Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I need a graphic card upgrade for a very old compact desktop PC, Acer Aspire A3910 from 2010. This MSI GeForce GT 710 is an entry-level graphic card that fits my requirements perfectly. Here are several reasons why I picked this card instead of something more powerful: - It is relatively inexpensive. - It is low profile and occupies only one PCI slot. This is important since my PC has a SFF (small form factor) case with limited space. - It consumes very little power (20W max), so even the 220W power supply in my PC can handle it. - It uses only heatsink for passive cooling. This eliminates the noise and reliability problems associated with cooling fans. [Installation Confusion] - Initially right after the graphic card was installed, I can only get a display of 1200x800 from the HDMI port. Nothing from VGA port. - After I installed the MSI VGA Drivers from disc, my monitor can now display 1920x1080 from VGA port, but nothing from HDMI port. The problem could be from my computer's motherboard, since I observed the same behavior with the EVGA GeForce 210 I previously purchased (and returned). Just keep this behavior in mind, in case you cannot see any display right after installing the card. [Graphic Performance] I ran the 3DMARK 'Cloud Gate' benchmark on my PC, both before and after the graphic card upgrade: - With integrated graphic, the overall score is a pathetic 209. - After installing the GT 710, the score jumps up to 3735! (see my uploaded screenshots for details) On the other hand, the GT 710 cannot hold a candle against my better graphic card, the EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti. When both cards were tested in a newer desktop PC (Asus M32CD), the 750 gives about 4x higher score . Note that the 750 does not fit in my old SFF PC since it is much larger. See my photo uploaded for size comparison between 710 and 750. [Power Consumption] I used the EUM-A1 Power Usage Meter to measure the input power of my computer: - Before the graphic card upgrade, my computer consumes ~50-55W when idle, ~70-75W when running 3DMARK. - After the upgrade to GT 710, my PC consumes the same 50-55W when idle. This means this graphic card has the same standby power as the integrated graphic chip set. - When running 3DMARK or XCOM: Enemy Unknown, my PC now consumes up to 85-90W. That means the graphic card consumes 15-20W when it is running at full speed. After I played XCOM for several hours, the heatsink becomes too hot to touch, but not hot enough to cause a shutdown. In contrast, the EVGA GeForce 210 suffers thermal shudown after just ~10-20 minutes of playing XCOM. This is because the 210 consumes more power (30W vs. 20W) but comes with a smaller heatsink. [Conclusion] The GT 710 works very well in my particular situation. Of cause this is an inexpensive entry-level card, so I cannot expect the same level of performance as my GeForce GTX 750 Ti. But for a very small investment, I'm suddenly able to play many games which were previously unplayable on my old SFF PC. For that I'm happy.