upgradeable PCI-E GPU in V6V, Z71V?

Well I've been researching deeply for my next laptop, ideally a thin/light category but will be playing various 3D games. So the GPU will be pretty important to me.

Will the GPUs in these be upgradeable down the line? I've read plenty on PCI-E and MXM, as well as some conflicting info on the Z71V (maybe it's just me that's confused).

I'm hoping for a better answer than "nobody knows at this point". I'm less concerned with the technical standards (e.g. MXM) than I am with the practical point of whether somewhere down the line I'll be able to pop SOMETHING into my laptop to give it a bit of a GPU refresh in a year or so.

I like the Z71V for its power, though an ensemble like the V6V still attracts me because of it's thinner/lighter package (not to mention I'm used to brand name laptops and have never purchased a white box laptop).

If the answer is truly "no one knows for sure" then I'd lean toward the Z71V or a similar machine with a GF Go 6600 in it. If the answer is more like "yes, asus is committed to supporting video upgrades in models X, Y, and Z" then I'd lean toward something like the V6V which could power my games today but with a bit less GPU power for tomorrow.

I'm surprised I haven't seen more discussion around this-- maybe I'm missing the posts.

 

The reason for the lack of discussion is that it aint possible. Although these current notebooks utilise pci-x they are not user upgradeable, nor have ati or nividi begun producing moduals to sell retail. Thus even if they were you wouldn't be able to buy a card. As far as I no these current models are also still somewhat integrated with the m/b...thus you cant just slip the old one out from the side and slip in a new card. Although there was alot of hype last year about mxm etc, it will still be a year or two maybe longer till we see the kind of upgradeablity that desktops have, and even then, the question remains is it in the best interest of the notebook makers to give us upgradeable gpu's...not really...then we wouldn't buy a new notebook. Also the biggest buyers of notebooks are still business people, gamers are small fry in the notebook market, thus the just aint the financial motive for the manf. to push this tech. sorry, I wish it wasn't like that but it is
a


ASUS M6Ne 15.4" WSXGA 1.7 PM ATI9700 80Gb HDD 1Gb RAM

 

Confirms my point on conflicting information. From G2P's Z71 review post:

"...One very notable feature which may be a shock to everyone is the modular video card. That’s right asus just made this puppy upgradeable for gamers (if the cards them selves ever reach the market of course). 4 screws come off. Heatsink dismounts. Video card pops out just like ram. And presto you are holding the pcie 6600 Go with 128mb. "

http://www.geared2play.com//phpbb/nfphpbb/viewtopic.php?t=57

I'm not challenging what you're saying, specifically-- I'm just reading two different things and don't know what it indicates for upgradeability of the GPUs.

I recognize the fact that no one sells them NOW (though I imagine possibly-vendor-specific units will show up on ebay)-- I'm curious on any stated direction from the manufacturer (Asus in this case) or what the dealers may have heard informally. e.g. Whether this is a modular yet NOT MXM implementation, whether it really is an MXM implementation, whether G2P was smoking crack when writing the review, etc.

 

i think that post is a little misleading. Just cuz you can detach a part from a computer, it doesn't mean that it's user upgradable. I can pull my laptop apart and detach the LCD, doesn't mean my LCD is user upgradable, even though there are two versions of it (XGA and SXGA+). The same goes for the videocard, except there aren't any alternative versions of it!

Technically, if Asus made another notebook with the same form factor and the video card was oriented the exact same way, you could pull out the video card from that computer and stick it in yours. However, I don't know of any Asus lines that have had any critical upgrades (e.g. screen, videocard, motherboard) since their inception. The m3, m6, and w1 for instance, has not changed since they were first put out, but instead are being phased out with w3, w5, w6, and v6's.

Your best bet in user upgradable laptops would be the Dell machines, since they tend to keep the same form factor for their laptops for a longer duration and offer a much larger variety of video cards for their line of laptops. But to upgrade the videocard you have contact tech support and order a replacement part, so don't expect any great deals for the upgrade.

If i were you, i'd get the lappy with the 6600 go. And when it no longer does gaming to your satisfaction, sell it and get a new laptop... it'll probably be cheaper and more convenient.

Asus M3NP 1.5GHz Centrino (Dothan /w 2mb L2)
1GB PC2700 DDR
100gb 5400rpm 8mb Cache Seagate Hard Drive /w 5 Year Warranty
Intel 2200BG 802.11g Wireless

 

I think Justin said in a pervious post that he thinks that the V6V may be upgradable in the future, it just depends on when Asus releases a card. idk i could be wrong, Justin would prob know for sure though

 

Well guys... I hate to disagree.... but everyone is about as right as they are wrong.

Although it's physically possible to remove the card..... it's certainly more challenging than swapping a hard drive. However, if you're knowledgable enough to want to upgrade down the road, you can probably figure it out and manage to do it yourself (although you're going to know your system inside and out before you're done).

At the same time, because there are so many form factors, it's almost impossible to say whether down the road you're going to be able to just pick up a new card meant for 100 different laptops and it work in yours. However, Asus usually keeps a design around for 2+ years...... which means that say a system like the V6 could be around two and half years from now and have changed chipsets, graphics cards and more, 3 or 4 times. The trick is, say 6-7 months from now if they manage to put a bigger card in something like the V6..... due to the shrinking technology.. maybe don't upgrade right away, but realize you can probably upgrade without a problem. So if a couple years go by, you may not be able to use the newest card that comes out if say the form factor changes. However, as long as the model is being made, there is a great chance you can do this. If say something was really unpopular, and the model was tossed.... you very well may be out of luck. The good news is, on the high end models, the chances of them not continuing to make them and even make them better as the technology improves, they will most likely continue to make something that you can upgrade to for at least a year if not longer.

The best thing is, for something like the V6 would be that it just came out and it's very popular and has gotten great reviews. All the more reason you'll see this around for a long time. If you were looking at a bottom of the barrel unit that's already been refreshed a few times over 2-3 years... there is a pretty good chance it'll just disappear.

Just my two cents.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

Thanks for the replies. That's about what I was guessing was the case. I'm resolved now to buy the GPU I want for today's and possibly tomorrow's games and not hope for an upgrade path.

 

Just get the refreshed W1, its got the x700 in it

 

Funny you mention it-- I didn't realize the W1N refresh was coming as well as the fact that it will have the X700 in it until I saw related posts last night. I think I'll wait till then and pick one up when it does. Thanks for the info.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by foobysmacker

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>which is faster? the mobile x700 or go6600?<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>

I'm pretty sure that the mobile X700 performs a little bit better than the go6600 benchmark-wise, but only by a slim margin. As for real-life performance, well, from what I've heard they perform at about the same level.

 

Actually I'd call them about equal, depending on your application and the other factors in the system. There was a good post of 3DMARK05 scores here--> http://notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=68910

Note the 6600 scored just above the X700. However, if you research other posts, you'll find specific 6600 laptops scoring LESS than specific X700 laptop scores. Those vary I'm sure based largely on specific hardware configurations and test conditions.

Of course, add to the mix the fact that the GeForce 6's and ATI RADEONs trade performance advantages depending on the engine of specific games (e.g. one is better than the other in DOOM3, while the other is better in HL2/Source, etc.).

I was at some point concerned about getting an X700 because I thought it was faster than the 6600, but now I think it's more of a wash, and personally I'm now more concerned about consistency with my other rigs (4 Nvidia machines, 1 ATI). I'm a fanboy of neither, and for me there's some definite value in having all of one or the other when time comes around for driver upgrades and performance tweaking.

The one thing that could change my mind at this point might be some concrete data that indicated the X700 was better than the 6600 on battery life. Not so much on raw power consumption but including the effectiveness of the drivers' abilities to conserve power under normal usage conditions. Anyone seen/have any data on this?

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by foobysmacker

 

I used to love Nvidia..... in the graphic design and architecture field, nvidia is sworn by for open gl programs....... however of late I feel the ati cards are performing better for say 80% of what the average person is using them for..... and seems to run cooler....... one nice reason to put it in a laptop.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

so far i haven't seen any decided advantage of either for battery life. It appears that the Nvidia card is more flexible to under/overclock to conserve battery life or increase performance, based on what Asus did with it for the Z71v and this thread: http://notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=80992

drum while you work

 

well, Asus always seems to underclock their graphics cards and both seem to have the same overclockability...... I'd leave it up to personal preference.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]