X1600

[Romanian]

Hey all, I just have two questions about the X1600. I am about to get
an ASUS notebook PC with an X1600, so I want to find out about the card
first.


1) Many games I have say that they support the "Radeon 8500/9000/9200"
"Radeon 9500/9600/9700/9800" and "X300/X600/X700/X800/X850" families.
Would the X1600 fall into any of these families, or if not, will it
still run the game (the specific game I was looking at was Star Wars
Battlefront 2)?

2) The configuration of the S96J says that it has ATI X1600 Solid Video
Memory. Somebody told me that this would mean that it has 512mb
hypermemory. Is this true, and if so, is there any way to turn off the
hypermemory so that I conserve my RAM?


Thank you very much!

 

[Frodo]

I would put the raw performance of the X1600 between the X700 & X800.
But the X1600 is a newer design then the X700/X800 series.
The X1600 has support for Shader Model 3.0 and H.264 video
The X1600 in the laptop appears to use the main memory, which is slower
access
then a card with it's own dedicated video memory.
How much memory is the laptop coming with?
Hopefully at least 512MBs, 1000MBs would be preferred.

 

[vellu]

Not the same Asus model I have (A6Ja), but has the same GPU. Mine comes
with X1600 256MB dedicated gfx memory and an additional/optional 256MB
via system RAM if one wants/needs 512MB total.

 

[Benjamin Gawert]

* Frodo:

I would put the raw performance of the X1600 between the X700 & X800.
But the X1600 is a newer design then the X700/X800 series.

Right. But bear in mind that he means the Radeon Mobility which is far
from being as fast as the desktp Radeon. That means the Radeon Mobility
X1600 is somewhere between a Radeon Mobility X700 and Radeon Mobility
X800, which all are slower than a desktop Radeon X600...

Benjamin

 

[Romanian]

Alright. The laptop of my choice comes with 2gb of RAM. It might seem
like a whole lot, but trust me, I use it all. Programming.

So, I have established that it is somewhat better than the X600
mobility. That is good. But, does it belong to the X600 family? That is
what I am not sure about. This is my first computer with a Radeon card.

Thanks again!

 

[Romanian]

Oh, also Vellu:

I do not have an option of any other card, only the X1600 Solid Video
memory. Does this mean that it already comes standard with 256mb
HyperMemory?

 

[Frodo]

ATI family tree
(older to newest)
8500, 9000, 9100, 9200
9500, 9600, 9700, 9800
X600, X700, X800
X1300, X1600, X1800, X1900
Rumors are that there is an X1700 coming out soon.

 

[Romanian]

So I suppose that Battlefront II and BF2 will not be able to run with
an X1600, since it does not belong in any of the families which can run
it? Or does that have absoluetly nothing to do with it, since it is a
game made before these came out?

Thank you

 

[James]

So I suppose that Battlefront II and BF2 will not be able to run with
an X1600, since it does not belong in any of the families which can run
it? Or does that have absoluetly nothing to do with it, since it is a
game made before these came out?

Runs just fine on my desktop x1600. Th card came out before the game.

James

 

[Romanian]

Alright, just as long as it runs it. And about how high settings do you
think I could run with:

2gb RAM, 100gb 7200rpm hard drive, 512mb hypermemory video, and 2.16GHz
Dual Core Intel processor? Medium-high? Or will the RAM not be able to
feed the card fast enough for high settings?

 

[First of One]

1) Many games I have say that they support the "Radeon 8500/9000/9200"
"Radeon 9500/9600/9700/9800" and "X300/X600/X700/X800/X850" families.
Would the X1600 fall into any of these families, or if not, will it
still run the game (the specific game I was looking at was Star Wars
Battlefront 2)?

1) According to this review
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=2975
F.E.A.R., Quake 4, and HL2 ran "at native resolution (1280x800) at mostly
maximum settings and they play very smooth". In any case, a Mobility X1600
will handle Battlefront 2 without a problem.

2) The configuration of the S96J says that it has ATI X1600 Solid Video
Memory. Somebody told me that this would mean that it has 512mb
hypermemory. Is this true, and if so, is there any way to turn off the
hypermemory so that I conserve my RAM?

Is this where you got the specs?
http://store.agearnotebooks.com/asuss96j.html

There shouldn't be a need to turn off the "feature". Upon exiting the game,
the reserved system RAM is released back to the OS for normal use.

 

[Benjamin Gawert]

* Romanian:

Alright. The laptop of my choice comes with 2gb of RAM. It might seem
like a whole lot

Not to me. For me 2GB currently is a severe limitation...

, but trust me, I use it all. Programming.

So, I have established that it is somewhat better than the X600
mobility. That is good. But, does it belong to the X600 family?

Nope, it belongs to the X1600 family...

That is
what I am not sure about. This is my first computer with a Radeon card.

You are too fixed on "compatibility". The X1600 is a newer design than
the X600 and supports more functions. Programs that work with the X600
or the older AGP-based Radeons (9x00 series like i.e. the 9800) work
fine with the newer card. The drivers for all these cards is basically
unified (ATI also offers the Catalyst Mobility for download which is way
better than what Nvidia does), so don't worry.

Benjamin

 

[Benjamin Gawert]

* Romanian:

I do not have an option of any other card, only the X1600 Solid Video
memory. Does this mean that it already comes standard with 256mb
HyperMemory?

Ask the notebook manufacturer. "Solid Video" is no standardiued term and
can mean everything from "it has ots own memory" to "eats your system
RAM". The Radeon Mobility GPU can use both local memory (means separate
video memory) and HyperMemory (shared with system RAM). It depends on
what the notebook manufacturer did with the GPU so he's the only one who
knows for sure...

BTW: if you're not just programming for hobby purposes I'd stay away
from cheap consumer notebooks (i.e. Compaq Presario, HP Pavilion, Sony
etc) and get some business model from one of the big manufacturers (IBM,
HP or Dell)...

Benjamin

 

[Benjamin Gawert]

* Romanian:

So I suppose that Battlefront II and BF2 will not be able to run with
an X1600, since it does not belong in any of the families which can run
it?

Battlefront II and BF2 run just fine on the X1600...

Or does that have absoluetly nothing to do with it, since it is a
game made before these came out?

The GPUs listed are the ones that are tested by the game vendor. It
doesn't mean it only runs on these GPUs. Game developers have no glass
balls and thus are unable to list GPUs that are developed after the game
has been released.

You should see these listed GPUs more as a "minimum requirement" than a
"only these will work". The listed GPUs do work, older ones probably
won't. But of course newer ones will do as fine as the listed ones...

Benjamin

 

[Benjamin Gawert]

* Romanian:

Alright, just as long as it runs it. And about how high settings do you
think I could run with:

2gb RAM, 100gb 7200rpm hard drive, 512mb hypermemory video, and 2.16GHz
Dual Core Intel processor? Medium-high?

What do you mean with "medium-high"? What resolution do you want to run
it, what detail settings, do you want AA/AF etc?

Or will the RAM not be able to feed the card fast enough for high settings?

HyperMemory is a severe limitation. IMHO it's silly to combine a GPU
like the X1600 with HyperMemory. The only reason to do so is to attract
customers with a "fast" GPU and at the same time saving some money in
production because of the lack of video RAM. Of course most buyers
simply don't realize that the card gets bottlenecked because it has to
share system RAM...

If you want to game get a notebook with GPU that has it's own memory.
Even a Radeon Mobility X600 with 128MB would be much better than the
X1600 with 256MB HyperMemory...

Benjamin

 

[Frodo]

It really sounds like the laptop graphic's GPU uses the main memory.
So in the bios you can set graphics memory to 32MBs, 64MBs, 128MBs, 256MBs
or 512MBs.

 

[Romanian]

Wow, thanks for all of the answers. I actually do not think that it is
HyperMemory, since it says absolutely nothing about that on the site.
And the specifications I get are from www.agearnotebooks.com, for the
Z69J. So, I guess that if everything runs fine and can stand my hobby
(not professional) animation and application programming, I'll get it.
One final question. Would $1900 be a rip off or a good deal for the 2GB
RAM, 100GB 7200rpm 2mb L2 cache, 2.16GHz Intel Duo Core processor, and
the X1600, 256mb? Also a built in 1.3mp webcam, on a 1680x1050 screen?

Thanks again!! Can't wait!

 

[Benjamin Gawert]

* Romanian:

Wow, thanks for all of the answers. I actually do not think that it is
HyperMemory, since it says absolutely nothing about that on the site.
And the specifications I get are from www.agearnotebooks.com, for the
Z69J.

Hmm..."ATI MR X1600 256MB Solid Video RAM - up to 512MB Hyper Memory"
does say it. This thing obviously has 256MB video RAM and can use up to
512MB with HyperMemory. So if you don't use HyperMemory you should be
fine...

So, I guess that if everything runs fine and can stand my hobby
(not professional) animation and application programming,

You should be aware that this thing as one of the new glossy displays
which produce more contrast than a display with antiglare coating but at
the same time reflect everything like a mirror. Even if it might look
great on the first time it usually gets very annoying when working in a
room that is not completely dark...

I'll get it.
One final question. Would $1900 be a rip off or a good deal for the 2GB
RAM, 100GB 7200rpm 2mb L2 cache, 2.16GHz Intel Duo Core processor, and
the X1600, 256mb? Also a built in 1.3mp webcam, on a 1680x1050 screen?

Honestly, I would never pay that much money for an Asus notebook.
Especially when it comes with a glossy display and no DVI output (even
not over a docking station).

Benjamin

 

[Romanian]

Ah well. I'll... de-gloss it with some cake frosting =)

How do I "not use" the 512mb HyperMemory, and just stick with the 256mb
Solid? Is there some option under System -> Hardware?

 

[Benjamin Gawert]

* Romanian:

Ah well. I'll... de-gloss it with some cake frosting =)

I have several people in my environment that bought into one of these
glossy displays because at first they were fascinated, but after some
time of everyday use the people that use it for some real work and not
just only games and watching DVD regret that because the glossy screen
reflects everything which is behind you. It's basically like a mirror
which makes working with applications really hard...

How do I "not use" the 512mb HyperMemory, and just stick with the 256mb
Solid? Is there some option under System -> Hardware?

I'm not exactly sure (and it depends on the notebook resp. it's BIOS)
but in some systems there is a BIOS switch that selects the max.
HyperMemory size. You can set it to zero/off there.

If you can't switch it off you still don't have to worry much.
HyperMemory gets used only if the solid memory gets too small (which
with 256MB is hardly the case). This only happens if the textures in
games are too big for 256MB and/or you set the AA level too high, but in
either case the Mobility X1600 will also have a hard time to deliver a
sufficient frame rate. For 2D applications it doesn't matter because
they need very little memory (with 1680x1050 less than 64MB) and thus
HyperMemory doesn't get used...

Benjamin