So it's time for a new GPU. My GTX 260 is getting damn noisy and although it works natively with my OS X installation it is beginning to lag a little under Mavericks (something to do with them bringing in OpenGL 4 support). I need to stick with an Nvidia 6 series card because of compatibility issues, plus I know nothing about ATi. I have some spare ££ coming in this month and was thinking of going crazy and getting a 650Ti, but I've been thinking that I don't really care that much about gaming anymore so maybe there's no need to get something too powerful and if you've read some of my other threads I can't afford to be throwing money out left right and centre at the moment. So anyone have any real world experience with a GT640? I know it's more of a budget card but looking at a few YouTube vids it seems like it's reasonably capable with the odd game. I can get one for £40 shipped.
I have the 610 2gb and it hasn't let me down at all some people will tell you its not a gaming card, but these kids have like 3 4k res screens hooked to the rig good price does the job. It plays ever ything maxed at 60fps or more the human eye can't even see over 48 fps anyway lol.
All i can say is don't buy a reference design one. Don't know how it the power consumption / heat dissipation of those, but improved dual PWM fans are worth it. My videocard is completely silent and cool running everything other than Metro 2033. That makes it scream.
I've used a 650M to game- it's equivalent to a desktop 640 (but the version with GDDR5)... sort of. Not easy to compare them, but we'll go on this for now. With the 650m, and a quad core i7 mobile ivy, I could run Far Cry 3 on fair settings hitting 60fps at the top. But after a Google search, some websites say it's horrible in gaming. So I really don't know what to say. If gaming isn't too much of an important thing for you, you might as well grab it. That 260 needs to go, one way or another. What you can do is put a small list of games up here that you would consider playing in the future. That way, we can see what you'll actually need; if you're not going to be running FC3, BF3 or GTA V, then that card will do just fine.
Well I play a little bit of BF3, my 260 can handle it at 1080p on high settings no problem. I'm not gonna cry if I lose that capability but it'd be nice to keep that standard. I asked here about the GT640 because reviews are hard to trust, you never know wether or not the person reviewing it is a hardcore MSAA addict who wants the best out of everything and therefore is likely to say stay clear. I watched a couple of YouTube videos on the GT640 and it seems reasonably capable but I'm just not sure, it's gonna cost me £40-50 (eBay) but then I might regret the decision and wonder if I should have thrown some more pennies and gotten the 650Ti (the standard 650 is a no-go as far as Hackintoshes are concerned, something to do with the Kelpler architecture being slightly different and causing problems).
Seems legit. I'd personally go for the 650, under the idea that it'll last me longer. Honestly though, and it pains me to say this, but you might be better off with an AMD card. They're probably going to cost you less or a tad more, but you'll get better performance out of them. 6800 series seems to be more than possible, and will do a good job in games. Can I ask you why you decided to hackinotsh? I know of many people that have, but only 1 or 2 with understandable, clear reasons. Otherwise I just tell them they're shooting themselves in the foot.
Bang for buck I'd say get the 650ti as you'll get a bit more longevity out of it than you would a 640. I'm currently running a 680 so I can vouch for the 600 series cards, they're excellent.
My 2008 iMac was about to die and I didn't have the cash to replace it. Having had some experience with Hackintoshes I managed to build a whole compatible system for £350. Performs just as well and is far more upgradeable. Would like to have a real Mac again one day though. As for the GPU. I think I'm gonna go with a 640 for now seeing as I'm trying to save money and then I can always upgrade later on when cost isn't as important.
