I have a Sony Vaio VGN-FS920. I would like to upgrade to Windows Vista Home Premium. I have upgraded the RAM to 1.5 GB. However, when I run the Window Vista Upgrade Advisor, it says that my video card (Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 with up to 128MB Dynamically Shared Video Memory) may not display Aero. Is this true? I'd like to know if I need a new video card now before I get the upgrade rather than later.
2007-02-14 07:20:59 · 6 answers · asked by William C 1 in Computers & Internet ➔ Hardware ➔ Laptops & Notebooks
The graphics processor on your laptop is integrated into the motherboard, and because of this you will not be able to upgrade the graphics processor. You can still get windows vista, but vista will automatically shut off aero if it finds that it can run it properly.
2007-02-14 07:26:03 · answer #1 · answered by brentonbiggs 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Upgrade Advisor is correct. With your present video card, Vista's Aero features might not work OR you won't get the full benefit of them. And the buzz for the home-user market is that since Aero is the key selling point, a Vista upgrade isn't worth the trouble unless you're going to be able to get the full benefit of Aero. Especially if you're going to squeeze out the dough to get Premium!
Soooooo ... if I were you I'd upgrade the video card first, then upgrade to Vista. Maybe you can get a few bucks back by selling your old video card to a skeptic (like me) who's sticking with XP for now. Good luck! :-)
2007-02-14 07:28:22 · answer #2 · answered by Navigator 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can go ahead with the upgrade if you want. It will use the normal video drivers, and does fine.
If you had a better video card, then Aero "Glass" will be enabled, but I don't find it all that impressive.
If you really want Vista, go ahead. Remember back up all your data and settings first, sometimes the upgrades go bad.
2007-02-14 07:28:21 · answer #3 · answered by Jim 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes it is true. vista has made improvements on graphics including aero. However, if you don't have a good enough graphics card, you can't make use of those improvements. so its up to you whether you want to buy a new card or not. it depends on how often you will make use of aero and other visually appealing tools. good luck!
2007-02-14 07:24:47 · answer #4 · answered by rchilly2000 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i work for a large tech company, and i had a caller with the same question. i beleive that the graphics card will work. but i would wait as long as i can before upgrading to vista.
2007-02-14 07:25:56 · answer #5 · answered by Brain Virus 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Suggest you get a video card with dedicated memory
2007-02-14 07:30:07 · answer #6 · answered by verbalise 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋