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    Graphics card upgrade for Vista...question

    Discussion in 'VAIO / Sony' started by djamesb11, Feb 21, 2007.

  1. djamesb11

    djamesb11 Newbie

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    Okay, i just bought a "Vista Compatible" Sony Vaio VGN-SZ240P that came with a 128MB NVIDIA GeForce Go 7400 and an Intel GMA 950.

    I downloaded the Windows upgrader advisor and it suggested Vista Home Premium. However, it also showed that i needed to upgrade my graphics card to a 256mb which supports pixel shader 2.0.

    I'm currently looking at an EVGA 256-P2-N550 -T2 GeForce 7600GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card which does not state that it supports pixel shader 2.0 but does come with directx v9 and OpenGL 2.0, and it's "vista ready."

    Will this fit in my slim laptop? If not...what graphics card should it get?

    [*Another quick note, i've heard that the chances of upgrading slimmer notebook graphics card is a difficult task. Can i upgrade, or am i basically stuck with what i have?*]

    Thanks alot...

    David
     
    djamesb11, Feb 21, 2007
    #1
  2. Gautam

    Gautam election 2008 NBR Reviewer

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    No. You cannot upgrade the graphics in the Sony SZ series notebooks.
     
    Gautam, Feb 21, 2007
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  3. Zero

    Zero The Random Guy

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    As Gautam has said, it is not possible to upgrade. Only a very small percentage of notebooks have upgradeable graphics, and even they have to fit some criteria, before they can be upgraded. Anyway, you should have no need to upgrade, as your current graphics card is more than good enough to run Windows Vista. Your graphics card can support shader model 3.0, so it should work. Make sure you have the latest drivers and Direct X package installed for the notebook.
     
    Zero, Feb 21, 2007
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  4. pwaggs

    pwaggs Notebook Consultant

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    No need to update the SZ series to run ANY of the VISTA versions. Just make sure everything is up to date.
     
    pwaggs, Feb 21, 2007
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  5. djamesb11

    djamesb11 Newbie

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    Thanks alot for the information fellas...Anyone know why PC companies dont make it easy for notebooks to be upgraded?
     
    djamesb11, Feb 21, 2007
    #5
  6. pwaggs

    pwaggs Notebook Consultant

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    I think it is probably just not economically feasable. Most will allow you to customize up front and you can add basics like RAM and even an upgraded hard drive for most later. But the graphics controller is often built into the mother board for space saving reasons. It would get expensive to make everything on a laptop modular.
     
    pwaggs, Feb 21, 2007
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  7. lamtutu

    lamtutu Notebook Consultant

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    Hi.
    You can not upgrade the graphic card on SZ . But you can upgrade BIOS to get 355 MB shared GO 7400 graphic to work with Vista and it should be fine.
    Hope it will help.
    Briant
     
    lamtutu, Feb 21, 2007
    #7