Diamond Viper ATI Radeon HD 3450 (512MB)

More on this product: product brief; user reviews; specifications; compare; shop

Share
- Digg
- Del.icio.us
- Reddit
- Facebook
E-mail
Print

Diamond Viper ATI Radeon HD 3450 (512MB)

Average user rating:
Write your own review
See all user reviews

Product summary

The Diamond Viper ATI Radeon HD 3450 is a 512 MB, mainstream 3D card.Compared to other mainstream 3D display cards on the market, it is relatively inexpensive at around $90.

Specifications: Graphics Processor / Vendor: ATI Radeon HD 3450; Video Memory Installed: 512 MB; Compatibility: PC See full specs

Price range: $56.09 - $133.18

CNET product brief

Description: The Diamond Viper ATI Radeon HD 3450 is a 512 MB, mainstream 3D card.Compared to other mainstream 3D display cards on the market, it is relatively inexpensive at around $90.

Pros: Has a PCI express 2.0 x16 interface, which is considerably faster than some similarly priced display cards.Also, this graphics card is built around an ATI Radeon HD 3450 chipset, which is somewhat more advanced than some similarly priced display cards.In fact, the average cost of a product with this advanced a chipset is $140.

Cons: Only has a 500 MHz memory clock speed, which is somewhat slower than some similarly priced display cards.For example, the Diamond Viper Radeon X1650 Pro SB Edition, a 512 MB graphics card at around $85, has a 1.6 GHz memory clock speed.

Suitability: Suited for all productivity tasks, as well as for the casual 3D gamer.

Value: Given its relatively inexpensive price, this graphics card has good features for the money.

Suggestions: (1) This card has DVI-out to connect to similarly enabled flat panel or plasma monitors and produce a clearer picture than does analog-to-digital conversion.(2) CNET's graphics and sound content can help you decide if this card is the right purchase to make.

CNET's Product Briefs are generated by a software tool that combines product specifications with knowledge of our editorial experts. They do not reflect hands-on assessment or labs testing. For more information about how we create Product Briefs, contact us.

CNET editors' buying advice

We have not reviewed this product but here is CNET's buying advice on Graphics Cards. This content was chosen based on the features included with this model of graphics card.

Media Center Graphics Card

One of the popular attempted 'convergence devices' of recent years is the media center PC. This can range from a computer with a normal monitor that can receive TV signals, to a central media server that can send movies to the main TV itself. These graphics cards are all capable of outputting signals in a form with which TVs are likely to be compatible.

DirectX 10

DirectX is an API (Application Programming Interface) that allows programmers to access system resources more easily, and with less overhead (overhead = additional processing power and memory needed). Every time a new version of DirectX comes out, there needs to be new hardware to take advantage of it. Now, Windows Vista has introduced a new version of DirectX, 10, that only exists on Vista. Therefore, the current generation of video cards is designed to take advantage of DirectX 10.

It should be noted that the Aero interface introduced with Vista is not dependent on DirectX 10 features. However, as DirectX 10 cards are all newer designs, any of them will certainly have the graphics horsepower needed to run Aero. Otherwise, DirectX 10 is generally of more interest to gamers.

See more DirectX 10 products

VGA Explanation

VGA cables (and CRT monitors) use an analog signal. Both video cards and modern LCD monitors internally use digital signals. This means that when using a VGA cable with an LCD monitor, the signal is being converted from digital to analog and back again. Currently, converters are good enough that it isn't a real issue, but technically the signal is being degraded every time it is converted. So if you are using an LCD monitor that supports DVI, it is best to get a graphics card that does the same and to use a DVI cable.

See more VGA Explanation products

User reviews

Average user rating: 0 stars Not yet available
Back to product review
My rating: 0 stars Write review

Showing 1 of 1 user reviewSee 1 user review
3.5 stars

"Great middle of the road card"

by nuclearslug on August 4, 2008

read more
See 1 user review Write review

Submit your review

Diamond Viper ATI Radeon HD 3450 (512MB)

1. Rate this product:: (Mouse over the stars to rate this product and click to set your rating.)
2. One-line summary:(Summarize your review in one line. 10 characters minimum; required.): 0 of 55 characters
3. Pros:(Tell us what you like about this product. 10 characters minimum; required.): 0 of 250 characters
4. Cons:(Tell us what you don't like about this product. 10 characters minimum; required.): 0 of 250 characters
Bottom-line summary:(Explain to us in detail why you like or dislike the product, focusing your comments on the product's features and functionality, and your experience using the product. This field is optional.): 0 of 5000 characters; Submit