How necessary are dual GPU's for gaming?

Hey guys been browsing the forum for a while and I am looking to buy an alienware very soon. I dont have enough space for a desktop so the laptop is the solution for me. Im considering the m15x and m17x. I just want to get a system that will be able to play games at a high level for 3 years or so. I know the m17x is the more powerful system and I really like that LED screen. Other then that it seems like the duel GPU option is the only difference. From what ive read it seems like the m15x is free from alot of the issues the m17x is having. I dont do any video editing I just want this thing for gaming and regular browsing maybe watching a dvd here and there. If the m15x will give me games at close to the best settings for a while then thats real tempting if i get to avoid the issues with the m17 and save some money(really do like that LED screen though ) I want to get the 920 processor(is this really necessary?) and I keep being told to go with the solid state drives. I can probably manage about 3500 to 3600. What would you guys do ?

 

For 3,500, I'd get the m17x with RGB, dual 4870's and the 820QM.

The 920XM is an excellent processor, but unless you really can burn the cash it doesn't seem worth it over the 820, unless OC'ing is your goal.

For that price point, that's the model and config I'd go with.

 

Also dual 4870's now will be much more futureproof than the 260m in the m15x. Think about that before you buy anything.

 

Do you think the 5870's will be significantly more then the 4870's are now ?

 

A single 5870 is 15-20% faster than a 4870, plus you get DX11. Given that the rumors are as early as start of march for the 5870s, it's worth the wait for a few weeks. Only a couple hundred more in cost at most. You will still fit comfortably in your budget.

 

Also what about the solid state drives ? I dont really want an external drive.

 

When what im worried about is the cost ?

 

I justified the cost with the performance (in addition to estimating the cost).

As for SSD, get one to house the OS and your apps. Traditional HDD for your music/video misc files. People have mixed experiences with RAID SSDs and the cost is very prohibitive.

 

yes they will be.. there newer so you can expect a high price tag

 

if your a casual gamer than a single gpu would be fine, if your into crazy frame rates and benchmarking than a duo gpu. any of the i7 would get the job done for gaming, 920 if you like to oc. Yes the 5870 are better than 4870, but i wouldn't consider it significant in real world performance. ssd will improve overall system performance.

 

well i dont really care about benchmarking. Like i said I am interested in being able to play on the high settings. When I say being able to play i mean smoothly so i guess that means higher framerates. Does the duel GPU come into play for that as well ?

 

I have M15x and pretty much all games i play i get 35+ fps. Mass Effect 2 for example I get 45-60 fps. is that enough?

 

yes, i appreciate the input man

 

yes but at what settings?

 

all highest settings. other owner report the same fps on Mass Effect 2 also, that game is like butter, even on i7 720.

 

thanks for the advice guys ! I went ahead and got the m17x. I think i was able to get myself a great deal here's what i got !

Alienware M17x




Date 2/17/2010 6:11:48 PM Central Standard Time

Catalog Number 29 Retail 19



Catalog Number / Description Product Code Qty SKU Id



System Color:
Space Black - Anodized Aluminum QSMBLK 1 [224-8107] 1


Processor:
Intel® Core™ i7 820QM 1.73GHz (3.06GHz Turbo Mode, 8MB Cache) 820M 1 [317-3658] 2


Operating System:
Genuine Windows® 7 Ultimate, 64bit, English AW7U6E 1 [420-6436][420-9691][421-1398] 11


Service:
1 Year Basic Serivce Plan S1OS 1 [421-1721][908-2207][922-3410][950-3337][950-9797][994-3730] 29


Video Card:
Dual 1GB ATI Radeon™ Mobility HD 4870 in CrossfireX™ ATICRSF 1 [320-8858] 6


Display Panels:
17-inch WideUXGA 1920 x 1200 RGB LED (1200p) LED1200 1 [320-8856] 5


Memory:
4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1333MHz 4GB1333 1 [317-3663] 3


Hard Drive:
256GB Solid State Drive 256SSD 1 [342-0671] 8


CD ROM/DVD ROM:
Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader (BR-ROM, DVD+-RW, CD-RW) BDCOM 1 [313-8569][421-1304][421-1305] 16


Sound:
Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio IS 1 [313-8944] 17


Bluetooth:
Internal Wireless Bluetooth® 2.1 with EDR TM370I 1 [430-0628] 606


Wireless:
Intel® Ultimate N WiFi Link 6300 a/g/n 3x3 MIMO Technology INT6300 1 [430-3739] 19


Adobe Reader Acrobat SW:
Adobe Acrobat Reader ADOBER 1 [410-1883] 15


AlienFX:
Quasar Blue BLU 1 [313-8792][421-2261] 10


Avatar:
Alienhead 3D AVITR1 1 [421-1573] 12


Wallpapers:
Alienhead 3D WAL1 1 [421-1591] 13


Keyboards & Mice:
Razer Mamba Wireless Laser Gaming Mouse 2647344 1 [A2647344] 5801


Factory Installed Games:
Steam and Portal™ Factory Installed STEAM 1 [421-1360] 73


Power Adapters:
240 watt Adapter ADT240 1 [330-7841] 4


Automatic Updates:
Automatic Updates: On AUTOON 1 [330-6348] 20


Standard Nameplate Trigger:
Standard Nameplate SPLATE 1 [330-6175] 74



so my subtotal was 3122 off of close to 3900 bucks !!! With the Mamba mouse i got them to throw in for free ! its like an 800 dollar savings !!! Cant wait !

 

as necessary as air is to your survival.

if you only want a single GPU in 1 year u won't be able to play the games on high setting, so whats the point spending all that money on a gaming laptop?

 

i got the duel 4870's !

 

Sorry for the noob question: based on the Alienware website does that mean get the SSD drive for the primary and select HDD for the secondary(additonal drive)? I want to make sure the OS is installed on the SSD as you recommended.

 

Dual*

And congrats you won't be disappointed.

 

Or just get the 4870's and buy the 5870's seperate when they come out and install/upgrade them in your alienware yourself. See, no waiting.