SLI & Centrino 2: Gaming Laptops Battle

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Model Alienware m17x ASUS G71 Eurocom Montebello Killer Notebooks Odachi
CPU Core 2 Extreme X9000 Core 2 Duo T9400 Core 2 Extreme X9100 Core 2 Quad Q9650
Memory 4 GB DDR2-800 4 GB DDR3-1333 2 GB DDR3-1333 4GB DDR2-800
Chipset PM965 PM45 PM45 P965
Graphics 2 x GeForce 9800M GT GeForce 9700M GT GeForce 9800M GT 2 x GeForce 8800M GTX
LCD 17” (1920x1200) 17” (1920x1200) 15” (1680x1050) 17” (1920x1200)
Chassis Alienware ASUS Clevo Clevo
Storage 2 x Samsung 500GB SpinPoint H6 2 x WD 250GB Scorpio Blue 1 x Hitachi 320GB Travelstar 7K320 3 x WD 160GB Scorpio Black
Networking GbE + 4965AGN GbE + WiFi Link 5100 GbE + WiFi Link 5300 GbE + 4965AGN
Battery 6,600 mAh 5,200 mAh 4,400 mAh 6,600 mAh
Camera 2 MP 2MP 2MP 2MP
Optical 2x DL BR, DVD+/-R/RW Combo DVD+/-R/RW Combo DVD+/-R/RW Combo DVD+/-R/RW Combo
Warranty Up to 3-year 24/7 phone w/on-site service (extra $300) 2-year hardware/1-year battery/30-day zero bright dot + free two-way overnight shipping Up to 3-year return to depot with tech support ($245 extra) 1-year global warranty/30-day dead pixel guarantee
Chris Angelini
Chris Angelini
Chris Angelini is an Editor Emeritus at Tom's Hardware US. He edits hardware reviews and covers high-profile CPU and GPU launches.
43 Comments Comment from the forums
  • kitsilencer
    From a money point of view, it's never going to make sense buying a gaming laptop. Scaled down performance and inability to upgrade are issues.

    But it sure as hell feels good having one ^___^
    Reply
  • Hey, that aint green...
    Reply
  • neiroatopelcc
    http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-notebook-roundup,2023-6.html
    "shipped the system with a 64-bit copy of Vista Ultimate (Alienware included x32 Home Premium)."
    Reply
  • ap90033
    4 Grand? Are you guys nuts? I would say that right there would rule out about 90% of us normal gmaers..

    Besides the gaming scores looked weak imo..

    I personally thought it was a better idea to go get a Gateway P7811FX with a single Geforce 9800GTS. It plays Call of Duty at 1920x1200 max settings around 50FPS. AND it cost me ONLY $1249 (Plus Best Buy let me pick any game I wanted for FREE!)
    Reply
  • jas39
    what about www.xtremenotebooks.com?
    Reply
  • agree with kitsilencer, gaming laptop is never practical.

    even with a beast graphics card, you'd be pretty hard to get more than 2 hours of shitty performance.

    get a gaming desktop and perhaps an EEE or iPhone for travelling. my iPhone has 20+ games and enough media (don't forget TV connector for watching films in hotels) to keep me busy for more than one week away from my gaming rig.
    Reply
  • ap90033
    oops cant spell "gamers" lol
    Reply
  • ap90033
    Not true my "Gmaing Laptop" is great at LAN Parties and I play it for 6-8 Hours straight there...

    I think maybe you had a bad experience with a laptop that claimed to be a "gaming" laptop. I bought one before like that and it have an 8600M Geforce and it Sucked bad... If you get a good laptop with say a 9800gts or so you would be suprised...
    Reply
  • GlItCh017
    ap900334 Grand? Are you guys nuts? I would say that right there would rule out about 90% of us normal gmaers..99.90%
    Reply
  • ap90033
    PS gaming laptops hold value much better than desktops. I had one I paid 1250 for, had it for a year, then sold it for $1100 and bought the newer "upgraded" model that just came out for $1250. I got an Upgraded CPU (From Core 2 1.67 GHZ to Core 2 Centrino 2 2.26 GHZ), Memory (from 3 Gigs DDR2 667MHZ to 4 Gigs DDR3 1066MHZ), Hard Drive (faster), Video Card (from 8800gts to 9800GTS), Screen (from 1440x800 to 1920x1200) and OS (From 32 bit to 64 bit). Not bad upgrade for $150 or so!
    Reply