I was considering buying a new laptop within the next few weeks since it looks like I will have some extra cash on my hands. I'm looking to replace my 3yr laptop which has served me well.
1. What is your budget? Approximately $1000. I could go slightly over, but I would want a compelling reason to do so.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering? My current screen size is 15.4" I would rather not go smaller, but I would not mind going bigger, depending on the model.
3. What screen resolution do you want? My current resolution is 1280x800. I would like a higher resolution that that, but I am not too specific for the most part (with one exception that will be described below). I prefer widescreen to standard, but I do not have much preference with regard to the two widescreen aspect ratios.
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop? I am not in school anymore, so being able to carry it around on a regular basis is not that important to me. I would like to be able to move it around occasionally, but most of the time it will be on my desk.
5. How much battery life do you need? I have never had much luck with battery life. I will estimate 2+ hours, but this is not a major factor for my consideration.
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)? Yes. Currently I am playing Dragon Age: Origins, Starcraft 2, Napoleon: Total War, and Victoria 2. In the future, I would like to play Dragon Age 2, Diablo III, the Starcraft 2 Expansions, and Shogun 2: Total War on this laptop. I would like to play on as high settings as I can afford.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo / Video editing,watching movies, Etc.) I would do standard things like browsing the internet, word processing, and email. I would also listen to music and watch movies.
8. How much storage (H.D.D Capacity) do you need? This is not a huge factor for me. I currently am using a 320GB 7200RPM drive in my laptop, and that is enough storage space for my uses. So I will estimate 300-500GB.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links. So far I had considered three laptops on Amazon.com that looked like good deals at approximately my price point. Of the three, I am leaning toward the MSI currently, though it is the most expensive:
ASUS Republic of Gamers G51JX-X3 15.6-Inch Gaming Laptop
MSI GX640-260 15.4-Inch Gaming Laptop
Toshiba Qosmio X505-Q885 TruBrite 18.4-Inch Laptop
Those selections should also give a good idea of the feature/price balances that appeal to me, and how much leeway I may be willing to give on the budget.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop? Approximately another 3 years, which is how long I have had my current laptop, but I am not precisely sure. Naturally, I appreciate that a laptop that can play games on high settings will not max out new games in three years.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ? This is not a major issue for me. DVD-ROM/writer is what I have currently, and I do not require anything else. Blu-Ray may be nice if it is a bonus, but it is not a selling point for me.
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 have owned two HP laptops without complaint. But I really do not have much preference with regard to brand, and would prefer to leave that to those who now better than I.
13. What country do you live in? The United States of America.
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed. I mentioned above that I do not have a resolution preference except that I want it higher than my current 1280x800. One exception is for Dragon Age: Origins. In DA:O, there is a quickbar at the botom of the screen where you can place your talents or spells for easy access. This bar can be expanded across the bottom of your screen. Sadly, this makes the number of slots dependant on your screen resolution. I have 26 slots on my current screen resolution. I read that at 1680x1050 (which is what the MSI I linked uses), you get 34 slots. I would like to run DA:O at an even higher resolution, if I could do so on at high settings, in order to maximize my quickbar length. So my question is if I get a laptop with a 1680x1050 native resolution, could I, theoretically, increase the game resolution beyond that? I don't think I can on my current laptop.
I hope that is enough information. Thanks for any help you can provide.
1. What is your budget? Approximately $1000. I could go slightly over, but I would want a compelling reason to do so.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering? My current screen size is 15.4" I would rather not go smaller, but I would not mind going bigger, depending on the model.
3. What screen resolution do you want? My current resolution is 1280x800. I would like a higher resolution that that, but I am not too specific for the most part (with one exception that will be described below). I prefer widescreen to standard, but I do not have much preference with regard to the two widescreen aspect ratios.
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop? I am not in school anymore, so being able to carry it around on a regular basis is not that important to me. I would like to be able to move it around occasionally, but most of the time it will be on my desk.
5. How much battery life do you need? I have never had much luck with battery life. I will estimate 2+ hours, but this is not a major factor for my consideration.
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)? Yes. Currently I am playing Dragon Age: Origins, Starcraft 2, Napoleon: Total War, and Victoria 2. In the future, I would like to play Dragon Age 2, Diablo III, the Starcraft 2 Expansions, and Shogun 2: Total War on this laptop. I would like to play on as high settings as I can afford.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo / Video editing,watching movies, Etc.) I would do standard things like browsing the internet, word processing, and email. I would also listen to music and watch movies.
8. How much storage (H.D.D Capacity) do you need? This is not a huge factor for me. I currently am using a 320GB 7200RPM drive in my laptop, and that is enough storage space for my uses. So I will estimate 300-500GB.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links. So far I had considered three laptops on Amazon.com that looked like good deals at approximately my price point. Of the three, I am leaning toward the MSI currently, though it is the most expensive:
ASUS Republic of Gamers G51JX-X3 15.6-Inch Gaming Laptop
MSI GX640-260 15.4-Inch Gaming Laptop
Toshiba Qosmio X505-Q885 TruBrite 18.4-Inch Laptop
Those selections should also give a good idea of the feature/price balances that appeal to me, and how much leeway I may be willing to give on the budget.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop? Approximately another 3 years, which is how long I have had my current laptop, but I am not precisely sure. Naturally, I appreciate that a laptop that can play games on high settings will not max out new games in three years.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ? This is not a major issue for me. DVD-ROM/writer is what I have currently, and I do not require anything else. Blu-Ray may be nice if it is a bonus, but it is not a selling point for me.
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 have owned two HP laptops without complaint. But I really do not have much preference with regard to brand, and would prefer to leave that to those who now better than I.
13. What country do you live in? The United States of America.
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed. I mentioned above that I do not have a resolution preference except that I want it higher than my current 1280x800. One exception is for Dragon Age: Origins. In DA:O, there is a quickbar at the botom of the screen where you can place your talents or spells for easy access. This bar can be expanded across the bottom of your screen. Sadly, this makes the number of slots dependant on your screen resolution. I have 26 slots on my current screen resolution. I read that at 1680x1050 (which is what the MSI I linked uses), you get 34 slots. I would like to run DA:O at an even higher resolution, if I could do so on at high settings, in order to maximize my quickbar length. So my question is if I get a laptop with a 1680x1050 native resolution, could I, theoretically, increase the game resolution beyond that? I don't think I can on my current laptop.
I hope that is enough information. Thanks for any help you can provide.
/www.anandtech.com/show/3766/msi-gx640-speedy-dx11-laptop
Facebook
Twitter