Basic data on graphics cards



The quality of the graphics card (graphics accelerator) laptop – the concept is in some sense relative, because it is important how the specific graphics card meets the requirements. If you choose a laptop exclusively for work and intend to use the computer only for Internet access and as a "typewriter" can be limited to the simplest option. But gamers, designers and artists to work correctly, fresh games or drawing in the graphic editors, the highest quality image.

The market of graphics processors today are divided among three American giants, NVIDIA, AMD and Intel. NVIDIA produces video cards of two types: GeForce is for consumers and Quadro is for professionals. AMD is the oldest company, founded in 1969, and won the respect of powerful graphics accelerators families Radeon and ATI FirePro. Finally, Intel specializiruetsya on the production of basic integrated video cards for budget laptops, and is not engaged in discrete graphics.

Lineup each of the leading manufacturers of an extremely wide, so the range can be easily confused. Before you buy you can view the ratings of the most quality and powerful graphics cards and consult with experts.

Classification of video cards


On the market there are three categories of graphics processors: the integrated (i.e., built directly into the motherboard of the computer), discrete and hybrid. The first type is typical for budget laptops. For graphics processing such cards use RAM. Their power is enough for watching movies, browsing, image editing, playing old games.

Discrete graphics card has its own graphics processor and memory. These are the cards inserted into gaming and the best multimedia laptops. They offer the highest performance, but require a lot of resources. Of course, the presence of discrete graphics always reflected in the cost is, frankly, expensive.

Finally, the hybrid type is a combination of integrated and discrete video cards in the same laptop model. This option is convenient because you can automatically switch from one to another depending on what we do: print a document or go through the game.