Please Help a N00b With Picking Gaming Laptop

[USArmyParatrooper]

Hello All,

This is my first post. I'm ignorant when it comes to anything technical involving computers so I figured I would find a tech forum and consult people with more knowledge than me. I'm asking for a lot of information, so any help is greatly appreciated.

I'm looking for a gaming laptop and I want to be able to get the most bang for my buck. I'll be using it to run RPG type games with the highest resolution settings possible. It would be for games like the newest versions of Skyrim, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, etc. I don't mind if the laptop is overkill.

What I want is the most bang for my buck. I'm looking for big processing power with a powerful video card, but I also want overall quality for the rest of the computer. What I mean by the latter is a strong cooling system, a quality motherboard, an overall robust build where parts don't wear out quickly, etc.

My budget is in the $1500 range. I can stretch that a bit but I'd really like to stay below $2000.

I looked at Alienware and a Google search came up with something called "Battalion 101" as one that is high end. I noticed that 15 inch laptops are offered quite a bit, and I'm OK with it being that small. I'm assuming when you go small you can spend more money on the more powerful internal components?

Thanks again!

-Sean

 

[PorkChopz]

:/

Uhmm i dont know i would cjange your mind but gaming laptops are verry danm exspensive over here in the uk roughly around £2000-3000 and they are very bulky. Also not alot of have long battery life so you cant stray away from a power supply for too long also they get pretty hot and for a £500 you can get a machine alot better

 

[trynreadme]

I would suggest this one if you have the cash to drop on it. Having a larger screen is very important if you want to enjoy the power your computer is putting out. Having a small screen is like have 5.0L V8 in a vehicle with 4 spare tires. A lot of power, but no real way to show it off.

ASUS - Notebooks- ASUS G74SX

And if you really want an alienware this one isn't bad at all for the price and you can upgrade it a bit if you have the cash to throw dow on it.
https://www.dell.com/us/p/alienware-M14x/pd.aspx

btw, where you stationed at? I just got out in Sept.
Airborne

 

[USArmyParatrooper]

I would suggest this one if you have the cash to drop on it. Having a larger screen is very important if you want to enjoy the power your computer is putting out. Having a small screen is like have 5.0L V8 in a vehicle with 4 spare tires. A lot of power, but no real way to show it off.

ASUS - Notebooks- ASUS G74SX

And if you really want an alienware this one isn't bad at all for the price and you can upgrade it a bit if you have the cash to throw dow on it.
https://www.dell.com/us/p/alienware-M14x/pd.aspx

btw, where you stationed at? I just got out in Sept.
Airborne

I've kind of soured to ASUS. I have an ASUS that recently has had problems. I don't recall the model, but it was like $1100 or so from Best Buy. It also had conflicts with Skyrim where the game would shut off the computer after only a couple minutes. I checked online, and it seemed to be a problem Skyrim had with ASUS computers.

I'll take a look at the Alienware one. Thanks!

I'm at Fort Bragg. 3rd Brigade, 82nd.

 

[robinhoodsnr]

Well, at the end of the day, it all depends on the amount of bucks you've got...Shop around for the best deal, but look at something in the i7-range with at lease 4Mb of ram...a cpu of at least 3Ghz ( or higher ), as well as a dedicated graphics-card ( the shop-guys will explain better on this ) and at least a 17" screen

 

[MindoverMaster]

Have you looked at the Acer Aspire Ethos or Aspire S?

I just recently got this: AS5750-6589 | Product Model

And I'm loving every minute of it. Mine's not made for gaming, though. As the i3. And I don't game other than Minecraft.

ASUS is like a hit and miss. I always liked ASUS motherboards, and I have their Transformer Tablet. But a few years ago, I bought an ASUS laptop, and it wasn't really working for me. Don't blame ASUS, just be very careful what you get.

 

[robinhoodsnr]

Check out this one -->
"http://www.techradar.com/news/mobile-computing/laptops/what-s-the-best-core-i7-laptop--721389"

 

[MindoverMaster]

I would stay away from all of those but the Lenovo. MSI is very iffy. Mac is Mac. Never used Kobalt, unsure of it's performance.

 

[Sheepykins]

Uhmm i dont know i would cjange your mind but gaming laptops are verry danm exspensive over here in the uk roughly around £2000-3000 and they are very bulky

uhhh, what? lol.

My dell 17r cost me 700 quid, and it can play all of the latest games with an NVIDIA 525 or 550m or something like that.

The problem is the chassis, its terrible the air flow design is crazy which is why i would suggest a top end cooler, or at least a cooler that has changeable fans so you can place them where you need them.

IMO gaming laptops dont exist, you just get laptops that branch out now and then. Want to game properly? get a desktop. It'll be cheaper, 5 times longer and you can swap parts.

that being said, if you want a laptop to game on - any of the laptops with a bluray player have great cards and great screen tech.
mines a core i5 and its perfect, 6gig of ram. just make sure you have the right dedicated card and its all good with a dual core and lotsa RAM.

Oh and dont buy alienware. ever, since dell took them over they're crazed with issued and tbh too overpriced for what you actually get

 

[robinhoodsnr]

uhhh, what? lol.

My dell 17r cost me 700 quid, and it can play all of the latest games with an NVIDIA 525 or 550m or something like that.

The problem is the chassis, its terrible the air flow design is crazy which is why i would suggest a top end cooler, or at least a cooler that has changeable fans so you can place them where you need them.

IMO gaming laptops dont exist, you just get laptops that branch out now and then. Want to game properly? get a desktop. It'll be cheaper, 5 times longer and you can swap parts.

that being said, if you want a laptop to game on - any of the laptops with a bluray player have great cards and great screen tech.
mines a core i5 and its perfect, 6gig of ram. just make sure you have the right dedicated card and its all good with a dual core and lotsa RAM.

Oh and dont buy alienware. ever, since dell took them over they're crazed with issued and tbh too overpriced for what you actually get

...have to agree on this one