Gaming Laptop vs. Gaming Computer

[JDK3010]

I am looking to get a good gaming computer. I was hoping to get a good laptop so I'm not stuck at a desk, although I'm not exactly planning on traveling the globe. It seems as far as the video cards go I'm looking at 4GB(Desktop) or 1.5-2 GB (Laptop). Will 1.5 GB video card be enough to play computer games lag free (assuming the internet doesn't lag). Its looking like I'll have 16GB ram either way, and an i7 processor.

Also what is the difference between a solid state hard drive and a regular eSata?

The main things I want to achieve with this computer is smooth running gaming, possibly a little work here and there (excel/word). I may also use it for streaming video but not going to go near any adult web-sites or peer to peer downloading with it. If I'm going to drop the cash, I want it to last a couple years and continue as a strong machine. Any input is appreciated

 

[Koffer]

First of all we should know your budget, so we could make a offer for you
But when it comes to SSD(solid state drives) Here's a little comparison table for you - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solid-state_drive#Comparison_of_SSD_with_hard_disk_drives

If you just want to know why SSD is better than eSata then, SSD can tolerate vibration, shaking etc. And is much more faster than eSata, also safer.

 

[JaredC.]

SSD's use SATA cables as well, Im not quite sure what your question is.

But, a gaming desktop will always have better bang for the buck. Consider the battery life of most gaming laptops (2-3 hours), then ask your self if you will be gaming while traveling with it. Gaming laptops are nice, but they are less cost effective and hardly expandable. If you do go the gaming laptop route I highly suggest MSI.

http://www.amazon.com/MSI-GT780DXR-...TKSU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1321621917&sr=8-2

 

[jonnyp11]

from all that you said it sounds like you're looking for way more than you need, and also not really at the right things. for ram, no game even uses close to 8gb's but it is nice to have the headroom, so 8gb's is the norm for ram. for the vid card, the vram doesn't make too much of a difference once it's past 1gb, but it is better to have 1.5-2gb's, idk where you got 4gb's from though as the cheapest 4gb cards cost 700+ dollars. also the i7 is a waste, performs the exact same in gaming as the i5 as the extra threads go unused since games are not made for over 4 cores, and even if they were the i5 will have no problem maxing any game for the next at bare minimum 6 years i'd say.

 

[Phy]

I doubt an i5 will be maxing games in 6 years, technology advances too fast for that. That aside a desktop will always be cheaper and more powerful than a laptop of comparable specs.

 

[jonnyp11]

6 prob is too much, but at 1080p the cpu is less important than the gpu, someone on here has said before their comp's cpu does fine at 1080p, but on a lower resolution the usage is 100% and the game is unplayable. but also the hardware is far beyond the software at this point, so it will be a while before anything over the 2500k is needed.

 

[Okedokey]

for ram, no game even uses close to 8gb's but it is nice to have the headroom...

Possibly true, but I frequently use more than 4GB of RAM playing BF3. Nearly 6 on occassions, and given RAM is almost free these days its stupid not to get 8GB. Really, its a non-issue.

...for the vid card, the vram doesn't make too much of a difference once it's past 1gb, but it is better to have 1.5-2gb's...

Again, apart from making no sense, (it doesn't make a difference, but it is better) it is incorrect. Games like BF3 will utilise a lot of VRAM, in fact, on one occassion, i ran out with 1.5GB cards. Higher resolutions at ULTRA settings will make good use of 3GB VRAM. Not sure the 4GB model is worth it though.

... also the i7 is a waste,...the extra threads go unused since games are not made for over 4 cores...

Again, incorrect. The frostbite 2 engine (BF3) can utilise 8 cores. And when playing, it spreads the load across all 8 threads on my 2600K. Whether that makes a material difference, Im not sure, but if 100 bucks is not a limiting factor, i would pay it - and did. But yeah, an i5 and put more money towards GPU is proabbly better if you just do gaming.

 

[jonnyp11]

for the ram he said he was looking for 16 either way, which is why i was trying to say 8 is all that is needed and gives plenty of room. for the vid card i meant that you want at least 1gb to be good, but it is better to have 1.5-2gb's, but more is better in that department so 3/4gb's is good if you can afford it. for the cpu, i was wrong but the 2500k is still more than is needed for any game and will be for a while for everyone other than enthusiasts and bigfella who is one.

 

[JDK3010]

I realize i don't need that much but I was thinking with 16GB of ram I could run every application on a computer with no issues. I don't really have a budget, I'm just thinking if I spend more than $1,000 I want to spend enough that I don't need to replace it within the next 6 years (since we've been saying 6 years, lets just say 6 years). I would build a desktop if I knew what I was doing. On second thought, I'll throw a budget of $3,000 although I hope to spend significantly less if possible.

If I were to go with a alienware desktop, are those still easily to customize or do you really need to buy a computer thats built for customization?

I was using a pentium 4 old dell and kept getting blue screens while running xp. I stopped using that computer when I got Boot Camp running on my MacBook Pro but that burns real hot, is kind of loud and still gets blue screens. A friend of mine advised me to research the video cards most importantly, and not to worry about ram, but just make sure I have an okay amount of ram slots.

So is there any real difference between i5 and i7?

 

[jonnyp11]

alienware sucks donkey. their comps themselves are decent quality and work fine, but they charge a premium and then some for the name. i will link a building thread below, but for buying look at ibuypower and cyberpowerpc.com, newegg too.

http://www.computerforum.com/104641-how-build-computer-step-step-photos.html

 

[Phy]

You can build a desktop for ~1000$ that will last at least 4-5 years. It's hard to say how good something will be in 6+ years given how fast technology advances.

 

[jonnyp11]

well he can build something that will last 10 or 15 years depending on if he gets good parts or not really, but lasting in gaming is different.

 

[JDK3010]

Not sure if my last post, posted... Thanks for the links, I'm researching as I'm eager to figure out what I want and move forward with it. Is a Hybrid Solid State drive that much better than a regular solid state drive or is that just a difference in memory? I already have 2 TB External HD and a 1 TB Portable external so I'm not interested in file storage... Although I will probably only be able to re-format one of those drives as I will still use my MacBook Pro.

I'm leaning more towards desktops now, but it brings me to another question. I have a 32 inch samsung tv that I no longer use for TV. I play video games on it occasionally but I was thinking it could be my computer monitor. Or would you recommend just dropping $200 on something smaller with 1080p resolution.

I know a little bit about most things technology but have no real expertise. Unfortunately I know more than all my friends which makes trying to make these decisions difficult on my own.

 

[jonnyp11]

well for the tv as monitor i don't think it's the best idea, you will be looking up at it and your neck will hurt or you will have it further back and it will be in a weird position and all.

 

[JDK3010]

Can someone take a look and give me feedback

Desktop with:
Processor: Intel Core i7-2600 (8MB Cache) Overclocked Turbo Boost to 3.9 GHz
RAM: 12 Dual Channel DDR3 @ 1333MHz
Video Card: 3 GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590
Hard Drive: 500 GB SATA 3Gb/s (7,200 RPM) Solid State Hybrid
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Xtreme Audio

 

[jonnyp11]

unless you have a beast set of speakers there is no need for the sound card. a 590 is pure overkill unless you'r running 2 monitors, and then the 590, 6990, and all dual card setups run into some issues with some games. and then the cpu and ram are both overkill for gaming, nothing uses close to 8gb's, but 4 is pushing it and you want dual channel so 8gb's is the normal recommendation, and nothing benefits from the 4 threads of the 2600k over the 2500k, and you want the k so you can overclock at some point.

 

[JaredC.]

nothing uses close to 8gb's, but 4 is pushing it and you want dual channel so 8gb's is the normal recommendation, and nothing benefits from the 4 threads of the 2600k over the 2500k, and you want the k so you can overclock at some point.

This entire statement is mis-leading and incorrect. "nothing uses close to 8gb's, but 4 is pushing it[...], and nothing benefits from 4 threads...".

Hyper threading, is utlized in almost every function outside of gaming, and makes quite a difference. Don't be so quick to give out half thought out advice. And if he is looking to future proof he might as well stock up on the ram now. I remeber not even 5 years ago you did just fine with 2-4GB or ram, so by that logic 5 years from now 12-16gb of ram will do you just fine.

He is looking to future proof, which means he will have to spend more now to see a savings in the long run. Not, cut corners now for a machine that will be out-dated in 3 years.