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Graphics Card upgrade please help!

dell optiplex 790

Im looking to upgrade my graphics card on the optiplex 790 i saw on other forums that i would be limited on the cards that i could use because the motherboard allows 35 watt usage but that if i upgrade my psu then it wouldnt be a problem. I dont know much about computers will i be able to upgrade my graphics card or not?

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@declandoom your computer has an integrated on-board graphics processor (card). Yes, you can upgrade with a PCI card. Now this is where it gets interesting. Depending on which model your computer is (mini tower/small form factor or USFF) will make the differnedce in which form factor your graphics card must be to fit . The small form factor only allows for low profile cards. So you need to look for one that specifically states it is low profile and includes a low profile bracket. MT supports full height card, DT supports low profile card. SFF supports low profile card.

Regardless of form factor, one of the better ones would be a Radeon HD7750 but the Radeon HD 6450 with DP and DVI as well as a 512MB Radeon HD 6350 were offered as optional cards for your system. So those may be the best choices. Once you determine what card you are looking for, make your determination in regards to the PSU.

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@oldturkey03 - I changed his icon. and it's a smaller model than what he actually has, the optiplex 790, because his wasn't in the icon inventory.

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@mayer guess I should have read the question better. Only difference here is the form factor of the card. Everything else luckily still applies.

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So all i have to do is find a card that fits? i was looking at a gtx 670 which will fit in my case but it doesnt say its a low profile card

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@declandoom what case do you have? Mini Tower or something else. If it is a mini tower there should be no issues. The GeForce GTX670 is a great card but the power requirements are high. You need to go with a 500W minimum power supply. Your standard power supply is only at 250W. BTW the 35 W you mentioned in your question is only for the PCIe slots.

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@oldturkey03 i have the sff case. the power supply that i was looking at was 500W. so would i be able to use the gtx 670? the one i was looking at was 6 inches which is enough room in my case

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See pages 28-29 of the manual:

http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/pro...

It looks like this thing has a very powerful GPU to start with:

1GB AMD RADEONTM HD6450

Any reason for the overkill?

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mine didnt come with one

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