How much extra heat does a dedicated vid card add on a notebook?

[djones148]

I just got a new Sony FW notebook with the ATI HD3470 card and I've been having an issue with excessive fan noise. I checked my CPU core temps and they seem cool at 33 C , so I'm guessing that it might be the vid card producing the heat thats causing the high fan speed.

Anyone know how much extra heat a card like this typically puts out when just browsing the web, etc? If I'm not a gamer would I miss the dedicated vid card if I returned my notebook for one with the Intel integrated graphics?


Thanks

 

[Brainonska511]

How large is the notebook?

If it's a small notebook, it will have small heatsinks - forcing the fan to run more to dissipate the same amount of energy that a larger heatsink in a larger notebook could.

The good thing about the dedicated card is the ability to decode H.264 content and other HD content (especially if you have a Blu-Ray drive). The Intel X4500 series graphics chip can do that in one variant (though I don't know if it's in the notebook version and how widely available it is right now).

 

[djones148]

It's a fairly large notebook (16.4" 16:9 screen), and yes it does have a blu-ray drive. The alternative to the ATI card is the Intel 4500MHD.

 

[corkyg]

Originally posted by: djones148
If I'm not a gamer would I miss the dedicated vid card if I returned my notebook for one with the Intel integrated graphics?

Most likely not.

 

[Brainonska511]

Originally posted by: djones148
It's a fairly large notebook (16.4" 16:9 screen), and yes it does have a blu-ray drive. The alternative to the ATI card is the Intel 4500MHD.

The 4500MHD can decode full HD content, so you won't have to worry about video decoding with an integrated card. Since you're not gaming, I say, go for the exchange if the fan noise is bothering you