is NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE good for gaming?

bill_G said:
e machines just announced a $298 pc (no monitor) with a NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE video chip. could i play current or almost current PC games with it?

also comes w/2gb ram and vista :barf:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/165244/new_emachines_mini_pcs_start_at_298_look_pretty.html


how about the new nvidia Ion? play games w/that??

thanks..........Bill
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... not at any resolution/effects level you'd actually want to play at.

eMachines is probably the worst PC brand you can get. If you want a cost-effective gaming machine, just recruit someone to put it together for you. For ~$500-600 you could have a decent machine that will last. I would normally tell you to get an inexpensive Dell and buy your own video card... but the better cards are so large at the moment, that only a few Dell cases will actually allow them to fit... pretty much only the XPS kind.
 
the 6150 is in no way good for games, the ion is somewhat better (a bit lower in raw performance than the geforce 3 ti 200. if you remember it, but with dx 10 support), but dont expect miracles with high res and details with most of the new games
lets say on the nvidia ion, quake 3 , a 98' title, will run perfect, but quake 4 will run in the low detail with about 30 frames, depending on the rest of configuration on the pc, the video ram speed and quantity , the pc ram quantity, the hdd speed...and so on
better get at least a 9600 GT, with ddr3 ram, to play decent, or an 8800 GT, a little older, but very good also
what games do you have in mind ?
 
If you plan on buying a PC and adding a video card make sure the PC's power supply is up to the task- none of the Dells/HPs I looked at would run a decent video card. This was a while back, so things may have changed.

DO NOT count on the salesman to know what he's talking about! I had 2 different guys perfectly willing to sell me a PC and a video card that it wouldn't power!
 
One way to save $ on systems is to integrate the video and sound on board the motherboard. That's why so many of inexpensive machines do it. Like others said, it probably won't run a game like you want it too. Most have under powered power supplies too.
 
One way to save $ on systems is to integrate the video and sound on board the motherboard.
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Well that works for basic computer tasks: office work, typing letters, internet browsing, email, etc.

But for gaming or other performance-oriented computing you'll actually spend more in the end; after adding a real graphic card, real sound card, new power supply, faster RAM, new motherboard, etc. it would have been cheaper to buy a decent machine to begin with.

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To the OP, I can't comment on those particular graphic cards you've asked about - there are new models released every month and I only build once every couple of years - I couldn't possible keep track of each new product.

But here are a couple of things to consider when shopping for / building a high-performance gaming machine:
1) Case. Good air flow. Room for expanding. Ease of access.
2) Power supply. I'd be looking for a 700watt supply for modern graphics, hard drives, accessories, etc. 1000watt supplies are now available, but probably overkill for most folks.
3) Sound. A good surround sound system (sound card + speakers) that won't distort at high volumes.
4) Graphic card. Self explanatory.
5) Monitor.

Here is an example of the system requirements printed on game packaging. This was a game, randomly chosen, that was released last year - current and future games will undoubtedly have higher requirements.
Recommended Requirements
CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo processor
System RAM - 2GB
Video card - DX9 - Direct X 9.0c compliant video card with 512MB RAM (NVIDIA GeForce 7900 GT or better) / DX10 - NVIDIA GeForce 8600 or better
Sound Card - Sound Blaster X-Fi series (Optimized for use with Creative Labs EAX ADVANCED HD 4.0 or EAX ADVANCED HD 5.0 compatible sound cards)
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I hope that gives you some ideas. Happy shopping!
 
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I just followed your link to the e-machines. I have a lot of respect for e-machines, durable and affordable, but they aren't intended for gaming or high-performance computing. Check out these specs at your link:

The $298 EL1300G-01w includes a 1.6GHz AMD Athlon 2650e processor
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That's bottom-of-the-line. I think it was originally designed for low-power laptops.

, 2GB of memory
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That's the amount I use - but I don't play new games and I'm still on XP (Vista uses more). I'd install 4GB or more if building today or if using Vista.

a 160GB hard drive
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Probably OK unless you're going to edit videos or otherwise work with very large files.

Nvidia GeForce 6150SE integrated graphics
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The underlined portion is the key. It's not a real graphic card, it's not even a high-performance onboard system, and it's almost certainly not up to the task of playing modern games. :(

You know what's funny, going to Wal Mart's electronics section and browsing their computers and games. They don't sell a single computer that's good enough to play those $50 new release games...
 
Bob W said:
Well that works for basic computer tasks: office work, typing letters, internet browsing, email, etc.
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I should have clarified, I meant that from the manufacturers point of view. Any inexpensive system usually has a built-in vid and sound card to save $. And yes, most are designed for basic tasks, not up to gaming.
 
gazz98 said:
I should have clarified, I meant that from the manufacturers point of view. Any inexpensive system usually has a built-in vid and sound card to save $. And yes, most are designed for basic tasks, not up to gaming.
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Additionally, some of the low end off-the-shelf computers lack the motherboard plugs necessary for upgrading to a real graphic card.

Furthermore, some brands use uncommon components, or even parts that are unique to a single computer model. That makes upgrading and repairing very difficult and/or very expensive.
 
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