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Inspiron 5577 FPS drop with external monitor
Processor: i7-7700HQ 2.8 GHz
RAM: 12GB
GPU : Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050
When I connect my laptop to an external monitor and set the display setting to show only on my external, Overwatch has a huge fps drop. If I set the display settings to duplicate, the fps is normal. I tried setting the global settings on Nvidia control panel to the GeForce card, went into the GeForce Experience settings and turned the battery boost off. How do I play Overwatch with the laptop lid closed or just with the external monitor with my laptop screen off? I just bought this laptop and expected it to work just fine but I'm starting get pretty disappointed with Dell's products. I previously bought a Dell XPS 13 9350 and it arrived with the touchscreen feature broken, and I've bought a Dell adapter that broke in less than a few months. I don't know if it is the product or it's because I bought a laptop that would not be able to perform in this manner.
moonjonah
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February 9th, 2018 07:00
I chatted with a dell support staff and they told me you cannot use the geforce gpu with an external monitor.
jphughan
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February 9th, 2018 09:00
You didn't mention that you were using an adapter; that is probably key information. If you didn't mention that to the Dell rep either, I doubt they would have known what I'm about to tell you, but fyi the more information you can provide about your setup, the better. For future reference, other information that would normally be helpful to include would be OS, display connection method (HDMI, DisplayPort, etc), the display itself so that things like resolution can be discussed, etc.
Anyway, if the VGA adapter you're connects via USB, then yes that would be your problem. Those adapters use DisplayLink chips rather than being directly controlled by a GPU. I don't really want to get into the technical details of how that works since I've already done it a bunch of times on other threads, but basically, due to a limitation in Windows, only the system's primary GPU (which would be the Intel GPU) can be used to control to a DisplayLink display, which is why your dGPU can't work with that display in extended mode. But mirrored mode works differently because it's just receiving a mirror copy of what's being done on the built-in display rather than needing to be controlled independently.
Try connecting a display or TV directly to your system's HDMI output. If you don't have a display that has an HDMI input, then consider buying one. VGA looks noticeably worse than any other connection mechanism because it's the only one that uses analog video, and if you game a lot, you might appreciate a better display.
But I'm certain the Dell rep was wrong to just say, "The dGPU can't be used with any external displays." That model is from the Inspiron Gaming line, after all, and that would be a completely absurd limitation to have on a gaming laptop.
jphughan
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February 9th, 2018 07:00
I admit that I haven't used an Inspiron 5577, but I'm sorry but that answer doesn't sound right at all, and it wouldn't be the first time a Dell Support rep was wrong about a technical issue. I have never seen ANY system with a discrete GPU that cannot be used on external displays, except for displays attached via a DisplayLink adapter. In all other cases, the iGPU is used by default but the dGPU can still be enabled when needed just like the built-in panel, or on some systems the dGPU is ALWAYS driving the external displays and you can't use the iGPU. The fact that the FPS drop only occurs when you're in extend mode is strange, though. What happens if you go into Display Settings and disable the built-in panel? And what happens if you right-click the Overwatch shortcut and choose Run on Graphics Processor > GeForce?
jphughan
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February 9th, 2018 09:00
You're welcome! The good news is that if you have to stick with VGA, then HDMI to VGA adapters are very inexpensive. Cable Matters has one on Amazon for $10 right now. I'm sorry you got bad information from the Dell rep though. To my knowledge there are no Dell laptops where it is impossible to use the dGPU on ANY external display regardless of how it is connected. But good thing you posted the answer you got here to get more input!
moonjonah
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February 9th, 2018 09:00
When i put the display setting on only the extended, the fps is low. Also I am using an adapter to connect through VGA to my monitor. Could that be the reason why it doesn't work? When I duplicate the display, the fps is good initially but it drops to the low point and stays there. When I just have the display on the extended, it doesn't register that I have a gpu, it doesn't let me go into control panel. When i right click the shortcut, it doesn't show an option to run on graphics processor. Thanks for the response!
moonjonah
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February 9th, 2018 09:00
Im using the dell 4 in 1 adapter that connects to usb port. It has hdmi, ethernet, vga, and an usb port
jphughan
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February 9th, 2018 09:00
In addition to the above, again if I'm right that you're using a USB to VGA adapter, it's possible that an HDMI to VGA adapter would allow things to work properly since that would not involve a DisplayLink chip. Here again, it would be useful if you given more details about the adapter you're using rather than just saying that you're using an adapter that connects to your display via VGA without specifying how it connects to your PC. :)
moonjonah
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February 9th, 2018 09:00
Thank you so much for the help! I told the dell rep that I was using the adapter, but then they just said that I was not able to use the gpu with an external monitor. No suggestions or reasons why. So I figured it was not possible. Thank you again for the information!
LeeBurridge
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February 23rd, 2020 01:00
This is not true. I have a 5577 that I use for gaming and the 1050 gpu works through the HDMI port.