Power And Battery Life
Because the Eurocom Panther 2’s hard drive requires power to remain “active” while not transferring data, the GeForce GTX 470M and GTX 480M appear to have similar idle power. The Radeon HD 6970M consumes around 10 W more in 2D mode, though this may be improved later with new drivers and/or firmware.
Kick the system up to 3D mode and the single Radeon HD 6970M is in a dead heat with the GeForce GTX 470M. Nvidia's GTX 480M can’t even compete for thermal efficiency, converting an extra 40 to 50 watts per card into heat.
Problems getting the Radeon HD 6970M to idle down effectively with current drivers and Clevo’s initial firmware are reflected in reduced run time. These desktop replacement notebooks are designed to run primarily from a wall outlet anyway, but we like having the capacity to at least check our email a few times while en route to the next power source.
