The first graphics cards were used in the 1970’s within arcade machines as a cheaper alternative to random access memory (RAM). However, graphics cards were not viable for consumer products until the release of the Large Scale Integration (LSI) circuit chip in the 1980’s. During the early-to-mid 1990’s, graphics cards that were capable of 3D support became more common in arcade, computer, and console games. The first consumer-level GPU meant for personal computers was the Nvidia GeForce 256, which was released in 1999.