Excited!! Rate my new gig!

[mechpro]

Hey Guys,

I just customized a laptop from AlienWare Can I can get some feed back based soley on it's ability to play games at high levels of settings? Please note that I recognize I could have done better if I had used a different company but I really wanted an Alienware. I intend to use it for hardcore gaming and nothing else.

Processor: i7 620M 2.6 GHZ (Turbo up to 3.33 Cache 4MB)
RAM: 8GB DDR3
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 5870 (Just one not dual)
HD: 250GB 7200 RPM SATA IIHDD
Screen: 17-inch WideXGA+ 1440 x 900 (900p)

 

[Timop]

You really cant use 8GB for gaming and Id opted for the 1080P screen.

If I was you, Id gotten G73 for $1600 with a i7 quad, 1080P screen, and 500GB hard drive and killer looks.

But pricing aside and brand preference, it should max out nearly every game on that resolution. Have fun!

 

[mechpro]

Thank you for your feedback Timop. Given that I wanted an alienware, and budget constraints, it sounds like the machine will still max everything out. In my book that's a success. Though I did read somewhere that for gaming, the i7 620M is better than MOST i7 quads. I guess only 1 way to find out...

 

[Timop]

Thank you for your feedback Timop. Given that I wanted an alienware, and budget constraints, it sounds like the machine will still max everything out. In my book that's a success. Though I did read somewhere that for gaming, the i7 620M is better than MOST i7 quads. I guess only 1 way to find out...

For some games, true. They barely use 2 cores so the dual with the much higher clocks would be quite a bit better than the i7. But for CPU-intensive games that can use all 4 cores, the quad would come out top by a margin.

 

[mechpro]

When you say "But for CPU-intensive games, the i7 would come out top by a margin." Do you mean any i7 would come out on top by a margin when compared to the i5 series? Or do you mean the i7 620M would come out on top by a margin when compared to to the i7 Quad Core series?

 

[Timop]

When you say "But for CPU-intensive games, the i7 would come out top by a margin." Do you mean any i7 would come out on top by a margin when compared to the i5 series? Or do you mean the i7 620M would come out on top by a margin when compared to to the i7 Quad Core series?

LOL, sorry. Accidentally classed the duals as i5s and quads as i7s... Let me edit.XD

 

[mechpro]

AH I see now. So does that mean that since the 620M is both an i7 (hence the name i7 620M) and Duo Core (because it has 2 cores) it's the best of both worlds? Also would you mind explaning why 8GB of RAM doesn't really have a significant impact on gaming. I did some research and my research told me that the increase in performance when upgrading to 8GB from 6GB was minimal but the reason I did it is because Alienware's 6GB configuration is 1 stick of 2 GB and 1 stick of 4GB. I didn't like that option because my research also told me that I should also try to have my RAM symetrically allocated. The 8GB is offered in the form of 2 sticks of 4GB each which is more symetrical than the available option for the 6GB. Any Thoughts?

 

[Timop]

AH I see now. So does that mean that since the 620M is both an i7 (hence the name i7 620M) and Duo Core (because it has 2 cores) it's the best of both worlds? Also would you mind explaning why 8GB of RAM doesn't really have a significant impact on gaming. I did some research and my research told me that the increase in performance when upgrading to 8GB from 6GB was minimal but the reason I did it is because Alienware's 6GB configuration is 1 stick of 2 GB and 1 stick of 4GB. I didn't like that option because my research also told me that I should also try to have my RAM symetrically allocated. The 8GB is offered in the form of 2 sticks of 4GB each which is more symetrical than the available option for the 6GB. Any Thoughts?

No, lol. I just meant the quad would be better for for games that can use all 4 cores, but not all games can hence the dual with with a higher clockspeed is faster then.

Forgot Alienware starts at 6GB, instead of 4GB, then never-mind, decent laptop you got there. Theres tests done before that showed gaming doesn't benefit from more than 4GB, like this: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/memory/2008/07/08/is-more-memory-better/1.

 

[abswindows7]

It's like buying an i5 750 overclocked with a 4870 ... I'd rate your build a 4/10

Low resolution screen, excessive amount of ram, I bet the battery is going to cry after a few month of use.

Just don't buy alienware ... Unless you have 10k+ cash hanging there doing nothing. (under 10k you have nothing xD)