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Notebook Graphics

notebook graphics

There are two type of notebook graphics Card:

- the Integrated Notebook Graphics Processing Units

- the Dedicated Notebook Graphics Processing Units.

Integrated Notebook Graphics Processing Units :

Integrated Notebook Graphics Processing Units are suffering from the necessity to share memory with the main system, and this result in slower performance all around, second problem is that most integrated GPU lack true support for actual 3D extensions such as Pixel Shader 2, Vertex Shader, and Hardware Transform and Lighting.The positive is that integrated GPU are producing no heat of their own and they are almost using very little power, and this allows to more comfortable use and longer battery life.

Basically, it is well know that integrated cards stand no chance against real graphics chips, but for example Mobility Radeon x1100 (the new x200M) IGP is one of the only integrated chip that can deliver acceptable frame rates with full DirectX 9 support.

Dedicated Notebook Graphics Processing Units :

Only two companies are currently manufacturing dedicated graphics chips : ATi and nVidia.

These card feature more hardware support for advanced DirectX 9 and OpenGL 1.5 functions. Most importantly, they get that name of dedicated graphics cards from the fact that they use exclusively dedicated Video Ram, ensuring smooth and snappy performance. The problem is that dedicated video cards use much more power than integrated chips, resulting in more heat and shorter battery life.

external graphics card

Important Specifications to Consider When Choosing a External graphics card

GPU
GPU stands for “Graphic Processing Unit” and is the main controlling circuit on every external graphics card  . The GPU is the most determinant feature of every external graphics card   when it comes to the overall performance and speed. The two biggest manufacturers of GPUs are NVIDIA and ATI (which is owned by CPU manufacturer AMD). They do the reference designs for each new generation of external graphics card  . But most external graphics card  s are sold by other manufacturers who produce their own flavour of the reference cards from NVIDIA and ATI. Examples of those manufacturers are MSI, Asus, ECS Elitegroup, XFX and more.

Examples of recent generations of graphic GPUs from NVIDIA are; GeForce 8500/8600/8800/9800 GT/GTX/GX2 and GTX 260/280. ATIs latest generations of external graphics card  s are: RADEON HD 3850/4850/4870 in different versions.

RAM
It is also important to consider the amount and type of the onboard RAM of the external graphics card  , which is a different thing than the RAM of your computer. The RAM is important for a number of technical reasons we will not go into further here. But in short you should go for a external graphics card   with at least 256MB of RAM. The type of RAM is less important, but we recommend that you buy a external graphics card   with the second or later generation of GDDR (GDDR2 or later).

Different Slot Types
There are three different slots available on the PC market. The “slot” is where you connect the external graphics card   on the mainboard of your computer. You must verify which type of slot your mainboard has before purchasing a graphic card, or you may waste money on something you cannot use. The available slots are PCI (very old), AGP (old) or PCI express (today’s standard). All fairly recent bought computers are outfitted with a PCI Express slot, but be sure to check it. PCI express is the newest technology and allows the largest bandwidth which means better performance for you.

External Connectors
The connecters on the external graphics card  s are also important. Standard analog VGA connectors have been replaced by DVI (digital) connectors. The DVI connector is a must, some cards even come with two DVI connectors which will allow you to connect an extra display. Additional external connectors to look for are:
•HDMI, which will enable you to connect your computer to a plasma or LCD-TV. (This can also be done through a DVI connector with a DVI/HDMI converter)
•S-Video outputs are used to connect the PC to an older style VCR or TV and allow outputting the same display as present on your screen.
•DB-15/VGS/SVGA connectors are basically utilized for a standard output to an analog monitor. Good if you have an old monitor.