Looking for a new laptop Haswell quad core i7, 8GB+, 15", Good Battery Life, SSD?

ithar87

Honorable
May 29, 2012
4
0
10,510
I am look for something with the following minimum specs.

Haswell Quad Core i7
8GB or more memory
Decent Battery Life
Good Track Pad and Keyboard
SSD would be nice but if the price is right I can just put in my own. Multiple drive bays would be ok too.
Reasonably Portable
Good Build Quality

I don't care too much about graphics, Intel integrated is fine with me, but I am also not opposed to something with a modest discreet gpu. I will be using this to replace my desktop machine and don't want to sacrifice power, but I also don't want something so big and heavy that it might as well be a desktop. I want to be able to carry it around comfortably in a backpack. I was considering MacBook Pro Retina, but it's more than I wanted to spend and I would need to run a Windows VM on it frequently for a lot of the things I do anyways. I am an IT professional and will be using this to run a lot of different software, I am just having a hard time finding something that meets my needs, I really don't want a big slab of plastic with 90 minutes of battery life.
 

Diox55

Estimable
Feb 21, 2014
210
0
4,910
http://www.ebay.com/itm/9D00-Asus-X550LA-DH71-15-6-i7-4500U-8G-1TB-Haswell-UMA-DL-DVDRW-W8-Laptop-/370926206046?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item565cecbc5e

Firstly, I have this. It has 8 gigs of ram, a 4500u i7, and HD Graphics 5000. This is going to most likely be the most portable, but not the most powerful ones.

http://shop.lenovo.com/us/en/laptops/lenovo/y-series/y510p/

Next, I have the Y510 series. I don't know if it'll be as pratical for your needs, but it'll still be powerful. No matter what model you choose of it, your getting a 72 watt hour battery, 8 gigs of ram, an Nvidia GT755M, and an i7 4700MQ which is a powerhouse cpu.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834313744

Next, we have another Lenovo. This is a 17.3 inch, here I copied specs from Newegg (I'm being unprofessional wooho!)

Intel Core i7 4700MQ (2.40GHz)
16 GB, DDR3L, 1600 MHz (2 x 8GB) Memory 1TB HDD 8GB SSD
NVIDIA GeForce GT 745M
1920 x 1080
Windows 8.1
Blu-Ray Burner

Edit- question, what do you do in the IT field? I plan to go Air Force after high school for some sort of computer job, then come out and then do IT for computers, probably computer maintenance/ repair etc.
 

ithar87

Honorable
May 29, 2012
4
0
10,510
I work for a business which supports many enterprise clients. I do a little bit of everything, networking, remote management, repairing equipment, putting together quotes, studying products from multiple vendors(though we work mostly with HP for everything from network gear to workstations), etc. I had looked at the Y510 from Lenovo and it looked like a decent option, but they just came out with a new model that is replacing it, the Y50. There is very little information about the Y50 yet, so I will probably see what happens with that. I have also looked at the MSI GS60 Ghost. The Y50, Y510p, and GS60 Ghost would allow me to play games at decent settings if I chose to do so, but I am a little concerned about battery life. What do you think?



 

Diox55

Estimable
Feb 21, 2014
210
0
4,910
That Y50 is pretty damn solid. If you wanted the newer Y50, you could go for the 738 or 739 model of it. The 739 use's a 500 gig ssd, although the 738 has a 1 TB drive, with whats this an 8 gig sshd. Well, you could switch that out for a 120 gig Samsung 840 Evo for around 80 bucks. I'd go for the Lenovo Y50 if you want to spend a bit more even though it is brand new.
 

ithar87

Honorable
May 29, 2012
4
0
10,510
I'm not much of a programmer either. I have a solid understanding of HTML and CSS, and a basic understanding of Javascript, but it's really not important for my job at all. I have a 2 year networking degree and plan on getting my CCNA this summer.



 

Diox55

Estimable
Feb 21, 2014
210
0
4,910


I've seen this, is this required? Some IT fields have to get a certification like B, A, A+ etc, any knowledge of that?
 

ithar87

Honorable
May 29, 2012
4
0
10,510
CompTIA A+ is a common certification. It is a basic computer hardware and software certification. Tests if you have an understanding of some of the more in depth parts of Windows, as well as basic networking and computer hardware. I never bothered to get my A+ because my networking degree kind of makes it unnecessary.