Korean Job Discussion Forums

[J.B. Clamence]

My laptop is almost three years old, but since I got a good one, it's still good for playing most new games. The only thing is the graphics card could use an upgrade, but I have no idea how it works. I have an ATI Radeon IGP 345M (Version: 6.14.10.6444), which some games claim does not meet their standards. It seems most games expect something called "DirectX 9 compatability," which I don't know anything about.

So what do I need to do to get kick-ass graphics? Is there a patch I can update, or can I buy a card I can put into the slot on the side of the laptop? I'm not a cheapskate when it comes to things that are important to me, so I don't mind buying something if that's what it takes. Any info would be appreciated.

[Demophobe]

A new laptop.

This is the problem with laptops; they get old and they become useless for certain things, like gaming for instance. Your graphics chip (not card) is an "integrated graphics solution" and only works in a DX8.1 environment. Games that are backwards compatible will play, but newer games will refuse to work. It's an outdated hardware problem and one that cannot be patched.

Graphics cards in laptops generally cannot be upgraded. There was some big news some time ago about changing that, but it faded away. I believe Alienware sells laptops with the ability to replace parts, but they are an exception.

[cubanlord]

Demo's right. Forget about trying to upgrade your video in your laptop. Have you given though to building a desktop? What games are you playing that require a strong graphics card?

[J.B. Clamence]

I figured out how to upgrade to DirectX 9.0, and according to my system, that is what I now have. Whether I needed the upgrade or had it all along, I'm not sure. However, some of my games are still acting strange. Counterstrike Source keeps telling me that my PC is not meeting the minimum requirements, although when I select the "Continue Anyway" option, the game runs just fine. Maybe it's a glitch in the software. However, it's only a 64MB graphics, so I guess I can't change that.

I'll probably buy a new laptop in the states when I go back for a visit this summer. Three years isn't too bad. I suppose I could put together a desktop system, but I'd rather have a big widescreen laptop that I can mobilize. It's served me ok so far.

Thanks for the help. Also, if anyone knows where I can get imported PC games in English, I'd like to know. I went to Yongsan last week, and only found 2 or 3., although they had dozens of Korean titles.