View Full Version : Dell Integrated Graphics
I am very much enjoying the new VFR photographic software produced for FS2002 but I am suffering blurring beyond about a 2 mile range. I think the problem may be my graphics card, or lack of one.
I have a relatively new Dell system but it says its graphics driver is an "Intel(R) Extreme Graphics Driver". I have my suspicions that this may be rubbish but I'm not really sure how these things work.
So:
1) Is this graphics card / driver hindering my performance and should I shell out for a new one?
2) If yes, which graphics card should I buy? (without getting a second mortgage)
Many thanks
timmcat
9th Jan 2003, 13:45
Answer to question 1, yes, your integrated graphics set up is not ideal for FS2002, especially with the scenery pack you have.
Q2.. others will be able to advise you better, or look for a PC mag with a review of Graphic Cards. I would haver thought a budget of £100 max should suffice for what you want.
Tim
RadarContact
9th Jan 2003, 17:20
BBDO:
Depends a lot on what the rest of your hardware looks like. Maybe you can give some stats on your machine to invoke some usefull answers... (CPU, RAM, OS, etc.)
Thanks for the replies.
My spec is:
Dell Dimension 2300
Running Windows XP Home
256 MB RAM
Pentium P4 2.5 Ghz
And the Intel (R) extreme graphics controller (Video BIOS version 2607, Direct X Version 8.1)
Errrrr, anything else that would help.
Thanks again.
ratsarrse
9th Jan 2003, 22:47
Not keen on these 'onboard' graphics and sound cards myself - you ineveitably want to upgrade if you play the odd game here and there and they just make life difficult. With onboard graphics you might find that there isn't a spare AGP slot to plug a new graphics card into. This would mean that you'd have to get a PCI card and PCI doesn't transfer data as fast as AGP.
It's not all bad news though. Lots of people experience the 'blurries' in FS2002 even on high end systems. My advice would be to head over to the forums on www.avsim.com and do a search on 'blurries' or 'blurred textures.' There are number of threads there about this problem and a few things to try.
If you do opt for a new graphics card, the GeForce 4 (of which there are many variants and manufacturers) would probably be your best bet. NVidia release drivers for all their cards (they all use a common driver) on a regular basis to tweak performance and deal with each advance of technology.
Did a search and confirmed - your Dell does not have an AGP slot, so your limited to a PCI video card for an upgrade.
You should be able to get something like this for about 65-70 quid. it's not the best in the world, but it's reasonable.
Dabs Direct Geforce Mx420 (http://uk.pricerunner.com/computing/components/graphics-cards/127578/prices)
here's the 64Mb Gainward GeForce 4 PowerPack Pro 450, MX440, 5ns DDR TV PCI for the same price:
Holly (http://www.hollycomputers.co.uk/acatalog/Graphics_Cards.htm)