Integrated card with powerful processor vs dedicated card with weak processor?

i know most of the time, the dedicated card will win, but are there situations where the integrated card might be equal to the dedicated card? i'm asking this because i was looking through this list of top graphics cards here:

PassMark Software - Video Card Benchmarks - High End Video Cards

some of them list an i7 processor with (i think) a dedicated graphics card. if it shows up on this list, does that mean it's pretty good? maybe good enough to run current video games? or am i misinterpreting what this benchmark list means?

 

current integrated intel GPU inside their CPU is not so bad. But if you want gaming machine use dedicated GpU. BTW you always can upgrade CPU later.

 

Wait to either buy the Ivy Bridge with HD 4000 IGP. Looks like almost GT 540M performance along with pretty hefty CPU performance.
Or wait for Trinity which will have an even better IGP performance, and OK CPU performance.

 

yeah. benchmarks say that they indeed are like 540m.

 

Depend on what games you play and how much you want to push the system. For me, dedicated GPU wins all the time. You can always upgrade CPU later, not so for intergrated GPU.

 

dedicated GPU will typically win, Also keep in mind most gaming performanced is bottlenecked by your GPU and not your CPU, so it is always better to slightly skimp on the CPU and get the better GPU, There are some exceptions like some microsoft flight sims were CPU heavy

 

The CPU and GPU are working on two entirely different loads during gaming. The CPU is running the driver that controls the GPU, the game logic, input/output logic, and most everything else the game needs to do. The GPU is what is responsible for drawing the picture that is the result of the CPU's work. It's math intensive and a specialized processor (aka the GPU) is needed to render it within any sort of reasonable timeframe. While a good CPU is needed for processor intensive games, strong GPUs are absolutely required if you want to do more than just casual gaming.

 

Greg, I love you! This is what I was saying a few months back (through pure assumption, as I understand from Computer Science / Programming but NOT from Electrical Engineering) +rep (darned thing said I gave too much rep, I will do it first thing tomorrow )

BTW this is exactly why RTS's are more CPU oriented and FPS's are more GPU oriented (as opposed to number of controlled units being hundreds to one, respectively)

 

^^^ What Cloud Said.

 

They are trying to pack more and more features on to GPUs these days (I think mostly pathing/AI related functions, as there is lots of crossover there with what is needed to do graphics processing), but only games that utilize the correct libraries will benefit from those things. It is generally true that things like strategy games, especially those with lots of units/bases/planets/etc, will benefit from a better CPU the most while games with the latest wizbang super-tesselated-fratal-bloom-hdr-diffuse-god-ray-specular-real-time graphics features or ultra-high resolution textures and ultra-high poly models will get the most out of top end GPUs.

 

I haven't even heard of Trinity. Would you mind explaining? Is it Intel? Reason why I am asking is because I want to get a Ultrabook to compliment my MSI GT780. I was going to wait for Ivy Bridge because I want to be able to play games like Diablo 3 on high settings with my Ultrabook. If Trinity will be better and release in the near future, I may just wait for that.

 

Trinity is AMD's combination CPU/GPU on a chip. It should be more powerful than Ivy Bridge graphics wise, won't produce the heat and battery drain of a (non-switchable) discrete GPU, and should run most modern games on medium/high at 720p or higher. From what I hear, they will be available in "ultrabooks" in the $500-$600 range, while the Intel ones go for $1000+ and will be less powerful in terms of graphics.

CPU-wise, I expect Trinity (quad-core variants) to be on par with an Ivy Bridge i5. This is plenty for most games.

 

Damn, could be right up my alley. Any idea on when they will be available?

 

The HD4000 is NOT 540M equivalent. Anandtech's preview benchs put it lower than the 6550D, which itself is not 540M equivalent. If you want great IGP performance, wait for Trinity.

AnandTech - The Ivy Bridge Preview: Core i7 3770K Tested

 

According to the few benches here the 540M and HD 4000 are pretty close. I don`t know how 6550D perform compared to 540M, and I don`t think you do either, but 6620D clocked much higher than the notebook counterpart, 6620G, which in itself is pretty good



Source: ComputerBase

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/har...-bridge-mobile-3920xm-tested.html#post8216128

3dmark06 almost as 540m.

3dmark11 is really lower.

 

hmmm, Thanks JamesD. Perhaps you were right after all kevmanw, HD4000 is like 400 points below in 3DMark11. It scores the same as GT540M in Vantage GPU though.

 

another good thread to read http://forum.notebookreview.com/har...074-hd-4000-vs-hd-3000-ivy-bridge-tested.html

welcome

 

3dMark06 is closer becasue it is more influenced by CPU. It is proven that the 4000 is not as fast as the 6620G, which based on HtWingnut's analysis, is ~P850 in 3DMark11. The 540M is usually around P1000 stock.

 

Cool, I guess I will be waiting for Trinity. Does everyone concur it will have a better performing GPU? Anyone know when it will be released?

 

It should be released in the next month or two, hopefully. I forgot what date was listed...

 

Trinity is scheduled for May 15, same as Diablo 3 (that's no coincidence).

They're only outfitting the iGPU with about 80% of the shaders IIRC, but at nearly double the clock if early rumors are correct, which brings it to about a 60% performance increase over Llano's IGP. There's a leaked bench floating around here somewhere showing a 56% GPU improvement.

 

I heard 60% faster too. Aren't they also going from VLIW-5 to VLIW-4 like Cayman? I might be wrong, but that would also increase the performance.

Also, it's 384 shaders, so it's still 96% of the shaders.

 

I tried pairing a Celly 420 with a 9600GT. Most games run surprising well. Yes, Dedicated card is a requirement for most games that are new.