How many gpu do i need

Gaming The gaming industry has been instrumental in the evolution of GPU technology. Video and professional applications Those who use their PCs for complex tasks like 3D rendering, game development, and video editing also benefit from faster GPUs.

Integrated vs. Mobile vs. Ray-tracing: the latest advancement in realistic graphics As with most PC hardware, GPU technology continues to evolve at a breakneck pace. Nvidia vs. This is probably the most important factor to consider when making your choice.

Memory Discrete GPUs utilize a special type of memory to store the data needed to ultimately display information on a screen.

More than one GPU Some graphics cards can be connected to run in parallel with additional cards, which can provide serious boosts in performance for demanding games. Enjoy your new GPU! Join the discussion 11 Comments. February 27, at am. Miten Suresh Mehta says:. March 22, at am. George says:. June 14, at pm. Mike says:. April 1, at pm. GGG says:. October 5, at pm.

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Lifewire Technology Review Board Member. Article reviewed on Mar 10, Tweet Share Email. The 4 Best Graphics Cards of Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Email Address Sign up There was an error. Please try again. You're in! Thanks for signing up. There was an error. Tell us why! So, how important is a GPU? There are also two main types of GPU: integrated and dedicated. An integrated graphics card is when the graphics processing unit is essentially built into the same chip as the processor CPU.

Pretty much every modern processor comes with integrated graphics, and these have plenty of benefits. Integrated graphics are also more compact and less power-hungry than dedicated graphics cards, which makes them ideal for thin and light laptops.

In fact, most laptops will use integrated graphics. Buying a PC or laptop that uses integrated graphics is usually cheaper than buying one with a dedicated graphics card. Integrated graphics are primarily made by Intel and AMD for their respective processors. Don't spend a single cent on a graphics card for gaming until you read this buying guide, wherein we consider everything from video memory, refresh rate and frame rate to power consumption, memory clock and gaming performance.

Plus, our general GPU shopping tips at the end will help you make your choice. Don't expect to game with the GeForce GT at p -- p at best unless a game is very lightweight, though Fortnite, CS:GO, League of Legends and other multiplayer competitive games generally fall under the "can play on a potato" umbrella. Many games may simply go from unplayable to a little less unplayable. In other words, plenty of the latest games will run on it , but many users won't benefit.

Cards can come with the chip overclocked, which gives it a little extra oomph as well. If you've got an old desktop with integrated graphics that don't support the current versions of graphics programming interfaces such as DirectX 12 or Vulkan , have a game that won't run unless it detects dedicated graphics memory or if you just want to make your Windows experience feel a little more snappy or smooth, a GT based card can help.

The GT line is designed with lower power requirements than the more popular GeForce GTX models, so it can fit in systems with lesser power supplies and compact designs. Unlike most gaming graphics cards, based cards can be low-profile and take up just a single slot for connectivity, and are quieter because they only require a single fan.

You may see a random higher-end card drop to the same price, and that's a good choice if you're looking for something with a little extra gaming oomph over the or support for two monitors. But they take a lot more space and power than the simple GT half-height replacement cards. And since much basic photo editing still isn't very GPU-intensive, a fast, high-core-count CPU still gives you more performance value for the money than a higher-power graphics card.

One distinction between the two that may affect your decision is power draw: the RX XT takes about 30 watts more than the S. Since they're both under watts, though, your power supply probably isn't a problem. Don't blink, though. With reasonably comparable performance at "lower" prices, Nvidia's new RTX Ti cards have a price edge over their RX based competitors, though the latter is a good graphics card to stick in an external GPU for a Mac.

This card is really hard to find, even at high prices. You may want to look at the RX XT above as well. Read our RTX Ti hands-on. One exception is for 4K video editing or workstation-level graphics, where the Ti's higher memory bandwidth has a more noticeable impact.