Computers & Networking

[therogueo1]

I wanted to see if anyone else has this issue. I saw the weekly advertisement having the Sony VGN-NS240E/W for $649.99 with an ATI Radeon HD 3430 graphics card. However, when I went into three different Best Buy stores the very same laptop with the same part number and SKU had only the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500M per the label on the box it comes in. This was true for each and every Sony VGN-NS240E/W. However, on the Best Buy website there is a review saying that their laptop has the correct memory card.

Has anyone else experienced what I have found or are they getting the correct card?

[Aaron-GS Community Connector]

Hey therogueo1,

I took a quick look at the marketing specifications released for this model, and here’s what Sony listed on their product support website:

• Processor: ATI Mobility RadeonT HD 3430 with Total Available Graphics Memory of 2040MB (max.)
• Chipset: Intel® GM45 Express Chipset

I also spoke with Sony’s Consumer Support hotline just to verify this information, and it appears that both are integrated into the main system board. If you’d like to verify this yourself though, please feel free to send me a private message and I’d be glad to provide you with the reference number provided by Sony.

Thanks!

Agent Aaron
Geek Squad® Community Connector
Go Ahead. Use Us.

[Entropy]

VERY WEIRD.  Two different graphics cards advertised, even in the official spec sheet.

My instinct says initially "stay away".

My second instinct says, "If you really want this, go to a unit in the store and look at Device Manager".

There's a slight possibility it may be one of the new dual-mode graphics units that uses a fast video chipset for 3D and switches to a slower (but less power-hungry one) for 2D to save battery, like the newest MacBooks, but if that were the case Sony would be aggressively marketing it.

It is of course also possible to put a discrete chipset on a GM45 Express system, but in a laptop it's kind of nonsensical since a non-graphics chipset is cheaper if the manufacturer is putting in a discrete chipset.  Dell, for example, uses separate motherboard designs for laptops that have choices of discrete or integrated graphics - One motherboard for Intel GMA, a different one for ATI/NVidia video.