Upgrading video card for laptop...

[amirsan]

Is it possible to upgrade my notebook/laptop's video card? I bought it from Radioshack (my cousin works there, discount) and its an hp pavilion ze5300.

I want to upgrade my laptop into a nvidia or a better radeon video card (I already have a radeon video card).

My current card is a shared 64 megabyte card, which means that it takes from my 512 memory, which makes it very hard to play big games like Sim City 4 and others without lagging. I need a better card.

So is it possible? And if so, do I need to look for a special type of card?

 

[Comraddict]

shared card = no AGP slot available. You can look for some low profile PCI card but I'm not sure that you can put even that inside. Stick with what you got if that is radeon!

 

[amirsan]

its a RADEON IGP 345M shared 64mb video card.

Maybe to increase game playout I should get more ram? So the shared memory is not a problem? What are your suggestions?

 

[LordKestrel]

Try upping the RAM dedicated to the card to 128M, but the biggest problem is that that video chipset isn't designed to be fast. The IGP 340 series is the value line, so you're pretty much stuck with poor video performance.

And the video is built into the motherboard chipset, so it's highly unlikely to be upgradable.

 

[FireBall]

Yeah... as far as I know, there is no way to upgrade/swap a laptop's Video card without exessive knowledge in sautering, wiring and general chipsets, and even with that knowledge, you always risk killing something in your laptop if you do it even slightly wrong (mostly just the new video card you put int, but still). I would stick with the one you have now, and for gaming... well, buy more RAM...

Laptops are not generally known to be 'gaming machines,' except maybe for Alienware's latest... but that thing weighs 10lb, not gonna be taking it on your next road trip any time soon.An Alienware laptop is an oxymoron IMHO.

 

[Lord Draegon]

Yeah It sucks, I wanted to upgradfe my laptop too. then I learned i coulnd. good thing i didnt buy it.

 

[amirsan]

Damn...

I guess I just gotta save up my money and buy Alienware... I saw it in a magazine, they were so beautiful, and thier more powerful then them huge ass desktops. lol Anyways, thanks guys, I am glad I asked this before I bought one, and way before Rome Total War cmes out cuz Im going to need some serious type of upgrade before I buy that... :-/