How do i know if a video card will be compatible with my computer?

i'm buying a better graphics card and i'm not sure if it's going to be compatible with my computer. does it have to be the same brand as the other parts in it?|||No it does not have to be the same brand. Most of the time when purchasing a graphics card you have to look at two-three things.

1. The power the graphics card uses.

2. If the graphics card is passive, the amount of space the Heat Sink *big piece of metal* takes up.

3. The type of slot you have in your computer.



Most computers use PCI-e slots for their graphic cards, while older computers use PCI slots. If your computer has a PCI-e slot, do not purchase a PCI slot card, usually this is an incompatibly. For comparison here is a chart on the different types of slots.



http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/pci-…



You would probably be looking for x16 first, if you do not have that you would use one that looks like x8.|||no it does not ahve to be the same brand as the other parts.

the only things that matters when it comes to picking a new Graphics card are:

Does your Motherboard have a PCI Express 2.0 slot?

Is your Power Supply good enough to power your new computer?

this one doest matter as much but I still hold it as high as the others...

Is your CPU powerful enough to not be a bottleneck. Most new games depend on both CPU and GPU when it comes to playing them. if you have the best GPU in the world and a crappy CPU, the CPU will slow the GPU down and your game/program will "lag or just crash"

honestly my rules of thumb is have alteast a Dual Core Processor clocked at 3.0ghz or more.

even that tho now a days will bottleneck a good GPU. but it will still last you a few years.|||Can this computer run that game?

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Run this program and click the red "We Recommend" where appropriate.

http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/cyr…



Note Halo2 is demanding on the operating system, see what it recommends

Crysis Warhead is demanding on the video card, see what it recommends.

Far Cry and FEAR is demanding on the processor.

WOW is a general all rounder, not as demanding as above.



When you see the Pass result at the top, look carefully as it shows the minimum to the best performance for that game., even though it pass, it may not be enough for maximum settings., so check the resultant Green chart ruler line at the top.



Click the Red fail tab as well.

Note: Sims 3 is listed under T.|||If it's a new video card then it's going to be PCI-e (either 1.0 or 2.0)

You have to look to see if your motherboard supports PCI-e.

After that you have to look at the video card you're intending to buy and see how much power it draws. It will have a recommended power supply wattage in the specifications of the card.

If your Power Supply Unit has enough power to run your card then you're good to go.|||It doesn't have to be the same brand, no. Look at the specifications for the card and see if your pc has the minimum. Even so, when I had an older pc, the dvd-rw never was compatible, yet it worked. Therefore, you could always make sure the card is returnable, and if so, simply try it.