The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    GTX280m better then HD4870?

    Discussion in 'Gaming (Software and Graphics Cards)' started by KillWonder, Oct 22, 2009.

  1. KillWonder

    KillWonder Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    155
    Messages:
    432
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    31
    According to notebookcheck the 280m is better but is this also the case with the HD4870 DDR5 version like it is found in Alienware mx17's?
     
    KillWonder, Oct 22, 2009
    #1
  2. boypogi

    boypogi Man Beast

    Reputations:
    239
    Messages:
    2,037
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    the gddr5 hd4870 will dominate the gthx280m
     
    boypogi, Oct 22, 2009
    #2
  3. Cobra03

    Cobra03 Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    178
    Messages:
    513
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    LOL 4870 GDDR3 found in the M17x. haha. Dell messes up again.
     
    Cobra03, Oct 22, 2009
    #3
  4. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

    Reputations:
    2,389
    Messages:
    10,552
    Likes Received:
    7
    Trophy Points:
    456
    Maybe you should check out the AW forum... they're shipping w/ GDDR5.
     
    sgogeta4, Oct 22, 2009
    #4
  5. kryptonian

    kryptonian Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    33
    Messages:
    468
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30

    DELL really did drop the ball on this one. People are actually getting the DDR3 version and not the DDR5 version that was advertised. I cant belive dell would make such a blunder. Some angry folks in the Alienware forum right now.
     
    kryptonian, Oct 22, 2009
    #5
  6. Darth Bane

    Darth Bane Dark Lord of the Sith

    Reputations:
    506
    Messages:
    2,103
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    Darth Bane, Oct 22, 2009
    #6
  7. kryptonian

    kryptonian Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    33
    Messages:
    468
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    A few people have posted their invoices over there. They it clearly say: "CrossFireX - Dual 1GB GDDR5 ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870"

    I have my dell quote and will copy and paste it
     
    kryptonian, Oct 22, 2009
    #7
  8. kryptonian

    kryptonian Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    33
    Messages:
    468
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Item Number
    Quantity
    Item Description



    224-5966
    1
    Red Metallic

    317-0821
    1
    Intel Core2 Extreme Quad QX9300 2.53GHz (12MB Cache, 1066MHz FSB)

    317-1500
    1
    6GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1066MHz

    421-0415
    1
    Mouse Pointers,STANDARD

    320-8140
    1
    17.0in, WUXGA,LCD,ANW,M17X

    320-0759
    1
    CrossFireX - Dual 1GB GDDR5 ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4870

    341-0004
    1
    500GB 7,200RPM (xMB Cache) w/ Free Fall Protection

    330-3924
    1
    Name Plate Engraving

    421-0726
    1
    ALIENFX BLUE

    420-3251
    1
    Windows Vista Home Premium (64-bit Edition) with Service Pack 1

    330-5414
    1
    Windows 7 Home Premium UpgradeCoupon, W0, ENG,SPN,FRE,GER JPN

    421-0371
    1
    Avatar 2

    421-0389
    1
    Window Style, DFT

    410-0173
    1
    ADOBE ACROBAT READER - Eng

    313-7710
    1
    Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Combo (BR-ROM, DVD+-RW, CD-RW)

    430-3558
    1
    Internal 300Mbps Dual-Band a/g/n 2x2 MIMO

    421-0405
    1
    Automatic Updates ON

    421-0398
    1
    Power Plan, BAL

    421-0399
    1
    Time Zone, CENTRAL

    988-7347
    1
    No Warranty beyond 1 year

    994-7017
    1
    Dell Limited Hardware Warranty Plus At-Home Service, Initial Year

    994-3730
    1
    Warranty Support,Initial Year

    994-3700
    1
    CompleteCare Accidental DamageProtection, Inspiron Desktop, 1 Year

    990-8029
    1
    1 Year Limited Warranty and Next Business Day,Desktop

    420-8878
    1
    Software, Soft Contracts Dell In-Home

    412-0358
    1
    Soft Contracts - Consumer Complete Care

    994-3660
    1
    Next Business Day In-Home Service after Remote Diagnosis , Initial Year

    330-0171
    1
    S and P Drop-in-Box Marcom forDHS Notebooks

    430-0628
    1
    Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR

    421-0393
    1
    Wallpapers, C02W

    421-0361
    1
    Wallpapers, C03W

    420-3257
    1
    Wallpapers, C07W

    421-0381
    1
    RSS Feeds,AW

    330-5090
    1
    Thank You for Purchasing AlienWare

    *
    -DISCOUNT: SPECIAL OFFER

    *
    AW:KAL-EL
     
    kryptonian, Oct 22, 2009
    #8
  9. anothergeek

    anothergeek Equivocally Nerdy

    Reputations:
    668
    Messages:
    1,874
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    GDDR5 4870 is still fictional :rolleyes:

    1GB GDDR3 4870 vs GTX 280M? It's a wash. Too close to call. A tie. Call it what you want, but this comes down to brand preference. Nvidia has guaranteed driver support, and if this is the M17x in question, will function better on a Nvidia mobo with 9400M.
     
    anothergeek, Oct 22, 2009
    #9
  10. catacylsm

    catacylsm Notebook Prophet

    Reputations:
    423
    Messages:
    4,135
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    106
    M17X ships with gddr3 not 5, your invoice is innacurate because you have been falsely advertised to.

    There is a minor chance, as "apparently" there was an engineer that inspected the cards to be GDDR5 but ive seen in the thread that the memory was samsung *blah model number* and it matched ddr3.

    Keep hoping, prehaps alienware will release gddr5 with another refresh.
     
    catacylsm, Oct 22, 2009
    #10
  11. kryptonian

    kryptonian Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    33
    Messages:
    468
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Yes, I know that. I copy and pasted it to show Darth Bane.
     
    kryptonian, Oct 22, 2009
    #11
  12. Darth Bane

    Darth Bane Dark Lord of the Sith

    Reputations:
    506
    Messages:
    2,103
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    I knew that people had invoices saying they were gddr5, but they weren't actually shipped with them.
     
    Darth Bane, Oct 22, 2009
    #12
  13. catacylsm

    catacylsm Notebook Prophet

    Reputations:
    423
    Messages:
    4,135
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    106
    Its a real shame to be fair, what will you do kryp? go for a refund or keep the machines, the ATI cards aren't short of power, but not much powerfuller then the nvidia ones (which the mobo is nvidia as well as the awesome driver support you guys have.)
     
    catacylsm, Oct 22, 2009
    #13
  14. kryptonian

    kryptonian Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    33
    Messages:
    468
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    I see, sorry for the misunderstanding then.
     
    kryptonian, Oct 22, 2009
    #14
  15. kryptonian

    kryptonian Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    33
    Messages:
    468
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Well my friend, I came out of this luckier then those that actually had their order shipped to them. You see, I decided at the last minute to wait to actually place the order because I didnt want Vista on my system. I wanted to wait till today or tomorrow to place the order knowing I would have Windows 7 already on it. All I can say is WHEW!!!! im glad I waited! im not sure what im going to do. im leaning towards the the SLI 280s at the moment. I still cant belive dell make such a huge blunder!
     
    kryptonian, Oct 22, 2009
    #15
  16. kryptonian

    kryptonian Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    33
    Messages:
    468
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    The copy and paste job that I did in this thread was one of the many quotes I was sent by a dell relashonship manager that I was "negotiating" with :)
     
    kryptonian, Oct 22, 2009
    #16
  17. BrandonSi

    BrandonSi Notebook Savant

    Reputations:
    571
    Messages:
    1,444
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    Yeah, the Dell/AW 4870 GDDR5/3 thing is ridiculous. Going to be some seriously upset people.

    As far as the OP is concerned, if we're talking 4870 GDDR3 vs 280M, for most purposes their the same. I'd take the 280M because of CUDA support, but that's not really gaming related.
     
    BrandonSi, Oct 22, 2009
    #17
  18. jk6959

    jk6959 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    7
    Messages:
    291
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    You've gotta think of the whole package when it comes to utilising the graphics power, and due to the GDDR5 blunder it's a choice of paying more for same sort of specs ATI card on an Nvidia mobo without Raid0. I think Nvidia driver support + Raid0 + $200 or so saved is far better (unless you play the tiny spattering of DX10.1 games)
     
    jk6959, Oct 22, 2009
    #18
  19. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

    Reputations:
    2,389
    Messages:
    10,552
    Likes Received:
    7
    Trophy Points:
    456
    That really blows.
     
    sgogeta4, Oct 22, 2009
    #19
  20. Soviet Sunrise

    Soviet Sunrise Notebook Prophet

    Reputations:
    2,140
    Messages:
    6,547
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    205
    I lol'ed at this thread.
     
    Soviet Sunrise, Oct 22, 2009
    #20
  21. KillWonder

    KillWonder Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    155
    Messages:
    432
    Likes Received:
    17
    Trophy Points:
    31
    So the MX17's HD4870 it actually a DDR3?
    But its clearly stated on the official site of Dell that its a GDDR5!
     
    KillWonder, Oct 22, 2009
    #21
  22. v_c

    v_c Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    124
    Messages:
    635
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Some sites it does. Some sites it says GDDR3. Some sites it says nothing, just 4870.

    Its just a big screw up on Dells part, and to be honest I think a lot of people wanted it to be GDDR5 so badly that they ignored the caution signs. Probably there will be a lot of returned/cancelled orders.
     
    v_c, Oct 22, 2009
    #22