Help!! new vid card

[Aorek]

Operating System: Windows Vista™ Home Premium (6.0, Build 6001) Service Pack 1 (6001.vistasp1_gdr.080425-1930)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Compaq-Presario
System Model: RK548AA-ABA SR2180NX
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) D CPU 2.80GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.8GHz
Memory: 1014MB RAM
Page File: 910MB used, 1381MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 10
looking at getting 2-3 gigs of ram and a new vid card but not sure which card to get if anyone could give me a couple choices pref around 100$ or so. i was looking at these 2 cards and not sure how good they are

GIGABYTE nVidia GeForce 8500GT 512MB DVI/HDCP PCI-Express
and
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3504453&CatId=1558

any feedback would be much appreciated =)

 

[Triple6]

They're not great gaming cards. What games do you want to play. Also be aware if you get anything beyond a entry level card you may have to upgrade the power supply as well so that the video card gets the required power it needs - the stock Compaq PSU's don't support performance video cards or many upgrades.

 

[Compiler]

If that HPaq happen to have a 350watt PSU, it may handle an ATI 3650 card... which smokes a GF 8500.

But yeah, you're wasting money on anything like that. Unless you're wanting to play games made before 2004.

You can get away with an $80 ATI 4670 card if you upgrade your PSU to a 450watt or higher (should get a 500~550watt just in case).