Recently a loyal reader asked if it was a requirement to have a discrete graphics card to run CorelDRAW. While it isn’t a requirement, it definitely helps you get the most out of any graphics software. Your CPU can focus on doing what it does best and the discrete graphics card can focus on pushing pixels around. Today I’m going to tell you about a card that delivers the latest graphics tech at a more reasonable price. Yes, there will be an Amazon link where I earn a small commission. No, I didn’t get a free one to review.

Let’s first go look at the first iterations of the new technology. In August 2018, I wrote NVIDIA Releases “20” Series of Video Cards Loaded with Speed about the new “20” series of technology released by NVIDIA. The first cards to hit were the bleeding edge and they cost over $1000. While that meant a lot of speed, it didn’t fit the budgets of most users.

Then in February 2019 I wrote GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 2080 Gaming Graphics Card Brings Serious Speed as the version without the “Ti” cut a few features as well as the price. While it was under $1000, it was still well beyond the budgets of most graphics users.

Now a more mainstream version of the technology has been released in the form of the MSI GAMING GeForce RTX 2060 6GB GDRR6 192-bit HDMI/DP Ray Tracing Turing Architecture VR Ready Graphics Card. Sure, it leaves out some of the high-end features. It is not as fast. It is not the right answer for those who want ray tracing. Honestly, that stuff isn’t as important for folks working with vector artwork and editing photos.

For those building a new computer, this would be an excellent option for your graphics needs. Even if your computer is relatively new, but relies on build-in graphics, then this could bring a major upgrade for you. A third group of users who would benefit are those with a graphics card from even a couple of years ago. It may not be as much bang for the buck as the two previous scenarios, but it still can bring a major speed boost. I’ve been considering upgrading my motherboard and CPU and this would be the graphics card to pair with that upgrade to give my system a serious speed increase.