Ah, really? Thanks for the advice. Will I be able to turn off all of the graphical extras in 7 to enhance performance?
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Yeah you can disable Aero easily enough, though it's not particularly pretty (though there are plenty of custom themes online). That said, I'm fussy about stuff running in the background, yet it all runs transparently. In fact, it frees up CPU because the work is being done by the GPU (though again, not noticably using any resources).Comment
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If, and thats a big if, you can find one. Go for an MSI GT725 or the Advent 7555GX
These were on sale for ?799 in Currys, Dixons and PC World about 5-6 months back and were quickly sold out and taken off sale. Not surprising really when you see the specs.
They are almost identical models with the advent just a rebranded MSI but with a couple of differences.
Specs, advent bracketed where it differs:
Q9000 Quad Core Intel 2.0
4850 GPU (Stonklingly good card)
4GB Ram
Blu-Ray on the MSi - (DVD-RW on the Advent)
17" 1900 x 1200 on the MSi - (1440 x 900 on the Advent)
500GB HDD
Card Reader
2MP Webcam
I grabbed one for ?700 a month before xmas and it can handle anything. I have seen them sporadically on ebay for between ?600 & 700 which if you can bag, is a steal. It will also have a good portion of warranty remaining as well. Don't be put off by the Advent moniker, its an MSi in all but name.Comment
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Currys and Dixons had them today for ?499!!!!!!!
None left now tho
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Bugger, that would've been perfect as well.
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This is driving me crazy. After days of searching I thought that the MSI CX600 would suit me- although it has an ATI Radeon Mobility HD 4330 graphics card (ideal for me as I'll probably only use it for DOW, Unreal, Stalker and retro stuff games-wise) but I was disappointed at the lack of an HDMI port as I may connect it to larger displays in future.
Then I found the Samsung R522, which has basically the same spec, a Samsung screen and an HDMI port but is missing Bluetooth capability. The I read that both of them are bundled with the 32-bit version of Windows 7, which means that I'll only be able to use 3GB of the 4GB RAM.
Then I found the MSI CX605. I hunted around for it as it seemed perfect but it was only announced a few days ago. Now I'm wondering if I should wait for that as it has a much better graphics card and it feels like a waste of money knowing that I'd be buying a laptop that's about to be immediately superceded by a new model. It's a minefield!Last edited by Decider-VT; 17-03-2010, 11:44.Comment
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If it comes to it, you can use a 32-bit Windows key on the 64-bit version, should you fancy installing it yourself.Comment
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Really? I didn't know you could do that but I haven't used a 64-bit operating system before. Thanks!
I just bought the Samsung. The reviews seemed to be good, although most of them highlighted an integrated Intel graphics chipset. Thankfully the model I just bought includes a dedicated ATI graphics card. Should be enough for my dinosaur-level PC gaming.Comment
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What model and where did you get it from Decider-VT?Comment
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It was the Samsung R522, from ebuyer. I had my reservations about buying from them but a friend of mine who buys from them semi-regularly assures me that they are less deserving of their previously poor reputation these days.Comment
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Bumping this thread, as I'm trying to find a new laptop at the moment.
Currently looking at one of these which has an Intel i5, ATI mobility 5650 graphics, blu ray and 4 gig of RAM for 700 quid. Seems like a fairly good deal to me, but I thought I'd ask and see if anybody knew of anything better for that kind of price.Comment
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I don't have a desktop PC so I'd like something that'll do a reasonable job of running games, though I don't play enough PC games to need something really high end. My current laptop has an Nvidia 9400, which doesn't really do a particularly good job with anything vaguely recent. I'll be doing a bit of (game) development work on it from time to time, too, so I'd prefer something with a DX11 chip in case I need it.Comment
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Having a look around, you're not going to get a better gaming laptop for that money. That has a (comparatively) decent graphics card. Should play modern games on medium settings.
Be warned, it'll run hot and won't have a great battery life.Comment
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