I just recently bought a new Gateway computer with "Integrated Intel Direct AGP Graphics" . I am quite a gamer but since this is a pretty powerful machine I didn't really pay much attention to the video card in it when I bought it thinking it had to be good. I was wrong!
I tried running some sports games (my favourites) on the system and I was disgusted and shocked by the bad graphics. The animation looks flat and without texture and it moves in frames with or without DirectX. Yuck!
Can somebody help me?
What's the deal with systems that come with Intel's Integrated Video Graphics? Are they really that bad? Are they not made for games?
Also if I buy a NVIDIA or ATI card can I install it on my system even though I have the Integrated Video?

Please help
Thanks

Intel graphics on new boards do a pretty good job actually provided there is enough memory installed.

My guess is that the board is a watered down OEM version made just for Gateway.

You can install a add on graphics card with no trouble at all.

Jimi_l

"Are they really that bad? Are they not made for games?"

That is a fair statement.

On board graphics are not as fast as even a medium-speed fan-cooled vid card. The heat generated by a fast video gpu makes it difficult for anyone to integrate one onto a motherboard, so even though on-board graphics have gotten better in some ways, their frame rates are very limited. So if you are a gamer (or just someone who wants to achieve a high fsb on your mobo), keep that gpu heat away from the mobo and put it on a vid card with a fan on it.

You mention Direct X but not a word about the OpenGl games.The makers,the sellers,have litlle to no clues about how to configure the video cards for those.There is a flood of those games on the market from Alice to Dragon Lair 3D to Star Trek Voyager Elite or Star Trek Armada etc.Is the OpenGl cross platform video a new trend to replace Direct X or a dead end?Who is supposed to inform the consumers about it?Those games simply don't work out of the box after installation.You need Gldirect3.0 and Glsetup programs to make it work.Gldirect3.0 from Scitech is not free just like the DVD codecs to view movies. I use an integrated Intel card from HP(i810 AGP with 256 Mo system RAM). The drivers are regularly updated and the games play well on a 15 in. display.Is it possible the screen size and quality has something to do with it? Integrated cards are a good deal and compromise for consumers that could not afford a computer otherwise.Good luck.

Integrated video is one of those bells and whistles that make building a computer more cost effective. Real gaming requires more resources than those provided.

Although you may have more success with a BIOS setting. it would be designating how much system RAM will be used by the on board video.

Also check the performance settings to give the highest priority to current tasks rather than background stuff.

Beyond that you'd have to get a good video card, one that matches the AGP slot capabilities and has at least 64MB of it's own ram. If you go this route yoiu'll also have to disable the OBV in BIOS in order to run the new card.

Did you by any chance go from a monitor to an LCD? That might also contribute a little to the poorer game display. LCDs are not as good as monitors for games.

I'm afraid you're going to need an inexpensive agp video card. My old ATI 7200 kicks butt on the games I have. Johnoh usually lets you know the best bang for the buck. He must be getting old.

Thanks for the feedback!
I love sports games a lot and right now I'm playing 2003 versions (which run badly on my Integrated Video System). However I found some old copies of EA SPORTS games from 2000/2001 and even those run poorly on my computer.
So the fact is (just as I suspected)that when it is about games nobody should recommend Integrated Video.
Gateway is a good company and I'm very familiar with them. The system runs excellently fast ..... as long as I don't play games on it :):):)
I don't know why I was so foolish to think that a system running at 512mb RAM also packs good video in it. I was aware of all the system characteristics except the Video part which I ignored.
I'll install a video card soon. Until then I am stuck with a fast "office type" system. I'm sure for office computers Integrated Video would be good enough. People working in offices don't have time for games. :)