What kind of computer for college?

[apav]

Hello peoples, new here and I'll be going away to college in the fall and I'm so excited! I need a new laptop for college but I've heard from a lot of people that macs are just exceptional for every field now, and I will be an International Business major.

I was looking at this pc:
ASUS G73JH-A1 - XOTIC PC - ASUS Gaming Laptop

and the flagship 17" macbook pro for my mac:
Apple - MacBook Pro - Meet the new MacBook Pro family.

I know there are many differences between what each are used for. I figured that even though the Asus is built for gaming, and I want to game when I have time off, it would also be able to run any program or multiple programs exceptionally well.

But then there's the mac, who could go wrong with a mac, I hear it is widely accepted now as the standard laptop in most fields. However, the specs of the macbook seem inferior to the Asus, and for a higher cost. I know macs are not great for gaming, but I don't mind if I go without the games, its just a side hobby.

I want your opinion on this, which do you think I should get? What would be better for my field and has performance? Thanks in advance I look forward for your reply.

 

[Maziar]

Hello
Well you are comparing 2 completely different machines.
G73 is better than MBP in gaming, and overall performance(because of better specs),whereas MBP is better in terms of battery life and weight.
So if you want to play games,then don't buy a MAC,they are not built for gaming

 

[silentx]

now I've never owned a mac, but if you boot it up in windows then you should be capable of playing quite a lot of games, probably not crysis on max detail but you should definitively be able to play games such as dirt 2 and left for dead 2, my friend had the previous generation mbp 13" and it was capable of playing GTA IV, maybe not the most enjoyable experience but if you wanted that you wouldn't game on a laptop.

i found this video on youtube of the 13" playing gta IV, but in the end, your money your choice, buy the one that you like the most

 

[silentx]

sorry for posting again, but im not capable of editing my previous post
i forgot the link so here it is http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHsjzn4jp_4

 

[IsabellaWinTeam]

Hello peoples, new here and I'll be going away to college in the fall and I'm so excited! I need a new laptop for college but I've heard from a lot of people that macs are just exceptional for every field now, and I will be an International Business major.

I was looking at this pc:
ASUS G73JH-A1 - XOTIC PC - ASUS Gaming Laptop

and the flagship 17" macbook pro for my mac:
Apple - MacBook Pro - Meet the new MacBook Pro family.

I know there are many differences between what each are used for. I figured that even though the Asus is built for gaming, and I want to game when I have time off, it would also be able to run any program or multiple programs exceptionally well.

But then there's the mac, who could go wrong with a mac, I hear it is widely accepted now as the standard laptop in most fields. However, the specs of the macbook seem inferior to the Asus, and for a higher cost. I know macs are not great for gaming, but I don't mind if I go without the games, its just a side hobby.

I want your opinion on this, which do you think I should get? What would be better for my field and has performance? Thanks in advance I look forward for your reply.

Hi there,

The Asus would be a great choice because you can use it for gaming and all your other tasks. You will have the capability to do everything you way want/need to do because it has a powerful processor and 8 GB of RAM.

I hope this helps!

Cheers,
Isabella
MSFT Windows Outreach Team

 

[dlthomas]

Go with the ASUS. Its going to be good for your business/ academic needs and will game, which the macbook will absolutely not be good at.

I use a Macbook Pro and swear by it for design work and general usage. However I never game on it. The trouble is the graphics cards and other components are not really designed for it. There was a time when like you, I wanted to play games on it during time off. It is an absolute nightmare to run games on though.

The number of games made for OSX is very limited. Even when running Windows in bootcamp or parallels desktop, I have failed to get games I want to run. It was pretty annoying when I couldn't even install Worms Armageddon! Macbooks are just not designed for it, so stay away from them if you want to game.

 

[apav]

Thanks, I might just do that, but lets put gaming aside here, its insignificant. For better overall programs in college, and their presentation, which would run, look and feel better?

 

[IsabellaWinTeam]

Thanks, I might just do that, but lets put gaming aside here, its insignificant. For better overall programs in college, and their presentation, which would run, look and feel better?

Hi there,

The Asus has received great reviews as a high-performance laptop and it has a nice, large display. It is also an excellent value for such high end specs.

Cheers,
Isabella
MSFT Windows Outreach Team

 

[Maziar]

Thanks, I might just do that, but lets put gaming aside here, its insignificant. For better overall programs in college, and their presentation, which would run, look and feel better?

The ASUS one has a quad core CPU and more RAM,so it will perform better tasks which benefit from multi core CPUs(like Image/video rendering) and its quite cheaper, on the other hand, MBP has a much better battery life(7hrs vs 1hrs and 30mins of G73) and its more portable.
In general tasks,(daily usage) the performance will be pretty much the same.

 

[apav]

Thanks, Maziar. That alone might change my whole decision. I'm not sure how much I will be on the go in college, but 1.5hrs of battery life as compared to 7 hours does seem like a lot. But thats the question at hand here, will this laptop be on the go a lot? Of course it will be sitting in my dorm most of the time but what if I go on a trip, and what about when I study abroad for my whole second year? Like I said gaming is an added bonus, not a necessity. Would you still recommend it then?

 

[apav]

bump for answer to my last reply please!

 

[Maziar]

Well it was late last night(the time that you posted your reply), so i couldn't answer you
Anyway,back to your question.
Well G73 is a desktop replacement so don't expect to carry it as easy as the MBP because of its weight, and since it has a much lower battery life,it have to be charged quite often.
So in terms of battery life and portability,MBP wins, but in other aspects,G73 will do better

 

[apav]

Heh its np. Meh the battery life is pretty short, guess I can always get an extra battery. How is the battery life against, lets say, the Alienware M15x?

 

[Maziar]

Its pretty much the same(M15x has slightly better battery life than G73)

 

[apav]

hmm if its only a miniscule difference forget the m15x then the asus is cheaper and has better specs. alright I think im going with the asus then, thanks for the help

 

[Maziar]

No problem,hope you enjoy it.
If you want something like the ASUS but with better battery life,then check out MSI GX740
http/www.xoticpc.com/msi-gx740079us-p-2765.html
It has a battery life of 2-3hrs

 

[apav]

Best answer selected by apav.

 

[apav]

Thanks, but not until recently I realized how much battery life and portability was. I guess I never thought about it. Battery life and portability is my #1 concern right now. I'm a tall guy, so the G73 would probably be proportionate to me, but I'm debating now the G73 or the M11x. Two completely different laptops, I know. The only reason the M11x is a contender here is because it is easily the most portable high performing(..its not just for games.. right?) laptop and has the most battery life because you can switch to integrated graphics.

Ehh I'm torn now, I'm not sure if less than a foot is too small for me, it might be, but has the kind of battery life I need. And I can handle the G73 just I'm not sure how much I will be bringing this laptop with me around in college.

If I do get the m11x I would get it with with i7 640 UM and a 500gb hard drive, as well as 8 gigs of ram. Is that comparable to the G73 or is it too much of a gap to consider? I haven't seen the m11x in person so I really can't judge the comfort of the size, I'm going to try my local best buy.

 

[Maziar]

How much battery life do you need ?

 

[apav]

Well depends on the situation, I wont be playing games when its unplugged alot so most of the time using other programs or surfing the web. I would say for me 3-4 hours would be a good battery life. That range is probably best for me because I wont be unplugged for too long but long enough over time where it may run out.