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2016+ Gaming Laptop Thread: Embracing Pascal's Wafer (Please Read OP)
- Thread starter K.Jack
- Start date
Imperfected
Member
Hmm. Am I basically looking at custom jobs only in this range, or is it just not a great time to be looking for a high-performance laptop? Should I be looking more toward the laptops with desktop GPUs that are planned for release, if only for the sake of being able to use better drivers?
Uh, where are you? Kinda important.
I have no idea how I overlooked your earlier post, sorry about that, I wasn't ignoring you.
Me? I go with a GT72 once the GTX 980 version comes out.
ended up getting a low-end gaming machine...not a bad deal if you are looking for an ultra book and you have a costco membership
http://www.costco.com/.product.100223629.html?&EMID=B2C_2015_0930_ComputerSolo&wc_mid=2:92119&wc_rid=2:12651140
http://www.costco.com/.product.100223629.html?&EMID=B2C_2015_0930_ComputerSolo&wc_mid=2:92119&wc_rid=2:12651140
RoadHazard
Gold Member
Anything around 500 that would run Heroes of Might & Magic VIII decently? Oddly specific, I know, but that's what my brother really wants to play. 
andthebeatgoeson
Junior Member
Do you still have it or that was awhile ago?
How often do you replace your gaming laptop?
Any other explanations of why you liked the GT72?
Thanks for your answers.
Did you get it? Any impressions?
I did. It's been pretty great so far. Handles CS: GO on max settings with no FPS drops, WoW pretty much maxed out. The customizable keyboard is pretty sweet (mine's blue and green right now) and it has yet to get too hot while playing a game, even for hours on end. Going to try some more demanding games soon.
Sixfortyfive
He who pursues two rabbits gets two rabbits.
Is it common for eSATA ports to just be straight fucked? I got my NP8651-S / Clevo P650SE in the mail last week and have finally gotten everything up and running and gotten all the kinks worked out, except for this one.
I noticed that my external hard drive was having issues. Sometimes Windows wouldn't detect it at all until I rebooted the system a few times, and success/failure seemed to be random. Sometimes the drive stops being detected at all after it goes into idle state from inactivity. This would cause errors the next time I started the drive, requiring a run of Chkdsk to fix the file system. I changed the Windows hardware policy to allow quick removal of the drive (so that "Safely Remove Hardware" was no longer required), which prevented the file system errors from reoccurring, but the drive still isn't functioning reliably. It's not an issue with the drive itself, either. It appears to work fine on this PC if I connect via USB, and it works fine via eSATA on my old computer, using the same cables.
I asked Sager tech support for help and they had this to say:
Not sure what I can do about it, but I'm not really satisfied with that answer. Seems kind of scummy to knowingly sell fucked components.
I noticed that my external hard drive was having issues. Sometimes Windows wouldn't detect it at all until I rebooted the system a few times, and success/failure seemed to be random. Sometimes the drive stops being detected at all after it goes into idle state from inactivity. This would cause errors the next time I started the drive, requiring a run of Chkdsk to fix the file system. I changed the Windows hardware policy to allow quick removal of the drive (so that "Safely Remove Hardware" was no longer required), which prevented the file system errors from reoccurring, but the drive still isn't functioning reliably. It's not an issue with the drive itself, either. It appears to work fine on this PC if I connect via USB, and it works fine via eSATA on my old computer, using the same cables.
I asked Sager tech support for help and they had this to say:
Not sure what I can do about it, but I'm not really satisfied with that answer. Seems kind of scummy to knowingly sell fucked components.
Skylake CPUs are trickling out now - dell just updated their Inspiron 15 and pcspecialist in the uk are offering a couple of models too. Are they a decent bump over broadwell, or should I save money by sticking with broadwell? Would just be for light game using integrated graphics - minecraft, simple indie games on steam, counterstrike etc.
Thinking i3-5010u, i5-5200u for broadwell, or i5-6200u for skylake.
Price wise, dell Inspiron with 8gb, 1366x768 screen, i5-6200u is £449. For the same price I can get an asus x555la wih i5-5200u, 8gb and 1080p screen. Or I can pay £100 more to get the dell with a 1080p screen and Radeon r5 m335
Edit: or possibly that medion akoya linked on the precious page - http://www.medion.com/gb/shop/budget-laptops-medion-akoya-e6417-laptop-md99248-30018874a1.html
I3-5157u and 1080p screen for £429. Broadwell, but iris 6100 graphics sounds decent and probably better than skylake hd520? How are medion - decent enough for a budget laptop?
Thinking i3-5010u, i5-5200u for broadwell, or i5-6200u for skylake.
Price wise, dell Inspiron with 8gb, 1366x768 screen, i5-6200u is £449. For the same price I can get an asus x555la wih i5-5200u, 8gb and 1080p screen. Or I can pay £100 more to get the dell with a 1080p screen and Radeon r5 m335
Edit: or possibly that medion akoya linked on the precious page - http://www.medion.com/gb/shop/budget-laptops-medion-akoya-e6417-laptop-md99248-30018874a1.html
I3-5157u and 1080p screen for £429. Broadwell, but iris 6100 graphics sounds decent and probably better than skylake hd520? How are medion - decent enough for a budget laptop?
1. Bought Sept of last year
2. Semi-often, 2-3 years depending on GPU releases. I like to upgrade the year after a new GPU architecture and/or die shrink is released. So I'm targeting 2017 for my next purchase.
3. Well built, best keyboard, best speakers. Incredibly cool while gaming, yet the fans aren't loud.
Tried BIOS update? That's all I have.
Medion are usually just rebranded Clevo machines, so chances are they'll be solid.
So my old laptop is crapping out and the school year is starting so I'm looking for a new laptop:
I can buy it from the US, but only if it ships in under a week for sure (say Amazon).
Price: I figure up to 1,500$ is fine.
Size: 15.6" seems like the go-to size. I move it around a lot so any bigger would be a hindrance and I can't use keyboards that are any smaller. I don't care that much about weight since it's always in my bag anyway.
Planned usage: My usage is a heavy dose of programming (running VMs, etc.), video editing and gaming. The gaming however is fairly mild requirements-wise, as I mainly play games like Civilization or Kerbal Space Program. I would prefer to be able to play newer games on even low settings if it doesn't add too much to the price.
One thing that is important to me is that it'll have an SSD and lots of RAM (or extension slot). I can not go back after having that in my work laptop. I care much less about harddisk space since I'll just use an external harddisk so 256GB is fine.
Battery isn't very important, though having a battery life like my current one (about 100 minutes) is unacceptable.
Any ideas?
I looked at this HP OMEN but it looked pretty expensive for what it is, and with a terrible mousepad.
Also looked at this one which seemed pretty good: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UR6UR2I/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Now thinking about: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00V7RJH0E/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Which seems good other than the fact that apparently its touchpad sucks, which is annoying cuz I do use the touchpad when on-the-go.
I can buy it from the US, but only if it ships in under a week for sure (say Amazon).
Price: I figure up to 1,500$ is fine.
Size: 15.6" seems like the go-to size. I move it around a lot so any bigger would be a hindrance and I can't use keyboards that are any smaller. I don't care that much about weight since it's always in my bag anyway.
Planned usage: My usage is a heavy dose of programming (running VMs, etc.), video editing and gaming. The gaming however is fairly mild requirements-wise, as I mainly play games like Civilization or Kerbal Space Program. I would prefer to be able to play newer games on even low settings if it doesn't add too much to the price.
One thing that is important to me is that it'll have an SSD and lots of RAM (or extension slot). I can not go back after having that in my work laptop. I care much less about harddisk space since I'll just use an external harddisk so 256GB is fine.
Battery isn't very important, though having a battery life like my current one (about 100 minutes) is unacceptable.
Any ideas?
I looked at this HP OMEN but it looked pretty expensive for what it is, and with a terrible mousepad.
Also looked at this one which seemed pretty good: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UR6UR2I/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Now thinking about: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00V7RJH0E/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Which seems good other than the fact that apparently its touchpad sucks, which is annoying cuz I do use the touchpad when on-the-go.
This. Is. The. One.
Broadwell, SSD, IPS display, GTX 970M, 16GB RAM, great keyboard and speakers, superb cooling.
p.s. - the keyboard isn't stuck in those colors, that's just to show that the regions are programable
Yeah, who in their right mind would want their keyboard like that?
Anyway, that does seem pretty damn good for only a little bit more. I'll have to decide between that and the Lenovo today.
Anyone here have any experience with the Acer Aspire V Nitro VN7-791G-7607?
I'm in Canada and $1279.99 (email promo for -$20 from $1299.99) doesn't seem terrible for a 17.3 1080p laptop. I do 3D and game dev stuff so the processor and dGPU are definite nice-to-haves.
Hard to find good specs these days that don't come with extra bloat like touch screens or needless 4K displays.
Looked at Sager as well, but I'm undecided if I want to go with them. It sounds crazy, but I just want a nice, understated laptop without all of the eXtreme G4MER designs on the laptop body. They're nowhere near as bad as the MSI or some of the ASUS laptops, but still.
I'm in Canada and $1279.99 (email promo for -$20 from $1299.99) doesn't seem terrible for a 17.3 1080p laptop. I do 3D and game dev stuff so the processor and dGPU are definite nice-to-haves.
Hard to find good specs these days that don't come with extra bloat like touch screens or needless 4K displays.
Looked at Sager as well, but I'm undecided if I want to go with them. It sounds crazy, but I just want a nice, understated laptop without all of the eXtreme G4MER designs on the laptop body. They're nowhere near as bad as the MSI or some of the ASUS laptops, but still.
cancelled the order above for this upcoming dell...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B015PYYDMQ?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00
You can find a 15 inch sager np8651 with better gpu for around the same price.
Trying and failing to find it. I've found one that has a GTX970M but I think it was 1700USD?
I'd go with http://www.reflexnotebook.com/sager-np8677.html. Pictures HERE. No "eXtreme GAMER" stylings in sight. I'm failing to see how the Y50 is more understated.
Huh, mobile i5 quad cores are a thing now. Sweet.
Nice price on that one too.
Ecto311
Member
Country where it will be purchased. USA - Colorado
Maximum budget. $300 but want $250 range unless something great is just that much closer
Max size (can be in screen inches, dimensions, weight). 15.6 but would like 13in or so if possible
Planned usage Travel and light gaming, warcraft and xbox one streaming to it at the most
Whatever else you find relevant, misc. things such as desired battery life, screen resolution, fan noise, etc. Long battery but again if something amazing is just a few hours shorter than others I can accept that
Right now I am looking at the HP Stream 11/13 (touchscreen version too) the x205 asus and the 15-f205dx HP 15.6 laptop. Not sure what would be best. Weird best buy just removed the laptop 15-f205dx from their site when I was checking it out last night.
Maximum budget. $300 but want $250 range unless something great is just that much closer
Max size (can be in screen inches, dimensions, weight). 15.6 but would like 13in or so if possible
Planned usage Travel and light gaming, warcraft and xbox one streaming to it at the most
Whatever else you find relevant, misc. things such as desired battery life, screen resolution, fan noise, etc. Long battery but again if something amazing is just a few hours shorter than others I can accept that
Right now I am looking at the HP Stream 11/13 (touchscreen version too) the x205 asus and the 15-f205dx HP 15.6 laptop. Not sure what would be best. Weird best buy just removed the laptop 15-f205dx from their site when I was checking it out last night.
sechsterangriff
Member
I still see the HP on Amazon.
One things Clevo aren't, is machines which will fail on you quickly. They don't have all of the premium external amenities of an MSI or Alienware, but they can be considered the blue collar machines of the gaming laptop space. They won't overheat ever, and won't fall apart without one heck of a beating.
I have no problem recommending them to those whose budgets fall in that range. I've owned many of them myself.
Let me know what country you're in, and which Clevo you're looking at, and I'll try to help you find a good reseller.
andthebeatgoeson
Junior Member
Ok, I scooped it up. Just got it today.
Now, it has norton and I norton is notorious. I already asked in other places but for everyone, good free antivirus combos?
Damn it, I've got new laptop fever again. It's time to ditch the problematic 7970m/Intel combo of the Sager NP9170. It's a great laptop held back by switchable graphics issues (Windows 10 renders the 7970m almost useless because of compatibility issues)
I'm interested in the NP9778-S...
Question is, should I wait for those newly announced models that come with the GTX 980 desktop quality cards?
Or are they already out?
Panda Free Antivirus is amazing and underrated. Excellent detection scores, low resource usage, realtime scanning, "game mode," and an option to disable the already minimal notifications.
Should you wait for the GTX 980 will have the same answer as: Do you want to spend $3k?
andthebeatgoeson
Junior Member
Any tips on gaming? Did it work well for you right off the bat? Or did you have to fidget with anything? I was getting a ton of slowdown on Portal 1 and assumed it could easily handle it. I messed with some options but I'll try a few other games.
andthebeatgoeson
Junior Member
Never mind. I think I just needed to update the drivers.
Hey all,
I'm looking for a light, portable gaming laptop in the $800-$1000 range. I expect to be traveling a lot so I would basically be using it as my gaming machine. I will also be on the plane a lot so I will need the laptop to have a good battery life while I get my work done on my flights (writing reports, bookkeeping, spreadsheets, etc).
My choices are the following:
- ASUS K501LX-EB71 (GTX 950m, i7-5500U, SSD) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00YR6BMS2/?tag=neogaf0e-20
(Light, good battery life) $800 normally when in stock
- MSI PE Series PE60 6QE-031US (GTX 960m, i7-6700HQ, DDR4) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0150Q1Y2G/?tag=neogaf0e-20
(Heavier, better GPU and DDR4) $1000
- Dell Inspiron i7559-763BLK (GTX 960m 4GB DDR5, i5-6300HQ, SSD)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B015PYYDMQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20
(Heaviest, GPU with 4GB ram, SSD, dual core i5) $800
What's my best option?
I'm looking for a light, portable gaming laptop in the $800-$1000 range. I expect to be traveling a lot so I would basically be using it as my gaming machine. I will also be on the plane a lot so I will need the laptop to have a good battery life while I get my work done on my flights (writing reports, bookkeeping, spreadsheets, etc).
My choices are the following:
- ASUS K501LX-EB71 (GTX 950m, i7-5500U, SSD) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00YR6BMS2/?tag=neogaf0e-20
(Light, good battery life) $800 normally when in stock
- MSI PE Series PE60 6QE-031US (GTX 960m, i7-6700HQ, DDR4) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0150Q1Y2G/?tag=neogaf0e-20
(Heavier, better GPU and DDR4) $1000
- Dell Inspiron i7559-763BLK (GTX 960m 4GB DDR5, i5-6300HQ, SSD)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B015PYYDMQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20
(Heaviest, GPU with 4GB ram, SSD, dual core i5) $800
What's my best option?
The price to performance on the Dell seems crazy good, like a game changer. The first mobile i5 quad ever, decent GPU, . My only question is whether it has just the one SSD/HDD slot. Just need more details before I can call it a winner, but the potential is definitely there.
The PE60 is perfect, if you spend a little bit more to add an mSATA SSD into it.
The Asus is the only one with a dual core and a DDR3 GPU, so I'm not choosing it over either of the other two.
criesofthepast
Member
I have the Acer Aspire V15 nitro black edition. 15 inch 1080p with the 1tb hard drive 8gnb ram and a 960m. Almost identical to that one. It is a solid machine. 960m 4gb is no chump. Just bought it 2 months ago and it has caused me no issues. Trackpad is OK not great. Stays super cool too. I'd say the 5400 rpm mechanical hard drive holds back the computer more than anything. The one you link to has an 8gb SSD which I guess has the Windows OS on it but ideally I'd want to remove the mechanical hard drive all together to get rid of the noise and weight of it. I'll probably install an SSD eventually and house the 1TB hard drive in a case as an external. That will really put the laptop into top tier.
So mechanical hard drive and trackpad not so great buy serviceable.
Edit: This is THE most understated gaming laptop you will find. It does not look anything like a traditional gaming laptop. It is super sleak and very "mature" in appearance. It really looks like a normal non-gaming laptop. Very sexy in my opinion.
You only wait ti lNov if you want the GTX 980.
The GT72S is already out, with the 970M and 980M versions. The GTX 980 one is a month out.
Is the quad i5 in the dell good for gaming then? Read it was clocked at 2.3Ghz and no hyperthreading.
Sixfortyfive
He who pursues two rabbits gets two rabbits.
I had a 2011 Vostro that served me decently for 4 years. Just replaced it. It was frequently used as the centerpiece of an event livestream setup, so it saw a lot of travel and heavy use. The outer-most part of the back panel got ripped off at some point and one corner got a bit bent out of shape, but the damage never extended beyond minor cosmetics. It never ran dangerously hot, but I'm pretty sure the CPU had to throttle itself to prevent overheating during long events, even after cleaning out the fan.
Nothing announced, so I doubt they have a 980 laptop on the way.
Only when you have a specific program that needs more.
A true quad core, even with no hyperthreading, still beats the crap out of a dual core that has 2 cores 4 threads.
Plus the i5 will boost up to 2.8Ghz on all 4 cores, during gaming.
I am looking forward to this one.
http://store.asus.com/us/item/201510AM090006013/A38827
It's one heck of a upgrade from the ROG laptop I've been using for the past 6 years.
http://store.asus.com/us/item/201510AM090006013/A38827
It's one heck of a upgrade from the ROG laptop I've been using for the past 6 years.
Awesome, thank you. Is there much of a difference between that i5-6300HQ And i7-6700HQ gaming wise? The latter is a quad with hyperthreading.
Price is freaking insane, and for what? The GT72S with the full GTX 980 and an i7-6820HK will be $3k.
No way I could pay that much for just a GTX 980M. Crazy.
Differences are, hmmm....
Base clocks - 6300HQ = 2.3Ghz, 6700HQ = 2.6Ghz
4 core Boost - 6300HQ = 2.8Ghz, 6700HQ = 3.1Ghz
Then of course the 6300HQ is 4 cores / 4 threads, while the 6700HQ is 4 cores/8 threads. They both have the same amounts of cache and are both 45W chips.
So it's obvious that the i7-6700HQ is the winner, but you have to have the budget to get one.
Gordon0Freeman
Member
Hey guys looking for a new laptop but not necessarily just for gaming. I'll be using it also for word, editing, music, porn etc. I do want to be able to run games such as the new Roller Coaster tycoon game and No Mans Sky, and I do NOT want to spend more than $1000. I've had my Vaios for almost 5 years! I think I'm due for a change. I want a laptop that will be able to last me a few years, good battery life, and has a good cpu and Gpu for a laptop. Laptops I've looked at are the Dell XPS 13, Lenovo yoga 3 pro, and the surface 3 pro. All nice as hell.
What's the best choice? Are there any better ones I should be looking at? Thanks
What's the best choice? Are there any better ones I should be looking at? Thanks
thequickandthedead
Member
how does an overclocked 980m compare to a 970?
Mick Swagger
Member
Country: USA
Max Budget: 2000 USD
Max size: 15"
Planned usage: Gaming primarily on campus. Looking for something with a relatively small and thin foot print so it's easy to carry around so I do expect to pay a premium. Dell's new XPS Infinity Display line looks great but I'm looking for something with a 970m or 980m in it in order to be able to keep up with next years release schedule. Would also like a premium fit and finish since I'm used to lugging around a MBPr. I have a 27" iMac for heavy lifting so I'm good on that end.
Max Budget: 2000 USD
Max size: 15"
Planned usage: Gaming primarily on campus. Looking for something with a relatively small and thin foot print so it's easy to carry around so I do expect to pay a premium. Dell's new XPS Infinity Display line looks great but I'm looking for something with a 970m or 980m in it in order to be able to keep up with next years release schedule. Would also like a premium fit and finish since I'm used to lugging around a MBPr. I have a 27" iMac for heavy lifting so I'm good on that end.