Question:
High-End Gaming Notebook
Hi everyone! I am in the process of buying my third laptop (and about eighth computer) and would appreciate your recommendations.
General Questions
1) What is your budget?
up to EUR 5000 (though I'd like to keep it below EUR 4000, if I can)
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
d. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen
3) What tasks will you be performing with the notebook?
Mostly GAMING (EQ2, CS, Flight Simulator, etc.) and some normal office tasks.
4) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places or leaving it on your desk?
I will be moving it around rather frequently, but am also used to lugging heavy equipment (my current notebook is a Dell Inspiron 9100, which is good, but it doesn't have enough RAM to do what I want it to do). It is, however, almost always on my desk either at work or at home.
5) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games?
Yes (see above under 3) - mostly 3D games (see above). I'm sick of the stuttering in EQ2 and Flight Simulator.
6) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
I was not very pleased with Dell's service or prices, but would not necessarily refrain from buying another, if that is the right choice for me.
7) How many hours of battery life do you need?
Battery life is not of utmost importance to me, as it is (or will be) plugged in almost exclusively. Obviously, it should last longer than a few minutes.
8) Do you mind buying online without seeing the notebook in person?
No.
9) Please select your country's flag as a post icon and tell us what country are you buying this in?
I will be buying the notebook in Germany, though I don't really care from where it is shipped. I am, however, an American, so I would prefer English software and menus (but a German keyboard). ;)
Screen Specifics
10) Would you prefer standard or widescreen?
Widescreen.
11) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?
f. WUXGA - 1920x1200; Wider viewing version of UXGA, good for movie viewing or spreadsheets.
12) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?
This doesn't matter so much to me; I'll be using the machine almost exclusively indoors.
Build Quality and Design
13) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
No - I want performance and quality! I'll let others worry about being cool.
14) When are you buying this laptop and how long do you want this laptop to last?
ASAP. Am I asking for too much to want it to last me for about three (3) years?
Notebook Components
15) How much hard drive space do you want; 40GB to 160GB?
How about 2x80gb @ 7200 rpm?
16) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD-ROM, DVD-CD/RW or DVD-RW drive?
Sure, a DVD-RW drive would be nice... blueray... ???
I look forward to hearing your recommendations... I want to order this thing and start enjoying my games again. ;)
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
Dell XPS M1710
Sager NP5760 <<< My Pick.
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
I'd check out the Alienware website, they do a 17" m9700 with an optional 1920*1200 screen, 2 hard drives in either RAID 0 or RAID 1 up to 160Gb each (or 100Gb 7200rpm drives) and various options for graphics, a single 256Mb 7900GS, two 256Mb 7900GS in SLi or dual SLi 512mb 7900GS. A very very powerful machine. They also do a 19" laptop but it's massively expensive.
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
rockdirect.com
Xtreme SL Pro is my recommendation. TL-60, 2x 7950gtx, 2x 100gb 7200rpm, 2gb ram, 20", 1920x1200.
$3800 euro after tax.
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
I would suggest going for the Sager NP5760, like usapatriot has said. Its one of the best gaming notebooks, in a nice package, with very good build quality.
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
Do Sager sell in europe?
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
I'm not too sure if they do sell in Europe, but there may be some places and online shops in the US that will ship internationally. Or they may be some preconfigured notebooks that are sold in Europe.
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
Definitely the Clevo M570U (a.k.a Sager 5760, Rock Xtreme CTX, etc.).
Read the Clevo Guide for International Resellers, in North America, Europe, Australia, etc.
www.rockdirect.com (based in UK) is your best bet for the Clevo M570U, they actually have better pricing than Sager for that model of notebook.... and they have different language keyboard options. ;)
Game On People,
-Gophn
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
Is there a reason to exclude the Clevo D900? Seems that you can Raid it and not loose the optical drive.
Answer:
Re: High-End Gaming Notebook
Is there a reason to exclude the Clevo D900? Seems that you can Raid it and not loose the optical drive.
Since I have stated it before:
I do not understand why one would want the D900K (even I own one), you can get much more mileage from a Clevo M570U since its got better processing power and weighs noticeably less. The only reason I think people want the Clevo D900K is..:
- dual Harddrives (RAID 0,1, or none)
- dual Optical Drives
- wont take it around too much (desktop replacement)
- high-end videocard
Too bad that the Clevo D900K is getting phased out by some of the vendors that were selling them... Alienware was the first major Clevo reseller to phase it out, now the Sager (and their resellers) are starting to as well.
The only reason I got it back in March was because it was the only dual-core notebook on the market. Its been a great notebook, but its getting to feel more obsolete since the Socket 939 CPU and the DDR1 memory are becoming a bottleneck for future upgrades. Even now, I am considering to get a Clevo M570U for my girlfriend to get her off of mine. :)
If you really feel that you want RAID redundancy, then maybe the Clevo D900K is an option, other than that I would not recommend it, especially for the performance/cost ratio and the limited future upgrades.
-Gophn