| Forum Home | ||||
| Press F1 | ||||
| Thread ID: 125967 | 2012-07-30 06:51:00 | Help buy a laptop | midgetmines (15261) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 1291648 | 2012-07-30 06:51:00 | EDIT: Straight away I realise the awful mistake in the title. I'm sure there are plenty of these threads, but the rules say start a new one, so... Anywho, I am off to uni next year and am pretty sure I'll do engineering (majoring in either software or biomedical, unless something changes my mind by year 2). So I need a laptop that'll be able to run reasonably demanding software (my knowledge of specs is pretty dire really, sorry). Other than that, the other specialist stuff I might be doing is video editing (currently using adobe, due to school - so i need to run after effects and whatnot - although I'm not a massive adobe fan) - however, I'll probably find myself without the time to do this. I'll probably want a touch of gaming. I'd consider myself a casual gamer, and as such probably wouldn't run anything too demanding - however a year ago I wasn't a gamer at all, so I'd like to keep the option at least somewhat open - I'm interested in becoming more serious. Besides this I am really into film (hence editing) and music, so I need top picture/graphics and sound (I really know **** all about these) and an inbuilt bluray player (if not burner) - don't want to go external. I know it's tricky/dangerous, but i want to future-proof as much as possible before I become filthy poor (at this stage I will be able to go halves with my parents, and Dad is all for getting the best I can). Budget is undecided (anything under $3000 is to be considered really). I have been looking at this, due to the help of a friend pricespy.co.nz (I know the G series is geared towards gamers) and pricespy.co.nz But I might be overshooting/not considering some things, due to my spec knowledge being so limited. I looked at Sager, and was pretty sold on them, until I accounted for shipping ($400ish New Zealand) GST and import duties, as well as the difficulty around warranties and servicing - it's a shame they don't have reps out of the US. Disclaimer: For the desktop argument - If I end up doing software, it's likely I will get one one anyway - but thats nearly 2 years away. I do need a laptop for the portability, and would like something higher performance. I'll also reiterate, my understanding of specs is very limited. |
midgetmines (15261) | ||
| 1291649 | 2012-07-30 07:13:00 | Any idea what software you will be using? I run Solidworks on a core2duo desktop with 4Gb RAM and a crap video card just fine | gary67 (56) | ||
| 1291650 | 2012-07-30 07:57:00 | I say, if you are willing to pay $2500 for an overkill laptop, go for it. Else look at the sony vaio range or the toshiba range. Asus is a great brand for quality but also overkill for work. Only advantages are the style and speed of lauching an app. Personally id buy the Asus because i game, but if you dont game there is no point. EDIT: Dont go for msi. Over priced for the specs. $200 less for a significant downgrade. |
stratex5 (16685) | ||
| 1291651 | 2012-07-30 08:11:00 | Call me an Apple fanboy but this: pricespy.co.nz will beat the crap out of both of those laptops in the CPU and GPU department and you get an actual laptop to boot (not horrendously big, might actually have battery life, won't weigh a tonne) only thing is you lose 4gb ram, the blu-ray drive and the screen is lower resolution than both of the other laptops (which is actually a good thing when it comes to battery life and frame rate in game). For only like $100 extra, and you get a bloody good build quality (Asus is rock solid too). Problem with a "gaming" laptop is that you can spend thousands only to be better by a $300 desktop graphics card. If I was you I'd only spend like $1800 focus on getting a solid ivy bridge cpu, nice big HDD (even an ssd maybe), good battery life and something thats actually portable (otherwise you might as well go out and buy a desktop). Laptop graphics cards are almost always bad, why spend and extra $1000 on 10-20fps while removing everything good about a laptop. Also I wouldn't bother with a bluray drive, they are overpriced in desktops so you'll be paying premium for them in laptops, optical media is nearly dead anyway. Brand wise I'd stick to: Asus, Toshiba, Apple, Sony (most of the time), Lenovo (can have sketchy tech support) and gigabyte (have heard good things about there laptops). These brands generally sell only really well made computers and offer decent warranty and support. I'd avoid: Cheap HP's (probooks are ok though, I'd do some research first on them if you look at them), Dell, Compaq and Acer (Once again if you look at an Acer I'd google to see if there are major issues with it first) |
icow (15313) | ||
| 1291652 | 2012-07-30 10:23:00 | I'd like to be a little cheaper, perhaps to be fair on my parents. What sort of specs can I skimp on? I haven't discounted apple, I just dislike their pricing and OS Any idea what software you will be using? I run Solidworks on a core2duo desktop with 4Gb RAM and a crap video card just fine Not a clue unfortunately, I just want to be safe. |
midgetmines (15261) | ||
| 1291653 | 2012-07-30 19:38:00 | So I need a laptop that'll be able to run reasonably demanding software (my knowledge of specs is pretty dire really, sorry). video editing I'll probably want a touch of gaming. Besides this I am really into film (hence editing) and music, so I need top picture/graphics and sound ( Gaming..............how about you just buy an Xbox, laptops are not designed for gaming and adding this in makes it harder, laptops with decent GPUs are not that common, and cost a fortune. Then, you can narrow it down to having the Bluray and a decent CPU - i7, not i5. |
pctek (84) | ||
| 1291654 | 2012-07-30 20:58:00 | How big do you need the laptop?(inches screen) | stratex5 (16685) | ||
| 1291655 | 2012-07-30 21:26:00 | How big do you need the laptop?(inches screen)I'm thinking at least 13.3" (that may even be a touch small), probably 15.6"-ish. I can't really justify 17" Gaming..............how about you just buy an Xbox, laptops are not designed for gaming and adding this in makes it harder, laptops with decent GPUs are not that common, and cost a fortune. Then, you can narrow it down to having the Bluray and a decent CPU - i7, not i5.You have a good point. I won't get a dedicated console (at least yet) because it won't be used much in the halls - when i eventually go flatting, it may be considered. Besides, I like PC gaming over consoles at the moment (but that's probably because I don't have a dedicated console). I'm probably more likely to get a desktop by that stage and max that out. I still want the option to play some smaller less intense - say, midrange games (sort of your typical indie games from steam, maybe more demanding games on lower setting). What sort of specs should I be considering? |
midgetmines (15261) | ||
| 1291656 | 2012-07-30 21:35:00 | Have a look at this: configure.ap.dell.com |
stratex5 (16685) | ||
| 1291657 | 2012-07-31 02:41:00 | dell inspiron 15R. fits all your criteria i think. except maybe its not pricey enough.. you couuuld have your parents buy you an overpriced macbook. then sell it. then buy any laptop you want. +profit. |
h4rsheys (15319) | ||
| 1 2 3 | |||||