I’ve always wonder just how far the UL80VT/UL30VT’s Nvidia 210M graphics card could go if you pushed the card to its limit. After downloading several overclocking programs and attempting to reinstall my drivers, I downloaded the Nvidia System Tools and installed them on my UL80VT. I got the Nvidia System Tools working (thanks to the kind folks over at NBR!). I used the Nvidia System Tools to set the exact clocks of the Nvidia 210M graphics card and overclock them. Three hours later . . . I tested out the various clock settings until I found a stable clock level.  It might be possible to get higher if I did further testing, but I do not have time right now. I believe I am right at/close to the max possible overclocking potential.

Asus UL30VT/UL80VT Overclocking Overview

The stock clocks were:

Core clock: 606
Memory clock: 790
Shader clock: 1468

The final stable clocks I got were:

Core clock: 750
Memory clock: 935
Shader clock: 1655

Stock Clocks 3DMark06 Score: 3461 points
Overclocked Final 3DMark06 Score: 3949 points
Overclocked Improvement: 488 points or 14%

There was a significant performance gain by overclocking the UL80VT as was demostrated by an increase of 488 points, but how did the overclocked card fare when compared in real life gaming tests?

I fired up three games to test it out. First I tested out Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. From the moment I loaded up MW2, I could tell that there was a noticeable improvement. Things just seemed more fluid.To verify this, I positioned my player at the same scene and took a screenshot measuring the FPS using FRAPS. Here are the comparisons. This was while playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on native resolution (1366×768) with the textures on high and all the extra features turned off.

Stock Clocks on Afgan: Scene #1 – Fluctuated 29-33 FPS
Overclocked on Afgan: Scene #1 – Fluctuated 32-38 FPS

Stock Clocks on Afgan: Scene #2 – 37-38 FPS
Overclocked on Afgan: Scene #2 – 42-43 FPS

Please note that I picked these spots on the map because they were the lowest FPS spots on the map that I could find. Typically on Afgan it gets around 45-60 FPS. On Skidrow, it was getting about 60-75 FPS while overclocked. I did not test Skidrow on stock clocks.

I also tested Batman: Arkham Asylum using the benchmark test. I got 41 FPS Average with the stock clocks, and 46 FPS Average while overclocked. This was also a noticeable improvement and would most likely allow for a higher graphics setting for minimal extra eye candy or more fluid game play. The big thing I noticed was that the Minimum FPS increased from 14 FPS on stock clocks to 22 FPS while overclocked, which could make a substantial difference in ensuring a smooth gaming experience.

Finally, I also tested CS:S on the video stress test. I originally got 149 FPS with stock clocks. I got 161 FPS with the 210M overclocked. This was less of an improvement, but still an improvement.

This overclocking really makes me happy since I now play COD:MW2 almost exclusively and now experience much smoother gameplay. I had been dropping the resolution down to 1024×768 to make sure I was getting completely smooth gameplay in MW2. I don’t have to do that anymore.

Asus UL30VT/UL80VT Overclocking Guide:

WARNING: Expert Laptop Review is not responsible in any way for any damage done to your computer because you followed this guide. By continuing to read and apply this guide, you take full responsibility for any damage done to your computer due to overclocking/heat/etc (Hopefully that doesn’t happen! And it almost certainly won’t as long as you’re careful).


Here are the necessary steps if you want to overclock your UL80VT/UL30VT Laptop:

1. Download and Install Nvidia System Tools by going HERE.
2. Open Nvidia Control Panel by right clicking on your desktop and selecting the “Nvidia Control Panel.”
3. Go to the Performance area of the control panel (You may have to change your viewing mode to “Advanced” in the view options).
4. After accepting the statement that Nvidia isn’t responsible for your fried computer, you’ll see the area where you can adjust the clocks. Here is where you will want to gradually increase your clocks and run 3DMark06 each time after increasing them. If the computer fails to start 3DMark06 or it crashes mid-run, you know that you’ve got your clocks to high. If there are any artifacts and/or glitches on the screen, you can know that you’ve got your clocks up too high. If your video card temperatures get above 80+ degress, know that you are starting to enter dangerous temperatures. My tempts got up to 88 degrees and nothing bad happened (except 3DMark06 crashed). I just kept reducing and then increasing my clocks until I found the optimum level.
5. The best thing to do is to gradually increase each clock until the video card becomes unstable. Once the video card becomes unstable, you’ll want to taper back the clocks a little from there to where the clocks are completely stable. This is where you’ll want to keep them at from then on (unless you need to reduce them again for some reason). If after gaming for a couple hours, your computer begins to crash even though it never used to–you can know that you most likely need to turn you clocks down a notch once more.
6. Keep in mind that the clocks I posted were for a UL80VT, which is slightly thicker so it may have better air flow than the UL30VT and thus may be a little more overclocking friendly.

That’s basically it as far as it goes for overclocking. It is really quite simple. Good luck overclocking everyone! Post your highest 3DMark06 score in the comments section below. I’d love to see someone break the 4000+ barrier. I have to imagine that someone’s computer ought to be able to (i.e. because each laptop has a different overclocking potential due to varying construction quality /surrounding heat issues, though all the UL80VT/UL30VT’s should be very close).

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