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    Does Inspiron 14R-2nd Gen has Switchable GPU?

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by bhupatib, Jun 8, 2011.

  1. bhupatib

    bhupatib Newbie

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    A friend is going to buy a new laptop. He's a
    portability junkie and values battery life but also
    doesn't want to compromise on some casual gaming.
    I suggested the new SandyBridge (Core i3-2310) Inspiron 14R and it
    seems perfect but there's a little doubt about whether he'd be able to switch off the GPU (Radeon
    6470M) when not in need and save some juice? How long will the battery last with the GPU active all the time?
    Can anyone confirm whether there's any option to manually switch to the onboard HD3000 IGP?

    Also just out of curiosity, are these graphics switching abilities card specific as some setting in
    the Catalyst driver or something proprietary that
    manufacturers deploy?
     
    bhupatib, Jun 8, 2011
    #1
  2. Tsunade_Hime

    Tsunade_Hime such bacon. wow

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    Okay after some digging, it looks like the new N4110 does support switchable graphics, which is a wonder why they don't put that as a selling point up front.
     
    Tsunade_Hime, Jun 8, 2011
    #2
  3. bhupatib

    bhupatib Newbie

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    That's a relief! And yes, instead of promoting silly changeable lids as 'Switch' they should have promoted this, more practical...
    Now just to make it 'legit', somebody should confirm this -
    If under Device manager>Display adapter they've both ATI and Intel drivers listed then it's sure to have this feature. ( Source)
    Now this'll also mean that one have to wait for Dell to provide driver update instead of ATI. Right?
     
    bhupatib, Jun 8, 2011
    #3
  4. Falco152

    Falco152 Notebook Demon

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    Pretty much yes, you have to wait for dell to release.

    It is illegal for AMD to package the Intel drivers in their drivers.
     
    Falco152, Jun 10, 2011
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  5. tien714

    tien714 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Did you figure out if the Dell 14 r with the ati 6470m has switchable graphics? I was wondering the same things and I thought I was the only one. Please share with us your findings.
     
    tien714, Jun 25, 2011
    #5