Which is the best laptop for around £750? (975 USD)

[Circulars]

Hey y'all,

I'm looking at getting a new laptop in the region of £750 and I want to get the best bang for my buck. It will be used for business and moderate gaming, playing the likes of fallout 4, Dota etc. I'm looking at a GTX 960m, around 8gb RAM and I think I'd definitely prefer a SDD. I've found a few that I've attached below.

http/www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/pc-specialist-optimus-ii-gt15-960-elite-core-i5-6300hq-8gb-1tb-15.6-dvd-r-pcs-l861552/version.asp

http/m.ebuyer.com/725657

https/www.overclockers.co.uk/acer-aspire-nitro-vn7-592g-15.6-ips-i5-6300hq-nvidia-gtx-960m-4gb-gddr5-gaming-laptop-lt-173-ac.html

Also I created one on PC Specialist (attached link for specs), would that be a good option?

https/postimg.org/image/57po6on8j/

Anyone know which is best? I'm a bit of a novice at buying laptops, I've just spent a few days researching. Please let me know which is best/ if there's anything better in this price range!

Thanks in advance!

 

[starscream27]

hello,
keeping the budget in mind i think your choices seem to be fine. Speaking of your list the first three are more or less same specs wise (if i didn't miss anything ) so it's a matter of brand preference and I would choose MSI as they are generally considered to be more reputable than the other two. the last link didn't work for me for some reason.

now let's talk about what i was able to find within the price range:
https/www.amazon.co.uk/MSI-15-6-Inch-Gaming-Notebook-Black/dp/B01JLR4O5Y/ref=sr_1_25?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1474268031&sr=1-25&keywords=gtx+950m

it's also from MSI but there a few key differences:
it has a better CPU (Intel Core i7 6700HQ) and 128 GB SSD but here's the downside -- it features 950M instead of 960M. unfortunately, there is a noticeable gaming performance gap between the two. you can find the comparison here:

http/gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-960M-vs-Nvidia-GeForce-GTX-950M/m27242vsm27713

and full reviews with detailed benchmarks here:
http/www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-960M.138006.0.html
http/www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-950M.138026.0.html

Looking at the benchs, you should be able to get playable framerates on modern titles at med settings and a res. lower than 1080p (1366x768), which, going by your post, i think should be serviceable in your case.
Regarding the cpu, it is actually superior in this case as i previously mentioned. again you can find the comparisons here:
http/cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i7-6700HQ-vs-Intel-Core-i5-6300HQ/m34954vsm38166
http/www.cpu-world.com/Compare/993/Intel_Core_i5_Mobile_i5-6300HQ_vs_Intel_Core_i7_Mobile_i7-6700HQ.html

"the key difference is that the Intel i7-6700HQ includes Hyper-Threading feature, which allows each CPU core to process two threads simultaneously. The microprocessor offers higher operating frequency than the Core i5-6300HQ, as a result the Core i7-6700HQ has better performance in most applications". Gaming perfomance wise there should not be a significant jump.
considering those points, i think this machine should satisfy your needs based on the information you have provided. Even though it has a slower performing GPU, it makes up for it in other areas by having a superior CPU and SSD which should result in better performance in most applications and that seems to be your main goal, if i'm not mistaken.

hope it helps

P.S. i just stumbled upon another interesting (it has a 4k panel) option. it also has a blueray drv, not that it matters that much and 50% more system mem (again nothing that significant). on the other hand, it features a slower performing processor (Core i5-5200U) and win8 . you can find a review here:
http/www.pcadvisor.co.uk/review/laptops/toshiba-satellite-p50t-c-109-review-3628548/

I would choose the MSI one

 

[Circulars]

Hey Starscream, thanks so much for your post, particularly the amount of detail I really appreciate it!

Unfortunately I had just brought one of the Acer laptop before your post, I settled for the Acer Aspire, mainly because it came with a GTX 960m with 4gb VRAM where the others were 2gb. I'm not sure if the extra ram does much with this graphics card but it was the only thing that really stood out for me. It's nice to hear some encouraging advice about all the laptops though.

Thanks again!

hello,
keeping the budget in mind i think your choices seem to be fine. Speaking of your list the first three are more or less same specs wise (if i didn't miss anything ) so it's a matter of brand preference and I would choose MSI as they are generally considered to be more reputable than the other two. the last link didn't work for me for some reason.

now let's talk about what i was able to find within the price range:
https/www.amazon.co.uk/MSI-15-6-Inch-Gaming-Notebook-Black/dp/B01JLR4O5Y/ref=sr_1_25?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1474268031&sr=1-25&keywords=gtx+950m

it's also from MSI but there a few key differences:
it has a better CPU (Intel Core i7 6700HQ) and 128 GB SSD but here's the downside -- it features 950M instead of 960M. unfortunately, there is a noticeable gaming performance gap between the two. you can find the comparison here:

http/gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-960M-vs-Nvidia-GeForce-GTX-950M/m27242vsm27713

and full reviews with detailed benchmarks here:
http/www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-960M.138006.0.html
http/www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-950M.138026.0.html

Looking at the benchs, you should be able to get playable framerates on modern titles at med settings and a res. lower than 1080p (1366x768), which, going by your post, i think should be serviceable in your case.
Regarding the cpu, it is actually superior in this case as i previously mentioned. again you can find the comparisons here:
http/cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i7-6700HQ-vs-Intel-Core-i5-6300HQ/m34954vsm38166
http/www.cpu-world.com/Compare/993/Intel_Core_i5_Mobile_i5-6300HQ_vs_Intel_Core_i7_Mobile_i7-6700HQ.html

"the key difference is that the Intel i7-6700HQ includes Hyper-Threading feature, which allows each CPU core to process two threads simultaneously. The microprocessor offers higher operating frequency than the Core i5-6300HQ, as a result the Core i7-6700HQ has better performance in most applications". Gaming perfomance wise there should not be a significant jump.
considering those points, i think this machine should satisfy your needs based on the information you have provided. Even though it has a slower performing GPU, it makes up for it in other areas by having a superior CPU and SSD which should result in better performance in most applications and that seems to be your main goal, if i'm not mistaken.

hope it helps

P.S. i just stumbled upon another interesting (it has a 4k panel) option. it also has a blueray drv, not that it matters that much and 50% more system mem (again nothing that significant). on the other hand, it features a slower performing processor (Core i5-5200U) and win8 . you can find a review here:
http/www.pcadvisor.co.uk/review/laptops/toshiba-satellite-p50t-c-109-review-3628548/

I would choose the MSI one

 

[starscream27]

No worries, happy to help.
Acer seems to be a fine choice as well. In fact, i am currently using an acer laptop (an ancient one, though)