Hi Guys,
I've been searching around for a couple of months now trying to replace my ageing and dying MacBook Pro. I've thrown in the towel after searching various places and trying various sites but not finding anything that i liked. So I've decided to come to you guys! I've looked through and answered you're FAQ bit to try and make it a little easier, but i don't think its going to be an easy task!
1. What is your budget?
£700 - £1200
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
15” – 17”, less than 2.9kg in weight and less than 30mm thick at its thickest point with the lid closed.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
1920x1080 or 1920x1200 (would consider 1600x900 on a 15”)
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Portable with Desktop power (Not fussy am i?)
5. How much battery life do you need?
3 hours minimum on light usage
6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?
Not Many games, Sims3 at native res maybe a couple of others.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
Photo Editing (Photoshop Extended), Video Editing (Premiere Pro), Programming(Visual Studio & SQL Server), web design(Fireworks)
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
256gb and up (preferably SSD) 2 drives would be fantastic but not essential.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
2-3 years
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
DVD writer (Blu-ray a bonus)
12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.
NOT: HP (don’t trust their build quality)
Toshiba (Again build quality and performance issues)
13. What country do you live in?
UK (England)
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
The size requirements might seem a bit specific but I come from using Mac Laptops for the last 6 years and so size and design is just as important for me as parts and performance. The ideal machine would have an i7 quad core (not ULV), ideally an i7 3630qm, with at least 8gb RAM and a full HD screen. These are the absolutes. DVD drive i can do without and I’m not fussy in terms of the ports on the laptop. Oh, and it must be cheaper than a 15” MacBook Pro which retails at £1500 in the UK for the basic model.
These are some of the models I've looked at and why I've discounted them.
15" MacBook Pro - Too expensivehttp
/img.tomshardware.com/forum/uk/icones/smilies/non.gif
Lenovo Y580 - Great Power and Decent size but flimsy screen (major flex when opening and shutting)http
/img.tomshardware.com/forum/uk/icones/smilies/pfff.gif
asus u500vz cn046h - Beautiful design, Great Specs but just as pricey as MBP
Ones I'm thinking of but havent played with
Dell XPS 15
2013 Samsung Series 7 Chronos (the one announced at CES 2013)
Sony Vaio E-Series 15" Custom
Asus N56VJ
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in Advance!

I've been searching around for a couple of months now trying to replace my ageing and dying MacBook Pro. I've thrown in the towel after searching various places and trying various sites but not finding anything that i liked. So I've decided to come to you guys! I've looked through and answered you're FAQ bit to try and make it a little easier, but i don't think its going to be an easy task!

1. What is your budget?
£700 - £1200
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
15” – 17”, less than 2.9kg in weight and less than 30mm thick at its thickest point with the lid closed.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
1920x1080 or 1920x1200 (would consider 1600x900 on a 15”)
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Portable with Desktop power (Not fussy am i?)
5. How much battery life do you need?
3 hours minimum on light usage
6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?
Not Many games, Sims3 at native res maybe a couple of others.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
Photo Editing (Photoshop Extended), Video Editing (Premiere Pro), Programming(Visual Studio & SQL Server), web design(Fireworks)
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
256gb and up (preferably SSD) 2 drives would be fantastic but not essential.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
2-3 years
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
DVD writer (Blu-ray a bonus)
12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.
NOT: HP (don’t trust their build quality)
Toshiba (Again build quality and performance issues)
13. What country do you live in?
UK (England)
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
The size requirements might seem a bit specific but I come from using Mac Laptops for the last 6 years and so size and design is just as important for me as parts and performance. The ideal machine would have an i7 quad core (not ULV), ideally an i7 3630qm, with at least 8gb RAM and a full HD screen. These are the absolutes. DVD drive i can do without and I’m not fussy in terms of the ports on the laptop. Oh, and it must be cheaper than a 15” MacBook Pro which retails at £1500 in the UK for the basic model.
These are some of the models I've looked at and why I've discounted them.
15" MacBook Pro - Too expensivehttp

Lenovo Y580 - Great Power and Decent size but flimsy screen (major flex when opening and shutting)http

asus u500vz cn046h - Beautiful design, Great Specs but just as pricey as MBP
Ones I'm thinking of but havent played with
Dell XPS 15
2013 Samsung Series 7 Chronos (the one announced at CES 2013)
Sony Vaio E-Series 15" Custom
Asus N56VJ
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in Advance!