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New Laptop for College/General Use/Light Gaming

B

Boris t3h Spider

Junior Member
EDIT:

The original post I made is pretty much worthless now. I will be receiving this laptop as a graduation present, but I would like to keep it under $1500 if possible (I could go over if I see a good reason to do so, but under $1500 is preferred).

My choices at this point are:

ASUS M50

or

ASUS F8

or a Dell XPS M1530 equipped similarly.

Keep in mind that I will probably be bringing this laptop to classes. For this reason I think the F8 might be nice as it is slightly smaller and lighter than the others while still remaining fast.

My questions at this point are how does the 3650 compare to the 9500M GS in the F8? Specs between the two otherwise are quite similar, with the M50 really only having a larger HD and an extra gig of RAM, both of which aren't a big deal IMO, so it comes down mainly to the video card. The F8 only has a res of 1440x990 so that would be less demanding on the video card, but with the smaller screen I would also assume that the pixel density would be pretty comparable to the M50, so the screen would remain pretty crisp.

A number of my friends have the M50, and I love the screen and the power it has, but I don't really like the design. Based on the pictures on newegg, the F8 seems to have a simpler design that I prefer. Speakers aren't really a big deal as I intend to use headphones.

I like the size of the 13" laptops, but it seems like once you get to that size the video card options fall off pretty fast, so the 14" seems to be as small as you can go while still keeping a fast videocard.

Thanks for any input, and sorry for changing it up again.

 
Personally, I'd go for a smaller laptop just for portability's sake.

I'd look at one of these since they are: a) cheaper; b) smaller; c) some have almost the same specs as the M50:
F8, 14" HD3650: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16834220303
--AFAIK, the HD3650 is better than the 8600M GT. I've heard that in general, the 8xxx mobile cards were pretty lackluster.
F8, 14" 8600M GT: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16834220192
F9, 12" 9300M G: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16834220312 (probably only a step or two above running X3100 Intel graphics; I bet it would be fine for playing those games though)
F9, 12" 8400M G: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16834220257

I have a feeling that a similarly equipped Dell to the notebooks I just listed would be more. Compared to the M50 series, you could probably build a comparable Dell.

I don't know if it would be worth it to upgrade to the 2.5/2.6GHz processors over something "slower." I doubt that you would notice much of a difference between 2.0GHz and 2.6GHz if they have the same processor core.

By the way, I'm currently on an Asus W3J (Core Duo, 2.5GB RAM, Radeon Mobility X1600, 100GB 7200RPM HDD) and it's still going strong after 2 years of service (shows almost no wear and tear).
 
I been looking at the Dell M1530/1730's and Inspirons and the price so far (I mean right now) is not as low as the Asus laptop's that are comparably equipped.
 
lol you aren't that special, just get a 500 dollar cheap laptop
they don't cost 2k anymore ...

if you pay that much you're getting ripped off
specially since you are a low/no payed student
 
Check out the Dell XPS 1530 or the Studio.

The XPS is a bit more powerful, but the Studio has a backlit keyboard.
 
ASUS M51SN-C1. Saw it on NCIX's special for $1000.

It's 15.4 inches with a full size keyboard, has a Core 2 Duo T5550 I believe, 3GB RAM, 9500M GS, and all the other stuff a laptop comes with.

My friend has a ASUS G1S-B1 and he upgraded it to 4GB RAM. Great laptop, but for me, I'd say it's a tad too expensive. The M51SN-C1 should perform more or less the same as my friend's G1S-B1.

link
 
I suggest taking a look at the MacBook Pro lineup. Apple's not cheap, but via your school you should be able to knock a few $100s off the price, so you'd be within your $1500 budget (and easily under $2000). Prices vary a LOT (don't go by Apple.com pricing) and a friend got a 17" MBP recently (8600GT graphics) for $2000, so a 15.4" model should be a good bit less even without student discount. You can then run all three of the major OSs, game with the best of them (the 8600GT isn't perfect, but it's pretty darned good, and a lot faster than the Dell 8400M!).

You'd have a beautiful, sleek, excellent-quality laptop with backlit keys, the best (MacOS) OS on the planet, and, unlike almost any other laptop you buy, it will hold its value fairly well; to me that's worth a lot (when it comes time to sell, you'll make that extra $200 back plus you'll have used a beautiful laptop in the meantime.)

I'm still on my second Mac laptop - first was a 12" G4/1.33, and the current one is the 15.4" MacBook Pro 1.83 Dual Core with Radeon 1600 graphics. It's older now, but still going very strong.
 
This latest dude talks sense. I just bought a Gateway p-6831FX off of e-bay (returned item, with slight cosmetic defects) for $835 with shipping and handling. You might find a deal like that, but even at $1500 the Gateway p-line is incredible.

The only issue for you is the screen size, but with a proper case, it feels quite natural to use wear...and I use a bicycle for transportation. I was originally looking for something in a 13.3"-15.4" for-factor, but my bro convinced me to step out on a limb.

No regrets here, and its been a week and a half.

P.S.
And my last laptop was a 10.4 Fujitsu Lifebook, so even at twice the size; Being able to play Team Fortress 2 or Unreal Tournament III (I am getting Gears tomorrow, as soon as my paycheck clears) without a hiccup on fairly high settings is worth it. The thing outperforms most of my friend's desktops.

Plus, the larger size means that I can ditch my textbooks and use e-books only. *_^

My two cents, take 'em or leave 'em.
 
The Gateway is definitely the best choice if you don't care about size or weight.

If you do, the ASUS options, the Dell's, and the Macbook Pro are all contenders.

An 8600m GT will run TF2 fine at the highest settings anyway, and that is clearly the best game out of the three the previous poster mentioned. =p
 
Another vouch for the Gateway. I have the P-6860FX and its great. For the price, it really can't be beat. Its also very easy to upgrade. Like I have 2x 200GB 7200RPM Hitachi's in RAID 0 and now a Core 2 Extreeeeeeeme X7800 (OC'd to 3Ghz) in mine. So far its run everything I've thrown at it as far as games are concerned
 
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