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Do I need a good graphics card to watch movies on my PC?

Stick Man

11

Or are graphics cards really only there for games and video editing?

Reply 1

mynameis

video editing cards arent expensivie.

they are bloody expensive.

as for movies just use an onboard intel chip or anything less than 20 quid will do fine.

Reply 2

rrai

8

You wouldn't really need a brillant graphics card for watching movies a mid-range one would be more than enough. What you want is quite a good processor along with alot of RAM, this would improve performance significantly.

For example the requirements for High Definition Video (from Microsoft) are:
Minimum Configuration
(to play 720p video)
- Windows XP
- Windows Media Player 9 Series
- 2.4 GHz processor or equivalent
- 384 MB of RAM
- 64 MB video card
- 1024 x 768 screen resolution
- 16-bit sound card
- Speakers

Reply 3

PieMaster

11

for 1080i HDTV video, you really need a 3GHz equivalent processor, a gig of ram and a gaphics card which support WMV accleration; it looks damn nice, but studders on my parents PC with a 128MB FX5600. (Obviously fine on here... *strokes x800*)

For video EDITING, you dont nned much at all in the graphics from, for video RENDERING you'll need a high end Quadro card for the frame rate to be in the double figures, even a 7800GTx is slower than a year old Quadro for that.

Reply 4

SuperhansFavouriteAlsatian

I'm getting a quadro at christmas! hooah!

Reply 5

Cortez

17

I can watch DVD's on my iBook and it only has a 32mb card.

Reply 6

Logan

4

hehehehe, that is good cuz i only have an x300

Reply 7

Stick Man

OP

11

Okay, thank you all. :smile:

I don't think I'll miss not having HDTV overly much on a smallish monitor so I'll stick with my current spec.

Reply 8

lime3k

PieMaster

for 1080i HDTV video, you really need a 3GHz equivalent processor, a gig of ram and a gaphics card which support WMV accleration; it looks damn nice, but studders on my parents PC with a 128MB FX5600. (Obviously fine on here... *strokes x800*)

For video EDITING, you dont nned much at all in the graphics from, for video RENDERING you'll need a high end Quadro card for the frame rate to be in the double figures, even a 7800GTx is slower than a year old Quadro for that.

That's a bit overkill

Reply 9

PieMaster

11

Try the 1080i ones on http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/content_provider/film/ContentShowcase.aspx on a low spec PC and you'll see.

Microsoft say:

# Windows XP
# Windows Media Player 10
# DirectX 9.0
# 3.0 GHz processor or equivalent
# 512 MB of RAM
# 128 MB video card
# 1920 x 1440 screen resolution
# 24-bit 96 kHz multichannel sound card
# 5.1 surround sound speaker system

Reply 10

Flukey

a 2ghz amd64 architecture will do HDTV easily.

Reply 11

PieMaster

11

Which is why I said 3GHz equivalent... my 3000+ Venice is only 1.8GHz and the 1080i's work flawlessly.

Reply 12

LostRiot

14

i'm getting confused, HDTV, no DVD's are in HDTV.

the graphics card has no bearing on dvd playing performance though,

its the processor really, and the ram a bit.

but 1ghz CPU and 256mb ram would be able to play dvd's with ease.

Reply 13

blue1

mynameis

video editing cards arent expensivie.

they are bloody expensive.

as for movies just use an onboard intel chip or anything less than 20 quid will do fine.

that is true

Reply 14

Kunster1337

1

I really want x800 card but cant afford it :biggrin:

Reply 15

PieMaster

11

Kunster1337

I really want x800 card but cant afford it :biggrin:

You can get them so cheaply now: http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=97159

I paid about £170 4 months ago.

Reply 16

Stick Man

OP

11

£113 seems a lot. Especially when a game console (albeit an increasingly outdated one) isn't far off.

Reply 17

Kunster1337

1

Yeh, Hate ebuyer, the sites so slow and the customer service is rubbish!!

Reply 18

lime3k

PieMaster

Try the 1080i ones on http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/content_provider/film/ContentShowcase.aspx on a low spec PC and you'll see.

Microsoft say:

# Windows XP
# Windows Media Player 10
# DirectX 9.0
# 3.0 GHz processor or equivalent
# 512 MB of RAM
# 128 MB video card
# 1920 x 1440 screen resolution
# 24-bit 96 kHz multichannel sound card
# 5.1 surround sound speaker system

Thanks man.

Just tried it on my rig and I've got to say 1080i is the most pointlessly high definition video EVER, most people here won't even have monitors with resolutions that high. Mines Currently at 2048x1536 and I'm straining my eyes here to type and I'm on a 21" monitor. The argument may be that TVs aproching 50" odd might require it, in which case how much money is that going to cost?

Maybe in 2-5 years time you could convince me but not yet

I'll try running a video on a slower rig later, to see the performance.

Reply 19

PieMaster

11

mdm708

£113 seems a lot. Especially when a game console (albeit an increasingly outdated one) isn't far off.

Well, I assume youre talking about the PS2; which is a fair way behind PC technology.

If your building a new PC consider that you'd spend about £800 in PC World for a basic system with an onboard graphics card, for the same money you can add in something of the 6600GT / x800 range if you do it yourself. Thats the way I looked at it anyway.

Do I need a good graphics card to watch movies on my PC?

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