"Official" x460DX Owners Thread

MSI x460dx

A few discussions have been taking place, I figured i'd attempt to bring all things regarding the x460dx to a central location.

Unboxing:
MSI X460DX Thin & Light Notebook Unboxing & First Look Linus Tech Tips - YouTube
MSI X460DX: Unboxing Video - YouTube
MSI X460DX-006 unboxing - YouTube

Reviews:
Notebook Review - MSI X460DX Review
Hot Hardware - MSI X460DX 14" Core i5 Notebook Review - HotHardware
Notebook check- Google Translated Review

Discussions:
Discussion of the review
General discussion
HDD Caddy Discussion

Benchmarks:
(Intel HD Graphics 3000, and stock 006US components)


(Xerloq: Nvidia 540m, 8gb ram, M4-128 SSD)


Provided by hothardware.com based on the i5 model:
Futuremark PCMark Vantage Score: 7986
PCMark 7 score: 2225
3DMark 06: 8819
3DMark 06(CPU score): 3161
3DMark Vantage: 4413

M4 Benches on the SATA 6 chip (provided by Xerloq):


ICC profile
ICC File (Datacolor Spyder3Elite) – provided by notebook check

Caddy

The dimensions are 125mm*125mm*9.5mm, any standard 9.5mm caddy will work.

“x460dx was able to recognize 500gb on caddy on cmos setting, but somehow, it did not recognize on windows. It showed up in device manager but it did not show up. I was able to fix this by going to control panel- Administrative tools- Computer management - Disk management.” - hook3549

Here’s the one hook3549 purchased: eBay

Step by Step instructions provided by MrRebeLs, here:


Component Weights (Provided by MrRebeLs):
3.9oz - Stock HDD
4.7oz - Stock ODD Drive
3.3oz - 1st Gen Vertex SSD
2.9oz - Caddy


Breakdown of the parts in the laptop and a ton of alternate configurations: (alternate panel they have listed, credit: bryf50)
http://faenl.msi.com/ftp/CE Docume...rt-1000808.pdf

Another cool one with pictures of circuit boards and schematics
http://faenl.msi.com/ftp/CE Docume...rt-1000622.pdf

Clean Windows 7 install (Click here for Xerloq's complete instructions):

FYI and BIG RED WARNING FLAG. The clean install I mentioned will break the F3 restore function as it deletes the hidden partition where the restore files live.

If you don't have a Win 7 DVD, get one from this NBR thread here: LEGAL Windows 7 Download Links (Just like Vista before!!!). This notebook comes with Windows 7 Home Premium. I don't know if the OEM key will activate - OEM keys sometimes do, sometimes they don't. I have my own retail copies of Windows 7 Ultimate and my own retail keys.

install the following drivers at a bare-minimum. (This is the order I installed them. These are for Windows 7 64bit):

• Intel(R) 6 Series Chipset
• NEC USB 3.0 driver
• Intel Management Engine Interface
• Intel HD Graphics Family_Intel Sandy Bridge
• (Updated)NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M
• Realtek LAN
• Intel Wireless LAN _crane peak
• Intel Bluetooth + High Speed Adapter_N130/N1030
• Realtek HD Audio

Once you've got that, you should be good to go. You'll need to enable the webcam (FN+F6) to install its drivers. Everything works for me using this method.


OEM replacement display info (credit: wumpus243):

Manufacturer:............Chunghwa Picture Tubes (Taiwan)
Windows Device ID:...CPT17A9
Category:.................14" (13.6 inches)
Model:.....................CLAA140WB01-A
Resolution:...............1366*768
Contrast:..................600:1
Refresh:...................8 ms
Brightness:...............200 foot-candles/lumen
Connector:...............40-pin LVDS

(Note that a non-glare variant is offered by the same manufacturer, using the identical model name, but without the "-A" extension.)

Intel i3-2310 vs i5-2410:
Intel Spec Comparison: Compare Intel® i3-2310 and i5-2410 (and 2GB of ram)
Notebookcheck i3
Notebookcheck i5

From the notebookcheck.com benchmarks,
i3 PCMark Vantage(1024x768): min(4300) avg(5444.1) max(9712)
i5 PCMark Vantage(1024x768): min(4887) avg(6476) max(11848)
i3 3DMark Vantage(P CPU no PhysX 1280x1024): min(1140) avg(7241.2) max(14571)
i5 3DMark Vantage(P CPU no PhysX 1280x1024): min(5000) avg(10807.6) max(21267)

Different Configurations:
(Provided by wumpus243)

X460DX-006US: i5-2410m/6GB ddr3/500 GB HDD@7200 RPM/WiDi 2.0/BT3.0 (for sale in the US and via US international subsidiaries, such as NewEgg, Amazon, etc.).

X460DX-007US: 4GB ddr3/500GB HDD@5400 RPM/BT3.0, but may not have WiDi 2.0. (Sold in Canada.)

X460DX-008US: i3-2310 CPU/4GB ddr3/500GB HDD@7200 RPM/WiDi 2.0/BT 3.0 (for sale in the US and via US international subsidiaries, such as NewEgg, Amazon, etc.)

X460DX-019XPL (referenced by notebookcheck in Poland): 4GB ddr3/640gb HDD@5400rpm/BT3.0, may not have WiDi 2.0

MSI X460DX Fantasia! : i5-2410m/8GB ddr3/750 GB HDD@7200 RPM/WiDi 2.0/BT3.0

Current Deals:
deal right now on the X460DX-008US(i3 version) at BHphoto for $726.74

MSI Laptop X460DX-006US Newegg $759 AR + Coupon - Slickdeals.net
($759 at Newegg after coupon and rebate)

Questions, Comments, Modifications, Problems, Drivers, and all things regarding the MSI x460DX...Post it here!

 

Great idea, mstefanko! This is sorely needed!

Just wanted to add that in other markets, there are some different configurations.

The X460DX-006US has 6 GB RAM and 500 GB HDD@7200 RPM and WiDi 2.0 and BT3.0 (for sale in the US and via US international subsidiaries, such as NewEgg, Amazon, etc.).

The X460DX-007US has 4 GB RAM and 500 GB HDD@5400 RPM and and BT3.0, but may not have WiDi 2.0. It is only sold in Canada.

The one referenced by Notebookcheck in Poland was an "X460DX-019XPL", which had 4 GB RAM and 640 GB HDD@5400 RPM and and BT3.0, but may not have WiDi 2.0.

The X460DX-008US has 4 GB RAM and 500 GB HDD@7200 RPM and WiDi 2.0, and uses an i3-2310 CPU (for sale in the US and via US international subsidiaries, such as NewEgg, Amazon, etc.). Not sure if it has BT 3.0.

Other sightings are welcomed.

 

Great catch! Wasn't even thinking about the other configurations, but i'm sure there are plenty of them. Even msi's site lists 2gb as an option for vram on the nvidia 540m, haven't seen a configuration using that yet though.

I'll add configurations, manufacturer links, and current deals to top post...If anyone adds anything else of constant relevance, i'll update the first post with that info as well.

 

Checking In. I have the i3 and yes it comes with Bluetooth 3.0 also.

 

Updated, thanks!

 

I'm trying to decide whether to get this x460dx or the Asus U41JF.

The x460dx I'm looking at is the i5 2410m model with 500GB HDD and 6GB of RAM, currently priced at 789 dollars at my local shop.

While the Asus U41JF is priced at 700 dollars, with the specs of i3 380m, GT425 and 4GB of RAM I'm having a hard time deciding which one to get. Both laptop have its pros and cons.

I don't need the extra power from the i5 2410m and GT540m, because its not that much of a difference from the i3 380m and GT425; And 2 extra GB of RAM is hardly noticeable. But I do like the HD webcam and build quality of the x460dx.

Any opinions? Or is there another laptop around this price point that I've could of missed?

 

the i3 version of the x460dx is on sale for $726 at bhphoto.com right now. The $789 for the 006 model is outstanding. I think the x460dx is worth the little bit extra over the U41JF but thats just me. What kinds of things will you be using the notebook for? If you're gaming at all, which games. Need long batter life? etc, any questions like that i could probably help you decide. But I will say i'm very satisfied with my x460dx.

 

The U41JF was reviewed by our good friend Charles and i suggest you read that review before you make that mistake.

Here's the review ASUS U41JF-A1 Review

The U41JF I believe doesn't have USB 3.0 and GT 425m is slightly slower than GT 540m.

One more thing you have to know is that the 2nd gen i3 is more power efficient and has a much faster and better intel gpu card called "Intel HD 3000" which is miles faster than the Intel GMA card on the 1st gen core i processors. What this means is that you can basically run any HQ videos or flash content or whatever w/o using the dedicated card saving more battery.

 

The laptop will be use for your everyday activities such as web browsing and online video streaming, as well as paper works for school and office. Good battery life is a must, I'm hoping for 7 hours or more though it seems like both the U41JF and x460dx can provide that. The laptop will be used for very casual gaming at most so anything around a GT335m is welcome. I did try looking for the i3 version of the x460dx, but turns out my local retailers only stocked the i5 models, and as for e~tailers, shipping fees and transaction fees adds up, so I might as well pay a bit more for an i5 2410m and save the hassle.

I do like the HD webcam of the x460dx as I'll be using that extensively.

I've read Charles's review of the U41JF, I know that the U41JF looks good on paper, but it suffers from build quality and flex issues.

Thanks for pointing out that Sandy Bridge's IGP is more than capable for everyday computing. Battery life and size of the laptop are my main concerns.

I'm definitely leaning towards the x460dx. How you guys liked the keyboard layout and typing? Also, is it a fingerprint magnet?

 

Is a bit of a fingerprint magnet, but its pretty dark in general, so I really don't notice it when using it at all. If you put it in heavy light a lot and really go looking for it, you'll probably want to wipe it down more often, but i've yet to and it hasn't bothered me at all.

Keyboard took me a couple hours to get used to. They shortened the backspace and enter keys to put a pgup/down keys to the right. As well they shortened the space bar to throw in an extra \ key. Not sure why, especially on the spacebar, why they'd do that. But literally after 1-2 hours with it i'm not making any errors whatsoever typing. And i love the general feel of the keyboard.

 

For everyday activities, I think either would be fine, but for lugging to school and back (and wherever else you go), build quality should play a larger factor in your decision, IMHO. As Benchmade42 pointed out, the SandyBridge revision has really upped performance and battery life: my 2nd-gen i5 beats more than half of the benchmarks of my first-gen i7. i5 gives you hyperthreading and turboboost 2, which makes your new i5 like a 2.7+GHz in last year's i3.

The GT425M is only slightly better than the HD3000 IGP in the new SandyBridge processors, so the MSi will be almost equivalent to the 425 just using Intel (at lower power consumption rates, which was important to you), yet give you much nicer and more future safe graphics power only when you need it (when run in discrete mode). ASUS advantages: price, and perhaps an ever-so-slightly bigger keyboard, and a cooler base and exhaust under full load with discrete GPU, and a better warranty. MSI advantages: size, weight, HDD speed, GPU, CPU, RAM, display, webcam, indicators, build, trackpad, keyboard feel, chassis materials, BT3, 2xUSB3.

 

For people that will be using the GT 540 for gaming, don't forget to download MSI Afterburner software. It is a cool gpu temperature monitor and it is tied with the good ole Rivatuner so that you can see an on display gpu temperature monitor in real life while playing games .

You can also overclock your core/shader/mem for xtra boost to performance but i don't recommend you doing that unless you know what you're doing.

 

pfft I didn't remember to download that, thanks benchmade. Really nice to be able to see live temps while playing games. I don't know if i'd recommend overclocking the 540m unless you have a good notebook cooler though. So i'll just push your "unless you know what you're doing" to ...BECAREFUL! It runs hot enough at stock, a small push could send it crashing. One of you should figure out a sweet way to modify this into a water-cooled notebook with tiny resevour, then we start talking about pushing that thing to it's limits lol.

 

For anyone thinking about upgrading to 8gb ddr3 on the cheap, Newegg.com - Patriot Signature 4GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Laptop Memory Model PSD34G13332S ...rebate today takes it down to $7

 

Purchased the 006US for $775 at B&H when it first became available (No longer that price). It was packaged very well and I shipped it 2-day.

I was coming from an Asus UL30VT (13" Ultra Portable) and previously a 10" Asus netbook. First impression was the laptop felt large. I think part of it was the extra 1" but also because it's built like a brick (in a good way). Very solid, a little bit heavier than I like but for it's class it's still lighter than most.

I already had an old 1st gen Vertex SSD to replace the HD and then 8GB of RAM. The RAM was probably not needed but I already had it on hand. I remember comparing the weight of the two HD's and the SSD is much lighter though the total weight is pretty small. I'll check weights again when I install the caddy, which will be the next couple of days.

Very happy with the laptop overall. Minor gripes:
- The extra space on either side of the keyboard. I wouldn't mind it so much if it wasn't glossy and would really prefer it be used for the keyboard.
- The extra "\" key near the space bar is strange but hasn't gotten in the way.
- The trackpad mouse button seems out of place with its super chrome shinyness.
- The power brick is oversized and wish it were packaged smaller.

I don't find the laptop to be much of a fingerprint magnet besides the trackpad mouse button and the area on either side of the keyboard. What I like most about this laptop is the 540m GPU. I am a gamer but up until now have only used a laptop for traveling and some work. Currently playing Borderlands on it with no problems. It does run a bit hot to touch and a little noisy (fan blowing) but nothing unusual. Also have used it for SC2 but I feel like I need a better mouse than the little one I use now.

As I mentioned above, I will be installing the caddy in over the next couple of days. I'll try to get as much info as possible and take some after pics too.

 

Has anyone figured out any reasons why the extra "\" key was thrown in lol...As much as it hasn't gotten in my way either, it makes absolutely no sense to me. It's like they accidentally manufactured a shorter spacebar key, and too many "\" keys and just went with it, but there has to be some kind of explanation.

Great to hear though MrRebeLs... I actually thought it was big at first as well, I was coming from a 10 inch netbook sooo yeahhhh...But I still have no idea how people are carrying around 15.6+ on a day to day basis...Great feedback though, and I look forward to the caddy info/pics.

 

It's the MSI style mstefanko. Even their gaming notebooks has that xtra key between the alt and the spacebar.

 

Interesting..I've never owned an MSI previously, news to me .

 

I really like the power button light turning Orange when nvidia gpu is in use and comes back to the cool blue color when back to intel hd 3000.

 

Oh yah one thing I forgot to mention. The speakers are horrible! Hah

I really think my 13" asus sounded better. It's as if you turned bass down and treble up to the max. It can get loud but I would prefer a better range than volume. Either way I almost always use headphones so it's not super critical for me.

I also wouldn't say it's any worse than most laptops so what can you do. I tried the THX apps and it didn't help much.

 

Speakers are actualy better than my U36SD. U36SD speakers sounded so little and muffled where it has no treble and even when treble was increased on the EQ, it sounded just too high pitched and tiny.

On the otherhand, w/ THX, the sound on my X460DX sounds fuller and better with good balance of treble. Of course still no bass but who would expect that on a laptop speaker unless you have heard the speakers of some of the XPS Dell or Asus G73.

 

Even if you've heard nice laptop speakers, I can't imagine shopping for a laptop with bass in mind. I'll 2nd the x460dx speakers are better than average though, sounds clear and full as you say, which is way more than i've heard on plenty of other models.

 

Added pics and install steps to the caddy thread. Caddy came today and doing it during my lunch break is easier than during the weekend when my 1 y/o wants to play with the small parts!

 

Cool! Will check check it out!

 

Anyone know how to reinstall THX after a clean install of windows?

 

Is it not included on the cd that came with the unit?

 

Download MSI X460DX Notebook THX Pro Utility 1.04.03 Driver for Windows 7 / Windows 7 x64 - Softpedia

 

Wow. This is fantastic! I had never heard or seen this before Benchmade42!

If the server won't be too resource intensive, this is the best idea I've seen for tweaking ongoing settings without buggering up the screen with a real-estate-stealing program or constantly Alt-Tabbing, which some programs don't take too well to. I've got an Android too, so no problems there, unless the App is massive and has no Save2SD.

This is a great tip. Thanks!

Incidentally, DCS-A10C runs smoothly on the X460DX (only tried at native res so far), so I'll keep pushing the settings as far as it can go, and then report back. This will help!

 

MrRebels thanks for the pictures on the caddy, great pics!

 

??? ??! 8? ?? ??? MSI X460DX Fantasia - YouTube ...Japan gets a better configuration than we do, and the girl showing it off is cuter than whose in the US laptop videos..

 

I must've thrown it out. I don't have it.

Thanks!

 

We need to find the part number for the official MSI caddy.

Other than that, the specs are a bigger HDD and 2gb more RAM?

 

Ahaha true.

 

Ai this is the configuration for the Korean version of the laptop. The girl is Korean not Japanese.

 

Whoops hahaha, ty jetnis

 

Hey folks,

I ordered the Acer AS4820TG from Amazon two months ago, but it has yet to ship out. Consequently, I've just about had it with Amazon, and am looking for an alternative laptop to purchase. The MSI X460 DX is probably my top choice at this point, and I just have a few questions on it:

1) While looking at the pictures of the keyboard, I noticed that on the right side some of the keys aren't full size. Has this impeded anyone's typing experience or anything?

2) How's the build quality? I'm not asking for a tank or anything, but will it last me through the next five years?

3) What kind of battery life are you getting on this? I've heard everything from four to seven hours.

4) I think the general consensus is that throttling isn't an issue with this laptop, but I just want to make extra sure.

5) My greatest concern at this point is probably reports of people getting shoddy displays with dead pixels. How widespread is this issue?

6) Anything that you feel I should know before purchasing this laptop would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks for any information!

 

ahlkid123:
1) You may make some errors initially with the change in keyboard layout, but I have gotten used to it fairly quickly (and I have to use four keyboards a day!).

2) Build quality is good IMHO - better than the average consumer laptop, but perhaps average to slightly below average for an intentionally sturdy business laptop. However, 5 years is a long time to plan on keeping a laptop. If it won't move around too much, that would be fine, but if it will travel everyday, very few laptops in my opinion could be relied upon to last that long (they might make it, but luck becomes an increasing factor!). For portability, I would use a padded bag or case and then this will be fine (not just loose in a backpack), and if heavily gamed, I'd recommend using it on a cooling pad for those sessions to slow down the wear that comes from sustained higher temperatures, at least if you want this to really last. I haven't tried the 4820, but have a 3820TG, and while its a great laptop, I think this MSi is built a bit better. However, please note that 'build quality' and 'quality control' are not at all the same terms. See below.

3) Battery life depends on behaviour to a large extent. I can dim my display a fair bit (perhaps half), and if reading long PDFs, may turn off the WiFi, and I have my browser set to only play GIFs and Flash content once (not loop forever). I do watch flash videos, but usually no more than half an hour at tops for a web session. I will get probably close to 7 or 8 hours, perhaps much more. I find the battery performance to be excellent for this notebook. YMMV.

4) No one on these threads has encountered throttling, but the Notebookcheck.pl (Poland) tester reviewing it made a reference to some throttling under extreme load, and it might have only been during synthetic stress tests (not games or 3D applications), but then I don't know any Polish.

5) Several people have had pixel issues, but not a lot: I think MSi has made a superbly valuable laptop, but their quality control is still a bit inconsistent. MSi's warranty won't replace your laptop screen unless you have 4+ affected pixels at this screen size, but NewEgg will cover you with as little as one, and some other retailers will do likewise, so check your seller's 'pixel policy' before you buy.

6) There's already a wealth of info out there by now, so check the various seller's reviews and follow the links at the start of this really helpful owners thread, and you should feel yourself making a decision in the dark any longer.

In a nutshell, this is the best buy for a performance 'thin & light' right now, but the QC is a bit hit & miss. I'm told the Russians say 'always throw out the first pancake' to set their expectations accordingly (and not feel bad if the first one gets ruined!) - so just realize that there is a chance you may get one that needs to be swapped, and so if you set your expectations accordingly, and factor that into your plans as a low-percentage gamble, you won't be heartbroken in the chance you get one with an out-of-box birth defect. Enjoy it! It kicks butt!

 

1. Keyboard took me a couple hours to get used to, but honestly after that I don't have any errors whatsoever...And i'll say it feels really nice.
2. Build quality is outstanding, far better than the average laptop.
3. Depends like wumpus said, but anywhere from 5-7 hours for me..I haven't really done any gaming on it without it plugged in, so the 5-7 is just videos, web browsing, some graphic design etc.
4. I haven't seen any throttling at all, and haven't seen it referenced anywhere other than that slight mention in the polish review. I believe all notebooks will have some throttling at exreme usage on battery power, but this notebook doesn't throw up any flags there as having an actual issue.
5. All I can say is that I didn't have any dead pixels.
6. It's honestly been a great purchase thus far, i'm really satisfied. The only thing on this that I would of actually changed is just upping the screen res, 1600x900 would've been nice, but it really hasnt bothered me at all..The screen actually displays colors pretty accurately and still better than the majority of tn panels out there. I really can't think of many bad things to say. I could get picky and say the power supply is a little big, and the chrome trackpad button is a bit of a fingerprint magnet...But really, it's worth every penny. Definitely one of the best retail buys out there for the thin and light category.

 

Thanks so much for the quick reply guys. Now I'm asking for your guys' advice....

I would like to order the the laptop off of xoticpc.com, mostly because I love the option of them changing the thermal paste for you (I'm a wimp when it comes to taking apart laptops) for an extra $35. I was also thinking that I'd add the "30 Day pixel guarantee" thing for another $35, and then I'd downgrade the hard drive to a 5400rpm one (I bought a Momentus XT two months ago when I was expecting the Acer that I'll be swapping in. Speaking of which, I read on the other forum something about a warranty sticker...can someone elaborate?) Anyways, the the order would eventually come out $870ish I think, because I don't feel like paying with a check to get the 3% cash discount.

My other option now though, is to order it to Newegg (many thanks to wumpus for letting me know about the 1 pixel return policy), and save myself $20, and pass the thermal paste upgrade.

So what I want to know is, do you guys feel like the factory thermal paste is sufficient for this laptop? Because either way I'll get a pixel return policy, so my only concern right now is the thermal paste.

 

I can see doing thermal paste upgrades on gaming machines, and machines that you're going to tax to the limit... For regular use, I think the i5 with stock thermal paste is more than sufficient. Remember a company like xoticpc is reputable and great and all, but it's still a business, they will offer things like that whether you need them or not, they are happy to make the extra cash. Maybe someone else will weight in differently, but I really don't think you're going to lose much if you don't go withe the thermal paste upgrade.

 

Xotic was very good to me, and very helpful in making my decision. I'd only do the thermal paste if you're upgrading the CPU (since it's free with upgrade) otherwise the stock laptop from Newegg would be just fine.

Reach out to Justin and see what they can do. They're more personable than Newegg, and can help in tight spots - especially when it comes to warranty.

(Disclosure, I ordered from Newegg because of a rebate. My previous laptop was from Xotic)

 

It might be helpful to add the OEM replacement display info to your first sticky post:

Manufacturer:...............Chunghwa Picture Tubes (Taiwan)
Windows Device ID:..........CPT17A9
Category:...................14" (13.6 inches)
Model:......................CLAA140WB01-A
Resolution:.................1366*768
Contrast:...................600:1
Refresh:....................8 ms
Brightness:.................200 foot-candles/lumen
Connector:..................40-pin LVDS

Note that a non-glare variant is offered by the same manufacturer, using the identical model name, but without the "-A" extension.

 

Awesome, will add it...Thanks wumpus!

 

Just fired up Crysis and played for about 1 hour. Everything was smooth at medium settings averaging 40-45fps.

Temps using Afterburner and HWInfo32 at idle/min was around 45c on the gt 540m and 48-50c on the cpu.

After about 1 hour of Crysis, Gpu temp went 83c max and cpu 79c.

No throttling and the palmrest didn't even get that hot. The fans are also not as loud as my fomer M11x R3 where it sounded like a Hairdryer on crack.

 

Was that Crisis 2? Nice!

Which version of Afterburner did you use? I tried the 2.2 Beta, and it freezes periodically (like accepting 1 input click, waiting 5 seconds to respond, then updating, and so on), but it otherwise does work well. I had installed 2.1 first, then uninstalled (keeping settings) then installed 2.2, so maybe the beta doesn't like the old prefs and config from 2.1? Does yours do that? Thanks again for the tip about Afterburner. Haven't installed the Android monitoring app yet.

 

I use 2.1.0 version. It was Crysis 1, results should be the same on Crysis 2with both performance and thermals since if you check GT 540m via notebookcheck, they are both playable with over 35+fps on medium.

I'm thinkin about picking up an SSD for this baby. Did you already buy one or just going to use the 7200rpm HDD?

 

Just wanted to add to benchmade42's post, and share my observations...

I'd say I find similar temps as well for newer titles, perhaps slightly slower framerates than he gets, but completely usable for everything I've tried to date. Most older titles I can run just fine under the Intel GPU, although X3 stutters a bit under either GPU, but then it behaved similarly on a graphic workstation.

I actually got 6.7 on my WEI score for 3D, but I got 0.2 less for my Aero score than was posted here. I didn't think settings actually changed the score.

As a side note, if you launch a game that has a standalone front-end that then launches the main engine, you may see that you get the NVidia GPU for the config screen, and then the Intel GPU for the main engine. I experienced that for DCS-A10C (although it didn't happen for LOMAC 1 or 2, which works similarly). I went into the app's directory where the main engine executable was located, and context/right-clicked on the main exe file, and set it to run under the NVidia GPU. It doesn't actually launch when you do this, but the next time you start the game from the config/launcher screen, it will properly start the second program using NVidia.

Seriously though - to save battery and temps, try the Intel GPU for any titles just a few years old! You may get slightly more graphical glitches (usually insignificant) than the NVidia drivers, but its still very smooth!

I'm actually using the Intel GPU for several of my design apps, because I can now use it for hours on end (using battery!), and for most, I can't see the difference! I can't believe I'm even saying that, after all the costly 3D cards I've had to buy over the years to run them! I'm just saying don't write-off or ignore the power of the Sandybridge HD3000 GPU for 'lighter loads'.

 

Thanks Benchmade42.

I may be able to get better framerates once I start playing around more with Afterburner and monitoring the temps.

I'll wipe out all traces of Afterburner 2.2 and do a clean install again of 2.1.

I'm just running the HDD, because it's fairly fast, and SSD is still a bit pricey IMHO, so I'll probably do it sometime next year. I'm also worried that even using a transfer kit, I may lose some of my registrations & activations, and it took me almost a week to get everything going again perfectly on this box. I don't want to go through all that again for a while!

I'll eventually probably go for a 128 or 256, and possibly UG the HDD to the biggest reliable 10K RPM model I can get (using RAID 0 Raptors on the old desktop at home). Plus I just bought a HOTAS this weekend, and that was a bit of coin to depart with.

 

Good advice I haven't considered that. Curious on what the difference on battery life could be given the performance being "equal".

One plus to getting an SSD is it makes those reinstalls so much faster
New crucial M4 on desktop was about 20 minutes, maybe less, for Win7 Ultimate.

 

Is there a significant performance difference between the i5 6gb and i3 4gb models? I just ordered the i3 from BH Photo, but am now wondering if I should have sprung for the i5 model.