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Is Nvidia Optimus The Future Of Gaming Laptops?
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Is Nvidia Optimus The Future Of Gaming Laptops?
If you're not into gaming laptops or keeping up with the latest notebook
computer technology, Nvidia Optimus might be completely foreign to you.
For the purpose of this article and your own sanity, we will try and keep
this discussion as non-technical as possible.
First, Nvidia Optimus refers to a new technology which lets you seamlessly
switch graphics components in your laptop in order for you to save power.
For instance, you can switch between Integrated Graphics and Discrete Graphics
whenever you need them or which one is best suited to handle the application
or computing chore at hand. Having switchable graphics simply means you can
get enhanced visuals and longer battery life from your laptop.
Now this is not exactly new, we have had switchable graphics before in laptops
but what is revolutionary about Optimus - everything is done automatically
behind the scenes, without any interruption and the end-user won't even know
a switch has taken place.
In some past systems, the laptop user had to manually switch modes or graphics.
Optimus changes that completely, in very simple layman terms, it's like going
from a standard automobile to an automatic one; or rather perhaps a better
comparison would be to think of hybrid cars, a driver might not know when the
vehicle is running on gas or the battery because everything happens automatically
in the background. All you know, the hybrid car takes you smoothly from point A
to point B.
What is also so significant about Nvidia's Optimus is the overall application
of this technology, if a laptop or netbook has an Nvidia GPU and a CPU/chipset
with an IGP there is no reason why it can't have Optimus installed. The costs
are very low and can be easily absorbed into the cost of the GPU, so you can
expect Optimus to appear in ION netbooks, mainstream laptops and especially
high-end gaming rigs. About 50 Optimus enabled laptops are coming in the summer
of 2010.
Lets face it, for high-performance gaming laptops one of the main problems
has been low battery life, if Optimus can increase battery life, it will be
a welcomed addition. Nvidia is making some serious claims with this new technology
but if only half of what they're saying comes to fruition, then this is indeed
a revolutionary break-through. Just the increase in battery life alone, would
make Optimus a big step forward.
Just how does Optimus work?
Perhaps, we will have to get just a little technical. Currently, Optimus will
recognize applications based upon the executable file name but it can go a little
deeper at recognizing the application or what's called for in order to get the
best performance. For instance, general web surfing usually doesn't require discrete
GPU but if you come across a Flash Video, Optimus will fire up the GPU and route
calls thru the video processing engine. End the Flash Video and the GPU can power
down again. Likewise, any time you require DirectX (OpenGL), DXVA (DirectX Video
Acceleration), or CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) features - Optimus
will activate the discrete GPU. If you want a very good and a very detailed technical
description of Optimus, I would recommend you read Jarred Walton's excellent article
here: AnandTech.
However, what you have to remember, Optimus will do all this work seamlessly in
the background and you shouldn't even see as much as a flicker on your laptop screen.
Because you're using the right parts of your laptop system to give you the best
performance while using the least amount of power, you will save energy and battery
life.
One of the first laptops to use Optimus technology is the ASUS UL50Vf, and it's
very appropriate that one of the first Optimus laptops is coming from ASUS. Since
Asustek has been long recognized as a leader in innovative computer products and
laptop technology. For example, they launched the popular netbook category with
its first Eee PC back in the fall of 2007. In addition, we have the first 3D laptop
also coming from ASUS, which is the Asus G51J 3D gaming laptop which features Nvidia's
3D Vision Technology and one of the first 120Hz LED backlit LCD displays able to
handle the twin images required for 3D gaming.
Will Optimus revolutionize gaming laptops?
It is probably in these power-hungry high performance machines that Optimus could
play a major role. Providing extra battery life would be a great benefit, especially
if the costs of supplying that longer battery life is next to nil. No doubt, once
laptop manufacturers and designers get their hands on this new technology, we will
see some novel applications and uses, especially where gaming is concerned.
Seamlessly powering up or powering down, depending on the applications being handled
could prove very beneficial in a gaming laptop. Automatically switching from Integrated
Graphics to Discrete Graphics or GPU can increase the efficiency of your laptop and
save energy. Gamers want power when they need it and any technology which can give
them this ability will be welcomed with open arms. While no one can predict the future,
but if Nvidia Optimus technology can give gamers and gaming laptops seamless switchable
graphics and save battery life, then that future looks very bright indeed.
Related article:
NVIDIA Optimus - Is Switchable Graphics The Solution To Low Battery Life?
...
The author has a keen interest in all things laptop and runs
an online Laptop Guide featuring the latest top gaming notebooks:
gaming laptops
For more information on Buying Netbooks at Bargain Prices Click Here:
best netbooks
Copyright 2010 Titus Hoskins. This article may be
freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.
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