Sager NP9150 Power/GPU problem(cannot find answer anywhere on the internet!)

Hi,
Thanks to the intelligent, helpful people on this forum, I recently purchased a Sager NP9150 with the 3630QM and a GTX 680M.
The laptop is everything I hoped it would be except for one problem I am having.

When my laptop is plugged in, while playing a game, such as Planetside 2, I can average about 60fps on high settings. However, if I remove the power chord, the FPS instantly drops to about 10-15 FPS. Same goes with 3dmark11 tests.
I can average around 5.7k but if I unplug the power chord, the score drops by 60%.I feel as if maybe the GPU isn't receiving enough of the power that it requires. I bought my NP9150 from XoticPC during the holiday sale so I have whatever battery came with it (I think its a 6-cell lithium ion).

Now, I think it is important to know that I have done basic troubleshooting steps. i.e. I have made sure that when it is unplugged that I put it on high performance mode, and I have also set all the nvidia control panel settings to use the gtx 680(the NP9150 has optimus so i know the correct gpu card is being used).


I wouldn't mind keeping it plugged in most of the time, but sometimes I need to game on the go and the lack of gpu performance makes gaming almost impossible(especially for that card)! If anyone can provide any help I would greatly appreciate it!

 

there is nothing wrong with it.
using a battery to game or benchmark is the best way to kill it early and it wont be covered by warranty.
gaming,benchmarking,heavy duty software,hd rendering etc should always be done with mains power plugged in.
the battery just cant take the power drain of these demanding programs.

 

As DJ said, that's the truth about gaming laptops.
The battery can act as a emergency power supply (if the electricity goes out suddenly) OR if you do normal web surfing and non-graphics intensive work.
When the dedicated GPU is running, the battery doesent like it.
It is not meant to power a 180W constant drain.
Why?
Because battery technology has NOT gotten any better than it was 10 years ago.
And even if it has, we aint getting "the good stuff" on the market for obvious reasons.

Enjoy the laptop for what it is - a portable gaming machine and mobile workstation (needs a power socket for gaming, relies on battery for medium load working on the go).

 

The only thing you can do on battery is browse the web and take notes in class. Regardless of your power settings, you need that extra power that the plug provides to drive all the high performance components.

 

Thank you all for your replies, I have one more question
I know that it is not good to keep the power chord plugged in when the battery is full, would it be worth it to take the battery out when gaming?

 

For battery preservation purposes, by all means; remove the battery. Although the battery only receives a trickle charge and does not "overcharge" so much like older batteries/laptops would do, it still will constantly put heat and strain on the capacitors otherwise. If you're not mobile and don't need to run off strictly battery, then you can take it out and run exclusively on the power brick.

 

I didn't know it is recommended to remove the battery when plugged in. Are there drawbacks to this?

 

let me explain. the answer is yes and no but i always say yes.
my last clevo was 11 months old and the battery had already lost 25% of its charge. i always had it plugged into mains and battery always inserted.
battery replaced under warranty and whenever i knew it was going to be on my desk plugged in for long periods of time i would remove the battery. over 3 years later and today it only has 6.57% wear.
a batterys worst enemy is heat and having it plugged in all the time in a small confined space it will slowly damage it.

all the answers here BatteryCare - Proper laptop battery usage guide

 

I've seen arguments both for and against leaving the battery in. The argument for leaving it always plugged in is that it only gets a trickle charge, and by not draining and recharging you will get longer battery life. Argument against leaving it in is it will build up heat and shorten the battery life. There are many more points to each side, but that is the jist of it from what I remember.

For what it is worth, I finally had to replace the battery in my gateway after about 5 years. I basically left it plugged in for it's entire life.

 

This is true. It's really relative/on a case by case basis. If the laptop is meant as a replacement desktop and never - or very rarely - moves anywhere, then there is little to no sensee in feeding the battery that trickle charge and exposing it to heat. On the other hand, if you come and go with your laptop, then leaving it inserted won't harm it enough, as power management these days helps to prevent overcharging ("trickle charge", as you put it).