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    Speculation on the next series of cards and upgrading a Sager

    Discussion in 'Sager and Clevo' started by version46, Aug 11, 2013.

  1. version46

    version46 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hello, I am a newbie in high-end mobile gaming and only have some experience upgrading PCs.

    I will be getting a Sager np 8265-s on Wednesday and I am wondering about the next line of cards from AMD and Nvidia. Do you think it will be bigger performance boost from the previous generation compared to what we have now? (The 8970m is only a 6% jump)

    Also, how does one upgrade a mobile GPU on Sagers? I read that there may be compatibility issues with the bios and newer cards in the future (2-3 years) may not be compatible with the system unlike desktops.
     
    version46, Aug 11, 2013
    #1
  2. Tmets

    Tmets De-evolving to Amoeba

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    The GPU is on an MXM card, and you would need a system that uses that rather than soldering the GPU to be able to upgrade. The P150SM based model you are looking at does have that. It can be accessed easily by removing the base.
    It is possible the there will be issues upgrading beyond what is currently available. Certainly upgrading the P1x0HM models required a VBIOS mod with AMD GPUs, but it did work.The current 780m and 8970m are the same tech as the last gen, that's why the performance jump isn't as big as before. The next gen will be different. As long as the MXM standard remains the same, it should in theory work, but that is not guaranteed. Manufacturers can whitelist GPUs, so only those on the list will work, unless there is a workaround. All you can guarantee is that it can be upgraded to a 780m, that's all.
     
    Tmets, Aug 11, 2013
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  3. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    The only thing we know is the current 7xx series of cards is not currently compatible with the EM series.
     
    Meaker@Sager, Aug 12, 2013
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  4. Prostar Computer

    Prostar Computer Company Representative

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    Also, there are little to no news leaks about performance in future series since current 8xxxM and 7xxM cards were only recently released. BIOS mods are under the microscope but currently the 7xxM cards, as Meaker mentioned, do not work in models prior to the current SM series.
     
    Prostar Computer, Aug 12, 2013
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  5. version46

    version46 Notebook Enthusiast

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    All right thanks for the info, I'd probably build a new desktop after college, this should be enough until then.
     
    version46, Aug 12, 2013
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  6. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

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    This generation was only a refresh of the existing chips with little bits of tweaking to voltages and speeds.

    The next generation will be a new process and core arch so will be much faster.
     
    Meaker@Sager, Aug 12, 2013
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  7. valete123

    valete123 Newbie

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    I'd foresee a pretty big jump in the next gen's speeds, so waiting and building a desktop later will probably be best
     
    valete123, Aug 12, 2013
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