Looking for a new laptop

[BadOrb]

My original battery is dead, and I would like to move the new laptop at least from one room to another, since I have my current one that can handle being standard do-not-gaming stuff just fine. Except for the Gimp program from time to time, but I don't run that all the time.

 

I've been reading that SSDs are really nice and likely worth it. If nothing else than for the sound factor.

 

Yeah so if you don't want to move a fan with it all the time maybe go for one similar to the one I linked. As for the SSD it will also produce less heat as it has no moving parts. You can actually build a Dell Inspiron 15 or 17 with Dell themselves ( well they build it ) too and it has a slightly newer I7 processor and then you could just set an SSD instead of the basic model hard drive , might be a bit more money than the two I linked though.

 

Cheers,

 

BadOrb.

[Odyssys]

Okay, wow. Surprised the issues weren't solved by warranty.

 

But lot of points to consider, that is!

 

I have no doubt that Asus would have taken care of me. However since my wife didnt like the size and weight I decided to just return it to Amazon and get the MSI. Don't let me scare you from Asus tho I love most of their products. I currently use Asus Motherboards exclusively and I did really enjoy the design of the Asus Laptop.

[LyraineAlei]

I have no doubt that Asus would have taken care of me. However since my wife didnt like the size and weight I decided to just return it to Amazon and get the MSI. Don't let me scare you from Asus tho I love most of their products. I currently use Asus Motherboards exclusively and I did really enjoy the design of the Asus Laptop.

 

Ah, I see now. I have relatives who has an Asus, but they don't game with them. They love their laptops though since they're apparently user friendly.

[Malastare]

I had originally got her one of the Asus ones and had multiple problems with it so we replaced it with the MSI and it is great.

 

If its from the generation I expect (the first of the Core series), it coincided with some generalized issues with CPU and voltage-regulator heat generation. We had an ASUS from the same generation and it aged poorly, too. Failure to boot. Random system locks. Power fluctuations leading to hard drive corruption. My brother's HP had similar issues. It was more related to the generation of CPUs and the motherboards being used for them than individual brands.

 

I've bought two ASUS laptops since then and they've been really reliable.

[Malastare]

Using both sucks, try a SSD and find religion.

 

I have one, but it holds the OS, and about 40 GB of disk-intensive apps and games. SWTOR lives on the pseudo-short-stroked partition (the outer sectors) of a 5400rpm drive with 32MB cache. It's fast enough that my Alderaan load times are shorter than lots of people claiming to have super-fast gaming computers.

 

(Of course... I built my system for gaming, too. I just did it smarter. My hard drive is just as fast, but almost completely silent)

Edited August 28, 2014 by Malastare

[LyraineAlei]

Yeah so if you don't want to move a fan with it all the time maybe go for one similar to the one I linked. As for the SSD it will also produce less heat as it has no moving parts. You can actually build a Dell Inspiron 15 or 17 with Dell themselves ( well they build it ) too and it has a slightly newer I7 processor and then you could just set an SSD instead of the basic model hard drive , might be a bit more money than the two I linked though.

 

Cheers,

 

BadOrb.

 

I have a laptop fan I use currently, and so move from room to room, and if I knew how to build a computer, I would in a heartbeat, after saving up and getting each piece.

 

Thanks, I now have a decent list of different computers to go through and consider.

[Malastare]

I must point out that the laptop I pointed to will work as laptop i.e. on your lap. Now some others like my current one are basically desktop replacements so they will need a fan underneath

 

Note: Not all laptops benefit from fans underneath them... such as most real gaming laptops. For example:

 

The Asus one I got her originally was the

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EZ8BJNK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

It looked awesome but was very big and very heavy.

 

The ASUS ROG series is much heavier than most laptops. That is because they have real heatsinks and use higher density batteries. And most importantly: They have sturdy cases that are not designed to be thin, so they can properly vent heat. All of the current ROG series vent heat out a pair of vents out the back of the laptop. This means that a fan underneath does nothing. It also means that the bottom doesn't get hot... and that the laptop doesn't need extra cooling.

 

This is one of the primary problems with non-gaming laptops. They aren't designed to take load on both the CPU and the GPU, and for SWTOR, that means that you end up cooking your lap and your fingers as the laptop struggles to find someplace to put all the heat.

[LyraineAlei]

. It also means that the bottom doesn't get hot... and that the laptop doesn't need extra cooling.

 

This is one of the primary problems with non-gaming laptops. They aren't designed to take load on both the CPU and the GPU, and for SWTOR, that means that you end up cooking your lap and your fingers as the laptop struggles to find someplace to put all the heat.

 

Ahem, excuse me while I wipe the drool off my face. No hot laps? No more melting the fan's frame? No more side-of laptops feeling like they're on fire?

 

Well... That's certainly worth a long look-see.

[VersaliusPrimus]

The one day out of the year I check the forums, lo and behold a topic I might be able to contribute to!

 

Scanning through the thread I didn't find any specifics (apologies in advance if they are there), so I should ask:

1. What specific uses will this machine be required to perform while at school?

2. How often will you be carrying this machine around? How long will each of these trips be?

3. Are there any software packages that your academic program recommends you have on your personal machine to avoid the need to use the school computer lab (most engineering programs on my campus have a list)? We can see if any/all of said software will work better on a multithreaded/multicore processor (data for the mobile i5 vs. i7 recommendation).

4. Is ease and speed of setup/takedown a priority for this machine (if you have classes scheduled back to back and several blocks from each other, time is valuable)? This takes into account battery life (will you need to carry, take out, plug in, and pack away the AC adapter) and general bulk of the machine.

5. If you have been to your classrooms already, are outlets readily available for everyone who wants to plug in to do so? I've been in some older rooms that only had outlets along the outer rows so people using a laptop in the middle of the room had to be on battery the entire lecture.

 

After thinking of these answers, have you considered a desktop at home (gaming grade specs; custom build from any number of reputable sites) complemented by a tablet (light weight compared to a gaming laptop, touch screen, very easy setup) for school use? You mentioned a desktop would result in you being even more of a hermit, but in the long term I cannot honestly recommend a gaming laptop without ruling out other, more cost effective alternative setups. Quite a few of my friends and fellow researchers have been switching to a tablet (with a carrying case) as it allows for them to quickly get situated, doesn't require a lot of desk space, and because of its size allows them to forgo a backpack/briefcase/etc. Depending on the models you compare they can also have quite a respectable battery life at the cost of a smaller screen and, of course, the ability to quickly run more resource heavy software (gaming and such). Something to think about on top of all your other options.

 

On the topic of laptops, I fully support others' recommendation for Asus' Republic of Gamers line, the G750 especially. Comparing a friend's G750 to my almost 4 yr old MSI GX640, the Asus feels like it has a sturdier shell and overall better build quality whereas my MSI truly feels like plain plastic. Granted, this plain plastic has lasted through 4 years of abuse at my hands, but it still could do with an upgrade. The biggest difference I saw between my MSI and the Asus was a dramatic disparity between heat dissipation: The Asus GPU was running almost 10 deg C cooler. Some of this I attribute to the difference in GPU model, but I must also consider the cooling system of the shell itself. Another thing to watch out for is my MSI vents heat out the right side of the unit, almost directly into the area I usually have my hand if I'm using an external mouse (the Asus I saw vented out the back). Not the most comfortable spot after an hour of gaming...

 

This is turning into a wall of text, so I'll end with some general experiences I've had with manufacturers: My first laptop was a Dell XPS that had nice performance (for the time) with a subpar cooling system that resulted in the GPU frying not once, but 5 times in 3 years, the first time at the 14 month point after purchase (luckily I bought the 3 year warranty). In the beginning, customer service and tech support were both excellent (always got someone in Knoxville, TN whenever I called), but in the third year went downhill fast. Outsourced tech support, even for what was their premium line, did not impress me. What originally was resolved in 5 min with Knoxville support (Graphical artifacts on screen? Documented high temperatures on the GPU? We'll have a tech come out and replace your GPU and heatsinks within the next couple business days /end call) turned into someone reading from a script, taking 30 min for what should've been very clear from my initial description. Since then I have not heard anyone praise Dell in any manner, either for their service or computer products (besides their monitors, but that's another story).

TL;DR: I cannot recommend a Dell computer for any purpose due to poor quality of both product and service.

 

A few years back I got the MSI laptop from XoticPC. I did not experience any trouble at any point in the process and would buy from them again if I need another laptop (after comparison shopping of course). You probably won't need to customize any laptop, but I find that site easier to navigate and quickly look at the options than Amazon. Of course, I'd restrict your search to Asus machines, possibly the Sager/Clevo as well (rather bland looking but you might like them, just beware of the differences in warranty).

 

Hope that giant wall helps!

[LyraineAlei]

The one day out of the year I check the forums, lo and behold a topic I might be able to contribute to!

 

Scanning through the thread I didn't find any specifics (apologies in advance if they are there), so I should ask:

1. What specific uses will this machine be required to perform while at school?

2. How often will you be carrying this machine around? How long will each of these trips be?

3. Are there any software packages that your academic program recommends you have on your personal machine to avoid the need to use the school computer lab (most engineering programs on my campus have a list)? We can see if any/all of said software will work better on a multithreaded/multicore processor (data for the mobile i5 vs. i7 recommendation).

4. Is ease and speed of setup/takedown a priority for this machine (if you have classes scheduled back to back and several blocks from each other, time is valuable)? This takes into account battery life (will you need to carry, take out, plug in, and pack away the AC adapter) and general bulk of the machine.

5. If you have been to your classrooms already, are outlets readily available for everyone who wants to plug in to do so? I've been in some older rooms that only had outlets along the outer rows so people using a laptop in the middle of the room had to be on battery the entire lecture.

 

Current plan is to have two laptops, current one for school, the new one for gaming. Current one is great for school and traveling about with it.

 

So... 1)None, stays at home but goes back and forth from my room to the living room;

2)Two-three times, about, and for the distance of a short in-house hallway with cords and mouse, so, about two minutes each packing around, max;

3) Not applicable;

4) I don't like having to sit around for five minutes waiting for taskhost to finally decide that it's done shutting down in order to shut down (but that's more likely on my end);

5) Living room has outlets, and one that's not very nice to me and like to try and kill my battery by making it think it isn't plugged in and charging;

 

After thinking of these answers, have you considered a desktop at home (gaming grade specs; custom build from any number of reputable sites) complemented by a tablet (light weight compared to a gaming laptop, touch screen, very easy setup) for school use? You mentioned a desktop would result in you being even more of a hermit, but in the long term I cannot honestly recommend a gaming laptop without ruling out other, more cost effective alternative setups. Quite a few of my friends and fellow researchers have been switching to a tablet (with a carrying case) as it allows for them to quickly get situated, doesn't require a lot of desk space, and because of its size allows them to forgo a backpack/briefcase/etc. Depending on the models you compare they can also have quite a respectable battery life at the cost of a smaller screen and, of course, the ability to quickly run more resource heavy software (gaming and such). Something to think about on top of all your other options.

 

I have considered a desktop, but I don't have the room for one at this time. Touch screen would be nice for drawing with, but it's on the not-important but nice list. Current laptop travels well for a standard sized laptop.

 

At this point, by size I was only meaning that I didn't want to be working around something that weights more than my six-month old cousin.

On the topic of laptops, I fully support others' recommendation for Asus' Republic of Gamers line, the G750 especially. Comparing a friend's G750 to my almost 4 yr old MSI GX640, the Asus feels like it has a sturdier shell and overall better build quality whereas my MSI truly feels like plain plastic. Granted, this plain plastic has lasted through 4 years of abuse at my hands, but it still could do with an upgrade. The biggest difference I saw between my MSI and the Asus was a dramatic disparity between heat dissipation: The Asus GPU was running almost 10 deg C cooler. Some of this I attribute to the difference in GPU model, but I must also consider the cooling system of the shell itself. Another thing to watch out for is my MSI vents heat out the right side of the unit, almost directly into the area I usually have my hand if I'm using an external mouse (the Asus I saw vented out the back). Not the most comfortable spot after an hour of gaming...

 

This is turning into a wall of text, so I'll end with some general experiences I've had with manufacturers: My first laptop was a Dell XPS that had nice performance (for the time) with a subpar cooling system that resulted in the GPU frying not once, but 5 times in 3 years, the first time at the 14 month point after purchase (luckily I bought the 3 year warranty). In the beginning, customer service and tech support were both excellent (always got someone in Knoxville, TN whenever I called), but in the third year went downhill fast. Outsourced tech support, even for what was their premium line, did not impress me. What originally was resolved in 5 min with Knoxville support (Graphical artifacts on screen? Documented high temperatures on the GPU? We'll have a tech come out and replace your GPU and heatsinks within the next couple business days /end call) turned into someone reading from a script, taking 30 min for what should've been very clear from my initial description. Since then I have not heard anyone praise Dell in any manner, either for their service or computer products (besides their monitors, but that's another story).

TL;DR: I cannot recommend a Dell computer for any purpose due to poor quality of both product and service.

 

A few years back I got the MSI laptop from XoticPC. I did not experience any trouble at any point in the process and would buy from them again if I need another laptop (after comparison shopping of course). You probably won't need to customize any laptop, but I find that site easier to navigate and quickly look at the options than Amazon. Of course, I'd restrict your search to Asus machines, possibly the Sager/Clevo as well (rather bland looking but you might like them, just beware of the differences in warranty).

 

Hope that giant wall helps!

 

Giant walls is very helpful! And I'm glad to have started a thread you could help in.

 

My family used to have Dell laptops, but they didn't have anymore luck than you with things. And I will look into that website. Thank you!

[rkamm]

Check out the laptops available from Cyberpowerinc. they have some really nice laptops in all price ranges and they show you the parts that are being used in it as well as having the option to chose your own parts. I have purchased a couple desktops from them and they are really nice computers. I like the ability to chose the parts that are used as opposed to having to settle for what are offered in the systems you buy at places like BestBuy