SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 3450 DirectX 10.1 100233L 256MB 64-Bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

Pros: Decodes high definition video from BLU Ray and HDDVDs and will play over DVI with HDCP. Silent operation. Doesn't cost a lot. Works with my 200W Shuttle power supply. Works great with the Vista Aero interface. 3.8 in Vista performance index.

Cons: No HDMI means I might need to upgrade again in a few years if I really want HDMI. I will probably just stick to separate audio and video outputs. Not Low-profile... wasn't an issue for me but some HTPC cases require low profile cards.

Overall Review: I had a geforce 7100gs that I bought for my HTPC so I could play DVDs and use the Aero interface in Vista at the native 1366*768 resolution of my TV. The 7100gs worked fine until I wanted to watch High Definition dvds. This 3450 card works great for BluRay and HDDVD playback. Movies are smooth, silent operation in my HTPC and doesn't use too much power since my Shuttle only has a 200W PSU. Shuttle XPC SK22G2B AMD Socket AM2 AMD ATHLON X2 3500 AM2 2 GB DDR2 400GB Samsung HD LG BluRay/HDDVD Combo drive - GGC-H20L

Pros: I use this card for a media/internet PC with Shuttle barebone (7025 chipset) and 45 watt AMD BE-2350. Significant improvement from the integrated video in games like NBA Live. Full featured UVD & HD decoding (unlike HD2400 series) with passive cooling.

Cons: As the previous reviewer wrote, this card generates fair amount of heat. I'm glad that my CPU does not generate much heat, otherwise I would have to turn up the fan speed.

Overall Review: Solid performance for an entry level video card, great for a high-def media pc as it is quiet. In any case, a good upgrade from an integrated video solution.

Pros: Purchased this card from Newegg, installed it in my HTPC running 1.8ghz Opteron (939), 1 gb RAM, and 500gb WD drive on an Asus A8V-VM SE MB - obviously not a high power system. The HD3450 has played DVD's and video files without any dropped frames so far. Of course it is silent since it is passively cooled, and I haven't noticed any excessive heat eminating from the heatsink. So far, I think it is an excellent card for the money, but am looking forward to putting it to the test with high resolution video files. (Don't know 3d performance, as I have no intention to play games on this box.)

Cons: Does not come with a DVI to HDMI adapter.

Overall Review: I have the HTPC connected to a Mitsu 65" DLP via the DVI port.

Pros: This card is cheap, has all the features you'd expect from an HD3xxx series, and is passively cooled.

Cons: It actually runs pretty hot. The heatsink gets extremely hot even when not pushing the card very hard.

Overall Review: I won't go into the performance of the card because that's not what anyone would buy it for. It's best suited in HTPCs and other special apps that don't require much in terms of 3D acceleration.

Pros: As cards go, it runs cool even with the silent cooler (42c idle, 62c after gaming for half an hour). I bought the xfx low profile kit and it fits great in my slim case. I previously just had the 690g onboard graphics, with vista gaming index of 3.0. This thing started at 4.1, and with a simple memory overclock, thanks to the catalyst overdrive, I got it up to 4.3. Still not a screamer, but a ton smoother. I'm playing COD2 on 1280x800 with medium settings and it runs a lot smoother than previously, when it was on lower resolution and lower settings. For it's price, it is a great deal. I'm curious how hybrid crossfire would perform, and how the newer games would be.

Cons: None. The fanless cooler gets really hot, I thought the card might be overheating, but ATI catalyst says its temp only got up to 62c or so, which is still acceptable (especially with no noise).

Overall Review: 4800+ x2, 2gb 800mhz ram, vista 32bit premium

Pros: Rather potent specimen of budget-class display adapters. Works in Hybrid CrossfireX mode with Vista and XP, with both HD 3200 and 3300 series IGPs. Oh, it's cheap, too.

Cons: Fanless heatsink could become an issue in cases without sufficient ventilation.

Overall Review: A case fan or two carrying cool air to and from its vicinity more than suffice to assist this card's passive cooling.

Pros: It is PCI-e 2.0 x16 compatible, hdcp, and has component output. For all the features I was looking for, it was a great price.

Cons: It took me about an hour to figure out how to get the component output to display as my main monitor, display in 1080i, and not go to a blank screen when configuring my TV output in Vista Media Center. Now that I got the display working correctly, the only problem I see is that the video is a little choppy when the computer first wakes from sleep and/or first opens Media Center.

Overall Review: I added this card to my media pc because thte HDMI input on my TV randomly loses the picture for a minute or two at a time. I don't know if it's this video card or something else, but the color on my TV seems quite a bit better connected to my Intel motherboard's integrated HDMI connector.

Pros: Works great, quiet and good graphics for the price.

Cons: none yet

Overall Review: I bought it to interface with tv/use as second monitor. Not a gamer so no issues there; would be great for basic business applications.