The best graphics cards for PC gaming (December 2018)

Slotting in the best graphics card is the most important part of any PC build if gaming is your number one priority. The GPU (graphics processing unit) is the pounding heart at the center of your machine that handles all the rendering intensive tasks; it takes instructions from games and creates the magnificent digital worlds we inhabit and all the characters that populate them. And right now is a great time to be shopping for an upgrade - the holiday season has brought a raft of deals on video cards, like the MSI GeForce RTX 2080 with a copy of Battlefield 5 for $679 at Walmart. That's all the way down from the list price of $909, and it comes with a copy of the game best suited to showing off Nvidia's flashy new ray-tracing technology. It's also our pick for the best graphics card currently available, sitting at number one on our thoroughly vetted list.

But there is a world of options available when you're shopping for the best graphics card, so which one will best suit you, and how do you decide? One of the most important, and easily the most obvious considerations is price - establish ahead of time what you're comfortable paying to upgrade and plan accordingly. Beyond that, though, there are a number of factors. Are you looking to future proof your machine, so that an upfront expense now means you won't have to worry about a GPU upgrade for years to come? In that case, the 20-series from Nvidia is probably for you. If, on the other hand, you just want something to bridge you from now until the next generation of consoles, the big drivers in how much new games push hardware, you should definitely consider a more affordable option like a 1050 or even a 1070 Ti. A mid-level 10-series card will easily see you through the 1080p generation of gaming and then you can choose how you want to upgrade when we've got a better handle on wha t the new consoles are packing (and when prices on the current GPU offerings have hopefully dipped some). 

Regardless of what you choose, we've got you covered, with a comprehensive list of the best cards money can buy right now. Of course, if you want a complete PC gaming rig, check out our guide to buying the best gaming PC. If you're not looking to build a PC, here are the best gaming laptops.

1. Nvidia GeForce GTX 2080 Founders Edition

The best graphics card for performance at a (semi-)reasonable price

GPU Cores: 2,944 | Base Clock: 1,515MHz | Boost Clock: 1,800MHz | GFLOPS: 10,958 | Memory: 8GB GDDR6 | Memory Clock: 14Gbps | Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s

Incredible performance

Crushes 4K with ease

Very limited application of ray-tracing

Expensive

The best card on the market now in terms of performance and price. While the 2080  is still an expensive proposition, the crypto-mining craze has abated somewhat and it's finally possible to find the Founders Edition at the listed MSRP, $799 (or cheaper). While the step-up version, the 2080 Ti, is more powerful, the additional $400 aren't worth it for a relatively marginal increase in computer power (between 10 and 30 percent), especially considering the relatively limited use cases for ray tracing that exist at the moment. 

While Battlefield V looks great with ray tracing enabled (and will reportedly perform 50% better after the recently announced patch), it's one of an extremely limited field of games currently taking advantage of the technology. As more games that exploit ray tracing make their way into the wild and the Ti's price declines it may look like the stronger value proposition, but right now the 2080 is king of cards.

2. Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Ti

An excellent balance of performance and price

GPU Cores: 2,432 | Base Clock: 1,607MHz | Boost Clock: 1,683MHz | GFLOPS: 8,873 | Memory: 8GB GDDR5 | Memory Clock: 8Gbps | Memory Bandwidth: 256GB/s

Competitively priced high performance

Fills a mid-range gap in Nvidia's product line

Supply issues

The 1070 Ti, another iteration on the now prolific Pascal, is one of the best mid-range cards on the market. If you're looking for a card to power games at 1440p resolution and that can easily handle VR, and aren't looking for the blistering performance of cards hundreds of dollars more expensive, the 1070 Ti admirably balances performance and cost. 

Approaching the performance levels of the base 1080 for significantly less cost, the 1070 Ti is a granular answer to the challenge of AMD's Vega line. And as with the 1080 Ti, the upcoming launch of the 2000 series promises to depress prices in the next few months. 

3. Radeon RX 580 8GB

GPU Cores: 2,304 | Base Clock: 1,257MHz | Boost Clock: 1,340MHz | GFLOPS: 6,175 | Memory: 8GB GDDR5 | Memory Clock: 8 GT/s | Memory Bandwidth: 256GB/s

Excellent price and availability

Great match for current games

Starting to show its age

If you have yet to make the leap to a 4K display, spending a tremendous amount of money on an overpowered GPU may seem like an act of excessive decadence. While you're saving cash for a new 4K monitor/panel, the ~$200 the 580 shaves off the price of the next tier of cards is very significant, and AMD's budget option can easily cope with the tail of the 1080p era. 

For the budget conscious and anyone looking to ensure your PC is keeping pace with current generation consoles, the 580 is a great solution. And its 8GBs of GDDR5 is generous in comparison to Nvidia's similarly priced 1060 line, overhead that will be greatly appreciated as rendering demands continue to escalate.

4. Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050

Entry level card at bargain basement prices

GPU Cores: 640 | Base Clock: 1,354MHz | Boost Clock: 1,455MHz | GFLOPS: 1,862 | Memory: 2GB GDDR5 | Memory Clock: 7.011 GT/s | Memory Bandwidth: 112GB/s

Incredibly affordable

Solid efficiency

Slight memory

Struggles at medium high settings with current games

Gaming PCs aren't cheap, and if you're an impoverished college student or just generally trying to dip your toes into the wonderful world of PC gaming but are trying to hew closer to console prices, Nvidia's bargain basement priced 1050 is your best bet. At slightly over $100, the 1050 is a fantastic entry level card that will let you play almost all modern games at modest settings. 

It's also a great choice for a second PC or to tide you over until Nvidia's much-hyped RTX 2000 line launches. While the 1050 won't win any prizes for performance, the price tag makes it an attractive choice for bargain hunters.

5. AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 8GB

AMD's best card is a solid mid-range option

GPU Cores: 3,584 | Base Clock: 1,156MHz | Boost Clock: 1,471MHz | GFLOPS: 10,544 | Memory: 8GB HBM2 | Memory Clock: 1.6Gbps | Memory Bandwidth: 410GB/s

Good performance versus the similarly priced 1070

A better value than the Vega 64

Heat and power draw concerns

Fluctuating price

While in most testing, AMD's Vega GPU can't match Nvidia's top cards, there are environments where Vega shows its potential as a top contender (like running some DirectX 12 games and applications). The Vega sports second generation High Bandwidth Memory (HBM2), AMD's answer to the rising power consumption and form factor concerns of GDDR5, and for AMD diehards (or those vehemently anti-Nvidia), the Vega 56 is the best card for the price/performance. 

At its price point the Vega is an excellent choice and performs as well as or better than the competition (the vanilla 1070 range of cards) in most tests. As a mid-range solution it's a solid choice, though concerns about heat and efficiency (as well as nagging supply issues) might be off-putting.

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Top 5 Best Android Emulator Software for Windows PC

Using an Android emulator is a great way to access Android apps on your computer. Many use an emulator for gaming to be able to use their keyboard, mouse or game controller.

You can also run other types of Android apps as well. With so many emulators to choose from, we've come up with a list of the top 5 Android Emulators for your PC.

1. KoPlayer

KoPlayer

The KoPlayer is a best and free Android Emulator for pc. It enables all Android games and apps to run smoothly in Windows operating systems. Its built on x86 Architecture, support advanced features like OpenGL and hardware acceleration.

These features help it to run faster, bring more stability and compatibility to KoPlayer than other Android Emulators. KoPlayer Android Emulator for pc supports multiple accounts, video recording, gamepad, and keyboard.

It also has an internal integrated Google Play store that is compatible with all apps, more than 99% of apps & games run perfectly on KoPlayer.

2. MEmu Play

MEmu Play

The MEmu App Player is a powerful Android emulator. This emulator provides the best experience to play android games and apps on a Windows PC. MEmu is one the best emulators on basis of performance and unique multiple-Android-kernels support.

That's why MEmu has more than 20 million users in over 200 countries and 20 languages. Like KoPlayer, MEmu also focuses on games more. It also has some interesting games in its game center.

3. BlueStacks

BlueStacks

And now the most famous Android emulator is here. BlueStack is one of the best emulators for PC. It supports Advanced Android versions like Android 7.0.

BlueStacks 4 is considered 6 times faster performance than Samsung Galaxy S9+ and 8 times faster in performance than BlueStacks 3 according to BlueStacks official sources.

It has some awesome features like Gameplay on Android 7.1.2(Nougat), Hyper-G Graphics for uncompromising graphics and AI-driven resource management for low-latency gaming.

4. Andy

Andy Android

Number 4th in my list is the Andy Android. It is not an emulator software like others. It's actually Andy Operating system. You need to install it on your PC with Oracle virtual machine.

Virtually all of the main Android features are available with AndY Android Emulator including support for WhatsApp, push notifications, gaming, modern versions of Android and synchronization with your main Windows PC and the virtual OS that AndY emulates.

In short, AndY Android Emulator is a competent and free Android emulator and virtual machine with gives access to all of the features of Android on your desktop.

5. NoxPlayer

Nox Player

Here comes on of my personal favorite emulator. Nox App Player is a cross-platform tool which enables you to run Android apps on your Windows or Mac computer.

It creates an Android tablet simulation which then lets you run virtually any Android app on your machine of choice. The best thing about Nox is that you can set up multiple Android machines within Nox app. It also provides Root access and other impressive features.

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10 Best Mobile Games of 2018: Which you must play

PUBG MOBILE

PUBG Mobile is the first person mobile game which is available on both Android and iOS platform. The game has been one of the most played and downloaded games in 2018. Even Google Play has awarded it with the title of best Android game of 2018. PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds is full name of the game, in the gameplay, you will be playing online with 100 other players including bots. The last man or squad stand will be the winner of the game with chicken dinner.

PUBG Mobile has four maps, including Erangel Island, Miramar, Sanhok, and the recently introduced Vikendi. Basically, its a tensed shooter game and you have no idea where your opponents are hiding and targetting you. You have to figure it out and knock them out before they knock you out.

INTO THE DEAD 2

It is a journey through the zombie apocalypse in a race to save your family. Arm yourself with an arsenal of powerful weapons and do whatever it takes to survive. Maim, mow down, and massacre the Dead - anything to keep moving! In a world where no one is safe.

FEATURES:

• Evolving story and multiple endings - complete 7 action-packed chapters, 60 stages, and hundreds of challenges• Powerful weapons and ammo perks - unlock and upgrade melee weapons, firearms, explosives, and more!• Varied gameplay - fire from military gun emplacements, slay the hordes from atop vehicles, stab them to stay alive, or risk going after them on foot• Multiple, immersive environments - discover different locations, from oil fields and military bases to campsites and rural farm communities• Ever-increasing zombie threats - adapt your tactics to annihilate different hordes, including armoured and running zombies!• Daily and special event modes - prove your skills to win exclusive prizes• Loyal canine companions - fend off zombies and stay protected in the field

POKÉMON GO

Pokemon Go has also seen a huge success of 2018. It's a game where you need to use the camera of the smartphone to create a Pokemon-themed alternate reality experience. The player can see various Pokemon appearing in the real world through the camera lens. The player can capture these pokemon and use them to take over gyms. You can find gyms in various landmarks.

Pokémon GO has now introduced the Trainer Battles feature. Enjoy one-on-one Pokémon battles with other Trainers nearby, or practice battling against team leaders Spark, Candela, and Blanche! Trainers can earn rewards for participating in battle and show off exciting Pokémon skills in one of three different Trainer Battle Leagues.

ASPHALT 9: LEGENDS

Asphalt 9: Legends is a very popular car racing game, with this new version the company has improved the graphics and tweaking the controls and delivering a number of new racing experiences. In the game, you can use hypercars like Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, and more.

Moreover, for the first time in any of the Asphalt games, you can create your own online community of like-minded racer friends with the Club feature. Collaborate with your fellow speed freaks and motorheads to race your best and unlock the best Milestone rewards as you drive up the ranks of the multiplayer Club leaderboard.

DRAGON BALL LEGENDS

The Dragon Ball series has received a lot of attention over the past few years especially the Heroes. The game is equally fun, players can Battle it out in high-quality 3D stages with character voicing. You can also enjoy 1 on 1 action against rival players from across the globe.Card Action Battles with Intuitive Controls- Easily control your favourite DB fighters.- Unleash fierce combos and explosive special moves with the touch of a finger!

Worldwide Versus Battles- Real-time battles against DB fans from around the world.- Power up your own character and crush the competition!

Original Storyline- Play as the all-new character designed by Akira Toriyama!- Experience a new adventure with Goku and all your favourite characters.

CLASH OF CLANS

Clash of Clans is free to download and play, however, some game items can also be purchased for real money. If you don't want to use this feature, please disable in-app purchases in your device's settings. This game has also seen a lot of downloads both on iOS and Android devices. In this game you need to join millions of players worldwide as you build your village, raise a clan, and compete in epic Clan Wars.

The developers have also added some new features in the game:

● Upgrade to the all-new Town Hall 12 to have your Town Hall fight back!● Use the power of Siege Machines to break through the toughest of defences● Work together with your clan in Clan Games to earn valuable Magic Items

PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER (PES) 2018

Pro Evolution Soccer has long been loved by the soccer fans across the globe. The game is been traditionally played on PC and PlayStation, but the company has bought this game to the smartphone gamers also. It has 8,000+ player animations, to the team characteristic playstyles, and even the thrill of taking on your opponent--everything is the same.

You can also play against friends and users all over the world in a variety of ways with PES 2019. You'll also find that player personality is more distinct than ever before, thanks to the addition of new skills, playstyles, and goal celebrations.

PLANTS VS ZOMBIES 2

It is an award-winning hit action-strategy adventure where you meet, greet, and defeat legions of hilarious zombies from the dawn of time to the end of days. Amass an army of amazing plants, supercharge them with Plant Food, and devise the ultimate plan to protect your brain.

In this game, you need to carefully construct your garden of doom. You have to arrange the garden in such a way so that the zombies will be slaughtered before they eat your brains. This game has also received a lot of attention this year, so if you are not an action and adventure game lover then you can go with this game which required strategies.

ALTO'S ODYSSEY

It's a game where Join Alto and his friends are set off on an endless sandboarding journey to discover its secrets. Soar above windswept dunes, traverse thrilling canyons and explore long-hidden temples in a fantastical place far from home.

The game was first launched on iOS then the developers made it available on Android. This is also free to download the game. At the heart of the Alto, series is an elegant one-touch trick system. Chain together combos, and complete 180 goals - all with intuitive controls.

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Forget 2018… Fortnite and graphics card mining ruined it for everyone

Yeah, peace on Earth and goodwill to all men… what a crock. This year has been a bust for PC gaming, there's no getting around it, and it's put me in an almost permanent grump. Ho, ho, frickin' ho. Sure, if you've got yourself a little PS4 backup plumbed into your telebox then you'll likely still be very happy about how 2018 turned out for you, but if you're a purestrain PC gamer then very little will have made you smile over the last 12 months. Not even the constant churn of 'Tubers being deservedly raked over the coals for acting inappropriately or doing another racism.

I mean, what was your game of the year? For us it's been all but impossible to look at the triple-A titles released this year and pick one above all else. Okay, for me I'm still loving Battlefield V, but that's less for the actual game and more about it representing the future of PC graphics. Look at the rays on that, etc.

Thankfully there have been a host of quality indie games released this year, playing around with traditional mechanics and subverting expectations. But the big budget titles are all chasing one thing: the Fortnite effect.

It's the biggest game on the planet and every publisher wants a piece for themselves, whether or not they truly understand what got Fortnite to the top, and without a thought as to whether it will compromise their own games. Combine this pervasive Fortnite malaise with a graphics card market that lost its collective sh*t over cryptocurrency mining, and the PC world was an unpleasant place to be in 2018.

For much of this year the only people able to buy graphics cards were the crypto prospectors rocking up to the factories in China with articulated lorries and suitcases full of the folding stuff. The rest of us have either been priced out of the GPU upgrade game, or the places where we would normally buy from have had shelves as barren as the Mojave.

With all the cards going into mining facilities almost the instant they passed the QA tests in the factory, PC hardware in 2018 became stagnant. New graphics card generations are big business; they drive PC sales, and they drive other hardware sales. With the only new GPU generation of 2018, Nvidia's Turing chips, being seemingly held back indefinitely for most of the year, it was all rather dry.

At Computex in June I spoke with many different PC hardware vendors – from chassis to peripheral peops – and they were all holding off on releasing new product; simply waiting on the new GPUs to arrive and wake everyone up. Without new graphics cards people weren't upgrading their PCs, and if they weren't going to jam in some new performance hardware, they weren't going to bother replacing their PC cases/keyboards/monitor/mouse either.

Pick a card: The best graphics cards of today

And Nvidia didn't think new GPUs were needed because the cryptocurrency mining market meant the current-gen cards were still selling like vegan falafel at a Dulwich food market, and so everything else ground to a halt.

There were certainly no new games released to push the boundaries of our existing hardware to make that matter either… Fortnite helped see to that. Publishers saw no need to spend dollar on really pushing the PC when free-to-play battle royales and paid-for cosmetic upgrades were the real money spinners.

Like DayZ, with zombies and survival elements before it, PUBG and Fortnite made it so it was impossible to release a game in 2018 without having some sort of battle royale/last entity standing mode. Call of Duty had to, Battlefield V had to, and so did Peggle Royale and Football Manager: Rivals too. Nightmare.

Why bother innovating? Why bother pushing the technological envelope? The kids love Fortnite and they have access to their parents' credit cards. They're suddenly the new key demographic in PC gaming.

Fortnite and the Fortnite effect aren't going anywhere, but at least crypto mining has died another death part way through the year. Though the demise itself has also had major knock-on effects for the PC gaming market… not least on the price of hardware. Sure, it meant Nvidia could pull the lever on next-gen production, but it also meant we were inured to the high price of graphics cards.

Even when prices were extortionately high people still bought new graphics cards. So, if people didn't mind the artificially high price, maybe they'd keep paying it. This high-level reasoning was unfortunate, and unfortunately reality-resistant. The RTX 2080 and RTX 2080 Ti cards came out priced at a much higher level than the previous generation, and I'm not sure if Nvidia could have realistically priced them as high if it weren't for the crypto gold rush already giving us a taste of unfeasibly expensive GPUs across the board.

The latest crypto collapse (all of this has happened before and will happen again) occurred just after Nvidia upped its supply of mainstream graphics silicon. And, without the mining corps. buying them all up, that lead to a huge number of mainstream chips left floating, unwanted, in the channel. Nvidia has declared there's potentially two quarters' worth of mid-range GPUs in the channel, which is going to put a hold on any new mainstream cards coming for a while.

So where does that leave us in 2019? Sure, the RTX 2060 might be coming in January, but that's not really a replacement for the GTX 1060. It's a $400 graphics card, not a mainstream option for the price-conscious gamer. That means, even though to all intents and porpoises GPU mining is dead, it's still affecting our ability to buy mainstream graphics cards. Whatever form the RTX 2050 takes, that will be the GTX 1060 replacement, but it won't happen until most of those laggardly 1060s are sold on.

And of Fortnite? Well, that's just going to keep on trucking. Sucking in gamers, devs, and publishers alike. Until the 'next big thing' arrives and ruins 2019 in some fascinating new way… happy holidays.

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