GPU at >= 100% for Intel HD Graphics 3000

Question

On my brand new Lenovo W520 (with Sandy Bridge, 2820QM) and with default settings and on battery power, the "Power Manager" status shows that the GPU usage is constant at 100% or larger. Is this usual? The CPU usage goes down to 34% (798 MHz) when the laptop is idle, as expected.

This is also the case when no additional applications are running. If I understand correctly, the GPU in use is the i7 HD Graphics 3000, which is what I see in CPU-Z. It runs at 650 MHz in idle mode, matching the "Graphics Base Frequency" in Intel's CPU specs. In contrast, the CPU clock speed is 2.3 GHz, i.e., 3 times the idle frequency.

Is it expected that the GPU cannot switch down to a lower frequency for saving power? It would be nice if its power usage would go below 100%...

Answer 1

Although I do not specifically own a Sandy Bridge board, I recommend you try GPU-z for a more accurate GPU reading.

The next step i recommend is making sure you're up to date on the latest drivers, that generally hits the GPU performance the most.

If you are using Windows 7 or Vista, trying putting yourself onto the "Windows Classic" Theme in Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Personalization