is this good for for mild gaming

[dragon199]

is this good for mild gaming

NP550P5C-S05IN

Operating System

Windows 8 (64-bit)

Graphic

NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 650M Graphics with 2GB gDDR3 Graphic Memory (Optimus™)

Memory

8GB DDR3 System Memory at 1600MHz (4GB x 2)
2 SODIMM

Optical Drive

BluRay Drive

Multimedia

JBL Stereo Speakers (2W x 2) with Sub-woofer (5W)
SoundAlive™
Internal Mic
1.3 megapixel HD Webcam

Ports

1 VGA
1 HDMI
2 USB3.0, 2 USB2.0
(Sleep-and-Charge)
3-in-1 (SD, SDHC, SDXC) Multi-media Card Reader
1 Headphone out
1 Mic-in
1 RJ45 (LAN)
1 DC-in

Security

Security Slot

Dimension

367.9 x 242.8 x 29.9 ~ 30.4mm

Processor / Chipset

Intel® Core™ i7 Processor 3630QM (2.4GHz, 6MB L3 Cache)
Intel HM76

Display

39.6cm (15.6) SuperBright 300nit HD+ LED Display (1600 x 900), Anti-Reflective

Hard Drive

1TB S-ATA II Hard Drive (5,400RPM)

Color

Silver

Communication

Intel® Centrino® Advanced-N 6235, 2 x 2 802.11abg/n (up to 300Mbps), Widi Support
Bluetooth V4.0
Gigabit Ethernet [10/100/1,000]

Input

Island-type keyboard with Numeric key

Touchpad

Power

6 Cell (56Wh)
90W AC Adapter

Weight

2.5Kg

also
how is the screen quality

also i can get the same specs for 20 percent less with i5 3210m and no blu ray
so sould i get it with the i5

 

[ScrewySqrl]

yes, that should be a decent gaming lappy

 

[dragon199]

thanks for the reply

also i can get the same specs for 20 percent less with i5 3210m and no blu ray
so sould i get it with the i5

and is the screen quality good
39.6cm (15.6) SuperBright 300nit HD+ LED Display (1600 x 900), Anti-Reflective

compared to an asus k53ta screen

 

[ScrewySqrl]

the i5 will be dual core/four thread, while the i7 is 4 actual cores

 

[Rragar]

The specs are good, but I'm not quite sure as to what your definition of mild gaming is. Could you tell us a bit more about that?

If you're into gaming, I would definitely keep that i7 processor, that specific i5 model may fall short sometimes.

Also, keep in mind that, while most games are GPU-limited, there's a few that actually benefit from a good processor more than they do from a good graphics card. Do you care about actual and future game releases, or would you rather play your good old classics? If you're not really into modern gaming, this computer may be overkill.

If you do not really intend to watch blu-ray movies, you could skip the blu-ray reader and save some more money, but I wouldn't do that if it means you'll lose the i7.

Anyway, with that card and the i7 processor, I think you should get excellent performance at that monitor resolution. Now, while the colors should be very bright and clear, you may not exactly find the definition to your liking if you're accustomed to 1080p screens (and displaying actual 1080p content on them, of course). If that's not the case, however, then there shouldn't be a problem. That said, this screen is still better than the one from the Asus you mentioned.

 

[dragon199]

mild gaming for me would be mid graphics in most games at least

and i will definately want to be future proof

games i play are skyrim sleeping dogs and other similar games at mid graphics and 1366*768 resolution

is i7 really beneficial as i have to pay 20 percent more

also i saw a video about haswell cpu notebook performing the same as this gpu with just the inbuilt intel gpu
so should i wait for haswell as the integrated gpu performance is on par with this nvidia one and cpu performance would also be more

thanks for the help

 

[ScrewySqrl]

no such thing as future proof in computers until we reach the end of Moore's Law

 

[Rragar]

Screwy is right about future proof.

The closest you can get to actual future-proofing, is dishing out large amounts of money that'll afford you top of the line hardware. Even then, you'll likely find that when the next generation of hardware is launched, it'll clearly outperform your previous generation hardware, at a fraction of the cost.

Take a look at what NVidia does with their laptop graphics cards line, it's something of a rebranding process. Their top of the line product is the one that pushes the performance forward (680m), while those that follow it, are expected to match or approach the performance of previous generation, higher tier parts (such as the 560m turning to a 650m, for instance).

What can you do then? The only thing I can say, is to get something beyond the specs of what you currently need. Not much more you can do. Though, if you're ok with running games at mid settings and such, then I do not believe your laptop choice will become outdated too soon. One of my friends plays games on a laptop that supports a 900p resolution and is loaded with a 420M card (normally at medium settings, as well). He's been doing that for almost 3 years, and though he'd like an upgrade, he can still get by (note that it can be a rough ride for him sometimes, however, and has to turn down the settings).

If you're into gaming, you should never, ever go for integrated graphics. Performance-wise, they can seldom be compared to low-tier dedicated graphics solutions, not to mention they do not support most technologies and features dedicated graphics do.

Intel has been adding native integrated graphics support on quite a few of their mobile processors, and still we see that the dedicated/discrete graphics giants (NVidia and AMD/ATi) are unaffected by this. That's because Intel can't compete with them in this regard. What Intel is doing is focused more towards consumers who do not require the sheer power of dedicated graphics, require a very long battery life (in the exclusive case of laptops) or who are into non-gaming media (music, HD videos and such); software requirements increase over time and, naturally, hardware specifications must improve, as well, hence another reason for them to improve on their integrated graphics.

Another reason to skip a platform based exclusively on integrated graphics, is that your expected use would be likely to shorten its lifespan, as laptops equipped only with integrated graphics normally have inferior cooling solutions (they are just not designed for gaming).

 

[dragon199]

thank you both
by future proof i just meant it should just play most games low to mid for at least 2 to 3 years with minimum lag

i was surprised by haswell gpu performing equal to a 650m so i thought maybe the next gpu line for eg the 810m nvidia may outperform the 650m so as to compete with intel

also do you think the 3210m will suffice for mid graphics or is the i7 worth it
considering it will be mostly used for gaming

 

[ScrewySqrl]

I'd keep the i7. 4 real cores is better

 

[Rragar]

I'd keep the i7. 4 real cores is better

I second that. The i7 is totally worth it.


If you need to cut down the price, then pick lower capacity hard drives or less RAM, since you can easily replace/upgrade those later. It will be much easier, and also cheaper.

 

[dragon199]

a few other laptops that i saw

gt 730m i5 3210m
7670m 7660g a10 4600m
hd 7730m i7 3610m

is any of these better than the above

also

this y500

pecifications of Lenovo Ideapad Y500 (59-346619) Laptop (3rd Gen Ci7/ 8GB/ 1TB/ Win8/ 2GB Graph) (Dusk Black)
General
Series Y Series
Part Number 59-346619
Lifestyle Gaming
Processor
Processor Core i7 (3rd Generation)
Variant 3632QM
Chipset Mobile HM77 Express
Brand Intel
Clock Speed 2.2 GHz With Turbo Boost Upto 3.2 GHz
Cache 6 MB
Memory
Expandable Memory Upto 8 GB
Memory Slots 2 (Unused Slot - 0)
System Memory 8 GB DDR3
Storage
RPM 5400
HDD Capacity 1 TB
Optical Disk Drive
Optical Drive DVD RW Drive
Platform
Operating System Windows 8
System Architecture 64-bit
Display
Screen Size 15.6 inch
Resolution 1920 x 1080 Pixel
Screen Type Full HD Display
Graphics
Dedicated Graphics Memory Type GDDR5
Dedicated Graphics Memory Capacity 2 GB
Graphic Processor Nvidia GT650 N13P-GT1
Input
Web Camera 1.0 Megapixel 720p HD Webcam
Pointer Device Elan Touchpad
Keyboard AccuType Keyboard
Audio
Speakers JBL Speakers
Sound Dolby
Communication
Ethernet 10/100/1000 M
Wireless LAN IEEE 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth v4.0
Power
Battery Backup Upto 3 hours
Power Supply 65 W AC Adapter
Battery Cell 6 cell
Ports/Slots
USB Port 1 x USB 2.0, 2 x USB 3.0
Mic In Yes
RJ45 LAN Yes
HDMI Port Yes
VGA Port Yes
Multi Card Slot 6-in-1 Card Reader
Machine Dimensions
Weight 2.7 kg
Dimension 387 x 259 x 36 mm
Color Dusk Black
Warranty
Warranty 1 Year Warranty (Onsite + ADP)
In the Box
Sales Package Laptop, Battery, AC Adapter, User Guide and Manuals

 

[ScrewySqrl]

the A10 + 7670 should offer similar performance to the i7 + 650. the others will be weaker.

 

[dragon199]

the A10 + 7670 should offer similar performance to the i7 + 650. the others will be weaker.

is this better lenovo y500


specifications of Lenovo Ideapad Y500 (59-346619) Laptop (3rd Gen Ci7/ 8GB/ 1TB/ Win8/ 2GB Graph) (Dusk Black)
General
Series Y Series
Part Number 59-346619
Lifestyle Gaming
Processor
Processor Core i7 (3rd Generation)
Variant 3632QM
Chipset Mobile HM77 Express
Brand Intel
Clock Speed 2.2 GHz With Turbo Boost Upto 3.2 GHz
Cache 6 MB
Memory
Expandable Memory Upto 8 GB
Memory Slots 2 (Unused Slot - 0)
System Memory 8 GB DDR3
Storage
RPM 5400
HDD Capacity 1 TB
Optical Disk Drive
Optical Drive DVD RW Drive
Platform
Operating System Windows 8
System Architecture 64-bit
Display
Screen Size 15.6 inch
Resolution 1920 x 1080 Pixel
Screen Type Full HD Display
Graphics
Dedicated Graphics Memory Type GDDR5
Dedicated Graphics Memory Capacity 2 GB
Graphic Processor Nvidia GT650 N13P-GT1
Input
Web Camera 1.0 Megapixel 720p HD Webcam
Pointer Device Elan Touchpad
Keyboard AccuType Keyboard
Audio
Speakers JBL Speakers
Sound Dolby
Communication
Ethernet 10/100/1000 M
Wireless LAN IEEE 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth v4.0
Power
Battery Backup Upto 3 hours
Power Supply 65 W AC Adapter
Battery Cell 6 cell
Ports/Slots
USB Port 1 x USB 2.0, 2 x USB 3.0
Mic In Yes
RJ45 LAN Yes
HDMI Port Yes
VGA Port Yes
Multi Card Slot 6-in-1 Card Reader
Machine Dimensions
Weight 2.7 kg
Dimension 387 x 259 x 36 mm
Color Dusk Black
Warranty
Warranty 1 Year Warranty (Onsite + ADP)
In the Box
Sales Package Laptop, Battery, AC Adapter, User Guide and Manuals

no blu ray drive
can i add one later

 

[ScrewySqrl]

what are the full specs on the A10?

 

[dragon199]

what are the full specs on the A10?

Processor APU Quad Core A10
Variant 4600M
Chipset A70M
Brand AMD
Clock Speed 2.3 GHz With Turbo Core Technology Upto 3.2 GHz
Cache 4 MB
Memory
Expandable Memory Upto 8 GB
Memory Slots 2 (Unused Slot - 0)
System Memory 6 GB DDR3
Storage
Hardware Interface SATA
RPM 5400
HDD Capacity 1 TB
Optical Disk Drive
Read/Write Speed 8x
Optical Drive SuperMulti DVD RW Drive with Dual Layer Support
Platform
Operating System Free DOS
Display
Screen Size 15.6 inch
Resolution 1366 x 768 Pixel
Screen Type HD Brightview Widescreen LED Backlit Display
Graphics
Dedicated Graphics Memory Type DDR3
Dedicated Graphics Memory Capacity 2.5 GB
Graphic Processor 512 MB AMD Radeon HD 7660G (Integrated) and 2 GB ATI Mobility Radeon 7670M HD Graphics (Dedicated)
Input
Web Camera HP TrueVision HD Webcam
Pointer Device Touchpad
Keyboard Full-size Textured Island Keyboard
Audio
Internal Mic Digital Microphone
Speakers Altec Lansing Speakers
Sound HD Audio, Dolby Advanced Audio v2, Stereo Speakers
Communication
Ethernet Integrated 10/100
Wireless LAN IEEE 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth v4.0 HS
Power
Battery Backup Upto 3 hours
Power Supply 65 W AC Adapter
Battery Cell 6 cell
Ports/Slots
USB Port 1 x USB 2.0, 2 x USB 3.0
Mic In Yes
RJ45 LAN Yes
HDMI Port Yes, HDMI Port with HDCP Support
VGA Port Yes
Multi Card Slot Yes
Security
Lock Port Kensington Lock Slot
Machine Dimensions
Weight 2.47 kg
Dimension 376 x 244 x 36.3 mm
Color Imprint Sparkling Black
Warranty
Warranty 1 Year Accidental Damage Protection (ADP)
In the Box
Sales Package Laptop, Battery, AC Adapter, User Guide and Manuals

 

[dragon199]

also is the lenovo y 500 any good

 

[yillbs]

The Y500 is good, if you get the i7 it's a nice upgrade from that A10, however, if you are not getting the I7 y500, i would suggets you keep looking into the A10 model you saw. It's got decent specs, for what i am sure is a bit cheaper.

 

[whyso]

the A10 + 7670 should offer similar performance to the i7 + 650. the others will be weaker.

You are not getting close to a 640m, let alone a 650m. Hybrid crossfire is buggy and often doesn't work. 3dmark scores are NOT indicative of performance. Sometimes hybrid crossfire is WORSE than simply a 7670m on its own. Read the reviews and you will see this.

 

[yillbs]

Whyso, are you saying the 7670 isn't on par with the 640M? Just want to make sure i read that correctly.