What does a video card do?

I asked this question before but didnt get the answer i was looking for. I want to know what an expensive video card has and does that makes it any better that a $50 card. Will the graphics look any different on the two cards.



Right now I have integrated ATI Xpress 200. I want to know if buying a GeForce 7600GT is worth it. What will be different on my computer if i buy this card. Will the picture be any different? If I max out my settings on my ATI playing half life 2 and compare it to maxed out settings on the 7600 will it visually look any different.



What i'm tring to say is when i play cs source or half life 2 will the picture that a see be graphically better with a more expensive card or is the price dependant on the clock speed, memory and memory speed, and brand.|||I'm guessing your ATI Xpress 200 is integrated. Integrated video steals CPU, and system memory so If you buy a Ge-Force 7600 GT, it will isolate those factors and leave your CPU and memory alone. A Ge-Force 7600 GT can play plenty of games but to the naked eye, all the graphics are about the same compared to the highest end cards. The main difference is the FPS (Frames Per Second), depending on your CPU it may increase your FPS if you buy a more expensive card. The higher the FPS the smoother the gameplay will be.|||There are several different "processors" in a PC. The most common, and most complex, is the CPU, or Central Processing unit. This is the chip that people talk about when they say "I've got a 2.4 giga-hertz AMD" or "I've got a Pentium 4".



There are other processors as well. The next most powerful in modern systems (eclipsing the Northbridge in old systems - this happened about 1995) is the Graphics Processing Unit, or GPU, which is usually found on a videocard, though in your case it is currently found on the motherboard (which also holds the CPU, memory, and basically everything else).



GeForce is the name of the GPU chip made by nVidia. The 7600GT is their latest (or close to latest - they release a new one every three months and I'm not a gamer so I don't follow this) model card. Integrated video cards smell.



So what will be the difference in CS Source? nothing to start out with. The difference is that now you can enable all sorts of better rendering options (lighting, shadows, etc) and use higher resolutions while still getting higher frame rates that make for a more smooth visual experience.



Do you really need to spend the cash for the new card? That depends. If you're happy now, probably not. If you're not that happy, then probably. If you're a real gamer, you have to just so you can claim that you have it and brag to all you friends (did I mention earlier that I am NOT a gamer).



So yeh, that's the deal on video cards. Personally, I would spend the money on a decent midrange card, a set of surround sound speakers and a soundcard (creative labs of course) which can drive them. Your overall experience is going to be much better off, becuase now you have a decent card so you can turn the essential stuff on, and you have a cool sound system so you can hear the guy run up behind you and smack you in the head with a shovel.|||it has many purposes|||It depends.



If you never play 3D games, just solitaire you are saving money as you will never see any difference.



However if you play 3D games a better video-card will make the water sparkle, animation flow and make you smile.



Half-life II will definitely look lots better with a better card. It however has nothing to do with how much you pay for it. CS will look about the same though animation flow may improve depending on the number of players.