Which laptop? Any other suggestions in the general price range?

[nanzer]

Hey guys
My price range is kind of vague, but it should be below $1200.
Preferred brand - Dell, but doesn't really matter.
Usage - Video Editing (Vegas Pro, Premiere Pro, After Effects, etc.), Gaming, and other performance apps. Also, the battery life should be decent (2+ hrs after optimization)
Preferred CPU - Core i5/i7 or AMD A10
Preferred GPU - 7730M or 630M or 640M. Might need Quick Sync for transcoding.
Preferred RAM - 6GB to 8GB.
Preferred HDD - 750GB to 1TB. 5400RPM or 7200RPM. No SSD.
Screen Size - 14-16 inch. Not 13, not 17.
OS - Doesn't matter, will Dualboot Linux and W7 Ultimate.
DVD Drive - Don't need BluRay.
Notebook/Ultrabook - Ultrabooks are overrated and overpriced.

Need one to last me a minimum of 2 or 3 years.
Color doesn't matter.

Will use cooling pad for high-load tasks.
Need decent touchpad.

Some options I have selected:-
Dell Inspiron 15R SE
HP Pavilion 15 dv6tqe (customized)
HP Pavilion 15 dv6z-7000 (customized)

 

[phyco126]

http/www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834310662 <--- $1,199. Exceeds all your wants.

 

[division_9]

^ With laptop budgets above $1.1k you should just forget about Lenovo and common OEMs.

Customised laptops are the way to go.

I.e. Alienware or Clevo as I'll link below

http/alienware.com/

http/rjtech.com/shop/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=30106

 

[phyco126]

Alienware is ungodly expensive for what you get. I do, however, support clevo/sager ( www.sagernotebook.com ). Still, nothing wrong with Lenovo (or other decent OEMs).

 

[nanzer]

Actually, I live in India, so customized laptops are out for me. Also, I would prefer to keep it AT $1k, because of the exchange rates, and import taxes.
I can think about customized - one of my classmates lives in Canada, so he can get it for me (we're close), but I would prefer not to.
Also, weight and looks do matter to me. I'm taking the IB, so I need a comparatively light laptop to carry around, and preferably one that's easy on the eyes. It's not a desktop replacement, so I'm looking for something that does good Video Editing, but not overkill. A 660M is overkill. A 650M is not.
Thanks anyway!
An update:
I've got a tentative choice - The Samsung Series 5 NP550P5C-S02IN or Samsung Series 5 NP550P5C-S01IN

 

[phyco126]

Get this one : Samsung Series 5 NP550P5C-S02IN . Reason being - more RAM. You'll want lots of RAM for rendering/video editing. The other reason is a faster processor.

 

[nanzer]

Yes, but I have to balance cost and productivity. What I was hoping for was a different laptop to compare.

 

[phyco126]

A quad-core processor will be up to (but perhaps not quite at) twice as fast as a dual core. Trust me, the money is worth it to go for an i7.