Best New Graphics Cards 2015 Review

Most of today's media consumers are used to the high quality and stunning visual effects of everything from web pages to movies. Those awesome effects and visuals are created and viewed utilizing one very important piece of computer hardware - the video card.

Any more, it seems, a video card is becoming a necessity in computing. Weather you want a laptop for watching movies, a PC for gaming, or a computer used for 3D modeling and video, the video card has taken a central role in providing the capabilities to produce and view some amazing content. Video cards come in all shapes, sizes, and flavors and which one is right for you depends on what you intend to do with your computer.

AMD vs. nVidia Technology

There are two main manufacturers of the brains of a video card - the graphics processing unit, or GPU - and each has its' advantages and disadvantages in each card it offers. NVIDIA and AMD/ATI both offer everything from entry level to world class GPU's and video cards.

NVIDIA video cards have many features that make them great. 3D Vision Surround Technology which allows you to spread your display across 3 monitors in full HD 3D for an immersive experience and GPUDirect which allows for faster communication between computer hardware are two features that set NVIDIA cards apart. Optimus technology which optimizes notebook PC's, and PureVideo high definition video processor are a few of the other features that help you get the most out of your computing experience.

Some NVIDIA cards also feature CUDA Architecture which allows the GPU to perform mathematical calculations to speed up computing performance. PhysX gives the card the ability to run real-time physics in games and SLI technology allows you to link together multiple video cards for increased graphics power. With a great lineup of features it's no wonder that NVIDIA a popular choice.

AMD Technology

AMD video cards (AMD bought ATI a few years back) also have great features that give them performance benefits. AMD employs graphics technologies like VISION Engine which is the foundation of VISION technology giving you vivid HD entertainment and blazing fast graphics. AMD Radeon Dual Graphics combines two Radeon graphics processors to provide performance boosts. AMD Catalyst Control Center allows you to quickly and easily control every aspect of the graphics experience. AMD Eyefinity Technology gives you the capability of using multiple independent display outputs simultaneously - this can allow for massive displays and immersive graphics experiences.

AMD video cards also feature AMD CrossFireX Technology which utilizes multiple GPU's for high performance, GDDR5 Memory, Dynamic switchable graphics for balancing between performance and battery life, and AMD XGP Technology which breathes new graphics life into notebook computers.

Finding a graphics card to suit your needs shouldn't be hard with all of the features that these two manufacturers offer. As I mentioned earlier, which video card is right for you depends on the intended use.

Let's take a look at the best video cards for a few of the most common applications.

CAD (Computer-aided Design) programs today use a lot of resources to produce the designs and drawings they do. As such, computers built to run CAD software have been designed and built to meet the demands of these programs.

One of the most important items to have in any computer running CAD software is a video card as CAD programs require a lot of graphics power. There are several video cards that are good for use in CAD systems and one of the best is the NVIDIA Quadro 6000. The Quadro 6000 offers incredible features and will allow any workstation to perform with optimal speed and quality.

As with CAD workstations, computers used to run graphic design applications include a dedicated graphics card. One of the best video cards for graphic design is the ATI Radeon HD 6950.

Video cards are key in any system used for gaming. Nothing is more frustrating than having poor video performance just when you need it most. A good system with a great video card can make game play awesome.

The top video card for gaming - and the one that claims to be the fastest in the world - is the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980.

The GeForce GTX 980 is a powerhouse in a small package. The EVGA Superclocked version of this card features a base clock of 1266MHz and a Boost Clock of 1367MHz. You can use this to support 1080p at insane FPS rates or even 4k if you've got a good monitor to use with it.

The days of having a huge entertainment center filled with bulky receivers, amplifiers, DVD players and the like are quickly becoming history thanks to an innovation called the HTPC (Home Theater PC). The HTPC seeks to replace or supplement many of the components of a home theater system. It allows you to not only play DVD or Blu-Ray movies in full HD but also serves as a game console and an internet source. Now you can surf the net and play those PC games on your TV.

A video card is an important component in any HTPC as it is what allows you to send the video to your TV instead of an ordinary monitor. It also contains special features that make using an HTPC for TV viewing an enjoyable experience. One of the best video cards for the HTPC is the ATI Radeon HD 5450.

The Radeon HD 5450 has been specifically built to live in an HTPC and has many HTPC specific features. At its' core, the 5450 has from 512MB to 2GB of GDDR2/GDDR3 video ram depending on the card manufacturer. The Radeon HD 5450 features support for DirectX 11, ATI Stream acceleration technology, ATI CrossFireX Multi-GPU technology, and ATI Eyefinity multi-display technology which can drive up to three displays.

The video cards featured thus far have all been the best - or among the best - in their respective classes. Price has not been a concern and the prices on these video cards range from $50 to $3,200. That's all great if you are only looking for the best performance money can buy. But what if you are on a budget? Let's look at some video cards that fall into specific price ranges.

Spending $200 will get you a very good video card and one that, while it may not be the fastest or most powerful, will get the job done. One of the best sub $200 video cards out there is the ATI Radeon R9 280.

If you are really on a budget but still want some good performance, the NVIDIA GeForce GT 430 is a sub $100 video card that fits the bill. The GT 430 has some great features including 1GB of GDDR3 memory, DirectX 11 support, Blu-Ray 3D support, TrueHD and DTS-HD audio bitstreaming support, NVIDIA CUDA technology, NVIDIA PhysX technology, and NVIDIA PureVideo technology. The NVIDIA GeForce GT 430 is 3D Vision ready if you are after an immersive experience.

This article has represented a wide range of applications and video cards to fit those applications. Weather you are after the ultimate speed and performance or a budget friendly compromise, there is bound to be a video card that is right for you, and we have just taken a look at the best video cards of 2012. Have a comment or recommendation? Feel free to leave your feedback below.