[JohnLacke]

Boxing week sales are coming up, and I believe tomorrow, this Samsung will be on sale for $599. I'm not looking for anything major when it comes to gaming, just something to play my Steam collection which consists mostly of indie games, and a few somewhat recent releases, so nothing very taxing.

Anyway, is that a good deal, are Samsung laptops high quality? If not, is there any comparable laptops for around the same price or cheaper that anyone knows of?

Edit: How is this ASUS by comparison?

Edit2: Best Buy site is down to get ready for Boxing Day. The Samsung is a Q460 with an i5-2430M, NVIDIA GeForce GT540M with 1GB of Discrete Video Memory, 640GB HDD @ 5400 and 6GB of RAM.

[Emerson]

This Steam sale has gotten me somewhat hooked on PC gaming... so I'm a complete virgin looking for some advice.

When we're talking laptops like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834215191

Which have non-integrated graphics, am I going to be able to upgrade the graphics card down the line? I know with my shitty Intel HD that isn't possible.

Can I get a nice gaming laptop for under 600? Preferably closer to 500 but whatever. Understand that I don't expect a hardcore rig, but something that can run modern games. The stipulation is that it has to be on Amazon because I've got tons of Amazon credit and couldn't afford to buy it elsewhere. Any recommendations will be appreciated.

[Glass Rebel]

Okay guys, a friend who's waiting for approval asked me for help picking up a gaming laptop I thought I'd post this here and ask the pros for advice:

http://ncix.ca/products/?minorcatid=1323&po=0&ps=2

1199$ tops and he's already contemplating these

HP Pavilion DV6-6180US I7-2670QM 2.2G 6GB 750GB Radeon HD 6770M 15.6IN BT Lw W7HP 64BIT

Acer Aspire AS5951G-6879 I5-2410M 2.3GHZ 4GB 500GB 15.6IN GT555M 2GB DVDRW BT HDMI W7HP 64 Notebook

Acer Aspire AS7750G-9898 Intel Core I7-2670QM 6GB 750GB 17.3IN HD6850M 1GB BT DVDRW W7HP64 Notebook

Acer Aspire AS5951G-9816 Intel Core i7 2630 6GB 750GB 15.6IN GeForce GT555 DVDRW BT WIN7 HP Notebook

Acer Aspire AS7750G-9656 Intel Core i7 2630 8GB 2X500GB 17.3IN Radeon 6850 DVDRW WIN7 HP Notebook

ASUS N73SV-DH72 17.3IN FHD i7 2670QM 6GB 750GB GeForce 540 Blu Ray HDMI BT USB3.0 WIN7 Notebook

From personal experience I'd avoid any Acer but I don't know if they've gotten better so...

Any help is appreciated!

[ShdwDrake]

This Steam sale has gotten me somewhat hooked on PC gaming... so I'm a complete virgin looking for some advice. When we're talking laptops like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834215191 Which have non-integrated graphics, am I going to be able to upgrade the graphics card down the line? I know with my shitty Intel HD that isn't possible. Can I get a nice gaming laptop for under 600? Preferably closer to 500 but whatever. Understand that I don't expect a hardcore rig, but something that can run modern games. The stipulation is that it has to be on Amazon because I've got tons of Amazon credit and couldn't afford to buy it elsewhere. Any recommendations will be appreciated.

No updating graphics in laptops.

[K.Jack]

Boxing week sales are coming up, and I believe tomorrow, this Samsung will be on sale for $599. I'm not looking for anything major when it comes to gaming, just something to play my Steam collection which consists mostly of indie games, and a few somewhat recent releases, so nothing very taxing. Anyway, is that a good deal, are Samsung laptops high quality? If not, is there any comparable laptops for around the same price or cheaper that anyone knows of? Edit: How is this ASUS by comparison? Edit2: Best Buy site is down to get ready for Boxing Day. The Samsung is a Q460 with an i5-2430M, NVIDIA GeForce GT540M with 1GB of Discrete Video Memory, 640GB HDD @ 5400 and 6GB of RAM.

That Samsung is a good deal at $599.

The Asus has a much slower CPU and the GPU is about equal, but can at times be much better when the shaky Crossfire is working. Judging by how poorly AMD's Xfire drivers have been performing lately, don't bank on them.

The Sammy is the much more reliable option.

This Steam sale has gotten me somewhat hooked on PC gaming... so I'm a complete virgin looking for some advice. When we're talking laptops like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834215191

What kind of gaming are you looking to do? List some games, and we'll go from there.

Okay guys, a friend who's waiting for approval asked me for help picking up a gaming laptop I thought I'd post this here and ask the pros for advice: http://ncix.ca/products/?minorcatid=1323&po=0&ps=2 1199$ tops and he's already contemplating these

Up the budget by $100 and buy This Asus G74.

It would be silly to not do so, as it utterly outclasses every machine you linked in the department of graphics power.

No updating graphics in laptops.

That's not universally true, but should be assumed for most low-end machines.

[Emerson]

No updating graphics in laptops.

I'm not an expert but is that really true? I thought high end laptops could.

As far as games, ideally something that could run Skyrim, Battlefield, etc but not on High or anything. My current laptop can't run Renegade Ops or The Witcher 1 so stuff like that on decent settings would be nice.

Essentially I guess what I'm looking for is the best gaming performance I can get under 600, if such a thing exists.

[K.Jack]

The bare minimum graphics for what we'll consider gaming worthy, in this thread, are the GT GT 525M/540M and AMD 6600M series.

So this is a bit over your budget, but is a very solid option.

[Emerson]

The bare minimum graphics for what we'll consider gaming worthy, in this thread, are the GT GT 525M/540M and AMD 6600M series. So this is a bit over your budget, but is a very solid option.

Thanks for the recommendation. I'd be willing to spend that probably but I do need something available on Amazon since that's where all my money is.

[RobertM]

Anything out there with GT 555M for cheap? Or anything a bit better than GT 540M for around $700

[K.Jack]

Thanks for the recommendation. I'd be willing to spend that probably but I do need something available on Amazon since that's where all my money is.

Closest Amazon analog.

If you don't mind a 14", there's also this.

Anything out there with GT 555M for cheap? Or anything a bit better than GT 540M for around $700

There's this.

6750M is going to average a 30% advantage over the 540M.

A GT 555M equipped machine will run you ~$800.

[eosos]

Quick question...
Does anyone know of any good laptop cooling pads? Something like this. It's for a friend that has a 17" HP laptop. He wants something that he can set on his lap and play games on. Know of anything better than the one in the link? Thanks.

[added_time]

Thanks for all your help with my questions K.Jack!

I got my my laptop yesterday and it seems really good (once you remove all the weird things ASUS has pre-installed)

[Blablurn]

i wanna buy a laptop which is able to play games... of the last 2 years at least

Intel Core i5-2410M Dual Core Prozessor
8192 MB DDR3
NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M 1GB VRAM

should this be enough?

here is the (german) link: http://www.notebooks...ook+ah531+84990

worth the 559,00€?

[X05]

So I can get a new previous gen Envy 17 (with 6850M) for the same price as a dv6tqe... I should totally jump on this, right?

[Kenka]

i wanna buy a laptop which is able to play games... of the last 2 years at least Intel Core i5-2410M Dual Core Prozessor 8192 MB DDR3 NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M 1GB VRAM should this be enough? here is the (german) link: http://www.notebooks...ook+ah531+84990 worth the 559,00€?

Nope. Anything with a 540M is a safe bet but playing games of the past two years will require a 6770M. In this case, the HP Pavillon dv6 brand is the way to go.
The HP Pavilion dv7-6b04eg which is also equipped with a 6770M is 749 €.


By the way, does anyone have some experience with the AMD Radeon HD 7670M ? How is the performance in comparision with the 5650 ?

[Addnan]

Hey guys,

my friend is in the market for a laptop with a budget of $650 at most, now I just read some posts in this thread and saw this posted http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834214495 Is this the best at the budget?

He wants to do some gaming, mostly valve games and maybe witcher 2 if its possible in that price range.

[Johnlenham]

Laptop looks good- has shit internals
Laptop looks hideous - has great internals

Been looking for bloody ages and still not had any luck finding something that ticks all the boxes. Feels like im chasing a rainbow lol

[User33]

This seems like a great deal for $400 (Canadian)

http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/produ...b0c6af1411en02

AMD Quad-Core A6-3400M
4 GB DDR3
AMD Radeon HD 6520G
750 GB HDD

Good for the price?

[DeathNote]

What kind of games can this run?

i5-2430M processor 2.40 GHz
NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M - N12P-GE 1GB
8GB,DDR3,2 DIMM

It'll be my dad's. He doesn't care about gaming. But I'd like to try out SW:TOR and maybe some other stuff while I wait a month or two to build a desktop.

Edit:
Notebookcheck says the 6770M benches 56fps on Crysis 2 in medium settings and the the 525M gets 34.5 fps.

Crysis 2 requires a NVidia 8800GT with 512Mb RAM while SW:TOR requires nVidia 7800 with 256MB.

So... pulling it out of my ass... the GT 525M should get 40-50 FPS on medium?

[RobertM]

This seems like a steal for $679. I customized HP dv6z Quad Edition btw:

Operating system:	Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit	edit
Processor:	        AMD Quad-Core A8-3510MX Accelerated Processor (2.5GHz/1.8GHz, 4MB L2 
Graphic card:     1GB GDDR5 Radeon(TM) HD 6750M Graphics 
Memory:            6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)	
Hard Drive:        640GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive 
Battery:             Primary battery	6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (standard)	
Display:             15.6" High Def LED HP Brightview (1366x768)	
SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support	
Personalization	HP TrueVision HD Webcam with Integrated Digital Microphone and HP SimplePass Fingerprint Reader	
802.11b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R)	
Keyboard	Standard Keyboard with numeric keypad

My only concern is the quality of the laptop and the heat.

[Soka]

I'm sure you guys are tired of netbook questions, but my girlfriend is looking for a netbook between 11-13" for under $400, including tax/shipping/a case (she already has a mouse). She would like it for web browsing and Office-usage to bring to some of her classes in grad school. HDD size isn't an issue as long as it's above 100 GB (which seems to be a non-issue anyway).

I was thinking the Asus 1215b, but it seems a bit out of the price range. Instead, I'm fairly sure the Acer AO722-0473 (or, -0611, -c62kk, -0667) seem to be the best option. Any thoughts/comments? Besides a smaller HD in the -0611, I don't see a difference between these models... am I missing something?

[K.Jack]

i wanna buy a laptop which is able to play games... of the last 2 years at least Intel Core i5-2410M Dual Core Prozessor 8192 MB DDR3 NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M 1GB VRAM should this be enough? here is the (german) link: http://www.notebooks...ook+ah531+84990 worth the 559,00€?

That will game pretty respectably at 720p, with overclocking of the GPU to as close to 540M speeds as possible being recommended.

So I can get a new previous gen Envy 17 (with 6850M) for the same price as a dv6tqe... I should totally jump on this, right?

Yes, immediately. The 6860M stomps all over the 6770M/6750M by close to 40%.

Nope. Anything with a 540M is a safe bet but playing games of the past two years will require a 6770M. In this case, the HP Pavillon dv6 brand is the way to go. The HP Pavilion dv7-6b04eg which is also equipped with a 6770M is 749 €. By the way, does anyone have some experience with the AMD Radeon HD 7670M ? How is the performance in comparision with the 5650 ?

1. The 525M and the 540M are the same exact card, at different clocks.

2. The 7600M series is a direct rebrand (with slightly higher clocks) of the 6700M series, which is pretty much 2x the speed of the 5650M.

Hey guys, my friend is in the market for a laptop with a budget of $650 at most, now I just read some posts in this thread and saw this posted http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834214495 Is this the best at the budget? He wants to do some gaming, mostly valve games and maybe witcher 2 if its possible in that price range.

Yeah the i5 and 525M/540M is pretty much standard at ~$600. But hold off, because it looks like the HP DV6 is coming down in price rapidly.

See post #3220 below.

Laptop looks good- has shit internals Laptop looks hideous - has great internals Been looking for bloody ages and still not had any luck finding something that ticks all the boxes. Feels like im chasing a rainbow lol

What's your budget?

What kind of games can this run? i5-2430M processor 2.40 GHz NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M - N12P-GE 1GB 8GB,DDR3,2 DIMM It'll be my dad's. He doesn't care about gaming. But I'd like to try out SW:TOR and maybe some other stuff while I wait a month or two to build a desktop. Edit: Notebookcheck says the 6770M benches 56fps on Crysis 2 in medium settings and the the 525M gets 34.5 fps. Crysis 2 requires a NVidia 8800GT with 512Mb RAM while SW:TOR requires nVidia 7800 with 256MB. So... pulling it out of my ass... the GT 525M should get 40-50 FPS on medium?

The 525M will run TOR on medium easily at 720p, yes.

This seems like a steal for $679. I customized HP dv6z Quad Edition btw: Operating system: Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit edit Processor: AMD Quad-Core A8-3510MX Accelerated Processor (2.5GHz/1.8GHz, 4MB L2 Graphic card: 1GB GDDR5 Radeon(TM) HD 6750M Graphics Memory: 6GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm) Hard Drive: 640GB 5400 rpm Hard Drive Battery: Primary battery 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (standard) Display: 15.6" High Def LED HP Brightview (1366x768) SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support Personalization HP TrueVision HD Webcam with Integrated Digital Microphone and HP SimplePass Fingerprint Reader 802.11b/g/n WLAN and Bluetooth(R) Keyboard Standard Keyboard with numeric keypad My only concern is the quality of the laptop and the heat.

How did you get this so cheaply? That's amazing at under $700. Was it a certain coupon, or are they such at clearance prices now?

I'm sure you guys are tired of netbook questions, but my girlfriend is looking for a netbook between 11-13" for under $400, including tax/shipping/a case (she already has a mouse). She would like it for web browsing and Office-usage to bring to some of her classes in grad school. HDD size isn't an issue as long as it's above 100 GB (which seems to be a non-issue anyway). I was thinking the Asus 1215b, but it seems a bit out of the price range. Instead, I'm fairly sure the Acer AO722-0473 (or, -0611, -c62kk, -0667) seem to be the best option. Any thoughts/comments? Besides a smaller HD in the -0611, I don't see a difference between these models... am I missing something?

As long as there's no significant difference in processor/graphics speed, I'd take the cheaper version.

[alr1ght]

Maybe someone can help me out. I have a GT540M which outputs to a secondary 5:4 monitor.

I want to run games at 1280x720 and have them letterbox to the correct aspect ratio. Apparently I'm supposed to be able to do this via NVidia CP under "Display"



but all I have is this


and everything stretches to fill the screen unless I run it in a window.

[The Teachinator]

I just got this yesterday

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16834152292


As far as laptops go I've always been a Mac guy and will still use them for work. I really like the build quality on the MSI though! Which surprised me. The thing plays SKyrim and TOR on high settings which kind of surprised me as well. So far it is a great companion to my HTPC.

[LyarVonLyar]

Maybe someone can help me out. I have a GT540M which outputs to a secondary 5:4 monitor. I want to run games at 1280x720 and have them letterbox to the correct aspect ratio. Apparently I'm supposed to be able to do this via NVidia CP under "Display" but all I have is this and everything stretches to fill the screen unless I run it in a window.

I'm not at my laptop to help further, but first I would make sure the game is using the 540m and that Optimus isn't derping. Also can you tell us what game you've tested this on. I've noticed some games modify aspect ratio/display more easily than others.

[RobertM]

How did you get this so cheaply? That's amazing at under $700.

I know, I just went on the the site and customized a midrange laptop. Here's the link http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/sh.../dv6zqe_series

Theres also an instant $100 rebate so that could be why.

[Ratrat]

some msi laptop

Windows 7 Home Premium
Intel Core i5-2410M 2.30GHz
HDD：500GB
Ram:4GB
NVIDIA GeForce GT540M

never done any serious gaming(only own a netbook) so am wondering how decent this is? For instance, could I run the Witcher 2 at all?

[The Teachinator]

some msi laptop Windows 7 Home Premium Intel Core i5-2410M 2.30GHz HDD：500GB Ram:4GB NVIDIA GeForce GT540M never done any serious gaming(only own a netbook) so am wondering how decent this is? For instance, could I run the Witcher 2 at all?

I'm sure you could play it to some degree but I'm sure other's here could tell you what it would be like. The game is way too hyped IMO. Portal 2 FTW!

[X05]

Thanks K.Jack, will definitely jump on it :)

but all I have is this and everything stretches to fill the screen unless I run it in a window.

There are a lot of options missing there... did you try reinstalling the driver?

If you are using a digital connection, you should see this:


If you are using VGA, you have to create a custom resolution, which is kinda annoying since it requires quite a bit of trial and error, and doesn't always work.

[linko9]

Hey, just thought I'd pop in and say I got a Lenovo W520, and am extremely pleased with its performance. Runs most recent stuff (Mass Effect 2, Arkham City, Portal 2) at above 30 fps (Often 60) at max settings (other than 2x AA) at 1600x900. Cost ~1200, but I needed something reliable after owning a Dell for the past 4 years.

[Ratrat]

I'm sure you could play it to some degree but I'm sure other's here could tell you what it would be like. The game is way too hyped IMO. Portal 2 FTW!

I know its on the demanding side. :s I do want to know if I'll be able to play most modern pc games with average settings on this thing though.

[alr1ght]

Thanks K.Jack, will definitely jump on it :) There are a lot of options missing there... did you try reinstalling the driver? If you are using a digital connection, you should see this: [IaMG]http://i.imgur.com/qVG0x.png[/IMG] If you are using VGA, you have to create a custom resolution, which is kinda annoying since it requires quite a bit of trial and error, and doesn't always work.

I had the latest drivers, then updated to the latest beta drivers...nothing. I don't even get those options if I hook it up via HDMI or just using the built in display. When I ran at a lower res on the main display, it did display in the proper res/AR, but still no way to control anything.

[clashfan]

Anyone had good or bad experiences with the HP Envy. I'm looking at the new Envy 15. Looks really good...

[electroshockwave]

Is there anyone from the UK/Europe here who could recommend a laptop that's able to play Source games, Skyrim, and maybe the Witcher 2 with good performance for less than £500?

[Monroeski]

When I first got my G53SW a few months ago, I was having some video problems with it. Everything seemed to be synonymous with a loose video cable, so I just rode it out for a while; basically, the biggest issue was that sometimes the screen just wouldn't come on when I powered it up. I could just turn it off and on again and it usually came on fine, though, so again, I just rode it out for a while. When the problem got much worse, I took it to a local shop to fix because I didn't want to have to deal with taking forever to send it back and forth to Taiwan.

Long story short, after two weeks in the shop because they couldn't figure out how to open the damn thing they called back today and said yes, there is a problem with a loose cable, but no, they can't fix it because ASUS refuses to sell parts for their laptops. Now I'm just out the cost of what I've paid to get it fixed already and if I want to use the laptop again I'll still have to go through the Taiwan for a month route.

Really turned off of ASUS right now. I almost just don't want to bother getting it fixed and consider myself out $1500 at this point because I don't want to give them any more money.

[alr1ght]

Getting my ADP Warranty registered with Asus is a complete joke. Sent in my original card - returned due to them moving years ago without ever updating their warranty cards. Tried to do it on the website - was down for over a week. Finally found another site and it seems to work.

[Ken]

When I first got my G53SW a few months ago, I was having some video problems with it. Everything seemed to be synonymous with a loose video cable, so I just rode it out for a while; basically, the biggest issue was that sometimes the screen just wouldn't come on when I powered it up. I could just turn it off and on again and it usually came on fine, though, so again, I just rode it out for a while. When the problem got much worse, I took it to a local shop to fix because I didn't want to have to deal with taking forever to send it back and forth to Taiwan. Long story short, after two weeks in the shop because they couldn't figure out how to open the damn thing they called back today and said yes, there is a problem with a loose cable, but no, they can't fix it because ASUS refuses to sell parts for their laptops. Now I'm just out the cost of what I've paid to get it fixed already and if I want to use the laptop again I'll still have to go through the Taiwan for a month route. Really turned off of ASUS right now. I almost just don't want to bother getting it fixed and consider myself out $1500 at this point because I don't want to give them any more money.

That doesn't sound good, as a few hours ago my Asus G53 started getting these red lines on the screen. I'm guessing I'll probably need to send it in since it's only a few months old. How do I register for the 2 year global warranty? I don't have the box or papers with me right now.

[Mit-]

Sad that this doesn't have a godlike OP like the PC thread :(

Anywho, I'm looking into a laptop for streaming gaming events. I basically just need a fairly powerful laptop with a USB 3.0 input. Priorities are good/great processing power (doesn't need to be ultra-incredible), a good amount of RAM (although honestly most all configurations have a lot these days), and a high resolution screen, preferably 1080p. Being able to play games is a nice bonus, but I've got a big rig PC for games (that I despise carrying around with me to events).

Can anyone point me in a direction? :( There are so many options out there, and I'm unfamiliar with everything.

I mostly just want to know what the hot processors are right now, and what's good and what isn't. Relating their power to non-portable processors helps :)

[esserius]

Sad that this doesn't have a godlike OP like the PC thread :( Anywho, I'm looking into a laptop for streaming gaming events. I basically just need a fairly powerful laptop with a USB 3.0 input. Priorities are good/great processing power (doesn't need to be ultra-incredible), a good amount of RAM (although honestly most all configurations have a lot these days), and a high resolution screen, preferably 1080p. Being able to play games is a nice bonus, but I've got a big rig PC for games (that I despise carrying around with me to events). Can anyone point me in a direction? :( There are so many options out there, and I'm unfamiliar with everything. I mostly just want to know what the hot processors are right now, and what's good and what isn't. Relating their power to non-portable processors helps :)

What's your budget? That's probably the most important question. Weight is also an important factor to you, so what's an ideal weight? A graphically powerful laptop weighs, on the average, 10-15 lbs. Similarly, the price for 1GB-2GB of graphics and and i5/i7 ranges from about $1000-$1500. Naturally, things such as 1080p are typical for 15 inch or larger screens, less so as screens get smaller (though even Intel Graphics 3000, Intel's integrated graphics card for laptops, can do 1080p video no sweat--granted, you will have to project it to a monitor or something which natively supports such a resolution, if you are using a laptop with a screen that does not have native 1080p resolution).

My suggestion? Perhaps check out XoticPC.com and their Asus branded laptops, or a Sager. Also, before you buy (cannot emphasize this enough) go to http://NotebookCheck.net and evaluate what you are buying. Their reviews are fantastic, and will give you a great idea of what you will be buying ahead of time. Be aware that they have very high standards, and sometimes and 80% review can be more than enough to get you what you need (there are very few laptops which have received 90% or higher, and it should remembered that the reviews are timely, which means that though laptop A or B may have been an innovative laptop four years ago, it could be a junker now).

[K.Jack]

Sad that this doesn't have a godlike OP like the PC thread :( Anywho, I'm looking into a laptop for streaming gaming events. I basically just need a fairly powerful laptop with a USB 3.0 input. Priorities are good/great processing power (doesn't need to be ultra-incredible), a good amount of RAM (although honestly most all configurations have a lot these days), and a high resolution screen, preferably 1080p. Being able to play games is a nice bonus, but I've got a big rig PC for games (that I despise carrying around with me to events). Can anyone point me in a direction? :( There are so many options out there, and I'm unfamiliar with everything. I mostly just want to know what the hot processors are right now, and what's good and what isn't. Relating their power to non-portable processors helps :)

I swear I've been working on a new Gaming Laptop/Notebook Thread OP for months now.... I will get it done hopefully before 2012 hits.

Anyway, there's basically only 2 CPU options in the average consumer notebook: a dual core from the Sandy Bridge i5-2000M line, or an entry level quad core like the i7-2630QM or 2670QM.

1. There are no quad i5s in the mobile lines.
2. All mobile i5s have Turbo Boost, unlike the dual core desktop i3s, so consider them on the level of similarly i3s but with TB enabled.
3. The two quads I listed are about the speeds of an i7-920 or 930.

Judging by what you need, I hope your budget is over $800....

A graphically powerful laptop weighs, on the average, 10-15 lbs.

hahaha what?

[Mit-]

What's your budget? That's probably the most important question. Weight is also an important factor to you, so what's an ideal weight? A graphically powerful laptop weighs, on the average, 10-15 lbs. Similarly, the price for 1GB-2GB of graphics and and i5/i7 ranges from about $1000-$1500. Naturally, things such as 1080p are typical for 15 inch or larger screens, less so as screens get smaller (though even Intel Graphics 3000, Intel's integrated graphics card for laptops, can do 1080p video no sweat--granted, you will have to project it to a monitor or something which natively supports such a resolution, if you are using a laptop with a screen that does not have native 1080p resolution). My suggestion? Perhaps check out XoticPC.com and their Asus branded laptops, or a Sager. Also, before you buy (cannot emphasize this enough) go to http://NotebookCheck.net and evaluate what you are buying. Their reviews are fantastic, and will give you a great idea of what you will be buying ahead of time.

Thanks for the reply. I'm thinking I want to hover around $1,000. Weight is no factor. It will be sitting on a table or whatever all the time. Not going to be used casually in my lap very much.

Versatility is key for me. I definitely need an HD output. DVI or HDMI/mini-HDMI. USB 3.0 and a couple other USB ports (although I've got a hub). Oh, and I just remembered, a line-in would be excellent :\ But I believe it's possible to use most microphone ports as line-in ports.

EDIT: Errr it looks like the Blackmagic Intensity Shuttle USB 3.0 capture device is finicky and only works well with certain chipsets and USB buses. I'm gonna look around for the best configurations that work with the capture card and probably return with a selection of choices :O

[dLMN8R]

I created this thread originally for the m11x and it's obviously changed since then.....I don't have time to create or maintain an OP but if someone else wants to, I'd be happy to copy/paste it in :-)

[esserius]

hahaha what?

My mistake. I suppose it's less than that now. Maybe 6-9 lbs. is more realistic.

Still, not light by any means for a laptop.

[Mit-]

Ugh, my two best, confirmed-compatible options for the Blackmagic Intensity Shuttle capture card seem to be the MSI GE620 and MSI FX720.

http://www.amazon.com/MSI-GE620-021U.../dp/B004RM7A8M
http://www.amazon.com/MSI-FX720-001U.../dp/B004RSOFXO

Neither seem particularly amazing. I know there are a lot more laptops out there that probably work now, but it's a big risk to take... Apparently the USB 3.0 bus needs to be relatively new, and Renesas-based (?). Problem is even finding out whether or not the bus is Renesas-based without trying out the computer myself and loading a utility on it.

EDIT: Apparently a lot of motherboard chipsets don't offer full-speed from USB 3.0: http://blog.brettjames.au.com/?p=63#more-63

EDIT2: I guess the GE620 isn't too bad

[half a moon]

So it's best to reformat a new laptop right?

What order should I install drivers and Windows 7 updates?

What file system?

[DeathNote]

My Dad's laptop sits on a table cloth. Anything cheap to buy to put under it to help air flow?

Probably a laptop cooler?

What's a good Ultra Quiet one?

Cooler Master NotePal U3?

[K.Jack]

When I first got my G53SW a few months ago, I was having some video problems with it. Everything seemed to be synonymous with a loose video cable, so I just rode it out for a while; basically, the biggest issue was that sometimes the screen just wouldn't come on when I powered it up. I could just turn it off and on again and it usually came on fine, though, so again, I just rode it out for a while. When the problem got much worse, I took it to a local shop to fix because I didn't want to have to deal with taking forever to send it back and forth to Taiwan. Long story short, after two weeks in the shop because they couldn't figure out how to open the damn thing they called back today and said yes, there is a problem with a loose cable, but no, they can't fix it because ASUS refuses to sell parts for their laptops. Now I'm just out the cost of what I've paid to get it fixed already and if I want to use the laptop again I'll still have to go through the Taiwan for a month route. Really turned off of ASUS right now. I almost just don't want to bother getting it fixed and consider myself out $1500 at this point because I don't want to give them any more money.

I have to say, the shop you took it to is full of incompetents. Two weeks because they couldn't fabricate the machine? It took me seconds to Google 'G53 disassembly', and up pops a Youtube video showing the full process with instructions.

That you would scrap the machine instead of using the warranty is pretty disgusting.

I'll take that bitch off of your hands today, if you want to get rid of it so badly.

Ugh, my two best, confirmed-compatible options for the Blackmagic Intensity Shuttle capture card seem to be the MSI GE620 and MSI FX720. http://www.amazon.com/MSI-GE620-021U.../dp/B004RM7A8M http://www.amazon.com/MSI-FX720-001U.../dp/B004RSOFXO Neither seem particularly amazing. I know there are a lot more laptops out there that probably work now, but it's a big risk to take... Apparently the USB 3.0 bus needs to be relatively new, and Renesas-based (?). Problem is even finding out whether or not the bus is Renesas-based without trying out the computer myself and loading a utility on it. EDIT: Apparently a lot of motherboard chipsets don't offer full-speed from USB 3.0: http://blog.brettjames.au.com/?p=63#more-63 EDIT2: I guess the GE620 isn't too bad

The GE620 has everything you've been looking for, so I'd go with that.

So it's best to reformat a new laptop right?

No.

Just uninstall any preinstalled software you don't want and let it ride.

My Dad's laptop sits on a table cloth. Anything cheap to buy to put under it to help air flow?

I would just buy a cheap wooden lap table.

[cr_blah_blah]

Any tips for cleaning the black parts of the Asus G74? The matte finish picks up grease noticeably. I tried a kitchen counter wet cloth but it didn't seem to do much.

[DeathNote]

I would just buy a cheap wooden lap table.

Know of any? Harder to find than it sounds. 17"

The only thin I can find is: http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...5406068&sr=8-1

[K.Jack]

Any tips for cleaning the black parts of the Asus G74? The matte finish picks up grease noticeably. I tried a kitchen counter wet cloth but it didn't seem to do much.

Try warm water + dish soap.

Know of any? Harder to find than it sounds. 17" The only thin I can find is: http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...5406068&sr=8-1

I own one that's very much like this.