Laptop under $1000 and desktop vs laptop

[omerta777]

1. What is your budget?

$699-$999(less is always better). Getting the most out of my money is pretty important to me.

2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?

I'd like a large screen if possible and something easy on the eyes.

3. What screen resolution do you want?

High as possible

4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?

This will serve as my only computer.

5. How much battery life do you need?

Long would be nice but not a huge priority for me.

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)?

Best gaming performance possible for the price.

7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)

Music editing. I don't expect to be able to perform super high end stuff with my budget though.

8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?

Not a huge priority. I'm ok with using an external drive.

9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.

Open to suggestion.

10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?

Preferably 3 years.

11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?

Nothing special.

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.

I trust tom's community.

13. What country do you live in?

USA

14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.

First off, thanks to all of you guys, reading this forum has helped me a lot. With as little knowledge of computers as I have, you guys seem to be able to always help me make good decisions. Really appreciate it.

OK, so I've been considering buying a desktop but I prefer laptops due to the ease of mobility and the extra space they free up around the house. I'm looking for a well made machine that won't fall apart, preferably something with a decent warranty. I'd like to play games for as long as possible without having to replace my machine but I entertain no fantasies of playing brand new games on ultra high with this budget. I also use music programs like Logic and Pro-Tools. Although I don't do anything of professional quality, it's nice to have enough power so that things run smoothly. I also have a few important questions I'm hoping you guys can answer:

Question 1: By buying a laptop instead of a desktop, how much performance/money am I really sacrificing? I know this might be somewhat of a difficult question to answer, but if you guys can give me an idea, even a broad or general one, it would be most enlightening.

Question 2: We're getting close to the holiday season. Does anyone think I'm REALLY better off waiting for something like black friday? This is an option for me, although I'll probably only do it if you guys answer with a resounding YES.

Question 3: How do I go about finding the best deal? I've been watching gaminglaptopsjunky.com and it seems like some amazing deals come around that totally throw out whatever other options I was considering at the time. This might be due to my own ignorance, I'm not sure. What's the best way to find a great deal on something?

Thanks again guys, really look forward to your answers and suggestions.

 

[electrontau]

Things to keep in mind when buying a laptop:

1 - 99% of the laptop cannot upgrade CPU and video card. You might be able to customize it from manufacturer's website but it does not mean you can change them later on.

2. Laptop CPUs are low voltage type to have less heat and better battery life. It means that its performance is not as high as desktop version.

3. If AC adapter is plugged in all the time, remove the battery. Otherwise you are charging it all the time and will eventually kill it. You will find that it does not last long, and unable to hold charge.

4. Most importantly, burn the recovery DVDs as soon as you open the box. And keep them safe. You will be glad to have the DVDs when hard drive fails.

 

[jaguarskx]

$699 - $999 will get you a much better PC than a laptop.

Due to the small size and low power consumption of a laptop, the CPU and GPU will have less performance compared to their desktop counterparts. Laptops also have to worry about heat more than desktops which has better airflow.

Other than upgrading the RAM and hard drive (or SSD), there's nothing else you can do to improve performance in a laptop... short of buying another laptop. Just about anything can upgraded in a desktop PC including the monitor. A desktop will provide a much better gaming experience, especially if you are going to spend the same amount of money regardless if it is a desktop or laptop.

Of course you cannot carry a desktop PC around with you.

 

[omerta777]

1. These are your best options:
http/www.gaminglaptopsjunky.com/gaming-laptops-under-1000/

More specifically - under 1000$ it's the Y580:
http/www.gaminglaptopsjunky.com/lenovo-y580-gtx-660m-fullhd-deal/

and if you can get a bit more and don't need a Windows copy, then this "Force":
http/tinyurl.com/8bdqhwq


2. about black friday - if you can wait then wait. The prices won't get worse (unless there is some terrible disaster in the world or hopefully, the Capitalism will fall)

3. Sacrifice - It's the difference between max settings on BF3 and other titles (desktop) and in the 1000$ - almost max and reduced AA/AF filters (laptop)

Junky, I like the force, especially since it leaves a lot of room to upgrade memory wise and it comes with a 1 year warranty.

Do you think the force is worth the extra cash compared to something like the HP models i've seen on gaminglaptopsjunky.com?

I'm still not sure whether I want to wait till black friday or not. Prices won't get higher, but do you think they'll be some killer deals worth waiting for?

How important is the warranty? If you want to keep a computer for 3 years, is a 3 year warranty basically a necessity? Do they usually cover issues with the screen as well?

Thanks guys!

 

[daship]

My $.02

There will be some GREAT deals before the holidays. With Windows 8 and a mass of tablets/ultrabooks/touchy feely thin goodnees due out at the end of this month, there will be masses of people buying the new touchy feely thin stuff and the older mouse/keyboard fat stuff will have to go onsale just so the OEMs can clear it out of inventory.

I have a super fast custom desktop, but I'm not to sure I wont sell it and get a new surface pro, or super sexy ultrabook. Or maybe I'll keep it and still get something more mobile and touchy. I already spend less time on the desktop since I got my Iphone.

There is going to be some really cool tech out between the end of the month and the 1st of the year.

You might want to hold off until black friday nd either go new tech or grab on some of the older stuff on the cheap.

 

[technoholic]

I do not recommend laptop at all if you plan to game on it. In a couple of years you will for sure get heating issues. Just get a desktop for gaming and a cheap tablet/netbook if you want mobility. For the same amount of money you'll pay for a laptop, you can get a much better performing/durable desktop anyway. Mobile parts are never as fast as desktop parts.

 

[omerta777]

OK, you guys are really helping me to refine what it is I want and that's a big part of why I asked for help. It also seems like there's pretty overwhelming cause to wait until black friday.

10%-15% performance isn't a huge deal for me, definitely not enough to pay so much more for. Does this probably mean that I should be seeking out a 650 DDR? Is this the best value for the cash? From junky's info I'm getting a better idea as to where the best value actually lies, and as usual, it isn't in the highest performance stuff available(where you end up paying 200$ for 10-15% better performance).

A couple things that now seem more important to me after reading what you guys have to say:

1. Temperature control and how it effects the life of the machine.
2. At least a good warranty, at least 2 years.
3. A screen big enough and nice enough that it won't drive me crazy.
4. Some room to upgrade memory.

Does this narrow it down at all?

If I wait for black friday(which I very well may do) what do you guys recommend I keep my eyes out for, or how would you go about trying to grab the best deal when it comes along?

Thanks a lot guys, your help is invaluable, couldn't figure this out without yo.

 

[edit1754]

Lenovo IdeaPad Y580 (i7-3630QM, NVIDIA GTX 660M, 15.6" 1920x1080 glossy display) - $939 + tax
- Sign up and sign in here: http/shoplenovo.i2.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/na/StdAffinityPortal/en_US/Lenovo:EnterStdAffinity?affinity=barnesnoblegold (Barnes and Noble Gold discount page)
- http/shoplenovo.i2.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/barnesnoblegold/StdAffinityPortal/en_US/config.workflow:ConfigureMtmAsItem?mtm-item=:000001C9:0000717E: (500GB 7200RPM) - $939 + tax
- http/shoplenovo.i2.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/barnesnoblegold/StdAffinityPortal/en_US/config.workflow:ConfigureMtmAsItem?mtm-item=:000001C9:0000717D: (1TB 5400RPM + 32GB SSD) - $1029 + tax
- Click the green "Activate eCoupon" button in the cart.
- These models come with the 1920x1080 display. There are other models that come instead with a 1366x768 display, but those models are not recommended unless you need the larger text. 1366x768 resolution in a 15.6" display makes things onscreen large, and 15.6" displays that have 1366x768 resolution tend to have very poor image quality due to low contrast.
- Note: the NVIDIA GTX 660M is not significantly faster than a NVIDIA GT 650M.

MSI GE60 (i7-3610QM, NVIDIA GT 650M, 15.6" 1920x1080 matte display) - $939 no tax
- http/www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152339
- http/www.amazon.com/MSI-GE60-0NC-006US-9S7-16GA11-006-15-6-Inch/dp/B007YDHLYE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346102799&sr=8-1&keywords=msi+ge60

Sager NP6165 (i5-3210M, NVIDIA GT 650M, 15.6" 1920x1080 glossy display) - $920 no tax
- http/www.xoticpc.com/sager-np6165-clevo-w150er-p-4344.html?wconfigure=yes
- Select Windows 7 under Operating System if you cannot acquire your own copy for cheaper.
- 17.3" version: http/www.xoticpc.com/sager-np6175-clevo-w170er-p-4345.html?wconfigure=yes

Sager NP6350 (i5-3210M, NVIDIA GTX 660M, 15.6" 1920x1080 glossy display) - $999 no tax
- http/www.xoticpc.com/sager-np6350-clevo-w350etq-ships-midseptember-p-4897.html?wconfigure=yes
- Select Windows 7 under Operating System if you cannot acquire your own copy for cheaper.
- Recommended: Matte display upgrade.
- Note: the NVIDIA GTX 660M is not significantly faster than a NVIDIA GT 650M. But there are other differences between the NP6165 and NP6350.
- 17.3" version: http/www.xoticpc.com/sager-np6370-clevo-w370et-p-4796.html?wconfigure=yes

 

[omerta777]

Edit, how important is the warranty I get? I'm pretty worried about something going wrong with the machine if I'm gaming on it, even with a good cooler underneath it.

 

[C12Friedman]

$699 - $999 will get you a much better PC than a laptop.

Due to the small size and low power consumption of a laptop, the CPU and GPU will have less performance compared to their desktop counterparts. Laptops also have to worry about heat more than desktops which has better airflow.

Other than upgrading the RAM and hard drive (or SSD), there's nothing else you can do to improve performance in a laptop... short of buying another laptop. Just about anything can upgraded in a desktop PC including the monitor. A desktop will provide a much better gaming experience, especially if you are going to spend the same amount of money regardless if it is a desktop or laptop.

Of course you cannot carry a desktop PC around with you.

To paraphrase what JaguarSKX says here - if you are not travelling with your computer there is no reason to purchase a laptop.