Have you ever thought about building your own computer? If you have, odds are you’ve done some research on the different hardware components and their functions. Computers contain several different parts, and it’s important that you understand what each one does.
As you conduct your research, you may find yourself with a question: what is the difference between a graphics card and a video card?
Keep reading for a guide that’ll help breakdown any differences between video card vs graphics card.
Video Card vs. Graphics Card
So if there is a difference between a video card and graphics card, what is it? Does your computer have both parts? Let’s take a look at each one and what they do.
What Is a Graphics Card?
A graphics card is a piece of hardware in your computer that creates the image displayed on your monitor. To do this, it converts data into a type of signal that your monitor understands.
Better graphics card will allow you to enjoy smoother images. Depending on what you use your computer for, this can be important.
What Is a Video Card?
A video card is a separate piece of hardware in your computer that works with your computer’s processor to display images on the monitor.
The right video card makes a big difference in how the images displayed on your computer look. If you’re a gamer, having a fast and powerful video card will allow you to run resource-demanding games without a problem.
What’s Are the Similarities?
If you read those two descriptions and feel that they sound similar, that’s because they do. Both pieces deal with enhancing image quality on your computer. More powerful video and graphics cards will make things look nicer.
Today, people use the terms graphics card and video card to mean the same thing: a piece of hardware in your computer that helps things look pretty. In that context, they refer to the same thing. Yet in other cases, they don’t.
What’s Are the Differences?
If you hear the term integrated graphics, know that it’s something different than a video card. A video card is a separate piece of hardware that you install on your computer, while an integrated graphics chip is a component on the motherboard.
Many laptops and ordinary computers have integrated graphics chips. In most cases, they allow the average consumer to perform the tasks they need to do. However, they’re not as powerful as separate video cards.
Gamers and digital artists often require the power of a separate video card to handle the tasks they need to perform.
They Both Help Your Computer Look Its Best
If you want to learn more about computer hardware, it can be difficult to understand the difference between a video card and a graphics card. However, as this video card vs graphics card guide explains, there are some similarities, but also some differences as well.
What do you think? Can you think of another difference between a graphics card and a video card? Make sure to let us know in a comment down below.
Did you find this guide to be helpful? If you did, take a moment to check out some of our other website posts for more guides and tips.
