Acer 5745g - Artifacts when switching from Nvidia to Intel GPU

I'm setting up an Acer 5745G for a friend, and I'm getting some weird issues. Whenever I change from the Nvidia GPU to the Intel GPU, it's fine. However, if I go from battery power to plugged in (or vice versa) while running the Intel GPU, I get these weird artifacts on the screen. They're in tall vertical blocks, so to speak, and they slightly blink in rhythm. They go away if I switch back to Nvidia and back to Intel (leaving the power, battery or plugged in, as is) or if I highlight the whole desktop with my mouse (click and drag).

I'm using the latest Nvidia drivers from Acer's website (the other drivers wouldn't even detect the GT 330m). I'm not sure if this is a known bug, if I messed something up with other drivers when I did the Windows 7 clean install, a hardware problem, etc.

Any advice?

 

You said the latest Nvidia drivers.... what about the Intel GMA drivers? If it's an optimus system, they have to go together usually. If you update one, you have to update the other also. The sony's have both Nvidia and Intel drivers in one update package. Does Acer do this?

 

Installing the Nvidia drivers also installs the Intel drivers, and it also contains the software required for it to switch. At least, this is what it seems to be doing.

As I said, I'd really like to try the older drivers listen on the website, but they don't natively detect the 330m. That leads me to believe they won't be have the switching drivers/software.

It also looks like the laptop is getting worse. At one point, we put the computer to sleep while on the Intel GPU. When we woke it up, the screen was completely black with garbage on the very edge of the screen. Occasionally we'd see small flickers up at the top of the screen of the desktop. Switching to the Nvidia GPU was fine still, so I'm beginning to think the Intel GPU itself is bad.

 

Hmm... Well, if you think the Intel GPU is bad, then you might have even bigger problems, because the Intel GMA HD is ON the processor. Literally. I'd RMA it ASAP.

 

I have the same problem as Hans with my laptop (same one). First when I got the artifacts I returned it to the store where I bought it and got a new one. But same problem there with the new one.

If I go to Intel's site and download the latest drivers from there the problem goes away, but then I cannot switch between the GPU's.

I assume Hans also did a clean install to get rid of all pre-installed Acer junk that comes with the laptop? I also did that.

I believe the drivers that were installed on the laptop were newer than the ones on their site.

I have sent a support mail to them, but god knows when I'll get a reply.