What is a nice and affordable graphic card and should I get more Memory?

Question

I have a compaq presario 3000+(2.16GHz) AMD Athlon XP processor, 448 MB PC2700 DDR SDRAM Memory, 160 GB 7200 RPM ultra DMA hard drive, also another question is how do i find out the power supply on my pc. I want to know because i currently have the worst graphix card ever, I luv The Sims 2 and i really dunno if my pc will be able to handle any more expansion packs. Thanx for your help, really appreciate it.

Answer 1

You need to know if you are able to get a graphics card. Some integrated graphics systems have problems with a new graphics card. Also check if you have the slots (AGP or PCI Express 16x) for a graphics card. Getting more RAM would not hurt. Look for how much RAM your motherboard can handle. Also check how many slots there are. You already have 448 MB of RAM which is a very odd number (did you have some very old RAM laying around that you put in the computer?). Also be sure to pick the right RAM.

Answer 2

I sympathise with your vid card dilemma. You have a better CPU than I do (2.16GHz). On top of what Te said, your power supply is the metal box where all the electrical wires come from. It has a fan that pulls air from inside the computer to the back of the case.
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/power-supply.htm

See page three if you're wondering how much Wattage you need in your PS.
"Power Supply Wattage
A 400-watt switching power supply will not necessarily use more power than a 250-watt supply. A larger supply may be needed if you use every available slot on the motherboard or every available drive bay in the personal computer case. It is not a good idea to have a 250-watt supply if you have 250 watts total in devices, since the supply should not be loaded to 100 percent of its capacity."

Normally you don't have to worry too much about the PS unless you fill all the drive bays (hard drives, CD/DVD stuff) and slots (sound card, vid card, network cards, etc) and use all the plugs and need extender plugs (Old computers were pretty bad that way). But any PS that is dying can cause lots of problems. The fan in the back may go off (and on) and the system can overheat. When a PS is acting weird, it should be replaced cos it could cause a lot of damage and you'd have to replace a lot of stuff in your computer.

Definitely get more Ram. I have 1.5 gig now but I started out with only 500 meg when I first got the Sims 2. There is a huge difference in that game now that I have the extra Gig.

If you can get a graphics card, then I'd go surfing on the 'net to find any of these for the best prices, then check your local paper to see if some are on special (Fry's Electronics, or other stores)
http://thesims2.ea.com/help/detail.php?help_id=21

Supported video cards (and the more video memory the better):

* ATI RadeonTM series (7000 or better)
o Radeon 7000/VE series (non-T&L; requires 2.0 GHz processor)
o 7200, 7500
o 8500, All-In-Wonder 8500
o 9000, 9200, 9500, 9600, 9700, 9800
o X300, X600, X800

* Nvidia® QuadroTM series
o Quadro, Quadro2, Quadro4

* Nvidia® Geforce series (GeForce2 and better)
o GeForce2
o GeForce3, 3 Ti
o GeForce4, 4Ti, MX 420, 440
o GeForce FX 5200, 5600, 5700, 5800, 5900, 5950
o GeForce 6600, 6800

* Intel® Extreme Graphics (non-T&L; requires 2.0 GHz processor)
o 82845, 82865, 82915