Highly portable, long battery, cool-temp gaming laptop

[Xodarap777]

EDIT: SOLVED(ish)-> I finally found this: http/www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Acer-Aspire-V5-573G-54208G50aii-Notebook.99264.0.html
However, it looks like I'll have to order it from Germany, then swap out for a QWERTY keyboard (hope that would even work!). Anyone know of a US equivalent?

Hi - first thread ever on the site, long-time reader

I'm looking for a good notebook/laptop that is at a minimum able to play games previous to current gen (say around GW2, SWTOR, Deus Ex HR area), but more focused on cool running, portability, and especially long battery life.

I want to game, but I don't need ultra settings or particularly high framerates (I play RPGs), though stuttering annoys me. My previous "gaming" laptops never get used because they are bulky, heavy, hot, and end up requiring setup time or counter space, etc. Instead, I want a light, simple, lap-friendly machine that I don't have to find an outlet for when going to coffee for an hour or two. I don't know if the higher-end APUs can game without dedicated, but that would be ideal, if possible. A nice-looking (bright enough for daylight) screen would be a plus worth paying for, as would a sleek/simple overall appearance. I don't need an optical drive (would remove) and would replace the HDD with my own SSD (unless one comes with) and W8 with a clean (bloatless) W7. Ideal price point is under $1000 - obviously cheaper is better.

EDIT: As an update, I found two that are similar and relatively perfect... *except* that they have really, really awful monitors! SO CLOSE...

http/www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Acer-Aspire-Timeline-Ultra-M5-581TG-Ultrabook.86415.0.html

http/www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Acer-Aspire-Timeline-Ultra-M3-581TG-Ultrabook.72194.0.html

They have extremely long battery lives - up to 11 hours, and over 2 hours under full load! The 640M is enough for my purposes. I can live without AA (I guess )

 

[Prostar Computer]

The Asus N550JV would be a good fit for you. It's just under $1k, has a GTX 750M, and an i7 CPU. The IPS screen is a nice bonus too! It's also a great price for what's in it.

The only other recommendation I would have for you for your budget would be a Lenovo y410p or y510p, the former being more lap friendly and more accommodating to your budget.

 

[Xodarap777]

The Asus N550JV would be a good fit for you. It's just under $1k, has a GTX 750M, and an i7 CPU. The IPS screen is a nice bonus too! It's also a great price for what's in it.

The only other recommendation I would have for you for your budget would be a Lenovo y410p or y510p, the former being more lap friendly and more accommodating to your budget.

I'm thinking more along the lines of the Asus Zenbook Prime, which has over 6 hours of battery life, a nimble SSD built in, cool temps, and weighs < 3lbs, but doesn't appear to be able to play games reliably. A simple dedicated card upgrade would be nice. I could also go for a 15.X" size instead of 13.3" (though the zenbook is 1080p), and the weight isn't such a huge deal. I just want a *little* more graphics power.

My problem is that I'm seeing ultraportable laptops that are super thin and sleek and can run for eight hours; and I'm seeing (for the same price) 2x650M SLI gaming beasts that weigh > 7lbs and heat up to ridiculous temps and burn through a battery in an hour or less -- what I'm not seeing, anywhere, is the hybrid balance. A ~5lb sleek laptop with midrange graphics, low temps, good (to great) power consumption, and 1080p pixels... The ~$800 midpoint between the ~$800 Zenbook and the ~$800 Y500 SLI. I'd gladly stretch the price a bit for that, too.

 

[thdarkshadow]

The razer blade is the only laptop I have heard of that is good for gaming, is sleek and has good battery. Its way too much but I just had not heard of any slim gaming laptops till that came out a little while back

 

[Xodarap777]

I don't really need slim. In fact, I can get over size, bulk, and weight. Battery during load would be nice, and lap-able temps are my main concern. I can never seem to game on my lap And plugging in the power while on the run always seems to be more hassle than it should be.

How about just a < $1k gaming laptop with good battery life and good heat dissipation under load? Currently, I'm thinking the newegg deal on the Y500, then swap out for SSD. I'd just have to deal with (a) the fan blowing on my mouse hand (why doesn't this occur to manufacturers?) and (b) the lack of battery life. Oddly, I'd end up with a powerful graphics rig (2x650M) when I am not even looking for that... Feels rough to pay for all that, but I can't find a cheaper notebook that doesn't either seem flimsy or drops framerates below playable. It seems silly that I have to choose between "lighter than I care about" and ~12fps high settings or "overloaded hardware" with ~120fps high settings. There's really nothing with ~30-40fps and cool + battery-friendly hardware?

EDIT: Newegg has a gigabyte ultrabook with a 650M. It's ~$200 too much, but that's what I'm looking for! It could be a bit bigger and a bit cheaper...

 

[jaguarskx]

All gaming laptops run cool when you are not playing games.

When you play games well... they are no longer cool.

 

[Xodarap777]

All gaming laptops run cool when you are not playing games.

When you play games well... they are no longer cool.

Some have better exhaust designs. Sure, they're creating the same amount of heat, but that's mostly academic -- I just want to play with it on my lap. I've had a laptop that managed that fine via plenty of fins and exhaust ports and well-placed elements. I've had another laptop that would melt through my legs. Same power.

As an update, I found two that are similar and relatively perfect... *except* that they have really, really awful monitors! SO CLOSE...

http/www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Acer-Aspire-Timeline-Ultra-M5-581TG-Ultrabook.86415.0.html

http/www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Acer-Aspire-Timeline-Ultra-M3-581TG-Ultrabook.72194.0.html

 

[jaguarskx]

If you are importing a laptop from Germany then don't forget that you will need to pay import taxes to the US Gov't. Not sure what it is, but I think it's say to say that it will be in the 9% - 12% range.

The good news is that I do not believe you have to pay Germany's VAT tax since the laptop is going to be exported, but you need to confirm that with the seller.

 

[Prostar Computer]

I'm thinking more along the lines of the Asus Zenbook Prime, which has over 6 hours of battery life, a nimble SSD built in, cool temps, and weighs < 3lbs, but doesn't appear to be able to play games reliably. A simple dedicated card upgrade would be nice. I could also go for a 15.X" size instead of 13.3" (though the zenbook is 1080p), and the weight isn't such a huge deal. I just want a *little* more graphics power.

My problem is that I'm seeing ultraportable laptops that are super thin and sleek and can run for eight hours; and I'm seeing (for the same price) 2x650M SLI gaming beasts that weigh > 7lbs and heat up to ridiculous temps and burn through a battery in an hour or less -- what I'm not seeing, anywhere, is the hybrid balance. A ~5lb sleek laptop with midrange graphics, low temps, good (to great) power consumption, and 1080p pixels... The ~$800 midpoint between the ~$800 Zenbook and the ~$800 Y500 SLI. I'd gladly stretch the price a bit for that, too.

I would not recommend the Zenbooks in this case. A lot people seem unhappy with them for one reason or another, although they do have a certain appeal. The design is plagued by too many nuances that Asus needs time to iron out, and most of the series does not offer the horsepower you would need to game. The reason ultrabooks tend to get such good battery life is: 1. No dedicated GPU in most of them. 2. ULV processors, designed to draw less power at the expense of performance.