Help me pick a laptop

[Ryuk]

I am going to buy a laptop in 2 to 3 months. What I want from it?

MUST HAVE:
Great build quality, preferably all aluminium.
Decent cooling

IT SHOULD
Run most games at medium-high (not Crysis or anything like that, simpler games, like CS:GO, LoL, etc).
Screen 13+ inch

No budget really, can go as high as it gets, but I do not like to pay more than something is worth.

My options now: Razer Blade 14, MacBook Pro 13, Lenovo Y50.

Gigabyte and brands like those are not viable options, the build quality is horrible.

RazerBlade 14 Pros - good build quality, nice keyboard, nice screen. Cons: they have been pretty bad with cooling, EXPENSIVE.
MacBookPro Pros - best build quality. Cons: OS X, tiny, overpriced.
Lenovo Pros - great price. Cons: not sure about build quality, looks a little cheap.

 

Other thoughts:

MSI looks like poo, all their laptops do. Asus N550K looks very cheap as well, G550K overpriced and childish.

Thank you in advance guys

[ShadowCaptain]

Snip

 

The razer blade is probably the best of them all, it has the build quality and looks of the macbook but gaming specs to kick the but of most laptops, especially if you want the portability. Also it is one of very few laptops to use a unibody metal chassis.

 

Also all of those laptops will play Crysis 3 at high settings. Gaming laptops are quite powerful these days

 

Really as far as decent sized laptops that are well built and not plastic and garish (like msi and alienware although I love the m14x) then that is really all I can recommend

 

EDIT: btw the lenovos are nice looking and well built but they are plastic feeling, though nice high quality

[Ryuk]

The razer blade is probably the best of them all, it has the build quality and looks of the macbook but gaming specs to kick the but of most laptops, especially if you want the portability. Also it is one of very few laptops to use a unibody metal chassis.

 

Also all of those laptops will play Crysis 3 at high settings. Gaming laptops are quite powerful these days

 

Really as far as decent sized laptops that are well built and not plastic and garish (like msi and alienware although I love the m14x) then that is really all I can recommend

 

EDIT: btw the lenovos are nice looking and well built but they are plastic feeling, though nice high quality

 

Yeah I like the Razer, looks great, I like green, Green+black looks amazing. It is pretty expensive though and the cooling is not that great. I currently own a dv6 7000 and it's horrible, will sell it for pennies ASAP - heats up even after using premium paste, etc.

Any other models I am not aware of?

[ShadowCaptain]

Yeah I like the Razer, looks great, I like green, Green+black looks amazing. It is pretty expensive though and the cooling is not that great. I currently own a dv6 7000 and it's horrible, will sell it for pennies ASAP - heats up even after using premium paste, etc.

Any other models I am not aware of?

 

Not that are small, thin and aluminium. Most gaming laptops are plastic. Yeah it heats up but all gaming laptops do, my m18x could melt the ice caps but since its big it has some pretty powerful exhausts so the machine doesnt get hot. Smaller machines just get up as the cannot move as much air around the chassis

 

You will have to compromise somewhere

 

plastic = cheap but feels pants

thick = better cooling + more powerful but heavier and means backpack

thin = less weight easier to carry but worse cooling and performance

 

You have to pick what is important to you, I am looking to replace my M18x for the razer blade, as Its performance is great but its too big to carry, since I have a rig I just need something lightweight for taking around with me to work/friends house/travelling

 

I have an 11.6" clevo based laptop, which is a ruberised plastic, honestly it feels great, but it has a terrible screen (basically its a netbook with a 650m) but it gets hot and doenst give me the performance I need

[Guest]

I am going to buy a laptop in 2 to 3 months. What I want from it?MUST HAVE:

Great build quality, preferably all aluminium.

Decent coolingIT SHOULD

Run most games at medium-high (not Crysis or anything like that, simpler games, like CS:GO, LoL, etc).

Screen 13+ inch

No budget really, can go as high as it gets, but I do not like to pay more than something is worth.

My options now: Razer Blade 14, MacBook Pro 13, Lenovo Y50.

Gigabyte and brands like those are not viable options, the build quality is horrible.

RazerBlade 14 Pros - good build quality, nice keyboard, nice screen. Cons: they have been pretty bad with cooling, EXPENSIVE.

MacBookPro Pros - best build quality. Cons: OS X, tiny, overpriced.

Lenovo Pros - great price. Cons: not sure about build quality, looks a little cheap.

 

Other thoughts:

MSI looks like poo, all their laptops do. Asus N550K looks very cheap as well, G550K overpriced and childish.

Thank you in advance guys

Price limit?

MBP is a fantastic computer, and Boot Camp is available of course, but once you get past the initial fanboy factor, OS X is pretty great. Steam for Mac has lots of games, and Windows is, again, available. If price is more lenient, then a refurbished 2013 with discrete graphics are pretty beast. Or, a new 15" Retina with 780m

[theroflcopta]

The razer blade will probably stay pretty cool if you are playing lighter games like CS:GO and LoL and stuff. And yeah when it comes to thin all metal laptops that are good at gaming all fingers point towards the razer. but if you are willing to forgo build quality I'd grab any skew in the lenovo Y series that fits you best. But if build quality is a MUST then yeah the razer. They are coming out with a new revisions soon that pretty much adresses every issue with it as well. So it will be just about the perfect laptop (If you don't mind the price that is ) 

[Ryuk]

Thank you guys for replying.

I will try to go again over some issues

So, again, the Blade is an amazing machine. What bothers me:

- no upgrades for ram, only 8 GB soldered to the MB. I mean, come on, 8GB is enough now but future is near, new game engines, I don't know. I really don't understand why they don't offer a 16GB RAM version. Most brands do (even MBP13).
- 14 inch screen. I like big screens. My first 2 laptops were 17 and 18 inch. Then I decided to try 15.6, it's ok. 14 - I'm afraid it will be too small. Why not just make a 15 inch version..
- Paint on aluminium - when you pay over 2k, obviously you expect some kuality, same goes with the paint. I've read some reviews where people complain that the paint comes off pretty fast - could work on that really. (this is about the 2013 version however, not sure about 14, maybe they use some different paint)

Can't wait for the linus review for the new razer.

About that Y50, does anybody know whether it's plastic or aluminium? It looks aluminium to me, except the super-ugly speaker panel made of glossy plastic - YIKES. How sturdy it is? No reviews, so hard to make decisions ...

It is also a bit thicker than the Blade. The brushed pattern on the laptop looks really cheap. It is not very clear about its weight, different sources point out different things.

About MacBook Pro 13. Has anyone tried gaming with Intel Iris? Will it run LoL/DotA/CS:GO at least at 60fps? The MBP is just beautiful, I love the design. It feels GREAT, I just wanna snuggle with it But even the lowest configuration is ridiculously overpriced. I could, however, void the warranty and upgrade it myself ..

It is really hard to pick ... Any kind of comments help  

[oldaccount117]

Nothing beats macbook for lightweight laptop. I'm no apple fan i hate osx but every laptop i every use cheaps out on least one part build/trackpad/keyboard/overheats/bad wifi. I just bought a macbook for $150 off (college student) load windows via bootcamp and use steam gamestreaming to play my games, it works great over ac wifi. Pm me if you want more info

[ygohome]

Of those listed, I'd go with the 2014 razer blade. I like it's size and weight, and the specs are nice. Pretty much any thin form factor will have some heat dissipation issues.

Edit: Ew, didn't know the razer was capped at 8gb. Ugh. That would be a no go for me.

Fyi, I'm a longtime os x user. No complaints, except for games I still prefer using windows. Even if I'm playing on my mbp.

[Flyguygamer]

You could install windows on the mabook.

[Ryuk]

 They are coming out with a new revisions soon that pretty much adresses every issue with it as well. 

Could you link me?

And you guys who posted about MBP - Iris GPU or GT750M? I really hate the MBP 15 - super ugly, I really hate that they didn't include a numpad, instead used the space for absolutely nothing. Seriously, every laptop has flaws that are not that hard to fix, wtf... Especially when the price tag is 1.5+k.

About the Blade giving no options to update the Ram - yeah, bummer, I try not to think about it

[The_Evenger]

asus 750jz 

[LaoJr]

Razor Blade new one

Edited May 14, 2014 by LaoJr

[Ryuk]

asus 750jz 

G750JZ....

Ugly, thick and heavy. Oh yeah, and ugly. Very ugly.

[The_Evenger]

Ugly, thick and heavy. Oh yeah, and ugly. Very ugly.

I disagree, I think it is one of the better looking laptops, not LED crazy, & has all the ports you need

[Ryuk]

I disagree, I think it is one of the better looking laptops, not LED crazy, & has all the ports you need

Matter of choice

For me, the feel of the plastic is ok but the design is just a big fat NO. Imagine going to a conference with this ... Or carrying it in 1 hand.

Not like other laptops lack USD ports or audio/mic jack. The rest - most people don't need them. You can get adapters too if, say, the laptop has no ethernet port. But who needs it anyway, a good router solves this.

Again, ugly. Maybe next versions will be better.

[Maxibonbits]

MacBook Pro Retina is a very good laptop. I'm posting from the 15" MacBook Pro and i love it.

 

The build quality is exceptional. However the only downside is that you cannot remove Mac Os, and setting up windows requires more effort than a standards pc.

 

I have done very basic gaming with my Intel Iris graphics. The only game i have installed is Hearthstone, which has very low system requirement. The game does run flawless while on battery however. I should also note that i do not run Hearthstone at 2880x1800 resolution, instead i run the game at 1920x1200 resolution.

 

Lenovo has exceptional build quality. Lenovo has continued the exceptional build quality one would expect from an IBM machine. So if you trusted IBM for build quality, you will be happy with Lenovo.

 

Have you considered a certified refurbished MacBook Pro?

[The_Evenger]

Matter of choice

For me, the feel of the plastic is ok but the design is just a big fat NO. Imagine going to a conference with this ... Or carrying it in 1 hand.

Not like other laptops lack USD ports or audio/mic jack. The rest - most people don't need them. You can get adapters too if, say, the laptop has no ethernet port. But who needs it anyway, a good router solves this.

Again, ugly. Maybe next versions will be better.

you would be amazed, my sister has a crummy little $200 laptop, and you have no idea how many times i needed an Ethernet port, or a vga port, like when her wifi stopped working on it, i couldn't just plug in my usb to Ethernet adapter because it needed drivers, and i can't download those because i don't have the drivers for the wireless to get it connected via wifi in the first place.

 

besides, i didn't say you were wrong or anything i was just saying i disagree, you didn't need to get so hostile, or if you weren't being hostile, don't use bold font because this looks much more hostile even if you don't mean it, that wasn't hostile, but it sure did look like it.

 

also, i could very much imagine going to a conference with it, or caring, i dropped two ultrabooks because there too small. that's why i don't have a laptop right now, but the one i use to have was much bigger and heavier, and i never dropped that thing.

 

i wish you good luck shopping, let the sails be in your favor!

[Ryuk]

you would be amazed, my sister has a crummy little $200 laptop, and you have no idea how many times i needed an Ethernet port, or a vga port, like when her wifi stopped working on it, i couldn't just plug in my usb to Ethernet adapter because it needed drivers, and i can't download those because i don't have the drivers for the wireless to get it connected via wifi in the first place.

 

besides, i didn't say you were wrong or anything i was just saying i disagree, you didn't need to get so hostile, or if you weren't being hostile, don't use bold font because this looks much more hostile even if you don't mean it, that wasn't hostile, but it sure did look like it.

 

also, i could very much imagine going to a conference with it, or caring, i dropped two ultrabooks because there too small. that's why i don't have a laptop right now, but the one i use to have was much bigger and heavier, and i never dropped that thing.

 

i wish you good luck shopping, let the sails be in your favor!

What I am buying is not too small, I hope I won't drop it, I never dropped a laptop. (throwing doesn't count )

I didn't mean anything with hostility It's just a big NO for me, that's all. And thank you.

[Ryuk]

I will go with Lenovo this time. Thanks everyone.