True Advantages of Switchable Graphics?

Is there any other benefits to switchable graphics other than the energy saving aspect? Having the discrete card on all the time vs. dynamic switching of graphics due to application use doesn't really matter for me because I have my laptop plugged in all the time. I was wondering if maybe like my discrete card would wear out faster if it was used all the time, but surely even if that was the case it would still be by a narrow margin right?

 

idle temps of discrete GPU stays below 40C

 

What? Huh?

Discrete GPUs are only useful if you plan on gaming or doing some other multimedia task that involves a lot of math (transcoding) *and* supports CUDA or OpenCL (not many apps for that).\

Discrete cards and integrated cards aren't all that different outside of gaming. Both can fail, both have cooling solutions that can fail and wear out, both display video on the monitor, etc, etc. Discrete cards potentially use more juice, create more heat, and require a more bulky laptop chassis than integrated cards. Integrated cards can potentially enjoy longer battery lives when not plugged in, run cooler, and typically are necessary for small/thin notebooks.

Getting a notebook that has both (i.e. switchable) is also only really useful if you are interested in discrete cards while also wanting a better battery life. Otherwise you'll just be paying more for features you don't need .

 

I mean, when you are on windows, iGPU is working so your discrete is at totally idle, reducing your temps to very very low if you are not using. If you disable iGPU then your idle temps hover around mid 50C. I like the fact that my idle temps on discrete card is below 40C (thanks to optimus)

 

Battery life is the only difference. When you're not gaming or doing anything else GPU-intensive, a discrete GPU will downclock itself to IGP levels so temps and "wear" are a non-issue, unless the GPU is defective to begin with. My laptop without switchable graphics still gets ~3-3.5 hours of battery life once I replaced the HDD with an SSD, which is more than I ever find myself needing.

 

I primarily use my laptop for gaming and since I have switchable graphics I was put it on discrete always as I have power plugged in. It seems like this is fine to do then. Thanks guys!

 

I switch to integrated for retro gaming or video watching / surfing when I'm commuting... purely for battery life. There really is not other good reason to switch.

 

I'd say besides battery life you can get far more expert at tweaking and finding drivers for the known issues switchable graphics have (not total control on when to switch on and off)...

 

the true advantage of switchable graphics card alone is the battery life, whic is and imo the most forgotten factor of DTR capability. whenever on general use, you can run at battery with hours of battery life depending on your rig. the discrete ones are for plugged mode and gaming or intensive purposes.

normally when my rig is plugged (and if i really feel some gaming, its discrete mode, when on battery (and power saving mode) like msoffice stuff are internet surfing, its on integrated graphics.

 

Only reason I would buy a laptop with switchable graphics is to conserve battery life while taking it around town or using it on the couch.

Since you keep your laptop plugged in most of the time, you can just keep your laptop on the discrete graphics card. The graphics card won't "burn out" faster or lose its life faster.

 

I have a switchable GPU in my T500. It works pretty well but not as seamlessly as I wish. This laptop is about 3 years old though so I'm sure it's better now.

 

Dedicated GPU is fine to run 100% of the time if you're plugged in. As stated, the only benefit is battery life.

The dedicated GPU is made to be able to run all the time. Anything can happen, but it should live indefinitely and outrun many other critical components in your laptop.

 

With newer and more efficient methods for saving power, discrete GPUs won't consume much more power at idle than integrated graphics:

http://www.nordichardware.com/news/...led-radeon-hd-7970-specifications-leaks-.html

The only noticeable difference will be in low power consuming laptops like ultrabooks where every Watt matters.