It will also cause your desktop PC to use more power, which can result in a bigger electric bill and decreased energy efficiency.Ī dedicated graphics card may also increase your laptop’s temperature, which you’ll need to manage. POWER CONSUMPTION AND BATTERY LIFEĪ discrete graphics card uses more power and will drain your laptop's battery life faster. If you’re a serious gamer who prefers these bigger titles – and those coming in the future – you'll want to invest in a dedicated graphics card. You cannot properly render the graphics in these games without a dedicated graphics card. However, the conversation changes when we talk about newer titles such as Hitman 3 and New World and upcoming games like Far Cry 6. If you think you’ll play these types of games, then you should consider the importance of playing them at higher graphics settings. This includes popular titles such as Overwatch, Grand Theft Auto V, and Borderlands 3. You can run many modern games and applications on low settings with an integrated graphics card. And if you do buy a laptop with discrete graphics, you can expect to pay more for the extra power.

Most laptops under 15 inches have integrated graphics because they would need more space to fit a dedicated graphics card. If you are buying a laptop, you will have limited GPU options.

Dedicated graphics cards are more expensive and you need to pair them with a pricier CPU for top performance.

Plus, if you own a laptop, it may help to prolong the battery life.īudget is another major factor when you decide if you want to invest in a dedicated graphics card or stick with a processor with integrated graphics. This also allows you to maximize the graphics performance in your computer. In this scenario, you will use a process called GPU switching, which allows you to switch between your integrated graphics card and dedicated graphics card. If you think you'll use both more graphics-intensive and less graphics-intensive programs and applications, you have the option to purchase both. Most all-purpose PCs use an integrated GPU, but you will need to determine exactly how you will use your computer before making an informed decision. However, for more general purpose use, such as web browsing, most work-from-home jobs, and more basic gaming, you can get by with CPUs with integrated graphics. You need a dedicated GPU for graphics-intensive gaming, editing video, and mining Bitcoin. The first, and perhaps most important, consideration is how you plan to use your graphics card. WHAT PROGRAMS AND APPLICATIONS WILL YOU USE? Here's what you need to know when choosing between these two types of video cards. There are different use cases for integrated graphics cards and dedicated graphics cards.

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