Gamer-approved laptop recommendation thread

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I just cannot decide between the Clevo P150EM and P170EM. Which is hilarious, as I started out as thinking about getting a W110ER (Glad I didn't). So, to (hopefully) help others, I've compiled some good threads with info on the two. We can't rely on K.Jack for everything, all the time. Although he is awesome!

Size difference: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/661109-clevo-p150em-versus-clevo-p170em-size-comparison-2.html.

17" Screen option differences: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/659121-90-gamut-matte-vs-72-gamut-matte.html

Visual differences (photos) - started by K.Jack, himself!: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/553185-visual-differences-between-different-screen-options-photos.html

Anyway...I can't decide between the two.

My thoughts:
- Size does matter, but not too much. I will be traveling with this laptop and it will be my gaming rig while on the road.
- Screen size: I'm fine with smaller...I have great vision. However, the 17" seems attractive to me for movies/etc. while in my hotel.
- Matte versus glossy...I game on matte and have already gone with matte with laptops. So the 17" jump scares me due to the 90% gamut screen being glossy (and it's the one everyone loves) whereas the matte one is only 72% gamut and I haven't heard much about it good/bad.
- 220W PSU on the 17" is attractive for OCing video card (100W 7970M).
- Add'l SATA3 bay in 17" is attractive so I can go SSD OS and HDD storage without needing to sacrifice my ODD (like in the 15").
- I always game with headphones - but the 17" speakers may be nice when I want to pop a BR in on the road or something. So that's a plus.

I dunno. I think I've talked myself to 17". It helps that K.Jack has the prior Clevo/Sager 17" and the same glossy 90% gamut screen and loves it. :)
 
For the new thread. Would it be best to organize the OP by performance tiers, or price ranges?
 
Hey guys... So I'm not necessarily looking for a pure gaming laptop since I have a gaming desktop but I do plan on doing some gaming on my new purchase. Here's what I'm looking for:

MUST HAVES
  • Around $1500 or less
  • 15"
  • 1080p
  • I can actually put on my lap w/o being burned (when watching videos at least)
  • MUST be able to play lighter gaming experiences (e.g. Minecraft, Bastion, Frozen Synapse, SpaceChem, DustForce)
  • Good build quality! I've heard some horror stories about the XPS 15z wireless card not working and the aluminum trim coming loose. Poor tech support to boot.

NICE TO HAVES
  • Would be awesome if I could play some "meatier" games as well (e.g. Arkham City, the eventual Skullgirls [listed here b/c 60fps requirement])
  • Fast boot would be nice
  • Aesthetics - I really like the clean/mainstream look of the XPS 15z and HP Envy 15. I also like the form factor of the 15z in particular.

Any thoughts?
 
Well, I ordered the NP9150. Quite a bit of money but I'm happy. Won't be getting it until "late May" though because the 7970 doesn't release until then. That's fine! Of course this probably means it'll be awhile until I play Dialbo but again: that's okay.

One thing I'm worried about though is that I didn't get a protection plan. The cheapest accidental damage plan is $279 and I just don't know if I'm willing to spend that much. Would you agree that it's okay that I didn't get it? I could always contact Xotic and ask them to add it but I'm not sure if I want to.
 
I couldnt wait.. bought a MBP 15.4. This exact model.

2.3ghz i7
6750 1gb
4gb memory
High Res Anti-Glare
750gb hdd

Going to be putting in my 256gb crucial m4 when I pick up the laptop tomorrow morning.

I just wanted something to play Diablo 3 on and was gonna wait for ivy bridge laptops, but I couldnt pass this deal up. I paid only $1450 after taxes <3 microcenter.
 
Me again..At this point, I'm just stocking up on different laptops and seeing where my budget will fall when time comes to buy it.

For a refresher, I'm looking for a 15-17in laptop(17 is ideal), that can at least run D3 on medium-high without crazy lag/slowdown, It would be great if what I need can be found in a store but I'd manage and my budget is 800-1200..I'd be willing to hit 1,500....but I'd rather not. I also kinda need a DVD/CD drive still..bluray would be ace but only as an extra.

My current laptop is on death's door so the reason for this is the eventual need of a new laptop.

Here are the most recent finds, just let me know which ones are trash or not (NOTE: I may not buy form these exact sources).

Toshiba Qosimo

Acer Aspire


I also would appreciate a bunch of suggestions, too.

KJack, you have been a huge help(The Sager is one of my options at the moment...I don't like how that Acer I found looks...lol. I am petty). This is just me gathering multiple options incase the funds take a hit...again.
 
Me again..At this point, I'm just stocking up on different laptops and seeing where my budget will fall when time comes to buy it.

For a refresher, I'm looking for a 15-17in laptop(17 is ideal), that can at least run D3 on medium-high without crazy lag/slowdown, It would be great if what I need can be found in a store but I'd manage and my budget is 800-1200..I'd be willing to hit 1,500....but I'd rather not. I also kinda need a DVD/CD drive still..bluray would be ace but only as an extra.

My current laptop is on death's door so the reason for this is the eventual need of a new laptop.

Here are the most recent finds, just let me know which ones are trash or not (NOTE: I may not buy form these exact sources).

Toshiba Qosimo

Acer Aspire


I also would appreciate a bunch of suggestions, too.

KJack, you have been a huge help(The Sager is one of my options at the moment...I don't like how that Acer I found looks...lol. I am petty). This is just me gathering multiple options incase the funds take a hit...again.

No bluray, but Itll max Diablo 3 Im pretty sure (660m and Ivy Bridge)

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+17.3%26%2334%3B+Laptop+-+8GB+Memory+-+1TB+Hard+Drive/5176239.p?id=1218621250769&skuId=5176239

A store 7 miles from me has them in stock, so maybe one around you will have one.
 
No bluray, but Itll max Diablo 3 Im pretty sure (660m and Ivy Bridge)

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Asus+-+17.3%26%2334%3B+Laptop+-+8GB+Memory+-+1TB+Hard+Drive/5176239.p?id=1218621250769&skuId=5176239

A store 7 miles from me has them in stock, so maybe one around you will have one.

Added to the list (Still not crazy about the design but it doesn't look as bad as the other one...I think?)


What about the Toshiba I posted?

I really like that one...but I'm not too sure about Toshiba...
 
Added to the list (Still not crazy about the design but it doesn't look as bad as the other one...I think?)


What about the Toshiba I posted?

I really like that one...but I'm not too sure about Toshiba...

Graphics card is good, but the i5 is dual core. Itll run Diablo, but I personally wouldnt buy a 17 inch laptop with only a dual core proc.
 
If you are willing to spend that much money on a gaming laptop, I would suggest a Sager/Clevo from xoticpc. You get much more powerful graphics card.

I'm just weighing options at this point. A Sager is on the list.

But this is available in stores as well. But this is a solid choice if a Sager is not in the plan?
 
Hey guys... So I'm not necessarily looking for a pure gaming laptop since I have a gaming desktop but I do plan on doing some gaming on my new purchase. Here's what I'm looking for:

MUST HAVES
  • Around $1500 or less
  • 15"
  • 1080p
  • I can actually put on my lap w/o being burned (when watching videos at least)
  • MUST be able to play lighter gaming experiences (e.g. Minecraft, Bastion, Frozen Synapse, SpaceChem, DustForce)
  • Good build quality! I've heard some horror stories about the XPS 15z wireless card not working and the aluminum trim coming loose. Poor tech support to boot.

NICE TO HAVES
  • Would be awesome if I could play some "meatier" games as well (e.g. Arkham City, the eventual Skullgirls [listed here b/c 60fps requirement])
  • Fast boot would be nice
  • Aesthetics - I really like the clean/mainstream look of the XPS 15z and HP Envy 15. I also like the form factor of the 15z in particular.

Any thoughts?
Asus G55

Well, I ordered the NP9150. Quite a bit of money but I'm happy. Won't be getting it until "late May" though because the 7970 doesn't release until then. That's fine! Of course this probably means it'll be awhile until I play Dialbo but again: that's okay.

One thing I'm worried about though is that I didn't get a protection plan. The cheapest accidental damage plan is $279 and I just don't know if I'm willing to spend that much. Would you agree that it's okay that I didn't get it? I could always contact Xotic and ask them to add it but I'm not sure if I want to.

Only you know how likely you are to damage this expensive machine.

I couldnt wait.. bought a MBP 15.4. This exact model.

2.3ghz i7
6750 1gb
4gb memory
High Res Anti-Glare
750gb hdd

Going to be putting in my 256gb crucial m4 when I pick up the laptop tomorrow morning.

I just wanted something to play Diablo 3 on and was gonna wait for ivy bridge laptops, but I couldnt pass this deal up. I paid only $1450 after taxes <3 microcenter.

You consider that a good deal? $1450 seems like a hell of a lot for a year old machine,especially when all of the brand new stuff is cheaper and at least twice as fast in the GPU department.

pulled the trigger on the 11.6" sager np6110. i assume i can disable turboboost in bios on it?

I'm not sure. you should check out this user review.

I'm just weighing options at this point. A Sager is on the list.

But this is available in stores as well. But this is a solid choice if a Sager is not in the plan?

The ASUS G75 is the only logical 'Plan B'.
I'm surprised not to see some sort of list of awesome laptops for their price in the OP. Does that exist somewhere in this thread?

I'm working on a new thread. I've been trying to wait for the low-range dual core Ivy Bridge laptops to release, because right now, everything available is for those with a $1k budget and higher.

I am tired of this thread though, so as soon as the person who's making the banner and headers gets around to it, we're going to make the switch.

And none of you answered my question up above, about whether it would be better if be organized by price or performance tiers.
 
the list changes every three months.

right now, if you're a GAMER, you SHOULD be targeting at a minimum:

Ivy Bridge Core i5/i7 (3XXX) CPU (for example, the Core i7 3610QM @ 2.3 GHz)
nVidia 650M or better GPU
8 GB 1333 DDR3 RAM
1600x900 display on anything 14" or higher (consult the pros in the thread for the best display options)
a 128 GB or bigger SSD (if you can afford it)


if you can get those specs at a reasonable price, you're doing well. favorites are alienware, sager/clevo/eurocom/mythlogic/xotic pc if you're looking for quality. asus g-series if you're terrified of ordering online. hp and dell deals crop up from time to time.

ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS check this thread or notebookreview.com to make sure the model you're looking at doesn't have systemic heat/throttling issues.

that's it!
 
k.jack, since this is a gamer thread, i'd go with price tiers. assume a minimum level of acceptable perf. you seem to have a really good handle on what that min bar is.
 
Sager NP9170 / Clevo P170EM
  • 17.3" FHD 16:9 "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Glossy Screen w/ 90% NTSC Color Gamut (1920x1080)
  • 3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core™ i7-3720QM (2.6GHz - 3.6GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache, 45W Max TDP)
  • AMD Radeon HD 7970M (2048MB) GDDR5 DX11 [User Upgradeable]
  • 16GB - DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (4 SODIMMS)
  • 60gb Intel 520 Series Solid State Drive (SSD2 Serial-ATA III) (PRIMARY)
  • 750gb 7200rpm (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache) (SECONDARY)
$2113.63

How would this compare to my desktop?
I7 2600k (not overclocked yet)
GTX 570 GPU
8 GB memory (need to add 8 more)
 
Thanks K. Jack for all the help you give in this thread.

My cousin is looking for a laptop between $600-800 that can play Diablo 3 extremely well.
I'd like to get him into Arma 2's DayZ mod as well, but that isn't an absolute requirement.. because I know that game can be taxing at times.

What's the best deal at that price range? He'd like to stay closer to $600, but I might be able to convince him to spend towards $800.

I bought a ASUS G73 refurb from newegg that was recommended in this thread and have had it for close to a year and LOVE it. So thank you everyone!
 
AWWWWWW SHIT I GOT BANNERZ

I'll be up late piecing the thread together.

Sager NP9170 / Clevo P170EM
  • 17.3" FHD 16:9 "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Glossy Screen w/ 90% NTSC Color Gamut (1920x1080)
  • 3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core&#8482; i7-3720QM (2.6GHz - 3.6GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache, 45W Max TDP)
  • AMD Radeon HD 7970M (2048MB) GDDR5 DX11 [User Upgradeable]
  • 16GB - DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory (4 SODIMMS)
  • 60gb Intel 520 Series Solid State Drive (SSD2 Serial-ATA III) (PRIMARY)
  • 750gb 7200rpm (Serial-ATA II 300 - 16MB Cache) (SECONDARY)
$2113.63

How would this compare to my desktop?
I7 2600k (not overclocked yet)
GTX 570 GPU
8 GB memory (need to add 8 more)

The 7970M is the desktop 7870, core downclocked 15%. I've already seen tests of it overclocked to 1010/1500 MHz, and at those clocks it bested the 7950 in 3DMark11. So yeah, you aren't taken a step down, at all, except for the fact that the 3720QM can't be overclocked to 4Ghz+.

And about that, the 3720QM is a waste of $160, unless you need the VT/d features it gains over the 3610QM. But speed-wise, that ~10-15% is not worth no damn $160. You'll never feel a tangible difference while gaming.

If not needed for virtualization, I'd drop down to the 36xx and use the $160 elsewhere, like a bigger primary SSD.

Thanks K. Jack for all the help you give in this thread.

My cousin is looking for a laptop between $600-800 that can play Diablo 3 extremely well.
I'd like to get him into Arma 2's DayZ mod as well, but that isn't an absolute requirement.. because I know that game can be taxing at times.

What's the best deal at that price range? He'd like to stay closer to $600, but I might be able to convince him to spend towards $800.

I bought a ASUS G73 refurb from newegg that was recommended in this thread and have had it for close to a year and LOVE it. So thank you everyone!

That's a tough one. With the Ivy Bridge dual cores lagging behind, the low-range hasn't been refreshed at all. As soon as those i5 Ivy come out, the price range should hopefully be flooded with the GT 640M and 7750M, which are 2x the speed of the GT 540M and AMD 6600 and 6500 cards.

The real issue is that every go-to i5 + dedicated GPU laptop I had on Amazon and Newegg is suddenly out of stock. I literally have nothing to show you, outside of this ASUS, but $749 for the i5 + GT 540M combo is too steep imo.

One can only hope that all of these machines are going out of stock because replacements are on the way.

Can I assume his deadline is the Diablo 3 release date?
 
Lol, my laptop must be self-aware because it totally just died.

That cuts into my budget a bit sadly.

So it comes down to this..

Can these play DIII at medium settings and will it be a solid laptop overall?

Number 1

number 2

There was also an Acer that I can't find a link too but I might have to buy via Amazon (think the Acer was from Newegg).

Juts give me the pro and cons of those two.

Gotta choose in a few days.

Thanks
 
The one with the quad core, easily. The dual core and gaming are getting a divorce soon.

But why is the G75 from Best Buy not an option? Same price and it's completely made of the latest 2012 tech. It also has 4 USB 3.0 ports, among the other modern amenities.
 
The one with the quad core, easily. The dual core and gaming are getting a divorce soon.

But why is the G75 from Best Buy not an option? Same price and it's completely made of the latest 2012 tech. It also has 4 USB 3.0 ports, among the other modern amenities.

It's an option...I just totally forgot where I saw it at...lol.

Amazon only has the leg up due to credit but that may not make much of a difference.

Thanks for the help.

Probably will go with the G75 if nothing else.
 
AWWWWWW SHIT I GOT BANNERZ

I'll be up late piecing the thread together.



The 7970M is the desktop 7870, core downclocked 15%. I've already seen tests of it overclocked to 1010/1500 MHz, and at those clocks it bested the 7950 in 3DMark11. So yeah, you aren't taken a step down, at all, except for the fact that the 3720QM can't be overclocked to 4Ghz+.

And about that, the 3720QM is a waste of $160, unless you need the VT/d features it gains over the 3610QM. But speed-wise, that ~10-15% is not worth no damn $160. You'll never feel a tangible difference while gaming.

If not needed for virtualization, I'd drop down to the 36xx and use the $160 elsewhere, like a bigger primary SSD.



That's a tough one. With the Ivy Bridge dual cores lagging behind, the low-range hasn't been refreshed at all. As soon as those i5 Ivy come out, the price range should hopefully be flooded with the GT 640M and 7750M, which are 2x the speed of the GT 540M and AMD 6600 and 6500 cards.

The real issue is that every go-to i5 + dedicated GPU laptop I had on Amazon and Newegg is suddenly out of stock. I literally have nothing to show you, outside of this ASUS, but $749 for the i5 + GT 540M combo is too steep imo.

One can only hope that all of these machines are going out of stock because replacements are on the way.

Can I assume his deadline is the Diablo 3 release date?
Not too long after or preferably before :)

So after talking to him more, he's said he doesn't think he'll play anything but diablo 3.. and would much rather spend closer to 600.
Are there any deals on something that would run Diablo @ 60fps and are in that price range?

EDIT:
So i pulled a couple from newegg in the pricerange with dedicated graphics

Number 1
Number 2
Number 3

I know know number 3 is the best, I just dunno if he wants to go for a refurb.
Any advice?
 
You might as well jump on the train with the rest of us. Pick an Alienware M17x R4 or either of the Sager NP9170/NP9150, with the combo of i7-3610QM and AMD 7970M.

If you want to see what Nvidia's offering for the next gen buyer, the GTX 680M is scheduled for release sometime in the June/July frame.

Thanks K.Jack, think I'll go with the Sager NP9170. A few of my friends own Alienware but surprisingly haven't recommended the brand whenever I ask them about it.
 
It's an option...I just totally forgot where I saw it at...lol.

Amazon only has the leg up due to credit but that may not make much of a difference.

Thanks for the help.

Probably will go with the G75 if nothing else.

Just FYI there are 2 versions of the G75. The one on Amazon has the 660m and is $1500 while the one on newegg has the 670m, Bluray, 750gb HDD + 256GB SSD and is $2100. I'm not sure if there are other differences but those are the ones I picked up on right away.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834230409&Tpk=g75
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007MW73C2/?tag=neogaf0e-20
 
Why is Sager considered better then ASUS?
Simply because of the GPU power brought to bear in the former's hardware. Once ASUS stepped out of putting out machines in the ultra-high end performance bracket, the company lost a lot of respect.

If they had a 7970M version of the G75, we'd be having significantly different discussions in here.

As it stands, they offer the 660M/670M, which are less than half of a single 7970M's power.
how does a 540m compare to a 5870m?
It doesn't. The 5870M is 2.5x as fast.

In equivalent desktop terms, it's a GT 440 vs the 5770, meaning completely different classes and a massive gulf between them.

Man that card was and still is a special piece. These years later, the 5870M is still going to compete with the GT 600M Kepler chips.

Just FYI there are 2 versions of the G75. The one on Amazon has the 660m and is $1500 while the one on newegg has the 670m, Bluray, 750gb HDD + 256GB SSD and is $2100. I'm not sure if there are other differences but those are the ones I picked up on right away.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834230409&Tpk=g75
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007MW73C2/?tag=neogaf0e-20

Knowing that the GTX 670M is just a 3% OC'd and rebranded GTX 570M, I'd personally be looking for GTX 660M SKUs only, even though the card is 5-10% slower.

*back to work on new thread*
 
Simply because of the GPU power brought to bear in the former's hardware. Once ASUS stepped out of putting out machines in the ultra-high end performance bracket, the company lost a lot of respect.

If they had a 7970M version of the G75, we'd be having significantly different discussions in here.

As it stands, they offer the 660M/670M, which are less than half of a single 7970M's power.

It doesn't. The 5870M is 2.5x as fast.

In equivalent desktop terms, it's a GT 440 vs the 5770, meaning completely different classes and a massive gulf between them.

Man that card was and still is a special piece. These years later, the 5870M is still going to compete with the GT 600M Kepler chips.



Knowing that the GTX 670M is just a 3% OC'd and rebranded GTX 570M, I'd personally be looking for GTX 660M SKUs only, even though the card is 5-10% slower.

*back to work on new thread*

So how well will THIS do with diablo 3?
 
So how well will THIS do with diablo 3?

More than enough to run D3.

I ran the D3 beta at 1280X720 medium settings on a (i7-Q720 1.60ghz, 6gb ram and Nvidia 310m 512mb card). The framerate held up, even during the hectic beta boss fight.. The laptop you posted will run D3 quite well.

I'm going to play D3 on my current specs.. I'm being patient at the moment. I want to see some 7970M benchmarks. I almost made the mistake of getting a 675m, which is a rebadged oc'd 580m. My current 310m, turned out to be a rebadged 210m. Fool me once....
 
Are&#12288;the&#12288;IVY&#12288;i5&#12288;dual&#12288;core&#12288;or&#12288;quad&#12288;core?
I'm looking to spend $800 max on my new laptop and it seems I should go with an i5 when they are back in stock.
 
Of the good laptop brands, which one tends to score highest for reliability?

I did buy an ASUS 4 years back, and I had a brief problem (easily fixed at the shop), and had some issues with the screen (due to having to be rough with it for a year), but otherwise it's run well.

I don't play high-end graphically heavy games much, but I do need a laptop that can run at heat, quad-core at minimum, decent graphics card, and RAM. I tend to play TBS games and other timesink type games.
 
Is it advisable to buy a cheap MXM laptop and upgrade the GPU and ram?

My budget is the best bang for the buck in terms of gaming performance, and that includes upgrading yourself path.
 
Newegg is such a shitty business. I am getting totally screwed by them for the second time in the past year. What a fucking joke.
I'm sticking to Amazon from now on.

I ordered the laptop i linked up there ^ yesterday and its shipping to a different address, so i guess that threw a flag with my Newegg Preferred account. I had to call them and got things settled, and tried to order it again. Noticed later on last night that the same thing happened.. payment refused.
It's going to take 48 hours now to go through, meaning the laptop wont arrive before diablo 3 @ midnight on the 15th. I tried talking to newegg customer service about maybe getting some kind of shipping bump due to the inconvenience, and god damn they are worthless.

Last year i ordered a video card that had a rebate for $20 or so, but the site was glitched and i couldn't redeem it. I contacted newegg about it and they had no idea what i was talking about, and after finally getting through to them, they told me they would get back to me on the issue. Never heard back.
 
I think I'm going to pass on the McAfee security software offered by Alienware/Dell in favor of the Webroot SecureAnywhere. Opinions?
 
Beat me by 30 seconds. Microsoft has made this so easy (and good) for all of us geeks and nerds.

yup. first thing i do when i get a new rig is install a fresh version of the os, then head to ninite.com to pick up mse, notepad++, and the various media apps/codecs i use.
 
GAF, some help.

I ordered a Sony Vaio Model VPCEB390X CTO a while ago, and I had the option of choosing between two different graphics: Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator HD, or an ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 GPU (1GB VRAM) [add $100.00] . Not having an interest in gaming at the time, I chose the former, and now regret it.

Is it possible to install a dedicated graphics card in this laptop? I'm not too worried about taking the laptop apart and putting it back, I'm just wondering if it is possible and if I will be successful.

Btw the CPU is Intel® Core™ i5-460M processor (2.53GHz) with Turbo Boost up to 2.80GHz.
 
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