End of 2019: Good time for a new graphics card?

Kevin Hofer

21.11.2019

Translation: machine translated

Is now the right time to buy a new graphics card? That depends. I'll tell you for whom it's worth buying at the end of 2019 and for whom it's not.

With Christmas just around the corner, you might be thinking about buying a new graphics card. But is now a good time? The RTX 2000 series has already been out for over a year and the rumour mill is buzzing about the release of the upcoming RTX 3000 series. The same applies to AMD, where the long overdue high-end cards are finally due to arrive. Based on this premise, I'll tell you whether you should still go ahead and buy one.

I have identified different types of users: From the user who doesn't have a PC and is desperate to build or buy one now, to the owner of an older machine, to the hardcore user who always wants the latest. Of course, the user types do not apply to everyone: It always depends on what you want. With certain games, you will reach the limits even with a GTX 1660 Super in 1080p. Then you need a little more power

I don't have a PC and want to build/buy one now

So which card should you buy? Depends on your needs. I'll be writing a buying guide on the current generation of graphics cards soon. So check back then. In a nutshell, however, I can recommend the following models, sorted according to your needs.

• If money is no object and you want maximum performance: Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Ti

Here is the link to all RX 5700 XT models

Here to all RX 570 models

My current PC is over three years old and I have an Nvidia 900 series card or older

My current PC is over three years old and I have an AMD Radeon 400 series card or older

My PC is two years old and I have an Nvidia 10 series graphics card, should I switch?

My PC is two years old and I have a Vega series graphics card from AMD, should I switch?

The Vega Series is similar to the Nvidia 10 series. A Vega 56 or Vega 64 still delivers enough computing power for most games in 1440p. AMD is likely to announce further graphics cards based on the Navi architecture in the coming months. These should be in the upper segment in terms of performance. Then the upgrade could be worthwhile.

I have a PC with a graphics card of the current generation

What are you even reading here? Either you always have the latest anyway or you have the latest. Go game, CAD or cool your card with water, then you can get even more out of it.

Kevin Hofer

Senior Editor

kevin.hofer@digitecgalaxus.ch

From big data to big brother, Cyborgs to Sci-Fi. All aspects of technology and society fascinate me.

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