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[BeeDog]

Alright, I'm looking for a new laptop to replace my aging ASUS F3-JA and I hope someone can help me out. Since I've been out of the loop for a while, I have no idea what to look for, but these are my criterias:

- The build quality should be solid (doesn't have to be Apple-expensive, but I'd rather avoid BRIO plastic crap)
- The battery time should be as good as possible (obviously)
- The screen size should preferably be around 15" (widescreen), hi-res and hopefully LED.
- The laptop doesn't have to be able to run any games at all, but it should run Windows 7 (preferably 64-bit) as fast as possible, and related software such as Office 2010.
- In conjunction with the point above, the laptop doesn't have to be bundled with a lot of crap software; I'd prefer it lightweight, or even clean/drivers-only since I have my own software (thanks MSDN!).
- Hard drive space is not an issue, but if the cost allows for an SSD, then that would be killer. It should have 4+ GB's of RAM if possible.
- Price should hopefully be around 600-700€ if possible.

I know this thread is about gaming laptops, but I hope it's okay if I ask here anyway. Sorry if I have a lot of criterias, but I still hope someone can help me out. Thanks in advance.

 

[Bitmap Frogs]

FYI, Nvidia just introduced their fermi-based mobile GPUs and they'll be debuting on the sales floor soon.

Since you are looking for a gaming laptop and most of the Nvidia GPUs you can find these days (3XX series) are rebadged 2XX series, that's something to keep in mind.

By the way BeeDog, there's an age old saying about laptops:

a) features
b) construction
c) price

Pick two.

You're asking for all three...

 

[Vigilant Walrus]

Come on Asus, Alienware, Dell and all you other assholes.

Make a 13'' competitor to 3820... It cant be real that Acer is walking away with the only powerful subnotebook, in this range.
Sony Vaio Z is an abnomoly and does not count.


3820 has perfect size, two heat sinks, and no optical drive, giving it more space for powerful graphics, battery and reduces heat and weight. Perfect for steam gaming!

iit has a full on i5 / i7 and 5650... it can play a serious amount of shit in native. only problem is the shoddy build quality and mediocre keyboard and screen. we need the internals in a bit higher quality product, preferbly with a matte screen, and we're there. start doing USB 3, start doing momentus xt hard drives, and start playing on disabling graphics card for greater battery life.
3820 on integrated can run like 5-7 hours, like m11x.


Asus and all those need to step up their game from their shitty 310m and 320m graphics cards.

 

[Azure J]

You see, things like this are the reason why I love waiting a bit before making a decision on laptops. Apparently the HP ENVY 17 is getting a 3D screen with a Stereo 3D solution from AMD. (Here's another article from engadget on it.) Now from what I know about 3D so far, nVidia is usually the go to company for 3D thanks to their vision technology. I also know that most laptops that have a 3D screen usually sacrifice pixels on screen in exchange for the refresh rate needed for 3D content. This solution however states that not only will the Mobility Radeon 5850 be enough for it, but it'll also be full 1080p. So basically, i get that sexy ass Envy 17 aesthetic with plenty of nerd features and power under the hood to keep me going for a loooong time if I wait for this one. And hey, even if it's revealed later on to be a lemon, I'm kinda happy to see 3D support for both AMD/ATi & Nvidia trickling out now.

Things like this fascinate the hell out of me. What say you GAF? Also, if anyone has any experience with ATi's 3D offerings, I'd love to hear them as well.

 

[CloakBass]

Maybe someone can help me out here. I've never owned a laptop before and I'm a bit lost on the specifics of which makes and models to be on the lookout for. The M11x seemed like a sweet deal, but the lack of an optical drive and the small screen kind of put me off after doing some digging. I would appreciate if someone could list a few models worth looking into based on these specifications.

What I'm looking for:

• Graphics card capable enough to not chug mightily on programs like Adobe Premiere, Maya or the Unreal Editor. Having multiple cores and a decent processor also qualify I guess.
• I don't do a whole lot of hardcore graphics-intensive gaming on my PC (partly because it's old and un-upgraded), but I would like to be able to play games like Left4Dead 2 and Team Fortress 2 on the thing without the grody video lag I get now. I have a feeling I'd be doing more of it if I had a PC that was up to snuff.
• A capable battery. I know this is kind of a tall order when you're talking about semi-powerful laptops, but I hear tell of newfangled laptops that can switch between integrated and more powerful video cards to preserve battery life. But something that could last at least 3 or 4 hours worth of taking notes in class if I can't find a power outlet.
• I'm kind of flexible on price, I'm budgeting around $1k for it. Would sacrifice some screen size, resolution or extraneous features if need be.
• In terms of general inclusions I would like: built-in Wifi, optical drive, HDMI out, decent speakers if possible.

 

[K.Jack]

Maybe someone can help me out here. I've never owned a laptop before and I'm a bit lost on the specifics of which makes and models to be on the lookout for. The M11x seemed like a sweet deal, but the lack of an optical drive and the small screen kind of put me off after doing some digging. I would appreciate if someone could list a few models worth looking into based on these specifications.

What I'm looking for:

• Graphics card capable enough to not chug mightily on programs like Adobe Premiere, Maya or the Unreal Editor. Having multiple cores and a decent processor also qualify I guess.
• I don't do a whole lot of hardcore graphics-intensive gaming on my PC (partly because it's old and un-upgraded), but I would like to be able to play games like Left4Dead 2 and Team Fortress 2 on the thing without the grody video lag I get now. I have a feeling I'd be doing more of it if I had a PC that was up to snuff.
• A capable battery. I know this is kind of a tall order when you're talking about semi-powerful laptops, but I hear tell of newfangled laptops that can switch between integrated and more powerful video cards to preserve battery life. But something that could last at least 3 or 4 hours worth of taking notes in class if I can't find a power outlet.
• I'm kind of flexible on price, I'm budgeting around $1k for it. Would sacrifice some screen size, resolution or extraneous features if need be.
• In terms of general inclusions I would like: built-in Wifi, optical drive, HDMI out, decent speakers if possible.

Switchable graphics will not become widespread until early 2011, with Intel's new CPUs. Nothing with Optimus meets your other requirements.

If we lower the battery requirement to 2-3 hours, this Lenovo Ideapad is a really solid buy. Bonus of HDMI + a true Core i7 quad core.

 

[brain_stew]

You see, things like this are the reason why I love waiting a bit before making a decision on laptops. Apparently the HP ENVY 17 is getting a 3D screen with a Stereo 3D solution from AMD. (Here's another article from engadget on it.) Now from what I know about 3D so far, nVidia is usually the go to company for 3D thanks to their vision technology. I also know that most laptops that have a 3D screen usually sacrifice pixels on screen in exchange for the refresh rate needed for 3D content. This solution however states that not only will the Mobility Radeon 5850 be enough for it, but it'll also be full 1080p. So basically, i get that sexy ass Envy 17 aesthetic with plenty of nerd features and power under the hood to keep me going for a loooong time if I wait for this one. And hey, even if it's revealed later on to be a lemon, I'm kinda happy to see 3D support for both AMD/ATi & Nvidia trickling out now.

Things like this fascinate the hell out of me. What say you GAF? Also, if anyone has any experience with ATi's 3D offerings, I'd love to hear them as well.

A mobility 5850 isn't running any recent games with playable framerates in stereo3D @ 1080p, I don't care what the manufacturers claim.

Stereo3D generally means you can go ahead and halve your framerate compared to 2D mode. Considering a mobility 5850 really isn't enough for 1080p in 2D mode, well yeah, you get the picture.

Stereo3D @ 720p with hardware scaling is what you should be aiming for, that may be feasible.

 

[Firestorm]

Just pulled the trigger on the 13" MacBook Pro. Last day of the student sale.

 

[Drkirby]

Just pulled the trigger on the 13" MacBook Pro. Last day of the student sale.

How much was it?

 

[Firestorm]

How much was it?

- $220 Mail in Rebate for the iPod
- $100 Mail in Rebate for the printer

Gonna sell the Touch for another $120 - $150 and the printer is going to my dad as he needs one.

 

[CloakBass]

If we lower the battery requirement to 2-3 hours, this Lenovo Ideapad is a really solid buy. Bonus of HDMI + a true Core i7 quad core.

Ouch. After reading a bit more on it, I think this would serve my purposes nicely, but I'm kicking myself for not picking up the 7200rpm version a few days ago for $879 on Lenovo's site. Current coupon only knocks it down to $1100... argghhhh

I guess I should wait a bit and see if anything other good deals come around.

 

[Advance_Alarm]

Does anyone know how the MSI GX640 will handle Empire and Napoleon Total war? The only benchmarks or reviews I can find are for BFBC2, Crysis, etc. This is really the only thing holding me back from buying it this christmas.

 

[Mr_Guillotine]

Hey guys, I'm thinking about buying this laptop which will mostly be used for programming and gaming. I intend on making this last till I get out of school. Would it be a good idea to go with this or something less/more expensive? Appreciate the help.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220696

 

[Xamdou]

I'd highly recommend getting an MSI gaming laptop from amazon.com because they ship free and don't charge tax! Also all MSI gaming laptops include a three year warranty as long as you mail in your receipt w/ info within 30 days!

The laptop i have right now is the MSI E7405 which I bought for $1,099.00 from amazon a couple of months ago: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003OAEMVQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20

It runs SC2 at ultra settings, the Witcher max settings and Crysis at high settings with the laptop's native resolution of 1680x1050. So pretty much any game I throw at it it will run, The Ati 5870 1GB GDDR5 video card is the best laptop gpu out there!

But there are the newer released MSI gaming laptop line-up have all new look to them. I recommend the MSI Gaming GX660-053US because of it's new design, "LED light show," Dynaudio sound quality, Ati 5870 1GB GDDR5 ram, HD webcam, 2x USB 3.0, (TDE) Turbo drive technology, Cooler Boost etc full specs at: http://www.msimobile.com/level3_productpage.aspx?cid=6&id=256

Retail price for the GX660-053US is $1,449.99 but you can get it at amazon.com for $1,299.00 no tax plus free shipping!: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VX1CZ0/?tag=neogaf0e-20

 

[Mr_Guillotine]

That sounds good but can I get any other opinions?

 

[Shrennin]

I'd highly recommend getting an MSI gaming laptop from amazon.com because they ship free and don't charge tax! Also all MSI gaming laptops include a three year warranty as long as you mail in your receipt w/ info within 30 days!

The laptop i have right now is the MSI E7405 which I bought for $1,099.00 from amazon a couple of months ago: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003OAEMVQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20

It runs SC2 at ultra settings, the Witcher max settings and Crysis at high settings with the laptop's native resolution of 1680x1050. So pretty much any game I throw at it it will run, The Ati 5870 1GB GDDR5 video card is the best laptop gpu out there!

But there are the newer released MSI gaming laptop line-up have all new look to them. I recommend the MSI Gaming GX660-053US because of it's new design, "LED light show," Dynaudio sound quality, Ati 5870 1GB GDDR5 ram, HD webcam, 2x USB 3.0, (TDE) Turbo drive technology, Cooler Boost etc full specs at: http://www.msimobile.com/level3_productpage.aspx?cid=6&id=256

Retail price for the GX660-053US is $1,449.99 but you can get it at amazon.com for $1,299.00 no tax plus free shipping!: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VX1CZ0/?tag=neogaf0e-20

I was going to get a 640, but then I heard about the 660 and I figured I could wait and get the 660 because it wasn't *that* much more.

The question I have though is what is the difference with the 053US and 063(I think)US?

Also, wouldn't the coolerboost hurt the fans if you had it running a lot (I saw a review of the 660-063US and the coolerboost make the fans sound like a turbo engine)?

 

[Luigison]

Sorry, I haven't read the whole thread, but any recommendations for a touch screen laptop/tablet?

 

[keeblerdrow]

Okay! I've narrowed my choice down and I think I'm gonna go with Lenovo (with a warranty). I really like the aesthetic choices they've made with this year's model and since I can't get the Radiance monitor in an ENVY 14 for under $1200, these are the options I'm looking at:

Option 1
Y460
14.0" HD LED Glare 1366x768
Intel® Core™ i5-460M Processor
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 1GB
4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz
500GB 5400rpm

$835.12


Option 2
Y560
15.6" HD Wide LED 1366x768
Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730 1GB
4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz
500GB 7200

$879.00



And here's where I make my arguments for either side! What the 15" model has going for it: MUCH better processor, marginally better GPU, faster hard drive. What the 14" model has going for it: 1lb lighter, 1366x768 resolution won't look as bad on 14" over 15.6", MUCH less power consumption at idle, SPECIALLY DESCRIBED PROBLEM BELOW.

Both machines have the same build quality and the same deficiencies in contrast and luminescence in their screens, that's no worry. I'm really interested in the weight of each machine because of my general uses for the thing. The GPUs are pretty close in performance in both games and benchmarks with the obvious but slight nod going to the 5730. I wish I could afford higher, but I need to consider my budget above all in this purchase.

My uses for my laptop will be light this year, just undergrad stuff. I have a desktop that's 4.5 years old but capable of most of my gaming needs (just dropping the ball on Bad Company 2 right now). Where this machine will come into major play is the future. When I hit grad school, this thing will be on my back all the time. I'll be barely ever home and this will become my gaming oasis. WoW, Starcraft II, Civ V and Diablo III will be the primary uses in the gaming sector. They don't have to blow me away, they just need to run and not be ugly. Battery shouldn't be a huge issue because, as I've come to find, most buildings have power outlets.

Here's the clincher in this battle: Known screen issues. It's all over notebookreview's forums and the lenovo forums, as well. There's a higher than normal occurrence rate for pixelating snow errors, screen tears and general LCD fuckery on the 15" model. It's frequent enough to cause a ruckus and it's got me nervous. The issue doesn't seem to occur or is just very infrequent on the 14" model. This is what has me pausing on what is seemingly an easy decision in favor of the Y560.


Thoughts? Comments? Help me make this decision and quick, before all off these lovely coupons go away.

Does anyone have experience with Lenovo's basic warranty system? If I get a bad screen, what kind of service can I expect?

Does anyone have anything positive or negative to say about Lenovo?


More importantly, can anyone get me into a laptop with a Radeon Mobility 5850 for $950 or less, cause I'd take that in a heartbeat and eat ramen for a month to cover the difference.

I'm still open to other ideas or being pointed to a different computer. Persuade me.




(To luigison, I've seen Lenovo's X210 tablet in action in classes and it's an awesome student-style tablet PC. The screen flips up, then twists and folds back down over the keyboard. I would love to get one myself if they weren't all IGP models.)

 

[Big-E]

Have been using an ASUS G73J for a moth and absolutely love it. Quiet, plays everything and good build quality. Only thing that sucks is that I bought this because I was planned to work abroad for a year but that fell through last minute. Couldn't be happier with it.

 

[keeblerdrow]

It's a mean machine, no doubt. I just can't be lugging about a 17"+ machine with me. That sucker is 8lbs and I'm balking at the 6lb Y560.

 

[Patryn]

Ok, I think I've decided on what I'm going to get: The MSI GX660R-060US, upgraded to 2 500 GB 7200 RPM hard drives and 10 GB of RAM.

Two questions:

1.) Since I won't be able to buy it for another month, does it look like this will still be the best system at that time, or will systems with the new graphics cards be out by then?

2.) I want to go up to 10 GB of RAM, but is it really worth another $100 over just going with 8 GB? I'd really like to be using this laptop for gaming for at least another 3-4 years.

 

[brain_stew]

10GB of RAM wtf!? What the hell do you plan to do with that thing. Most gamers and general users won't notice any real difference above 4GB.

The 2GB cap on programs in 32 bit Windows means that the RAM usage in games simply can't increase all that much for at least 4-5 years at which point your notebook will be useless for gaming anyway.

 

[Wallach]

Yeah, quite frankly I think you need to make sure you've justified going over 4GB to begin with before you consider going that far.

 

[Patryn]

10GB of RAM wtf!? What the hell do you plan to do with that thing. Most gamers and general users won't notice any real difference above 4GB.

The 2GB cap on programs in 32 bit Windows means that the RAM usage in games simply can't increase all that much for at least 4-5 years at which point your notebook will be useless for gaming anyway.

It's 64-bit Windows.

Yeah, quite frankly I think you need to make sure you've justified going over 4GB to begin with before you consider going that far.

Starts with 6 GB.

 

[brain_stew]

It's 64-bit Windows.

I know it is, but developers have to make games for more people than just you. There's too many people on 32 bit Windows for support to be dropped anytime soon and until that happens 4GB is going to be more than enough RAM for a gaming rig.

Starts with 6 GB.

Then stick with 6GB. You're just pissing your money away otherwise.

 

[Patryn]

I know it is, but developers have to make games for more than just you. There's too many people on 32 bit Windows for support to be dropped anytime soon.

I read your comment wrong. I thought you were saying that the laptop was 32-bit Windows, which was why it would be useless in 4-5 years. Goes to show that maybe I should read a little closer.

Thanks for the advice. I'll stick with the 6 GB.

 

[jayhawker]

nm, beaten

 

[K.Jack]

Okay! I've narrowed my choice down and I think I'm gonna go with Lenovo (with a warranty). I really like the aesthetic choices they've made with this year's model and since I can't get the Radiance monitor in an ENVY 14 for under $1200, these are the options I'm looking at:

Option 1
Y460
14.0" HD LED Glare 1366x768
Intel® Core™ i5-460M Processor
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 1GB
4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz
500GB 5400rpm

$835.12


Option 2
Y560
15.6" HD Wide LED 1366x768
Intel® Core™ i7-720QM Processor
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730 1GB
4 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz
500GB 7200

$879.00

snip

Man, I didn't know the 15" was having such issues. Sorry to those I rec'd it to recently.

If you want to gamble with the Y560 and are concerned about warranty, order it from Newegg. That way, you don't have to deal with Lenovo directly. But, Lenovo customer support has always been kind to me, so going direct isn't a bad idea. I missed your comment about coupons.

If you want piece of mind, I'd get the Y460. You only lose out if you need a quad core. A purchase shouldn't include a roll of the dice.

 

[Veal]

So how do the Nvidia ION platforms stand up to most mobile GPU solutions? Is decent gaming on a netbook just a dream? I'm not very well versed in mobile GPU tech, though I know major strides have been made.

 

[Big-E]

It's a mean machine, no doubt. I just can't be lugging about a 17"+ machine with me. That sucker is 8lbs and I'm balking at the 6lb Y560.

Yeah I haven't moved it around at all other than bedroom to livingroom and that takes a lot of effort. Great desktop replacement though.

 

[keeblerdrow]

Currently, netbook gaming is almost entirely a retro kinda thing. The future holds some really promising hardware, but the best you're looking at is 2004 and older games and Torchlight. I tried to do some old infinity engine games on my netbook, but that's complicated by the fact that I have no optical drive for it and there's no DD solution for those games and probably never will be.


K.Jack, the loss of quad core won't effect me too much. The y460 comes with an i5-460 which has a nice turbo mode on it to cover most of my use needs. The main concern I have is jumping down from the 5730 to the 5650. Shader and core speed both take a 30% hit going down to the 5650 and my only real concern is for my future playing of Diablo III on-the-go.

Yeah, newegg isn't an option. I can get the same hardware from Lenovo for considerably less. From what I'm understanding Lenovo's support is amazing... for their ThinkPad lines. It really does seem like they largely ignore their IdeaPad users. If you look at the drivers download page for the y460 and y560, there hasn't been an update to any of them since March. There are some severe issues that have been resolved on the 5730 on the y560 with driver updates from ATI, but since the drivers aren't from Lenovo they don't address the switchable graphics function. Using drivers other than those repurposed and issued by Lenovo functionally disables the graphics switch. There's some DIY solutions out there, but that should not even need to be an option. the 10.8 (i think) drivers have been out for a few months now. I think the 10.9s might even already be out and have some much needed updates for SCII and Mafia II.

I think I'm firmly running into the "too much information" ground.


Does anyone here have any experience buying refurbished ASUS laptop models? I see a couple out there in my price range that could give me a significant bump in power. How does ASUS handle warranty on their refurbished laptops? Just 90 days and out? Or do you get some sort of ongoing care like all their other products? Also, does anyone know what they term as refurbished? Is it a product that was sent back in as broken and they fixed it up and repackaged it?

 

[Lonely1]

So, a Korean company is making an x86 5' Windows 7 Gaming handheld.

1.5 GHz Intel Oak Trail CPU. (atom variant)
Intel GMA 600.
64GB SSD
4.8-inch, 1024 x 600 capacitive touch screen.

How good is this Oak trail+GMA 600 combo? Will it be able to run games like the Penumbra series?

 

[brain_stew]

So how do the Nvidia ION platforms stand up to most mobile GPU solutions? Is decent gaming on a netbook just a dream? I'm not very well versed in mobile GPU tech, though I know major strides have been made.

Wait for Ontario/Zacate.

 

[brain_stew]

So, a Korean company is making an x86 5' Windows 7 gaming handheld.

1.5 GHz Intel Oak Trail CPU. (atom variant)
Intel GMA 600.
64GB SSD
4.8-inch, 1024 x 600 capacitive touch screen.

How good is this Oak trail+GMA 600 combo? Will it be able to run games like the Penumbra series?

Not even close, the GPU is the same as the Iphone's (although clocked higher, admittedly) and the drivers are completely broken meaning even Quake 3 is going to struggle. The CPU is no where near fast enough to be useful for 5 year old games and even general Windows usage (imo) anyway.

 

[Lonely1]

Not even close, the GPU is the same as the Iphone's (although clocked higher, admittedly) and the drivers are completely broken meaning even Quake 3 is going to struggle. The CPU is no where near fast enough to be useful for 5 year old games and even general Windows usage (imo) anyway.

Dam, but I love the form factor (with a couple more face buttons). My EEE had a 900Mhz Celeron M and the performance on XP was manageable. Will this be worse?

 

[Nemo]

So, a Korean company is making an x86 5' Windows 7 Gaming handheld.

1.5 GHz Intel Oak Trail CPU. (atom variant)
Intel GMA 600.
64GB SSD
4.8-inch, 1024 x 600 capacitive touch screen.

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2010/09/9-13-10-ocosmos600-009-1284494819.jpg[IMG]

How good is this Oak trail+GMA 600 combo? Will it be able to run games like the Penumbra series?[/QUOTE]Dang! That looks [I]nice[/I]

Hope they upgrade these insides later on.

 

[brain_stew]

Dam, but I love the form factor (with a couple more face buttons). My EEE had a 900Mhz Celeron M and the performance on XP was manageable. Will this be worse?

It'll be about the same, no better. GPU performance will probably be worse.

 

[Animation-Imp]

I'm in the market for a laptop as my wife needs one for her work.
Of course I'de like to give it some more bang and use it to game together.

What can you recommend in the range of €800 - €1200.

I used to own an asus and loved it to bits,
is asus still a good way to go, or are there better price/quality ones on the market.

What processor and what gpu do I need to look out for?

The rest I can figure out on my own (I don't need a lot of fancy features, a decent gpu and cpu and 4 gigs of Ram is all I need, I don't give a rats ass for camera's, speakers, etc...)

Also LED lcd's are the way to go I imagine?

 

[K.Jack]

I'm in the market for a laptop as my wife needs one for her work.
Of course I'de like to give it some more bang and use it to game together.

What can you recommend in the range of €800 - €1200.

I used to own an asus and loved it to bits,
is asus still a good way to go, or are there better price/quality ones on the market.

What processor and what gpu do I need to look out for?

The rest I can figure out on my own (I don't need a lot of fancy features, a decent gpu and cpu and 4 gigs of Ram is all I need, I don't give a rats ass for camera's, speakers, etc...)

Also LED lcd's are the way to go I imagine?

If the Asus G73 fits within that price range, buy it.

Everything has an LED now, other than MSI's cheap stuff.

 

[arstal]

I know it is, but developers have to make games for more people than just you. There's too many people on 32 bit Windows for support to be dropped anytime soon and until that happens 4GB is going to be more than enough RAM for a gaming rig.





Then stick with 6GB. You're just pissing your money away otherwise.

I got 6 and haven't found a use for it yet- 64-bit Elemental whenever it comes will be the first use.

That said, my laptop has been real finicky lately, so I may be in the market pretty soon. Hoping to wait until next July at a mimimum though for work reasons.

Going Toshiba since ASUS has been iffy for me. I'd prefer something durable though.

 

[spwolf]

i need recommendation for PC .

I am building office computer, with just the basic video card, and i also have HTPC with E5200 and basic video... I had no intention to play ever games on it, but since I moved, i put my E5200 under my living room TV, and I got G25, so it seems like obvious that I would like to play some PC games there.... so I was wonder what ATI graphics card to get that will give me playable graphics? I have no intentions to update cpu or psu, both of which would be needed to get "proper" gaming rig... I am just thinking of getting some card and putting my passivily cooled ATI into the office computer...

so any recommendations?

for office, i5 760, 8GB, 4xF4s in RAID10 sound good? good build those softwares quickly

p.s. I was quite surprised i could play old copy of GTR2 on my HTPC .

 

[Fredescu]

That's more a question for this thread: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=383771&page=310

For the video card, I'd wait a few weeks and see what the 6750/6770 will be like. If they have the rumoured performance at the same power draw and temps as the 5750/5770 they should be excellent cards for lower powered system. You don't say exactly how big your case and psu are though, they're going to be the limiting factor. You could probably get a nice OC on that E5200 depending on your mbd and cooling.

4xF4s in RAID10 sound good? good build those softwares quickly

If you need speed, why not look into hybrid drives: http://www.anandtech.com/show/3734/seagates-momentus-xt-review-finally-a-good-hybrid-hdd

 

[scottnak]

So... my laptop just died on me, can't get it to charge up again (I'm pretty sure something internal is fried... alas), so I've been thrown into the looking-for-a-laptop market.

All I really care about is that the laptop can run Civ 5 and Starcraft comfortably at a good setting. Targetting a budget around 1k, but I can push it higher if need be. HDMI out would be a nice plus as well. Can't think of more 'wants' at the moment... heh...

If anyone can give some suggestions, or at least some guidelines on what to look for, I'd really appreciate it. Apologies for the open-ended vagueness, but that's the state I'm in too...

 

[scottnak]

Hrm. Gonna give a bump for the evening crowd. Hopefully someone can give a suggestion this time. Hope this bump is OK...

 

[keeblerdrow]

That's almost no information at all to go on.

What screen sizes do you like? Resolutions you can live with?

What weight range would you like?

Where do you live?

Are there manufacturers you'd like to stay away from?

Any brand loyalty like Intel or AMD or NVIDIA graphics or something?

What other things do you want to use this laptop for?

Is this laptop for on the go or will it be sitting at a desk its whole life?

 

[scottnak]

That's almost no information at all to go on.

What screen sizes do you like? Resolutions you can live with?

What weight range would you like?

Where do you live?

Are there manufacturers you'd like to stay away from?

Any brand loyalty like Intel or AMD or NVIDIA graphics or something?

What other things do you want to use this laptop for?

Is this laptop for on the go or will it be sitting at a desk its whole life?

I know, I know... I just don't know what to look for... but thanks for these guidelines. Heh.

Let's see. I was able to pull up my old laptop specs (ASUS F8 Series F8Sp-X1)
So, At least 14", 1440x900 would be nice...
Weight isn't an issue, though a good battery life would be nice as well.
currently in USA

No real preference on manufacturers or brand loyalty.

Real intent is just Gaming, standard internets, and really the only thing I knew I wanted was some kind of HDMI out.

 

[bigswords]

M 11x from Alienware is the netbook of monster rigs.

 

[CaseyTappy]

M 11x from Alienware is the netbook of monster rigs.

True , here's mine :

There are some troubles with crappy hinges breaking on a lot of them though , luckily mine is still fine .

 

[keeblerdrow]

I've always thought of Alienware as the porn star that had her face kicked in. She performs real nice and keeps you happy, but you rarely ever want to look at her and you sure as fuck don't want to be seen with her in public.

In the 14" size race, the best you're going to get for a GPU is the Radeon Mobility 5650, at this point. And really, that's a great GPU to have. It'll run everything you need and just-below ultra settings. Currently there are three manufacturers with relatively available stock for a 14" laptop with the 5650, Lenovo's Y460 (I just got mine, it's sweet), Acer's TimelineX series 4820TG (it's getting harder to find in the US) and HP's ENVY 14. The Y460 can be had for around $800 if you're a smart shopper and comes with a nice processor to boot. To get comparable specs on an ENVY 14, expect to pay upwards of $1300. Don't be fooled by the baseline. It comes with an underwhelming i3 processor and really needs the upgrade. The advantage, though, is that you can upgrade the 1366x768 screen both models sport to a Radiance screen for about $300 more. If you have the scratch, I hear that's worth it.

In the 15.6" model arena, you can get some of the best stuff out there at around $1000. Push it to $1200 and you can get a great rig from a great manufacturer. Dink around over at xoticpc and powernotebook and look at what they have. Anything with a Radeon Mobility 5850 and 5870 are definitely worth your time. I really like Clevo(Sager) and ASUS for upper end laptops, but generally anything you find at those sites will be nice. See what they have in the 15" range and ask any more questions you may have here. I have way too much working info on the topic right now.

 

[dominuece]

Ok, so I've had the MSI GX640 for a month now. I have minor complaints about windows 7, but it's nothing serious. The laptop itself is quite amazing. I've been playing Starcraft 2 and Civ V on ultra settings. I have to get my Steam on and test it on multiple games. The 5850 is not playing!