Collage

[Golinie]

So pretty soon i'm going to apply for college (:D) but since ill be living in a dorm for 2 years and my current desktop is 4 years old (upgraded hardware) I know its probably a good time to build a new desktop, but since i am going to need a laptop for college anyways, I've decided id just buy a gaming laptop, however my knowledge of gaming laptops is on the lower end. So i was wondering if anyone can give me some recommendations for good economical laptops, (not sure what my budget would be like but i could probably stress $2,000 if i sell some parts of my current desktop)

 

Budget: unknown (probably around $2000)

Wants: 

• Desktop Grade GPU
• 16gb Ram (wont kill u if u give a good 8gb tho)
• 250gb storage (im going to invest in a 1TB hard drive)

Games:

• Skyrim
• Crusader kings 2
• Battlefield one
• Payday 2
• Rainbow six siege
• Overwatch

Don't need:

• SSD 
• Peripherals 
• Max Settings (I dont mind medium settings)

 

 

 HOLY SHIT diddnt expect so many replies so fast THANKS FOR ALL THE HELP

[Electronics Wizardy]

How about a dell xps 15, a dell e5470, thinkpad t460, dell e7470

[TheKDub]

5 minutes ago, Golinie said:

So pretty soon i'm going to apply for collage (:D) but since ill be living in a dorm for 2 years and my current desctop is 4 years old (upgraded hardware) I know its probably a good time to build a new desktop, but since i am going to need a laptop for collage anyways, I've decided id just buy a gaming laptop, however my knowledge of gaming laptops is on the lower end. So i was wondering if anyone can give me some recommendations for good economical laptops, (not sure what my budget would be like but i could probably stress $2,000 if i sell some parts of my current desktop)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015PYZI8E/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=WWK4D3M9D6RZ&coliid=IZ2YQPZ53DGXU&psc=1

 

I've had my eye on this laptop for quite a while now, I believe linus did a review on it a while ago, so you could try to dig that up if you want.

I'd suggest going with the 8GB/1TB HDD + 8GB SSD model then upgrading it yourself to 16GB if needed, and then I'd aim for fully SSD based storage, that way if you drop it or something you don't have to worry about any damage to a hard drive.

 

i7 6700HQ, 8GB DDRL3 SDRAM, 1TB HDD + 8GB SSD Hybrid Drive, 15.6" 4K IPS Touchscreen Display, Gtx 960m, and Windows 10 (I'd install 8.1 on it asap)

[Golinie]

2 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

How about a dell xps 15, a dell e5470, thinkpad t460, dell e7470

Specs?

[Weak1ings]

If you feel you might wind up playing games instead of doing homework, I'd recommend getting a Desktop FOR GAMING and a separate, fairly cheap laptop that's not for gaming.  The reason is to separate your gaming from school work and remove some temptations.  If you can easily control yourself though, all the time then go for that laptop.

[PixelHat]

2 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

How about a dell xps 15, a dell e5470, thinkpad t460, dell e7470

At very least, the XPS 15 9500. It's *mostly* compatible with the Razer core if you want to game.

If you want a gaming GPU IN the laptop, go with one of the newer laptops that has a 1060 in it. I would recommend the MSI GS63VR, however, be wary of it's 3.5hr battery life and possible cooling issues (it IS MSI after all).

[Golinie]

1 minute ago, TheKDub said:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015PYZI8E/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=WWK4D3M9D6RZ&coliid=IZ2YQPZ53DGXU&psc=1

 

I've had my eye on this laptop for quite a while now, I believe linus did a review on it a while ago, so you could try to dig that up if you want.

I'd suggest going with the 8GB/1TB HDD + 8GB SSD model then upgrading it yourself to 16GB if needed, and then I'd aim for fully SSD based storage, that way if you drop it or something you don't have to worry about any damage to a hard drive.

yea id prefer 16gb however ' never modified a laptop before so I am  not exactly comfortable with it. And i dont mind having a harddrive, cheaper and i never drop anything so i doubt ill ever drop a precious laptop

[PixelHat]

2 minutes ago, TheKDub said:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015PYZI8E/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=WWK4D3M9D6RZ&coliid=IZ2YQPZ53DGXU&psc=1

 

I've had my eye on this laptop for quite a while now, I believe linus did a review on it a while ago, so you could try to dig that up if you want.

I'd suggest going with the 8GB/1TB HDD + 8GB SSD model then upgrading it yourself to 16GB if needed, and then I'd aim for fully SSD based storage, that way if you drop it or something you don't have to worry about any damage to a hard drive.

 

i7 6700HQ, 8GB DDRL3 SDRAM, 1TB HDD + 8GB SSD Hybrid Drive, 15.6" 4K IPS Touchscreen Display, Gtx 960m, and Windows 10 (I'd install 8.1 on it asap)

Really bad for gaming. The 960 won't be able to run anything above LOL on medium settings.

[Golinie]

2 minutes ago, Weak1ings said:

If you feel you might wind up playing games instead of doing homework, I'd recommend getting a Desktop FOR GAMING and a separate, fairly cheap laptop that's not for gaming.  The reason is to separate your gaming from school work and remove some temptations.  If you can easily control yourself though, all the time then go for that laptop.

Thanks for the advice but thats just another thing id have to buy, im really good about managing my time so the temptation of glorious BF1 wont sway me often....or will it.

[TheKDub]

Just now, Golinie said:

yea id prefer 16gb however ' never modified a laptop before so I am  not exactly comfortable with it. And i dont mind having a harddrive, cheaper and i never drop anything so i doubt ill ever drop a precious laptop

 

It's only another $100-150 or so for the 16GB model with a larger SSD with an HDD as well, still well within your budget.

 

Laptops aren't usually that bad to work on, the RAM and HDD are usually under an easily removable panel, or sometimes you have to remove the bottom of the laptop or the keyboard, but it's not too bad.

[Golinie]

1 minute ago, TheKDub said:

 

It's only another $100-150 or so for the 16GB model with a larger SSD with an HDD as well, still well within your budget.

 

Laptops aren't usually that bad to work on, the RAM and HDD are usually under an easily removable panel, or sometimes you have to remove the bottom of the laptop or the keyboard, but it's not too bad.

oh if its only $100-150 more for 16gb than id just buy that model lmao if $2000 is my budget then i dont mind fishing out a LITTLE more cash

[TheKDub]

1 minute ago, PixelHat said:

Really bad for gaming. The 960 won't be able to run anything above LOL on medium settings.

 

They didn't give any examples of games that they plan to run, so I've got no clue how powerful of a laptop they need.

 

Also, the 960m could run GTA 5 at 1080p on med-high settings perfectly fine, just because the laptop has a 4K panel does not mean that they have to game at 4K as well.

[JamesRKD]

14 minutes ago, Golinie said:

So pretty soon i'm going to apply for collage (:D)

"College" ................sry had to

[Golinie]

1 minute ago, TheKDub said:

 

They didn't give any examples of games that they plan to run, so I've got no clue how powerful of a laptop they need.

 

Also, the 960m could run GTA 5 at 1080p on med-high settings perfectly fine, just because the laptop has a 4K panel does not mean that they have to game at 4K as well.

Oh my bad examples would be nice

[Golinie]

1 minute ago, JamesRKD said:

"College" ................sry had to

FUCK I ALWAYS GET IT WRONG

[TheKDub]

1 minute ago, Golinie said:

oh if its only $100-150 more for 16gb than id just buy that model lmao if $2000 is my budget then i dont mind fishing out a LITTLE more cash

I'd suggest keeping maybe $100-200 of the $2000 for a laptop bag if you don't already have one, as well as a cooling pad if desired, and a mouse as well, that's if you go with a laptop instead of a desktop.

[Golinie]

Just now, TheKDub said:

I'd suggest keeping maybe $100-200 of the $2000 for a laptop bag if you don't already have one, as well as a cooling pad if desired, and a mouse as well, that's if you go with a laptop instead of a desktop.

The bag is a good idea, though most laptops come with a bag no? if not good idea (and i edited my post to include some extra info that might be of some help

[PixelHat]

Just now, TheKDub said:

 

They didn't give any examples of games that they plan to run, so I've got no clue how powerful of a laptop they need.

 

Also, the 960m could run GTA 5 at 1080p on med-high settings perfectly fine, just because the laptop has a 4K panel does not mean that they have to game at 4K as well.

Mmmm.... It could run it well at low-med settings. Not even close to "well" (constant 60fps min with no tearing) at high.

I was not expecting the OP to run any games on that laptop at 4k.

[TheKDub]

Just now, Golinie said:

The bag is a good idea, though most laptops come with a bag no? if not good idea (and i edited my post to include some extra info that might be of some help

 

Not usually, if you buy one from the manufacturer's website they'll typically give the option to include a bag for it, but unless otherwise specified, they won't come with a bag.

[Squirrel724]

10 minutes ago, Weak1ings said:

If you feel you might wind up playing games instead of doing homework, I'd recommend getting a Desktop FOR GAMING and a separate, fairly cheap laptop that's not for gaming.  The reason is to separate your gaming from school work and remove some temptations.  If you can easily control yourself though, all the time then go for that laptop.

You could do what I do with my XPS 15 (9550 with i7-6700HQ, 16GB ram, 512GB ssd, and the 1080p display) and store all your games on an external usb hard drive. I store all my games on a 6TB WD My Book and have no issues with loading times (only notable exception is Battlefield 4 because battlelog gets old quick and I want all the speed I can get). Also I can't find the post but the 960m is a competent gamer. I played the Witcher 3 all weekend at 1080p and medium settings and it was plenty playable at 50-60fps. 

[TheKDub]

3 minutes ago, PixelHat said:

Mmmm.... It could run it well at low-med settings. Not even close to "well" (constant 60fps min with no tearing) at high.

I was not expecting the OP to run any games on that laptop at 4k.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-960M.138006.0.html

 

Overwatch: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 40FPS.

Rise of the Tomb Raider: High settings at 1080p, average of 23FPS (Drop it down to low-med and it'll be perfectly fine).

Starwars Battlefront: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 34FPS.

Fallout 4: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 25FPS.

GTA 5: High settings at 1080p, average of 43FPS.

Battlefield 4: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 34FPS.

 

Now, this is a laptop priced around $1000 USD, it's not aimed at the people who want to run every game maxed out at 1080p+ 60fps+, it's aimed at people who want to be able to get work done on the go, as well as some casual gaming.

 

Drop the settings from ultra to high, or high to medium, and the framerates will have a pretty nice improvement.

[Golinie]

3 minutes ago, Squirrel724 said:

You could do what I do with my XPS 15 (9550 with i7-6700HQ, 16GB ram, 512GB ssd, and the 1080p display) and store all your games on an external usb hard drive. I store all my games on a 6TB WD My Book and have no issues with loading times (only notable exception is Battlefield 4 because battlelog gets old quick and I want all the speed I can get). Also I can't find the post but the 960m is a competent gamer. I played the Witcher 3 all weekend at 1080p and medium settings and it was plenty playable at 50-60fps. 

yea an external hard drive is a good idea, it will keep me from gaming in class too 

[Golinie]

7 minutes ago, TheKDub said:

 

Not usually, if you buy one from the manufacturer's website they'll typically give the option to include a bag for it, but unless otherwise specified, they won't come with a bag.

alright thanks

[Pendragon]

If you have 2k, you can get a 1070 desktop GPU in your laptop.

http://www.hidevolution.com/evoc-p650rs-g-15-6-custom-built-gaming-laptop-w-nvidia-gtx-1070-w-g-sync.html

[Golinie]

19 hours ago, TheKDub said:

http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-960M.138006.0.html

 

Overwatch: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 40FPS.

Rise of the Tomb Raider: High settings at 1080p, average of 23FPS (Drop it down to low-med and it'll be perfectly fine).

Starwars Battlefront: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 34FPS.

Fallout 4: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 25FPS.

GTA 5: High settings at 1080p, average of 43FPS.

Battlefield 4: Ultra settings at 1080p, average of 34FPS.

 

Now, this is a laptop priced around $1000 USD, it's not aimed at the people who want to run every game maxed out at 1080p+ 60fps+, it's aimed at people who want to be able to get work done on the go, as well as some casual gaming.

 

Drop the settings from ultra to high, or high to medium, and the framerates will have a pretty nice improvement.

Thats exactly the type of thing ill be doing, casual gamming (maby a little competative with R6 siege) but im not the type that HAS to run at ultra high mega extreme settings.