Current Graphics Card
ATI Radeon HD 2400

Operating System
Windows Vista 32-bit Service Pack 2

Issue Details
I need a better graphics card to play Starcraft II, but it's not clear to me that my computer, which I purchased Sept 2008, will support the latest graphics cards, nor do I need the latest graphics cards.  I'm trying to figure out what graphics card I should get that will let me play Starcraft II.  It doesn't have to be that great, my CPU is slightly under the recommended processor speed (it's above the required speed though). 

CPU Details
Pentium Dual CPU E2200 @ 2.20 GHz and 2.20 GHz

System Memory Type & Amount
4 GB RAM

Thanks

Hmm...32 bit OS, so no you don't have 4GB of RAM, you have (4GiB - 512KiB - VRAM) GB of RAM,, as well as an antique processor, an unknown motherboard, and an unknown power supply. Based on that information you've provided we cannot offer any suggestions.

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Crosshair IV Formula, Phenom II x4 965 w/ Corsair H60, 8 GiB OCZ Platinum DDR3 1600, XFX HD 7970 Ghz, 512GB Vertex 4, 256GB Vector, 240GB Agility 3, Creative X-Fi Titanium w/ Creative Gigaworks S750, SeaSonic X750, HP ZR2440w, Win 7 Ultimate x64

Well tell this newbie how to find that info.  Please.  

Ok, as near as I can figure this is what I have:

 

Motherboard (from CPUID):  Dell ORY007

Power Supply:  Not sure what you need.  It's Delta Electronics Model DPS-300A B-24 Rev.  Input 100-120V ~/9A, 200-240V~/4.5A

Output:  several numbers like +12V --- 18A

Max Power 300W.  

 

Thanks for your help.  Things used to be easier before they started requiring graphics cards, all you had to know was RAM and CPU speed.  

 

Buying one of the current budget/office/HTPC cards would probably fit that computer. Not something good enough for high quality gaming, but the rest isn't either. It would run most things in low details/resolution. Something like a card from the HD 7300/7400 series.

However, if you want to play decently, you should consider replacing the whole thing. A much better CPU and video card is required for a good gaming experience. A 4-core AMD CPU and a HD 6800/7700 series card are relatively cheap and can play literally anything you throw at them.

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CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 810 @ 3250MHz | RAM: Kingmax 2x2GB DDR2 800 @ 833MHz| MoBo: MSI K9A2 CF v1.0 (BIOS: 1.D)| GPU: Asus HD 6850 1024MB (DirectCu) @ 850/1100MHz | Display: Chili Green Vision L24FHD | PSU: PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad | OS: MS Windows 95 x64 Edition

CPU: Pentium 4 Northwood S478 @ 3200MHz | RAM: 1,5GB DDR 400| MoBo: Gigabyte GA-8S661FXMP-RZ | GPU: Abit Geforce Ti 4200 | Display: Dimarson 19" CRT | PSU: Noname 400W | OS: MS Windows XP Pro, Fedora 18

Agreed, you could even upgrade to a Trinity APU based system and have great graphics performance for a cheap price.

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Crosshair IV Formula, Phenom II x4 965 w/ Corsair H60, 8 GiB OCZ Platinum DDR3 1600, XFX HD 7970 Ghz, 512GB Vertex 4, 256GB Vector, 240GB Agility 3, Creative X-Fi Titanium w/ Creative Gigaworks S750, SeaSonic X750, HP ZR2440w, Win 7 Ultimate x64

 

From the ORY007 would have to assume: Dell™ Inspiron™ 530 Series

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/inspd530/en/OM/HTML/index.htm

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/inspd530/en/OM/HTML/appendix.htm

 

Similar request at DELL forum:

Inspiron 530 Power Supply Upgrade for new Radeon HD 6770

http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3514/p/19409689/19959940.aspx

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The opinions expressed above do not represent those of Advanced Micro Devices or any of their affiliates.

Physics? Ha! This is clearly magic and devilry at work. Prepare firewood! We have witches to burn!

 

Senior Engineering Technician (AEET).

Thanks for the comments.  I really shouldn't go in for a new computer while I'm making squat in grad school.  I wish things weren't so complicated, it's still not clear to me what card would even work.  Maybe I will try in the Dell forums.  

There's not a gaming card that will run on a stock Dell 18A peak power supply. Figure 14A continuous, that's 168W, minus 100w for CPU, motherboard, drives, and fans, that's 68w, so at best you are talking cards which require no external power connection, which are not gaming cards.

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Crosshair IV Formula, Phenom II x4 965 w/ Corsair H60, 8 GiB OCZ Platinum DDR3 1600, XFX HD 7970 Ghz, 512GB Vertex 4, 256GB Vector, 240GB Agility 3, Creative X-Fi Titanium w/ Creative Gigaworks S750, SeaSonic X750, HP ZR2440w, Win 7 Ultimate x64