Looking to buy a gaming laptop

Discussion in 'Laptops & Notebooks' started by Scorch666, Jul 24, 2011.

  1. Scorch666

    Scorch666 Ancient Guru

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    GPU:
    RTX 4060 laptop
    Budget is around £400. It will be for my son.
    Could you advise me on details to look out for. Half decent graphics cards/ CPU etc. Maybe any uk deals i may have missed.

    Thanks guys.
     
  2. Stormyandcold

    Stormyandcold Ancient Guru

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    Last edited: Jul 24, 2011
  3. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    It has a 1.8GHz cpu, lol, it will even struggle with games over 4 years old...

    My current laptop has a core i5 2.67GHz & turbo of 3.2gHz, 4GB of ram & a 512mb Nvidia Gefore 310M dedicated graphics...

    Whilst this is HIGHER the spec than the above model it struggles with F.E.A.R from 2006...

    It gets an average of 30fps... Even Left 4 Dead struggles at around 30fps...

    It is good for games such as Half-Life, Battlefield 2, Half-Life 2, Counter-Strike Source & Unreal Tournament 1999/2003/2004.

    It will play these games MAXED out, JUST about....

    Crysis, Bad Company 2, COD Black OPS, forget it...

    If I was the op I would pay a little more and get a used DELL XPS from ebay, will be much better for gaming than even my own laptop...

    He can get a refurbished/used one for around £420.

    Dell XPS M1710 Laptop is a good choice for a budget gaming laptop.

    Spec:

    CPU Type: Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0Ghz T7200
    Hard Drive Capacity: 200GB
    RAM: 2.0GB
    Optical Drive: DVD+/-RW
    Video Type: NVIDIA GeForce Go 7950 GTX
    Video Memory: 512MB
    LCD Max Resolution: 1920 x 1200
    Screen Size: 17.1"
    Display Technology: WUXGA
    Bluetooth: No
    WiFi Enabled: Yes
    Ports: 6 x USB 2.0
    1 x DVI
    1 x VGA
    1 x S-video
    1 x Firewire (IEEE 1394a)
    1 x RJ45 Ethernet port (10/100/1000)
    1 x RJ11 Modem Port
    1 x ExpressCard 54mm Slot
    Microphone/Headphone Sockets
     
  4. Scorch666

    Scorch666 Ancient Guru

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    GPU:
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  5. Stormyandcold

    Stormyandcold Ancient Guru

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    I know that site

    In order of power for mentioned gfx so far;

    NVIDIA GeForce Go 7950 GTX placed 136
    NVIDIA GeForce 310M placed 206
    Ion2 placed 262

    The lenovo has integrated gfx, don't expect much from it.

    kanej2007's suggestion is a good one. I would definately look at 2nd as I said if you want something half decent.

    As for Asus I suggested, it's screen is 720P and the Ion2 is ok low-end gfx. Check out youtube, it will run BF Bad company 2 on low settings.
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2011
  6. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    Yeah, for around £420, you get a 1920x1200 screen and a 7950GTX, it's NOT at all bad in my books...

    It's a lot better than the first mentioned laptop...

    To the op - browse the internet or ebay. What I mentioned above was only an example.

    For slightly more I'm sure you can get something even better.

    If you can stretch your budget slightly between £450-£500 you will get something decent.

    I will have another quick look and if I find anything I will let you know...
     
  7. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    Found another one from ebay, quite good spec and only £500...

    Spec:

    ASUS G71G CORE 2 DUO 4GB 640GB 17.1" WXGA

    Processor:

    Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 Dual Core processor, 2 x 2.26Ghz cores, 2 threads, 3Mb Cache

    Ram:

    4Gb 800Mhz DDR2 Ram installed (2 x 2Gb chip)

    Hard drive:

    640Gb storage 2 x 320Gb 5400 rpm SATA hard disk

    Graphics card:

    nVidia GeForce 9800M 512Mbdedicated graphics

    Wireless:

    N Wireless card 802.11a/g/n WiFi + Bluetooth card

    Optical drive:

    DVD Writer drive - watch / burn DVDs

    Screen:

    17.1" Widescreen WXGA display - 1400 x 900

    Camera:

    2.0 megapixel webcam with mic

    Media Readers:

    8 in 1 card reader - SD, MMC, MS, xD etc

    Battery:

    Extra Long life 8 Cell battery

    Sound:

    Altec Lansing speakers with SRS Premium sound & 4 speakers

    Ports:

    4 x USB 2.0, eSata, 10/100/1000 LAN, HDMI, ExpressCard slot, VGA, Firewire, 1 x Mic-in, headphone-out

    Dimensions:

    29 x 41 x 4.2 cm (Height x Width x Depth)

    Weight:

    3.99kg

    Finish:

    Black & Red finish

    Operating system:

    Windows Vista Home Premium
     
  8. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    GPU:
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    Found another one, quite good for gaming and only £450. Ebay item number - 380356468196

    Dell Vostro 3700 17" Laptop i5-480M ,4GB,GT 330M,SILVER
    Technical Specifications

    Colour Option:
    Vostro Silver
    Processor:
    Intel Core i5-480M Dual Core 2.67GHz (Turbo up to 2.93GHz, 3MB Cache, 2Cores)
    Memory:
    4GB (4096MB) 1066MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
    Hard Drive:
    320GB SATA Hard Drive 5400 RPM
    Display/Screen:
    17.3" 1600x900 White LED Widescreen Display with Antiglare 900p HD
    Optical drive:
    DVD-ReWriter Drive
    Graphics Card:
    nVidia GeForce GT 330M with1024MB Dedicated RAM
    Webcam:
    Yes, Integrated Webcam Included
    Sound Card:
    IDT High Definition Audio
    Wireless:
    Yes, Dell TrueMobile 1501 Wireless (A/B/G/Draft-N)
    3G / HSPDA:
    No, Please See Upgrades Section Below For Availability
    Bluetooth
    Yes
    Battery:
    Standard Life 6 Cell 53Whr/56WHr Lithium Ion Battery
    Keyboard:
    Black UK English (QWERTY) Layout - Not Backlit
    For Different Keyboard Languages See Here
    Additional
    Features:

    - Integrated Biometric Fingerprint reader
    - Full size, spill-resistant keyboard with numeric keypad
    - 8-in-1 Multimedia Memory Card Reader
    - Tray Load Optical Drive
    - FireWire (For Video Editing etc)
    - Broadband Ready Network Card
    - Touchpad
    - Built-in speakers & Microphone
    - Aluminium Chasis
    Ports:
    1 x Network connector (RJ45)
    4 x USB 2.0
    1 x USB 2.0/eSATA combo
    1 x Microphone jack
    1 x Headphone/speaker out
    1 x 8-in-1 card reader
    1 x 34 mm ExpressCard
    1 x 15-pin VGA video connector
    1 x HDMI connector
    1 x IEEE 1394 connector
    Software:
    Windows 7 Home Premium (64-Bit) - English
    For Different OS Languages See Here
    - DVD-Playing & CD/DVDWriting Software
     
  9. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    GPU:
    MSI GTX 1080 TI 11GB
    For a LITTLE more money (£480) you can get:


    Dell XPS L501x 15" Laptop i3-370M,4GB,GT 420M, processor not as good as the above laptop but has a better gpu.

    Spec:

    Dell XPS L501x Laptop - NDC #14153
    Technical Specifications

    Colour Option:
    XPS Metalloid Aluminum Silver
    Processor:
    Intel Core i3-370M Dual Core 2.40GHz (3MB Cache,2 Cores)
    Memory:
    4GB (4096MB) 1066MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
    Hard Drive:
    320GB SATA Hard Drive 5400 RPM
    Display/Screen:
    15.6" 1366x768 White LED Widescreen Display with TrueLife 720p HD
    Optical drive:
    DVD-ReWriter Drive
    Graphics Card:
    nVidia GeForce GT 420M Graphics with 1GB Dedicated RAM (3D Ready,DX11,Optimus Technology)
    Webcam:
    Yes, Integrated Webcam Included
    Sound Card:
    Realtek HD
    Wireless:
    Yes, Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1000 (1x2bgn)
    3G / HSPDA:
    No, Please See Upgrades Section Below For Availability
    Bluetooth
    No
    Battery:
    Standard Life 6 Cell 53Whr/56WHr Lithium Ion Battery
    Keyboard:
    Black UK English (QWERTY) Layout - Not Backlit
    For Different Keyboard Languages See Here
    Additional
    Features:
    - Second-Generation Intel Core i Processor
    - High-fidelity JBL speakers combined with Waves MaxxAudio
    - Integrated NVIDIA 3DTV Play technology
    - Full Size Keyboard
    - 9-in-1 Multimedia Memory Card Reader
    - Broadband Ready Network Card
    - Touchpad pointing device
    - Built-in speakers & Microphone
    - HDMI Output for watching High Definition Movies on external HD screen
    Ports:
    - 1 x 9-in-1 Card Reader (SD, SDIO, SDXC, SDHC, MS, MS Pro, MMC, MSXC, xD)
    - 1 x Mini DisplayPort
    - 2 x USB 3.0
    - 1 x USB 2.0 (eSATA/powershare combo)
    - 1 x 10/100/1000 LAN (RJ45)
    - 1 x HDMI 1.4
    - 1 x AC adapter connector
    - 2 x headphone with SPDIF support
    - 1 x Mic-in
     
  10. Stormyandcold

    Stormyandcold Ancient Guru

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    Lots of choice 2nd hand, but, new is limited.

    I really like some of the Dell XPS M1730's especially sli 8800GTX. Thats coming in around £600 though.

    Just remember that on used lappy the battery is likely the first thing you'll replace unless it's for home use only. The more powerful the gfx, the shorter the battery life.

    Definately spend a bit more if you can Scorch666, will last your son longer and less performance problems while gaming.
     

  11. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    Yep. I would've definately recommended the M1730 running an 8800M GTX or even 8800M GTX in sli but they start off at £600 which is WAY higher than the op's budget.

    Aside from the few I mentioned above, you will not get anything better unless their in bad condition, battered or faulty...

    The above models were all mint condition refurbished laptops...

    In most cases they are in near perfect condition.

    I've have quite a few refurbished laptops in the past, all being 100% perfect condition and were far cheaper than the same model that was new.

    Between £450 to just under £500 he is looking at something decent enough to run most games at medium settings, but no more.

    And this is the very least, anything of lower spec would be a waste of time...

    It is up to the op to decide.

    I would recommend him get this one as it's got a good balance of everything:

    Ebay item number - 380356468196

    Dell Vostro 3700 17" Laptop i5-480M ,4GB,GT 330M,SILVER
    Technical Specifications

    Colour Option:
    Vostro Silver
    Processor:
    Intel Core i5-480M Dual Core 2.67GHz (Turbo up to 2.93GHz, 3MB Cache, 2Cores)
    Memory:
    4GB (4096MB) 1066MHz Dual Channel DDR3 SDRAM [2x2048]
    Hard Drive:
    320GB SATA Hard Drive 5400 RPM
    Display/Screen:
    17.3" 1600x900 White LED Widescreen Display with Antiglare 900p HD
    Optical drive:
    DVD-ReWriter Drive
    Graphics Card:
    nVidia GeForce GT 330M with1024MB Dedicated RAM
    Webcam:
    Yes, Integrated Webcam Included
    Sound Card:
    IDT High Definition Audio

    I think for LESS than £500 it's a great price, and a great all rounder. Good ram, good screen, good gpu and good procesor...

    The ball is in the op's corner.
     
  12. Gazebo

    Gazebo Master Guru

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    GPU:
    ASUS RTX 4070
    Оk, now couple of models for my taste:

    Packard Bell EasyNote TM85-JO-99RU (LX.BL201.011)

    Acer Aspire 5935G-753G32Mnbk (LX.PG60C.002)
     
  13. Stormyandcold

    Stormyandcold Ancient Guru

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    I just made an offer for a 2nd hand fully upgraded Dell XPS M1710 for my gf to replace a Toshiba laptop that was stolen a few weeks back when we got burgled. She only plays Bust a move on snes and windows card games. Powerful enough for her anyway to do everything she wants. Maybe get into some old PC games I've got aswell.

    I'm using a Toshiba Tecra with intel extreme gfx here lol that my sister gave me a few years back, main pc is down atm awaiting power supply rma.

    Anyway, some good suggestions Kanej2007. Might look into getting a Dell XPS M1730 when I got the cash.
     
  14. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    Yeah, I used to have the Dell M1730, great performance and was whisper quiet and didn't get hot...

    It had 2x8700mgt 512mb, wasn't bad...

    This was around 7-8 years back so it was quite high spec at the time...

    It cost me £1000. :(

    They are almost 50% cheaper now. :)
     
  15. Scorch666

    Scorch666 Ancient Guru

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    Thanks for all your suggestions.

    Last week when i was looking i wanted to get the MSI FX600 BLU-RAY, but the funds wassnt quite ready.:bang: It was gonna be of ebay from the Argos outlet. I thought it woudve been ideal for him. NM ill keep looking out for it.

    What you guys think of this one?

    [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]

    [/FONT]Dell Precision M6300 Laptop designed for high end use (£1835 new price)
    Intel Core 2 Duo T9500 2.6ghz Processors = Approx 3.2ghz
    Massive 2gb Memory
    Massive 17.0" Widescreen powered by Nvidia quadro Fx 3600m 256mb graphics
    Wifi installed.
    Built in Dvdrw/cdrw drive to watch and record those favourite movies
    Fully Loaded with Windows XP Professional and dvd software suite
    This is ready to use straight out of the box
    Processor: Intel core 2 Duo T9500 2.6ghz processor
    Memory: 2gb
    Hard drive: 80gb
    Optical: Dvdrw/Cdrw combo drive
    Screen: 17." WUXGA (1920x1200)
    Graphics: Nvidia Quadro Fx 3600m 256mb 3D graphics
    Internet Connection: Lan/network
    Ports: Docking connector, 6 USB 2.0, IEEE 1394, DVI, VGA, S-video, headphone/speaker out, microphone in, RJ-11, RJ-45, AC power, One 54mm Express Card slot, supporting both 54mm and 34mm I/O
    Mains charger and Battery Included: Battery is untested and not covered by warranty


    CONDITION: all laptops are Refurbished / exdemo and in A1 conditionbut may have some minor marks etc..Recovery software supplied may be copies of original..





    Full details can be found at:
    http://www.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/precn_m6300?c=us&cs=28&l=en&s=dfb


    I can always double the memory.
     

  16. allesclar

    allesclar Ancient Guru

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    £400 no chance, need to spend at least £600 and thats a budget gaming laptop.
     
  17. allesclar

    allesclar Ancient Guru

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    i have those specs in my samsung laptop, but i have the i3 version.

    i can tell you this runs games no problem but i wouldnt buy second hand.

    DO NOT BUY SECOND HAND GAMING LAPTOPS. always buy a laptop brand new with a good warranty. so many problems with gaming laptops, let alone second hand ones.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2011
  18. Gazebo

    Gazebo Master Guru

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    What do you mean? I've had 2 gaming laptops already, and never got any problems. You're speaking about overheating?
    But i second you that it is always better to get a new one. Warranty...
     
  19. Stormyandcold

    Stormyandcold Ancient Guru

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    The problem is at the £400 mark brand new systems there is only really ion2 or intel HD graphics options. You're right that £600 is more like it though.

    But £600 gets a really nice 2nd hand lappy.
     
  20. kanej2007

    kanej2007 Guest

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    Get a REFURBISHED laptop, NOT a used one, there is quite a difference...

    I have had 3-4 REFURBISHED laptops in the past, all were MINT & as new condition, very lightly used...

    I was given a ONE year warranty for them.... Had each laptop between a year or two before upgrading to a better one...

    NEVER have I had ANY problems with a refurbished laptop....

    So make sure you buy a REFURB & not used laptop and most important it comes with 6 months or even a years warranty, that way your safe...

    Best thing you save a good 20-40% on a refurbished laptop.

    Techincally a refurb laptop is not really used but was a customer returned laptop or a customer changed his mind on his purchase and sent it back.

    Otherwise the packaging was damaged and the laptop was repackaged in a different box.

    In worst cases it will be a very lightly used laptop, maybe a few days/weeks use and then returned...

    Think of it as a car with little or no miles so your generally ok buying a refurb.

    Last thing, make sure from the advert or ask the person the CONDITION of the laptop, any marks, damages, scratches, etc...

    If it is in 100% perfect condition and 40% cheaper than it would of cost when new, go for it...
     

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