liezryou said:

680M vs 860M (960M if it releases soon enough)? Ignoring all other specs, assuming you can get both at relatively same cost, what would you guys go for?

Keeping in mind the 680M laptop is ~1.5 yrs used and the 860/960M will probably be new.

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Konosuke said:

Hey GAF, can you lend me a hand here?

Country where it will be purchased: Portugal
Maximum Budget: $1300 / €1000 (It is flexible)
Size: 15’’ and above only, 13’’ is too small for my taste;
Planned usage: College mostly, indie games and co-op games.


Basically I’m looking for a laptop with the following specifications:

- Light, since I’ll be carrying it to college/home;
- 1080p;
- Numpad is not essencial but it’s welcome;
- Software I usually use: matlab, ansys, solidworks, autodesk inventor;
- Runs a few games, doesn't have to run current games at max settings since I have a desktop, must run Diablo 3 and CS:GO;
- Able to upgrade HDD without voiding warranty, I have a SSD from my old laptop

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Edwardo said:

A friend of mine is looking for a new laptop to replace her 5 year old macbook. Nothing gaming related other than some facebook games here and there.

Country: USA
Budget: $500 max
Size: Looking for something around 13" and less then 5 lbs. The lighter the better.
Planned usage: Microsoft Office, Netflix, Music, Facebook, Tumblr, etc.

I can't find too many smaller models with a dvd/cd drive. It would be preferable if I could find a laptop with one.

Brand wise, I've recommended Lenovo to a few friends, since I got a Y580 a couple years ago which has been running great since. I'm just not sure of the sub-$500 lenovo machines.

Thanks.

I was looking at these two for her, but I'm thinking she could maybe get away with something less powerful for a bit less money.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/toshiba...P&srccode=cii_45538312&cpncode=34-242457661-2

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...sp=&AID=10446076&PID=6149513&SID=2gyupc359ze7

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K.Jack said:

Well if zero gaming is going on, a dedicated GPU is unecessary.

This is 14", and I think that's a DVD drive I see on the right side. I wouldn't go too cheap, if you want her a laptop that will last a while.

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Tizoc said:

http://www.asus.com/Notebooks_Ultrabooks/ASUS_ROG_G750JX/
I wonder if the internal battery's already borked since it goes to 50% fast now

Ah well it's still a great machine and I have gotten great results from most games so far =)

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HellBlazer said:

My friend is looking for a laptop and asked me for help... I don't know much about laptops (or recent components for that matter) so I'm in turn asking GAF for advice.

Country: Canada
Budget: $1000 maximum including taxes and (if applicable) shipping, though I guess he'd prefer in the $800-900 range.
Size: He said "not too small, and not too big" -_- I think 15" would probably be good.
Usage: Mainly work stuff (Office, etc.), but also some music software, and a bit of gaming though he mostly plays on console. He plays, like, X-Com, Starcraft 2, Diablo 3 on PC... so not very demanding stuff.

I'm thinking maybe this one would be alright? http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834317599 Onboard video is not great I guess, but it should be OK to run stuff (maybe RPGs and strategy games) at low settings for a while?

There's also this one http://www.ncix.com/detail/asus-amd-a10-5750m-2-5ghz-8gb-75-94293.htm that has discrete graphics... but AMD mobile CPUs should probably be avoided? Or so I read in the OP.

Would a hybrid SSD drive be more significant than CPU or RAM for a smooth user experience? This one has an i5 and 6 GB (rather than i7 and 8 GB in the first link) but it has a hard drive with 8 GB of SSD cache... http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834317607 Worth the trade-off?

Any advice on these or other recommendations is welcome. Thanks.

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valouris said:

Pc Specialist is taking too long for the laptop.

It is the 7th working day and it hasn't left pre-production yet. Contacted support, told me it might be at the end of next week, maybe more. That is 17 working days, maybe more. Ouch.

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Kilrogg said:

Reposting from the desktop thread (didn't know there was a laptop equivalent):

A friend of mine needs to buy a new laptop, but I'm a bit out of the loop when it comes to specs, reliability and the like, so I beg of you NeoGAF, aid her in her quest!

Here's what she needs:
- €600-800 (Europe here)
- 17" screen (matte is better)
- She plays few games. Anything that can run Civilization and Supreme Commander is good enough.
- Mostly she'll need it for browsing the web, watching videos and using MS Office.
- Something reliable/durable, so I'm assuming a good SSD and a reliable brand would be nice
- No need for a touch screen

In other words, not a powerhouse by any means. She'll gladly sacrifice raw power for overall reliability, longevity, usability and speed in most everyday tasks. What would you recommend?

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Joco said:

Is it a stupid idea to wait for Windows 9 at this point? I'd like to get a gaming laptop as soon as the 900m series comes out but I'd like to be on the newest version of Windows when it comes out. I feel like an idiot because I don't know how well laptops update for that.

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K.Jack said:

Link me to some stores in your country/region.

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K.Jack said:

That sucks. I've never heard of them taking that long, and I've sent at least a dozen people their way throughout these threads.

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K.Jack said:

Well, W9 isn't officially launching until late 2015 (I've heard Christmas time), while the Preview is expected around April. Can you wait that long? I'd rather buy the laptop now, then update it to 9 in a year.

Whatever laptop manufacturer you go with, it's a lock that they'll have drivers ready for 9, by the time it launches. So I wouldn't be worried about that.

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Kilrogg said:

https://www.amazon.fr/?tag= (obviously)
http://www.ldlc.com/
http://www.materiel.net/
http://www.grosbill.com/
http://www.pixmania.fr/index.html
http://www.rue-montgallet.com/prix/comparer,portables,700,1,1,1

Thanks man.

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Recidivus Crimen said:

First of, I'd like to say what an awesome OP, learnt a lot of things from it. Secondly, I was hoping you could help me find a laptop (after days of looking myself, its doing my head in).

Country: Australia
Budget: $800
Size: 15" minimum
Need it to be able to play games like minecraft, TW: shogun 2, and garys mod (maybe at mid settings at least?)
Everything else I'm pretty much open to. Thanks mate.

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valouris said:

Yeah, well maybe you sent too much! Their forums are filled with people complaining about the long delays. In their site, average building time for laptops is 17.50 days (yesterday was 17.30).

I got no problem as long as the machine is in good working condition, hope I don't get a bad ticket in the hardware lottery..

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Joco said:

Really? I could have sworn I've read release is expected for Spring of 2015. Maybe I'm mistaken.

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K.Jack said:

This.

You aren't getting an SSD i this price range.

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Kilrogg said:

Thanks. Looking good, if a bit pricey. I suppose she can start out with an HDD and add an SSD later when they're even cheaper. Windows 8 is supposed to be fast so it shouldn't be much of a problem.

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Se7enSword said:

Hello laptopGAF

I've been meaning to buy a Sager laptop, but the recent announcement of 900m series has me in a bind.

Has it been announced when Sager will update with 900m nvidia cards? should I wait more?

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K.Jack said:

Rumor has it that orders for 900M laptops open up on October 11th.

So yeah, if that's the date, waiting is a no brainer.

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K.Jack said:

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K.Jack said:

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shockdude said:

This actually sounds useful. I've had instances where I wanted to show someone a game while running on battery, but couldn't because my laptop's GT755M would get throttled to unplayable framerates. Wonder if this improvement also applies to the 960M or lower.

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kami_sama said:

I'm looking for a laptop to use in the work, that will also let me play not very demanding games.

Country: Spain
Budget: 700 euros, with some headroom
Size: 15" preferred, but 17" doesn't bother me
Usage: Mainly for work, but with light gaming.

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X05 said:

I need this, into my veins.

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K.Jack said:

You and me both, but I'm going to rock with my GTX 780M laptop for another year.

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X05 said:

Well, the 780M would definitely last another year if you lower your standards for new games a bit. I'm on the other hand rocking a FirePro M6000, which is mostly fine for 720p but could really use an upgrade, especially with the new wave of games coming.

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K.Jack said:

What laptop model? I can probably tell you whether upgrading will be at all possible, if you were serious about that.

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Downhome said:

He can't spend very much, so the cheaper the better.

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NEO0MJ said:

I guess this is the best place to ask. I just noticed that my laptop's display seems to max out at 53 FPS. Any idea as to what's causing it?

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shockdude said:

Check your screen's refresh rate?
Right-click the desktop --> Screen Resolution --> Advanced Settings
Click the Monitor tab and make sure your Screen refresh rate is set to 60 Hertz.
Also scout around the settings for your graphics cards (Intel, AMD, Nvidia, any which exist in your laptop) for any power-saving features that involve reducing the refresh rate of the screen.

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X05 said:

It's a Precision M6700, so I'm actually praying more than anything since the thing is 2 years old now, but there is precedent as some newer cards worked on the M6600. Oh well, at worst I'd be able to upgrade to the 7970M or 780M which both work fine with it.

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NEO0MJ said:

I guess this is the best place to ask. I just noticed that my laptop's display seems to max out at 53 FPS. Any idea as to what's causing it?

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Downhome said:

I have a really quick question.

My nephew wants a new laptop that may be able to play the latest Wolfenstein game, and things like that. He asked me what would be the best option at Best Buy. Would any of you mind taking a look at the BB site and seeing what you think? I honestly have no clue what to tell him...

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Laptop-Computers/PC+Laptops/pcmcat247400050000.c?id=pcmcat247400050000

He can't spend very much, so the cheaper the better.

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K.Jack said:

What make and model?

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K.Jack said:

In Australia, you'll need to spend a little bit more than $800 , to do any gaming. Something like this would be the minimum.

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NEO0MJ said:

It's the Samsung Series 7 Chronos 770Z5E. Never had this problem occur before. I only noticed it after purchasing USF4 and DMC4.

Edit: turned on SFxTKN because I know for a fact that it used to run at 60 FPS and after playing for a bit it still runs at that framerate. Then why do DMC4 and USF4 refuse to go above 53 FPS, regardless of graphical settings?

Edir 2: WTF, now they all work perfectly 0.0
I wonder what caused that problem.

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Recidivus Crimen said:

Yeah, I feared as much. Whats your opinion on this one?. Its got the same graphics card as the one you recommended but slightly cheaper. Thanks

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K.Jack said:

The one you found is better, because of the 8GB RAM.

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• Nvidia 755M on AC: 6356
• Intel 4600 on AC: 1831
• Intel 4600 on battery: 1868
• Nvidia 755M on battery: 851.

Ducarmel said:

Not sure if its here I should ask but my screen got cracked and warranty wont cover it and I don't want to send it to my local repair shop because they are charging me 250+ so I will just fix it myself saving more then half the cost.

I have repaired/replaced parts on my desktop before but I never repaired a screen and I am not sure if I can just get any msi gt70 screen or I should make sure I get something that specifically mentions the same exact model I have the gt70 Dominator 895

I see a msi generic branded one that says its for the gt70

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00H26V978/?tag=neogaf0e-20

but I also see this

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MECHVYU/?tag=neogaf0e-20

The only one that mentions is for the Dominator 895

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shockdude said:

Considering that the Maxwell GPUs are advertised to function well when running on battery power, I was curious to see for myself just how badly a Kepler GPU suffers when running on battery. So I performed a quick experiment on my laptop using the Catzilla benchmark.

Windows 8.1.
i7-4700MQ w/ Intel HD Graphics 4600, driver 10.18.10.3907.
Nvidia GT 755M, driver 9.18.13.4411 (344.11).
High Performance power setting.
Catzilla 1.3, 578p

Catzilla Benchmark scores:

• Nvidia 755M on AC: 6356
• Intel 4600 on AC: 1831
• Intel 4600 on battery: 1868
• Nvidia 755M on battery: 851.

The 755M is useless when running on battery power. It is less than half as competent as the Intel 4600 - which interestingly runs identically on both battery and AC. However, the i7-4700MQ can still run at maximum speed on battery, so for less graphically demanding games and even for emulators like Dolphin and PCSX2, the Intel 4600 is adequate.

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K.Jack said:

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Ducarmel said:

Thanks for the advice K.Jack I'll see if i can cancel my order and get something better.

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xbhaskarx said:

I don't know much about this stuff but I need to replace my laptop and I'd like something that will be useful for games as well...



When is this GTX 980M coming out, and how much (roughly) are these laptops expected to cost?

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K.Jack said:

Yeah my 780M is equally worthless on battery. If I'm playing a game and the cord slips out, I'm down to single digit framerates.

I'm not so sure about Nvidia's claims though. Laptop batteries can only push so much wattage (read: barely any at all), so I do't see how such a powerful GPU will maintain gaming strength, unplugged, without severely shortening the battery's life over the long run. I mean that's the very reason our GPUs downclock as severely as they do: to protect the battery. But I guess we'll see.

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K.Jack said:

It's across the board, for all 900M Maxwell GPUs.



Take the cheapest GT 840M equipped laptop you can find.



You and me both, but I'm going to rock with my GTX 780M laptop for another year.

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kami_sama said:

I don't know of I'll have enough for a GT840M, will a R7M650 be enough?

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Jotamide said:

Hi LaptopGAF, hope you can help me out with this. Having a hard time deciding.

Country where it will be purchased: Canada
Maximum budget: $1100 - $1300 CAD
Max size: ideally 14", 15.6" maximum
Planned usage: I'm looking to upgrade from my old Dell Inspiron 1440 to a good laptop that hopefully will last me around 4 years. Main reason why I went with a laptop instead of a tower PC is because I'm getting into music recording and I need something portable in order to bring to jam sessions. Gaming-wise, my main goal with this laptop is to have something that can run games like Castlevania Lords of Shadow or the Mass Effect Trilogy on big picture mode (therefore HDMI port is must) with a stable framerate. All my life I've played everything on the lowest settings possible so I'm not really that crazy about ultra high resolutions. I just want 60 fps all around. Major bonus points if it has a small SDD for faster boot and a backlit keyboard.

After doing my own research I've found the following candidates:
Sager NP7358 / Clevo W350SS - $1,138.86
Lenovo Y50 Notebook I7-4700HQ 8G RAM 1TB HDD+8GB SSD NV GTX 860M 15.6in Windows 8.1 Pro - $1,249.98
ASUS ROG G550JK Intel Core I7-4700HQ 8GB 15.6in FHD GTX850M 2G 750GB HDD DVD±RW Windows 8.1 Notebook - $1,269.00
MSI GE60 Apache Intel Core i7 4700HQ 8GB 1TB 15.6in FHD GeForce GTX850M 2GB DVDRW Win8.1 Notebook - $1,289.99
Sager NP8268 / Clevo P150SM -A - CA$1,309.86
Sager NP8258 / Clevo P157SM - CA$1,355.46
Sager NP8268 SPECIAL / Clevo P150SM -A SPECIAL - CA$1,475.16

This may sound really stupid, but I'm leaning towards the Clevos because they don't have that tacky vidyagamer design the other manufacturers have. Has anyone have had good experiences with these laptops?

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