- Jun 22, 2010
- 42
- 0
- 18,530
Hello folks;
I'm obviously not trying to find the ultimate mobile gaming unit on a sub-1K budget, but I would like a machine that can play Skyrim, Deus Ex HR, stuff like that on high-ish settings. I do not want to spend more than $900 because I plan to also purchase the 3-year SquareTrade warranty which will boost my cost up over a thousand anyway, but if there is some spectacular deal that requires an extra fifty ducks or something over my limit, I'm totally down.
Hit me with any and all suggestions; links are nice if you have them handy.
As is custom, here is the official questionnaire:
1. What is your budget?
$900. I'm flexible, though: I'll shell out a little extra for a really sweet deal.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
14" to 15" preferably, but I'm open to most anything.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
I want x1080, I'd be okay with x900, and I'd settle for x768.
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Either or. I have no issue with lugging around a fifteen-pound notebook.
5. How much battery life do you need?
I plan to be plugged in most of the time. Four hours would be sufficient.
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)?
I would like to run Skyrim (most important), Deus Ex HR, Rage, Space Marine, Crysis Warhead and other stuff of that general technology level on medium-high settings. And if I can play The Witcher 2 on any settings at all, that'd be just gravy.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
Photoshop mostly, aside from the standard word processing/web-surfing/etc.
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
500GB at least would be nice, although the most important thing about the HDD for me is that it is 7200 RPM.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
No preference. It has to be legit, though. If you link me to Toolscamera I will eat your face off.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
Long time. Honestly I'm not worried about when I'll need another one.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
DVD-ROM at least.
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.
Through Microsoft Prime I can get discounts on Dell (and, I think, Alienware by extension), Lenovo, and Sony, and a family friend can get discounts on HP. However, I resent Dell for all the junk software they pre-install on their machines, and the last time I had an HP-related hardware failure (DVD drive to be specific) their customer service was less than worthless.
13. What country do you live in?
United States.
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
Right now I'm looking at the ASUS G53SW-XA1 on Amazon, which is discounted to 899.99. On the surface it seems like a remarkable deal, but the lion's share of the reviews call it a piss-poor piece of hardware, citing failures with the power switch or AC cord or things like that, and a subsequent need for replacement.
Now I realize that the Amazon customer reviews are not an accurate cross-section of the results of all people who purchase the machine (a failure is more likely to result in a review, etc.) but I'm still skeptical, which is why I'm asking for alternatives. The G53 is a beastly machine, especially at that price, but I'll settle for slightly less good hardware for a more reliable piece of tech.
I'm obviously not trying to find the ultimate mobile gaming unit on a sub-1K budget, but I would like a machine that can play Skyrim, Deus Ex HR, stuff like that on high-ish settings. I do not want to spend more than $900 because I plan to also purchase the 3-year SquareTrade warranty which will boost my cost up over a thousand anyway, but if there is some spectacular deal that requires an extra fifty ducks or something over my limit, I'm totally down.
Hit me with any and all suggestions; links are nice if you have them handy.
As is custom, here is the official questionnaire:
1. What is your budget?
$900. I'm flexible, though: I'll shell out a little extra for a really sweet deal.
2. What is the size of the notebook that you are considering?
14" to 15" preferably, but I'm open to most anything.
3. What screen resolution do you want?
I want x1080, I'd be okay with x900, and I'd settle for x768.
4. Do you need a portable or desktop replacement laptop?
Either or. I have no issue with lugging around a fifteen-pound notebook.
5. How much battery life do you need?
I plan to be plugged in most of the time. Four hours would be sufficient.
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)?
I would like to run Skyrim (most important), Deus Ex HR, Rage, Space Marine, Crysis Warhead and other stuff of that general technology level on medium-high settings. And if I can play The Witcher 2 on any settings at all, that'd be just gravy.
7. What other tasks do you want to do with your laptop? (Photo/Video editing, Etc.)
Photoshop mostly, aside from the standard word processing/web-surfing/etc.
8. How much storage (Hard Drive capacity) do you need?
500GB at least would be nice, although the most important thing about the HDD for me is that it is 7200 RPM.
9. If you are considering specific sites to buy from, please post their links.
No preference. It has to be legit, though. If you link me to Toolscamera I will eat your face off.
10. How long do you want to keep your laptop?
Long time. Honestly I'm not worried about when I'll need another one.
11. What kind of Optical drive do you need? DVD ROM/Writer,Bluray ROM/Writer,Etc ?
DVD-ROM at least.
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.
Through Microsoft Prime I can get discounts on Dell (and, I think, Alienware by extension), Lenovo, and Sony, and a family friend can get discounts on HP. However, I resent Dell for all the junk software they pre-install on their machines, and the last time I had an HP-related hardware failure (DVD drive to be specific) their customer service was less than worthless.
13. What country do you live in?
United States.
14. Please tell us any additional information if needed.
Right now I'm looking at the ASUS G53SW-XA1 on Amazon, which is discounted to 899.99. On the surface it seems like a remarkable deal, but the lion's share of the reviews call it a piss-poor piece of hardware, citing failures with the power switch or AC cord or things like that, and a subsequent need for replacement.
Now I realize that the Amazon customer reviews are not an accurate cross-section of the results of all people who purchase the machine (a failure is more likely to result in a review, etc.) but I'm still skeptical, which is why I'm asking for alternatives. The G53 is a beastly machine, especially at that price, but I'll settle for slightly less good hardware for a more reliable piece of tech.
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