I would like to know where I can get a cheap video card for my laptop. Preferably one that is at least somewhat cheap that can play games with high res. The one in my laptop right now can handle to play games but with very low res. and is bothering me. Also, I know quite a bit about computers, I've taken them apart, used parts from one to make another run better, and stuff like that but I've never really did anything like switch out a video card, so I also need to know what what else I need to get the video card working properly, like if I need a better power supply as well. People have told me to look on newegg.com but I feel that there's too many companies on there that are just starting out and their products are pieces of crap, and on top of that I don't know about what are really good brands or not. Make a long story short, I need a video card that can play high res games well, but won't break the bank if I were to buy it, I'm looking to spend maybe $100-170.|||The best thing you can do is update your video drivers. There's not much else you can do for most laptops.
Unless you've ordered the laptop with the card you wanted, you can't swap it out. Unlike Desktop graphics cards, which are limited only by available slots, Laptop graphics cards are hard to find, and even harder to replace.
Laptop GPUs are not cards at all, but GPU chips soldered into the motherboard (which is why the ones with dedicated cards are said to have "discrete graphics" and others have the built-in "integrated graphics" rather than having "cards"), so as are some of the CPUs - meaning you have to melt the metal solder to even take them out. Even then, it's not 100% that your motherboard will support the new card. This is the way most laptops today are made. You'll have to be a real expert to be able to swap them successfully - even then success isn't 100%. Manufacturers will not take them back for an upgrade.
Furthermore, your laptop motherboard chipset will not allow for you to upgrade to a discrete GPU if you ordered it with the integrated card.
Unless you have a laptop with a separate graphics unit or an MXM slot, you won't be able to upgrade/replace it. Check your manual to see if they allow any upgrades. Few laptops today allow you to do so (the Alienware line being one of the very last) I know for sure that recent Dell laptops use the soldering style.
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The only option you have left is to use an Expresscard-adpated graphics unit, but not yet. Maybe in the near future; right now external graphics through Expresscard is in the process of development/release.
There aren't that many for sale yet in the U.S., but if you're lucky, you can find an ASUS XG Station for sale somewhere (but it won't be cheap considering its around $300 for the dock alone). You just need to have an Expresscard slot. They're only offering the 7900GS and 8600GT (desktop card) for the dock so far, but from the looks of the design you might fit other PCI-E x16 graphic cards into it in the future.
However, because of the slower transfer bandwith through the ExpressCard port in comparison to the PCI-E x16 GPUS usually use, they will not perform nearly as well as built-in/native cards.
http://www.hwupgrade.com/articles/print/…
http://img250.imageshack.us/img250/1671/…|||laptops don't have replaceable parts.
you can't change your video card in a laptop, as it's builtin. It's one of the downsides of a laptop.|||For a computer parts never ever buy cheap thing cause one thing can burn or destroy your computer for no reason.
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