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XFX NVIDIA GeForce 7900GS or Hightech X1650 help!

Discussion in 'PC hardware help' started by lucifa666, Jun 27, 2007.

  1. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    i know the 7900gs is better but 4 the price is it worth it? i think it would be but want some suggesions! i currently have a toshbia satallite a100 intel core duo (two processors)~1.73gh 1gb ram but my graphic card is a shity intel gma950 256mb shared 1280x800 32 bit 60hz.so crap help please what upgrade will be good a the right price as i have dial up and it takes ages to look up anything.
    thanks in advance from Australia
     
  2. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    A few things:
    1. You can't fit a desktop graphics card in a laptop
    2. The 7900GS would flatten an X1650
    3. The Core Duo is not two processors. It is a single Processor with two cores.
    4. Your current integrated graphics is limited to 1280x800 because it comes with a laptop. A conventional monitor would enable your graphics adapter to go to at least 1600x1200.
    5. Updating your graphics (even if it were possible which it probably isn't) wouldn't enable you to get a higher resolution than 1280x800, that limit is set by your display, not your graphics card.
     
  3. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    sorry about the core duo thing but when i go to (run) (dxdiag) it says that i have two processors? and i only just got a laptop, im used to me old desktop!!! how can i find out if my card is upgradable? i dont need more screen res just more bits as mine is only 32bit and cant even play age of empires 3. Is this right or not?
     
  4. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    32-bit what? 32-bit colour? That's all you can ever have. Windows doesn't support any more. What you're missing is Pixel Shader 3.0, that's a feature that AoE3 likes (but doesn't require). The reason it doesn't run Aoe3 at all is that it simply isn't fast enough. Unfortunately I don't think it's upgradeable.
    Dzdiag tells you that you have 2 processors because windows sees Dual cores as two processors, they're not.
     
  5. redZoneOS

    redZoneOS Regular member

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    LOL@sammorris... your first and third points are excellent :)

    Anyway, I dont believe the computer is upgradeable either (except ram and hard drive)... I dont understand why it wouldn't run AoE III though, my parents have a toshiba A105 with a core Duo, and very similar specs and it runs AoE III perfectly... My specs are Intel Core Duo 1.66ghz processor, 1Gb ram, and the same gma 950 shared video crap... it does get a little choppy occasionally, but I don't play it on there all that much anyway...

    Try reducing your resolution, I have mine set to 1024x768...?
     
  6. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    That's interesting. I have however noticed a variance between different laptops using the same integrated video and whether they can run certain games or not. Not being an owner of such a laptop I can't say I'd know what causes it.
     
  7. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    thanks 4 the help but when i try to play aoe3 it says it reqires 64 mb to play and when i go to run anyway the picture of the game is unseeable! i think it is the graphic card as it is 256mb but its shared and only 32mb for game graphics. when you say my laptops not fast enough do u mean ram? mine is 1gb but i run vista could this make it need more?
     
  8. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    sorry sammorris when i said (32bit) i ment (32mb)
     
  9. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    No, I mean the Graphics adapter simply isn't powerful enough. There's more to it than how much memory they have. For example, a 256MB X1900GT is a lot more powerful than a 256MB FX5200.
     
  10. marsey99

    marsey99 Regular member

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    id guess that you dont have enough shared ram to play a o e.
     
  11. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    ok thanks!!! the specs for my laptop say (Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 224mb, with up to 128Mb shared video RAM)is there ant way i can allocate more ram to game graphics. whan i look at com specs it says its useing 71mb for grahpics but the game only detects 32mb?
    any way i can change this?
    is there any way i can make this video card play aoe3?
    thanks again!!!
     
  12. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    Even if it did, it'd run badly. I think you want an upgrade.
    Example:
    Doom 3 800x600 High Quality: 14fps (unplayable)
    FarCry 800x600 High Quality: 10fps (unplayable)
    Unreal Tournament 2004 800x600 High Quality: 26fps (poor)

    Now note the following test results for a 6600GT:
    Age of Empires 3 1024x768 High Quality: 16fps (unplayable)
    Doom 3 1024x768 High Quality: 88fps (Silky smooth)

    If a card that's 6 times faster than the GMA950 at a higher resolution can't play AoE3 at a low setting, what chance would you stand?
    Sorry to be so scientifically blunt, but I really don't think it's possible.
     
  13. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    darn i will have to stick with games that work such as halo!!! i dont see how my laptop can play halo on max settings and nothing eles works,if it can play halo great why cant it play even aoe2 on low settings? also i run open gl dose anyone know any settings other then defult to make my games run better?
     
  14. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    There are little tips and tricks to make games run better, this website details a lot of them:
    http://www.tweakguides.com/
    However, for a graphics chipset as weak as the GMA950, there's no 'magic fix' to get a lot of games working. I'm baffled as to why AOE2 doesn't run, because that's a very undemanding game. AOE3 I can totally understand, but AOE2 should be easy, have you looked around at all the drivers available?
     
  15. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    thanks for all the help sammorris!!! no i havent looked up the drivers yet but will now(im on dial up and it takes ages)!!! yeah i thought that it would play aoe2 i think i just need to tweek some settings!
     
  16. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    AOE2 right, not AOE3? I mean that ran on an FX5200...
     
  17. lucifa666

    lucifa666 Guest

    yeah (aoe2) i havent tried it yet but the recomended stuff on the box says it needs 64mb of ram(i think)!im gussing the fx5200 is allmost as crap as the gma950?
     
  18. sammorris

    sammorris Senior member

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    Yeah pretty much. You have 1GB of RAM so why wouldn't you be able to run it? I think it only needs 16MB of graphics memory or something ridiculous like that.
     

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