I have a question for you techies.. My brother-in-law has an old Dell Dimension E521.... it was Vista and he updated it to windows 10.
Most everything works but watching a video... there are no window 10 graphics drivers for his system. He wants to upgrade but I was chatting with Dell support and they say he has an integrated graphics card and can not upgrade and that he can now put a higher power supply unit in the system.current power supply is a Dell model N305N-03, 305 Watt maximum output.
If I google GRAPHICS, 256, X1300, MRMGA+2 I get this ATI Radeon X1300 Pro this isn't integrated is it?

I want your opinion... I am posting what his components show up as on the Dell site...

PROCESSOR, X2, 3800, 2.0, 512K, 2C, 65W, 2.5" FORM FACTOR
JD5091LABEL, REGULATORY, SIDE, UNIVERSAL, BLANK , V2
NJ1331INSTRUCTION, DEVIATE CHAS L6 TO L5.5
235031LABEL, BARCODE, TRACK, SYSTEM BOARD, GENERIC
KX8531ASSEMBLY, CHASSIS, MATRIX,SMITH,MINI TOWER, NON PFC, E521, PWA INTEGRATED
MK9461ASSEMBLY, HEATSINK, SHROUD, MATRIX,SMITH,MINI TOWER
CC2991DISPLAY, FLAT PANEL DISPLAY, 19, 1907FPC, MIDNIGHT GRAY, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION
YH9581MOUSE, UNIVERSAL SERIAL BUS, 2BTN, LEAD FREE, ENTRY, LOGITECH, BLACK
Y94571CARD (CIRCUIT), CONTROLLER, 1394A, PC INTERFACE, FULL HEIGHT, ADAPTEC, LEAD FREE
MW4371KEYBOARD, 104, UNIVERSAL SERIAL BUS, UNITED STATES, BLACK, NMB

**UJ9731CARD (CIRCUIT), GRAPHICS, 256, X1300, MRMGA+2


WH3551ASSEMBLY, FLOPPY DRIVE, 1.44M, TEAC, CHASSIS 2005, BLACK
MY5311ASSEMBLY, DVD+/-RW, 16, TOSHIBA SAMSUNG STORAGE TECHNOLOGY, Serial ATA, BLACK
W58241ASSEMBLY, CABLE, ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY ATTACHMENT PACKET INTERFACE, MATRIX,SMITH,MINI TOWER
DY6541KIT, SOFTWARE, WORKS, 8.5, OFFICE, TRIAL, ENGLAND/ENGLISH
DC0941ASSEMBLY, CABLE, Serial ATA, OPTICAL, MATRIX,SMITH,MINI TOWER
TJ0161HARD DRIVE, 320G, S2, 7.2K, 16M, LEAD FREE, WD-RAD
DT4881ASSEMBLY, DIGITAL VIDEO DISK DRIVE, 16X, Serial ATA, HALF HEIGHT, HITACHI LG DATA STORAGE, BLACK
WH6251MODEM, V.92, DATA FAX, INTERNAL, SON4, LEAD FREE, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION
KU3502DUAL IN-LINE MEMORY MODULE, 1G, 533M, 128X64, 8, 240, 2RX8
JW7621KIT, SOFTWARE, OVERPACK, VHP32, DIGITAL VIDEO DISK DRIVE, ENGLAND/ENGLISH
UH8371KIT, SPEAKER, 12V, AS501, NMB, BLACK
YK1961LABEL, CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY, OPERATING SYSTEM, VHP3/6, V#2007
KX1021LABEL, MICROSOFT, VSTA, PREMIUM, DESKTOP
3947T1LABEL, BARCODE, SYS BOX, GENERIC, 5X5
DY5461SHIPPING MATERIAL, BOX, SYSTEM, MATRIX TANK DESKTOP, DIMENSION, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION
N52101PLUG, VIDEO, JACK, TRANSFORMER JAZZ DESKTOP
GF1452SHIPPING MATERIAL, CUSHION, MATRIX,SMITH,MINI TOWER
000095INFORMATION, GENERIC, PART NUMBER
000095INFORMATION, GENERIC, PART NUMBER
000095INFORMATION, GENERIC, PART NUMBER
000095INFORMATION, GENERIC, PART NUMBER
000095INFORMATION, GENERIC, PART NUMBER
WR0581KIT, MEDIA, DIGITAL VIDEO DISK DRIVE, WAU, 32, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION, ENGLAND/ENGLISH
TM7341LABEL, FASCIA, DESKTOP, ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES, A64X2
5P3071KIT, SHIPPING MATERIAL, BUNDLE, DIMENSION, TRANSFORMER SKY DIVE MINITOWER, DELL AMERICAS ORGANIZATION
H64221KIT, DOCUMENTATION, RECYCLE, NBK/DT, SYSTEM
235011LABEL, BARCODE, SYS BOX, GENERIC
DR4461KIT, MEDIA, DIGITAL VIDEO DISK DRIVE, DRIVER, RESOURCE COMPACT DISK (CD), DIMENSION
PY3501PLACEMAT, GETTING STARTED, DIMENSION, E521, DAO/BCC
PY9291LABEL, FASCIA, ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES, CARTON

Are you talking about a video from a disk? If so, then he can't watch because since Windows 8, there have been no video codecs included with the OS. Most of us use the free VLC video software.

http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

If you are talking upgrading the video card, it will all depend on the motherboard slots available and like the tech said, the power supply.

talking about any video like youtube or from googling a question.
and yes he wants to update the video card...if there is an open slot then can he put in a lets say Nvidia card?? and is it true he cannot put in a higher watt power supply?

also when I look up GRAPHICS, 256, X1300, MRMGA+2 it shows as a ATI Radeon X1300 Pro doesn't that have a slot that I could take that one out and put in a more powerful one?

You shouldn't need VLC for YouTube.

Going by the picture on page 3 of the ***Service Manual for the Dell E521***, it has an onboard VGA card and may also have a video card with a DVI added to it. Usually with these Dells if you add a video card it will automatically disable the onboard video. According to the Service Manual the onboard graphics is Nvidia 6150LE so that is not the same as the X1300.

You should be able to find a newer video card that doesn't take any more wattage than the X1300. It doesn't take a very powerful card to watch YouTube. I'm surprised Windows 10 doesn't support the X1300 though.

Someone at ***Microsoft forum*** recommended a Radeon HD 5450 as a replacement for the X1300. They don't appear to be very expensive at ***Newegg***.

I can't tell you for sure whether the power supply can't be upgraded. Sometimes Dell uses proprietary connections. If all he wants to do is get a supported graphics card for watching videos, he doesn't need one that takes more power than the old one.

Thanks, I looked it up and it looks like a 305 watt will work with this, thank you

Yes, VLC would only be required for playing videos from a DVD.

Video card requirements for Windows 10 are "Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver."

For some reason, I can't get into the Microsoft support forums right now. Do a search on this string, of course without the quotes...

"ATI Radeon X1300 Pro Windows 10"

I can't tell if there are Windows 10 drivers (which I highly doubt!) or if the card is simply incompatible with Windows 10. I had to upgrade our American Legion computer video card as the motherboard graphics were not compatible. I put in an Nvidia GT 610, but when I built the computer I put a 450 watt power supply in it. If you do try to replace this card, make sure you know what interface is on the motherboard since this is an older computer.

" make sure you know what interface is on the motherboard since this is an older computer."\

What do you mean ?

Is it a PCI Express? Or something else? There are different interfaces and you want to be sure the card you get will actually fit into the interface. I think I remember seeing something about a PCI Express x16 slot on the motherboard, but I can't remember for sure.

I googled this: on both cards
PCI Express 2.1 x16
Max Resolution 2560 x 1600
Interfaces HDMI
DVI-I (dual link) ( HDCP )
VGA
Graphics Engine ATI Radeon HD 5450
Bus Type PCI Express 2.1 x16
Core Clock 650 MHz
Max Resolution Details DVI: 2560 x 1600 / VGA: 2048 x 1536
ManufacturerXFX Inc
-----------------------------------------------------

Product details
ATI Radeon X1300 Pro 102A6762630 0UJ973 Full Size DVI VGA PCI-e Video Card. ...

If he opens up his computer and checks his card will it say PCI-E

Is the PCI-E and PCIE-16 the same thing

It probably won't say anything on the card... let me look at that Service Manual that Jenny linked you to.

EDIT: It says you have one PCI Express X16 slot, one PCI Express X1 slot and two PCI slots. The X16 slot is the one you want to use. The difference is bus speed. You are looking at a PCI E 2.0 card and they are supposed to backwards compatible with the old X16 slots.

Another thing to think about - is he using an old monitor with only a VGA connection? You might want to make sure there is an available VGA port on the new video card. There are adapters you can use though.

If you do upgrade the video card, be very careful about cooling as this case only has one exhaust fan. Just be sure it is kept out in the open and not in an enclosed space.

The X1300 card probably has a DVI port like the one ***here***.
Specifically a DVI-I port.

The picture of the back of the computer in the E521 service manual shows a DVI port on the graphics card while the onboard card has VGA.

If you get an HD 5450 make sure it has DVI-I. Some of them seem to come with DVI-D.

***Picture of DVI-I***
***Picture of DVI-D***

See how the white port on the DVI-I picture has a sort of plus shape with dots around it on the end of the port while the white port on the DVI-D picture has a "-" shape instead. He's may be using a cable specifically for a DVI-I port and it wouldn't fit a DVI-D port because you can't push a "+" shape into a "-" slot.

The pictures of the slots come from the Nvidia website
http://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/221/~/what-is-the-difference-between-dvi-i-and-dvi-d%3F

Thank you very much, This helps a lot!!!

If I am correct this should fit right

5450

or this

and this one would not work cause he does not have a 64bit system.

64bit ??

He's using 32-bit Windows 10?

The motherboard/processor of the Dell E521 is capable of running a 64-bit version of Windows.
The AMD X2 processor is 64-bit. So the hardware is 64-bit even if he's got 32-bit Windows on it.

Apparently the E521 motherboard will also support 8GB of memory, so if he installed a 64-bit Windows he'd have access to quite a bit more memory. I don't know if he wants to do anything with the computer that would need that much though.

The specs of the cards you found seem to require a minimum of a 400 Watt power supply (or recommend 450 Watt). They may be allowing extra wattage for USB peripherals though.

According to someone in the Dell forum at ***this thread*** the power supply of the E521 is not proprietary. So he could install a power supply with more wattage if he wanted to and get a faster video card.

If he adds more stuff to the computer he may want to add another case fan.

If he wants to add a new power supply, and he's never installed one before, he may want to take pictures of where things hook up before taking out the old one.

Thank you, you sure know your stuff!!!!! I sent him yours and Drac's comments and links... I personally am trying to convince him to get a new computer!!!
Thank you again!

Oh, good grief, yes! He would be SO much happier. I'm all for keeping the old stuff running as long as possible, but sometime it's just time to give it up. Finally convinced my friend Phil to give up on trying to keep his old Vista computer working and he could have kicked himself 100 times for not doing it sooner once he got the new one. And it was just a low end one built by eCollegePC!

At least the E521 is a good choice for an "upgradable" computer, if he wants to do the work. If he wants it for playing modern games, he would want to consider upgrading the processor too. And a 64-bit operating system would be a lot better for accessing memory.

Here's a thread about memory in the E521
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/267315-30-e521-4gbx2-6400-800mhz-possible

One person there got 10GB of memory working in his E521 using 64-bit Windows 7, though Dell only "officially" supports 4GB.

Ok, that leads me to another question... his power unit is a Dell model N305N-03

What would he have to be aware of if he want to go to a say 400 // would this work


400w revised

Only if it's proprietary as Jenny mentioned earlier. I looked one up and it doesn't look like it is. Dimensions could be important since this is such a small case.. I couldn't find any dimensions on the ones I saw for sale on eBay.

Dell Power Supply

I looked up a 400 watt EVGA ATX form factor power supply and the dimensions are 3.35" x 5.91" x 5.52"

EVGA Power Supply

If that's too big, you might have to look at the micro ATX form factor power supplies.



By the way, that link isn't working.

I found this info


dimentions

So far all I am seeing a Newegg is 5.9 and it looks like the n305n-03 is a 5.7

Considering that the description of the video cards you found...

...list a 450 Watt power supply as "recommended" with a 400 Watt as "minimum," I'd say to look for a 450 Watt power supply if you're going to replace the power supply.



The power supplies I checked were slightly different than the measurements listed on that website
(as 5.7W x 3.7 H x 5.4 D - Inches / 150mm(w) x 100mm(H) x 140mm(D))

For example at ***Newegg***

3.39" x 5.51" x 5.91" Rosewill
4.92" X 3.94" X 2.50" FSP
4.92" x 2.5" x 3.94" Silverstone
2.50" x 4.92" x 3.94" Corsair
3.39" x 5.91" x 5.51" Antec

I'm not sure if those are all measured in the same order as the Dell power supply you found (width x height x depth). It might make a difference where the wires are coming out of.

Do you know if he's going to be putting in the power supply himself?
These may or may not fit depending on how they're aimed in the case, or how much extra room there is in the case.


0.2" (a fifth of an inch) is very small and there might be that much extra space in the case.

I will ask him... I guess he could measure it too while he has it opened

He is going to measure it and take some pictures I will put them in photobucket and link them here... and he said he has taken the power unit out once already so he is not concerned.

And I agree with Jenny - get the 450 watt if you can. One of the issues with size is getting those holes to line up to screw in in securely.

The dimensions of my power supply are 5.908" x 5.504" x 3.862". I have an inch or so room to grow with all dimensions except the 5.908" dimension. I can not go any larger on that dimension.



450

Do you think this would work

His picture is embedded in my email can't detach it

The "Specifications" of that one says it has 2 SATA and 4 MOLEX connectors.
Which does his PC use?
Will 2 SATA connectors be enough?

***pictures of SATA connectors***
***pictures of molex connectors***

He is looking at his connections now, but I have a question. Since he is going to get a different video card don't we have to look at what those connections are?