$1200-$1400 gaming laptop

[Ethan Grier]

I'm looking to spend between $1200-$1400 on a gaming laptop for college. I don't really care about portability as much as I do performance. I've been looking at laptops within the 15' to 17' range. I want it to be able to play next-gen games so I can get all the multi-platform releases on it over the next four years. I want it to (hopefully) last me the next three to four years. If anyone can help me, that'd be appreciated. I don't care about brand as much as I care about quality. The laptop doesn't have to be capable of blowing my eyes out of my sockets with its graphics, but I would really love it if it produced good frame rates on higher settings. I found this model: http/www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834227049&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=6146836&SID=1svn689kq52o2
What do you think? Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[X79]

I think that if you can... Get a desktop. You know how much of a powerhouse you could

get for that cash? Then you could just get a cheaper, non-gaming laptop for school usage.

Because really mate, gaming laptops are very pricey...

 

[Ethan Grier]

I think that if you can... Get a desktop. You know how much of a powerhouse you could

get for that cash? Then you could just get a cheaper, non-gaming laptop for school usage.

Because really mate, gaming laptops are very pricey...

My issue is that I really have no idea how to build one, I've looked at guides but I wouldn't feel right handling my own parts since they're so expensive. Do you recommend any pre-built ones? And why would you recommend that model, calmlike a bomb? I'm curious to know some of it's good points since I'm a bit illiterate with tech.

 

[X79]

Well the issue with building one, is purely an issue of lacking knowledge. So with enough reading and research (there's videos too)

you can find out how to build a computer. It's like legos people say and that's true pretty much. A more advanced form of legos.

The way to handle parts, is to simply be calm and do things slowly, while only touching the sides of them. Then it's only a matter

of inserting them so they fit. The problem with pre-built, or OEM, is that an extra layer of price is tacked on. You don't get to decide

what goes into the computer, thus it can turn out to be a bad deal for you. However, when you order parts online, there's plenty

sites which also enable you to make them put it all together for you too. If you use a site like www.pcpartpicker.com you're able to

pick your parts yourself and then have someone else put them together for you for example. For 1200$ you can get a very decent

gaming setup I tell you. You're welcome to buy a laptop, but I really recommend only doing so, if mobility is extremely important to you.

Because laptops for gaming cost a boatload of cash, compared to what you're getting. There's also the chance of paying just for the brand.

An example of this could be Alienware. Sure some of the laptops they make are powerful, but damn, they're costly too and it can't all be

because of the parts; thus is must be the brand.

For 1400$ this is something you could get:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($178.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling UCACO-AP11301-BUA01 Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler ($9.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Mushkin Chronos 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($99.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($189.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: SilenX EFX-12-12 44.0 CFM 120mm Fan ($7.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($69.54 @ Outlet PC)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Acer H236HLbid 60Hz 23.0" Monitor ($169.99 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: Rosewill RK-201 Wired Standard Keyboard ($5.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Microsoft SideWinder X5 Wired Laser Mouse ($11.99 @ Mac Mall)
Total: $1369.37
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-25 15:33 EDT-0400)



Everything is included. Full HD screen, mid-range GPU, mouse, keyboard, SSD etc. It's not flawless and it's not perfect, but it's

at least a starting point. If that's not enough, here's a video that'll show you how you typically put together a computer

yourself, once you have the parts:

https/www.youtube.com/watch?v=ea_bs5G1yYU