These technologies are highly efficient in processing vast amounts of data in parallel, which is useful for gaming, video editing, and machine learning. But not everyone is keen to buy a graphics card or GPU because they might think they don’t require it and their computer’s CPU is enough to do the job. Although it can be used for gaming, the performance and efficiency you can expect from a GPU are greater than that of a CPU. Once you get a quality GPU for your PC, you will see a change yourself in your gaming experience, system performance, and power consumption. So, if you are searching for the best graphics cards or GPUs for gaming, we have listed some of the best options in the market. But before that, let’s explore a few things first.
What is a GPU?
A Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) is an electronic circuit that can alter and manipulate memory to speed up the process of creating pictures in a frame buffer as an output to a given display device. Modern GPUs are highly efficient at image processing and manipulating computer graphics. These have a parallel structure to make them even more efficient compared to general CPUs (central processing units) for algorithms processing huge data parallelly. In personal computers or devices, a GPU is embedded in the motherboard, video card, or CPU die. In the late ’90s, the term “GPU” was popularized by NVIDIA, which marketed its GeForce 256 as the first GPU in the world. It was a single-chip processor having an integrated transform, rendering engines, lighting, and triangle setup or clipping. A couple of years later, NVIDIA’s rival ATI Technologies introduced the term VPU (visual processing unit) by introducing the Radeon 9700. GPUs are used in various applications such as mobile phones, embedded systems, personal computers, game consoles, workstations, mining cryptocurrencies, video editing, transcoding, encoding, and more. Many GPU-producing companies worldwide, including Intel, AMD/ATI, NVIDIA, and Matrox.
Benefits of Using GPUs for Gaming
Using a modern, quality GPU can help enhance a gamer’s gaming experience. Even though you can play games on a CPU-based device, their efficiency and performance are limited compared to GPUs. The latter can process large images and videos, making it excellent for gameplay without lags, downtimes, and system-related failures. Let’s understand why you may want your computer’s GPU or graphics card.
Rich gaming experience: Graphics cards will enhance your gaming experience with faster image processing, parallel computation, and power-packed performance so that you can play your games with more power without disturbances. Increased computer performance: GPUs or graphics card helps improve your computer’s performance by taking the load away from the CPU and clearing system memory or RAM. Better HD and video experience: Gaming requires high-quality videos, and images are the specialties of GPUs. You can also watch high-definition movies to double your enjoyment. Better support for drivers: Graphics cards offer better support for new applications, games, and operating systems. The reason is GPU makers periodically release their latest drivers to ensure the graphics card is updated with the most recent games and operating systems.
So, if you are looking for the best GPUs or graphics cards for gaming, here are our top recommendations.
GeForce RTX 30 Series
GeForce RTX 30 Series presents high-performance GPUs for creators and gamers. All their GPUs are powered by India’s second-generation RTX architecture – Ampere, along with dedicated second-generation RT cores and third-generation Tensor cores. These GPUs have streaming multiprocessors to enable ray-traced graphics and advanced AI features. You will get highly realistic and immersive graphics and AI-accelerated performance with NVIDIA DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling). It also provides maximum FPS and gaming quality. The best thing is you will experience the lowest latency with NVIDIA Reflex. It delivers the best responsiveness and can acquire targets quicker with high precision through various available technologies. GeForce offers game-ready drivers to provide you with the best gameplay experience. Developers fine-tune them for maximum reliability and performance. It will also allow you to optimize settings with one click and get the latest technologies powered by NVIDIA. With NVIDIA Encoder, these GPUs are built for live streaming. It offers shutter-free, smooth streaming performance and incredible graphics and image quality. In addition, the NVIDIA Broadcast application has AI-enhanced voice and video to double the gaming excitement. You can use it and convert a room into a vibrant home studio. It includes effects such as virtual background, noise removal, and more. Using NVIDIA Studio, you can accelerate your creativity and enhance workflows as it comes with exclusive and dedicated tools. It will be highly useful while you render complex 3D scenes and edit high-resolution videos. By seamlessly connecting with NVIDIA Omniverse and collaborating with it, GeForce RTX GPUs will provide you with top-notch performance to support your creations. The AI-powered Tensor Cores will boost your gaming speed with unparalleled image quality. It allows you to set up your resolution and settings for even better visuals. Other features include:
8K HDR gaming to connect, capture, and play HDR at high resolutions GeForce Experience to capture and share screenshots, videos, and live streams Resizable BAR to access the complete GPU at once High-performing and immersive experiences with VR DirectX12 Ultimate allows developers to add more effects like ray tracing, variable rate shading, etc.
GeForce GTX 1650
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 is by ZOTAC brand that comes with 4 RAM, HDMI as video output interface, and 1620 MHz GPU clock speed. This super compact GPU is ready for 4K, has a 90mm single fan, FireStorm Utility, Sunflower Sink, and is powered by a PCIe bus. The power you will get with the PCIe slot is enough, and you will not need any extra 6/8 pin power. Besides being small, it also consumes less power and delivers powerful performances to boost your gaming experience. When it comes to installation, you can do it quite easily by inserting the PCIe slot while the PC power is off. It also has HDMI, DP, and DVD (25+1). You can connect HDMI to your monitor and use it.
GeForce RTX 3060
The INNO3D GeForce RTX 3060 is a good GPU with fairly decent features and functionalities. It comes with Twin X2 OC LHR, and the type of graphics RAM is GDDR6 of 122288 MB. It was launched last year in December. Talking about how it performs, there are mixed reviews from gamers who have used it in their games. Apart from gaming, you can use it for mining or editing your wonderful creations. Users have found it to exhibit performance at 49MH/s. It’s compatible with desktops.
GeForce GTX 1660
ASUS TUF Gaming NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 provides a powerful combination of performance, durability, and compatibility. It has some outstanding features to take your gameplay to another level. Its graphics card is of Ti EVO OC Edition. The GPU comes with PCIe 3.0, HDMI 2.0b, 6GB GDDR6, and more. It has a compact design and includes GPU Tweak II. Its clock speed is 1845 MHz, and the video output interface is DisplayPort 1.4. The GeForce GTX 1660 is created with performance in mind with the award-winning Turing architecture of NVIDIA. The memory speed can be attained to 12 Gbps, and gameplay can be broadcasted with its dedicated encoder optimized for the Open Broadcaster Software (OBS). With GeForce Experience, you can easily share and capture screenshots, videos, and live streams with your friends. It also makes updating the GeForce drivers and optimizing the in-game settings easier. The space-standard lubricant will bring the dual ball bearings’ durability to quiet sleeve bearing designs. Some features that distinguish this GPU from the crowd are its auto-extreme technology, dual fans with lubrication, IP5X dust resistance, and TUF compatibility testing. The maximum screen resolution you can gain is 7680×4320 and cod up to 90 fps. Whether gaming or mining coins, you can do it with this feature-rich, performing, and stable GPU.
Gaming GeForce GTX 1660
Provided by ZOTAC, this GeForce GTX 1660 series of GPUs is super compact and laced with advanced gaming features. It’s based on the new Turing Architecture by NVIDIA, and its graphics card has ultra-fast memory with GDDR6. You will get robust features to make your game extra fast and enjoyable. The features include VR Ready, 4K, NVIDIA G SYNC, Ansel, and more. The design is compact, and the specifications are excellent. It includes 1536 CUDA cores, a 192-bit memory bus, 6GB GDDR6 memory, an engine boost clock of 1770 MHz, a 12 Gbps memory clock, PCI Express 3.0, etc. Discover the next-gen VR performance with plug-and-play compatibility with many headsets and lower latency. The GPU has a fresh design and minimal user interface to make the gameplay effortless. You can also fine-tune the graphics card with improved intelligence, monitor its hardware status using the FIRESTORM utility, and adjust the SPECTRA lighting. You will get the novel OC Scanner to reduce the guesswork and trial and error. Instead, you will get to use a simple button press and begin the process. The recommended power supply for these GPUs is 450 watts. The maximum power consumption is 120 watts. For connections, there are 3 DisplayPort 1.4, 1 HDMI 2.0b, and 4 simultaneous displays. Its software is compatible with game-ready drivers, Vulkan API, Microsoft DirectX 12 API, OpenGL 4.5, and Windows 10/7×64. In the box, you will receive the GPU and a user manual.
ROG Strix AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT
ASUS ROG Strix AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT comes with an OC edition of the graphics card. It includes AMD RDNA 2, 8GB GDDR6, and PCIe 4.0. It has an axial-tech fan design, GPU Tweak II, and Super Alloy Power II. The GPU clock speed is 2.43 GHz, and the video output interface is HDMI 2.1 and DisplayPort 1.4a. Its memory speed is 16 Gbps, and its maximum resolution is 7680 x 4320. Its axial fan design has a small fan hub with a barrier ring and a longer blade to facilitate increased downward air pressure. The dual ball fan bearings provided can last double that of sleeve bearing designs. With Super Alloy Power II, you will get premium alloy chokes, many power stages of high-current, and solid polymer capacitors. In addition, the Dual BIOS switch will enable you to toggle between Performance BIOS and Quiet profiles. The GPUs have Auto-Extreme Technology that utilizes automation to improve reliability. These GPUs offer full-HD frame rates to satisfy gamers’ demand for high-speed performance and display. Their dual axial fans also can efficiently withdraw air via a larger heatsink, keeping the GPUs chilled. Moreover, the chokes, top-shelf capacitors, and MOSFETs offer optimized power. In the box, you will receive the graphics card, a collection card, a speedy setup manual, and ROG Velcro Hook and Loop.
NVIDIA GT 730
This graphics card – NVIDIA GT 730, offers a high speed of up to 5 Gbps to ensure a smooth application and gaming experience. The GPU stays cool as the graphics card has a wide aluminum fin-stack array heatsink that can extract more heat. Also, the heat dissipation fan can distribute the heat more efficiently to maintain the GPU’s low temperature and robust running. One of the benefits of using this graphics card is that it consumes low power of around 30 watts at full load. It doesn’t require any external power supply, and a minimum of 300 watts PSU is recommended. With this graphics card, you can upgrade to dedicated memory and graphics to have unparalleled, high-definition performance and visuals. You will get hardware-accelerated Blu-ray 3D playback to enable rendering high-quality stereoscopic videos having compatible playback software and displays. NVIDIA Surround technology is provided in this graphics card, supporting a triple display to enable fully immersed gameplay. This graphics card requires drivers, and its size is SFF compatible and includes a low profile bracket. You can visit the NVIDIA website and download the suitable driver to plug and play. It supports a wide range of platforms, including Windows, FreeBSD, and Linux. The NVIDIA GT 730 is reliable with solid capacitors and strengthened PCB materials. It also has a thickened module for heat dissipation. All of this makes your gameplay performance and experience more stable and enjoyable. You will get 3 years of warranty on this graphics card and 24-hour technical support in case you are stuck at something.
AMD Radeon RX 550
AMD Radeon RX 550 by KAER is a quality graphics card with robust specs like 4GB GDDR5, 3 monitors with DP HDMI DVI-D that can be displayed simultaneously, 8 PCI Express, 128-bit DirectX 12, and 4K gaming cards. The video output interface is DisplayPort, HDMI, and DVI, and the GPU clock speed is 1183 MHz. The graphics card offers robust image processing and 6000 MHz memory speed to experience smooth, unmatched gameplay. The cards support Blu-ray HD, 60Hz output, and 4K resolution to deliver faster performance and fit more modern and classic games at 1080p and 60 fps. The AMD graphics card provides high-quality PCB plates and electrical components to ensure stability and safety. Its installation and usage are effortless with 512 stream processors, PCI Express 3.0 slot design, and compatibility with ITX chassis. You can simply visit AMD’s official website and download the suitable driver and this graphics card. It won’t require any extra power source, while the solid-state capacitor will ensure high performance and lower power consumption. This AMD Radeon RX 550 by KAER adopts the AMD LiquidVR technology and Polaris architecture to deliver a colorful, immersive, and rich VR experience. It will provide ultra-high comfort and compatibility with leading VR devices that are head-mounted. The Polaris architecture also includes the 14nm FinFET tech and advanced power management by AMD, along with clocking and gating technologies to enable lower power consumption and a quiet gaming experience. In addition, you can even enjoy dynamic game volume optimization based on workload and actual temperature. You can contact their support team directly for help if you encounter any problems.
GeForce RTX 3060
The GeForce RTX 3060 by Gigabyte offers 15GB graphics RAM, and its GPU clock speed is 1837 MHz. The video output interface given is DisplayPort and HDMI. It has 2nd gen RT Cores and 3rd gen Tensor Cores integrated with GDDR6 192-bit memory interface. This graphics card has a WINDFORCE 3X cooling system combined with alternate spinning fans, a metal back plate, RGB Fusion 2.0 protection, a pair of HDMI 2.1, and a pair of DisplayPort 1.4 Core Clock. You will enjoy the ultimate gaming experience with Gigabyte RTX 3060 graphics cards. With this graphics card, you will get amazing visuals, stunning fast frame rates, and AI acceleration for creative applications and games with the improved Tensor and RT cores. Inside the box, you will receive the graphics card and a user manual.
Final Words
Having a modern, quality GPU or graphics card will provide you with enhanced system performance, less power consumption, and amazing gameplay. Thus, buy any of the above graphics cards based on your feature, specs requirements, and pricing. Next, you can check out budget PCs and laptops to boost your gaming experience.
