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Gamer-approved laptop recommendation thread

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mescalineeyes said:
for the love of god, no, just no.
Click to expand...
I know.. I absolutely fucking hate it. I've about broken my controller multiple times playing online using the 360 controller.
But I've had a lot of problems getting the ps3 pads to work wirelessly with w7 x64
:(
 
K.Jack said:
One thing to note is that mobile Fermi is coming June/July, and it's coming to both the Alienware and the Clevo lines. Food for thought.
Click to expand...


Is this something seriously worth waiting for?
 
I dont know if this is how it is with all laptops,
But I had a Dell XPS m1730 which i basically traded for my m11x.
I could have upgraded the videocard, but it was NOT reasonable.
The video card upgrades were $500 and up. It was ridiculous. It was $500 for a 8800m x2
it was like 600-700 for a 9800x2
there was no way i would ever even consider doing that.
 
Didn't even know Dell offered video card upgrades.

Honestly getting a ViDock2 and then changing out the video card to whatever you want is probably the best scenario.
 
If you want to keep your laptop docked that is, but that isn't really why I buy a laptop.

Seems easy enough to DIY an external solution as well.
They don't still connect via express card slots do they?
 
dallow_bg said:
If you want to keep your laptop docked that is, but that isn't really why I buy a laptop.

Seems easy enough to DIY an external solution as well.
They don't still connect via express card slots do they?
Click to expand...
ViDock apparently does.
 
TurtleSnatcher said:
ViDock apparently does.
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Yeah, that limits the cards quite a bit as bandwith is slow from ExpressCard to PCI-e.

EDIT: Looking at reviews, yeah, benchmarks show exactly that.
Cards that are exponentially better only increase performance by a fraction.

There are ways of getting faster speeds, but they're DIY solutions that aren't as pretty as the ViDock enclosures.
 
K.Jack said:
The best 15" for the money is the $1100 MSI GX640. It's just about 5.5lbs (M11x is 4.5lbs), gets 2.5 hours on battery. Nice user review.

16:10 1680x1050
Core i5
Mobility 5850 1GB GDDR5
4GB RAM

Check it out.
Click to expand...

Daaaaaaamn. With a Bluray combo drive it's cheaper than the other laptops I've been looking at. Thanks for that!

How's the build quality? Does it run loudly/hot?

I have a question. I won't be buying a notebook until August/September. Will notebook lines have refreshed considerably by then? For example, this MSI would be a total purchase for me if it wasn't for the lack of USB 3.0 and perhaps better-designed cooling fans.
 
Reading around.. I'm pretty sold on this Alienware.. I may be picking this up next month.

Any major differences between the two processor choices? I'm hearing to really and the other processor just offers an extra 1mb of cache.. which I may not even notice in terms of performance.

I want to see if I can get a SSD for this as well.
 
Sutanreyu said:
I'd like to recommend a better laptop:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002RTL32Q/?tag=neogaf0e-20

Really great for gaming. :D
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I'm sure it's great for gaming. Unfortunately for you, the point of the m11x is hardly raw performance.

-8.8 pounds? Ugh.
-Massive, totally un-portable size? No thanks.
-1.5 hour battery life? :lol
-Even worse battery life when you're actually doing something on it? :lol :lol


Then there are the awful user reviews on that site...
 
The G71's GPU also runs 90+ when under stress.
John Harker said:
Is this something seriously worth waiting for?
Click to expand...
Depends on from which GF104 chip it's based, and what cuts have to be made to fit in notebook. Look for it to come from the GTS 430.
Dogenzaka said:
I have a question. I won't be buying a notebook until August/September. Will notebook lines have refreshed considerably by then? For example, this MSI would be a total purchase for me if it wasn't for the lack of USB 3.0 and perhaps better-designed cooling fans.
Click to expand...
There will be an Intel mobile Core i-x refresh, and of course Nvidia's new cards will be out. USB 3.0 should be more prevalent.

Frameless LEDs will also be on the laptop market. This is what I'm looking forward to the most.
IMACOMPUTA said:
I dont know if this is how it is with all laptops,
But I had a Dell XPS m1730 which i basically traded for my m11x.
I could have upgraded the videocard, but it was NOT reasonable.
The video card upgrades were $500 and up. It was ridiculous. It was $500 for a 8800m x2
it was like 600-700 for a 9800x2
there was no way i would ever even consider doing that.
Click to expand...
The Mobility 5870 is going for $390.
 
TurtleSnatcher said:
Reading around.. I'm pretty sold on this Alienware.. I may be picking this up next month.

Any major differences between the two processor choices? I'm hearing to really and the other processor just offers an extra 1mb of cache.. which I may not even notice in terms of performance.

I want to see if I can get a SSD for this as well.
Click to expand...
So not worth it!
The processor is a $20 upgrade and they're charging $100 for it.

Users benchmarks between the two both in benchmark programs and actual game FPS counts show that there is no difference.
Save the $100 and use it towards the 4GB ram, or an Intel SSD.

A quality SSD makes this machine fly.
 
dallow_bg said:
So not worth it!
The processor is a $20 upgrade and they're charging $100 for it.

Users benchmarks between the two both in benchmark programs and actual game FPS counts show that there is no difference.
Save the $100 and use it towards the 4GB ram, or an Intel SSD.

A quality SSD makes this machine fly.
Click to expand...

StarCraft 2 reportedly performs better on CPUs with extra cache, may be a consideration for him, but not for most, I agree.

Starcarft 2 reacts very well to additional cache - especially the E8400 and the two Lynnfield CPUs benefit from that while it is a disadvantage for the Athlon II X2 250.
Click to expand...

SSD is the best upgrade you can do to make any computer not feel slow in day to day use.
 
So who has this laptop? I'm probably going to pull the trigger in the next day or so.

I'm going to use to Super Street Fighter IV on the go, with my TE stick that happens to be bigger than the laptop but it's good of a price to pass up.

Asides from the RAM what else is upgradeable on this machine? I'm a little dissapointed that they don't offer any of the i3 ,i5 or i7 processors but I guess that's what keeps the costs down.


So yeah what can I swap out after I received the machine?
 
For those in Canada interested in this sort of thing NCIX is having a sale right now including an ideapad with a T6500, 4GB RAM, 320G HDD, GT 130M, 15.6 form factor.

Usual 15.6 size/weight/battery life, faster CPU, GPU within 10%, more memory, storage and it's 650$ CDN. Seems like it might be more of the funciton over form that some of you are looking for but aren't quite convinced with the M11.

Could have posted this in several threads but this is where i ended up clicking first
 
Shambles said:
For those in Canada interested in this sort of thing NCIX is having a sale right now including an ideapad with a T6500, 4GB RAM, 320G HDD, GT 130M, 15.6 form factor.

Usual 15.6 size/weight/battery life, faster CPU, GPU within 10%, more memory, storage and it's 650$ CDN. Seems like it might be more of the funciton over form that some of you are looking for but aren't quite convinced with the M11.

Coule have posted this in several threads but this is where i ended up clicking first
Click to expand...

That looks like a damn good computer for the price. I basically got the same thing but ~100 dollars cheaper this morning (in the US) with a correspondingly worse graphics card.
 
So my question right now is: 1GB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260M vs.ATI Mobility RADEON HD 4670 – 1GB i

That's my question right now, the NVIDA build I'm looking at is $200 morth, so that worth it?
 
I love the size! I'm typing on a 12" toshiba laptop at the moment, and I'm kinda interested in a small yet powerful replacement laptop. It's a shame it looks so ugly.

Are there any similar laptops from other brands?
 
dankir said:
So who has this laptop? I'm probably going to pull the trigger in the next day or so.

I'm going to use to Super Street Fighter IV on the go, with my TE stick that happens to be bigger than the laptop but it's good of a price to pass up.

Asides from the RAM what else is upgradeable on this machine? I'm a little dissapointed that they don't offer any of the i3 ,i5 or i7 processors but I guess that's what keeps the costs down.


So yeah what can I swap out after I received the machine?
Click to expand...
a quick youtube search can show you people using the SF4 benchmarking on this and it pulling 60 fps and looking fine.

Shambles said:
For those in Canada interested in this sort of thing NCIX is having a sale right now including an ideapad with a T6500, 4GB RAM, 320G HDD, GT 130M, 15.6 form factor.

Usual 15.6 size/weight/battery life, faster CPU, GPU within 10%, more memory, storage and it's 650$ CDN. Seems like it might be more of the funciton over form that some of you are looking for but aren't quite convinced with the M11.

Could have posted this in several threads but this is where i ended up clicking first
Click to expand...

It'd never play any decent game reliably compared to the m11x though. The graphics card kills it :( Thats what makes the m11x unique for its size/pricepoint and the batery life since you can change from a dedicated card to a integrated whenever.
 
Quick question to Alienware owners, the LED colors, are they all included within the system or just a single color? Also when configuring a Alienware on the site there's a part where it asks what kind of Avatar you would like, wtf is an avatar?
 
Two of my friends just bought these computers (one needed it because his current laptop died and needed a new one asap, the other bought it just because I guess) and they both love them.

For my first friend, he wanted a smaller computer (he had a 15-in Asus prior) that had good battery life and could play games, so I recommended it to him. Despite not having an optical drive (he thought it was a plus and he already had an external dvd drive) and the smaller keyboard, he loves it dearly and says that running the SC2 beta is like a dream.

My second friend, he had a 17-in Alienware laptop that seemed to be fine but I guess he was looking for an excuse to get the M11x. He likes watching dvds on his laptop, as well as gaming, but not sure if he has an external drive or not.

If I were in the market to get a gaming laptop, I'd probably go with this and use my company's EPP discount to get it. Maybe next year... :D
 
I thought about getting this but then I found out about the ASUS UL30Jt

13.3-inch
Intel Core i7 – 640UM/620UM processor,
NVIDIA GeForce 310M
DDR3 1066Mhz memory expandable upto 4GB
640GB hard drive
5400mAh 8-cell battery.
 
Jamesfrom818 said:
I thought about getting this but then I found out about the ASUS UL30Jt

13.3-inch
Intel Core i7 – 640UM/620UM processor,
NVIDIA GeForce 310M
DDR3 1066Mhz memory expandable upto 4GB
640GB hard drive
5400mAh 8-cell battery.
Click to expand...

That's a terrible gaming machine though.
 
EGM92 said:
Quick question to Alienware owners, the LED colors, are they all included within the system or just a single color? Also when configuring a Alienware on the site there's a part where it asks what kind of Avatar you would like, wtf is an avatar?
Click to expand...

They're all included. When you're picking the color on the site, you're just picking the initial color.
 
I'm on the fence about getting this or a desktop. Can anyone estimate how much a similar spec desktop would be? Like half the price?
 
DrLazy said:
I'm on the fence about getting this or a desktop. Can anyone estimate how much a similar spec desktop would be? Like half the price?
Click to expand...

For around $600 you would get about 4x the performance from a desktop and have access to loads of cheap upgrades in the future. If you don't absolutely need the portability, then the desktop wins every time.
 
EGM92 said:
Quick question to Alienware owners, the LED colors, are they all included within the system or just a single color? Also when configuring a Alienware on the site there's a part where it asks what kind of Avatar you would like, wtf is an avatar?
Click to expand...
Avatar is just the Windows logon picture.
Just choose whatever, you can pick whichever you want when it arrives.

I deleted them all anyway after I did the fresh install of Windows.
 
markot said:
I dont get why Alienware make such ugly things >.>

Does gamer = no sense of style?!
Click to expand...
Its just your opinion not a fact.

I like the way the notebooks look on the inside and the outside case is simple but sleep enough to me.
 
i got mine just 2 weeks ago, its a pretty good machine. I didn't overclock it, it could run Crysis on 800x600 Medium settings (32bit DX9) with frames hovering around 10-30... usually 10 when there's very intense firefights, kinda annoyed.

I have no problem running FFXI on high settings. I'm still yet to try dawn of war 2.

There seems to be an issue with the video card fan whereby when you switch back to the intel integrated cards, the fan won't turn off, only when you force your laptop to sleep will it turn off. It's no big deal, since an active fan will help cool your internal components anyway, only draw back is it'll cut your battery life down to 3 hours.

as for heat, the temperature hovers around 48-52 C (100-111 F?) for the nvidia card. CPU hovers around 40-45C. I notice the HDD gets hot too, it is located on the left bottom side, so when you place it on your lap it'll get pretty hot.

With all unnecessary services and processes disabled and power saving mode, i get bout 6-7 hours battery life, i've never seen the claimed 8 hour battery life.

i do not dare overclock the machine as i'm not familiar with the settings, i mess abit with evga's precision tool and didn't notice any improvement.

anyway, i think the battery life and the compact size, slick design makes it very appealing for mobile users.

keyboard feels very small, i still occasionally mistype letters.

I've a question about prolong battery lifetime, should i keep the power plugged it always ? or should i only charge it when the battery's completely drained ? or half drained ?.etc..

I had a Acer laptop and the battery went to shit after 12 months lol (1 hour)... don't know what i did wrong
 
hteng said:
i got mine just 2 weeks ago, its a pretty good machine. I didn't overclock it, it could run Crysis on 800x600 Medium settings (32bit DX9) with frames hovering around 10-30... usually 10 when there's very intense firefights, kinda annoyed.

I have no problem running FFXI on high settings. I'm still yet to try dawn of war 2.

There seems to be an issue with the video card fan whereby when you switch back to the intel integrated cards, the fan won't turn off, only when you force your laptop to sleep will it turn off. It's no big deal, since an active fan will help cool your internal components anyway, only draw back is it'll cut your battery life down to 3 hours.

as for heat, the temperature hovers around 48-52 C (100-111 F?) for the nvidia card. CPU hovers around 40-45C. I notice the HDD gets hot too, it is located on the left bottom side, so when you place it on your lap it'll get pretty hot.

With all unnecessary services and processes disabled and power saving mode, i get bout 6-7 hours battery life, i've never seen the claimed 8 hour battery life.

i do not dare overclock the machine as i'm not familiar with the settings, i mess abit with evga's precision tool and didn't notice any improvement.

anyway, i think the battery life and the compact size, slick design makes it very appealing for mobile users.

keyboard feels very small, i still occasionally mistype letters.

I've a question about prolong battery lifetime, should i keep the power plugged it always ? or should i only charge it when the battery's completely drained ? or half drained ?.etc..

I had a Acer laptop and the battery went to shit after 12 months lol (1 hour)... don't know what i did wrong
Click to expand...

You do know that they include an OC tool within the BIOS and it auto oc's it to 1.7ghz. You don't have to finick with settings or figure out a safe area to OC since they kinda include that option for you.
 
I just bought one of these from Best Buy...awesome laptop.

Only complaint I have is that the webcam sometimes doesn't start up correctly for the facial recognition from a cold boot (which I haven't disabled yet because it is still novel to me...)...putting it to sleep and waking it up seems to fix this, though.
 
Argyle said:
I just bought one of these from Best Buy...awesome laptop.

Only complaint I have is that the webcam sometimes doesn't start up correctly for the facial recognition from a cold boot (which I haven't disabled yet because it is still novel to me...)...putting it to sleep and waking it up seems to fix this, though.
Click to expand...
Maybe a upgrade or patch or something fixes that from dell? May be a common problem dont know.

I would have just bought one from Microcenter but I wanted a custom face plate.. likewise a few options seemed unncessary like a SU7300 instead of the SU4100.. saved me $100 for a processor upgrade that is fairly negligible.

Should have mine in about 1.5 weeks.. maybe less!
 
TurtleSnatcher said:
Maybe a upgrade or patch or something fixes that from dell? May be a common problem dont know.

I would have just bought one from Microcenter but I wanted a custom face plate.. likewise a few options seemed unncessary like a SU7300 instead of the SU4100.. saved me $100 for a processor upgrade that is fairly negligible.

Should have mine in about 1.5 weeks.. maybe less!
Click to expand...

What's funny is that it got worse when I installed the latest version of the Alienware OSD - after I updated it was happening 100% of the time on boot for me. With the newer software, if I disabled the webcam, rebooted, then reenabled it, it would start working again.

When I rolled back to the older (Feb) version of the OSD the problem only happens about 10% of the time...is anyone else having this problem, or did everyone else just turn off the facial recognition? :)
 
Deleted the facial stuff within the week I got it.
It worked half the time, kinda neat, but even when it worked perfectly, I can type my password much more quickly.
 
IMACOMPUTA said:
Got it.
Man, this little thing is amazing.
The build quality is fucking excellent. It's so solid.
Nothing like checking your battery to see its at 94% with 7 hours and 15 minutes remaining.. haha.

As far as gaming goes, it runs crysis warhead at 30 fps on mainstream @ native resolution. (awesome)
and Unreal Tournament 3 runs at 40-60 fps at native resolution on default (medium/high) settings.

I've got the gobi WWAN card installed, and just popped the sim card out of my iphone and into the m11x and get crazy fast speeds. Just realized i can send/receive text messages while using the sim card in my laptop.

Multi-touch pad with pinch/zoom is amazing.

Keyboard takes some getting used to, but I'm getting better with it.
I'm insanely happy with this little guy.
Click to expand...

I read the IGN review and they said you couldn't do this. So for sure you can just pop in the iPhone's sim card in and use the 3g?
 
Thanks for the Bios tip.

deathsight580 said:
I read the IGN review and they said you couldn't do this. So for sure you can just pop in the iPhone's sim card in and use the 3g?
Click to expand...
You have to tinker with the settings.
 
Yea - Anyone have more info on the 3g stuff?

Did you have to select that option at the build screen? Cause it said you needed a AT&T or VZW subscription and it looked like it was like another $60.00 a month or something.
 
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