Gaming college laptop

[tinymonkeyt]

well college is kinda far but still very close (maybe a lil over 1 year away)
but i wanted to kinda get a head start on deciding what kind of laptop i want

im kinda bad with computer systems so if you could give a few suggestions, itd really help!

so some of the things im looking for in a laptop are:
-a reasonable price: id say up to 1,000$ (more or less)
-the ability to play games (like TF2 and stuff). so need pretty fast computer and good graphics.
-a built-in webcam. has to be decent >.< (so i can chat w/ friends :])

most people get a mac for college (or many do around here)
but i wasnt sure if macs could play games and stuff
yeah i think thats about it.
i have an acer lappy atm
but the specs are pretty bad and its got some bugs and no webcam.

thanks in advance!
links to PC are encouraged too! and suggestions for places to buy them at.

 

[da_head]

ok a couple of tips:- don't get a mac
-all laptops have webcams nowadays, pretty standard
-if ur doing some intense gaming, then get a 15.4 inch. anything bigger is just to damn heavy. if ur not gaming that much, 14.1 is perfect.
-consider getting a 12 cell battery. esp if ur gaming, that sucker will run out in like 1-2 hrs

-before gettin a specific laptop, figure out if it overheats a lot (like mine) especially if ur actually planning to put in on ur lap. stupid thing nukes my nuts T-T (not that u would have that problem though lol)
-scope out wat kind of mouse u would like. gaming (i.e big and sexy) or portable (those fuckin things i can't even hold lol). wat did i choose? a mix of both. i got this sexy logitech cordless laser (optical sucks imo) with a nano receiver usb which is like half a cm lol (i can show u a pic if u want). i hate those huge usbs that are like 2 inches, i'm parnoid that they mite snap off lol.
-make sure u have a bag that can fit in ur laptop. it can take up a lot of room.

hmm i think that's it for now. others will suggest u specific laptops to buy. if ur interested, mine is an hp pavillion 1174ca. effin good gaming laptop (core 2 duo 2.0, 4gb ram, 9600gt) for like 900 CAD. only problem is that it gets really hot. anyways, enjoy college young lady, and don't do anything bad!

 

[epicelite]

WAIT because the nVidia ION platform for netbooks should be comeing out this summer!

It is a ATOM processor with a 9400 GPU!

Can play games like COD4 and watch HD movies! =3

Supposed to be cheap make to go in Eee PC's

 

[Rock Raiyu]

I had the same idea back in September of 2008 even though I don't graduate till next year.

Now on topic, what I did was get a custom built XPS M1530 laptop. Get's what you need done, and has gaming performance, I can play 90% games at the highest settings. Though there are better laptops out there, this one does what you want and more.

 

[UltraMagnus]

the dell vostro still looks good, I use an older version myself. it has a good balance between battery life and portability.

 

[Raki]

Well, MacBooks are quite good for all day use and small (13,3 inches) + good battery life...so it's good as a portable laptop..but it's expensive and not a top laptop for games...although the 9400m graphics are quite good (WoW on max fullspeed, CoD 4 without any problem), but they aren't made for hardcore gaming (so if you just play games like TF2 you should be okay)
you would also be able to use the full pleasure of Mac OS X (hackintosh isn't really the same with all the little problems)

but after all I would look at your needs:
-portable? 13/12 inches? weight?
- good battery life?
- favorite OS
- what games do you want to play etc.

 

[suppachipmunk]

I just got the Dell Vostro 1310 recently, and it is good as a "portable" laptop. Very small 13.3 inch screen, and 9-cell battery providing me ~5-7 hours depending on the settings.

I wouldnt say it is up to much for gaming. decent processor starting at theT5670 intel core 2 duo, and goes to the P8300 I think. The graphics may not be your style, only goes to 128 dedicated GPU.

Everyone else also gave very good tips. I can only add:
- check out the built in wireless cards. You can get the intel 4965abgn, or the 5100/5300 built in, but sometimes they charge more than if you bought it online and put it in yourself. See how many antenna wires the laptop comes with. Most come with 3 wires, but there are a few that only have 2. 3 wires (housing 5 or 6 transmitters/recievers) is going to give you the best signal and range. this will prevent you from having to use the usb connectors. you can see all the details in the instruction manual.
The reason I mention this is that most colleges only run a wireless g network, and it can be hard to get a signal. i go to a major university and it is hard to get a signal anywhere in there buildings. the extra antenna/wireless N card will help to get the most out of the range.

- play with the models at bestbuy to get a feel for the keyboard and touchpad. I was a little dissapointed when I got my vostro because it has a mushy keyboard. not very good for taking notes at high speeds in class.

Hope you are able to find what you are looking for.
suppachipmunk

 

[Mangofett]

WAIT because the nVidia ION platform for netbooks should be comeing out this summer!

It is a ATOM processor with a 9400 GPU!

Can play games like COD4 and watch HD movies! =3

Supposed to be cheap make to go in Eee PC's

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/hardware/2008...-nvidia-s-ion/1

Coming to AMD instead

 

[Mangofett]

Something to consider: the new white macbook with 9400M graphics. http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop...ook?mco=MTE3MzM

Macbooks have on average a bit better battery life than other notebooks in this price range. And plus it fits all 3 criteria you listed.

If you need to run Vista, you can get Windows Server 2008 for free if you're a student (it's virtually the same thing) https://www.dreamspark.com/default.aspx

good non-mac notebook: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16834220337

 

[Jiggah]

WAIT because the nVidia ION platform for netbooks should be comeing out this summer!

It is a ATOM processor with a 9400 GPU!

Can play games like COD4 and watch HD movies! =3

Supposed to be cheap make to go in Eee PC's

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/hardware/2008...-nvidia-s-ion/1

Coming to AMD instead

That's really old. It was only a rumor and it was already denied by Intel. In fact, some news sources have already received test units of Ion, although it has mainly been in the mini-desktop form. There hasn't been a confirmation whether or not it'll appear in a netbook form, but it looks promising.

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3509

 

[tinymonkeyt]

so macs are ok for gaming?
i dont expect really good graphical games. just prolly just normal ones like TF2 and maybe L4D or something. im not THAT hardcore of a PC gamer.
and good battery life and memory is good too

 

[da_head]

so macs are ok for gaming?
i dont expect really good graphical games. just prolly just normal ones like TF2 and maybe L4D or something. im not THAT hardcore of a PC gamer.
and good battery life and memory is good too

if ur willin to cough up the $$$ then i guess so

 

[Mangofett]

so macs are ok for gaming?

As long as you're on Windows not OSX


And only the new laptops. If you buy from Best Buy make sure you don't get some old stock with crappier graphics.

 

[epicelite]

WAIT because the nVidia ION platform for netbooks should be comeing out this summer!

It is a ATOM processor with a 9400 GPU!

Can play games like COD4 and watch HD movies! =3

Supposed to be cheap make to go in Eee PC's

http://www.bit-tech.net/news/hardware/2008...-nvidia-s-ion/1

Coming to AMD instead

LOL OLD NEWS IS OLD

Do a little better of a search and you will see Intel said it is OK for nVidia to do w/e.

 

[ZPE]

Whatever you decide, don't comprise on screen size. Get at least a 15" screen and avoid the flashy netbooks as they're just not built for gaming.

 

[kohkindachi]

so macs are ok for gaming?
i dont expect really good graphical games. just prolly just normal ones like TF2 and maybe L4D or something. im not THAT hardcore of a PC gamer.
and good battery life and memory is good too

Not all games support mac i think. Guess you'll have to check the specific game requirement

 

[Jiggah]

so macs are ok for gaming?
i dont expect really good graphical games. just prolly just normal ones like TF2 and maybe L4D or something. im not THAT hardcore of a PC gamer.
and good battery life and memory is good too

Not all games support mac i think. Guess you'll have to check the specific game requirement

You can simply bootcamp with Windows. With a 9400m GPU and a Core 2 Duo, you should be able to play some decent games. However, battery life might suck hard.

 

[da_head]

so macs are ok for gaming?

As long as you're on Windows not OSX

wait so ur paying for an overpriced cross dresser then? psh

 

[epicelite]

so macs are ok for gaming?

As long as you're on Windows not OSX

wait so ur paying for an overpriced cross dresser then? psh

DO HOHOHOOHOHOHOHOHOHOH HOOHO HO!

 

[Isaiah]

Aren't there like battery extensions for laptops?