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    Will i7 920XM / 940XM & 970M work on battery power?

    Discussion in 'Alienware M15x' started by crayolacandiis, Apr 18, 2018.

  1. crayolacandiis

    crayolacandiis Newbie

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    I'm considering upgrading to a 970M (with the 940XM), but am hesitating because I worry that removing the power cable will crash the system. Can anyone with this configuration assure me that this will not happen? Alternatively, any suggestions on what throttle settings to make running on battery power viable?

    I am aware that battery life will be laughable, but this concern is more for transporting the m15x ≤5 minutes without AC power. Thanks.
     
  2. Reciever

    Reciever D! For Dragon!

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    Why not just put the system to sleep?

    Moving while rendering a project or something?
     
  3. Mobius 1

    Mobius 1 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Don't run any load on the background if you do it.
     
  4. Raidriar

    Raidriar ლ(ಠ益ಠლ)

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    I have to put the system to sleep before pulling the power cable
     
  5. crayolacandiis

    crayolacandiis Newbie

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    RE the sleep mode suggestion: I would like to maintain file transfer connections. In terms of load, they should be very light (ftp/sftp/afp) on CPU and close to nothing on the GPU.

    @Raidriar Thank you for the data point. Is it possible to first limit power use to 65w (stealth mode) and then pull power cable?
     
  6. Raidriar

    Raidriar ლ(ಠ益ಠლ)

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    Never tried, I’ll do it later today and let you know
     
  7. crayolacandiis

    crayolacandiis Newbie

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  8. Raidriar

    Raidriar ლ(ಠ益ಠლ)

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    Confirmed that disabling throttlestop and enabling stealth mode does let you unplug the AC adapter without causing instant shutdown.
     
  9. Mobius 1

    Mobius 1 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    what does stealth mode even do anyways
     
  10. Raidriar

    Raidriar ლ(ಠ益ಠლ)

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    pushes clockes to lowest values on processor/gpu
     
  11. Mobius 1

    Mobius 1 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    does it limit system power consumption?


    did the original M15x configurations with 920xm shutdown instantly when unplugged?
     
  12. Raidriar

    Raidriar ლ(ಠ益ಠლ)

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    Yes

    No but I have stronger/power hungry GPU (vs a paltry 260M or 5850M) that increase the current draw and sometimes it spikes too much for the battery if you unplug before going into stealth mode and it causes a hard shut down.