Can we talk tech? Is a 6mb DDR6 laptop card still worth it in 2022?

Mai72

Lifer
Sep 12, 2012
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Yea, I know that this forum is for PC gaming, but the tech we use for our games is just as important. So, I was looking for a gaming laptop. I need a system that I can take with me on trips, so a PC won't work. I noticed gaming laptops with ddr6 6mb, 8mb, 12mb and even a 16mb option. I'm not paying $2,700-3k plus for a gaming laptop, so the 12mb, and 16mb option isn't even on my radar. I'd like to keep it at about $2k. My past gaming laptop had 6mb, so I was thinking about going with that as it ran my games fine. The 6mb option also had an Intel i9, 8x2 ddr5 4200 and is $100 cheaper than the 8mb option with an i7, 16mb (one chip) ddr5 4200. Would the 6mb still run games 2 years in the future. TBH, I don't play many current games, and playing at 1440p isn't a big deal for me.

Thanks.
 
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Igo69

Senior member
Apr 26, 2015
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No but then it depends on the games you will play and the settings you will use.
 
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Shmee

Memory & Storage, Graphics Cards Mod Elite Member
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I assume you mean the video card on the laptop has 6GB of GDDR6? 6GB is a decent amount of memory, but it does depend on the game played, and settings/resolution used. Also, there is a lot more to the GPU than how much memory it has, I would pay attention to the GPU model and the rest of the specs. You can look at reviews to see how different GPUs perform in certain games.

In general, a decent 6GB card should be fine on a laptop, as long as the screen resolution is 1920x1080 and not larger, and you don't mind turning settings down on some games, or are playing older games.
 
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Mai72

Lifer
Sep 12, 2012
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I assume you mean the video card on the laptop has 6GB of GDDR6? 6GB is a decent amount of memory, but it does depend on the game played, and settings/resolution used. Also, there is a lot more to the GPU than how much memory it has, I would pay attention to the GPU model and the rest of the specs. You can look at reviews to see how different GPUs perform in certain games.

In general, a decent 6GB card should be fine on a laptop, as long as the screen resolution is 1920x1080 and not larger, and you don't mind turning settings down on some games, or are playing older games.

Yea. Most of the games I will be playing are older, like Bioshock, and UT3. I also have games like Days Gone which was on console first, and I play a lot of strategy games. I also will be playing NBA2k, and will be purchasing Dying Light 2, and God of War sometime in the future. BTW, the laptop is the ASUS ROG Stix Scar15. Its gotten very good reviews.

Thanks for your help.
 
Feb 4, 2009
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I am still not a fan of gaming laptops. If you truly need a portable gaming system then fine, I simply feel the majority of people don’t need it.
Get a decent midrange desktop and enjoy, add a better video card when the market settles more.
 
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GodisanAtheist

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2006
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Plenty of people travel quite a bit for work, I can see one solid gaming laptop being more functional for those folks than a gaming desktop and a work laptop.
 

VirtualLarry

No Lifer
Aug 25, 2001
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Plenty of people travel quite a bit for work, I can see one solid gaming laptop being more functional for those folks than a gaming desktop and a work laptop.
Until you need to put "endpoint software" on your "one gaming laptop" "for work purposes" and you can no longer "run games" on it during your off-hours, because the "gaming DRM" software doesn't play nice with the "endpoint" software.
 
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Feb 4, 2009
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Until you need to put "endpoint software" on your "one gaming laptop" "for work purposes" and you can no longer "run games" on it during your off-hours, because the "gaming DRM" software doesn't play nice with the "endpoint" software.
Pretty much this. All the work laptops I have had were super locked down and I am confident gaming was not an approved activity on them.
However he has a valid point. I do stand by the majority of gaming laptops are sold to people who do not need their chief benefit portability and would be better served with a desktop.
 

GodisanAtheist

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2006
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Pretty much this. All the work laptops I have had were super locked down and I am confident gaming was not an approved activity on them.
However he has a valid point. I do stand by the majority of gaming laptops are sold to people who do not need their chief benefit portability and would be better served with a desktop.

-If that's the case work better give you a work laptop to super lock down. The gaming laptop can ride along for portability's sake.
 

Stg-Flame

Diamond Member
Mar 10, 2007
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a what what ?

Mai can you please check the specs again and copypaste them here. We haven't had "6mb" tech since the early 90s.
I'm fairly confident Mai meant 6GB, especially considering the price tag and the other options they spoke about in the first post. You're not going to find a 16MB integrated card for $3,000 today so it stands to reason they just meant GB.

That being said, my 980 Ti is a 6GB card and it runs everything pre-Cyberpunk perfectly fine at maxed or almost maxed settings at 2k resolution. So long as the rest of your specs are fine, you shouldn't need to worry.
Would the 6mb still run games 2 years in the future.
That's a fairly loaded question. Will the laptop run games two years from now? Of course. Which games? Probably not the ones freshly released two years from now and if it will run them, it will be at low to medium settings.
 
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BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
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Is DDR 6 even a thing yet? I've read that Samsung is working on the development of DDR6, but didn't think it was released yet.
 
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Shmee

Memory & Storage, Graphics Cards Mod Elite Member
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GDDR6 is, but that is different of course :p
 

Mai72

Lifer
Sep 12, 2012
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a what what ?

Mai can you please check the specs again and copypaste them here. We haven't had "6mb" tech since the early 90s.

Sure... I've since canceled my order and will go with an actual gaming system.

8__design_laptop_black.png

Case:
ASUS Strix Scar 15 G533ZM-ES93 15.6'' FHD 1920x1080, 300Hz 3ms, Anti-Glare
Processor:
Intel® Core™ i9-12900H Processor (6X P-core + 8X E-core, up to 5.0GHz/24MB L3 Cache)
Memory:
16GB [8GB x 2] 4800MHz DDR5 SO-DIMM Laptop Memory - Major Brand [PB]
Video Card:
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6 - VR Ready [NB]
Primary Storage:
500GB WD Black SN750 SE M.2 PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD -- Read: 3600MB/s; Write: 2000MB/s / Gen 3 - Read: 3300MB/s; Write: 2000MB/s
Secondary Storage:
2TB WD Black 3D Series SN750 M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD -- Read: 3400MB/s; Write: 2900MB/s
Sound Card:
None
Network Card:
Built-in 10/100/1000 Mbps LAN [Laptop]
Monitor:
None
Operating System:
Windows 11 Home - Pre-installed
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
13,444
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Pretty close. It's on Amazon for 1799.
eh, thats not bad. I'm not sure i would want that kind of power on a 15" screen, i'd rather have a more mellow CPU/GPU and at least 17". But then again, i'd rather have a desktop.
 

GodisanAtheist

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2006
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Eh for $1799 I'd be looking for more GPU and less fringe crap.

Why a 300hz screen with a 3060 GPU?

Why an i9 CPU with a 3060 GPU?

IMO you want as much GPU for the price as you can with a gaming laptop, cause you're never going to be swapping in a new one and the GPU makes by far the largest difference in gaming performance.

Dropping down to a 144hz screen and an i7 or even i5 with a 3070ti or better GPU will do you better if your primary goal is gaming.

For s&g went searching and found this:

Check this out on @Newegg: [Late 2021] HIDevolution MSI GP66 Leopard 11UH 15.6" FHD 144Hz, 2.3 GHz i7-11800H, RTX 3080, 16 GB 3200MHz RAM, 512 GB PCIe SSD https://www.newegg.com/black-msi-gp...c=snc-social-_-sr-_-9SIAFXNFT93799-_-04032022

Same price but 3080 (I understand it's not a "true" 3080 and is more like a desktop 3070 but the point still stands) instead of a 3060.
 
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Mai72

Lifer
Sep 12, 2012
11,578
1,741
126
Eh for $1799 I'd be looking for more GPU and less fringe crap.

Why a 300hz screen with a 3060 GPU?

Why an i9 CPU with a 3060 GPU?

IMO you want as much GPU for the price as you can with a gaming laptop, cause you're never going to be swapping in a new one and the GPU makes by far the largest difference in gaming performance.

Dropping down to a 144hz screen and an i7 or even i5 with a 3070ti or better GPU will do you better if your primary goal is gaming.

For s&g went searching and found this:

Check this out on @Newegg: [Late 2021] HIDevolution MSI GP66 Leopard 11UH 15.6" FHD 144Hz, 2.3 GHz i7-11800H, RTX 3080, 16 GB 3200MHz RAM, 512 GB PCIe SSD https://www.newegg.com/black-msi-gp...c=snc-social-_-sr-_-9SIAFXNFT93799-_-04032022

Same price but 3080 (I understand it's not a "true" 3080 and is more like a desktop 3070 but the point still stands) instead of a 3060.

That is a nice gaming system, plus the 8gb of ddr6 8mb Geforce RTX 3080 is awesome.
 

Oyeve

Lifer
Oct 18, 1999
21,899
819
126
I picked up a "17 Asus Tuf gaming laptop shortly after pandemic lockdown to work from home. It came with a GTX 1660 6GB card and is FHD. Cost just over $1k and I have been playing all the latest AAA games on it on high and occasionally ultra settings. It chugs right through them. Granted it is NOT a 4k panel but at 1920x1080 and 120hz games look and play great. I did bump the ram to 32gb from the installed 16gb and added a 4TB SSD to it but out the box its a great laptop and great gaming system. Ryzen something or other, I forget the CPU.