Laptop Buying Advice

[Asparagus33]

Hello all. So I've been wanting to get a new computer for a while and I've finally decided to buy one. So thanks in advance for any help.

Budget: Around $800

Notebook size: Nothing super-small. More of a gaming laptop so it needs to be decently large.

Screen Resolution: Don't really care.

Portable or desktop replacement: Desktop replacement mainly

Battery life: Decent, but not a huge factor

6. Games

I would like to be able to play:
DOTA 2
Skyrim
Guild Wars 2 (when it comes out)
Rome: Total War
Medieval 2 Total War
Empire : Total War
Shogun 2: Total War

I would like to be able to play on high graphics, but not super-high.

Other tasks:
Microsoft Word
Powerpoint
Publisher
etc.

Storage: I don't really know for this one. What would you guys recommend?

Specific Sites:
I don't really have any favorites as long as the site is trustworthy. I've bought from Staples and Best Buy before, but I don't need to buy from them specifically.

Laptop lifetime: Is 5 years out of the realm of possibility?

Optical Drive:
DVD-ROM

Brands:
I like HP and Intel/AMD. Generally anything with good reliability.

Country: USA

Additional info:
I think I would like a laptop, however if you think a desktop would be better for me, I would be open to hearing advices.

I have always been a fan of Windows XP. Although, I don't know if it would be possible or smart for me to get one that still has the operating system.

Again thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[Maziar]

Hello and welcome to the forums
Your budget is low for a gaming laptop,the closest thing I could find is this
http/www.xoticpc.com/sager-np3260-clevo-w250es-p-4339.html
It's got a GT 630M which can handle those games fine on medium/low settings

 

[Asparagus33]

Thanks for the answer.

How much would it cost for a laptop that could handle those games?

 

[Maziar]

$1000-$1500

 

[Asparagus33]

What about the one in this thread?
http/www.tomshardware.com/forum/79602-35-looking-gaming-laptop

For around $800 could I get a desktop that could run those games?

 

[Maziar]

I usually don't recommend Acer because of their build quality but that laptop is hard to beat and yes it can handle those games fine.
Again yes,with $800 you can get a decent desktop

 

[Asparagus33]

I usually don't recommend Acer because of their build quality but that laptop is hard to beat and yes it can handle those games fine.
Again yes,with $800 you can get a decent desktop

What about an HP or Gateway? Do they have any for around that price?

 

[Maziar]

Gateway used to make some great gaming laptops with a decent price-tag but they don't make such laptop these days.
The problem is,those games you want to play require a decently powered GPU(minimum GT 640M) and a laptop with with such a GPU is hard to find within your price range

 

[edit1754]

HP DV6-6C53NR (i5-2450M, AMD Radeon 7690M XT, 15.6" 1920x1080 matte display) - $799 + tax
- http/www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/en_US/pd/HP-Pavilion-dv66c53nr/productID.243730200
- You will need to go into the BIOS (press key during startup screen to enter), and change the switchable graphics setting from DYNAMIC to FIXED. DYNAMIC (automatic switching mode) suffers from issues that FIXED (manual switching mode) does not suffer from, where certain games (namely Minecraft and other OpenGL games) will be forced to run on the integrated GPU instead of the dedicated GPU.
- Includes a free Xbox for students

Note: This laptop comes with a 15.6" 1920x1080 display, and it is advisable that you avoid laptops that come with 15.6" 1366x768 displays. 1366x768 resolution in a 15.6" display makes things onscreen large, and 15.6" displays that have this resolution are usually cheaply manufactured LCD panels that have very poor image quality due to low contrast.

 

[Maziar]

HP DV6-6C53NR (i5-2450M, AMD Radeon 7690M XT, 15.6" 1920x1080 matte display) - $799 + tax
- http/www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/en_US/pd/HP-Pavilion-dv66c53nr/productID.243730200
- You will need to go into the BIOS (press key during startup screen to enter), and change the switchable graphics setting from DYNAMIC to FIXED. DYNAMIC (automatic switching mode) suffers from issues that FIXED (manual switching mode) does not suffer from, where certain games (namely Minecraft and other OpenGL games) will be forced to run on the integrated GPU instead of the dedicated GPU.
- Includes a free Xbox for students

Note: This laptop comes with a 15.6" 1920x1080 display, and it is advisable that you avoid laptops that come with 15.6" 1366x768 displays. 1366x768 resolution in a 15.6" display makes things onscreen large, and 15.6" displays that have this resolution are usually cheaply manufactured LCD panels that have very poor image quality due to low contrast.

Good find.
I usually never recommend HP DV series but there doesn't seem to be anything better than it.(with a more powerful GPU)

 

[Asparagus33]

How good would you say it's graphics card is?

 

[jaguarskx]

The Radeon HD 7690m isn't really all the powerful like most laptop video cards. While the HP DV6 does have a 1920x1080 resolution screen, I generally recommend you play at lower resolution if you want high graphic quality. For real demanding games likes Crysis, Metro 2033 and Max Payne 3 you probably will want to play 1366x768 if you were to max out graphic quality. You will likely average around 25FPS - 30FPS.

Just be aware that the higher the resolution you play at the lower the graphic quality needs to be to maintain good performance.

 

[Asparagus33]

Best answer selected by Asparagus33.