Can I get better peformance out of my laptop?

[Grimm560]

Here are my specs:

Lenovo T480
Windows 10 Pro x64
Intel Core i5-8250U 8th Gen @1.60GHz 1.80GHz
8Gb Ram
Intel UHD 620

I know it's not designed for gaming (I didn't buy it...I would've gotten a better laptop for the money spent on it last year), but I figure a few tweaks may help improve my experience. I've never ran Dolphin before owning this laptop. So far I've tried to play Viewtiful Joe but the FPS dropped to around 44. Soul Calibur 2 plays great for several minutes before it crashes or hangs then I have to log out to force shut down the application because the task manager window won't display. Am I wasting my time using Dolphin on this laptop?

[ExtremeDude2]

Have you enabled High Performance in your computer settings?

[Grimm560]

Have you enabled High Performance in your computer settings?

Yes, High Performance is enabled. Are you thinking that this is an issue with my laptop at the OS/Hardware level vs. Dolphin's settings?

[Helios]

Honestly you shouldn't have too many problems. Very recent ULV CPUs should be fine enough at maintaining boost clocks on 2 threads.

Can you post screenshots of all the tabs in your graphics settings and tell us which games you're trying to play?

[sirdaniel]

Some hints:
CRUCIAL
- download newest development nightly bleeding edge dolphin build
- install the newest intel gpu drivers
TO OPERATE CORRECTLY
- make your laptop cool (let the hot air exhaust easily) and check if cpu is throttling
- if cpu throttling, do undervolting but use some tutorial
FOR SPEED
- tweak dolphin options, use tutorials (start with backends, shader compilation aka ubershaders, scaling options, etc)
- install dual channel memory for speed, if dont have alrerady (timings and mgz important too)
- install SSD instead of HDD, for better whole system response and loading times and background tasks, gain few fps too

Your CPU goes up well over 3Ghz so it should cope up with the task if not overheating. GPU is okay for 2x scaling and leave it for now like that in options.

[Grimm560]

Honestly you shouldn't have too many problems. Very recent ULV CPUs should be fine enough at maintaining boost clocks on 2 threads.

Can you post screenshots of all the tabs in your graphics settings and tell us which games you're trying to play?

Sorry for the delayed reply
Here are some of the games I want to play. I have only run a few because I'm on my PS4 alot, and I gotta deal with the kid. Also, I'm not sure how to boost clock.


Here are my graphics settings. I only changed like...one setting but have fooled around with the backend between OpenGL and Direct 3D.

[Grimm560]

Some hints:
CRUCIAL
- download newest development nightly bleeding edge dolphin build
- install the newest intel gpu drivers
TO OPERATE CORRECTLY
- make your laptop cool (let the hot air exhaust easily) and check if cpu is throttling
- if cpu throttling, do undervolting but use some tutorial
FOR SPEED
- tweak dolphin options, use tutorials (start with backends, shader compilation aka ubershaders, scaling options, etc)
- install dual channel memory for speed, if dont have alrerady (timings and mgz important too)
- install SSD instead of HDD, for better whole system response and loading times and background tasks, gain few fps too

Your CPU goes up well over 3Ghz so it should cope up with the task if not overheating. GPU is okay for 2x scaling and leave it for now like that in options.

I downloaded the most recent build that I could find from the Dolphin Website. Build 5.0-10758
My Intel GPU drivers are up-to-date
My laptop gets air. When I play games on it, I usually keep the base slightly lifted for airflow.
I don't know how to check if the cpu is throttling or what to look for.

Since I just started using Dolphin within the past few days, I have been online looking for tutorials. What I really want to do is tweak the settings per game, so I have been looking up tutorials on that.
I don't know exactly what dual channel memory is. I have 8gb ram.
My storage is SSD.

I don't know how to push my CPU to 3GHz. This was laptop was honestly a surprise purchase that one of my friends just dropped on me so I could edit his videos and podcasts. Dude never even consulted me because, at the time, I could have gotten a much more powerful laptop for nearly half the price from the same company.

Nevertheless, I will look into everything you stated and see where I can go from there.

[DJBarry004]

You don´t want a resolution that high with no dedicated GPUs available. Take that down to 1X IR.

Intel fares better with D3D so go for it. Also, marking "Compile Shaders Before Starting" should take care of most of the stuttering due to shader compilation.

[mbc07]

While the Intel UHD Graphics is pretty competent for Dolphin, I'm not sure if it's powerful enough for 3x IR. Try lowering that to 2x IR and see if it helps. Switching to DirectX 11 or DirectX 12 video backends might also help...

I don't know how to push my CPU to 3GHz.

You don't have to do anything. As long as it's not too hot, your i5-8250U will automatically raise its clock speeds up to 3.4 GHz on this particular CPU model.

[Grimm560]

You don´t want a resolution that high with no dedicated GPUs available. Take that down to 1X IR.

Intel fares better with D3D so go for it. Also, marking "Compile Shaders Before Starting" should take care of most of the stuttering due to shader compilation.

I'll try that, thanks!