Graphics card for a Gateway PC?

[Tarumon]

Sorry about the circus sideshow.

On the solid state drives, don't listen to his garbage. Just try it or even youtube some footage of side by side comparisons. SSDs really shorten the time it takes from boot up to gamescreen. Also for games with "loading screens" from area to area too, those come up much faster. SSDs are definitely worth the money.

And in case my message got lost, one GPU is always better than two lesser GPUs run in tandem. It's an option some people take but if you are going spend $250, it's better on one gpu then two for $120 each. Benchmarks consistently show crossfired gpus perform better than just one, but the improvement is more 30%ish. But if you do desire more performance yet simply refuse to spend $500 for a good gpu, do try crossfire. The small glitches he refers to are tolerable considering that without another gpu, you most likely will have to turn off AA or some graphical effects. For some games, the breathtaking scenes are the reason you are playing!

My personal experience with upgrading Gateway system similar to yours (but higher end), is I ended spending way more than I would have, had I just left Gateway alone. Each component added, starting with the GPU upgrade improved benchmarking results, but not to a point the costs were justifiable.

On Component costs, I guess since he lives in England where everything is pricier, he doesnt know how we get everything shipped here by the mother load and things frequently go on sale. If you live near a Micro Center, or Fry's they always have stuff on sale, especially Microcenter. Tigerdirect and Newegg are also good places online. Amazon is awesome for trying some items with their 100% return policy.

If you compared the component costs of prepackaged gaming systems from Alienware, etc, you will find you achieve some savings, but such savings could evaporate quickly if you ruin something while at it, which is easyto do if you start overclocking. Trust me, you will try, especially when the GPU often comes with that on day 1.

To me at least, PC Gaming excels at extreme graphics and much more immersive gaming when it comes to MMOs. If you do not wish to get suckered into literally thousands of dollars just to play one game, then might I suggest games from Blizzard? Their games are more scalable, and some are fun even with reduced graphics. Starcraft 2 for example is an enduring classic strategy game. Watch some webcasts on youtube from the likes of Huskystarcraft. And watch the pros play this simple, yet addicative game.