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Hack&Lube · 08-11-2008, 08:05 PM

Unfortunately that computer was never designed from the beginning to be upgradable to play most 3D games. It only has a built in onboard graphics chip on the motherboard. That computer was designed for 2D, home computer, office usage, etc. Ram means next to nothing for videocards. Never use it as an indicator of videocard strength.

A computer capable of playing WoW, Starcraft II, Diablo III (all very low requirement games actually) would be very cheap in today's market. You could buy a used one cheaply (or used parts) that can play those games. If you don't want to waste the memory and CPU you have (3.00GHz Intel single core should be okay for those games since there is multithreading even if no dual core), there is the possibility of getting an older motherboard that will have a proper PCI-E 16x slot so you can use real videocards (which are also cheaper since they are plentiful)...but no guarantees it will fit in that Dell case and you will probably need a new installation of windows.

Ultimately, you were totally right in your gut feeling that it was the videocard. Basically, your system has none, it is just an onboard 2D graphics chip with limited 3D abilities stealing your main ram for graphics memory... and the system doesn't have the ability to add proper videocards.

08-11-2008, 08:05 PM	#19
Hack&Lube Atomic Nerd Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Calgary Exp:	Unfortunately that computer was never designed from the beginning to be upgradable to play most 3D games. It only has a built in onboard graphics chip on the motherboard. That computer was designed for 2D, home computer, office usage, etc. Ram means next to nothing for videocards. Never use it as an indicator of videocard strength. A computer capable of playing WoW, Starcraft II, Diablo III (all very low requirement games actually) would be very cheap in today's market. You could buy a used one cheaply (or used parts) that can play those games. If you don't want to waste the memory and CPU you have (3.00GHz Intel single core should be okay for those games since there is multithreading even if no dual core), there is the possibility of getting an older motherboard that will have a proper PCI-E 16x slot so you can use real videocards (which are also cheaper since they are plentiful)...but no guarantees it will fit in that Dell case and you will probably need a new installation of windows. Ultimately, you were totally right in your gut feeling that it was the videocard. Basically, your system has none, it is just an onboard 2D graphics chip with limited 3D abilities stealing your main ram for graphics memory... and the system doesn't have the ability to add proper videocards. Last edited by Hack&Lube; 08-11-2008 at 08:13 PM.