Laptop for college

[pooh00018]

Hi everybody,

So I'm starting college this coming september and I am looking for a laptop. After looking around, I'm thinking of either going with a Thinkpad (x250 or t450s) or the Dell XPS 13 or the Macbook Pro Retina 13.

Now most of the time I will probably be working but I think I would also like to enjoy the occasional game of Dota 2 or CS:GO.

I also highly value build quality and because of this the Mac is very attractive. Unless there is a compelling reason to switch, however, I would prefer to stick with Windows.

Firstly, how do the x250/xps 13 run these games when compared to the Mac? (Since the mac has intel 6100 vs 5500).

Secondly, from my experience, Macs hold up pretty well in terms of wear. I don't really want to end up with a cheap looking, battered laptop 2 years down the road. I know that these window machines have not been out for 2 years but for those who own them: how have they held up?

Thirdly, i have a surface pro 3. Would the upgrade from it to these machines be worthwhile in terms of graphics performance? Do you guys think I would be better off waiting for Skylake (iirc that's the next iteration)?

Thanks a lot.

[Nineshadow]

If you need a dedicated GPU then Asus UX303LB/LB.

 

If you don't, then I'd suggest an Asus UX305, which is quite cheap but terrific for its price.

If you want to spend more, Dell XPS13.

 

You already have a Surface Pro 3?That's good enough for college already.If you think its GPU isn't powerful enough, then ultrabooks with iGPUs will feel the same.

[Sauron]

Why don't you consider an acer aspire v nitro? It's much cheaper than any mbp that is remotely similar specwise, will run any game easily and is quite slim. The only downside is that it's made of plastic, but if you take good care of it it shouldn't get ruined. From a working perspective it's great since it has a quad core i7, an M.2 slot for an ssd and 8 to 16gb of ram depending on your needs. It also has a very nice screen.

 

If you need a dedicated GPU then Asus UX303LB/LB.

 

If you don't, then I'd suggest an Asus UX305, which is quite cheap but terrific for its price.

If you want to spend more, Dell XPS13.

 

You already have a Surface Pro 3?That's good enough for college already.If you think its GPU isn't powerful enough, then ultrabooks with iGPUs will feel the same.

 

These are also good options but they'll be significantly less powerful, especially the ux305.

[Nineshadow]

Why don't you consider an acer aspire v nitro? It's much cheaper than any mbp that is remotely similar specwise, will run any game easily and is quite slim. The only downside is that it's made of plastic, but if you take good care of it it shouldn't get ruined. From a working perspective it's great since it has a quad core i7, an M.2 slot for an ssd and 8 to 16gb of ram depending on your needs. It also has a very nice screen.

 

 

These are also good options but they'll be significantly less powerful, especially the ux305.

Oh yeah, that one is not powerful at all.

The UX303LN is quite good though.

 

If that isn't powerful enough for you OP, then go with either the Acer Aspire V Nitro, Lenovo Y50 or MSI GS60(which is more expensive).