RTX 2060 M Bad Battery Performance

Winston100s on 28/09/2020 - 16:00

I have a Dell G7 with the rtx 2060m graphics card. I have noticed that for some reason when the laptop is powered only by the battery the clock gets locked out at 300MHz and the ddr to 405MHz. Because of this the laptop is unusable as a gaming laptop, Simcity 4 which came out in 2004 has a big delay when scrolling through the map and a game such as GTA V is completley unplayable. There is also massive delay in programs such as lightoom and photoshop. A friend who has this same graphics card in a Dell G7 (9th gen i7 processor, mine is 8th) has this exact same issue, the games are unplayable when the laptop is powered by the battery. This was not a problem when the laptop was new, so I hadn't noticed it untill recently. I contacted Dell, they checked every setting on the laptop and said that it was a problem with the graphics card so they replaced the mother board 2 weeks ago however this changed nothing.

I'm quite disappointed because if I wanted to have the laptop constantly connected to the AC adapter I would've purchased a desktop, not a laptop.

A few other issues I've had with this laptop since in purchased it in November last year is that one of the fans had started failing after 3-4 months and was making a very loud noise, the touch pad has failed twice it becomes sticky and unresponsive and now the keyboard is starting to fail. I presume all of this is due to the extensive heat being generated and inadequate cooling.

After a few weeks of communication with Dell, I have been offered to return the laptop for a refund. I would like to ask other Dell G7 owners, how happy are you with your laptops, have you experienced any of these issues I have? My laptop specifications are i7 8750h; rtx 2060; 16gb ram; 256GB M.2.

I purchased my laptop during an eBay 20% off sale and payed ~$1450, so if I were to build a desktop would I be able to get the same performance at this price, meaning, would it be cheaper or more expensive than $1450? I'm thinking that if I can't get a desktop system with at least the same performance at the price I payed for this laptop, maybe it would be best if I just keep using the laptop powered by the AC adapter and remove the battery.

Any suggestions from the tech-savvy community would be appreciated.

Computing 17.3inch Computer Dell Gaming Laptop

Comments

  • Pam74 on 28/09/2020 - 16:15

    Check your nvidia GeForce settings as there is one which actually disables your gpu when on battery and just uses your CPU’s gpu to save power. I found this was enabled on my dell and when disabled resolved this.

    • Winston100s on 28/09/2020 - 16:38

      I've checked everything, so did the technicians at Dell, but nothing can "unlock" the GPU. It is not disabled, just gets stuck at 300MHz making the graphics card useless

  • RobBoss on 28/09/2020 - 17:30
    +5

    Whilst the clock speed lock may seem like an issue, gaming laptops are never ever meant to be used on battery only for gaming. RTX2060 (mobile), assuming non-max-q, has a TDP of 80w to 90w, what did you expect from a 50-90whr (idk specifically) battery? Even if it was unlocked, your battery would deplete as fast as GTA V can load. This is a reason why your GPU will auto switch (unless changed) to Intel ones as soon as you unplug. This is not just a Dell thing as all gaming laptops are designed like this. The "mobility" aspect is so that you can take your laptop and the adapter with you when you travel.

    Another thing is that RTX2060 laptop is not the same as a desktop one (which has twice the TDP), they are often 20-30% slower. In short: Desktop = better performance (not just GPU) for price, Laptop = more mobility. So the same $1400 will get you much better performance.

    Lastly, some gaming laptops are also designed to draw power from the battery and the outlet at the same time, so you taking the battery out may also cause throttling.

    • Winston100s on 28/09/2020 - 20:22
      +1

      Thank you for your detailed explanation. As this is my frist gaming laptop I thought regardless of the power supply it will perform in the same way. A bit misleading advertising for someone who is new to high performance laptops.

      • RobBoss on 28/09/2020 - 20:46

        All good, welcome to the gaming laptop world haha. And don't even get me started on the TDP of mobile GPUs as the same RTX2060 (mobile) can have so many variants (mainly depending on the cooling of your laptop) that one would lose count. i.e. it can be VERY misleading. TBH though $1450 for an RTX2060 laptop is actually a pretty good deal so I think you should keep it. Most $1500 laptops come with a GTX1650 Ti which is like 2 tier below your current one. Your i7-8750h whilst 3 gens behind, isn't that bad either. Your laptop should be able to handle most games, AAA or not, @ 1080p on high or ultra with no issue when plugged in.

        Also note that building a desktop means that you'll have to buy monitors, keyboards, etc, which will cost you more, if taking that into consideration, you will end up with a not so decent desktop for $1450.

        • Winston100s on 28/09/2020 - 21:31
          +1

          Good advice! I guess I'm canceling that return shipping :)

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