Need Help Finding A Decent Gaming Laptop

[TheCloudOfSmoke]

Ok, so I just got a new $400 laptop the other day because my old one died on me and I realized that this thing sucks. I didn't really expect much from it anyways, but I really want to get something a little better. The one that I currently have is a Compaq Presario F762NR Notebook. I bought my other laptop used from a friend for $300 and it wasn't bad at all and it lasted me about a year. It was a Compaq nc6230 Notebook. It played games from about 3 or 4 years ago just fine. So I feel like I downgraded in a way with my new purchase. I don't expect something too extreme, just something that has some type of gaming capability unlike this one. I guess I'm willing to spend about $700. That's kind of pushing it, but I'm willing to spend it I guess. I see a Gateway with AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual0Core Movile Technollogy TL-60 with 4GB DDR2 memory, 250GB hard drive, with ATI Radeon X1270 video card. That one is around $700. Is that a good deal or not? Sorry, I'm a tech noob with this stuff and that's why I come to you guys for help.

EDIT: Just did some googling, and I found out that that wasn't that good. Any other suggestions? I need something that will also allow me to do some intensive Photoshop work at high resolutions with many layers.

[SCHUMI-4-EVA]

This looks like the best bang for buck I have seen sofar.

Newegg.com - Acer Aspire AS5520-5908 NoteBook AMD Mobile Athlon 64 X2 TK-55(1.80GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 1GB Memory DDR2 667 120GB HDD DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 7000M - Laptops / Notebooks

you would probably have to get it's RAM upgraded though.

Can't see anything better on newegg (Besides the Gateway that was already shot down) and I don't know where else to look for americans.

[Exodus]

Have laptop reached the point of really being called a "gaming machine"? I imagine they're still restricted to several year old games?

[SCHUMI-4-EVA]

Well you do get Gaming laptops....unfortunately nothing in that price range.

And if money were no option then Alienware can turn just about anything into a gaming machine.

[Cheesus]

Ok, first off, what games do you intend to play, and how big a factor is the graphics quality? Second, do you have a particular screen size in mind? Multitasking going to be a big thing for you? Specific emulators you want to use?

After a quick google of your old notebook, that first one you mentioned is quite an upgrade. The biggest bottle neck you'll have is definitely the graphics card though...
In case you come across something yourself, if you intend to game, a dual core with a 8600GT or Radeon Mobility 2600Pro should be somewhere along the minimum.

[skoreanime]

What Notebook Should I Buy? - Notebook Forums and Laptop Discussion

Sign up for the forum and list your criteria. The users there are very helpful, I took their advice when I was notebook hunting.

[TheCloudOfSmoke]

Originally Posted by SCHUMI-4-EVA

This looks like the best bang for buck I have seen sofar.

Newegg.com - Acer Aspire AS5520-5908 NoteBook AMD Mobile Athlon 64 X2 TK-55(1.80GHz) 15.4" Wide XGA 1GB Memory DDR2 667 120GB HDD DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 7000M - Laptops / Notebooks

you would probably have to get it's RAM upgraded though.

Can't see anything better on newegg (Besides the Gateway that was already shot down) and I don't know where else to look for americans.

Lol. The funny thing about that is that my new laptop has that same exact graphics card...

HP Compaq Presario F762NR Notebook PC*-* Product Specifications*

I don't know, maybe it's this new Vista bogging me down. Should I try reverting back to XP? Seems like everything is slower on Vista.

Originally Posted by Cheesus

Ok, first off, what games do you intend to play, and how big a factor is the graphics quality? Second, do you have a particular screen size in mind? Multitasking going to be a big thing for you? Specific emulators you want to use?

After a quick google of your old notebook, that first one you mentioned is quite an upgrade. The biggest bottle neck you'll have is definitely the graphics card though...
In case you come across something yourself, if you intend to game, a dual core with a 8600GT or Radeon Mobility 2600Pro should be somewhere along the minimum.

Thanks for the help. I don't intend to play anything serious or something intended for the high end computers of today. Just something that can play games from 2-4 years ago. My main concern is just something that can handle Photoshop/Illustrator stuff at high resolutions and many layers though. I would like to play TF2 at a decent framerate like my other laptop did on moderate settings. Now when I try to play it, the framerate sucks and and it's super slow loading up. Again, is this mainly a Vista issue, or is it because my graphics card is bottlenecking it? Vista seems to be making my computer slower with all of the crap that it's doing in the background. I just added an extra stick of ram to make it 2 gigs, I would have added a third, but there's not an available ram slot. Didn't help much. :/

[Cheesus]

MSI GX600-084UK
Acer Aspire 5920g-304G25BN


Those were the 2 best ones I found. When I have more time, I'll look around some more.

[TheCloudOfSmoke]

Thanks for you help Cheesus.

How does this one look?

Compal FL90 Notebook Barebone, 15.4 inch WXGA Screen, Core 2 Duo, 800FSB , Nvidia 8600GT 256MB , INTEL 965PM , DDR2 667 , SATA HDD , 2.0M Camera

I can't really check out the specs right now because I'm going back to work, but I see that it has the 8600GT.

[Cheesus]

That's a barebones laptop. Meaning, it doesn't come with some of the parts. Unless you're willing to buy the CPU, Memory, Hard Drive, OS, and more separately and install them yourself its probably a good idea to give it a miss.

(Do note, that assuming you do go for a barebones Laptop, you'll be able to customize it to your exact wishes. Although in the long run it usually doesn't turn out to be any cheaper.)

EDIT: Just saw the bottom most section. Turns out you can buy the parts, and have them installed, but the final price (assuming you chose that route) is well above 700$.

SPOILER: Highlight text to view.

DAMN YOU TCOS! I had 569 post count... and you ruined it for me!! noooooooooo

[SCHUMI-4-EVA]

That laptop comes to slightly over $1200 dollars TCOS if you add in all the parts.

[runawayprisoner]

Buy HP Pavilion dv6700t series, HP Pavilion and Compaq Presario Notebook PCs and Laptop Computers direct from the HP Home & Home Office Store

^= Click on Customize and Buy, then add the 8400GS or change a few other components around, and you are good to go.

But seriously, I can even work with 300dpi pictures at 20" x 20" on my Eee PC, so I don't suppose you'll need such a monstrous computer just for Photoshop. As for gaming, if you don't intend to play anything past 2004, then that laptop from HP can last for a few years. I myself barely play anything past 2000. MGS2 on the go FTW! (okay, I lied. It wouldn't run MGS2 that well... but what the hey?)

[SCHUMI-4-EVA]

That is the best option...but also outside your budget...I had a look and it would come to around 893 (with a good battery)

[runawayprisoner]

This is perfect for your budget:



And of course, the battery is going to cost $100 more. That's how it is for most batteries these days. Even if you buy another laptop, there's no guarantee you will get the 12-cell battery pack.

[SCHUMI-4-EVA]

I had the same setup when I checked for price just that I went for the first C2D and 2GB of RAM and that 12 cell battery.

[Cheesus]

RefurbDepot.com - Product Details
RefurbDepot.com - Product Details
Like it was sent from the heavens.

[SCHUMI-4-EVA]

Not really...that Intel GMA X3100 is awfull...even worse than the GeForce 7000M of the first laptop.

[Cheesus]

I added the second one a split second after you replied.

[SCHUMI-4-EVA]

I don't know Gateway as I said, but the specs on that one are not half bad for it's price.

[TheCloudOfSmoke]

Originally Posted by SCHUMI-4-EVA

That laptop comes to slightly over $1200 dollars TCOS if you add in all the parts.

I should have read through it before posting then. I was in a rush to get back to work though.

Originally Posted by runaway