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    Upgrading M15x GPU

    Discussion in 'Alienware M15x' started by KumquatWrath, Sep 27, 2011.

  1. KumquatWrath

    KumquatWrath Notebook Evangelist

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    Hey guys, I'm new to upgrading, but currently I have a GTX 260m card. I wanna upgrade to a better one for Battlefield 3, but I have no idea which cards are good for the laptop, or even work. I've been skimming through things like the 460m, 560m, 5850m, 5870m, 6970m, etc. However so far I could only find the Radeon 5870m. Do you guys know where I could perhaps buy a more powerful card, and also how difficult is upgrading the card? Thanks!
     
    KumquatWrath, Sep 27, 2011
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  2. Allawi

    Allawi Notebook Guru

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    6970m is a great card to upgrade to, the price for it just went down aswell.

    ATI Mobility Radeon? HD 6970m GPU MXM 3.0 Type B | eBay

    theres a great guide on how to upgrade to this card too, and everything you need.

    Also, if you buy this card, make sure to add in that you do not want the holes soldered in.

    and 1 more thing, this is NOT a dell card, so some things like auto fan control will not work on its own, but you can use HWiNFO to control the fans(its in the 6970m guide aswell), so it really doesnt matter imho.

    http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...u-need-know-upgrading-problems-solutions.html
     
    Allawi, Sep 27, 2011
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  3. KumquatWrath

    KumquatWrath Notebook Evangelist

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    Hm, thanks a lot! I'll look into this. However, with the auto fan not working, would the computer be noisier for manual control?
     
    KumquatWrath, Sep 27, 2011
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  4. Allawi

    Allawi Notebook Guru

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    its not really manual control, HWiNFO controls it for you, so its still basically automatic.
     
    Allawi, Sep 27, 2011
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  5. KumquatWrath

    KumquatWrath Notebook Evangelist

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    Alright thanks a lot!
     
    KumquatWrath, Sep 27, 2011
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  6. TheHighlightGuy

    TheHighlightGuy Notebook Consultant

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    Here's something you'll want to consider:
    If you're upgrading solely for gaming, AMD is definitely the way to go.
    If you want to do some considerable video/photo editing, go the Nvidia route with the CUDA support. You'll love it if you use it, trust me!
     
    TheHighlightGuy, Sep 27, 2011
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  7. KumquatWrath

    KumquatWrath Notebook Evangelist

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    I found the 5870m on eBay too, how is that card performance-wise? It's also like 150 bucks cheaper than the 6970m?
     
    KumquatWrath, Sep 27, 2011
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  8. Allawi

    Allawi Notebook Guru

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    the 6970m is around 1.5-2 times as fast as the 5870m, but 6970m would be a more worthy purchase seeing as its pretty futureproof.
     
    Allawi, Sep 27, 2011
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  9. TheHighlightGuy

    TheHighlightGuy Notebook Consultant

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    The 5850m can be OC'ed to 5870m levels and beyond with ease.
     
    TheHighlightGuy, Sep 28, 2011
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