Laptop recommendations

[eltai]

Looking to purchase a new laptop, have been using dell XPS systems for last couple of years just because the price point was good at the time of purchase. However, I have become unhappy with the overall construct of the laptop and the current options are no longer as flexible as they once were. Have looked around a bit, and saw Origin recommended and have explored a couple of systems there. Have also considered the option of getting a MacBook but not sure how the performance of native windows is gaming wise off of them. Would be looking for either 15" or 17" that has a semi-rugged build to it. Open to any suggestions or recommendations (budget is up to $3500 if it is for a solidly built machine that won't just wear out after 18-24 months).

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Puget Systems

Used them for my last rig. They gg.

 

[Zero0003]

It really depends on what your doing with the laptop will depend on which recommendation you get.

What Games are you playing?
Everquest? How Many toons?

If you want to go high end, sorry to say but beefy Desktops are still the way to go. Your able to switch out hardware on the fly without having a door stop within a year or 2.

If you use any games they have to have video and such I7 with tons of ram and SLI video cards. raid 0 ssd hard drives.

The only thing you will ever have to change would be video cards for future due to the way the market is busting out new cards every few months.

Buying manufacture computers are almost useless so build it yourself so you can customize it the way you want and have every need you desire.

As far as the look, buy 2 32 inch tv's and wall mount and hook it up. They are cheap now maybe $200-300

 

[SiegeTank]

Wow, thanks for that link! Puget looks to be a potential solution for some tech needs I have for work. Boy, this site pays back in so many ways!

Hey, not to derail, but it's sorta of a related question. I want something better than Windows to do image backups of my systems. I was considering Norton Ghost or Acronis but they both have a shitload of negative reviews on Amazon, including scary warnings about damaging and corrupting files when they're used. I suspect some of these scares are planted by the competition. I used to use Ghost and I loved it but that was waaaay back.

Anyone have a good recommendation for software for making image backups reliably, easily and efficiently? At a minimum I'd like something that gets past the 4k sector formatting for large (2TB+) external HDDs since Microsoft is incapable of building that into their own Win7 backup utility. Sheesh! But that's a rant for another day...

BTW, I agree with Zero that desktops are always best for gaming but I know a LOT of people prefer laptops for gaming, including my college-age son and at least a dozen of his technically-capable friends. The portability is a major selling point with them...

 

[Metsman4u]

Asus G75 series check it out

https://www.asus.com/ROG_ROG/G75VW/

 

[Zero0003]

Images backups, I always use Windows Home Server as it is easy and does daily/weekly/monthly backups if you ever need to revert it back. Easy setup for it as it takes less then 5 min once you have the connector software installed.

 

[Rasmussenn]

Fwiw I play on a MacBook Pro 15 w/Retina display. The performance in native windows rivals the Asus G75 it replaced with half the weight and twice the battery life. I can box 6 toons and not feel a thing. I can also box 6 toons behind my main while raiding and not have any issues.

Asus G75 series is good bang for your buck. I used mine the same way as I use the MBP 15 now. Except the MBP can actually function as a laptop. Not a desktop replacement when I need to take it out of the house.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[eltai]

Thanks for the feedback guys. As far as the laptop vs desktop I travel a lot for the work I do on shorter contract work where a desktop isn't practical for lugging around with all the moving I do globally. Majority of the gaming is multibox EQ and rts as well as some turn based strategy, but for work also do a lot of biological modeling and mass data processing which at times taxes even the 8 gigs in the current machine. Bigger question for me was more in the quality of the parts and overall durability. I do like the option the MBP provides as far as unplugged battery life goes as most other performance systems rape the battery.

 

[eltai]

Thanks for the feedback guys. As far as the laptop vs desktop I travel a lot for the work I do on shorter contract work where a desktop isn't practical for lugging around with all the moving I do globally. Majority of the gaming is multibox EQ and rts as well as some turn based strategy, but for work also do a lot of biological modeling and mass data processing which at times taxes even the 8 gigs in the current machine. Bigger question for me was more in the quality of the parts and overall durability. I do like the option the MBP provides as far as unplugged battery life goes as most other performance systems rape the battery.

 

[Wolfborn]

I also work internationally and my MacBook Pro 17 has served me well. Plays all the games when I load up bootcamp. Uses an nvidia GPU (Can't recall the number), updated with 16gb RAM and 256 SSD. Fast, light, super battery life. 10+ hours if I squeeze it tight. Great for being stuck in the airport.
I've only had 6 EQ sessions going but it handled it with no problems. Call of Duty, Skyrim, Dishonored, World O Tanks and much more.
Sadly I don't think they make the 17 anymore.
I've been through a bunch of laptops in my years. You can't beat a MacBook Pro!

 

[eltai]

For those of you with MacBooks how much ram do you have in your systems and yes it's down to 15 only anymore

 

[dewey2461]

Just saw this review.

AnandTech | iBuyPower Battalion M1771 (MSI GS70) Gaming Notebook Review

 

[TheStrategist]

I would stay away from all those cyberpowerpc / ibuypower / etc sites. I've heard good and bad things, but mostly bad.

As RedDog mentioned, the Asus Republic of Gamers G75 is amazing. I actually sold it to her and then regretted selling it and bought a second. It's definitely a desktop replacement at 17" and almost 10lbs. But, it's a powerhouse.

It can easily play any games you want, including multi-box EQ (which I guess should be mentioned is not really a feat of any sort - EQ is not nearly draining as newer games). I've run EQ (multi-box), WoW, Guild Wars 2, Tera, and BioShock Infinite on it without any issues and on full settings.

It runs an i7 @ 2.4Ghz and has a GeForce GTX 765M - 780M (depending on which model). Price ranges from $1200 - $2,200 (again, depends on which model) and is within the price range you stated.

Best part? It's available at BestBuy so you don't have to wait weeks to a month for your PC to be built & shipped to you.

 

[TheStrategist]

For those of you with MacBooks how much ram do you have in your systems and yes it's down to 15 only anymore

Oh and for a MBP you'll be paying for the Apple name more than the specs. While they are capable machines, you'll have to partition the drive, purchase a copy of windows, and go through all the hassle of that crap on top of the laptop price.

For an Apple machine that is comparable to a dedicated windows laptop, you'll be looking at their most expensive machine which is $2500.

I have 2 MBPs and I love them, but I wouldn't ever chose it as my mobile gaming rig over a dedicated windows laptop.

 

[PeteSampras]

I use an MSI GT60 (MSI Notebook Official Website | G Series - GT60 2OD-261US Gaming Notebook / Laptop) from one of those sites. nvidia 780M, 16 gigs ram, 128SSD with 1g Hybrid drive (i replaced the stock one since it was only $100 for the hybrid). So far everything runs smoothly. I did just turn my graphics down for EQ though. Had 6 instances w/ bot.mac, several browsers, editors, VS2010, IRC, media player and some other crap running so it got a little clunkier than I would like. But that was with full blown graphics and 1900x1200 settings on all of them. I imagine I could tone it down a little for better performance. Oh and itis still cool on my lap. It has amazing cooling compared to any other laptop I've had and you can send it into cooling overdrive at a touch of a button and it makes it literally cold. Good stuff. I would recommend this product.

PS. Windows 8 can blow me.

 

[Wolfborn]

That's a pretty Kick axe laptop Pete.
I see it weights only 7.7 pounds. I picked up an 18" Alienware last year and the power brick alone weights more than 7.7 pounds!! (Not really but it's freaking huge!)
2880x1620 display in a 15.6" screen? that would be very nice for not only gaming but photo editing too.
Wonder how the GTX780M stacks up? May have to sell the Alienware boat anchor (That is the heaviest laptop I've ever seen).

 

[PeteSampras]

I got tired of my 17" display never fitting into my backpack correctly and that is what i put it in to travel (i seem to travel a decent chunk the last few years so a desktop doesnt even make sense for me any more). Also it was literally melting my legs from the heat using a 9800GTM. So i had purposely sought out a 15.6" display and something that had really good cooling. Ideally, I will replace the 128SS with dual 180G intel 520 drives or whatever. But that was going to tack on another ~$360. And since I can do that later, I wasnt in a rush. I actually run all my games off the hybrid drive. I wanted to see how that performed before I went for the dual SSDs and it is honestly working pretty well so far. I guess it learns what you use and gets better performance as it learns.

 

[Quackanator]

Love my G75, looks and weighs the same as a tank and can be used in self defence against intruders. Also while the size is bulky, I've never had anyone try to pinch it from me at work/university unlike numerous colleagues who have lost their super slim ultra light laptops that they put down somewhere and someone else picked up put between two sheets of paper and walked off with

Swapped the first HDD slot to a 128 SSD to run the OS and EQ and boring work relate programs, while leaving the second dual HDD as a 1.5TB storage for everything else. Yes I know 2SSD in raid 0 is all the whoop but I'm not made of money to buy huge SSD's and it's not 1999 any more when the interweb fits on 2x 128GB of HDD Hardware wise the G75 runs 6 toons (one high res, 5 low res) without overheating (which killed my last HPDV7).

 

[eltai]

For those on the G75 and/or Pete how long do you guys find your battery lasting when not gaming?

 

[Rasmussenn]

Battery life on the G75 is non existent. Whether gaming or not. It's the second biggest reason I sold the 2 of mine I had. Size/weight being the first.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk