You’ll need enough power coming from the power supply unit to feed the the new graphics card, in addition to all of your current computer components. You’ll usually need an extra half inch of so of clearance for this plug, in addition to the dimensions of the card itself.Īnd speaking of power… Make Sure Your Power Supply Can Handle the Card’s Power Requirements The plug for this cable is either on the top of the card, or on the end of it (the side opposite the monitor connections). Mid- and high-end cards require a dedicated electrical connection to the computer’s power supply. There’s also one more factor to consider: the card’s power inputs. This Cooler Master Mini-ITX case can only accept short graphics cards (left), but it’s compatible with dual-slot designs (right).

When you’re shopping online for cards, the specifications should list the measurements of the card. The easiest way to handle all this is to pop open your case and measure the space you have available.

And in some cases your available space might be further limited by where hard drives are installed, where cables are plugged into your motherboard, and how power cables are run.Īlso some very small PC cases might limit the height of the card you can use.

While low-end and mid-tier cards are generally short enough to fit most cases, more powerful cards tend to be much longer.

How to install graphic card in laptop