I'm hoping I'm not following a trend here...

[Pyrolocks]

Why not get a NEW Msi for the same money.. PE70 is $1099.99 and has 6th gen i7 quad, 12GB DDR4 ram, 1TB HDD, 17" screen, 960M Graphics, AND a FREE backpack!!!! F ya!!!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152951

Lol. It's too big. Plus, I've already been swayed to Lenovo.
I'm torn between these two:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834321438

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834319909

One has an external optic drive, which is not ideal but I'll roll with it and one has a SSD, which is nice but not something I'll die without. I'd only really use it for LoL.

 

[Laquer Head]

Lenovos are mediocre in my opinion.. simply not being able to upgrade to a AC wifi card on an old machine was enough to sour me on their laptops.

 

[Pyrolocks]

I've only ever had Toshibas. Excellent experiences with them right up until the most recent one I ordered wouldn't boot, brand new.... so I get what you're saying.
Fortunately, upgrading laptops isn't something I'm savvy enough to do so I don't think I'll have that problem.

 

[Laquer Head]

Pretty easy.. first know your budget.. second.. whats your main use.. I'd recommend Asus, MSI, or Acer laptops..

 

[Darren]

Lenovo's make fine machines.

You can run around in circles comparing different machines.

I'd say do this and be done with it. Nearly identical specs to the Lenovo you mentioned but 200 bucks cheaper. Judging by your uses this will far exceed your needs anyway.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...4232848&cm_re=gtx_960m-_-34-232-848-_-Product

 

[beers]

I'm torn between these two:

I'd buy the cheaper one and dump the same $150 into a SSD if the 1 TB drive isn't fast enough. You can get a 500 GB 850 EVO for about the same $150 price premium, which is a lot more for usable solid-state storage capacity.

I'd say do this and be done with it.

I'd at least get a Skylake notebook if you're buying new. Simply by having DDR4 gives you a double-density situation whereas having DDR3 limits you to 16 GB maximum across two slots.

It's too big.

Giggity

 

[Darren]

Giggity

 

[Pyrolocks]

Lol, I ended up buying this one because it went on sale. The optic drive is external which is not ideal but I'll live.

http://m.newegg.com/Product/index?itemNumber=N82E16834319907

I'll let you know how it works out for me. Thanks for all the advice!