Skip to main content

Nvidia Boosts Notebook Graphics with New GeForce 400M Series

Graphics developer Nvidia is gearing up for the all-important end-of-year holiday buying season, announcing seven new GeForce 400M series of notebook graphics processors designed to boost graphics, entertainment, and even Web-browsing performance, plus save battery power with Nvidia’s Optimus technology that shuts off the GPU when they’re not needed. The GeForce 400M processors are Nvidia’s first mobile chips based on the company’s Fermi architecture—and the new chips can also support 3D stereoscopic imagery, so notebook users will have even more reasons to buy 3D displays and shutter glasses.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

“The GeForce 400M Series takes the award-winning Fermi architecture across a complete line-up of DirectX 11 GPUs for notebook,” said Nvidia’s general manager for notebook GPUs Rene Haas, in a statement. “Coupled with Optimus technology, 400M Series notebook GPUs deliver great performance for visual computing applications when you need it, and great battery life when you don’t.”

Recommended Videos

The entire GeForce 400M line will offer support for Nvidia’s 3D Vision technology, so they can support 3D gaming and Blu-ray media when coupled with a 3D-capable display and Nvidia’s shutter glasses—Aver and Asus have already announced forthcoming entertainment computers with 3D Vision support. The chips also support PhysX, CUDA support for GPU-computing applications, and support for Nvidia 3DTV Play, which enables users to connect a notebook with 3D Vision technology to a 3D-capable HDTV. The systems also feature Nvidia’s Optimus technology, which enables the chips to seamlessly shut down and hand over graphics processing to a computer’s integrated graphics system, which are typically a lot less powerful but also consume far less battery power.

Get your weekly teardown of the tech behind PC gaming
Check your inbox!

Computer makers like Dell, Acer, Asus, Lenovo, Samsung, and Toshiba have all announced they will offer products with GeForce 400M graphics support, and Nvidia says additional OEMs should come on board soon. The graphics systems won’t be available at retail; instead, the only way to set hands on them is to buy a new computer with GeForce 400M graphics pre-installed. Nvidia plans to offer the GeForce GT 445M, GT 435M, GT 425M, GT 420M and GT 415M for “performance users,” while high-end gaming and entertainment notebooks can step up to the GeForce GTX 470M and GTX 460M. No pricing information was disclosed.

Topics
Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
Details on the upcoming AMD and Nvidia GPUs just got leaked
The RX 7900 XTX.

Seasonic, a prominent PSU manufacturer, has reportedly revealed several upcoming GPUs from AMD's Radeon RX 7000 series and Nvidia's RTX 5000 series on its website. Seasonic listed the unreleased GPUs on its Wattage Calculator webpage, mentioning at least four new AMD and five new Nvidia models, although they seem to be removed at the time of writing this article.

As per a report, Seasonic’s website referenced high-end models of AMD's forthcoming Radeon RX 7000 series, including the RX 7990 XTX, RX 7950 XTX, and RX 7950 XT. This is the first time these specific models have been spotted anywhere online, adding to the anticipation surrounding AMD's next-gen GPUs. However, it's worth noting that this isn't the first time AMD has introduced a high-end refresh. Previously, it launched the "XX50" models as part of the RDNA 2 refresh, which included the 6950 XT, 6750 XT, and 6650 XT.

Read more
Nvidia just made GeForce Now so much better
Playing games with GeForce Now on a laptop.

Nvidia has just added adaptive refresh rates to GeForce Now, its cloud gaming service. The new tech, dubbed Cloud G-Sync, works on PCs with Nvidia GPUs first and foremost , but also on Macs. These include Macs with Apple Silicon, as well as older models with Intel CPUs and AMD GPUs. On the Windows PC side more broadly, Intel and AMD GPUs will not be supported right now. Nvidia has also made one more change to GeForce Now that makes it a lot easier to try out -- it introduced day passes.

Cloud G-Sync's variable refresh rate (VRR) feature will sync your monitor's refresh rate to match the frame rates you're hitting while gaming with GeForce Now. Nvidia's new cloud solution also uses Reflex to lower latency regardless of frame rates. Enabling VRR in GeForce Now should provide a major boost by reducing screen tearing and stuttering, improving the overall gaming experience on PCs and laptops that normally can't keep up with some titles. To pull this off, Nvidia uses its proprietary RTX 4080 SuperPODs.

Read more
Let’s create: Why NVIDIA Studio laptops are quintessential for content creators
NVIDIA Studio laptops with UI

Modern-day content creation takes many forms - from 3D, video editing, and live streaming to graphic design, photography, and game development - and with it comes powerful creator advancements and tools. For example, AI technology like generative AI is helping creators enhance their processes, and what they can create is more accomplished now than ever before. The same is true for game development, graphic design, and similar forms of media. As the complexity and quality of these media increase, so do the challenges and demands for content creators, who need the ultimate performance and efficiency to power through even the most demanding creative workflows.

That’s where NVIDIA Studio comes into play. The company’s hardware and software platform utilizes proprietary technologies to make creative work easier and more efficient than ever and in a manageable format. Featuring NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 40 Series laptop GPUs, NVIDIA Studio laptops offer the ultimate platform for content creation, from the Razer Blade 14 – available now – or the upcoming Acer Predator Triton Neo 16, Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 and more.
Learn More
 
Why are NVIDIA Studio systems so powerful?

Read more