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A Laptop help question

DecoyboyDecoyboy Posts: 511
edited December 1969 in The Commons

So on impluse today i bought this new laptop to replace mine that is basically dead. I got it at bestbuy and here are the specs.


HP - ENVY 17.3" Touch-Screen Laptop - Intel Core i7 - 12GB Memory - 1TB Hard Drive - Natural Silver- Processor Speed

2.0GHz (with Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz)- Display Type: HD LED touchscreen - Screen Size (Measured Diagonally): 17.3" - Video Memory

2048MB DDR3 (dedicated); up to 4096MB (total available) - Graphics Chip: NVIDIA

Model: m7-k111dx
SKU: 8771146

Was this a good buy for using D.S. and reality 4? I know it's better than what i had, just like to know if this would speed things up with these programs.

Thanks for the replies.

Decoyboy

Comments

  • frank0314frank0314 Posts: 14,313
    edited December 1969

    Yes, it should be fine. Though its better to have a dedicated GPU it should still work just fine. You definitely have enough RAM to work though heavy scenes. Just make sure you keep the driver on the GPU updated

  • Peter FulfordPeter Fulford Posts: 1,325
    edited December 1969

    Frank0314 said:
    Though its better to have a dedicated GPU it should still work just fine.

    The unit has an NVIDIA GeForce 840M (2 GB DDR3 dedicated). Looks like it might be able to use the Intel on-chip GPU in combination too (don't know why HP would mention it in the m7-k111dx specs otherwise).

    NVIDIA GeForce 840M specs:
    http://www.gpuzoo.com/GPU-NVIDIA/GeForce_840M.html
    (OP's unit has twice the memory)


    (there goes my 17000+ post count ;-) )

  • DecoyboyDecoyboy Posts: 511
    edited December 1969

    Thank you Frank for the reply. I will keep up the updates for sure. Glad this new one will be good. Thanks again.

  • Peter FulfordPeter Fulford Posts: 1,325
    edited December 1969

    decoyboy said:

    Was this a good buy for using D.S. and reality 4?

    It'll run DS well enough for a laptop (don't know about Reality) but whether it's a good buy or not depends on what you paid for it versus what you might have got better for the same money (if anything).

    That's always a risk with impulse purchasing.

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 41,249
    edited December 2014

    ...statistic wise it's almost similar to my workstation build: 2.8 gHz i7 (non overclocked) with 12 GB DDR3 (tri channel), x1 1TB HDD (+ x 1 250TB) boot HDD, and Nvidia GTX460 GPU. with 1GB GDDR5. I'm also running a hefty 750w PSU.

    In looking at images of the unit, the one issue I see could be cooling as it only has the single vent on the left side and, like most notebooks, the components are packed tightly together so overheating could occur during rendering. Cooling pads do help a bit but they are no match for full active cooling. Alas the only notebooks I see with adequate cooling are the more expensive gaming models which usually have dual intake vents in the front and exhaust ports in the rear to allow in cool air to be drawn though the system over the CPU and GPU. When I got a cooling pad for my old 32 bit notebook, I constructed a base for it that allowed more clearance (about an additional 1") underneath so that it could draw in more air.. Not a big fan of the "tilted" coolers as for me it presents an ergonomic issue.

    CPUID is a free utility that will help you monitor temperatures. I would suggest downloading and installing it.

    My build also employs a huge aftermarket CPU cooler (with a heat pipe array that looks like a V-8 engine intake manifold) and is in a full tower case that provides plenty of "breathing room" as well as having six fans While rendering the highest core temps I've seen peaked at around 66 - 67° C (3DL render for a large scene with lots of transparency maps, SSS, and reflectivity). Lux does tend to run a bit cooler. usually around 60° - 62° for a similar scene. Average temps for the system during rendering are in the mid to upper 50s C.

    12GB has been pretty sufficient for my purposes ( I only render single frame scenes) however I have received High Memory Usage
    warnings when sending a large render job to Lux. I have also seen memory usage peg at over 10 GB rendering with 3DL on a large scene.

    The additional 1GB on your GPU will allow for better viewport performance than my system. I am looking at upgrading to a Radeon 7950 with 3GB GDDR5 that a friend gave me, which would allow for rendering in GPU assisted mode (full GPU rendering is still sort of "WIP" as it doesn't give the best quality I hear).


    The one other drawback of a notebook is expandability which is very limited (usually just the HDD and memory), unless one is very adept at computer servicing. One upgrade I would consider when you can afford it (and prices come down a bit more) would be to swap out the HDD for a 500 GB or even 1TB SSD. Notebooks get jostled around a lot no matter how careful or gentle you are with them. The longevity of SSD's has improved dramatically and it would also enhance your system's performance. The original HDD could be installed in an external enclosure to be used as a storage or backup drive.

    I would also consider an external pointing device (mouse, trackball or tablet)

    Post edited by kyoto kid on
  • DecoyboyDecoyboy Posts: 511
    edited December 1969

    Thanks for the responses Peter and Kyoto.
    Cooling was a problem with my old laptop as well, but i just used a fan on it with the laptop lifted up some. I will work on a better cooling system, but so far that has worked well. Also, i do use a mouse, as i do not like the touch pad. Thanks for the responses again. Have a great new years!

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