Gaming Good Bang for Buck?

[Berthenk]

Well i can always buy a new one when i have enough money, how bad are they anyway?

With most laptops you're not able to build your own GPU in, so that won't work.

 

[exangel]

Ok it's decided, i'll get that $600 Laptop unless i find a better deal.

I also forgot to answer a couple questions

the 600 dollar laptop you mentioned has a Mobility Radeon 4100 which is crappier than what I've been talking about and showed the screenshot of, so I don't know about it being worth the money to you, since what I got is cheaper and better.

see if you can search for something specifically with the 4250, just to see what the cheapest you can find with that particular graphics in it will run you. Here in the USA, there's a $350 toshiba on newegg w/free shipping with the same graphics as my Acer, it just doesn't have a webcam or mic and has a single core processor (and weighs more while having a slightly bigger screen). My Acer was $550 shipped.

as far as Compaq goes, i have owned a Compaq laptop in the last 5 years and its screen backlight spontaneously died for no good reason. I wasn't using it for any kind of 3d gaming and it was being used for nothing more than web browsing and email by my mother in like, 2007. It was being used on a tabletop with plenty of natural ventilation in a heavily air conditioned apartment (and not evap, it's forced air, so it couldnt even be a humidity issue). I had bought it new and it only had a one year warranty but dang, unusable as a mobile in less than two years is horrible, not to mention that I'm not the only former compaq user telling such a story about their screen (on this very forum for that matter)

 

[FireGrey]

The graphics can't be as bad as everyone is making it seem like.

 

[exangel]

I was just suggesting you not spend more money on something that's undoubtedly crappier than what I have spent less money for if you're after something new.
I'm not saying the difference is going to be monstrous or necessarily noticeable, just saying, don't pay more for worse if you have the time to make a more educated decision.

 

[omgpwn666]

That's a nice system you're looking at, but Is suggest you look at a local electronics store. You'll be glad you did, I got my comp for $500 it's 4 gig DDR3 ram, (upgradable to 8 gigs) 2 AMD Athlon 2.7 GHz cores, and comes with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. (What computer doesn't come with Windows 7 64 bit? Haha) But anyways, it's not a beast, but it runs most of my games at 60 fps, like Borderlands, Half-Life 2 ep 1 & 2, Team Fortress 2, Portal, and more. I'm really happy with it, just make sure for that price, you're happy. If you're like me, and went from the oldest piece of crap computer in the world anything new will do, but I made sure this was the right choice. Just got it this year from a local Staples store.

 

[FireGrey]

Wow that sounds great, anyway i got more time cause the Christmas specials are coming soon.

 

[Strider]

I think for that price you'd get a similar one with better, dedicated graphics. I'm not sure what that price converts to in EU or US, but for 500€ I got a notebook with similar specs but i3 dual core, HT (=4 logical cores) and can play pretty good with this thing. My HP G62 features a Radeon Mobility 5470 with 512MB Ram and a Intel something for powersaving.

The graphics can't be as bad as everyone is making it seem like.

Yes, yes it can.

 

[exangel]

I think for that price you'd get a similar one with better, dedicated graphics. I'm not sure what that price converts to in EU or US, but for 500€ I got a notebook with similar specs but i3 dual core, HT (=4 logical cores) and can play pretty good with this thing. My HP G62 features a Radeon Mobility 5470 with 512MB Ram and a Intel something for powersaving.

The graphics can't be as bad as everyone is making it seem like.

Yes, yes it can.

500 EUR = 686.9513 AUD
Euro ? Australian Dollar


The Radeon 5470 is the lowest end dedicated graphics in a system that I could find but it was US~$640 w/shipping at the time which was just too much for me to accommodate plus the system itself was larger and heavier (I think it was a 17")

640 USD = 645.7732 AUD
United States Dollar ? Australian Dollar

Awesome, the prices dropped and availability increased.. apparently there's at least one model with that card in it on Newegg in the US for less than $600 shipped.. I would've been able to do that.. urghrurghrughrugh...

 

[Arnold Schwarzen]

Still could do much better, get one with at least a 9800M or GTX 260M in terms of power. You could find excellent deals on refurbs, I'd totally go with those. Look for an ASUS G50 or G51 refurb, some will fit in that price range, some even lower. Not the most advanced graphics but pretty damn good for what you want and then more.

 

[[M]artin]

I read the title of the topic and came in expecting to see an essential list of wallet-friendly hookers.

I left with a headache and a new-found hatred for The Sims.

 

[FireGrey]

Can someone please help me find a good laptop?
About $500.
I need help cause i'm a sucker for Compaq.

 

[floydo]

try the HP Mini, a good Machine, around you price range. HP too!
http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/au/en/ho/WF...83-4247645.html

 

[FireGrey]

I'm looking for a Notebook, not netbook, sorry.

 

[exangel]

I think you should ask a mod to change the title of this topic to something like "Looking for a good (new) ~$500 laptop in Australia" because you need more Australia specific advice.

I do have a really good (American) friend living in Melbourne making a living (presumably, a good enough living to leave the US for the job..) being a tech and he might be able to help you find a good shop if that's a suitable area for being of any help to you.
If you get a lot of advice on this from foreigners they wind up referencing vendors you can't purchase from or will have to pay additional shipping, even duties, etc for..

 

[FireGrey]

Thanks, can a mod change this to "Looking for a good (new) ~$500 laptop in Australia"
Someone really needs to slap me so i don't get a compaq

 

[exangel]

I meant, PM one about it XD Otherwise this request may never get noticed..

 

[Arnold Schwarzen]

OP you 10 years old?

 

[Deleted User]

Googling around found me this site: http://www.priceusa.com.au/ which is worth looking into!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16834220794 ~ $600 USD Recertified. ^Would look into the above option.

Previous IGP really are terrible depending on what generation of Integrated-Graphics we're talking about. The more recent integrated graphics
are bearable for gaming on extremely low detail settings, even then I don't really want to think about what loading times might be like.
Looked at AU prices for a while, and frankly, it feels like you have to jump considerably in the price-range to purchase a dedicated
graphic card. I think it's important to have some leeway in what tasks you want to do, and IGP really don't offer you much flexibility.

 

[FireGrey]

Australia not USA.

 

[playallday]

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