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15 inch or 13 inch for gaming?

CAdavid said:
I hear the 2012 models comes out next month. So I will be waiting and seeing. How soon do you think we will see price drops for older models?
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Pretty quickly, I would look out for refurbished ones from the AppleStore sometimes you can get a bargain but with Apple warranty :)

Good Luck!

Edwin
 
I am currently looking at a 15 inch with a GeForce 330M on craigslist. I'm asking the person for $850 and it's a 2010 model.
 
CAdavid said:
I am currently looking at a 15 inch with a GeForce 330M on craigslist. I'm asking the person for $850 and it's a 2010 model.
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Highway robbery. Especially for what you want. Laugh at them and keep looking.

Edit: For instance, go to laptop review or deal tracking sites and find amazing coupon offers that I stumbled across the other day. It's HP, which some people have issue with (I don't), but those are monster specs for an incredible price.
 

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Miharu said:
Five years is like three forevers when it comes to computers. Don't get the 13" one because like said before, the 15" one has a real graphics card inside and not an integrated intel lame-o.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJYRSIlg0Ws

What if we use ThunderBolt connection to the MSI GUS II using graphics cards up to 150Mhz bandwidth, something like the AMD Radeon HD 6700?

AMD Radeon HD 6700:

PCI Express 2.1 x16 bus interface
OpenGL 4.1 support
OpenCL 1.1 support
DirectX 11 support.

http://www.amd.com/us/products/note...00m-6600m/pages/amd-radeon-6700m-6600m.aspx#2

NOTE: The device can take any AMD or Nvidia graphics card so long as it doesn't need more than 150W of power and, of course, it needs to fit within the casing.

Update:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-Radeon-HD-6770M.43955.0.html
However, it is still produced in 40nm and based on the same Whistler chip as the entire 6700M and 6600M series. The chip is normally clocked at 725 MHz, but is only clocked at 675 MHz in the MacBook Pro 15 Late 2011 model.
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Do we now have a viable option for MBA/MBP 13" units, since using this solution disables the internal crapola Intel HD 3000 chipset?!
 
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Prom1 said:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJYRSIlg0Ws

What if we use ThunderBolt connection to the MSI GUS II using graphics cards up to 150Mhz bandwidth, something like the AMD Radeon HD 6700?

AMD Radeon HD 6700:

PCI Express 2.1 x16 bus interface
OpenGL 4.1 support
OpenCL 1.1 support
DirectX 11 support.

http://www.amd.com/us/products/note...00m-6600m/pages/amd-radeon-6700m-6600m.aspx#2

NOTE: The device can take any AMD or Nvidia graphics card so long as it doesn't need more than 150W of power and, of course, it needs to fit within the casing.

Update:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-Radeon-HD-6770M.43955.0.html


Do we now have a viable option for MBA/MBP 13" units, since using this solution disables the internal crapola Intel HD 3000 chipset?!
Click to expand...

The GUS takes desktop GPUs, not laptop GPUs. Both of the ones you have linked are laptop GPUs.

150 watts is NOT a lot of power for a desktop GPU either. A desktop Radeon 6770 for example takes the full 150 watts of a PCI-E slot PLUS most require another 75 watts from a power connector.
 
mikeo007 said:
The GUS takes desktop GPUs, not laptop GPUs. Both of the ones you have linked are laptop GPUs.

150 watts is NOT a lot of power for a desktop GPU either. A desktop Radeon 6770 for example takes the full 150 watts of a PCI-E slot PLUS most require another 75 watts from a power connector.
Click to expand...

My mistake. However is it possible to achieve on par graphic performance with such a solution? What desktop video cards are available with similar performance unde that 150W threshold?
 
malman89 said:
Highway robbery. Especially for what you want. Laugh at them and keep looking.

Edit: For instance, go to laptop review or deal tracking sites and find amazing coupon offers that I stumbled across the other day. It's HP, which some people have issue with (I don't), but those are monster specs for an incredible price.
Click to expand...

It's HP. The fans will sound like a 747.
 
All the people selling Macbook Pros on craiglist never got back to me. I can't seem to find a job, so I am stuck with only $800 to spend.

I did find a guy selling an Alienware laptop and he confirmed it's for sale. Here are the specs:

Selling my two month old m14x that I received as a replacement system for an older, damaged system. There is still a year of next business day warranty on the machine, and it is in overall excellent condition, with very little if any cosmetic wear. The specifications are as follows:

Intel Core i7 2670m
8Gb 1600 MHz DDR3 Ram
Nvidia GT555m 3.0 GB DDR3 Dedicated GPU w/Optimus Technology
900p HD+ Display
Killer Wireless-N 1103 Wireless Card
DVD/RW 8x
Bluetooth Wireless Card 375
750Gb HDD 7200RPM
Nebula Red Chassis Color
Windows 7 Home Premium
Microsoft Office

3 Questions before I purchase:

1) Can it play new games up to 3 yrs down the road on low?

2) Can it run Guild Wars 2?

3) If I took good care of the machine and replace the battery once, will it last me 10 yrs?

Thx
 
CAdavid said:
All the people selling Macbook Pros on craiglist never got back to me. I can't seem to find a job, so I am stuck with only $800 to spend.

I did find a guy selling an Alienware laptop and he confirmed it's for sale. Here are the specs:

Selling my two month old m14x that I received as a replacement system for an older, damaged system. There is still a year of next business day warranty on the machine, and it is in overall excellent condition, with very little if any cosmetic wear. The specifications are as follows:

Intel Core i7 2670m
8Gb 1600 MHz DDR3 Ram
Nvidia GT555m 3.0 GB DDR3 Dedicated GPU w/Optimus Technology
900p HD+ Display
Killer Wireless-N 1103 Wireless Card
DVD/RW 8x
Bluetooth Wireless Card 375
750Gb HDD 7200RPM
Nebula Red Chassis Color
Windows 7 Home Premium
Microsoft Office

3 Questions before I purchase:

1) Can it play new games up to 3 yrs down the road on low?

2) Can it run Guild Wars 2?

3) If I took good care of the machine and replace the battery once, will it last me 10 yrs?

Thx
Click to expand...

In my honest opinion.

1) No one has a crystal ball so no one can say for sure but I doubt it will play the latest games 3 years down the road even at low.

3) No computer is going to last you ten years especially when it comes to gaming. If you think that then you're expecting way too much.

A desktop maybe at a stretch and even that's asking a lot. A laptop even an Alienware no chance. You would need to upgrade several of the key components several times and in a laptop that's going to be very difficult and more likely impossible.
 
CAdavid said:
All the people selling Macbook Pros on craiglist never got back to me. I can't seem to find a job, so I am stuck with only $800 to spend.

I did find a guy selling an Alienware laptop and he confirmed it's for sale. Here are the specs:

Selling my two month old m14x that I received as a replacement system for an older, damaged system. There is still a year of next business day warranty on the machine, and it is in overall excellent condition, with very little if any cosmetic wear. The specifications are as follows:

Intel Core i7 2670m
8Gb 1600 MHz DDR3 Ram
Nvidia GT555m 3.0 GB DDR3 Dedicated GPU w/Optimus Technology
900p HD+ Display
Killer Wireless-N 1103 Wireless Card
DVD/RW 8x
Bluetooth Wireless Card 375
750Gb HDD 7200RPM
Nebula Red Chassis Color
Windows 7 Home Premium
Microsoft Office

3 Questions before I purchase:

1) Can it play new games up to 3 yrs down the road on low?

2) Can it run Guild Wars 2?

3) If I took good care of the machine and replace the battery once, will it last me 10 yrs?

Thx
Click to expand...

1) No, not well. Use a 3 year old Macbook as an example. 9600m GT will not run Battlefield 3 well at all.

2) Yes, for now.

3) 99% chance of no, not unless you left it in the box and never used it.
 
mikeo007 said:
1) No, not well. Use a 3 year old Macbook as an example. 9600m GT will not run Battlefield 3 well at all.

2) Yes, for now.

3) 99% chance of no, not unless you left it in the box and never used it.
Click to expand...

I heard on average laptops last 5 yrs, and then the battery and other parts might need repair to last longer.

This is an alienware and can play alot of modern games on high, so I am guessing on low it can play new games 2-3 yrs down the road. But heck, Guild Wars 2 and D3 and SC2 have a 10 yr time table til a new release so as long as my laptop can last til the sequels of these games. Last as in with repairs helping. As long as my hard drive doesnt crash I think I will be good.
 
CAdavid said:
I heard on average laptops last 5 yrs, and then the battery and other parts might need repair to last longer.

This is an alienware and can play alot of modern games on high, so I am guessing on low it can play new games 2-3 yrs down the road. But heck, Guild Wars 2 and D3 and SC2 have a 10 yr time table til a new release so as long as my laptop can last til the sequels of these games. Last as in with repairs helping. As long as my hard drive doesnt crash I think I will be good.
Click to expand...

Best of luck with it. A word of warning though...when World of Warcraft first came out, I played it on a Compaq R3000 that was fully capable. Within 2 years of release, the computer no longer met the minimum requirements for WoW. Games that are constantly updated tend to have updated graphics in order to stay relevant. Just a word to the wise. In the past 10 or so years, I've never seen a computer that was capable of playing new games at reasonable settings after 3-4 years.
 
mikeo007 said:
Best of luck with it. A word of warning though...when World of Warcraft first came out, I played it on a Compaq R3000 that was fully capable. Within 2 years of release, the computer no longer met the minimum requirements for WoW. Games that are constantly updated tend to have updated graphics in order to stay relevant. Just a word to the wise. In the past 10 or so years, I've never seen a computer that was capable of playing new games at reasonable settings after 3-4 years.
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Yeah but look at starcraft and Guild wars and Diablo 2. They had very long life cycles. My friend's laptop from 2009 can run Diablo 3.
 
This is from the guy selling:

"I just saw your messages today, and unfortunately I cannot sell the laptop until the quarter ends. I am a poly student and need it for various classes. If you are still interested afterwards, feel free to contact me and we can work something out. The unit has undergone some cosmetic damage since I put the listing up, most notably the wearing away of the rubberized shell. The corners of the laptop have, upon inspection, visible wear. The screen also has some backlight bleed that can be reported to dell under warranty and replaced, which I am going to attempt to do prior to selling the laptop."
"

I asked for pictures, and if he can get Dell can fix the rubberized ware and also the backlight bleed.

Anything else I should ask from him?
 
You now only have $800 to spend, no source of income and just need it for games. I say drop the matter until you have a new source of income and more money to spend. Or get anything new for $800. At that rate, even a mid level 2012 laptop will be more future proof, as well as coming with a 1-2 year warranty stock.
 
CAdavid said:
I heard on average laptops last 5 yrs, and then the battery and other parts might need repair to last longer.

This is an alienware and can play alot of modern games on high, so I am guessing on low it can play new games 2-3 yrs down the road. But heck, Guild Wars 2 and D3 and SC2 have a 10 yr time table til a new release so as long as my laptop can last til the sequels of these games. Last as in with repairs helping. As long as my hard drive doesnt crash I think I will be good.
Click to expand...

Maybe for day to day tasks like Internet, email, word processing, Skype etc but not for gaming. You're kidding yourself if you think a computer especially a laptop will last 5 years for gaming. It's just not going to happen. Gaming development moves on and new games will always work best or require the latest hardware. Laptops cannot in general be upgraded and in 5 years time you won't be able to play games released two or three years before let alone the latest games.
 
Why anyone would even consider an alienware laptop is beyond me... Get a stationary computer if you want to game, otherwise get a laptop.. Not a brick the size of a small house.
 
Mr.C said:
Gaming development moves on and new games will always work best or require the latest hardware. Laptops cannot in general be upgraded and in 5 years time you won't be able to play games released two or three years before let alone the latest games.
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Here is an example (both of these cards are the BTO high spec versions).

The 8600M MacBookPro from Early 2008 is under spec for the latest games
The 9600M MacBookPro from Late 2008 just made the spec for Deus Ex but you have to play at minimum resolution and everything turned off. The frame rate is stable but you cannot turn anything up even one setting.

So the Mac laptop from 4 years ago is out of date for new games, the laptop from just under 4 years ago has had it's last major title.

If you are a gamer I would expect if you buy a decent MBP with a good card (and decent does not just mean more VRAM) it will last about 3 and a bit years any longer than 3 years should be taken as a bonus. We have had lots of laptops through the years at Feral and 3 to 4 years tends to be the limit, first year you will be running on high settings and 3 to 4 years later you will no longer make the min spec on the latest games.

Edwin
 
HP Pavilion dv6t Quad Edition customizable Notebook PC

A3F49AV


Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
3rd generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3610QM Processor (2.3 GHz, 6MB L3 Cache)
NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GT 650M Graphics with 1GB GDDR5 memory [HDMI, VGA]
FREE Upgrade to 8GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
FREE Upgrade to 1TB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
NO mSSD Hard Drive Acceleration Cache
Microsoft(R) Office Starter: reduced-functionality Word/Excel(R) only, No PowerPoint(R)/Outlook(R)
No additional security software
6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery - Up to 6.0 hours of battery life +++
15.6-inch diagonal HD BrightView LED-backlit Display (1366x768)
FREE Upgrade to Blu-ray player & SuperMulti DVD burner
HP TrueVision HD Webcam
802.11b/g/n WLAN
Standard Keyboard
HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
 
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