Quest for the Perfect Laptop

[Archarin]

So, I'm looking for a new laptop, coming from my broken Macbook Air. I'm looking for a Windows laptop, preferably with a 960, 965, or 970. I can spend up to $1600 USD, but something in the $1400 area and lower would be much better.

Screen wise, anything 1080p or above would be fine, if there's a big price jump for 2K, I wouldn't really want it because performance and scaling, but if the laptop does have a 2K screen, great.. One thing about the screen though, I do care about a high quality panel, because I'll do some graphic design.

Coming from a Macbook, I care about build quality, battery life, the trackpad, and the keyboard big time. Something that could last on battery a little bit while not gaming, it would be great. I'll take anything I just mentioned over a higher tier graphics card.

I'll use it for homework, media consumption, light work in Blender and Unity (not rendering), and some basic gaming. (CS:GO, TF2, triple A's at  low settings at 40+ framerates) I don't really care about color, but something more discreet would be better. I mainly want the graphics card to give me a boost in 3D programs, editing, and not as much gaming.

Finally, I'll be willing to pay a premium for something thinner and lighter, even it has a lower tier graphics card.

Thanks so much for any replies!

[don_svetlio]

Go for one of MSI's laptops with a 970M or wait for the new ones to arrive. Talking Lenovo Y900 (980M), EVGA one (980(M?)) and such.

[GodSpoon]

Lenovo Y900/50 is pretty great, MSI GE72 is good, as well as the Razer Blade (not pro) although thats pushing your budget a bit

If you can live with just a GPU at home, the Razer Blade Stealth is a great option too

[Archarin]

3 minutes ago, Stupidtiggers said:

Lenovo Y50 is pretty great, as well as the Razer Blade (not pro) although thats pushing your budget a bit

If you can live with just a GPU at home, the Razer Blade Stealth is a great option too

The thing that annoys me with the Y50 is that there was a really good sale around New Year's and now all the 2K one's are sold out.

[Matty2hatty]

This will do everything you ask for in plentifulness!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834154107

[Archarin]

21 minutes ago, Matty2hatty said:

This will do everything you ask for in plentifulness!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834154107

This one looks super compelling, I might get this one.

[Matty2hatty]

1 minute ago, Archarin said:

This one looks super compelling, I might get this one.

It took a filtered search on Newegg and a bit of research and thats what i came up with, Ill see if i can push to a 970m….

[Matty2hatty]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834232849

Intel 4th Gen, so not that future-proof, but seriously? Who actually needs a skylake processor in a laptop?

Your choice is between a better graphics card or a better CPU.

I think both are good but this one is pushing your budget.

[Archarin]

24 minutes ago, Matty2hatty said:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834232849

Intel 4th Gen, so not that future-proof, but seriously? Who actually needs a skylake processor in a laptop?

Your choice is between a better graphics card or a better CPU.

I think both are good but this one is pushing your budget.

This one's really nice too. Probably, the best for me would be something like the Ghost GS60, due to the size and design. It would be nice to have a 970 though as a middle ground between the 980. Thanks so much for giving me some advice

[Matty2hatty]

No worries, I am quite new to this stuff so advice is always helpful!

[exercutor5]

http://www.sagernotebook.com/Gaming-Notebook-NP8657-S.html