Integrated graphics in the E1505/1405?

I am trying to decide between the Intel 950 GMA and the ATI X1400 gpu. If I go for the Intel 950, I'll choose an E1405 for mobility, and I know I won't be gaming at all.

I will certainly choose a Core 2 Duo 1.66 or 2ghz, and 1gb ram.

Graphics-wise I'd like to be able to:

1. Watch DVDs and movie files.
2. Stream fullscreen online sports highlights from sites like NBA.com without video freezing, excessive buffering, or slowdown.
3. Run Aero Glass on Windows Vista eventually. I heard that a special driver for the 950 will enable Aero Glass?

950 or X1400? Can anyone detail their own experiences with the 950?

 

In vidoe performance wise, I've had nothing but troub;e with my old IBM Z60t with an GMA900 chip inside. It'll be not much difference from the GMA950.

 

Go with the E1405, the x1400 is a rather poor gaming chip anyways. Now if you were a hardcore gamer and talking about an integrated chip and a Nvidia 7900 or x1600 it might be different, but i would gladly take the smaller package in favor of the x1400. Just my .02

 

if your really interested in running glass without worry, dont get the gma950

 

I have the gma950 in my E1505(bought it when it was the only option) and I'm always wishing I had a more powerful GPU, and I don't play games. Its just nice to have it there. But if you really want the E1405 then go for it.

 

imho you might get an unpleasant surprise when you try to run Vista w/ Aeroglass on a system with integrated video
X1400 is not exactly what you would call a 'gaming card' but it is definitely much better than gma950

 

This'll be fun; I'm going to take my chances with the 950....man, if only I could be patient and wait till the new chipsets come out...

 

then why bother asking?, its not that much more upfront, the x1300 would suit your needs just fine, and another catch, if you get dedicated graphics, you can upgrade to a better card if ones available for that model, if you get integrated, your stuck with it, a few bucks now, will be much better than needing a new system shortly down the road

 

If you don't play games, get the Intel GMA 950. You don't need a faster card. As for Aero Glass, it's supposed to work with the GMA 950 ( video here).

 

If you really need both (good graphics card and mobility) you shoud look for some other options, like some asus that are 14" and have a x1600 or 7600. Yeah I'm sure it'll cost a little bit more but you'll be set. And those asus notebooks look great!!!

 

there is a difference between running something, and running it well, the bare minimum isnt the way to go if you dont need to

 

Get the x1400 NOW! You will kick yourself in the nuts down the road when you find your intel chipset cant run any games and has dismal performance and you CANT upgrade from intigrated graphics.

Even if you don't plan to game, you may want a game in the future. Its better to pay the $120 now and not $1000 for a new laptop less then a year down the road when you decide you want 3d graphics.

The x1400 is a fine card for games, it plays all but the bleeding edge well.

 

Get nothing less than the X1400. You can't imagine how many people come here saying how bad their DVD quality is. The first question everyone asks is "what GPU do you have?".

ALso to the guy who said that "THe X1400 is a poor gaming chip anyway" That is no exscuse. So he should get an even WORSE chip, just because the better one isn't very good? That doesn't sound logical...

If you are going to be watching dvds or doing vista stuff get the X1400, or you will be dissapointed. I found out this same thing with my desktop. I thought intel extreme would be enough for dvds.. the quality was very poor untill I became a man and bought some really bad ATi card(something like 9200) that was just enough to make dvd watching good enough.

 

I've noticed that when watching a DVD on an external monitor while running dual monitor then the quality is very bad, and sometimes it just doesn't have the berries to run both screeens, And I'm using the GMA 950

 

Well seeing as i own both i think i was pretty qualified to speak on the subject where you are not. DVD quality is just fine on the Intel 950. You all speak like x1400's are swap out ready to upgrade which is not the case. And you may have a different opinion on what is a " good gaming" GPU, but the x1400 does not qualify in my book. And I can't tell the difference between the two when watching DVD's so that argument is a moot point.

 

the x1400 and 1300 use ati's avivio technology, wich can be subjective as to its benefits, though I do find ati's colors to be crisper and overall a slight edge in video quality over nvidia and intel, and no, right now the x1400 is not upgradeable, and probably never will be, but there is a chance, most important though, is the fact that with dedicated graphics, you have options down the road, and, after your warranty is up, and your vid card dies, you need a mobo replacemnt with the gma950, wich in the end it would be more cost effective to just buy a new system, where as if you have a dedicated card, you can find replacements at decent prices, and its not that difficult to replace it yourself, all in all, you'd be better off spending a few bucks on dedicated , especially if the user wants to run vista premium on the machine,it may be able to sqeak by now, but its not even done yet, bottom line, if dedicated graphics are a viable option, always go for it

 

How do you get a video upgrade? I got the 1505 and the GMA950 was the only option. I looked today and I see that now the x1300, x1400, and nvidia go7300 are now options. Is there anyway to upgrade to the 7300?

 

Stryker, thats what weve been saying all along, you can't upgrade from intigrated. Ever.

Sucka, no idea what games your playing but apparently if it cant play oblivion on high detail, you arnt interested and its not considered a "real" gaming card. Of course since most people are still playing games that came out over a year ago, your point is moot.

And yea the dvd argument isnt plausable, I'm sure the 950 is fine. On the other hand the fututre is HD video, and the ati/nvidia cards offer more hardware to help decode this.

 

Ah I see. Sorry I read Iceman's post wrong. I have the 950, however and it runs 1080i .ts files just fine.

 

Well no i don't play oblivion, but that's besides the point. You playing old games and having a different opinion from me would be the moot point here...