Re: Laptop Decisions

by **CivBase** Thu Nov 25, 2010 10:07 pm

Yah... desktops are more affordable, but sometimes portability is worth it. I'm constantly moving my laptop from room to room and have, on several occasions, brought it to a friend's house, the library, and even school.

by Carlos Spicyweiner Thu Nov 25, 2010 10:13 pm

CivBase wrote:$2000 is WAY too much for a laptop.

Mine's an ASUS. Great quality and only $1000. Mine's a year old, but here's a more modern example:

G53Jw
> $1300 from amazon.com
> Intel Core i7
> Nvidia GTX 460M Graphics
> 6GB RAM
> 500GB HDD (7200RPM)
> 15.6" Full HD (1920x1080) LED Display

Oh... and since you say you don't know what you're looking for, here's a quick run-down on what all that means.

The first and foremost thing you want in a gaming laptop is a good processor. The most recent Intel processors (which are most common) are the i3, i5, and i7. i7 is most desirable, though you can cut back to the i5 if the extra cost is too much.

Next you need a graphics card that can actually handle video games. This is the part that most laptops lack, so be extra sure you have a good one before you buy anything. Most laptops will probably run on NVIDIA or ATI graphics cards, but I am not familiar enough with either brand to know which cards are the best. You'll have to consult someone else for that.

After the graphics card you need to worry about RAM. RAM, Random Access Memory, essentially dictates how much memory your computer can process at any given time. 4GB is a minimum for modern gaming laptops, but I wouldn't bother with anything over 8GB. With most laptops you can add on more RAM later on if it's really necessary.

Although both are measured in gigabytes, do not confuse RAM and HDD (hard drive space). HDD determines how much memory your computer can hold, but it has nothing to do with how fast your computer runs. Unless you have a rather extensive game collection, you're probably safe with 500GB, though some laptops now hold as much as a terabyte (1000GB).

Once those four criteria have been meat you should probably consider screen size, weight, battery life, audio quality, disc drives, USB drives, and other nuances. Also keep in mind that a new computer means that you may need new MS Office programs (Word, Excel, Powerpoint...) among other essentials if you no longer have the originals.

Well, that's about all I can think of. Good luck.

Well I understood what most of the stuff meant, it's just that ASUS looks so ugly to me. I understand that it's a little ridiculous that I'm caring about cosmetic stuff like that, but I just want something that looks nice.

by Onyxknight Fri Nov 26, 2010 7:29 am

nice look stuff is more appealing to be stolen soo an ugly laptop may be good, just think about it like a car it's whats under the hood that counts

by Elabajaba Fri Nov 26, 2010 8:36 am

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152192

Can get this if you think Asus are too ugly, pretty much the same laptop hardware wise.

(Same laptop from amazon, since newegg has shitty picture quality)

by A_Bearded_Swede Fri Nov 26, 2010 8:58 am

But that Asus is modeled after a stealth fighter!

That's kick ass!

by Carlos Spicyweiner Fri Nov 26, 2010 2:08 pm

Elabajaba wrote:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152192

Can get this if you think Asus are too ugly, pretty much the same laptop hardware wise.

(Same laptop from amazon, since newegg has shitty picture quality)

Well thanks for that one. It looks fine.

by **CivBase** Fri Nov 26, 2010 10:32 pm

Well... if you're in the market for looks...

*cough* *cough*

That's my laptop, btw ^^

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