How Not To Get Screwed When Buying a Video Card

Over the past week I’ve been dealing with a lot of video card crapola, and in this article I will share my experience with you so you don’t have to deal with what I just went through.

Here’s what happened:

I have a custom build PC as my primary computer box. Suddenly without warning a burning smell started coming out of it. Yes, I panicked. Who wouldn’t?

After inspection it turned out the GPU fan on the video card decided to stop working, and I fortunately turned the PC off fast enough to where it did not damage anything else.

At that point I drove on down to CompUSA and purchased a video card, drove back home and installed it. It was a simple card (it was all I needed), that being a BFG 512MB dual-head card with a GeForce 210 nVidia chipset.

The card installation was simple. After that I went to nvidia.com and downloaded the latest driver set (this is always better than using the CD because the drivers will be more current).

Everything should have been okay, but it wasn’t because now there was a rather annoying problem – intermittent monitor flickering. After some quick research on the GeForce 210 it turns out this is a common problem with that chipset.

Really angry at this point, I go to NewEgg and buy another video card – this time researching the chipset to make darn sure it didn’t have any known issues like that before purchase.

Two days later, my second new card arrived. I installed it and everything worked. The same day I repackaged the card I bought off the shelf, returned it to CompUSA and got a full refund. Everything was set right once again, aside from the money I wasted on gas driving to CompUSA. Twice.

I could have avoided all this crap if I followed a few very simple guidelines.

I should have done research before buying.

Most computer/electronic stores have free wi-fi. I should have brought my netbook with me, gone online and researched the card they had on the shelf first before buying it. Had I done that, I would have bought something different that I knew didn’t have any issues.

If I had bought a fanless video card to begin with, I never would have had to replace it.

There are basically three types of graphics cards you can buy. The first and most common are those with a GPU fan you cannot replace. The second are the kind that only have a heatsink on them. The third are ones with replaceable GPU fans.

I purposely bought a fanless video card. As long as your case is properly cooled (which mine is), the chance of a fanless card busting is slim to none.

How do you shop for a fanless card? I’ve got you covered: Hit this NewEgg link. It’s sorted by cheapest to most expensive. The only drawback is that they are thicker on a board level to accommodate for the larger heatsink. What this means is that if you’re going to use one, be sure you have room in your case for it.

Another bonus: Your PC instantly becomes quieter by using a fanless graphics card. You have no idea how much of a racket that little GPU fan makes until you run a card that doesn’t require a fan.

What happens when you use a graphics card that has one or more fans?

The fan(s) will eventually break and your card will literally burn up. It doesn’t matter if it’s a budget card or a high-powered one. Once a non-replaceable fan goes, you’re screwed and must buy another card. What a waste of money that is!

My recommendations for graphics card purchasing:

1. If you have to buy a graphics card with a fan on it, make very sure it’s the type that can be replaced.
2. Always research the chipset type before buying.
3. If you want something that will last longer than any other card you could buy, go fanless.

Follow these recommendations and your graphics card buying experience will go much, much smoother.