PCI Video Card or New Mobo + PCIe Video Card

[Tzen]

So my brother just got a new Dell Demension E310, and the stupid thing has no PCIe x16 slot, just 2 PCI slots and a PCIe x1 slot.

The rest of the specs include a P4 2.8GHz w/HT, 512MB RAM (I might throw in another 512MB stick), and - of course - the dreaded integrated EVERYTHING in typical Dell fashion. I don't want the system to be bogged down by the crummy integrated graphics.

I'm not even sure if a standard ATX mobo would fit in the thing, as it hasn't even arrived yet, so I can't look at it. The documentation on Dell's site doesn't seem to mention any sort of standard, either.

Would it be worth swapping out the mobo and going for a PCIe video card? Or should I just get a PCI video card? My brother doesn't do extremely heavy gaming, but he does enjoy games like Rome: Total War and Civilization IV.

Thanks

 

[Remy XO]

I would discourage a PCI video card and I don't think a PCI video card would run those games well either.

 

[JMoore]

?? This is soemthing your brother should have thought of before he bought it. If I were him I would just use the integrated video and forget about gaming.

 

[Tzen]

I would agree if he had had a choice.

He was lucky to get anything, as it was ordered for him for college. I was expecting something worse, like a Celeron with 256MB RAM etc. He had no say in the matter.

But when I saw that the rest of the hardware turned out to be semi-decent, I figured it might be worth him throwing in a little of his own money to make it play games semi-decently.

 

[Vegito]

Originally posted by: Tzen
I would agree if he had had a choice.

He was lucky to get anything, as it was ordered for him for college. I was expecting something worse, like a Celeron with 256MB RAM etc. He had no say in the matter.

But when I saw that the rest of the hardware turned out to be semi-decent, I figured it might be worth him throwing in a little of his own money to make it play games semi-decently.

so basically he didn't do any research and bought the cheapest thing on the planet and you're blaming dell ? heres the system board, its not atx

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/s...ms/dim3100/en/sm/techov0.htm#wp1052309

 

[Tzen]

Neither me nor my brother ordered anything. It was ordered for him by our stubborn, cheap, and computer illiterate father.

Dell and every other major computer manufacturer (Compaq/HP) is guilty of selling suckers like my father bizarrely unbalanced computers. i.e. P4 2.8GHz with 256MB RAM and integrated graphics - WTF? Stupid. It just happened to come with a free upgrade to 512MB RAM.

I do understand that you get what you pay for, as I personally own a Dell Inspiron 9300 that I have been extremely satisfied with.

 

[Vegito]

is it a crime ? really ? to go out and buy a kia and expects bmw performance ?

 

[Tzen]

It's just stupid to sell a Kia with a BMW engine in it to someone who doesn't know any better, when the rest of the components are crap.

I guess in the end it's my brother who benefits, as every component could have been crap.

The thing even has a SATA harddrive. Am I the only one that finds it amusing that the components seem so imbalanced when it comes to performance?

Anyway, this is off topic. I just wanted to know if it is worth it/possible to swap out the motherboard for one with a PCIe x16 slot.

 

[ribbon13]

If you're going to be buying a PCI-e video card worth the throuble, you might as well switch the core to AMD.

 

[mike3uz]

I dont think you can fit an atx mobo in dells btx case design. The e310 has a BTX case. The AMD mobo has ATX.

 

[mike3uz]

And the best PCI card is the geforce 6200. It's by 3dfuzion. It's findable.

 

[Slowlearner]

This is a problem faced all the time by Dell pc owners and the best answers are likely to be found at their forums:
http://forums.us.dell.com/

An useful tool to check upgradeability of (Dell) pcs is available online at www.powerleap.com - Online configurator. Powerleap also sells an overpriced version of GE6200

 

[alimoalem]

i'd suggest selling the dell and making a rig...if you don't want to, go for the pci-e mobo if you can come across one that fits

 

[Tzen]

Thank you very much, guys.

I had no idea Dell even had a forum. I wonder if they make it hard to locate on purpose. Or maybe I'm blind. I still don't see how to navigate to it from their main site.

Thanks, again.

 

[Slowlearner]

OP - Dell has a 30 days no questions asked return policy. Yoy may have to make a toll call to their Round Rock TX office to get that.

At work I buy only Dells/HP for their reliability/generous credit/3 year warranty etc. - however I never buy Dell's base models as these are dogs, and come crippled in some way that no matter what you do you cannot improve their performance. Integrated video is generally a bad idea so much so that even a 29$ video card is an improvement of sorts. Dells's low priced models are not meant for gaming but your brother will need a video card if he plans to play games.

To navigate Dell's forums, go to the main site pick Dimension then choose topic either Video or Upgrade hardware

 

[unclebud]

"I don't think a PCI video card would run those games well either."

wrong
http://totalwar.wargamer.com/requirements.html
http://www.civfanatics.com/civ4/info/
http://www.2kgames.com/civ4/support_msr.htm

"And the best PCI card is the geforce 6200. It's by 3dfuzion. It's findable."

who got it besides chumbo for $79? but that is the most knowledgeable response this thread so far, though. thanks for posting.

but i feel so sorry for the father. these ungrateful chillun...

 

[Tzen]

Don't worry. He will only get smiles, hugs, and "thank yous."

But I still think he's penny-wise and pound-foolish for not letting me just take the money and build something myself.