Difference between 3GB GDDR5 and 6GB GDDR5?

HaroldWhen · 7 Jul 2014 at 02:01

I'm assuming it's just an overall performance boost but wanted to know more. I noticed the new Gigabyte P35W has a 6GB GTX870 which sounds insane. Yet for the same price the GS70 has a 3GB GTX870.

So whats the main difference?

oweneades · 7 Jul 2014 at 07:40

One has 6GB of GDDR5 the other has 3....

That is the only difference. Arguably the 3GB might clock further due to slightly cooler running memory but overall the differences will be minimal.

For the same money I would take the one with more memory. The 870m will struggle at settings that would fill that amount of memory (especially on a 192bit 24ROP backend), but certain games may end up filling up the VRAM anyway due to poor PC optimisation - Watchdogs for example).

apostolis_kt · 7 Jul 2014 at 07:51

If I had the opportunity to get the 6GB compared to 3 i would go for the 6. It mostly would make sense also if you played in higher that 1080p resolutions and i dont know how capable is the chip to play in those settings but indeed nowadays because of the "next gen" consoles there is some poor optimization in the pc gaming side and the games might require a big amount of ram. If it costs a lot more though don't bother for 1080p gaming.

HaroldWhen · 7 Jul 2014 at 11:19

Cheers for the sarcasm owenades :l Thanks apostolis. I tend to game in 2560x1080. I'm thinking the 3GB should be enough for that anyway. What do you reckon?

EviL Ras · 7 Jul 2014 at 13:05

I had the same decision. went for the MSI gs60 due to the style tbh. I love the metal body, insane lightness, and the power. Gigabyte does the same for a bit less money, and you get an optical drive and more GPU RAM.

Would i change my mind and get the gigabyte? No! I love the steelseries keyboard, (better than my alienware one!), love the gaming series logo on the lid, love the style!

Its down to personal preference and how many textures you think your game will need! As long as it runs GTA V right?

HaroldWhen · 7 Jul 2014 at 13:08

EviL Ras said:
I had the same decision. went for the MSI gs60 due to the style tbh. I love the metal body, insane lightness, and the power. Gigabyte does the same for a bit less money, and you get an optical drive and more GPU RAM.

Would i change my mind and get the gigabyte? No! I love the steelseries keyboard, (better than my alienware one!), love the gaming series logo on the lid, love the style!

Its down to personal preference and how many textures you think your game will need! As long as it runs GTA V right?

Yeah see I currently have a Gigabyte P35K and it's okay but doesnt feel anywhere near as good quality as the MSI laptops look. Plus the fact that my GPU is failing so i'm probably going to need to RMA it.

oweneades · 8 Jul 2014 at 07:48

HaroldWhen said:
Cheers for the sarcasm owenades :l Thanks apostolis. I tend to game in 2560x1080. I'm thinking the 3GB should be enough for that anyway. What do you reckon?

What sarcasm? :confused:

The answer to your question was that straight forward.

At the same price point the 6GB model makes more logical sense. Whether the rest of the laptop is up to stratch is another question. I assume they are otherwise similarly spec'd.

EviL Ras · 8 Jul 2014 at 09:18

I figured there'd be a build quality difference, but Mr Gigabyte keeps telling me off for saying it. So its nice to see someone else comment on the build quality. Because otherwise, tey've basically got the same specs!

HaroldWhen · 8 Jul 2014 at 17:35

Yeah my P35K is good but the build quality is definitely lacking. Sent it to their repair shop today because of the issues ive been having :/ MSI will be my future choice for sure.