UPDATED - The Mobile Graphics Card Info Page - Most GPU Qs answered

Chaz,
Great chart, especially the part on Integrated graphics. I am one of those unfortuante folks that doesn't play games (maybe I should get a life hahahaa). Based on everything I have read it seems to be that an integrated card would be fine for me especially if I get 1 gig of ram or more. I use my computer for:
- web surfing
- watching streaming video
- Skypeing and video chat
- music
- basic photo editing
- business use, ms office etc.

I favor 14 inch thin and lights laptops and favor good battery life - don't you think integrated graphics plus a lot of RAM is the best solution? My current Acer TM3200 has a Radeon 9700 and I notice battery life isn't brilliant so I am thinking integrated graphics next time.

 

Greetings guygharvey, thank you for reading my guide.

You should be fine with integrated graphics. I would at least try and get a GMA950 or Radeon Xpress 200M (as both of those can run Vista's Aero Glass user interface). The GMA900 can't. It is one of the more common integrated graphics cards.

The HP Pavilion dv1000t is a nice 14".

Chaz

 

Thanks Chaz, you are a brilliant, I was just about to recommend a Travelmate 4062 to a couple of friends - only $950 but after reading your post I checked and found that it had that ****ed 900 chipset, for $150 more they can get the TM4042 with dual core and the 950. You saved them!

Cheers,
Guy

 

I am looking at an dell e1505 with the x1400 256 option. Is this worth it or should I just got with the 128? I read your post at the beginning but you werent clear on whether the x1400 with 256 was wortwhile.

-Mike

 

It doesn't come with 256MB of dedicated memory, it uses HyperMemory (shared RAM borrowed from the main memory) as a substitute. The "256MB X1400" is, in reality, 128MB dedicated and 128MB shared.

The X1400 isn't powerful enough to use 256MB of memory effectively anyway.

Chaz

 

Which do you recommend I go with? 128 or 256?

 

The "128MB HyperMemory" card only has 64MB of dedicated memory. Using "HyperMemory" is just a cheap way to sell cards that appear to have more than they really have. 64MB of dedicated video memory is really terrible for any sort of gaming these days. Get the "256MB" aka 128MB dedicated X1400.

Chaz

 

ok. i'm brand new here. great review btw.
i was wondering if you could help me find the laptop i'm looking for.
I was interested on a 14" widescreen. fast processor, lots of ram and the best video car for the size of the laptop.
i was looking at the asus a8ja or the a8jm but i haven't found any reviews on those yet.
any other recomendations on a better 14"wscreen laptop?
thanks

 

luiskim you might want to go to the "What to buy" forum and fill out the FAQ that is stickied on the top. That will help us recommend a laptop for you.

Welcome to NBR!

 

Hey Chaz, that was a very informative read, but I seem to find it hard to decide which category the nVidia GO7800 falls under (NOT the GTX). Yknow, the one that was previously in the Dell Inspiron E1705?

Cheers.

 

I have it at the bottom:

At the bottom.

Chaz

 

do you guys know where does the Ge 6600 64MB stands? is it better than
the X600 with 256MB?

 

The Go6600 is the better card, even with 64MB of video memory. However, if you plan to play games with it, don't even bother with 64MB cards. 128MB is the minimum. You might try completing the FAQ in the What Should I Buy forum for a notebook recommendation.

Chaz

 

thanks chazman

it's because i was considering the qosmio f25.

i only play like 3-4 hours a week and games like winning eleven or flashpoint.
but you know i want to have a descent card in case a nice game comes up in a year or two, i don't want to be stuck and get frustrated.

 

If you plan to keep current with games, or like to be able to play at more than low settings in a years time, be sure to go with a 128MB+ card. An X700/Go6600 would be ideal.

Chaz

 

hi all
quick question: which better.....radeon X1400 or radeon X700..thanks

 

I'd go for x700. Except if you do a lot of video encoding.

Cheers,

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16834115198
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16834115223

which one better for gaming (i can't go higher $$$$ ) thanks

 

Gaming depends on the video card. This is what the chart is for - look at this chart, and the other one posted to see which is faster, thanks.

 

Nice Chaz!! Very useful info. I can use this info. to buy a laptop in this Summer!:ati: :nvidia:

 

Any idea where the FireGL V5200 cards/ family of cards would fit in here? I know it's primarily a workstation card, but I'm wondering how they would measure up to the rest.

 

The V5200 is equivalent to an X1600. Don't buy a workstation card unless you plan on rendering.

Chaz

 

Ok quick question. Which is better, the x1600 or 7600 GO?

Braden

 

They're both in the same class as I stated in the guide, so expect similar performance. The X1600 has proven to be an extremely strong performer from what we have seen so far, haven't heard much about the Go7600. The X1600 is faster when comparing 3DMark05 scores though, even thoug the synthetic benchmarks such as that don't really give accurate measurements of performance (only games do).

Chaz

 

I understand that the x700 (and 6600) is faster than some of the newer cards such as the x1400 and the 7400, but what features is it lacking?

So far, I've come up with this list of missing features for the x700:

1. No Shader Model 3.0 (only supports SM 2.0)
2. No HDR Effects
3. No Radiosity Effects

Am I missing any other major features?
I'm not a hard-core gamer so I'm not sure if these missing effects are really noticeable. Is it worth the drop in framerates I will see by going with a x1400 or 7400 over the x700 (or 6600)?

Thanks.

 

Hi, thank you for this comparison between notebook's graphic cards!

Do you have any idea of what could be their prices?
Is there a noticeable difference between a X1600/7600 and a X800/6800 model?

Regards,
Adrien.

 

Incorrect. I can run games with HDR fine, such as Half-Life 2: lost coast, and some maps in CS:S. If you mean using SM 3.0, then no, because the X700 only has Shader 2.0b.

Well, if you're not a hardcore gamer, and X1400 should be fine for you. The X700 will be noticably faster, though. Depends on what games you want to play.

Prices for the notebooks with those cards?

The X1600 has similar performance to the Go6800 . . can't really go wrong with either. Given a choice, I would go for the X1600 becuase it doesn't produce as much heat, uses less power, and you get better battery life.

The X800 is extremely rare, very few notebooks have it. Skip over that card. An X1600 is better.

Chaz

 

Thank you for so quick a response !

Actually not, I meant graphic cards' prices. To my point of view, it would be very useful in order to establish a performance/price rate.

 

great chart chaz, my doubt is which one should i go for, im an avid gamer,,,

1. cant go for X1600 or 7800 coz they are out of reach for my budget at present,,,but i cant wait also coz i need laptop for my other works also,,,
2. should i go for x1400 or X700 (this is my real confusion as which one is better).... please help me in this...
3. should i go for dv5000t with go 7400.
4. should i take a dell with x1300 and later upgrade it with a newer graphic card???

 

Right in my previous post:

X700 > X1400 by a good amount.

You might try completing our FAQ in the What Should I Buy forum so we can recommend a few notebooks to you based on your needs.

Well, you can't just buy them and put them in anything . . the price of the card is irrelevant really, it's the price of the laptop. So that question cannot really be answered. I think you're thinking of desktop cards, where price/performance is an issue.

Chaz

 

I dont really get this. From what I understand only the

X800 = 6800
X800XT = 6800 Ultra
X1800 = 7800
X1800XT = 7800GTX

can use the full 256, whilst

X700 = 6600
X1600 = 7600

use from 128 to 256 mb? so in fact its more logical to get them as 128's?

correct?

 

No, that's not. I said that they can have 256MB of memory (X600, that class), but will not be able to effectively use it all. It's not worth it to get them (if there's an option) with 256MB of memory.

X700/X1600, can use more than 128MB effectively as stated, but not all 256MB effectively. Get them with 256MB.

 

Hello from Thailand #Chaz

I just brough Acer-Aspire 5562(x1400)/with hurry up, and the day after I found Asus A6J (x1600) with the same price & spec with my 5562. Do you think I should disappoint with my decision with 5562 or cont. happy with it.

I planed to play Battle 4 Middle Earth, Doom3 just 4 little funny ... Is 5562 okay for me , I can not say I'm a gamer, just play them 1-2 time a month.

Thank you in advance.

 

Greetings Vasan, thanks for joining the forums!

Well, the Asus, in addition to having a better card, does have better quality than your Acer. You might want to exchange for that reason.

As far as the video card goes, you'll be fine with the X1400. It's a midrange card, and performs decently. Occasional gamers need look no further.

Chaz

 

Thank you again for your quick reply, Instead of "exchange" with A6J, I think better to add more RAM to 1 or 2 GB perhaps it could be helped. what do you think? coz with exchanging I will loose at lease 10,000 Baht (~$250)...

I think it's not reasonable to named the card series like this, It made me confuse x1400 should be better than x700 for sure ?!? I mean for who that not the expert like you.. I'll be careful before buying next time

Bye bye

 

Ah, then don't exchange - I thought it would have costed you nothing. $250 is too much to loose. Getting more RAM is a relatively cheap way to increase performance. I would go for 1GB (1 stick, for easy upgrades later), then just use one of the sticks that it came with in combination.

Chaz

 

Very nice thread, thanks for this useful informations!

I have a question...

I'm planning to buy a Thinkpad T60 with the following spec:

Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz
512 DDR2
60GB HDD
Intel GMA950

Can this notebook handle Window Vista? Or should I get the same spec with an ATI X1300?

Thanks!

 

I would go for the dedicated card if you can and it doesn't break your budget for the reason that it will not take up your system memory as the integrated card will. The X1300 will be better to use with Vista anyway - the GMA950 is the bare minimum needed to run the Aero Glass interface or so I've read.

Chaz

 

Thanks! Wish me luck on finding a T60 with a X1300....

 

OK, I combined my Video Card Performance chart and this today, revised them both and it all has been integrated into this new and revised chart.

Enjoy.

Chaz

 

Where does the nVidia Quadro NVS 110M and 120M fit here?

 

They don't fit in, sorry - they're not regular cards, they're for business and rendering. This is only for regular cards.

 

So I wouldn't be able to play games on a 120M? Bummer.

 

I never said that. They can, but are not designed to. The 110 is based on the Go7300 I believe, and the 120 is based on the Go7400.

I belive performance should be around what they achieve.

 

Great, thanks! That's exactly the information I was looking for.

 

Hi Chaz, thanks for the chart, its been very helpful. I have a quick question about the quoted info. Does the recomendation to go with the X1400 over the Go7400 hold true when comparing the Go7400 to a X600SE?

I have to get my new laptop from Best Buy as I have store credit there due to the warranty on my previous laptop and was wondering if there would be much difference between this HP and this Toshiba. At this point I'm kind of leaning towards the Toshiba as it has a faster HD though the CPU isnt as good. I also wont have to come up with as much cash to make up the price difference from my previous laptop. Thanks again for the chart and the help.

-Morgan

 

The Go7400 is a faster card than the X600SE, especially in newer games.

I'd also take an HP over the Toshiba, because it has a better design and quality. However, that's a large price gap . . you might try asking that question in the What to Buy forum to get different opinions.

Chaz

 

You'll have to update for the 7900GS and 7900GTX (512mb) soon, they're both in the new dell xps!

 

Yes, I have not been on since the XPS M1710 has been released, the chart will be updated shortly!

 

how dose the X1400 compare with the Go 7400.
i read in that sticky above that the X1400 has a 128-bit memory or something, so it should perform better. but all the laptops that i see with the X1400 are too expensive for me (except dell, but i hate dell, so dont ask).

so i was wondering how much of a difference is there between the two cards. for the price which is better?

also, if anyone has em, what are the 3dmark05 and 3dmark03 scores for the go 7400. and what dose it mean by turbocountry????