New lappy

[*dianne*]

OK! so my hubby has decided that I use his work compy too much for tf2 and it is time to get myself a computer and well we don't have room for another desktop. Here is the config of the system I plan on building let me know if i will be pissed about spending the money on a computer that wont support tf2 wonderfully.....

Vostro 1500 Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T9300 (2.5GHz/800Mhz FSB/6MB cache)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium
LCD Panel 15.4 in Wide Screen SXGA+LCD Display w/TrueLife™
Memory 3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz, 2 DIMM
Video Cards 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8600M GT
Hard Drive 80GB 5400RPM Hard Drive
Integrated NIC and Modem Integrated 10/100 Network Card and Modem
Adobe Software Adobe® Acrobat® Reader
Optical Drive 24X CD Burner/DVD Combo Drive
Sound Card High Definition Audio 2.0
Wireless Cards Dell Wireless 1395 802.11g Wi-Fi Internal Card
Camera Integrated 2.0 mega pixel Web Camera
Bundle No Pre-installed Productivity Software
Primary Battery 56 WHr 6-cell Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Bluetooth Wireless Dell Wireless 355 Bluetooth Internal (2.0 + Enhanced Data Rate)

Don't worry im not buying the memory from dell, ill install it to 3 gigs myself and i was considering self installing the video card but I am not sure of the difficulty and or price difference. it's a $200 upgrade from integrated grafix to the 256mb card. I need serious advice, or maybe suggestions about different brands. I worked for dell for over a year and well I'm comfortable with that but not married to it.
Thanks in advance!
~Heather aka *Dianne*

[centurion]

typically the video card is built into the motherboard, so its not something you can add on later. its one of the biggest downsides to a laptop, you cant upgrade anything other than memory and hard drive. plus, all the technology is slower than a desktop (cpu fsb and mem speeds).

i personally owned and alienware before, and while they are pricey, they are excellent gaming laptops. i'd definitely buy one from them again.

though, had you considered getting a small form factor pc? between that and an lcd, you could cut down on the space needed for the setup significantly.

the SFF pc would be my choice. gives you a lot more configuration/upgrade options, performs faster, and would be cheaper than the laptop.

[*dianne*]

Yeah it crossed my mind, getting a slimline, but taking the compy to school would be a huge plus...

forgot to include this lappy is only 900 with the upgraded vid card so its uber cheap imho

[centurion]

thats not a bad price. i use to have a gaming laptop and got tired of the horrible battery life and the extra weight (they arent light, by any means). i eventually opted to have my gaming desktop and an ultra-light laptop (toshiba u205 series).

but thats just my two cents. the deal you're getting sounds great so it might make up for it, though the gaming performance will suffer with the slower cpu fsb, slower memory speeds, and the slower hard drive (you will notice the difference between a 5400 and 7200 rpm drive). also keep in mind that since you wont be able to get faster components later down the road, your rig will quickly become harder to play new games on (crysis, bioshock, cod4, etc...)

if you know anyone that is hardware savy, you may consider having someone build you a SFF rig. it'll be cheaper than buying one and since you're in school, you can probably get the software for nothing or next to nothing.

[*dianne*]

if i purchsed 800Mhz memory and got a 7200 rph hd would the price difference be worth it? Is it even possible yet to get 800mhz memory for a notebook? (noobish question) what is an sff rig? Thanks for all your help :P

[Prosthetics]

lol if he has a work comp, why doesnt he jus get a laptop. I personally have been told by a crapload of ppl to stay away from laptops for gaming because when i redid my comp back in october, i was thinking about getting a laptop.

[centurion]

if i purchsed 800Mhz memory and got a 7200 rph hd would the price difference be worth it? Is it even possible yet to get 800mhz memory for a notebook? (noobish question) what is an sff rig? Thanks for all your help :P


currently there isnt a notebook that uses 800mhz memory or a 1066mhz fsb processor. the hard drive could be upgraded but its 1) going to be pricey and 2) it will eat your battery life.

SFF rig = small form factor computer

[*dianne*]

the 7200 rpm isnt much more its the solid state that will kill ya :P im use it plugged in w/o the batt most of the time :) These have been wonderful tips i JUst need to know this, Will it run tf2 very well? I don't think im going to get any other new games before i get a new compy and by then we will have room for another desktop for me :)
and pros, He has a studio. We cant replace his "work computer" with a lappy. his work compy consists of a huge system with a g5, a pc, 2 24" monitors, 2 studio mains, a huge sub, 32 channel mixer etc. so yeah he wins this battle of "who's stuck getting a lappy?"

[Kilz]

Unless you have a lot of green to drop on a "gaming" laptop like Alienware... one that was specifically designed for gaming... then make room for a desktop. It's my experience that laptops just don't perform as well as desktops for gaming.

[saucey]

i pro game on an old dell laptop

[Dr. Acula]

For $1000 dollars I can get you a laptop that outperforms more alienware laptops to date. It's slightly used but kept in great condition scores 9000+ on 3dmark06 I believe.

[saucey]

i think you should just give that one to me. or i'll trade or something

[JustNate]

if you really want to save the room and have the portability, you should get the laptop..

As a 62B, I use my laptop for work and gaming, otherwise, I probably would have built a nice sff, but meh.

Got myself an alienware for ut3, cod4, and crysis, these are heavy hitting games, that this laptop handles very beautifully. If I were to go to battery, Id have to change settings to get longer life, and it hasn't hindered my performance yet.

The moral is, if you are going to play TF2, and only TF2 or any valve game, what you have there is just the ticket.

"Vostro 1500 Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T9300 (2.5GHz/800Mhz FSB/6MB cache)
Operating System Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium
LCD Panel 15.4 in Wide Screen SXGA+LCD Display w/TrueLife™
Memory 3GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz, 2 DIMM
Video Cards 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8600M GT
Hard Drive 80GB 5400RPM Hard Drive"

I'd go with a SATA 7200RPM drive, or atleast 7200RPM.. it's worth it in the long run.
The processor is good, model or two above what I'm running.. ;p
the os.. no no no.. bad. Go Ultimate, unless you or your hubby can tweak home premium to be.. umm.. less lame? Ive had nothing but problems with OEM Home Premium installs, and its just a no-no for me.. you might not have any problems yourself though...
the 15.4" is small.. but if you like it, go for it.

Definitely do NOT get more than 2GB of ram with Vista. Hell, even XP has a problem registering more than 2GB of ram.. Out of all my experience, if you want more than 2GB of ram, Run Server 03/08, with 4GB ram. 3 is just odd...

Anywho, that's my two cents. oh btw, "Is it even possible yet to get 800mhz memory for a notebook?" yes... I'm running OCZ DDR2 900MHz RAM in my system.

[shaej]

Could you find room for a box in a closet somewhere, then run extension USB cords and monitor cable to the desktop.

My desktop runs in the closet, the desktop is in the loft overlooking the bay window. The cords slip through the railing ... I'll drill a hole to hide them this summer.

Watching deer run by while burning up medics in TF2 = priceless :)

[CSE|Type-R]

"Definitely do NOT get more than 2GB of ram with Vista. Hell, even XP has a problem registering more than 2GB of ram.. Out of all my experience, if you want more than 2GB of ram, Run Server 03/08, with 4GB ram. 3 is just odd..."

You will do fine with 3 gigs of ram on 32bit vista or xp. 32 Bit operating systems have a max page file of 4 gigs, which means that your system ram, video card ram, and all other peripherals can only add up to 4 gigs of ram or it will not register your system ram fully. But since your video card only has 256mb of ram that leaves you 768mb of ram for any other peripherals.

most people make the mistake of putting 4 gigs of system ram in a computer a get all pissed off when microsoft windows only registers like 3.2gigs.

I would highly recommend getting the 7200rpm hard drive though because it will have a much shorter seek time than a 5400rpm hard drive.

If i were you i wouldn't upgrade to vista ultimate and instead get the cheapest version of vista and install windows xp. You will get a lot more performance out of that computer with xp installed than vista. But before you do this you should make sure that you can find all the drivers for the laptop. One problem you might run into is a lot of laptops (for some stupid reason) have their sata hard drives set up in a raid, so you will need to figure out a way to install the raid driver when you install xp (F6 for additional drivers).

[Tippo]

this is why we have linux

then again, you can just use x64 anything

yes that includes that sh**box vista

oh and for the RAID, drivers are fairly straightforward, just need a floppy :)

[Sir Zolofto]

Congrats on the new laptop. Although I am not very fond for the platform, I do like their mobility and ease of use (Excluding any HID's).

I do recommend NOT using vista. Right now this laptop (P3 700, 256MB PC133 SDRAM, ATi Rage Mobility 8MB) runs Ubuntu 5.10. It runs flawlessly compared to laptops original operating systems (Windows 98, need I say more?). Linux is fairly flexable, and for the specifications for your laptop you might get, get Linux. WinE will run beautifully on that.

I lol'd when you said you would upgrade the video. You're going to college for electrical engineering, right? :D

[centurion]

if you're going to use vista, the more memory the better. i've had more than enough experience with vista and new machines (i work for the geek squad) so i spend every day setting up new machine and seeing how well they perform. 3gb would be fine if you're using a 32bit version of vista or xp, but you could do 4gb if you were going to run a 64bit version of vista.

since your laptop isnt going to be your permanent gaming rig, i think what you've configured there is fine (with the 7200rpm sata hd upgrade), unless you can get them to install xp instead of vista. vista is ok but there are still a lot of bugs and installing simple software can screw things up (like installing aim and having it break your networking). things like that can be fixed but if you arent a techie, then it'll be stressful and you'll end up cursing it.

[hot6]

every post is too long for my hungover ass to read i swear to god i havent read a word

[Dr. Acula]

I still maintain that you buy the laptop that I can get you.

[*dianne*]

and i say that u shoud read ur pm's....

[Enlightened Fool]

the 7200 rpm isnt much more its the solid state that will kill ya :P im use it plugged in w/o the batt most of the time :) These have been wonderful tips i JUst need to know this, Will it run tf2 very well? I don't think im going to get any other new games before i get a new compy and by then we will have room for another desktop for me :)
and pros, He has a studio. We cant replace his "work computer" with a lappy. his work compy consists of a huge system with a g5, a pc, 2 24" monitors, 2 studio mains, a huge sub, 32 channel mixer etc. so yeah he wins this battle of "who's stuck getting a lappy?"

He he, reminds me of my buddy getting the Korg M3 and his girlfriend losing her battle of a new lappy!

[Tippo]

why are you guys still calling it a lappy


so you're buying this:

http://www.itsallaboutlappy.com/

Good luck with the purchase, oh and take out some extra insurance.

[*dianne*]

i call it a lappy because of strong bad...:/

[Tippo]

welcome to 2008

[*dianne*]

How about this one? This is really hard to decide :/ I used to work for dell and hated hp cause i worked there lol but i don't know if they are all that bad... Better gfx, hd, what u think?

Operating system Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (32-bit)
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo Processor T9300 (2.50 GHz, 6 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
Display 17.0" WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1680 x 1050)
Memory 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
Graphics Card 50% OFF 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GS!!
Personalization FREE Upgrade to HP Imprint Finish (Radiance) + Webcam + Microphone
Networking Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 4965AGN Network Connection and Bluetooth(TM)
Hard Drive 240GB 7200RPM SATA Dual Hard Drive (120GB x 2)
Primary CD/DVD Drive LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
Primary Battery High Capacity 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery

[centurion]

How about this one? This is really hard to decide :/ I used to work for dell and hated hp cause i worked there lol but i don't know if they are all that bad... Better gfx, hd, what u think?

Operating system Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (32-bit)
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo Processor T9300 (2.50 GHz, 6 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
Display 17.0" WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1680 x 1050)
Memory 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
Graphics Card 50% OFF 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GS!!
Personalization FREE Upgrade to HP Imprint Finish (Radiance) + Webcam + Microphone
Networking Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 4965AGN Network Connection and Bluetooth(TM)
Hard Drive 240GB 7200RPM SATA Dual Hard Drive (120GB x 2)
Primary CD/DVD Drive LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
Primary Battery High Capacity 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery

looks good to me... though see if you can get vista 64bit and then buy 4gb of ram ($70 on newegg), then it'd be HOT!

[*dianne*]

Yeah im in school ill buy Vista there (should be full 64 bit version?) and yeah ima upgrade the ram :)

[Dr. Acula]

Responded To Ur Pm. Sorry About Dat

[*dianne*]

So my hubby "helped" me make the decision, and we are getting this one :P

HP Pavilion dv9700t customizable Notebook PC
KL086AV

* – Upgrade to Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 1 (64-bit)
* – Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Duo Processor T9300 (2.50 GHz, 6 MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
* – 17.0" WSXGA+ High-Definition HP BrightView Widescreen Display (1680 x 1050)
* – 2GB DDR2 System Memory (2 Dimm)
* – 50% OFF 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GS!!
* – FREE Upgrade to HP Imprint Finish (Radiance) + Webcam + Microphone
* – Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 4965AGN Network Connection and Bluetooth(TM)
* – 240GB 7200RPM SATA Dual Hard Drive (120GB x 2)
* – LightScribe SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-RW with Double Layer Support
* – No TV Tuner w/remote control
* – High Capacity 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery

[Hellzarmy]

personally, i would recommend a real computer over a laptop any day for gaming.

while a laptop offers the portability option, but if you know your never moving it i would just build a small computer.

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/6948/cst-657/Aerocool_M40_MicroATX_Cube_Case_Black_M40-BK.html?tl=g1c7s29

there is even smaller computer cases out there that you could use too. basicly you could build a computer that will take up just barely a bit more than the footprint of a laptop would take up.

if this is something you are interested in, let me know and ill do some leg work and find cases and parts for you. no im not a salesperson, just have alot of free time at work

[Otis]

should check out the ASUS G series

expensive, but independent vid cards, and runs TF2 very well

[Tippo]

on a thinkpad now. check out the T series. our whole entire business uses them.


they're a bit more expensive, but they've lasted 10 times longer than any other laptop we've tested. on top of that battery life is amazing, with the expansion it's even better.

the only problem: it's an under-performer. may it be a tad slower; i'd still choose it over pretty much any other.


i'd seriously look into lenovo/ibm