Top 5 Notebook Graphics Cards
Replacing a video card in a laptop is a difficult, expensive and not always justified task. Even if you technically succeed in upgrading - “not a fact” that the cooling system will be able to “pull it out”. Therefore, when buying a gaming or professional laptop, you should make sure that the video card installed in it will be relevant and sufficiently productive for at least the next 3-5 years.
We made a rating of the top 5 video cards for laptops in 2018, which certainly will not lose their relevance and will be able to please the owner with gaming innovations for several more years.
Top best laptop graphics cards
| Nomination | a place | Name of product | price |
| Top best laptop graphics cards | 1 | PNY Quadro P5000 | 137 830 ₽ |
| 2 | Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1060 | 21 670 ₽ | |
| 3 | Gigabyte Radeon RX 580 | 17 995 ₽ | |
| 4 | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 MAX-Q | 43 350 ₽ | |
| 5 | MSI GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile | 12 890 ₽ |
PNY Quadro P5000
Rating: 4.9
Why is it: A professional-grade video card, one of the most powerful on the market (if you do not take into account the RTX series).
Professional graphics card based on the same graphics accelerator NVIDIA. Being a rather specialized device, it offers maximum performance when processing two-dimensional and three-dimensional graphics. For example, when rendering video or 3D models. But for games it is not very suitable, because it is poorly compatible with traditional visualization technologies.
In the top configuration, it is equipped with 16 GB of video memory standard GDDR5X, connected via a 256-bit bus. The 16-nanometer processor is equipped with 2,560 computational cores, 160 texture units, 64 rasterization units, and also supports version 5.1 shaders.
The chip itself heats up strongly - heat dissipation is 180 watts.
The device is installed in mobile workstations, such as Eurocom Tornado F5W or HP ZBook 17 G4.
Virtues
- Top graphics performance;
- A lot of memory and it is fast;
- Suitable for CAD and artificial intelligence work.
disadvantages
- Not suitable for games;
- High heat dissipation;
- High cost.
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1060
Rating: 4.8
Why is she: A well-dispersed video card of the middle class that does not “burn” the budget (and the computer).
GTX 1060 is one of the best representatives of the middle class video cards. Despite the fact that by the end of 2024 this graphics accelerator was successfully transferred to the past generation, it still remains relevant. But it has become inexpensive. In addition, it has a relatively low TDP, which allows you to use a laptop based on it without the risk of melting the last buttons on the case.
In the top configuration, this video card received a process up to 1847 MHz in turbo mode, 6 GB of GDDR5 video memory on a 192-bit bus, a special custom cooling system and high resolution support (up to 8K 60 fps).
The heat dissipation is relatively small; the active cooling system installed in gaming laptops can quite easily cope with it.
Virtues
- The best combination of "price-quality" in the ranking;
- Good overclocking of the processor and memory by the manufacturer;
- Widely distributed in gaming laptops of middle and top classes.
disadvantages
- Only 6 GB of video memory;
- Relatively poor performance in raytracing and other ultramodern imaging technologies;
- Attempting to accelerate or mine can break.
Gigabyte Radeon RX 580
Rating: 4.8
Why she: Inexpensive and relatively nimble.
One of the best representatives of the previous generation, the graphics accelerator AMD Radeon RX 580 offers an excellent combination of price and technical characteristics for gamers who cannot afford Vega or GTX 1070. Of course, in The Last of Us 2 or Cyberpunk 2077 at a maximum of 4K 60 fps you can't play on it, but it will pull most modern and even future titles.
Specifications of this video card include a 1340 MHz processor, 4 GB GGDR5 video memory on a 256-bit bus and 7 GHz, 2304 cores and support for shaders 5.0.
The main drawback of the model is a relatively high heat dissipation of about 180 W (or less, depending on the optimization of a specific revision). However, cooling systems in gaming laptops can handle it.
Virtues
- Low price;
- Good value for money in the middle class video segment;
- 256-bit bus video memory.
disadvantages
- Noticeable heat;
- The impossibility of overclocking;
- Heats up quickly under very high load.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 MAX-Q
Rating: 4.7
Why she: Specially adapted video card for gaming laptops.
Max-Q is a special configuration of the top NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 video card designed for use in gaming laptops. It has allowed to significantly reduce the size and noise level of mobile computers, making them thin - but at the same time almost without losing performance compared to desktop-class graphics accelerators.
The technical specifications of the model include a processor overclocked to 1468 MHz in a turbo mode, reduced heat up to 110 W under maximum load, 8 GB of GDDR5X video memory on a 256-bit bus and clocked at 10 GHz, as well as support for all modern graphic technologies.
Benchmarks show that Max-Q is 10% slower than the desktop version of the GTX 1080, but still faster than the same desktop GTX 1070. Considering that the GTX 1080 is still the flagship, the video card will remain relevant for a long time.
Virtues
- Low heat dissipation;
- A lot of memory and it is fast;
- support of modern visual and graphic technologies.
disadvantages
- Lower performance at a similar price with the desktop GTX 1080;
- Impossibility of overclocking (radiator can not cope);
- The high cost of laptops on this video card (more expensive than equipped with standard GTX 1080).
MSI GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Mobile
Rating: 4.6
Why she: High performance at a relatively low price.
This video card is distinguished by one of the best price-quality combinations in the rating. Despite its mobile configuration, it received a fairly “smart” processor of a new generation, which provides even more performance than the chip used in the desktop version.
In particular, the processor of this model is built on a 14-nanometer process technology, equipped with 768 CUDA cores and operates at a clock frequency of up to 1624 MHz in turbo mode. Completed chip 4 GB GDDR5-video memory, connected via a 128-bit bus and having a clock frequency of 7000 MHz.
One of the important advantages of a video card is low heat dissipation. Therefore, it can be placed in thin gaming laptops, which differ not only in compact size, but also in low noise levels.
Virtues
- The performance is higher than that of the desktop video card of the same segment;
- Supports almost all modern games;
- Low heat dissipation.
disadvantages
- Only 4 GB of video memory;
- Processor performance drops during complex visual scenes (due to the small number of CUDA cores);
- You can overclock, but there is no point.
Attention! This rating is subjective, is not advertising and does not serve as a guide to the purchase. Before buying, you should consult with a specialist.
