New Laptop Time

[MBentz]

I think it's time for a new laptop... one that games. I don't need to run everything maxed out, however. The lighter the better, and of course longer battery life is good, too. (I know, gaming laptop + battery life doesn't exactly mix.)

So far I've come up with the Apple MacBook Pro (Never owned a Mac) and Dell's new XPS notebook.

Anything else I should be looking at? Falcon-NW is way expensive. (They updated their site, looks great.) VooDooPC has some cool stuff, but again pretty expensive for their gaming notebooks.

 

[ubercaffeinated]

acer 8204 is also an option.

it should be noted that it'll probably be better/cheaper in the LONG RUN to get 1 dedicated mobile lappy for work, and then a seperate rig for pleasure. you'll be happier that way.

 

[Ionizer86]

How light do you want your laptop? How powerful must the video card be? A lot of current laptops have the Radeon X1400, but if you want anything more, you'll be going with something heavy and/or expensive. But since you're considering the XPS M1710, I'm guessing you do have a nice budget and you can stand 8lb+ 17" laptops?

 

[MBentz]

I wasn't going to limit myself to a specific weight... rather just the lighter the better. I'd also like to take it to school on occasion.

I'm starting to lean to the Dell XPS 1710. Does Dell do any deals on their XPS systems? Right now there's tons of coupons for their other laptops.

 

[Tarrant64]

If Dell did have deals it may just be one of those one time specials they have every once in awhile. There are a few websites which will post those limited specials and what they apply to when purchasing things from Dell. You can't go wrong with either the MacBook Pro or the Dell XPS.
Dell's really stepped up with their gaming XPS machines and they shouldn't be underestimated just because it's labeled Dell. It's been ranked the best several times(maybe still is?). Close behind are also companies such as Alienware(now owned by Dell), Acer, etc.

The MacBook Pro would normally not be considered the best overall gaming machine due to it being OS X, but with the ability for it to run Windows now it's definitely and option.

Final thought, it would probably be best to stick with a native Windows machine such as Dell or Acer. I couldn't tell you how good hardware/driver support is right for the MacBook Pro. I will have to do some reading up myself on who's been gaming with it and what their experiences are.

 

[MBentz]

I'm really leaning toward the MBP right now. I know with the mobile X1600 (256MB) gaming wont be the best, however it also won't be nonexistant. The option of fooling around with OS X is appealing. I can also get a few hundred off with the student discount, making the MBP a lot cheaper than the XPS I configured.

I dont know. Yesterday the XPS sounded great. Today it's the MBP.

 

[ubercaffeinated]

Originally posted by: MBentz
I'm really leaning toward the MBP right now. I know with the mobile X1600 (256MB) gaming wont be the best, however it also won't be nonexistant. The option of fooling around with OS X is appealing. I can also get a few hundred off with the student discount, making the MBP a lot cheaper than the XPS I configured.

I dont know. Yesterday the XPS sounded great. Today it's the MBP.

Good choice

 

[Voodoorabbit]

before you reach out, I'd like to give you a good advice that the MacBook Pro could overheat due to design flaw.

 

[AmigaMan]

Originally posted by: MBentz
I'm really leaning toward the MBP right now. I know with the mobile X1600 (256MB) gaming wont be the best, however it also won't be nonexistant. The option of fooling around with OS X is appealing. I can also get a few hundred off with the student discount, making the MBP a lot cheaper than the XPS I configured.

I dont know. Yesterday the XPS sounded great. Today it's the MBP.

While I personally have an MBP, you might also want to check out the Acer as previously mentioned and the Lenovo Thinkpad T60p. For me, it came down to choosing between the Thinkpad and the MBP and I chose the Mac due to OSX and it's looks (as well as price and performance). If I had to make the choice again, I might take a look at the T60p, although I'd probably still be waiting for it.
I'll never buy another Dell again though. There are so many other options out there now. Plus Dell and portability don't really go together...

There's another thread here about Bootcamp performance and has some good stuff in it...

 

[Jules]

Hows the support for games though on the Mac?

 

[MBentz]

Originally posted by: MyStupidMouth
Hows the support for games though on the Mac?

You can run WinXP on it... so it's just fine.

 

[Jules]

Originally posted by: MBentz

Originally posted by: MyStupidMouth
Hows the support for games though on the Mac?

You can run WinXP on it... so it's just fine.

ill a take that a no.

 

[pkme2]

You might consider a Dell E1505 laptop. You can get a fantastic $2000 less $750 discount coupon for $1250.
http://www.meanbargains.com/dell/ Don't worry about expiration date. It will renew again and you have time to setup what you want.
You can PM me and I'll be happy to assist you. Your choice.....

 

[AmigaMan]

Originally posted by: MyStupidMouth

Originally posted by: MBentz

Originally posted by: MyStupidMouth
Hows the support for games though on the Mac?

You can run WinXP on it... so it's just fine.

ill a take that a no.

How is that a no? You can play any game any other laptop can under Windows XP at full speed using BootCamp. Plus there are some games available under OSX so you actually have more options than a regular Windows laptop has.