Is an Intel GMA 950 graphics card suitable for HD? (laptop)?

Question

I have a Sony HDV camcorder and was wondering if this graphics card was compatable with the HD format??

I am poised to buy a laptop at this moment and this is the defining factor!!

I hope this question makes sense, as I'm bewildered with all this computer jargon!!!!

Thanks for your time......

InCiTe..
It's a Sony Vaio VGN-N31M/W.
Advertised in Play.com.
Cheers....

InCiTe,
The cam-corder has a HDMI connection and as I'm going to be using the laptop for mostly editing vids, then I think you're right and I'll need to be looking at better models.
Oh dear!!! Back to the drawing board.
Thanks for looking.....

Answer 1

Yes that laptop is capable of editing and managing HD video... This is assuming that your HD camcorder is using a DV/Firewire link and not a HDMI link

In the above case transferring the file to your laptop will work well as the laptop has the required firewire port. However when it comes to editing you may experience a few problems... the only problem i see is the RAM specification. Due to the sheer size of HD video 1 gig RAM which is suitable for most things just doesnt cut it, the processor is fine also but just scraping in for my personal opinion.

My advice is try to get the next model up for ultimate performance or if your working to a budget for this extrodinary price i would invest in another gig of RAM to avoid frustration.... The great thing is you dont have to do this yet... get your laptop first then make the judgement!

Remember my advice is providing your camera does NOT transfer data using an HDMI port and IS using a firewire port.

EDIT: The graphics card does support HD output!

Answer 2

I'm currently in the same boat as you with a GMA 950 card. I was using a 10.4.11 but bought Leopard and am now running 10.5.7 JUST for the purpose of Sims 3. I did notice another message board say it wouldn't work with GMA 950 and I haven't had any luck so far. Basically, the game is working, but is going really slow. Load times every few moments. This might change once I restart the computer and run the Sims a couple more times, but honestly I am so annoyed with it I don't want to think about that right now. So my answer would be, it might work- I hope I can still get it to run smoothly, and your news about the same situation not being an issue for Sims 2 makes me hopeful, but I have spent around 55 bucks on Sims 3 and 140 on Leopard, and I have also tried taking shortcuts like downloading VMware Fusion and XP Home with SP2 to try to run it on Windows on my computer and have failed, and that stuff has taken so long, and Leopard takes an hour or so to install, and like I was saying Sims 3 has been taking forever and I've had to install it like 5 times now and still no luck. I'll keep you posted if it ends up being fine but I honestly doubt it. My recommendation would be to not go through all of this hassle and stick to Sims 2 or put your $200 you'd spend on the upgrades (if you're not getting them from torrent sites) toward a better computer if you REALLY need the game. Also warrants mentioning that I am not great with computers. And as for why I NEED Sims 3 is another issue I'm not getting into. UPDATE: Alright, if you turn the graphic and audio quality down and minimize the screen a bit, the game runs smoothly enough. It's playable, and for a game like the Sims you really don't need the graphics to be super sharp. It stills lags a bit, but not TOO much is lost I wouldn't imagine.

Answer 3

GMA 950 has basic HD support. It does not have H.264 capability. Detailed specs below:
http://www.intel.com/products/chipsets/gma950/

Answer 4

nowhere near hd suitable. It is one of the worst graphics cards you can get nowadays. Id suggest you buy a new graphics card