Basically, all multimedia video adapters are used in home and office systems, or computers for viewing video and photographic materials, in a word, where the graphics power of the device is not needed. Nevertheless, many manufacturers often make some attempts to increase the demand for their products on the basis of various tricks and inventions. Multimedia adapters, in general, are not intended for computer games to the fullest, since they simply do not have the required performance for minimally comfortable playing in the most sophisticated and latest games. At the same time, such devices are not expensive, and therefore will be popular among consumers. In order to somehow stand out, manufacturers equip them with a large amount of memory, alternative COs or increase the nominal frequencies. Today we will consider two new items, which belong to the series of multimedia video adapters overclocked at the factory by Gigabyte.
Gigabyte GV-N520OC-1GI 1 GB [PCI-E 64bit DDR3 2xDVI, HDMI, RTL]
Screenshot from GPU-Z utility. The first of the considered devices is the GeForce GT 520 model, based on the GF119 chip, executed in accordance with the 40 nm technical process. There is practically nothing to brag about this GPU, because the video adapter takes the lowest place in the entire line. The number of stream processors used is only 48 pieces, and the memory has a volume of 1 GB and the DDR3 standard. Microcircuits communicate with the GPU over a weak 64-bit bus. Although, like the older models of the line, the model has support for the latest versions of popular proprietary technologies: CUDA, NVIDIA PhysX. The GPU frequency is 830/1660 MHz, which is generally 20 and 40 MHz higher than NVIDIA's standards; as a result, this improvement allows adding the OC prefix to the device name, although it is clear that there will be no obvious speed revelations. The video memory operates at a standard frequency of 1800 MHz. Packaging and equipment. The small box is very suitable for the size of the video card; the manufacturer did not use any special colors and delicacies. Inside you can find a disc with software and drivers, a user manual, and a rather unexpected accessory in budget solutions - a low-profile bracket designed for the rear panel of horizontal cases. GeForce GT 520 is a weakly powerful accelerator and does not require the most powerful power supplies (any 300 W model will do), large cases, and so on. And a small number of parts and other elements on the PCB allows the use of a low-profile design, which is why this adapter can be installed in low horizontal cases, which are so adored by connoisseurs of HTPC. There is no problem to find a low-profile video adapter on sale, but any such model is equipped with a usual high bar and cannot physically be installed in a horizontal case. It is not always possible to find a replaceable back plate suitable for a specific video adapter, therefore, it is very pleasant that Gigabyte engineers have included this very valuable and simple accessory in the overall product package. Appearance. Video adapter GeForce GT 520 - low and short in length, practically, its printed circuit board ends with a PCI Express slot, so it will have the ideal of compatibility with any motherboards and system units. Most of the textolite is occupied by a thin single-slot CRM of black color, which you do not find so often and, in most cases, on budget graphics accelerators. A small fan for cooling a black radiator with small fins. Sadly, the removal of hot air from the case will have to deal exclusively with the case cooling system. The rear panel is occupied by three image output connectors: analog D-SUB (VGA), digital HDMI, DVI-D.When replacing the rear panel bracket with a low profile one, one port (D-SUB) will disappear and only digital ones will remain. Gigabyte GV-R645OC-1GI 1 GB [PCI-E 64bit DDR3 DVI, HDMI, RTL] Screenshot from GPU-Z utility. The direct competitor for the first tested model is the Radeon HD 6450 video card based on the Caicos graphics core. The novelty is equipped with 160 stream processors and 1 GB of video memory of the GDDR3 standard, the bus width is the same 64-bit. In general, this option cannot actually be much faster or slower than the first heroine of the review and will suit fans of Radeon products. It is worth remembering that, unlike GeForce representatives, the HD 6450 cannot be used as an accelerator for physics calculations in computer games, since it does not support NVIDIA PhysX. The GPU frequency is 675 MHz, which is somewhere 25-50 MHz higher than normal, and the memory operates at an effective DDR 1600 MHz frequency. This video adapter is also considered an overclocked model by the manufacturer. Packaging and equipment. One developer, one design. The packaging is completely similar to the one that we already held in our hands, as well as the internal delivery set, which consists of a disc with software and driver, user manual and a low-profile bar. On the packaging again there is a proud inscription about overclocking "OC Version". The only difference is the color gamut. For the Radeon video accelerator, black and red tones were used. Appearance. The graphics card's appearance also reminds us of the GT 520, although this impression only appears due to some similar design elements. The Radeon HD 6450 is 1 cm longer than its opponent, but the radiator is smaller. As before, a single-slot CO is used, and the rear panel is equipped with D-SUB, HDMI and DVI ports. The Radeon HD 6450 video card was also originally calculated for use with a power supply unit from 300 watts. This model is also suitable for those people who want to upgrade their rare device to a new one that has support for high definition video decoding. In this case, everything else in the system unit can be left, since the novelty does not force the PC to upgrade. The only thing you need is a PCI Express motherboard. Tests. GPU temperature Despite the huge similarity in the design of the boards, cooling systems, power supply requirements and other things, it turned out that the RadeonHD 6450 is 10 degrees cooler than its rival, the GeForce GT 520. Hence, if they both have similar performance, it could become one of the main factors in choosing a model. 3DMark 11 - “Entry”. Despite the application of the settings profile to the minimum level, the 3DMark 11 utility test remained too "heavy" for the tested video cards. The fastest GeForce GT 520 simply didn't score even 1000 points. And judging by the final result of the RadeonHD 6450 (850 points), there will be no equal performance. AvP 2010 - Low Settings. Another computer game, where I had to use the lowest settings with DirectX 11 rendering, is the famous AvP 2010. This time things went much better than in the 3DMark 11 test and the video adapters got close to 30 frames / sec. The result of the "fast" model GeForce GT 520 was also higher - 29 frames / sec. Versus 24 frames / sec. - in the RadeonHD 6450. FarCry 2 - medium settings. With the applied resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels and medium settings, the game Far Cry 2 worked perfectly, the lag of the Radeon was noticeably reduced to 2 frames / sec. Thus, we got the following results: 37 frames / sec - Radeon HD and 39 frames / sec - GeForce GT. The final computer game from testing is the well-known World of Conflict strategy, which is very demanding on the GPU. Nevertheless, with medium settings enabled, the game demonstrates good optimization, since even the weakest video cards were able to achieve a frame rate of 48-50 frames / sec. At the same time, we noticed for the first time that the Radeon HD 6450 was ahead of the GeForce GT 520. Conclusions. Gigabyte GT520 OC 1 Gb is a good entry-level video adapter, and the presence of an additional low-profile bracket included in the package only adds to it advantages. This model is not suitable for "heavy" games, or maximum quality settings, but it copes well with low and medium ones.However, for games, of course, you should definitely purchase a representative of a higher class. Among the obvious shortcomings, one can single out a relatively high heating (69 degrees for this level is a lot) and a slightly higher price than a competitor. Gigabyte HD6450 OC 1 Gb is also a good video adapter, although it belongs to the entry level. Most of what was written above about the NVIDIA camp representative is also suitable for this product, but there are a number of differences. Firstly, the accelerator is still a little slower, although high speed is not the trump card of multimedia adapters. Secondly, the model is cheaper, and thirdly, it is 10 degrees "cooler" than the first copy, which is a rather significant advantage. As a result, the buyer will have to make a choice between low temperature and speed, as usual. 
