What are graphics cards, and why do you want one?

Graphics cards! So hot right now. Whether it's the slow realization that jumping on board with the 2016 VR revolution requires a tricked-out gaming rig you'd never previously have dreamed of stashing under your desk, or the blitz of hype surrounding Nvidia's latest 1000-series GPUs, there's more reason to get excited about PC gaming hardware than there has been in years. But what is a graphics card? Do you really need one, and which one do you need?

Chris Plante, your fearless What's Tech host, invited me onto the show last week to talk about the past, present, and future of graphics card technology. Then he left to go on vacation in Japan the very next day, meaning I have had to assume his traditional duty of writing this post for the episode. (I will take this matter up with him in an hour or so when I meet him for drinks, and possibly ruin his holiday by asking him to edit me.) In the meantime, please do listen to our hopefully enlightening conversation about the hottest transistors in tech.

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