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LAPTOP BUYING GUIDE

EEzycade

EEzycade

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 29, 2018
219
225
Mesa, Arizona
As a Mac user finally branching out, I am looking for a windows laptop. Some baisc requirements are: core i7, at least 500 gb of storage, and it needs to be able to output 4k to a monitor. I heard that the last one might require a soecific hdmi like hdmi2.0 but i dont know. I am new to the whole PC and windows world. I would really appreciate any siggestions. This is the only place I know to ask for help. Thanks
 
I copied this form from another forum. There are a lot of options out there. For instance there are huge differences among CPU high powered i5 are faster than low voltage i7.

This form makes it easier for us to recommend you a laptop, so we don't have to ask you lots of questions.

Please copy and paste these questions into the thread you post, and we can help you find the laptop that suits you.


1. What is your budget?

2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?

3. What screen resolution do you want?

4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?

5. How much battery life do you need?

6. Do you want to play games with your laptop? If so then please list the games that you want to with the settings that you want for these games. (Low,Medium or High)?

7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)

8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need? Do you want an SSD?

9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.

10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?

11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ? If you don’t need an optical drive. Please say so. It makes a big difference in options.

12. Please tell us about the brands that you prefer to buy from them and the brands that you don't like and explain the reasons.

13. What country do you live in?

14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.



I hope this can help people find their ideal notebook.

Additionally... you should also consider what support options are available in your area. If say you buy something abroad, will you be able to have it fixed near where you live? Does the warranty apply? How quickly do local accredited technicians fix laptops?
 
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1. 800-1400
2. 13 or 15 inches
3. I don’t care as long as I can hook it up to a 4k display(20-30 inches) and actually make it 4k
4. Portable(to take to college) but I want more screen real estate hence the external monitor
5. 6-7 hours, i need it to survive at college
6. Yes, Fortnite, rocket league, some other basic games, im not really a gamer. In regard to graphics, I think a nvidia geforce gtx 1050 should be able to power a 4k display.
7. Video editing, some graphic design work
8. 128 or 256 gb should be fine, ssd please
9. I was leaning towards Amazon but I don’t know
10. 2, 3, 4 years, a while
11. No need for one
12. Dell, Asus, Acer, Lenovo, HP are all fair game, all brands I trust
13. USA
14. I have a muscle disease, Muscular Dystrophy, so weight is a concern for me. I can’t really lift anything over 6 pounds, but I understand with power comes weight. I need to find a happy medium. I’m also 18 and have been a Mac user for all my life, so I hope my lack of knowledge isn’t too much on display in my answers.
 
The ASUS Zenbook UX550VE is the best match I found in your price range. There are faster laptops in this price range with a GTX 1060. Considering your weight and battery life requirements. You'll be stuck with a GTX 1050 Ti. Overall it is loaded with features, light, large SSD and long battery life. The only minor complaints are screen brightness and color accuracy out of the box. Brightness is about average for it's category and color accuracy could be better with a fairly high Delta E. However, it does 122% Adobe sRGB. It has excellent range.

- i7-7700HQ
- GTX 1050 Ti
- 16GB RAM
- 512GB NVMe SSD
- 2x Thunderbolt 3/USB 3.1 Gen 2
- 1920x1080 display
- 74 Whr battery (reviewed at over 7 hours life)
- 4 lbs
- Windows 10 Pro

I'll list the Amazon and Newegg link. Newegg is a good reseller. Currently their price is $100 lower.
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834235026&ignorebbr=1
https://www.amazon.com/Asus-ZenBook-Pro-UX550VE-XH71-Professional/dp/B07F79W2BC/

Review
https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/asus-zenbook-pro-ux550ve

Their literature says it supports dual 4K displays via Thunderbolt 3. Given the GPU and CPU generation. The HDMI port should be HDMI 2.0. As both natively use HDMI 2.0. They don't explicitly mention HDMI generation. It would make no sense for it to be anything else. At worst you'd end up using a Thunderbolt 3 to HDMI 2.0 cable.

Just note that while you would have a 4K display. A GTX 1050 Ti will have a hard time gaming at 4K. You'll have to detail settings in a lot of games at 4K. Even at 1920x1080 you won't be playing at max settings in demanding games. Unfortunately there isn't a solution. A GTX 1060 is better but blows the weight and battery life requirements. A GTX 1070 is even worse.
 
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Most laptops will come with an integrated video card, which can handle a 4K display, but not as well as you may like. Laptops with dedicated video cards are heavier, more expensive, and consume more battery life. In addition, the mobile video cards are not particularly powerful.

If you do not need a video card while on the run, you may take a look at an external GPU, which could be powerful enough to drive your 4K display while keeping your laptop thin and light.
 
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