Cheap gaming laptop

Laban_18

Honorable
Jun 15, 2012
20
0
10,560
Hi guys, I'm in a bit of a dilemma and was hoping I could get some of my questions answered. So, I'm in the market for a new laptop, I've been using my current one for 4 years now, so yeah, it just has to go. I wanna play games on my new laptop, so my mind is currently set on acquiring a "gaming laptop". I've done some research and I've reached the conclusion that the best gaming laptop I could afford, the most bang for my buck, would be the Dell Inspiron 15 7559. Here's the link to the laptop on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Dell-15-6-Inch-Quad-Core-i5-6300HQ-Processor/dp/B015PYYDMQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1480986086&sr=1-1 )
You probably know the specs already so I'm not gonna list them here, but I believe we all the know that the highlight of this laptop is the dedicated GPU, the Nvidia GTX 960m.
The laptop in the link above has a core i5 processor, I think that's great for me, since I don't do any tasks like video editing, I really just wanna use my laptop for basic tasks like web browsing, watching videos, school stuff, and of course play games too, I know I won't be able to play some games on ultra / highest settings, and that's fine with me. I've watched a lot of gameplay videos on Youtube using this laptop, so I have a fair idea of what it can handle. So first question, do I go with the i5 or i7? Btw, the cheaper, the better for me, so I'm guessing the i5 right?
Secondly the i5 model comes with a 256GB M.2 SSD, but has the space for a 2.5" SATA HDD/SSD. I wanna play games on it, so having storage space is essential and I don't think a 256GB SSD will cut it, so I was thinking of getting a 1TB HDD and keeping all my large files and games on there? What do you think? Also, If i get a HDD, do I go for 5400 or 7200 rpm? I know that 7200rpm HDD's would be faster, but I also read that they might generate more heat? I wouldn't wanna endanger the laptop with heating issues. What do you think?
Thirdly, I feel the best bang for my buck would be this Inspiron 15 7559, but I'm also open to more suggestions of laptops, I would appreciate it if you could tell me about other gaming laptops. My budget is around $800, but I would consider stepping it up if maybe one of the laptops you mention maybe had a GTX 970m? I would pay more for more power, but nothing over $1000.
Also, do you think I should wait till Christmas to get a new laptop? Like would there be a good discounts on laptops with better performance than this one? I dunno, maybe an ASUS ROG laptop or any other brand? Just curious and thinking wide. And unfortunately, building a gaming PC is out of question.
Thanks for your time, I would be awaiting replies and any help or clarity would be appreciated and welcomed.
 
Solution
1) Go for i5, at that price point is insane and even though the i5 runs way slower (up to 2.8 GHz with 4 active cores compared to 3.1 GHz on the i7) the GPU is actually on the low end, as a matter of fact the differences between the i5 and i7 will be unnegligible, at least while gaming

2) 7200RPM hard drive, I don't think it'll cause any heating issues, it's just a hard drive and 7200RPM does run much faster so if you run out of SSD storage ans want to install some stuff on such as games on a low HDD you will regret it. They are priced similarly anyhow

3) I just spotted this deal https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LXCBXQO/ref=psdc_13896615011_t3_B01LXO0PO2 512GB SSD for $749, it's been $599 with coupons it gets the job done though if you...

Dion__

Estimable
Feb 4, 2016
17
0
4,570
Hello.

I took a look at ur case, and the laptop is all fine!
And only thing you gotta worry about, is the + HDD. You can just take a HDD 1TB extra, and a 7200 rpm. the price diferrence arn't that much so yhea.

Thats actually all i gotta say :p

Greetings
 

Oliver_21

Commendable
Feb 17, 2016
122
0
1,710
1) Go for i5, at that price point is insane and even though the i5 runs way slower (up to 2.8 GHz with 4 active cores compared to 3.1 GHz on the i7) the GPU is actually on the low end, as a matter of fact the differences between the i5 and i7 will be unnegligible, at least while gaming

2) 7200RPM hard drive, I don't think it'll cause any heating issues, it's just a hard drive and 7200RPM does run much faster so if you run out of SSD storage ans want to install some stuff on such as games on a low HDD you will regret it. They are priced similarly anyhow

3) I just spotted this deal https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LXCBXQO/ref=psdc_13896615011_t3_B01LXO0PO2 512GB SSD for $749, it's been $599 with coupons it gets the job done though if you are willing to spend well over 900 U.S then you should look for a better GPU http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/productdetails/alienware-13-laptop?~ck=mn good things start from $1100 we are speaking about a desktop GTX 1060 GPU that equals to three GTX 960Ms.

Nevertheless if you feel like it's too much another option is getting a cheap gaming laptop (with a 960M or no GPU) and buy a cheap externa GPU, the best ones work with thunderbolt 2 so be sure to pick a laptop that features thunderbolt 2 and has a decent CPU

4) Sounds good, GTX 1050 ti laptops will arrive soon but I'm not sure if they will be available by the time cristmas arrives

Greetings
 
Solution