GTX 560M Optimus Question

I'm thinking of buying a laptop and had a question that hopefully someone could answer. One of the laptops I am looking at has GTX 560M graphics card. I looked on Nvidia's website as it says the card supports Optimus. The notebook comes with a 2nd generation Core i7 which I believe has integrated graphics. The notebook in question ( Xplorer X6-9300 Gaming Notebook) does not have Optimus support. Is it possible to use the integrated GPU while on battery without Optimus?

Also, is there a big difference between a 540M or 550M/555M with Optimus and the GTX 560 without? I know the 560 is much better but would one of the lower cards provide significantly better battery life (similar configuration as above just different GPU)? I know I would lose 5+ fps with a lower card.

Some background: I game some, but not a lot (less than 10 hrs/week), laptop would be for school and work when I graduate at the end of the year. I am open to suggestions including ATI cards.

Sorry for the long post but thanks in advance!

 

yes the lower mid range tier would give you good battery life, you could go for the x770 from toshiba it packs the 560m and optimus

 

Thanks for the reply! I looked at it but it is too large, looking for something less than 17"

 

well the only option is to go for 15''or wait for the lg p330, which is a 13'''

the m14x dont count son, remember when I told you that there are some women that have something more under their skirts? yeah the m14x is one of those

 

In laptops where Optimus is not enabled, the IGP is complete disabled. There is physically no connection between the IGP and the laptops display. You will be using the GTX 560m at all times. It will downclock to save power when on battery, but it is still going to be more power hungry than the IGP by a wide margin. The only manufacturers who are doing high-end GPUs with some form of switchable graphics are Toshiba (X770 as mentioned above, uses Optimus), and Alienware (M17x R3 and I think M18x, manual switching), but both seem to only be in 17"+ models.

There is a big performance difference between any of the GT cards you mentioned and the GTX. How big of a difference really depends on the game, the resolution, and what detail settings, but it is a very palpable difference.

You really need to ask yourself what's more important; battery life, or game performance. No one really has a good solution for that in a reasonably sized notebook if you're expected 1080p at ultra settings and 60fps in demanding games today and in the near future.

If you're ok with 2-3 hours of battery life doing productivity stuff, then you can probably get by with a laptop with something like a GTX 560M or ATI 6870M (the former seems a lot more common). Many options here, but many here will steer you towards Clevo/Sager (just like the Xplorer unit you found!).

If you're ok with 900p or 1080p games on high settings at good frame rates in today's game, willing to scale back on either resolution or graphic detail in the coming year+, and want 4-6 hours of battery life, then go with something with an Optimus-enabled GT 555m (not so much the 540m, at least in a 15.6" laptop with upwards of a 1080p screen), or ATI 6770m. HP dv6-6xxx and Alienware M14x both spring to mind.

 

Ahh I get it, thanks for the clear response. I'm ok gaming at less than 1080p so it looks like I can broaden my search a bit. Thanks for the help!