KFA2 8500GT low profile purchase decision

[Nobahar]

Finally decided on a card when I saw this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814162004

According to the KFA2 website, the card is 80mm wide, my case is 10cm so 2 cm will be a tight fit. Apparently it fits fine in a 10.7cm case (HP slimline), but sticks out in the 10cm Dell 530S case. I think I can make the card fit even if I have to mess with the bracket to do so. The key thing is the price, it is 20 dollars AR (+7 dollars shipping).

I wanted to compare this to the KFA2 8600 GT low profile but I can't find where it is sold and it wouldn't have the same rebate. The 8600GT would be worth it if it was not more than $50 at the price of the 8500 GT.

Any higher power than these two and I need an external power supply, my 300W power supply is not designed to run the KFA2 9600GT low profile http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814162016 (The best available LP graphics card), and it's too much of a pain to find a power supply that fits the case.

I'm only getting the card as an upgrade for light-gaming. It won't run Crysis, but it should bump my vista index from a 3.0 to the 4.8-5 range. Hopefully enough to make WoW a little prettier, but I think it is a pretty good deal so long as I can get the card to fit in the case. Damn Dell and HP for not standardizing the size of the slim.

[Nobahar]

Some of the reviews for the 9600GT say it is running on their lower power supply (the guy says 250W but I think he has a 300W). However, the specs for the card say 400W minimum.

How is it possible for a 300W supply to run a 400W min card? It'd be awesome if mine would, but I'm afraid the card will short or something.

EDIT: Apparently the lack of power use on other components of the computer determine whether it will run the card, it's a gamble.

[Zertz]

What are you going to use the card for? The extra performance form the 8600 might just not be worth it, especially if it's 50$ more expensive

You don't need anywhere near 400W for that card, or even 300W. The whole system is probably going to draw about 150W at peak load.

Edit: Maybe I should've read the whole post.. my friends runs WoW mostly maxed out with a 8600GTS, so I'd guess a 8500GT can handle a mix of mid and a few high end settings

[Nobahar]

I mean I can't find the 8600GT card and I want to take advantage of the 60 dollar rebate.

If the 9600GT works it would be a huge upgrade and that card is 90 dollars AR at the moment. However, I don't plan on buying a power supply so I don't want to risk buying a card that is incompatible with my system. And yeah, like I said- light gaming, 20 bucks is a steal for that.

I'm in med school, I don't have enough time to dick around with games (arguably a good case can be made against wow). Then again, there's something to be said about stress relief and I just need something to get my computer to play SOME games as integrated graphics won't even play older games like Doom 3. I'm keeping an eye out for a PS3 or Xbox 360 in due time anyway.

Will get myself a nice computer budget during or after residency though. All the years of budget computing pay off

[Nobahar]

Here's the Chaintech version of the 8600GT: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814145153

Hmm, 79 dollars, doesn't come with an LP bracket. I mean I know 8600GT is better than 8500GT but for practical purposes you're comparing two cards that aren't good for high-end graphics and gaming and 400% more expensive but at most 200% more powerful? If I am gonna pay 80 bucks, I might as well get the 9600GT. However, aside from personal stories all the literature says this card will not work in my system unless I get a bigger power supply.