I can't decide

[smartjack]

General Questions

1) What is your budget? My budget is around 1500 or less.

2) What size notebook would you prefer?

c. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen but would conisder 17''

3) What country are you buying this in? USA

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like? The only laptop I have owned is a dell, so brand name doesn't matter though I have heard good things of Asus or MSI

5) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook? College course work (online college), and gaming mainly FPS, and MMORPG.

6) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk? Well My job requires me to stay in hotels a good bit, so I will be moving it weekly.

7) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games? Yes I plan on playing games, like Fallout 3, Aion, and others.

8) How many hours of battery life do you need? I should usually be around a power source so battery life if not a problem.

9) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?not at all

10) What OS do you prefer? (more details below) I prefer Vista it doesn't matter what version.

Screen Specifics

11) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer? (more details below)

WUXGA - 1920x1200; Wider viewing version of UXGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.

12) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non glossy screen? It doesn't matter.

Build Quality and Design

13) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you? Yes

14) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last? atleast a few years

Notebook Components

15) How much hard drive space do you want; I would like at least 320gb

16) Do you need an optical drive? Yes I would like a dvd burner, or a blueray player

17) What speed CPU/Processor would you like? I would prefer quad core but would be happy for a dual core if I could upgrade it later.

I have a couple of laptops I have been looking at.

http/www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9366615&st=asus&type=product&id=1218092150740
or even

http/www.gamestop.com/Catalog/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=75687

 

[lostandwandering]

The Asus G71 you linked from bestbuy is one of the best values out there. You are going to get near desktop performance for not a whole lot of money. I would recommend it over the G50 in the 2nd link for 3 reasons:

1) The faster GPU in the G71 will be great for Shooter games like Fallout 3
2) The Faster CPU will be good for your MMORPG's which tend to like a little bit more processing power
3) It's not a refurb. Not saying that there is anything wrong with the refurbished G51, but I personally would buy an expensive electronic product that was returned for some reason.

Asus also sells the newer G51 that has similar specs to the G71, but just comes in a 15.6'' package: http/usa.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=0rtKwgmuen69jiqw

Another option is the Sager NP8662 (similar to the G51): http/www.sagernotebook.com/product_customed.php?pid=160092

 

[smartjack]

Would it be easy to upgrade either one of these in the future. The G51 is nice but I am not a fan of the case compared to the g71. Any other suggestions?

 

[lostandwandering]

Would it be easy to upgrade either one of these in the future. The G51 is nice but I am not a fan of the case compared to the g71. Any other suggestions?

Upgrades, it depends. The CPU may dead end in the near future as i7 will be coming to laptops. But RAM and hard drives shouldn't be difficult.

Aside from the Sager I linked, I don't really have any other suggestions. I'll keep looking though.

 

[smartjack]

Thanks for the help. So far I am leaning toward the Asus G71 I like that case, just wished I could see the lights and everything in action before I decide.

 

[lostandwandering]

^Do you have a Best Buy around you? The last time I was at one, they had a couple of Asus models on the show room floor. I know they had the G50 when I went, but it'd be worthwhile to take a look.

 

[smartjack]

^Do you have a Best Buy around you? The last time I was at one, they had a couple of Asus models on the show room floor. I know they had the G50 when I went, but it'd be worthwhile to take a look.

I have one about an hour away, I might have to head up there when I get a day off from work.