Sager NP8150 GPU Upgrade

Hello all! I've got my computer torn apart at the moment and I realized now would be a great time to upgrade my GPU. I have a GTX 485M in it right now and I was wondering what my options are for upgrading?

 

best u can do atm would be either a GTX 680M or an AMD 7970M. they both are around double as fast as the 485M with the 680M having a slight edge due to its 4GB of vRAM compared to the 7970M´s 2GB. beware that u can only use clevo cards (potentially MSI as well, but definitely NOT Dell / Alienware cards!)

also, the 7970M only works in revision 1.2 in clevo HM machines, revisions 1.0 and 1.1 do not work! for the 1.2 ud need a specific vbios that disables the switchable graphics functionality on the card.

as for the 680M u can only use 2 specific vbios versions, out of which one sports some problems during bootup. unfortunately i dont remember the exact vbios version strings, but im sure other will help you out there ull also need modified drivers, which u can easily get at www.laptopvideo2go.com

as for the cards themselves, ebay is always an option, or u can ask around at various clevo vendors, if they still have some reserves lying around

 

So even though I'm using a nvidia card currently, I have to get modified drivers from someone other than Nvidia?

Ps. thank you for the succinct reply.

 

yeah, its about the non-perfect compatibility of the gpu to the machine, not about the drivers themselves

btw, also make sure uve got your machine updated to the latest Bios and EC helps avoid any hiccups or issues...

 

I've got my Bios and EC upgraded to the latest ones that clevo has released. Not to be asking too many questions about this though, I thought NP8150 could have been purchased with a 680m at one point so shouldn't that mean I can install the regular drivers for it? I'm just a little leery about third party drivers.

 

theyre still original nvidia drivers, so no worries. theyre just tweaked to include the hardware id of your 680m to properly work with your machine basically just 1-2 lines of text added, nothing else

and nope, the NP9150 as the successor of the NP8150 was the first in this line to be officially sold with the 680M/7970M

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

Sorry to resurrect a dead thread but my laptop was resurrected from the dead! It came back after some water was dropped on it! Whoooooo! So, my question now, where would be a good place to find a 680m and do I need a new heatsink for a 680? Because everywhere I've looked lists the 2gb version rather than the 4gb and they are outrageously expensive which seems a little ridiculous for how old the card is. I'm pursuing where I purchased the comp but any advice on where to find a 680m for a decent price?

 

You can just move the pads but getting a CPU heatsink from the P170 series (all copper) and P1x0SM (any of them) will have a slightly better result.

Keep an eye out in the usual places like on here or ebay for a card.

 

It's pretty hard to get a proper card for the P150HM.. Honestly just sell it for parts and get a new laptop.. Anything which is $1000-1200 with 970M would trash this.. if your spending $400-600 on a GPU for this, not a wise decision IMO.. It was one of the worst Clevo's ever IMO..

 

It was not BGA though

I think you are being a bit harsh.

 

definitely too harsh! i absolutely friggin loved my p150hm and it blow all the successors out of the water due to missing optimus

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My problem with the 1000-1200 range is exactly that they are all BGA. I spent 1950 on in the P150 because of it's upgrade-able card and fully expect to have to spend 1800-2000 on a replacement because of the upgradability. I use my laptops for about 6 years, and I know tech grows A LOT during that time, I've found that a small upgrade ($500) at around year 4 on a laptop I love is better than spending $1000 on a new one. I win in the long run on price and I fully use the life of the chassis.

I also don't play anything like Crysis (my most demanding games are the total war series and Skryim) but I do do quite a lot of photo editing and I need a capable laptop for the work I do. I especially liked the 150 because of it's durability. That being said though, I found it's one major down fall to be the quality of the rubberized plastic between the keys on the keyboard. Also the touchpad occasionally drives me insane with how grabby it is but I use a mouse most of the time. But hey, they laptop is four years old, it's on it's way out in two years, I'm just trying to keep it on the edge of relevancy.

 

HONESTLY, I feel like the prevailing winds have changed since I was active on these boards. Used to be that user upgradability and longevity were really prized.

 

If it were the P170EM wouldn't have a issue.. The HM with all the vBIOS problems is piece of junk IMO with all the limited upgrardeblity..

 

Enthusiasts still value modular equipment, though it seems to going by the wayside these days.

 

vBIOS problems? I'm not sure I've ever had an issue with the BIOS but if you're referring to the wakeup/sleep crash issues I always thought that was driver related.

 

I'm not surprised. The majority of people have replied to my other posts where I say I was looking for modular equipment like I wanted to grow a second head. I don't get the downside of not treating a computer like an inherently obsolete piece of garbage once one component is out of date. It's not like it stops working at a certain date.

 

I have a Eurocom Racer and its such an amazing machine. it boots faster than my new uber expensive Alienware 18. Its never given me any grief and it always works.

 

Oh, absolutely we do still value modular equipment!