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    Upgrading to 7970M Help :)

    Discussion in 'Alienware 17 and M17x' started by dmaster9494, Jun 5, 2014.

  1. dmaster9494

    dmaster9494 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Currently have a 6900m in my alienware m17xr3 and i think its time to just do this thing. Ive been alot of talk recently but If I can afford it I should be able to do it this month. Here r my questions-

    Anybody know the cheapest place to get one online? Do I just need the card? Heres the one I found FREE SHIPPING DHL&EMS For M15X ,M17X ,M18X AMD HD 7970M 2GB GDDR5 216 0836036 09XVK3 MXM 3.0 VGA CARD Graphics Card-in Other Consumer Electronics from Consumer Electronics on Aliexpress.com

    I dont need to replace the heat sink do I?

    Can somebody give me a link to a install guide?

    Should the performance difference be huge?

    Help would be appreciated, Ive never done anything this complicated to a computer and im kinda scared of doing this. :(
     
    dmaster9494, Jun 5, 2014
    #1
  2. sangemaru

    sangemaru Notebook Deity

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    Oh god, not that aliexpress vendor. He has only 66% positive reviews, ugh.

    Well, one of the options you could do would be to order the 8970m off the marketplace, it's at a wonderful price:

    http://forum.notebookreview.com/com...plate-gpu-x-bracket-unknown-gpu-heatsink.html

    Basically whether or not you use the 7970m or 8970m or M290X, the mechanical installation portion is completely covered by this guide: http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...-mobility-7970-m17x-r3-illustrated-guide.html

    It should answer most of your questions. The performance difference will pretty much be 100% over your current card.

    Be warned that depending on the vendor of the card, or drivers or OS used, or vbios etc. some functionality may be affected, such as brightness control, or HDMI or displayport features, you'd have to research heavily and be prepared for possible drawbacks (if you care about them, that is :p)
     
    sangemaru, Jun 5, 2014
    #2
  3. dmaster9494

    dmaster9494 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Omg I would have bought that card in a heart beat lol. Let me know if you find any vid cards anywhere for sale please, im gonna start looking myself :)
     
    dmaster9494, Jun 5, 2014
    #3
  4. dmaster9494

    dmaster9494 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Will a AMD HD8970M 4GB work with my laptop?
     
    dmaster9494, Jun 5, 2014
    #4
  5. TomJGX

    TomJGX I HATE BGA!

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    It should work.. Someone definetly did this upgrade on this forum and there's a thread for it...
     
    TomJGX, Jun 6, 2014
    #5