Buying a new laptop

Discussion in 'Water Cooler' started by tech, Dec 4, 2009.

  1. tech

    tech Regular Member

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    So im gettin a new laptop prefferably for gaming for xmas and the max it can be is £500..

    But which one should i get? Here are the main specs of each:


    Dell Vostro 1720

    Core 2 Duo 2.2Ghz

    2GB RAM (upgradeable to 8gb)

    nVidia GeForce 9600m GS 512mb

    Link: The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

    Price: £504


    Packard Bell EasyNote TJ65-BT-041


    Core 2 Duo 2.2ghz

    4GB RAM

    nVidia Geforce 210m 512mb

    Link: Packard Bell TJ65-BT-041 Laptops - Cheap Packard Bell Laptops. Buy the Packard Bell TJ65-BT-041 laptop at PC World.

    Price: £499


    ---

    So which is better? I would of though the 2nd one (the Packard bell) due to the fact its the 200 series graphics card..

    Would it be able to play games like Modern Warfare 2 and Assassins creed @ High Settings?

    Im probably going to go to PC World next week and have a look at it though..

    Thanks
     
  2. superfishnz

    superfishnz Novice

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    Have a look at this site here: Notebookcheck: Computer Games on Laptop Graphic Cards.

    It should be helpful for you in determining what is going to be the faster video card. When gaming, the Video Card and RAM are the most important factor to consider.

    I would prefer the Packard Bell as that has 4GB of RAM and the more RAM the better :)

    One other thing to consider is the WARRANTY.
    Laptops are more prone to hardware failure as they are moved and carried around more often than a desktop computer. If you can get one with a 3 year warranty and not just the standard 1 year warranty. Brand new laptops tend to not fail in their first year so it's best to get aleast a three year warranty, especially for laptops.

    Hope that helps.

    P.S>> With that price range of yours, you can get a pretty darn decent desktop computer! I'm also getting Modern Warfare in a week or so (ordered from the UK, but I live in New Zealand).
     
  3. Peggy

    Peggy Regular Member

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    I prefer HP's and Acer. My third choice would be Dell.

    Check around some more before you buy. I honestly didn't realize that they even made Packard Bell's any longer.
     
  4. Nick

    Nick Regular Member

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    Sony's are fantastic as well; they are very durable and can last for many years.

    I haven't looked closely at the specs on this one, but I thought it might interest you although it's a bit more expensive than the two you listed: SONY Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S Silver Laptops - Cheap SONY Laptops. Buy the SONY Vaio VGN-NW20EF/S Silver laptop at PC World.
     
  5. tech

    tech Regular Member

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    Thanks but..Intel Graphics card.

    Looks like im stuck with the dell as the Packard bell is extremely low on stocks and has raised £50

    --

    Im also never getting an Acer, ive heard to many bad stories about their laptops and i was at a friends house once and an Acer Tech came round to pick up his Acer laptop due to hardware failure and the Acer Tech guy even said him self we get to many returns on laptops due to failures.

    --

    I have seen a good Asus though:

    Buy Asus X5D1N Windows 7 15.6 Laptop. at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for .

    nVidia 100 series GFX.
     
  6. Peggy

    Peggy Regular Member

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    You're kidding? My puter repair guy highly recommends Acer. He has both a desktop and a laptop. He says he's never had a problem with either. My g/f has an Acer laptop and it runs like a dream... going on 2 years now.

    Eh, everyone has a different opinion :)
     
  7. kneel

    kneel Regular Member

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    I have 5 hp's and no probs.

    as far as the first post, i've never reallt played with the Packard Bell EasyNote TJ65-BT-041 so I cant really comment on that....but i wouldnt recommemd a dell..their just not all that they hype them up to be...:rolleyes:
     
  8. tech

    tech Regular Member

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    I love dell..

    My mum had a Desktop which i used untill i got £400 for my birthday, i hopped on dell and looked for a laptop for light gaming and it was £500, both my dad and mum but 50 towards it each and it turned out to be great..3 Years later 3 BSOD's and its still fine (im on it now) I did have one problem with the Charger however Dell sent me a free on and it came the very next day.

    I looked around the HP website but they really didn't lay it out easily but havent been able to find a good one yet with a Gamng GPU (for £500).
     
  9. Peggy

    Peggy Regular Member

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    My first computer was an Acer - loved it.
    Second was an HP - loved it - had it for 6 yrs. Still ran good, just wanted a new one, so cleaned it out and passed it down to my son when I got my Dell desktop.
    Had the Dell for 5 yrs. In the meantime, purchased a Dell laptop. Loved it too, but had to sell it for financial reasons.

    Passed the Dell down to my son when I purchased my current HP Slimline.
    So yeah I've mostly had HP's and Dells and swear by them both.
     
  10. superfishnz

    superfishnz Novice

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    -- LOL, I had the exact same thought when I read the original post! Packard Bell left NZ years and years ago and I've never seen it here again.

    I mainly deal with HP laptops (I'm a Systems Engineer and have a lot of clients who we sell HP laptops to). However, they are not built for GAMING. I haven't seen a HP laptop with a decent enough graphics card at the same price range, actual fact, hardly any HP laptops have decent graphics cards.

    Remember everyone that Tech is looking for a laptop to play GAMES on. So he needs a laptop with a good graphics card.

    Can I ask, are you determined to get a laptop for gaming though? I'm asking because you have limited options with a laptop whereas with a desktop computer, you've got a lot of choices.
     
  11. tech

    tech Regular Member

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    Okay, my mum just said i can order it on Monday, Yay..

    Specs:

    (ships with 2GB ram but i checked and cross referenced and my 4GB ram from this laptop (vostro 1700) will work with the laptop im getting, ill then upgrade to 8GB for birthday or when i get some money)


    Name: Dell Vostro 1720

    OS: Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit, English

    CPU: Intel® Core™2 T6670(2.2GHz,800MHz,2MB)

    Memory: 2048MB (2 x 1024) 800MHz DDR2 Dual Channel

    Video: 512 MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 9600M GS Graphic Card

    Hard Drive: 250GB (7200rpm) SATA Hard Drive with Free Fall Sensor

    Optical Device: 8X DVD+/-RW Drive including software for WIN7

    Wireless Networking: Dell Wireless 1397 Mini Card (802.11 b/g) European

    Battery: Primary 6-cell 56 WHr Lithium Ion battery

    LCD: 17.0 inch WXGA+ CCFL Anti-Glare Display

    Accessories: Free £75 Google AdWords Voucher

    End Price: £504.85
     
  12. superfishnz

    superfishnz Novice

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    Nice!

    Windows 7 is great as well btw!
    What's the warranty on that? As mentioned before, if you can, try to get it with THREE years extended warranty rather than just the one year as nothing generally goes wrong with laptops in the first year.
     
  13. tech

    tech Regular Member

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    Only Standard but then again Dells Behave them selves.

    awww.adminaddict.net_data_MetaMirrorCache_dad493efaafb3267a7a269c4ef3ccff3.jpg

    3 Years would cost an extra £80
     
  14. superfishnz

    superfishnz Novice

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    Back in 2001-2003, I used to work in an organisation which only had Dells and I supported the laptop users. Trust me, after about 2-3 years, they really start to fail. We're talking about motherboards, hard drives etc. Even now (2009), I have a client which uses Dells as well and some come out of the factory with some defects. I've seen a MIC on a builtin webcam become faulty. A faulty motherboard and docking station. All within the first month, brand new. In Dell's defense, they do make a lot of these, but with any computer parts, it's an 'odds' game. There'll be a certain percentage of machines or parts which will fail, you just hope that when it does, it fails within warranty. Remember, £80 is a small price to pay for 2 extra years considering if your motherboard is dead, you'll looking at probably that much to replace the motherboard + labour! Worst is the LCD screen because those are really expensive.

    The 3 years upgrade is ONSITE warranty is it? This is much better than the 'Pick up and Return' where you'll probably be without your machine for about 2-3 days. Onsite warranty is usually next business day fix as well.

    I'm writing this from working in a Corporate environment though where it's important for the laptop to not be out of service. From a home user/personal point of view, it will be different.

    My two cents from experience.
     
  15. tech

    tech Regular Member

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    Thanks and here is the 3 year option:

    awww.adminaddict.net_data_MetaMirrorCache_dd0d4f821a5e4498d515ddbf4826b549.jpg

    I will be using it at home and not for work (i got a business laptop because the home ones had ATI Graphics in them)

    I also ordered it last night and is In Production, one thing im bothered about it says Estimated Delivery date is 30th December..Thats 23 days from day of payment (last night) I know its Christmas and all but ill have hardly anything to open on Xmas day if it doesnt come before..Im about to speak with Sales Support though.
     
  16. MjrNuT

    MjrNuT Grand Master

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    The estimate can change.

    I ordered a Dell Studio 1555 on 10/5, it had a estimated ship date of 10/15.

    It resulted in a Ship date of 10/11 and Arrival on 10/13.

    Not to get your hopes up or anything.

    I concur with superfishenz's points as I used to be one of those end-user's in a corporate environment using Dell's. I can tell you the best part w/ the Dell Service for issues, I would grade a 7/10.

    It all depends on the tech that comes out to do the work. No matter what you have to be there with them, hopefully you are knowledgable. I had a gfx card issue, that was my claim. Instead, they went and changed the LCD (which was the Ultra) and of course no change, then they changed the RAM, of course no change, then they changed the mobo, b/c that is all that could be done. But the mobo was unavailable. lol This was a XPS laptop (M35) 19", iirc. At the time the model was done being made, so I ended up w/ an upgrade to the comparable XPS laptop, which reduced in size, but w/e.


    I got this new Studio and it rocks, but I really really dislike Vista Ultimate. I really wanted to give it a try as the usage of if was mostly for my better half. I was hoping I'd be the 1% that didn't have an issue w/ Vista!! And I wish I'd actually done the 3 year Warranty like Superfishnz says...but I guess I can add it on. I don't mean to bash Dell or anything as I've used them for over 10 years, both corporate and home. Previous home laptop was Inspiron 8000 or something...lasted 5 years. :D This is my one glitch with Dell is all, and really though it is Vista. lol
     
  17. tech

    tech Regular Member

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    Holy Crap...3 Days to build a laptop?

    Order Date: 07/12/2009

    Shipped Date: 10/12/2009

    :woohoo:
     

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