2 Top notch laptops head to head!

[kareemk98]

Hey guys,
I am currently deciding which laptop to buy, I need something then slick that could pass off as professional looking as well as powerful enough to handle some gaming. It also needs to be portable as I will be travelling a lot with it, and need it to last around about 4 years.
So the 2 laptops I currently have in mind are the Aorus x5s v5 and the New Razer Blade 2016 (Which starts shipping on the 18th of May).
Any help picking one of these to buy would be very much appreciated! (A couple of days back it was down to 4 laptops, 2 of the excluded ones are the Asus ROG G01vw and the Msi Ghost GS60 Pro 4k edition, which I ruled out due to specs and quality.)
Thanks in advance! (Please post a reason with your choice )

 

[kareemk98]

Way too thick and materials it is made of are cheap^ Btw do you not think that polaris and pascal GPU laptops will be released by this time next yr?

 

[Barty1884]

Way too thick and materials it is made of are cheap^ Btw do you not think that polaris and pascal GPU laptops will be released by this time next yr?

It's a half inch thicker than the Aorus laptop you initially suggested?

For something to be thin + lightweight, yet have top of the line components, it's going to cost. I'm not sure how you quantify the materials being cheap - have you actually used these laptops "hands on"?

I'm sure either Polaris/Pascal based laptops will be available this time next year, the problem is they won't be cheap (they'll still be first, maybe second run).

What I was getting at is, if you buy something now & want to replace in a years time - you're looking at around $700-$800 today and probably $2,000+ (probably more like $2,500) in a years time (like when 980M laptops were first released in mid-late 2014)

If you spent the same outlay of $700-$800 for a reasonable laptop now (i5+960M maybe?), in around 2 years time (like 980M laptops today), you should be able to pick something up (high end Pascal/Polaris mobile GPUs) for around $1,600 or so, if historical pricing stays accurate.

It's a simple cost thing. If money is no object, buy the Razer today and a Pascal/Polaris based laptop in a year.


So, circling back to your original post, it's down to the Razer or Aorus you initially picked out. Again, I'm giving my opinion that the Aorus appears the better performer, better hardware that should last you longer, yet the Razer looks the more professional.

 

[Nikron]

Hey mate, saw ur post so wanted to share my latest thoughts,

I'm almost on the same boat but I believe u should also consider the graphic docks of msi or Alienwares amplifier in which u can use a pc's graphic card and connect it to ur laptop.

The only thing I'd consider at the moment would be a decent CPU like i7-6700HQ as the graphic card issue can always be solved in the future with an amplifier/dock so even a 960M will be quite reasonable.

 

[kareemk98]

Hey mate, saw ur post so wanted to share my latest thoughts,

I'm almost on the same boat but I believe u should also consider the graphic docks of msi or Alienwares amplifier in which u can use a pc's graphic card and connect it to ur laptop.

The only thing I'd consider at the moment would be a decent CPU like i7-6700HQ as the graphic card issue can always be solved in the future with an amplifier/dock so even a 960M will be quite reasonable.

Hey man, sure the more people the merrier! And yeh I get ya, well the Razer and the Aorus both have the i7-6700HQ. And Razer now have the Razer Core, which yes, allows you to connect an external full PC graphics card to your laptop through a USB-C connector. So the Razer is really good, I think I'm gonna either go with the Razer or wait for a year and buy a polaris/pascal laptop next year... Not sure... But if I do go for the new Razer I think Imma wait till reviews of it come out, then make a decision. And btw the i7-6700HQ is good but has almost identical performance to the i7-5700HQ, they were rated almost the exact same. The i7-4720HQ beat them both according to benchmarks... But yeh it's still a good cpu, but yeh those are my choices atm, what do you think?

 

[Nikron]

Hey mate, saw ur post so wanted to share my latest thoughts,

I'm almost on the same boat but I believe u should also consider the graphic docks of msi or Alienwares amplifier in which u can use a pc's graphic card and connect it to ur laptop.

The only thing I'd consider at the moment would be a decent CPU like i7-6700HQ as the graphic card issue can always be solved in the future with an amplifier/dock so even a 960M will be quite reasonable.

Hey man, sure the more people the merrier! And yeh I get ya, well the Razer and the Aorus both have the i7-6700HQ. And Razer now have the Razer Core, which yes, allows you to connect an external full PC graphics card to your laptop through a USB-C connector. So the Razer is really good, I think I'm gonna either go with the Razer or wait for a year and buy a polaris/pascal laptop next year... Not sure... But if I do go for the new Razer I think Imma wait till reviews of it come out, then make a decision. And btw the i7-6700HQ is good but has almost identical performance to the i7-5700HQ, they were rated almost the exact same. The i7-4720HQ beat them both according to benchmarks... But yeh it's still a good cpu, but yeh those are my choices atm, what do you think?

I agree about the i7-6700HQ having almost the same speed as i7-5700HQ, but thats not the only thing to consider.

About Razer, I also was considering it but then I looked at the prices and laughed. I hope im wrong but they were offering a laptop with a gtx 960M for more than $2k while u can get an Alienware or MSI for $1,5k with 970M.

Besides, the Razer Blade Stealth its not a gaming laptop on its own, meaning u will be able to play only when plugged to the Razer Core at home. Personally I need the laptop to play games and kill time during long flights.

If thats the case, i'd take the Razer Blade Stealth for $999 and invest in building a PC at home (which will be the same as the Core anyway).

Something I am considering and I think u should to is the launch of Nvidia Pascal since they released the prices today. The GTX 1070 will be just $379 while GTX 1080 will be $599 and faster than the $1000 GTX Titan X or the $650 GTX 980 Ti.

To me that says buy an Alienware 17" for $1,5k with GTX 970M and later buy the Alienware Amplifier (currently $200) and the future lower price of the Pascal 1080 or any other newer model. Like that u can still game without the external graphic cards (as 970M is good enough) and have in the same time a cheaper external graphic option since Razer Core is $500.

 

[kareemk98]

Hey mate, saw ur post so wanted to share my latest thoughts,

I'm almost on the same boat but I believe u should also consider the graphic docks of msi or Alienwares amplifier in which u can use a pc's graphic card and connect it to ur laptop.

The only thing I'd consider at the moment would be a decent CPU like i7-6700HQ as the graphic card issue can always be solved in the future with an amplifier/dock so even a 960M will be quite reasonable.

Hey man, sure the more people the merrier! And yeh I get ya, well the Razer and the Aorus both have the i7-6700HQ. And Razer now have the Razer Core, which yes, allows you to connect an external full PC graphics card to your laptop through a USB-C connector. So the Razer is really good, I think I'm gonna either go with the Razer or wait for a year and buy a polaris/pascal laptop next year... Not sure... But if I do go for the new Razer I think Imma wait till reviews of it come out, then make a decision. And btw the i7-6700HQ is good but has almost identical performance to the i7-5700HQ, they were rated almost the exact same. The i7-4720HQ beat them both according to benchmarks... But yeh it's still a good cpu, but yeh those are my choices atm, what do you think?

I agree about the i7-6700HQ having almost the same speed as i7-5700HQ, but thats not the only thing to consider.

About Razer, I also was considering it but then I looked at the prices and laughed. I hope im wrong but they were offering a laptop with a gtx 960M for more than $2k while u can get an Alienware or MSI for $1,5k with 970M.

Besides, the Razer Blade Stealth its not a gaming laptop on its own, meaning u will be able to play only when plugged to the Razer Core at home. Personally I need the laptop to play games and kill time during long flights.

If thats the case, i'd take the Razer Blade Stealth for $999 and invest in building a PC at home (which will be the same as the Core anyway).

Something I am considering and I think u should to is the launch of Nvidia Pascal since they released the prices today. The GTX 1070 will be just $379 while GTX 1080 will be $599 and faster than the $1000 GTX Titan X or the $650 GTX 980 Ti.

To me that says buy an Alienware 17" for $1,5k with GTX 970M and later buy the Alienware Amplifier (currently $200) and the future lower price of the Pascal 1080 or any other newer model. Like that u can still game without the external graphic cards (as 970M is good enough) and have in the same time a cheaper external graphic option since Razer Core is $500.

Actually I would much prefer the Razer of the Alienware 17" for multiple reasons. First of all the Razer also has a 970m, and it has 6gb. Second, it has a touch screen and quad hd. It is also VERY thin and has a slick design. Buying the core if you bought a razer laptop would cost you $400, BUT you can put in ANY external full size graphics card you want, INCLUDING THE POLARIS AND PASCAL MODELS! Therefore it is much more worth it than the Alienware Amp. My cousin has the Alienware 17" on top tier spec and honestly, that is NOT a laptop. ANd I'm not talking about the power, because it was good but there was nothing special about it. No, the actual size of it was INSANE. Carrying that thing is like carrying a 56" TV around. Definitely not portable.
So once again a recap, the razer is more upgradeable for the future than the alienware. It is also lighter, thinner, has touch screen and a programmable keyboard. It has Quad HD Display compared to Alienware's Full HD display, and also has a more powerful processor. I don't know about you but for me the price difference is definitely worth it. And man I cannot emphasise enough how big the overrated junk is! Ugh!
Anyway I think I'm going to wait for laptops that have the mobile version of Nvidia's new Pascal gtx 1080 to come out next year and buy that. Hopefully they release it the mobile version in high end laptops by this time this year as that is the MAX time I can wait. If it is unlikely then I just have to buy either the Razer or Aorus. Btw the ALienware with the top specs costs $2100 which is almost the same as the Razer which is $2200. Those are better rivals than the one you suggested. If you want something very powerful, that is 17" but has slim, the Aorus x7 is DEFINITELY worth it! Almost the same price!

 

[Nikron]

@kareemk98

Honestly, I would have preferred Razer over Alienware too if it wasnt for the higher price and them being having a 14" screen. I need it for work too and I agree that Razer looks more sleek, but when the Alienware 17 with i7-6700HQ is $1,500 and the New Razer Blade with the same specs (besides the 6GB GPU which for me is irrelevant due to my plan of getting the amplifier/core later) is $2,000, then I step back and consider Alienware.

With regards to the compatibility of the core with pascal, Im not planning to buy the Amplifier now anyway because 970M is more than enough for at least 1 year, which i believe is more than enough time for Dell to have launched a new Amplifier that supports Pascal/Polaris or even future models.

But if budget is not the problem and u can wait, then lucky u I still dont get it why u would wait for the mobile version of Pascal when u can always have the core. That future laptop will be definitely over $3,000 seeing the trend that Razer follows. And why wait when u can get the New Razer Blade now for $2,000, the Core for $400 and on the 27th of May the Pascal GTX 1080 for $599, which adds up to exactly $3,000 and u can start gaming right now at better performance than with the future 2017 laptop with pascal in it (which will always be inferior to the PC graphic card).