koviktir

Okay, so I'm in need of a laptop for college, soon. I just recently upgraded to a much more powerful Desktop, but evidently that was in vain, as a laptop would be a LOT more efficient.

Anyway, I'm a bit of a power-demanding person, when it comes to a computer, and even a laptop (those who've ever read my posts on the Desktop forum will instantly know what I'm talking about), so I'm looking for a bit of a.. powerhouse laptop, with as big a monitor as I can get under a decent budget.

I've narrowed down my assumed options for what I'm looking for, down to three.. but I'm open to suggestions, as honestly, laptops are a bit new to me.

1. HP Pavilion HDX9010NR Notebook PC - $1,849.99 (TigerDirect)
2. Gateway P-173XL FX Edition Notebook PC - $1,699.99 (TigerDirect)
3. Acer Aspire AS8920-6746 NoteBook PC - $1,649.99 (NewEgg)

Okay, so I assume that most of you are labeling the HP as "overkill", but that's not bad cost at ALL for a 20.1in screen with those specs and Vista Ultimate.

Here are my questions, though: assuming I went with, say, the HP, and upgraded things a bit. Would it be worth it? I could certainly upgrade to say, a Core 2 Duo P9500 or so Processor (I've been researching common laptop CPU's ), assuming you're able to just up-and-buy a laptop CPU, and swap them out. That, and I'd probably upgrade the RAM to 4GB.

Now, here comes the REAL idiotic question, that I can only assuming will result in a drop in my CPU-IQ: can a laptop's video card be upgraded/replaced, and if so, where would one find such a replacement? I only ask that, for the reason of the HP certainly could use a better card than a Radeon 2600 XT, if I wanted to play anything created after 5 years ago. I'm not really looking to play Crysis, exactly, but I'm certainly interested in say, Assassin's Creed-level power. 512MB dedicated graphics card, basically (something that evidently, HP didn't want in possibly their most epic laptop to date)

Obviously, I'm looking for an all-around laptop. One that could be used to watch TV/Videos/DVDs/Movies/etc.., record/edit music, and gaming (on top of college-uses, of course)

What do you guys think? Good options there, or should I consider something else? Let me know.

Thank you: sorry for the long read.

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daisymtc

Gateway P-7811FX @ bestbuy.com $1250
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....=1211587727985

koviktir

Hmm.. that one isn't bad, daisy. o_O

Who'd have thought that Best Buy'd have one for that cheap, and that good.

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ScOuT

I have a custom Sager laptop and I love it. I've had it over 2 years now and never had one problem with it, everything works great. You can customize everything when you order them. I even received a hand written letter a month after I received it asking me if everything was ok and if I like it. Now that's what I call customer service You might want to take a look at them, great computers and great customer service. They are kinda expensive but worth the price.

http://www.sagernotebook.com/default.php

Nvidia 7950 GTX
Intel T7200 Duo Core @ 2.0 GHz
17" Glossy High res screen
4 GB Corsair RAM
Custom aluminum Body with polished steel top
Vista Ultimate 64bit

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My Rig
Coolermaster 690 / Nvidia Edition Seen Here
Antec Neo Power 650w
eVGA 780i
2 x 2 GB Dominators
Intel Q9300
eVGA GTX260
Vista Home Premium 64bit

Team Stats FOLDING FOR THE GOOD OF MANKIND :F@H Team 44358

koviktir

Dunno about the Sager ones, ScOuT. They seem a little bit pricier than what they should be worth, and lose all the physical body features that some of the higher laptops in their range can have. Like, for that HP, the features make a longer list than I could even feel the need to type.

Obviously, I'm looking for some nifty features. The reason the HP stands out so much to me, is just the capabilities. The remote and TV Tuner, which could practically make this thing a 20.1in Television replacement for my room at the apartment I'll be moving into. Of course, the size is a little bit iffy, and I'm sure the battery life is a joke, but I think I'm more-so in the need of a "mobile desktop replacement", than a laptop.

Not that I'm like, leaning toward the HP. Just can't seem to find anything else with that level of features. Again I ask, though. CPU/GPU upgrading possible?

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ScOuT

Have you thought about a Dell? Might want to look at the XPS series, they have some major hardware you can choose. A couple of my friends have them and those things are sick! You can get Intel Extreme processors with them. And they have the option of SLI cards

You said you are power hungry!
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Does that mean you are going to sell you desktop? Just wondering...

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My Rig
Coolermaster 690 / Nvidia Edition Seen Here
Antec Neo Power 650w
eVGA 780i
2 x 2 GB Dominators
Intel Q9300
eVGA GTX260
Vista Home Premium 64bit

Team Stats FOLDING FOR THE GOOD OF MANKIND :F@H Team 44358

koviktir

I've certainly looked into the XPS series.. but they're not for me. Dell and Alienware alike (even though they're of the same parent company) tend to lean toward undercutting "less important" hardware, in order to "lower" prices, and rack in on the "important" hardware.

Plus, evidently, the screen size of that HP is unique. Can't seem to find like.. ANYBODY else with one. Hehe, I could just imagine the faces on people, seeing someone pull out a 20-inch laptop. Shesh.

I dunno, though. I'm still reading around, though I DID find a version of this SAME computer on NewEgg, just slightly different: here. Evidently, that one has a SLIGHTLY less powerful CPU, but has a more powerful GPU, 4GB of RAM, AND more disk-space. I dunno; something to consider? Could probably just get away with upgrading the CPU on that baby, and be done with it, couldn't I?

Oh, and nah, ScOuT, not planning to sell the Desktop. Put too much time, money, and effort into that. I know it seems ridiculous to keep a $3200 Desktop around, when I need to put down $2000 on a laptop, and then go to college, but hey: I don't work myself to death, 40hrs a week for nothing.

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Tuffie

I would prefer the HP the most, but that's probably because I've never really had any huge problems with the HP's I've used.

And they all look really nice, which is a huge plus.

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formerly XRT

daisymtc

That HP's spec looking good.
But it's weight is 15.3 lbs...

koviktir

Yeah, I know the HP's 15.3lbs, but I can deal with that. It's certainly not going to be used on my lap: more-so, it'll be used on surfaces. Plus, I'll probably buy the Backpack/Roller case from HP's site, which is about $70-$90 or so, and looks pretty nice. I think all-in-all, I could put $2,250 total (including the laptop, case, mouse: probably getting a Black/Gray Logitech VX Nano to match) on that baby--assuming I can get a-hold of a CPU upgrade for it, and I'd be set for QUITE a while, for all of my needs.

Anyone know a good place to find Laptop CPU's, though? Certainly don't seem to be found easily: trust me, I've looked. Hmm.

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