M.2 Sata help.

[PP Mguire]

Hey you seem to really know your stuff... If like to learn some information on graphics cards in general. Like I said I have the 980m with 8 gigs of gpu ram. I haven't gotten the computer yet (waiting on shipping) but I feel like I'll be good for a good while. My concern is I was reading a thread and they were talking about gm204 and Cuda cores. I can follow but I truly don't know what those actually are. In turns of performance and what's old style to new standards. Would love to hear all about what you know on this topic.

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Depends on what you want to know?

Shader units or "CUDA Cores" to a GPU is sort of like how a CPU core is to a processor. With each changing architecture comes difference performance numbers per "core". For instance, Kepler (GK110, 104, GTX 680, 780, ect) has a higher CUDA core count, but less performance per core vs Fermi (GTX 580 ect).
Naturally, these are only comparable to that of the same family of GPUs and can't be compared to a competitor like AMD as the architectures are wildly different.

Core count isn't the only defining performance factor though, as clock speeds vary greatly as well. In previous generations a mobile contender had a lower core count and GPU clock to compensate for the lack of cooling in the mobile space. So the performance lacked greatly compared to the desktop cards. Today a 980m is more comparable to that of a GTX 970 on the desktop depending on how the card boosts or gets throttled by heat. It should last you a good while, but always remember that the best performance will always be on a desktop due to cooling alone because they can pack more performance in the package.

 

[nheppeard]

I plan on making my own custom desktop pc... Itl be a long time because I just spent 4000 on my origin eon17x lol. I've gathered that cooling is very important. What is sli btw?

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[PP Mguire]

I plan on making my own custom desktop pc... Itl be a long time because I just spent 4000 on my origin eon17x lol. I've gathered that cooling is very important. What is sli btw?

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Honestly if they haven't shipped the laptop I'd cancel the purchase and build a desktop. You can get 2x the power in half the price.

SLI is the technology to run 2-4 Nvidia cards together for increased performance.

 

[nheppeard]

Well I really want the laptop for college and gaming so I'm deff keeping that. As for the desktop, I'd like to have a 4k screen with probably a couple 980 tis or something even more powerful when I go to get it... I will prob end up spending a lot then too. I'm saving up for it and my F150 lol

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[PP Mguire]

Well I really want the laptop for college and gaming so I'm deff keeping that. As for the desktop, I'd like to have a 4k screen with probably a couple 980 tis or something even more powerful when I go to get it... I will prob end up spending a lot then too. I'm saving up for it and my F150 lol

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Unless you or your parents are loaded I'd say by the time you have the money to build there will be a lot better than 980ti.

 

[nheppeard]

Ha my parents are way more broke than I am... I'm 23 and I live with my girlfriend by ourselves. I'm going to school to be an RN but I happen to have a good paying job. Even though I'm going for nursing I have a high interest in computers that I keep going too. Which makes me almost want to go to school for something with this also. I probably spend too much on my hobbies though.

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[nheppeard]

One question I have to you also. I have this dell inspiron laptop that I use as an extra thing to play with... I didn't choose this computer. It was given to me because the owner had a virus on it and hated it. I'll add a pic to show you what model it is. It has Intel HD graphics. Just as something to play around with what kinda graphics card can you put in something like this. And I honestly haven't looked to see if it can even be upgraded at all. Nothing expensive as it's just a play toy that I keep pictures of my gf and daughter on. I want to take computers apart and see how everything tics.

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[PP Mguire]

Ha my parents are way more broke than I am... I'm 23 and I live with my girlfriend by ourselves. I'm going to school to be an RN but I happen to have a good paying job. Even though I'm going for nursing I have a high interest in computers that I keep going too. Which makes me almost want to go to school for something with this also. I probably spend too much on my hobbies though.

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I wouldn't. It's a bitch to get into the field in a decent spot without knowing somebody and experience plays more of a role than papers.

One question I have to you also. I have this dell inspiron laptop that I use as an extra thing to play with... I didn't choose this computer. It was given to me because the owner had a virus on it and hated it. I'll add a pic to show you what model it is. It has Intel HD graphics. Just as something to play around with what kinda graphics card can you put in something like this. And I honestly haven't looked to see if it can even be upgraded at all. Nothing expensive as it's just a play toy that I keep pictures of my gf and daughter on. I want to take computers apart and see how everything tics. View attachment 7272

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Can't upgrade the graphics on that.

 

[nheppeard]

I didn't think so. Yeah that's why I'm doing my other interest. What exactly is the reason for upgrading your drivers?? I mean I know it probably improves performance and everything, but what exactly are the drivers??

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[PP Mguire]

In simple drivers are just a piece of software that helps your OS communicate with the hardware better. In terms of video cards the companies tweak their drivers to help improve performance in games and fix bugs as software progresses.