upgrading a graphics card.......

[Takket]

i recently tried to download a play a game on my laptop only to discover my graphics card is nowhere near powerful enough to handle it.

So my question is pretty basic....... the game recommends this:

Recommended: 3 GB, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 480
You Have: Intel(R) UHD Graphics
Video Card Click here for the latest Video Card drivers.
Features: Recommended attributes of your Video Card

Required You Have
Pass or fail icon Pixel Shader 5.1 5.1
Pass or fail icon Vertex Shader 5.1 5.1
Pass or fail icon Dedicated Video RAM 3072 MB 128 MB

Assuming I buy one of these graphics cards, so do I know it will even fit into my laptop and/or that my power supply can handle it?

Second question: According to some reading i've done, i can dedicate additional RAM on my PC to video RAM by editing BIOS settings. Right now I have 8GB of RAM. So if i dedicate 3GP to VRAM, is that essentially "subtracted" from my RAM? So I would have 3GB of VRAM and 5GB of RAM?

Info here: https://windowsreport.com/increase-dedicated-video-ram-windows-10/

For comparison, this is my laptop:

https://www.officedepot.com/a/products/6049488/HP-15-dw2025od-Laptop-156-Screen/
HP Laptop - 15-dw2025od
My notebook
Product number: 9ZG20UA#ABA

General specifications
Operating system
Windows 10 Home 64-bit

Microprocessor
Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1035G1 CPU @ 1.00GHz

System memory
8 GB

Memory slot 1
4GB Samsung 2667MHz
Memory slot 2
4GB Samsung 2667MHz

System board
85F3 40.23

System BIOS
F.02

Video
Graphic device 1
Intel(R) UHD Graphics

Current resolution
1366 x 768

Refresh rate
60 Hz

Version
27.20.100.9030 (11/27/2020)

Audio
Device 1
Realtek High Definition Audio

Status
Enabled

Driver
RTKVHD64.sys

Version
6.0.8924.1

Device 2
Intel® Smart Sound Technology (Intel® SST)

Status
Enabled

Driver
IntcBTAu.sys

Version
10.24.0.3694

Device 3
Intel(R) Display Audio

Status
Enabled

Driver
IntcDAud.sys

Version
11.1.0.17

[SheltieLover]

1. Vid card will not fit in laptop

Unless laptop was specifically designed for gaming. Look at mfr website.

Yes, if you designate part of RAM to grahics, then that RAM cannot run anything else.

Your laptop only has onboard video. Intel ultra HD.

There are external graphics ca4d enclosures, but not good idea.

Get, 9r build a desktop. You have much more flexibity & its much cheaper!

[Takket]

3. yeah, it definetly was not designed for gaming....

because i don't game, up until now LOL

what do you mean by 9r?

good news is i found an old game from 2009 i used to play that i wanted to play again, and my laptop specs can handle it

well i own the new game, so in the future if i want to upgrade to a gaming laptop, i can always play it then!

[SheltieLover]

5. Sorry, typo. 9r

Pm me if you want to select components & build desktop. Not hard & takes very little time. Maybe 20 min to do a simple build!

Be glad to walk you through the process.

And there are tons of great you tubes on how to build your own. Carey Holzman is one of the best! Really good guy.

If you need special help, I can walk you through it in PMs. 👍

Glad you found something else fun to play! Yaaaaay!

[FightingIrish]

2. I recently bought an all-in-one desktop.

My grandson wanted me to join him on Flight Simulator 2020 but the graphics card wasn't compatibile and there was no way to add a card. I bought an external graphics processor (XFX AMD Radeon™ RX 590 Fatboy 8GB) and a Razer Core X Thunderbolt 3 Graphics Expansion Chassis to house it that connects via the Thunderbolt port.. To my amazement, it works great.

[mn9driver]

4. What Sheltie said

The system board in your laptop is unlikely to have a slot for a mobile 1060 card, or room in the case for it. Also, your current power supply is unlikely to have the wattage to run it. And then there’s the heat issue. These cards run HOT when gaming and your fans aren’t designed for that.

Buy an actual gaming laptop, or build a crazy fast desktop for less hassle and money.

[SheltieLover]

7. Great point about power supply & graphics card heat!

I prefer water cooling for systems. 👍

[SheltieLover]

6. Which games do you want to play & what else do you want to do with system?

Last edited Sat Dec 19, 2020, 03:49 PM - Edit history (1)

And how long do you plan to keep computer?

Can guestimate parts costs for you if you build your own. Can be amazingly affordable & rewarding experience!