Video card upgrade on older Compaq

[darstemar]

When it comes to computers I am sort of like some women and cars..if you turn it on and it goes, great! I have a 5yr old or so Compaq EVO 500 P4 1.7 slim line with the original video card intact. I'm not a gamer and would like to install a new card but I believe there is a correlation between your power supply and the size of the card, is there not? I would like to upgrade to a 128MB AGP card but my power supply max output is only 175watts. Will my system support this for simple everyday use and maybe the odd strategy game? Would appreciate knowing before I drop the $$.

[Disk_Contented]

I would say you will run a risk from the PSU. Just like an old engine, if you start hammering it for more, even if it could handle it when new, it may revolt. 5 years is a long time for a PSU in service. bump it up a bit.
The choice is wider than just the memory size. You want the graphics to be lush, or just functional? In other words, how much processing power do you want from the video card? Nvidia, or ATI? Will it have any connections that your current PSU doesn't cater for?
As you see, the PSU is all important.