New R4025 owner with a *minor* problem...

Hi folks.

Currently in my machine is the ATI RADEON® XPRESS 200M IGP graphics card. What other options do I have if I would like to upgrade in the future to support the newer games that are on the way? Does the mobo in this laptop support PCI Express?

Also, I noticed that Windows reports my CPU speed to be half of what it should be. Is that because of a power-saving function of some kind?

Thanks.

 

Like nearly every notebook, the GPU is not upgradable.

Yes, power saving is enabled by default, as it should be. Do something that requires more power and the CPU will jump to full speed. Use MobileMeter to graph CPU speed over time and monitor its temperature.

 

If you go into the control panel and open power options, put it on "Home/Office Desk" and then, when plugged in, it will run at maximum speed. This does increase the heat A LOT, so I suggest keeping the power saving on. It will go max when you run a game or demanding application, like brainstretch said.

Yes, it is PCI Express.

Unfortunatley, you card is about the same as a Radeon X300SE, a low end card. It will struggle with the latest games, and you will have to keep the settings on low and the resolution at 1024x768 or lower to get playable performance. So, future gaming, is, well, not going to be great.

Get a desktop to play games, I use my desktop to, because it has a much better video card (64MB GeForce4 Go vs 256MB ATI Radeon 9800XT).

 

You know, everyone says "latest games" all of the time, what are the "latest games", and what do we mean by struggle? Does "struggle" with the "latest games" mean anything released after the laptop tech was introduced won't be able to run at full resolution?

 

I agree with ChazMan421. It's much more cost effective to get a powerful desktop and lug around a notebook that isn't capable of much gaming. With the desktop, you won't have the problem of not being able to upgrade the graphics card.

 

Well fact is if you want a computer that will grow with you,A custom desktop is the way to go period end of story.Unfortunately notebooks are designed for buisness use mostly and only now are companys like Alienware and dell answering the call of gamers.It will be decades before a notebook is truly comparable to a desktop for gaming,By that time we will be to old to give a ****

 

I dunno about that, southbark. Even a few years ago I thought it would be crazy for homes to have a notebook as their main computer, and here we are. Since higher-end models now are offering the ability to change GPUs, I can't imagine why gamers wouldn't be happy with what comes out in the next five years.

 

Latest games means games like Doom 3, halflife 2 etc. Games that utilize an advanced, modern age graphics engine with highly detailed and high res images. A graphics card struggling with games means the game play being sluggish, at a very low fps (Frame per second). You generally require at least a 20 -25 fps for the game to be playable.

 

Thanks guys.

I do have a desktop for games, and really only want the laptop for the cottage for DVDs, Internet, etc., so I'm not too worried about the video card.

Just curious about upgradibility since I'm new to the laptop scene.

 

Upgradability of notebooks is very limited. You pretty much can only upgrade the RAM, HDD, possibly the CPU (if you can get the unit open), and optical drive (again, might need to take apart unit). You might be able to change the wireless card, but that's not guaranteed to work (some manufacturers lock the type/brand of cards that can be used in their systems). You can buy external addons like an external Wireless card, Bluetooth, audio, TV tuners, etc...., but that's all addons rather than upgrades to an existing unit.

If you buy a notebook, I'd recommend going for more than you currently need. This will allow the unit to stay up-to-date a little longer. So later in the future, it'll still be able to run the lastest apps. You can pay now or you can PAY later!

-Vb-