Looking to buy a LOW PROFILE card for my Dell C521 NEED HELP!!!

I am looking for a new LOW PROFILE video card for my Dell C521 without having to make any other upgrades for my power supply, cooling, wiring, etc. My current video card is the ATI Radeon X1300 128MB and my price range is $75-150.

From searching over the internet, I found out that my Dell C521 has a 280W PSU, which some say is not upgradable due to its size and shape.

The best low profile (NVIDIA) video cards I could find include: 8600gt, 9600gt, 9800gt, gts250
From this list I was leaning towards the 9600gt.

I realize that the more powerful the card is, the more power it needs from its power supply. So I was wondering…what’s the best video card I can get away with using only a 280W PSU. If there are any ATI low-profile cards with around the same performance and price as what I listed, I have no problem with buying another ATI card.

I don’t need a video card that runs max settings on all the newest games. I’m hoping at least be able to run games like Half-Life 2, Call of Duty 4, and Fallout 3 on anywhere from medium to high settings at a decent resolution (my native res. is 1280x1024) because I’m tired of settling for 800x600 res. on low to medium-low settings.

P.S. I don’t know much of anything about video cards other than what I researched, so if there are any other compatibility issues or tips I should know please help me out…Thanks!!!


MY CURRENT COMPUTER SPECS

Manufacturer: Dell Dimension C521
Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4000+ ~2.1GHz
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Hard Drive: 250 GB
Video Card: 128MB ATI Radeon X1300
Monitor: 19'' Dell LCD
Sound Card: SigmaTel High Definition Audio CODEC
Operating System: Windows Vista™ Home Premium

 

I've actually decided on the GeForce Galaxy 9600 gt listed here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814162016

Now, my main concern is if the 280W PSU in my dell C521 will suffice. I hear a 400W PSU is recommended and a lot of people have bought 300-400+ PSUs to be safe. However, a bunch of others have the same card and PSU and don't have any problems after months of use.

I know it's better to be safe than sorry, but with very little knowledge of PSUs and video cards, I don't wanna take the risk of running into more problems. Plus, I can't afford to spend much more moneey.

I don't know who to trust. Can anyone help me out???

 

I would look into a new psu. I herd of people using 9800 GT on 300 watt power for some time and had some issues then there psu died about 3 months later.

Also dell likes to use cheap power supplies that have a low +12 volt amp rating.

I would look into a new psu. I use this one in my system and it works great

Also make sure the psu will fit in your dell case.

Good luck