imported_dopplex
Junior Member
I'm in the market for a gaming laptop, as my new job has me travelling an awful lot, and I can't use my work-supplied laptop for gaming.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of gaming laptops are 17" DTR monsters, which is larger than I want (I'd like to be able to use it in an airplane without causing undue annoyance to whoever might be sitting on either side of me), and while powerful 15" laptops exist, they never seem to have the top end graphics hardware. I don't mind getting a DTR notebook, I just don't want the large footprint, and would prefer that it had a P-M for heat and battery life purposes. (I know battery life with video card running at full won't be great on any laptop, but I'd like to get some useful time out of it if I'm not gaming. Plus, I don't want it to burn through my lap!)
My ideal configuration would run something like this:
P-M based
14" screen, preferably widescreen. 15" or 15.4" suggestions work also, as even in those form factors it seems very difficult to find a gaming machine from a reliable maker.
Maximum graphics card power available in this form factor (If the max available is too low, I may be forced into a larger machine)
Available with a minimum of 1GB of RAM
Reliable company (While I can get a better deal on ODM machines, I'm sure... I'd be more comfortable with Dell covering my warranty)
So, here are my questions:
1. For the Radeons, how do the various Mobility Xn00 lines compare to the Mobility 9700? Is a 256Mb X700 a good card, or is it going to let me down after a year and a half (My goal is for new games to remain playable, at least on low settings, 2-3 years into the life of this machine) I'm seeing the X700 much more often than the X800.
2. Although the prices are way better, I'm worried about ODM machines because I want a good warranty, preferably with accidental damage protection.
What I want is essentially an XPS2 in smaller packaging (Which, for heat issues, is almost certainly impossible), but failing that, would like some suggestions as to the best gaming machines that can be found at 14".
The purpose of this machine will be exclusively gaming and personal use (I have a work laptop already, but it doesn't work for gaming) and my absolute minimal requirements are that it be able to run Everquest2 at moderate settings.
Price is not an issue, as long as it stays reasonable (That is not to say that I wouldn't much prefer to get this for cheap, just that price isn't as important as getting what I need feature-wise).
Unfortunately, the vast majority of gaming laptops are 17" DTR monsters, which is larger than I want (I'd like to be able to use it in an airplane without causing undue annoyance to whoever might be sitting on either side of me), and while powerful 15" laptops exist, they never seem to have the top end graphics hardware. I don't mind getting a DTR notebook, I just don't want the large footprint, and would prefer that it had a P-M for heat and battery life purposes. (I know battery life with video card running at full won't be great on any laptop, but I'd like to get some useful time out of it if I'm not gaming. Plus, I don't want it to burn through my lap!)
My ideal configuration would run something like this:
P-M based
14" screen, preferably widescreen. 15" or 15.4" suggestions work also, as even in those form factors it seems very difficult to find a gaming machine from a reliable maker.
Maximum graphics card power available in this form factor (If the max available is too low, I may be forced into a larger machine)
Available with a minimum of 1GB of RAM
Reliable company (While I can get a better deal on ODM machines, I'm sure... I'd be more comfortable with Dell covering my warranty)
So, here are my questions:
1. For the Radeons, how do the various Mobility Xn00 lines compare to the Mobility 9700? Is a 256Mb X700 a good card, or is it going to let me down after a year and a half (My goal is for new games to remain playable, at least on low settings, 2-3 years into the life of this machine) I'm seeing the X700 much more often than the X800.
2. Although the prices are way better, I'm worried about ODM machines because I want a good warranty, preferably with accidental damage protection.
What I want is essentially an XPS2 in smaller packaging (Which, for heat issues, is almost certainly impossible), but failing that, would like some suggestions as to the best gaming machines that can be found at 14".
The purpose of this machine will be exclusively gaming and personal use (I have a work laptop already, but it doesn't work for gaming) and my absolute minimal requirements are that it be able to run Everquest2 at moderate settings.
Price is not an issue, as long as it stays reasonable (That is not to say that I wouldn't much prefer to get this for cheap, just that price isn't as important as getting what I need feature-wise).
