Gaming laptops..just a quick question

[Vault101]

[b/]whats that you say? don't bother? buy a desktop? why thankyou for that advice I shall certainly take it on board[/b]
[small/]Ill think about it, ok?[/small]

anyway....

I've been looking around have found some that seem decent enough

-core i7, (which may be overkill aparently)
1-2GB graphics card (when they say a graphics card is 1gb or whatever thats the same as VRAM isn't it?)
-2.3ghz processor (or more)

if I missed/got somthing wrong there please let me know

now its just the RAM I'm a little unsure on, most have 4GB which seems to be the standard/minimu thease days, a few have 8gb (though tend to be more expensive)

now what I'm asking is [b/]I know its a laptop so its going to be outdated in a few years anyway, but in terms of the next gen and its lifespan, is the amount of RAM going to be a major factor?...will it considerably affect is viability?[/b]

 

[Joccaren]

Core i7 is overkill if there's a similar speed and # of cores available in i5, I.E, for a desktop, the i7 2600K doesn't provide that much benefit over an i5 2500K for gaming. Generally an i5 will do well enough, so long as its clock speed is up to par [2.3+ seems alright, though I only have experience with cores 3.3Ghz+, though I hear 2.3 is sufficient].
1 or 2Gb graphics card, IMO, doesn't tell you much. For a laptop it might be sufficient, but generally the model of the card is more important. Yes, 1Gb refers to the VRAM that the card has, and 1Gb will be enough for any laptop with any game [So far as I know no laptop has 2560*1440 resolution, but if one does then that would need the 2Gb]. What is more important is the card itself, its # of cores and clock speeds.

RAM... I'd go for 6-8Gb personally. 4Gb is sufficient to play most games, though as you go on you'll probably get more and more bloatware on your laptop [Hell, most laptops I've seen start with a fair amount of it], which will utilize RAM in running. 6-8Gb gives you a nice buffer zone to be safe, but I wouldn't pay too much extra for it.

 

[Vault101]

snip.

thanks!..that was very helpful

another question...would most current graphics card/computers suport DX11? it was specifically stated on a few but not all...since my midrange TOSHIBA from a coupel of years ago did I assumed most would

 

[SomeLameStuff]

Most current ones will. I believe that Nvidia's GTX 500 series onwards support DX11. Not sure about other cards though.

 

[Joccaren]

thanks!..that was very helpful

another question...would most current graphics card/computers suport DX11? it was specifically stated on a few but not all...since my midrange TOSHIBA from a coupel of years ago did I assumed most would

Considering DX11 was released in 2004 [If I remember correctly], I'd be very surprised if modern cards didn't.
AMD cards I'm not as sure about, but anything in the 6000 series or higher should have it, and I've noticed that at least some of the 5000 series cards have it too, for Desktop anyway. A modern gaming laptop should have DX11 capabilities, but if you're not entirely sure check the GPU it says it has in it. A quick Google of the GPU model and DX11 should give you an idea of whether its compatible or not.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

1-2GB graphics card (when they say a graphics card is 1gb or whatever thats the same as VRAM isn't it?)

This is something you really want to lock-down specifics on. The memory of the card is just one part of how well it performs.

Come back to me with what actual card is in there and I'll get back to you.

 

[Vault101]

[b/]
1-2GB graphics card (when they say a graphics card is 1gb or whatever thats the same as VRAM isn't it?)

This is something you really want to lock-down specifics on. The memory of the card is just one part of how well it performs.

youre referring to the model and the type of card are you? I was just checking that it was what I thourght it was

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

[b/]
1-2GB graphics card (when they say a graphics card is 1gb or whatever thats the same as VRAM isn't it?)

This is something you really want to lock-down specifics on. The memory of the card is just one part of how well it performs.

youre referring to the model and the type of card are you? I was just checking that it was what I thourght it was

Yep. Give us the actual card model and we can give you some more concrete information.

 

[Vault101]

Yep. Give us the actual card model and we can give you some more concrete information.

well some of the ones Ive been looking at...both higher and lower range

2GB DDR3 NVIDIA GT610M

AMD Radeon HD 7570M 1GB GDDR5

NVIDIA GeForce GTX670M

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

If gaming is your intended, dedicated or prime use for the machine, you really want the best, latest and biggest GPU/video solution available, as you cannot 'replace' the 'graphics card'. Whatever you get, you're stuck with it.

I've seen, say, Acer machines with decent capabilities, but the GPU is soldered onto the mainboard, so if anything breaks, everything breaks, requiring a mainboard replacement, which tends to be quite costly even for machines just-out of the warranty period.

On my Toshiba workhorse laptop, the GPU actually sits on a video daughterboard, which I could replace would I be able to find the exact same model or a compatible card, which is generally expensive outside warranty or requires ebay magic and the iron will and steady hand required to disassemble and properly reassemble a well integrated computer (lots of stuff stuffed into a small box), as laptop computers are.

Whatever flavour you go for only starts to matter to you once your warranty period is over, and you might be inclined to repair things yourself.

You already seem to have made up your mind on this one, but I'd still like to stress the point of going for a dedicated video solution, no 'shared memory' shenanigans.

As for the RAM - if you have your list of candidates down to a chosen few, go for the 8GB RAM ones - if it's proper RAM fast enough or the best/fastest that fits. It's little use getting the best i5/i7 processor, 64-bit Win7 and cripple it down from day one with only 4GB of RAM. You clearly also don't want to go back to 32-bit computing, and if you do, you'll likely do it in a virtual box, something which also is far more productive and way more fun with all the RAM you can get.

Also, after-market upgrading may very well be possible when it comes to RAM (unless you're buying crApple, which have once again taken to solder the RAM right in, hah), but why bother with that crap when you can buy your machine maxed out?

The only thing to check is methinks what a set of the fastest RAM would cost you if you were to buy it separately from the non-maxed-out machine. If the markup for the OOB 8GB machine doesn't exceed the price of standard machine + decent RAM, I'd say you're good to go.

Oh, what can still happen:
Sometimes OEM manufacturers try to shove some old and slow RAM into their machines. That's no ill will, but mainly to keep the costs low. If you're spending more than, say, $1000 on a dedicated gaming rig, I would consider fast, good quality RAM to be important from the get-go... and lots of it, too.

 

[Danceofmasks]

The GT610M is worthless. It's so far below spec it probably won't play web games properly.

The HD 7570M is also below spec. If a game has on the box "minimum nVidia 8800," the 7570M won't run properly.

Note that below spec means minimum settings will not work adequately, and you should not expect any tech support.

The GTX670M is decent, but even so, it's only about half as powerful as my $130 desktop card.

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

The GT610M is worthless. It's so far below spec it probably won't play web games properly.

The HD 7570M is also below spec. If a game has on the box "minimum nVidia 8800," the 7570M won't run properly.

Note that below spec means minimum settings will not work adequately, and you should not expect any tech support.

The GTX670M is decent, but even so, it's only about half as powerful as my $130 desktop card.

Ahem, Addendum:

GT610M: Entry level dedicated graphics solution from late 2011. Not exactly crap, but not the one you want if you want to play games.

HD 7570M (Radeon): Mid-range dedicated graphics solution from January 2012. Meh.

GTX670M: High-end dedicated graphics solution from March 2012. Expect to play maxed out at '720p'ish resolutions (1366x768) and having to fiddle around lowering things above that.

The GTX670M is about five times more powerful than the GT610M, which was made to compete with onboard graphics, so the GT610M is something you DO NOT WANT FOR PLAYING GAMES.

As mentioned earlier, since you cannot replace the GPU/graphics "card", I would have to suggest you get at least the GTX670M one.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-670M.72197.0.html
http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-610M.63759.0.html

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Yep. Give us the actual card model and we can give you some more concrete information.

well some of the ones Ive been looking at...both higher and lower range

2GB DDR3 NVIDIA GT610M

AMD Radeon HD 7570M 1GB GDDR5

NVIDIA GeForce GTX670M

Well, there you go. People with more knowledge than I have chimed in on those cards.

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

Well, there you go. People with more knowledge than I have chimed in on those cards.

You, Sir, are the catalyst. You asked the right question.

Bravo.

[http://media.photobucket.com/image/applause gif/ShaughnApril17/APPLAUSE.gif?o=7]

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Well, there you go. People with more knowledge than I have chimed in on those cards.

You, Sir, are the catalyst. You asked the right question.

Bravo.

[http://media.photobucket.com/image/applause gif/ShaughnApril17/APPLAUSE.gif?o=7]

Thank you, thank you!

I'll be here all week, everyone!

 

[Danceofmasks]

HD 7570M (Radeon): Mid-range

Wrong.
If something is below minimum spec for a lot of things, it's not mid range.
It's ... err ... below the minimum of the acceptable range of cards you should even consider buying.

We're talking about a gaming computer here, not a computer.
That's the distinction.

Taking an analogy, if you go out to buy a vehicle, and you want a car, the minimum spec for a car is FOUR WHEELS.
Sure, a bicycle is a vehicle and will get you from A to B. So will a motorcycle.
But both of those things are below your specifications.

You can't really play games on a HD 7570M.

Edit:
To take the analogy one step further, combining an i7 with a HD7570 is like a really expensive motorcycle.
You will take it home and realise it won't let you take 3 passengers nor keep the rain off your head.

 

[Vault101]

snip>

thanks for the info.....(pays to be informed I supose)

any [i/]good[/i] graphics cards I should look for? or is that the best I'm going to get with a laptop? (and I guess once you get to a certain point its going to get expensive)

 

[Deshin]

As a laptop user for the last 3 years and have played many a game on it I have a warning for you: WATCH OUT FOR OVER-HEATING.

My Laptop is a pretty decent model (for its time anyway) and it'd hit 90C and burn out while playing Civ5 and SWTOR. The thing is the card is more than capable of playing games at high res but the bottleneck is lowest settings cause 85C models which then turns off a core to stop the imminnent overheating and then tada the game now runs like utter shit.

Ok sure I play on an island where 40C summers are standard fare but SWTOR came out in christmas and it still made poor lappy throw a fit.

tl;dr Whatever you get in your laptop means jack diddly shit if you've not got some epic cooling going on.

 

[Vault101]

hmmm...this is beginning to look like a rather pointless endevour

 

[Deshin]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but the only real problem with laptops is the overheating. Having said that I do love my laptop and take it everywhere with me (even to work, boring reception jobs ftw) but I've now bought an entirely new desktop (costing ?1.4k total) because sure I *CAN* play GW2 on the lappy on low res but even then it's a crapshoot as a core gets snuffed out to keep it overheating. So I'll use the lappy for ye olde classics when bored but for any game that's come out since 2011 it's got to be on something that can't double as a barbecue grill.

Sure some modern laptops might have the cooling up to par 'for now' but a year later stuff will be coming out and it'll just get worse down the line. Wait for a few more user inputs and the like before making your final decision but to me the concept of a "real" gaming laptop is just a pipe dream due to the insane heating.

Solve Media: Rocket Science oddly accurate statement...