14 DAY TRIAL // NVIDIA has introduced a new GPU for mobile graphics cards and laptops. Unlike what people expected, the company keeps using the GM204 chip for its new adapter built especially for gaming notebooks.
The freshly unveiled GTX 990M graphics processing unit for mobile computers seems to be using the same GPU as the GTX 980, with 128 texture units, 64 raster operations pipelines and 256-bit memory interface, and according to ComputerBase, it operates at 1190MHz.
The first device that integrates the new GPU is the recently launched ASUS ROG GX700 gaming laptop. To keep the extreme performance the new laptop can churn out under control, an external water pump is connected at the back of the laptop, circulating liquid all over the laptop's guts.
Apparently, the GTX 990M will offer performance similar to the desktop version of the GTX 980, becoming this way the most powerful laptop-designed graphics card on the market. Having the same thermal design power of a full-blown GM204 GTX 980Ti, the GeForce GTX 990M will be available only to absolutely ultra-high-end laptops.
So powerful that it kills mobility
NVIDIA's placement of the extremely powerful GM204 GPU comes as a major surprise since it was previously thought that the company would use a GM200 graphics chip for its GeForce GTX 990M adapter. Unfortunately, at that low clock-rare, the GM200 could be a bit too hot and power-hungry for laptops.
However, looking at the sort of cooling solution the ROG GX700 is coming with, we can only wonder about what mobility is left for the users of such powerful machines since they have to carry they water-pump with them when they need to play their games somewhere else other than home. The new ASUS gaming laptop may be incredibly powerful, but when its performance requirements end up defeating the purpose of its own existence, then there are surely some major design flaws behind the new gaming laptop.