How to Determine If the GPU Is Integrated or Discrete?

Understand computer graphics card types: integrated graphics card or independent graphics card?

This article will guide you how to quickly identify the type of graphics card used in your computer—integrated or standalone graphics card, and explain the difference between the two.

How to check the graphics card type in Windows system

The GPU (graphics processor) is responsible for processing images and videos on the computer screen. Determining whether the graphics card is integrated or independent is critical to evaluating game or application performance. Checking is easily done without third-party software.

Enter "Device Manager" in the Windows search bar and press Enter to open the Device Manager window. Expand the Show Adapter option to view the listed devices. If you have only one adapter, such as "Intel HD Graphics", you are using an integrated graphics card.

If multiple devices are displayed under the Display Adapter, such as "Intel HD Graphics" and "NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M", it means your computer is equipped with a discrete graphics card. In Intel-based systems, Intel HD Graphics is usually an integrated graphics card, while other devices are independent graphics cards.

For AMD-based systems, judging the graphics card type is more complicated because AMD provides both integrated and independent graphics cards. You need to view the model of AMD processor in Device Manager and then determine the graphics card type based on the AMD processor specifications.

Comparison between integrated graphics and independent graphics cards

Integrated graphics card: The integrated graphics card is directly built into the computer motherboard and shares the same chip with the CPU. Since the GPU and the CPU are on the same chip, there is a certain mutual constraint between the two. Most modern processors are equipped with integrated graphics cards, which usually limit the functionality of the GPU to ensure CPU performance. For daily use and office use, integrated graphics cards are enough to meet the needs.

Separate graphics card: Separate graphics card is completely separated from the CPU and is installed using independent slots. Due to the separation of CPU and GPU, the two are not restricted. In addition, the discrete graphics card has its own memory, which can quickly store and access data. Compared with integrated graphics cards, independent graphics cards do not share system memory, so they perform better. For users who need to handle a large number of image tasks or need a high-performance computer for gaming or image creation, a discrete graphics card is the best choice.

Further reading: Improve computer performance and data protection

A GPU is crucial to computer performance because it can store data and relieve the burden on the CPU. However, the graphics card may also experience various errors, such as the GPU disappearing in the task manager, the GPU continues to crash, etc.

To avoid data loss due to hardware problems, you can use computer utilities or third-party backup software to back up important data in a timely manner. If data is unfortunately lost, the data should be restored as soon as possible to ensure the highest recovery success rate. MiniTool Power Data Recovery is designed to recover lost files in various situations, and the free version offers 1GB of free data recovery capacity.

You can use MiniTool System Booster to release RAM to optimize computer performance. The software allows you to disable unwanted startup programs, delete junk files, increase Internet speed, and more.

Summarize

This article describes how to determine whether a computer graphics card is an integrated or a standalone graphics card, and makes a simple comparison between an integrated graphics card and a standalone graphics card. Hope this article helps you.

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