Laptop for graphics & gaming

[Gaspy]

Hi, I'm a graphic designer and I intend to use my laptop for some gaming as well.

In order, the most important factors are - performance, size, price.
I want something that won't become obsolete in 2 years, preferably 15.6"

My biggest concern is the GPU. If I buy something with a a nVidia GT 750M, will it be enough for today's games? What about games in 2 years?

So far I narrowed it down to a list:

• Lenovo Y510p - GT 750M SLI and 16 GB RAM should provide the performance and price is good. Not too impressed with the design.
• Asus N550JV - right size and design, displayPort is a plus, but I fear the GT 750M will not be enough.
• Samsung ATIV Book 8 - Great size and design, touch screen, but unsure about the AMD Radeon HD 8870M card.
• Asus H750JH - Excellent performance, the GTX 780M should really be great, downsides are size and price.

What do you think? Any things I should take into consideration? Do you have some alternatives? What should I aim for?

Thanks.

 

[redhotiron2004]

Actually, my personal view regarding the laptops as gaming machines is quite negative.
Laptops are just not the machines intended for gaming. There small form factor packed into smaller area is a huge limiting factor. Laptops are more delicate then desktops and more prone to failures with high cost of repair( if possible).

My suggestion would be that you buy a laptop for your productivity and designing needs and save money for a gaming desktop instead. Don't waste extra money on a laptop with gaming graphic card.

Or better get a ps3-4 or xbox for gaming.

 

[stateofmind]

Hi, I'm a graphic designer and I intend to use my laptop for some gaming as well.

In order, the most important factors are - performance, size, price.
I want something that won't become obsolete in 2 years, preferably 15.6"

My biggest concern is the GPU. If I buy something with a a nVidia GT 750M, will it be enough for today's games? What about games in 2 years?

So far I narrowed it down to a list:

• Lenovo Y510p - GT 750M SLI and 16 GB RAM should provide the performance and price is good. Not too impressed with the design.
• Asus N550JV - right size and design, displayPort is a plus, but I fear the GT 750M will not be enough.
• Samsung ATIV Book 8 - Great size and design, touch screen, but unsure about the AMD Radeon HD 8870M card.
• Asus H750JH - Excellent performance, the GTX 780M should really be great, downsides are size and price.

What do you think? Any things I should take into consideration? Do you have some alternatives? What should I aim for?

Thanks.

What is your budget and what kind of games do you have in mind?

 

[Gaspy]

Budget can go as high as $2500.

I'll definitely want to play Watch Dogs when it comes out. Also Thief. I'm also keeping an eye on Star Citizen, its demands will probably be very high if/when it's released.

I've been thinking of getting a laptop for work and a PS4 for games. I'm a bit reluctant to do that as I've always been a PC guy...

 

[mnewsham]

I'll definitely want to play Watch Dogs when it comes out. Also Thief. I'm also keeping an eye on Star Citizen, its demands will probably be very high if/when it's released.

Well Thief is a game you may wish to wait for newer AMD GPU for, as Thief will supposedly use the AMD Mantle API and the AMD trueaudio DSP.

Star citizen right now recommends a desktop r9-290x for 1920x1080, this could go up as more of the game gets developed.

 

[Throckmorton]

The screen is the most important thing for a graphic designer but you didn't mention that.

I have an Asus Q550LF which has a 1920x1080p IPS screen which is very nice. I assume the N550 hsa the same screen. But it's only dual core i7 and build quality is terrible. It looks and feels cheap.

 

[Gaspy]

Yes, a matte screen would be best. I guess I got spoiled by my existing screen, I took quality as a given. Now that I think about contrast ratio and such, it complicates the matter further (I calibrate the color).

I looked at the requirements for Thief and Watch Dogs and they make me cry. The more I think about it, the more I'm inclined to take redhotiron's advice and just get a console for games and get a laptop for work only...

 

[stateofmind]

Well, the newer Y510p SLI I5 version is the most cost effective - it has the little faster GT 755M SLI, better Intel 7260 WiFi card (vs 2230 I think) and a bigger battery.

The I7 doesn't worth the extra cost as it won't give you significant performance advantage and also produces much more heat and therefore, higher throttling probability as the Y510p will get hot.

It will run many games on highest settings (BL2, Bioshock Infinite, TombRaider, Skyrim) and some on medium-high, like Crysis 3.

I would not advise getting a GTX 780M laptop currently unless you can find something refurbished.
I WOULD try and find some GTX 680M equipped laptop - you can sometimes find these for even $1000, which is quite low.