1200, I'd definitely recommend the HD4670.

-Wolf sends

 

[jaguarskx]

?????????

Does Win 7 have that much eye candy that you need a HD 4650/4670?

 

[shadow187]

?????????

Does Win 7 have that much eye candy that you need a HD 4650/4670?

Aero does, yes. Also, his GPU really isn't great.

 

[nathaningram]

Thanks for the input. I'm looking at some 4670s now on Newegg. Will I see a performance boost from 512 to 1gb of ram if I'm not gaming?

Thanks again everybody,
Nathan

 

[shadow187]

No, the Video-RAM (VRAM) is primarily used for heavy Anti-Aliasing, larger resolutions, and in general, heavier gaming.