Help With Laptop Specs

[~Lady Kismet~]

I'll most likely be buying a brand new computer in order to play Aion with the best possible quality I can find, and my dad is offering to get me one. I don't want an XPS because I heard that it's a nightmare to transport with it being so ridiculously heavy, not to mention ugly and thick/uncomfortable to use. And I just find Alienware disgusting. So...


HP Pavilion tx2000z

HP Pavilion dv6700t

Voodoo Envy M:172

Voodoo Envy M:171

Sony VAIO FZ or AR Series


Are any of these good, as far as graphics quality and speed? I haven't deeply read into their specs, they just happened to be listed as good or decent entertainment/gaming systems. Your opinions are appreciated. And if they're ALL bad... Then is it possible you can suggest something else? (OTHER than an XPS. I know it's the greatest gaming notebook, but I am NOT carrying around that monster! )

Thanks in advance! ^.^

[Celestin]

Don't get Voodoo. Voodoo is way overpriced.

If you want a premium boutique notebook that isn't an Alienware, I recommend Hypersonic. Falcon Northwest is also good, but will run you up the same premium.

HPs are fair decent, bu they aren't gamer systems.

XPS doesn't carry any 8 series cards yet I think? I don't know, but if what you want is DX10, you won't be able to get it on a XPS.

[zakumura]

I don´t like any of that. I have an HP Pavillion dv6590 and it is just great. But I suggest (if you like it) the Toshiba Satellite X200. It´s a very good laptop for games. It was created only to play games and have a good performence.
The HP Pavilion dv6799ep is good too.

I hope that I helped you

[Gestalt]

I would avoid getting any of those laptops especially from voodoo. Voodoo is extremely overpriced but you are mostly paying for customized looks.

As for HP, I really don't consider them a gaming laptops as of yet. They are more fit for students.

The XPS series from Dell do offer the 8 series. You can even get SLI 8800 gpu with the xps m1730 but they are probably one of the largest gaming laptops.

You really shouldn't settle for any gpu below 8600 but I would recommend 8800. I think the smallest laptop with a 8800 gpu is the m15x (15 inch) from alienware which I would highly recommend but they are having downclocking issues with hours of gameplay but if you are willing to wait to purchase a notebook I'm sure they will address this problem soon since it's not a small issue.

You might also want to look into sager notebooks. I believe they were having downclocking issues with the 8800 gpu also but this problem seems to already have been fixed with a update.

[Kalean]

Darn Kismet!..Why couldn't you have posted something like this sooner =P...I posted in a different thread a 30% off coupon for pavilion notebooks..You could of a got a 2550 dollars Pavilion 20 incher for 1650 bucks, 200 instant rebate..and the 30% brought it down 700 bucks..>_<...It had a 2.4 ghz core 2 processor, 2 gigs of ram, 7,200 rpm hard drive, and a 8800m GT...>_<....

I wanted one =(...but I'm broke...lol.

Even thought he person I posted for didn't buy it =P..Someone else in the thread did..So atleast I spread the word for it.

[Celestin]

Actually, I'm looking to sell my notebook haha.

It's a Dell Inspiron 1520.
2.2GHz Core 2 Duo.
2GB DDR2 ( Dell standard )
80GB 5200RPM Hard drive
nVidia 256MB GeForce Go 8600
Sound Blaster high definition ( I know it's just a standard sigmatel )
Extended battery.
15.1" or 15.4" or something like that widescreen, 1440 * 900 with glossy finish.

I've had it since like... late November 2007 I think. The warranty on it is still good until November this year. I've babied it so it's in pretty good condition.

I'm all in all very satisfied with it, except for an issue with the sound port picking up electrostatic interference. Most normal human beings don't mind it at all, but I'm a self proclaimed audiophile and I really like my music so it drives me nuts. It's actually a very common engineering oversight on many Dell notebooks, but it's not very commonly reported because most people don't notice it because most people are normal and are not sound junkies.

[~Lady Kismet~]

Wow, thank you everyone. I turned out liking your suggestions MUCH better when I researched them all. :3 I'm torn between Falcon Northwest, Sager, and HP now. Hmm...

Display: 17" Wide Viewing Angles WSXGA+ LCD with Super Glossy Surface (1680 x 1050)
Processor: 45nm Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T8100 / 3MB L2 Cache, 2.10GHz, 800MHz FSB
Video & Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce 8800M GTX Graphics with 512MB DDR3 Video Memory
Operating System: Genuine MS Windows® VISTA Home Premium 32/64-Bit Edition
Memory: 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 2 X 512MB
Primary Hard Disk Drive: 80GB 5400rpm SATA 150 Hard Drive
Optical Drive: 8X DVD±R/RW/4X +DL Super-Multi Drive & Software
Wireless Network Card: Intel PRO/Wireless 4965AGN - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN Module
Primary Battery: Smart Li-ION Battery Pack ( I dunno why I included this...)


How do these specs sound? After doing some reading and comparing, the laptop I liked the best had this to offer.

[Dez]

You might want more memory, especially if you're gonna run Vista and play Aion.

[~Lady Kismet~]

What if it had XP instead of Vista? I don't really want Vista, so I was going replace it with XP once I got my hands on it.

[Kalean]

If it has XP instead of vista, it'll run quicker =P..So don't think of that as a bad trait. It's just not as pretty, and doesn't support DX10...There are some nice features in vista which are great, but it will also require a good amount of memory to run vista well, as well as game if you plan too.

So yea, XP is a good thing =P.

[~Lady Kismet~]

Display: 17" Wide Viewing Angles WSXGA+ LCD with Super Glossy Surface (1680 x 1050)
Processor: 45nm Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T8300 / 3MB L2 Cache, 2.40GHz, 800MHz FSB
Video & Graphics Card: Nvidia GeForce 8800M GTX Graphics with 512MB DDR3 Video Memory
Operating System: Genuine MS Windows® VISTA Home Premium 32/64-Bit Edition
Memory: 4GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz (2 X 2048MB)
Primary Hard Disk Drive: 100GB 7200rpm SATA 150 Hard Drive
Optical Drive: 8X DVD±R/RW/4X +DL Super-Multi Drive & Software
Operating System: We're gonna assume it's MS Windows XP.


Made some memory, processor, and HDD changes. I did my best to kind of make it match the XPS 630 desktop system, minus the 320GB HDD (since I've been told that 20GB seems sufficient for Aion). Better now? ;3


Btw, if anyone's wondering (who am I kidding, you probably are), the laptop with these specs in question (after customization) is the Sager NP5793. So hats off to Gestalt for the recommendation of it. ^^

[Kalean]

Kismet....You will be 100% ADORINGLY HAPPY with that system. It will be able to game like a beast. That system is VERY similar to the pavilion one I linked to the other thread, it only had 2 gigs of memory though, same processor/graphics card as well. But it was a 20.1 inch widescreen laptop...Retail price was 2550, but with the coupon I posted...You could nab the laptop for 1650 after the instant rebate/coupon....I just wish you would of been able to see that earlier...How much is this current one going to cost?

Spec wise, it's perfect...It will be a monster gamer considering the specs...and just the perfect amount of everything. But the price is probably a bit outrageous eh?..lol.

[~Lady Kismet~]

It's a tiny bit cheaper than the retail price of the computer you offered, but still more expensive than the 'after rebate/coupon' price. ^^; (Darn, I really wish I had seen it now!) The total came to about 2380 (2350 before the shipping fee).

So I don't think that's too bad. When I looked at some other laptops (XPS included), I would've ended up paying even more. XD (I think to get the current best quality XPS laptop, you'd end up dishing out over 3-4k.)

[Kalean]

KISMET!..Get on aim quick!...trying to send you a IM..I found you a deal that will make you salivate! =P..

[crytek]

why don't you go for alienware?