Whether you are a gamer or content creator, having a reliable graphics card is a must. With the right GPU, you can enhance your overall user experience and make it more effective.
Keeping this in mind, you should think about whether your current GPU is up to the mark or if it is time for an upgrade. When it comes to upgrading your graphics card, there are plenty of options to choose from. As the decision can get quite overwhelming, here we are with some of the vital factors that you need to consider before upgrading your graphics card.
When to Upgrade?
As a gamer, it is quite easy for you to decide whether it is time to upgrade your graphics card. Given how recent game titles are getting more and more GPU demanding, it is quite acceptable that older GPUs will struggle to run them at a decent FPS. And even if they manage to run them at a lower setting, you are missing out on plenty of in-game details and gaming performance that you definitely will get from a better GPU.
As a content creator or professional, you will feel the need for a good GPU judging by the time it takes to render a video. A capable GPU will shorten this time frame even if you render them at a much higher resolution. It also creates room to work on resource-heavy 3D projects and animation tasks.
To get the most accurate information regarding whether you need more graphical power, you can use benchmarking applications such as 3D Mark and Cinebench. This will give you precise scores and timings about your current card. If it meets your demand and standard, you better stick to it. And if it doesn’t, you should consider an upgrade.
What to Consider Before Upgrading Your Graphics Card?
Is upgrading your graphics card that simple? As it turns out, there are tons of other factors at play here.
Budget and Specs
If upgrading your current GPU is the ultimate decision, you need to consider a budget. There are plenty of amazing GPUs from both AMD and Nvidia, and both have amazing aftermarket variants to cater to your needs. Prices will vary depending on the specs you are aiming for.
While aiming for the specs, pay attention to how much V-RAM will keep you on the safer side by running games and rendering applications at a reasonable performance level. To get the most optimal performance expectations, you also need to look for memory type and PCIe interface.
Compatibility
Talking about optimal performance, you also need to keep in mind whether your system is compatible with the GPU that you will be going for. If it isn’t, you will be facing bottlenecking issues, which ultimately will affect your overall user experience. Let’s start wilt the PCIe slot. PCIe x16 slot, which is used to plug in your GPU, can have suffixes such as Gen 4 or 3. While you can use any GPU regardless of the PCIe generation, modern GPUs will face bandwidth limitations, and you will be missing out on performance.
Power
GPUs are getting power-hungry with every new release. In this case, having a recommended power supply for a specific card is a must. RTX 3090Ti, for example, has a TDP rating of 450 Watts, and Nvidia recommends having a 1000W PSU or more for this card.
Space
And lastly, you have to make sure that your PC chassis has enough clearance to house your GPU. GPUs are getting bigger and beefier besides their monstrous power draw. Going back to the 3090 Ti, it is a 323-millimeter-long card that takes about 3.5 I/O slots. Even if you manage to cram it inside of a Mini-ITX case, you might have trouble ensuring a good amount of airflow to keep it cool.
Final Words
“Nonetheless, upgrading your GPU completely relies on your personal preference. There is plenty of versatility when it comes to GPUs. Form factor to Ray Tracing performance, you have a plethora of options to choose from. Regardless, these factors will help you decide better and narrow down overwhelming options so that you can get your hands on the right GPU. So these are the things you should keep in mind when upgrading your Graphics Card.”
