How good is an Intel GMA 4500 video card for gaming?

Hello,

I use a laptop mostly for work, but enjoy playing games. I am very happy with my Fujitsu Lifebook s6120, but it has been getting quite slow for my work needs (needless to say it is VERY slow for games). So I am going to buy a new one, and was looking at the Lifebook s7220.

So I would like to know: how good is it for games? Naturally it is worse than a notebook with a dedicated video card, but I've heard that Intel's GMA 4500 chipset is actually surprisingly good for gaming. I don't want to play games like Crysis, but would like to play Guild Wars and Age of Empires III, for example. I would like to play also Oblivion and Fallout 3, even if at medium or low settings. I am very happy with framerates of 30, I don't need 60+.

So, all of you who have a laptop with this videocard, please let me know how good it is. Thanks in advance!

 

By general terms, the HD4500 is a bad bad gaming GPU. The HD4500 is only able to run older games comfortably. Guild Wars and Age of Empire should run without much issue, but Oblivion and Fallout 3 will struggle, even at the lowest settings.

I believe the HD3200 was the IGP with the "surprisingly good gaming performance", not the GMA4500.

 

Okay, thanks for the tips. +rep

By the way, how about the Nvidia 9300? I know it is also integrated, but since a) it's Nvidia and b) it has some dedicated memory, is it any better?

 

9300M GS is about twice as fast:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Graphics-Cards-Benchmark-List.844.0.html

has a good list of notebook graphics.

X4500 is surprisingly better than X3100 and the other previous intel graphics chipsets, but it's still not great (it smokes nvidias bottom of the barrel entry level 7150GO though for example)

 

Go for the NVIDIA 9300, if into mild gaming, though battery life would be much better with the GMA.

 

Isn't the 9300M GS dedicated though? I think it's the 9200M GS which is integrated >.>

But yeah, the 9300M GS will provide a definite improvement over the HD4500.

Intel just isn't really into the GPU business. They mostly stick to CPUs and let Nvidia and ATI make GPUs lol

 

I saw a review about the GMA X4500HD desktop motherboard review and they said it ran oblivion decent at medium settings.

http://www.trustedreviews.com/motherboards/review/2008/08/07/Intel-DG45ID/p2

"Just for larks we decided to see whether the extra performance of G45 yielded any tangible benefits apart from an inflated score in a benchmark and were staggered to find that we were able to play Elder Scrolls:Oblivion at 1,280x1,024 on Medium Quality settings."

 

Hmm well admittedly an integrated GPU's desktop and laptop counterparts must be similar(as compared to a desktop dedicated GPU and a notebook dedicated GPU) so maybe that also applies to the HD4500, but I've heard stories from friends who had trouble running Oblivion on an HD4500.

 

Both 9200M and 9300M have their own dedicated memory. The 9100M is a mGPU, without dedicated memory.

 

I get 50-100 fps in CS 1.6 and about 40avg on Source with the x4500. With the 7150go, I got 40-60fps in 1.6 and 15-30 with Source.

 

From the table in NotebookCheck it seems that an Intel X4500 is little better than an ATI Mobility Radeon 9600. Am I correct?

I am asking this because my girlfriend's computer has a Mobility Radeon 9600, and for me that is not enough (it struggles on Oblivion and cannot run Fallout 3 or Gothic 3, even at minimum settings).

 

Age of Empires works on the Intel X3100 (for me) - NVidia 8400GS looks better though.

This means however, that the Intel X4500 should give you a reasonable/good performance on AoE 3.

 

Oblivion is mildly demanding as a game, but it's moderate compared to most newer games.

Fallout 3 is relatively new and somewhat graphics demanding, therefore I doubt anything integrated will be able to run it smoothly with decent settings.

You're going to have to get some lower end dedicated GPU IMO to run something decent. At least an HD3200 would be best(since that's more powerful than an HD4500 in games) if not a 8400M GS or higher.

 

8400GS is amongst the faulty cards (see NVidia "issue")
So unless you get a laptop with 2 cards like a Sony SZ I wouldn't really recommend it...

 

So the 4500 should be able to handle most games on at least low from a year ago?

Does anyone know if it will run Team Fortress 2? I don't know if it is really that demanding, but it does seem to have quite a few reflections and a lot of particles.

 

I suppose you can switch them off.

 

It might not be so easy. For example, in Age of Empires III, to turn off particles entirely (makes a huge difference in battles with naval units or artillery) you have to hack a .cfg file. The hacking is quite easy to do, but it still isn't something for the basic user.

Sode note: Note that I'm not complaining, as my computer is well below the minimum specs for AoE III. The fact that turning off particles through hacking allows this old computer to run AoE III with quite decent fps even in big battles (around 25) is actually a big plus.

 

The GMA4500 will not be able to play much. I suggest not hoping for much coming from it so you won't be disappointed if it doesn't run some games and if it does run some stuff, then you'll have a nice surprise

It can run older stuff at minimum settings and resolution, but don't expect too much. FEAR apparently runs well at minimum settings on 640*480 just to give you an example.

 

I have decided to order a Dell Latitude E6400 with a Nvidia Quadro 160. From what I gather it will be a good compromise between portability and the ability to play SOME games.

 

Games I play on my GMA 4500.

all games are 1280x800 medium to high settings

(average fps)
Battlefield 2: 30+ fps
warcraft 3: 30+fps
CS:S: 50-60 fps
HL2: 30+fps

(I have no fps avail on following games but they run great)
Sim city 4 (runs better on my laptop then my desktop with a 6800 gt. Probably because it is a more processor sensitive game)
GTA3
Soldier of Fortune 2
Madden 2007


Summary:
I'd say as long as you are into any games that are older than 1-2 years, it's a great GPU. It is very stable and reliable on all the games I listed above. It produces very little heat and battery consumption. Because of the stability, heat, and battery usuage I'm betting this will extend the life of the laptop which is another plus, however this is hard to confirm since it hasn't been around for very long.

People shouldn't be saying the x4500 is not good for gaming, because actually it is awesome for gaming. I think the correct way to put it would be the x4500 is not good for new games (again 1-2 year old games).

 

what are your specs?

 

I've got a laptop with a Pentium M 1.6 GHz with 2 GB RAM and an Intel 82855 integrated graphics card with 64 MB of graphics memory (shared, naturally).

 

w/ what CPU?

 

Wow. I need to check out that hack.
I have a C2D 1.5Ghz 3GB RAM and a GMA 950 but couldn't really play it.

 

Well the term "gaming" is referring to the current generation of games, which is why the HD4500 is not considered a "gaming GPU". Of course it can run older games. My old GMA945 could run games such as WC3, The Sims 2 and Guild Wars, but I wouldn't' dare calling that thing a "gaming GPU" lol

The term "gaming" and "gamer" is usually ongoing and changing. A "gamer" is usually someone who is currently gaming and plays current games(or at least something semi-current). Even if he's really into it, someone who's addict to WC3 wouldn't be a "gamer" by my definition.

It depends on your needs though. Integrated graphics ARE getting better. The HD3200 is able to run most games and can even run Crysis Warhead at lowest settings.

I said the HD4500 will be able to run older games(2 years old or so), but I wouldn't expect too much from it either. The OP mentioned Fallout 3 which is a current generation game, therefore I doubt the HD4500 will be able to handle that.

 

Highly scalable games could be playable too, i.e. anything running on Source engine.
And now that the Radeon HD 3200 has some competition in the forms of the GeForce 9100M G and 9400M G, the integrated battlefield has some honest gains to be made.

 

In terms of the recent IGPs, nvidia 9300 (found inside the new macs) performs the best.

Order goes:
Nvidia 9300
ATI HD3200
Intel GMA 4500/HD

 

Correction, the most powerful IGP is the 9400M GS which is the Macbook. The 9300M GS is a dedicated GPU with 256mb of VRAM. It's a small margin above the HD3200. Past that, the HD3200 is nearly twice as powerful as the HD4500(and 3 times more powerful than the X3100).

I've also read somewhere Nvidia's 8200M performs just as good as the HD4500 if not slightly better.

So the list would be:
- 9400M GS
- HD3200
- HD4500/8200M

 

Thank you Forever_Melody, your correction is indeed correct.

 

Yes, I do want to play Fallout 3. I loved the previous two games of the series. I would also like to play Gothic 3 (same reason). But I mostly play older games.

Still, I think that classifies me as a "mild gamer", hence my choice for the Latitude E6400 with the Nvidia Quadro 160. I want some gaming capabilities without sacrificing portability. In other words, (portability, CPU and RAM) > graphics but not by much.

 

Well you mostly lose portability when it comes to the "real" gaming machines, i.e. those made for heavy gamers with a 256bit bus interface GPU such as the HD3870 or the 9800M GTS and up.

The 9600M GT and below are considered midrange GPUs and are for the casual gamer. They can run all the newest games at a certain performance tweak and they don't compromise portability(a 9600M GT can be found in as small a chassis as 13.3" )

But anyways, I'm glad you managed to find something that fits your needs Hope you enjoy it and if yo have time post a review in the review section, always helps to have more user opinions ^^

 

So would a laptop with these components ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834147823) run a game such as Team Fortress 2 well?

 

The really disappointing thing about the Quadro FX 160m is that it is STILL a 64bit memory interface card. Thus...it is very crippled. Maybe ok for business graphics but for gaming...a no go. It's no better than a 8400m GS.

 

Is there any one run Need For Speed Carbon with GMA 4500? If yes, please show me the FPs that it can play

 

Your best bet is probably to get a laptop with switchable graphics (e.g. ThinkPad T400/T500). This has both an integrated Intel x4500 for desktop applications, video playback, and simple/old games; as well as a dedicated Radeon for complex games and/or OpenGL applications.

The x4500 shines for desktop applications (including Windows Vista Aero), low power usage, and video playback. The x4500HD is slightly faster than the x3100, but the key is that it supports decoding of h264 and VC-1 video (including 1080P Blu-Ray). This allows a slow computer to play back high end video with very good battery life (it removes the decoding burden from the CPU).

As a gaming processor it is fair at best. Most games from 2+ years ago will run fine. But only highly scalable games from the current/future generation (things using the source engine, as well as some Blizzard titles), will run on it adequaetly.

The NVidia 9400M, and Radeon HD3200 are better gaming IGPS. Unfortunately, the 9400M is still quite rare, and the Radeon HD3200 is almost always paired with an AMD Turion processor. I do like AMD, but their laptop processors perform worse on a clock per clock basis, use more power (less battery life), and run hotter than Intel options.

 

Not really. The 9800M GTS can be found in a 15.6" chassis. That's pretty portable for me.

 

Do check HP8510w. It has quadro Fx 570M. i am using this machine and works better than 9600gt on games. this card had gddr3 ram where as even hp dv5 with 9600gt has only ddr2. also the screen is 1920x1200 in 15inch size which makes it super crisp. very powerful system and very portable. good for serious work plus play.

 

you can uses moded nvidia drivers with it and it will do wonders for you. plus it is much pwerful workstation class machine.

 

Can you explain a bit more about this .... ?

 

the drivers for workstation GPU are designed for stability and tuned for openGL performance. if you install the modded drivers, it makes it perform better for games. this is not true however, for all workstation gpu. for example the current generation of latitude and precisions from dell game the best with the stock drivers

am i the only one thats pissed off that almost all of the games coming out now are geared towards delivering eye candy, and forgetting completely about gameplay and actual fun?

i miss serious sam, no one lives forever, etc etc. those were fun, and had an engaging story

the good news is, most of these older really fun games can be had on the cheap on ebay, and the 4500mhd can play them well!

 

This is true for some games, but I find the Halo series and Bioshock to be very notable exceptions that I can testify to.

 

bah, i still play alleycat on my precision using a dos emulator. now that was a great game. i remember having to load it from a 5 inch floppy cos the computer dint have a hard drive.

i'll go with your suggestion and try out bioshock, i thought it looked interesting too.

 

would an intel GMA 4500 be able to run Diablo 3 when it comes out? One of the game developers of Diablo 3 said something to this extent: " aiming to make the game run on a wide range of systems, and have stated that DirectX 10 will not be required." Which makes me think maybe... though i'm an optimist.

 

intel integrated graphics is completely crap... if it can hardly run most games,.. u want a integrated ATI and NVDIA card... if u want to game , get a laptop with a dedicated card...

 

your assertion is disproven by the gaming numbers published at toms and anand.

 

BAM

Check it out. very Very VEry VERy VERY bad GPU imo and iyo

 

that others are 'better' doesn't mean that a GMA is 'bad'.

95% of the world doesn't need or care about max fps.

sheesh

 

Being able to use microsoft word and show flash videos on the internet is not very impressive.

The guy who made this thread asked about if this GPU was good enough for gaming. Yes for old games like wolfenstein or keen maybe, but forget about (and i quote) "I would like to play also Oblivion and Fallout 3, even if at medium or low settings"

The short answer to his question is NO. IMO and IYO

 

The X3100 does Age of Empires 3 very well the 4500 is a significant improvement over that

 

So maybe the answer is: sure, for certain games, but you'll be finding out which games that includes more than you'll be playing them : )