So I want some opinions

[Inkidu]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gx60-gaming-laptop-radeon-hd-7970m,3478.html

I found this laptop noodling around online, and it looks good to me. However, I'm barely computer fluent, and was just looking for other opinions.

[Sprikut]

Depends on your budget, its cost and what you want to do with it?

That review is almost a year old, so I would guess it should be closer to $800 on sale now adays.

If you're looking for some light gaming/art programs it should be good.

If you're looking for word processing and internet its alot more than what you need.

[Nowherewoman]

And it at least claims to ship with Win7, which for my money, is a BIG plus. I had to accept Windows H8 on my Lenovo, and am still carving it into a usable OS.  A tad low on memory, though unless you're running state of the art games full out, you prolly won't notice, if you tweak WinDoze and shed some of the inevitable crap in it. Might want to see if there's a 12-G version available. Memory Overkill isn't, really, at least up to a point.

OTOH, the two small SSds in RAID combined  w/the 3/4Tb HD seems a bit silly, to me, and mostly a way to go 'SHINY!  EXPENSIVE!'. Personally, would rather see a single larger SSD (for OS and seriously frame-intensive games), or a HUGE standard HD with SSD caching. YMMV.


You might have a look at Ebay- I got my Ideapad y510p for about 55% of what it was then retailing streetside for- you might, indeed, find this machine for 800 or even 5-600 bucks.

[Inkidu]

I'm looking for a solid gaming laptop, something sturdy. My current one is going on five years old, and it's not holding up fantastically.

[Oreo]

I still recommend an Asus RoG, review. The screen just needs to be tilted right.

[Inkidu]

I still recommend an Asus RoG, review. The screen just needs to be tilted right.

Over $2,000 is pretty steep. I mean I think a few Alienware options I looked at came out cheaper for the same specs. :|

Actually it's closer to 3K USD. :|

[Oreo]

Blargg, I had hoped the price dropped a bit.

[Inkidu]

Blargg, I had hoped the price dropped a bit.

Always the eternal hope of the thrifty, right? :)

[Sprikut]

problem with Alien ware is its all proprietary dell crap now. *frown* I just did a repair job that cost $300 instead of $80 because the I had to completely replace some outdated dell parts.

Desktops will always out perform Laptops in budget and quality. Is there a specific reason you need your Laptop to Play games? 

[Inkidu]

problem with Alien ware is its all proprietary dell crap now. *frown* I just did a repair job that cost $300 instead of $80 because the I had to completely replace some outdated dell parts.

Desktops will always out perform Laptops in budget and quality. Is there a specific reason you need your Laptop to Play games?

Well because if I ever get a steady-enough job to buy the laptop I'll probably be able to move into my own place and thus I don't want to lug around a giant computer. :|

It really only has to game because I like games, and if I want games I want something that'll play modern games, if not on the highest settings.

[Valthazar]

Unless you really, really, really want a laptop for gaming, I would suggest going with a desktop.

I bought my current desktop in October 2012 with a GTX 550ti gfx card for $875, and have been running it pretty much 24/7 ever since, and I can still play many games at Ultra settings if I turn anti-aliasing off.  I can easily change my card for another $150 or so and keep things going for several more years.

If small size is super important to you, and you really only want to game, I would think about just buying a PS4 or Xbox One.  It's small and also cheaper than a gaming laptop.

I know I'm a little biased, but I am not sure if there is an advantage of gaming laptops over desktops or consoles.

[consortium11]

There's pretty much no such thing as a "gaming" laptop... and those that actually might qualify as such are ruinously expensive (and that's even if priced fairly).

Essentially it can be broken down like this; to get the same performance out of a laptop as a desktop you generally have to spend between 1.5 and 2 times as much. If a gaming desktop starts to lag behind the curve you can upgrade individual parts as and when needed (and while not everyone will want to upgrade a PC themselves there are still enough computer shops around who will do it for a small fee) where as with a laptop you essentially have to buy a new one. I'd also note that one of the main advantages of a laptop; small size and portability, is largely lost for a gaming laptop; by necessity they'll be bulky and heavy.

Unless you are going to be incredibly mobile at virtually all times (living in hotel rooms essentially) I'd suggest a better option is to get a cheap laptop (hell, possibly even a tablet) for "on the go" computing and then spend the rest on a desktop. There are lots of firms that will build one for you either to some pre-desigined specs or allow you to customise pretty much every element (if you want to do your research into what you want). It will perform far better than a laptop in the same price region. You'll have to buy peripherals but screens and keyboards can be incredibly cheap (and in the screen's case you can always hook it up to an existing TV instead).

[Valthazar]

Unless you are going to be incredibly mobile at virtually all times (living in hotel rooms essentially) I'd suggest a better option is to get a cheap laptop (hell, possibly even a tablet) for "on the go" computing and then spend the rest on a desktop.

+1

I use a $200 Samsung Chromebook for work (email, websurfing, Google docs for word, excel, ppt functions).  I love it because it's light, and easily fits into my portfolio.  When I get home, I sync everything to my desktop, and format it how I wish.

It also helps me to maintain a separation between personal stuff and work stuff.

[Inkidu]

Okay, I'm done.