The ATI Radeon HD 5450 graphics processors offer the most features and functionality in their class with complete DirectX 11 support and the world’s most advanced graphics, display features and technologies.
$ 27.89
Sapphire Radeon HD 5450 1 GB DDR3 HDMI/DVI-I/VGA PCI-Express Graphics Card 100292DDR3L
Perfect for an old motherboard,
I was able to install this on an older motherboard with a pci express 1.1. I had no issues with it. This is running in ubuntu 11.10. It allowed me to get decent graphics without having to upgrade motherboard. No issues on delivery.
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|Works Great!,
I bought this card to replace a Radeon X600SE in a Dell Optiplex GX620 desktop. This computer is about half the size of a midtower so I didn’t have a lot of room for the graphics card. I had to use one of the low-profile brackets which came with the card and switching them required a small screwdriver and a wrench. I have never done that before but it was pretty easy after a brief inspection.
Once I installed the Radeon HD5450, I placed the case cover back on but it wouldn’t sit flush. Turns out that the 5450 is a bit wider than my original card by about 5 mm. The issue is that the cooling fins wrap around the top edge of the card; you can see it in the picture.
This isn’t a deal breaker. I just left the case cover off and since it sits on my desk facing the wall, it’s not visible.
This card should be able to play most games but don’t expect too much. The Optiplex is hobbled by a weak processor (Pentium 4 3.0 GHz HT) but I have a Dell Zino with a dual core mobile Athlon II and a mobile 5450 that can play modern games. I just finished playing Dead Space 2 on it and I am starting Medal of Honor. I played 30 min of MOH and so far so good. I will try a few games on the Optiplex and I will update later.
Update: Age of Empires III runs well on the Optiplex. It’s a bit smoother compared to the original video card. MOH ran acceptably on the Optiplex but there was the occassional lag and screen tearing. My guess is that it is the Pentium 4 processor that is holding back this game and not the graphics card. I played MOH on the Zino and the experience was a lot better despite it having a mobile HD5450.
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|Good cool low-power card,
The card arrived quickly, was no problem to install with the drivers, and the HDMI audio worked instantly. (A problem I had with older cards.) The card isn’t even very heavy, like you’d expect with a solid aluminum heatsink. It doesn’t even get hot under load, though the framerate obviously leaves a lot to be desired in most games. It’s great for video and casual games, awesome for a silent HTPC, and a good emergency stop-gap for heavy games with everything turned off and resolution cranked down.
One major problem I had right from taking it out of the box is that the heatsink wasn’t well sealed down at all and consequently wasn’t making contact with the chips. It wasn’t obviously damaged, but just being knocked around a bit probably did that. GPU temps were high enough to cause artifacts and crashes. I had to remove the heatsink, reapply paste, put the crappy springs back on and pray that it stayed on. None of that would have happened if it was clamped down harder. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to use it for work and get a slightly better card shortly after buying.
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