New GFX card for HTPC

I’m looking for a cheap GFX card for my Media PC to replace the onboard Intel GPU which will allow me to update to Vista MCE or maybe run/checkout the new features in Windows Se7en MCE. I’m getting very bored with the look of MCE 2005 and although I’ve hacked the theme file to replace the background and icons it still doesn’t have that wow factor.

Vista MCE, by default is very eye candy (perfect for HTPC) and is much easier to hack than MCE 2005. I’d originally planned on using Media Portal as the front-end, however I’ve not had much look getting it to work with my remote control. It’s a shame really because there’s a huge theme/mod fanbase.

The current onboard 910 GFX chip is fine for playing DVD, DivX, Avi etc, but you can forget about lag free Vista Aero.

So, my requirements are -

PCI-E
Low profile
Fanless – My main PCs Geforce 7800gt fan makes a right racket
Standard VGA, but would prefer DVI or even HDMI if possible.
Game playing not required so 128-256mb onboard ram is plentyful.
Always prefered nVidia cards but I’m becoming more interested in ATI based cards for HTPCs
Doesn’t need a huge 1000w psu to run it.

Looking online, prices seem to be about £30-£40…cheaper the better.

~ by stiggyworld on February 1, 2009.