$2000 for a new School/Gaming/Workstation Laptop/Setup

[xaviersykora]

Hello! I've got $2000 to spend on a new laptop for school, gaming, and other productivity tasks (video editing, audio mixing, etc.). I have a few ideas on where to go for this, but I'd like your guys' opinion on it.

 

Option 1: Razer Blade Stealth + 1070 (will put 1070 in my desktop and put my current 970 in core) + Razer Core

Pros:

• Thinnest and lightest option
• Upgrades my current desktop graphics
• Longest battery life
• GPU Upgrades Possible
• Thunderbolt 3 + USB type-c

Cons:

• 8GB of RAM (ewwww)
• Dual core (ewww)
• 2K Display

Option 2: The New Razer Blade

Pros:

• Quad Core
• 16GB of RAM
• Slightly Larger 3200x1800 Multi-touch Display
• Single unit
• Exceptional Keyboard
• Thunderbolt 3 + USB type-c

Cons:

• 970M 6GB is slightly outdated
• Slightly Larger
• Significantly Heavier
• Shorter Battery Life

Option 3: FANGBOOK 4 XTREME VR 300

Pros:

• Desktop 6700K
• Desktop GTX 1070
• 16GB of RAM
• 4K G-Sync Display

Cons:

• HUGE
• No upgrade path
• Thermal issues
• Very little documentation on keyboard, build quality, cooling, etc
• No Thunderbolt

Option 4: The New Razer Blade + Sell current PC (minus my 970 and storage devices), then buy Razer Core

I'm not going to do the Pros and Cons of this one as I would rather just explain why I personally think it is the best option. This way, if I want to go over to a friend's house or something and bring my laptop to do some light/medium gaming, I can do that by simply bringing the blade. But when I am at home, I wouldn't need to compromise on much performance (with just a slight downgrade in CPU performance) as I would have the near-desktop performance on the CPU and desktop performance on the GPU along with all of my monitors, mechanical keyboard, and wired mouse. While I wouldn't be able to upgrade the CPU in the future, I doubt it will become a real bottleneck for many years to come, and by then I will have most likely already upgraded my setup to suit my needs at that time.

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________

 

So! Let me know what you guys think, and if you think that Option 4 is not what I should pursue then please let me know!

Otherwise, thank you for reading!

[Mug]

None of them, gaming laptops don't make good laptops.

 

What makes a good laptop? Portability of course.

I'd look at things like the MacBook Air, that ASUS one with the Core M or a Chromebook if you like going off the beaten track.

 

Unless you really want to game on the move (which you will only be able to do for 30 mins after a 7 hour charge) then thin and lights are the only option. If you're taking it around to friends' houses often then go mini-ITX case. It'll still be cheaper.

[xaviersykora]

Just now, Mug said:

None of them, gaming laptops don't make good laptops.

 

What makes a good laptop? Portability of course.

I'd look at things like the MacBook Air, that ASUS one with the Core M or a Chromebook if you like going off the beaten track.

 

Unless you really want to game on the move (which you will only be able to do for 30 mins after a 7 hour charge) then thin and lights are the only option. If you're taking it around to friend's houses often then get a mini-ITX case etc. It'll still be cheaper.

I have a mini-ITX system, I've had it for over a year. I want a portable system that I can bring to school with me, game on in-between classes, then come home and have a desktop-like experience on. The 2016 iteration of the Razer Blade seems at least to be exceptionally portable enough for my use case while not compromising on performance.

[Lucaz97]

Personally I lIke option 1&2 the most, I don't know what kind of tasks you usually work on but if 8gb isn't too much a concern I would go with option 1. 

I explain why: you would have the 970 in the core and a 1070 in ur rig. While with option two you would have a more powerful laptop but no 1070 and still a 970 ( I know the mobile one but still...). Unless you plan on not using the desktop anymore, if that's the case then option 4 sounds good. The option 3 is too big and havy to bring it with you daily at school or wherever.

 

[cortexcortex]

I would take a look at this laptop, IMO. http://www.aorus.com/Product/Features/X3 Plus v6 -- has a desktop 1060 in it, being better than your current 970. It's worth exactly 2099 USD. Has the latest i7 6820HK, the screen is 3200x1800 and has 16GB of RAM. Also, it's thin & lightweight.

If you want 13", if you want 15" and a desktop 1070 in your laptop, take a look at the X5 (will be more expensive, though)

[Mug]

5 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

game on in-between classes

What do other people do between classes? Does everyone have a $2000 laptop in their bag?

And to game on it when you're in school... This is a bad idea. You really should be doing work in school.

[Mcmole]

I personally would wait for the brand new Razer blade to come out (with the full 1060). That way you have the best of both worlds.

 

And if you have any spare $ left over buy a 1070 for desktop upgrade.

 

 

[xaviersykora]

18 minutes ago, Lucaz97 said:

Personally I lIke option 1&2 the most, I don't know what kind of tasks you usually work on but if 8gb isn't too much a concern I would go with option 1. 

I explain why: you would have the 970 in the core and a 1070 in ur rig. While with option two you would have a more powerful laptop but no 1070 and still a 970 ( I know the mobile one but still...). Unless you plan on not using the desktop anymore, if that's the case then option 4 sounds good. The option 3 is too big and havy to bring it with you daily at school or wherever.

 

I would go straight for the stealth if it had a quad core. I could live with the 8GB of RAM, as I did for a long long time, but I could never go back to a dual core. Very heavily considering just going with option 2, as it is simple and will just flat out work. And if I don't enjoy the experience, I can take it further and go with option 4 later.

[xaviersykora]

9 minutes ago, Mcmole said:

I personally would wait for the brand new Razer blade to come out (with the full 1060). That way you have the best of both worlds.

 

And if you have any spare $ left over buy a 1070 for desktop upgrade.

 

 

If I had a laptop already that I could use for the first few months of school, I would wait. But I need something to use by mid-september, and I highly doubt Razer is releasing it before then.

[exercutor5]

http://www.sagernotebook.com/Notebook-NP8153-S.html

[Pendragon]

54 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

snip

Literally ignore everyone who's answered your thread except maybe Mug who brings up valid concerns. Other than the obvious point that Mug pointed out that it's not exactly beneficial to game during school, there are decent gaming laptops who have around 4 hours of battery life. Lets go through your options and I'll tell you why your partial on your way to a generally correct selection.

Edit: Exercutor5's suggestion is good. But Sager doesn't have Prema Bios and that makes that machine a brick especially since Prema doesn't post his Bios' in public anymore and it's really hard to get for the average joe. HIDEvolution is a much better place to purcahse the Clevo Rebrand (refer below)

 

Option 1: Shit. Duo-core bottlenecks literally everything. 

 

Option 2: Shit. RB14 is one of the worst laptops for long term due to Razer's incompetence in making a cooling solution. Lets break option 2 down further.

-Worst cooling solution

-Overheats and thermal throttles

-Heat damage in the long term over all components

-Worst support, worst quality control, worst RMA process

Granted it's built nice and all, but the significant quality control issues along with it's inadequate cooling solution leads to a significantly decreased lifespan and heat damage on most of the components like the battery. 

 

Option 3: Is okay. What you have picked out is what we call a Clevo rebrand. Clevo is one of the world's biggest laptop manufacterers but they don't sell it themselves. Retailers like Cyberpower, Origin, etc rebrand the notebook and sell it as their own custom notebook. The Fangbook is a horrible overpriced version. If you wish to pursue this route (bigger, low battery life, desktop components, heavy af, I personally use something like this), I can provide you with more information in a later post as this one is long enough. What I can tell you right now, is that there are no thermal issues, there is an upgrade path, there is TB3 (2x), and because it's a rebrand, there is actually SO much information about it's build and quality, both which are great and no worries about it. This is a P750DM2 rebrand. There are much better companies to purchase this from.

 

Option 4: Don't buy the Razer Blade. 

 

Lets break down everyone else's terrible suggestions now.

CortexCortex: X3 Plus V6

This thing can't cool Pascal. Due to thermal density of 1060 vs 970m, Aorus' cooling solution is going to break down and be absolutely shit. It's going to thermal throttle and heat damage again.

McMole: Razer Blade v2 1060

This is even worst than the X3 Plus V6 because their thermal engineers are even worst than Aorus'. We can see this from the Razer Blade 970m vs X3 v5. While the Aorus did overheat and thermal throttled, the Razer Blade literally suffers from heat damage. Given that the 1060 is hotter than 970m by quite a margin, this recommendation is literally throwing money into the fire and watching it burn.

 

What are your realistic solutions:

P650RS

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

-1070

-Well cooled

-Personal belief that it's the most well-balanced between thinness and power

-Cooled well along with 4 hours of battery

 

P750DM2

http://www.hidevolution.com/evoc-clevo-p750dm2-g-custom-built-gaming-desktop-replacement-laptop.html

-Your fangbook

-Same as P650RS, but everything is socketed

-MXM GPUs allows potential replacement or upgrade

-Socketed CPU allows for potential replacement or upgrade

-Cooled MUCH better than everything and allows for OC

-Thick as hell, battery life is shit

 

Something I would look at:

X5 v6

http://www.aorus.com/Product/Features/X5 v6

-Aorus' last gen X5sv5 was the only thin and light that cooled a 980m decently.

-If they manage to up the cooling system to accommodate for a 1070 this is one of the ONLY thin and light laptops you should look at. 

 

@Dackzy @D2ultima <- Also good sources of information. 

[D2ultima]

^ Aorus X5S V5 won't hold 1070 in that same form factor without huge throttling.

 

The P750DM2 isn't exactly the same as the P650RS, because the CPUs are vastly different. Even if you could get a 6820HK up to 4GHz or beyond (stock speeds of a 6700K) they'll need 1.3v or more easily, and the heat and power draw will be much higher than what you can get with an undervolt. If you value CPU power or high refresh gaming, then you want the 6700K.

 

However, if you can consider a 17", the P775DM2 should take a 120Hz 1080p panel from HIDevolution, so that might be an option you'd be willing to sacrifice 15" size for.

 

Don't buy anything Razer. PLEASE.

 

P650RS should be able to cross 4 hours, though I don't know how long. Do note that the P650RS has a MUX switch, and can switch between Optimus (iGPU runs display, dGPU is number cruncher) and dGPU-only mode (DSR, shadowplay desktop recording, screen overclocking, full NCP, Gsync, etc) while the P7xxDMx models can only run dGPU-only mode

[Pendragon]

10 minutes ago, D2ultima said:

^ Aorus X5S V5 won't hold 1070 in that same form factor without huge throttling.

Aorus peaks my interest with it's 1440p 120hz. Or at least that's the rumor.

[D2ultima]

1 minute ago, Pendragon said:

Aorus peaks my interest with it's 1440p 120hz. Or at least that's the rumor.

Single GPU 1070 honestly will only handle that for like 2 months... assuming it can keep cool. 120Hz is hard to do (especially with new titles). Even a single 1080 won't run Witcher 3 at 1440p and stay above 65fps (as far as I've seen).

 

I'd look for 1440p 120Hz (assuming 5ms or less) on a 1080 or 1080 SLI machine alone.

 

But I mean people are free to get it. I just think 1080p is a FAR better fit.

[xaviersykora]

46 minutes ago, Pendragon said:

Literally ignore everyone...

 

15 minutes ago, D2ultima said:

^ Aorus X5S V5 won't hold 1070 in that same form factor without...

I would be very interested in all of these EVOC models if I didn't have to haul it to school every day. That is what was so appealing about the Razer Blade- portability without compromising on performance. The Aorus products have the portability, but I am having a very difficult time finding a place in which you can actually purchase them, and that's a problem. Do you guys know anywhere in which I could find the new Aorus models (pascal) in stock?

[Pendragon]

8 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

That is what was so appealing about the Razer Blade- portability without compromising on performance.

But there is comprise. Massive comprise. 

 

10 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

Do you guys know anywhere in which I could find the new Aorus models (pascal) in stock?

XoticPC is the place. 

 

14 minutes ago, D2ultima said:

snip

It's more for my productivity side than my gaming. I know full well that a 1070 can't run it. But I've gotten use to 3k on both my T560 and MBP. I need the extra real estate on screen. I have like 22/20 vision but 4k is still too small to see comfortably with 0 scaling but 1440p is fine. I run both my T560 and MBP with 0 scaling at 3k on 15in screens.

[D2ultima]

47 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

I would be very interested in all of these EVOC models if I didn't have to haul it to school every day. That is what was so appealing about the Razer Blade- portability without compromising on performance.

To be really honest, if a P650RS is too large for you at around 1.24" thick and somewhere near 5-6 pounds, then you've got a different kind of problem.

 

The blade does NOT offer no compromises. Not even close. It's got serious heat issues, is extremely loud, WILL NOT HANDLE ANY EXISTING PASCAL CHIP, is overpriced, and has extremely little storage capabilities. This is the entire point pendragon was making. People REVIEW machines like the blade and skim over its thermal issues, storage & I/O issues, etc and rate the looks and feel and screen and say it's good... essentially not "lying" but not rating them properly, on purpose.

[xaviersykora]

I spent a while looking around XOTIC PC and I think I may have found some options that offer true no compromise laptops for my use case.

The two laptops that stood out the very most to me are the MSI Phantom GS43VR PRO-006 and the ASUS GL502VS-DB74.

There are also a few others that stood out to me when looking around:

MSI GS63VR Stealth Pro-034

MSI GS63VR Stealth Pro 4K-021

ASUS G752VS-RB71

Sager NP8153 (Clevo P650RS)

Sager NP8173 (Clevo P670RS)

There is also the Aorus X3, but that does not get released until mid September, which is slightly worrying as classes begin on the 19th.

After seeing these and the configuration I can acquire them in, I am DEFINITELY not buying any Razer laptop. The most attractive thing about the first MSI model I mentioned is the size, and the most appealing thing about the first ASUS is the battery life. I am also a bit particular to the larger ASUS and Clevo machines to the larger MSI due to the G-Sync display. What do you guys think? @D2ultima@Pendragon

[D2ultima]

14 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

I spent a while looking around XOTIC PC and I think I may have found some options that offer true no compromise laptops for my use case.

The two laptops that stood out the very most to me are the MSI Phantom GS43VR PRO-006 and the ASUS GL502VS-DB74.

There are also a few others that stood out to me when looking around:

MSI GS63VR Stealth Pro-034

MSI GS63VR Stealth Pro 4K-021

ASUS G752VS-RB71

Sager NP8153 (Clevo P650RS)

Sager NP8173 (Clevo P670RS)

There is also the Aorus X3, but that does not get released until mid September, which is slightly worrying as classes begin on the 19th.

After seeing these and the configuration I can acquire them in, I am DEFINITELY not buying any Razer laptop. The most attractive thing about the first MSI model I mentioned is the size, and the most appealing thing about the first ASUS is the battery life. I am also a bit particular to the larger ASUS and Clevo machines to the larger MSI due to the G-Sync display. What do you guys think? @D2ultima@Pendragon

What I think is, ignore "Sager" and buy the "EVOC" P670RS. And ask them if they will input the 1080p 120Hz AUO B173HAN01.2 screen on it. It'll eventually get gsync certification, and you'll have 120Hz. It isn't an official configuration, but since the models hold the same LP173WF4-SPD1/SPF1 non-120Hz screens (the only 1080p gsync certified 17" panels), the mounting orientation and bezel size/width/etc of the LCD cover must be compatible with the 120Hz AUO panel, and they all use eDP, therefore it *MUST* be capable (physically) of taking that 120Hz panel.

 

Also, you're getting the machine from HIDevolution because they're a Prema Partner, which means unlocked system BIOS for personal tuning and better stability, and unlocked/stable video BIOS.

 

That's my personal suggestion. MSI has shown that they TDP throttle their skylake CPUs if you consider overclocking, so I am somewhat remiss to recommend them. But I would ignore anything from ASUS and their crap quality control and quality assurance. Also, you're not allowed to do anything with an ASUS. If you so much as swap a HDD from slot 1 to slot 2, you void the ENTIRE system's warranty. Far less taking it apart and cleaning it which should be done regularly.

[xaviersykora]

4 minutes ago, D2ultima said:

What I think is, ignore "Sager" and buy the "EVOC" P670RS. And ask them if they will input the 1080p 120Hz AUO B173HAN01.2 screen on it. It'll eventually get gsync certification, and you'll have 120Hz. It isn't an official configuration, but since the models hold the same LP173WF4-SPD1/SPF1 non-120Hz screens (the only 1080p gsync certified 17" panels), the mounting orientation and bezel size/width/etc of the LCD cover must be compatible with the 120Hz AUO panel, and they all use eDP, therefore it *MUST* be capable (physically) of taking that 120Hz panel.

 

Also, you're getting the machine from HIDevolution because they're a Prema Partner, which means unlocked system BIOS for personal tuning and better stability, and unlocked/stable video BIOS.

 

That's my personal suggestion. MSI has shown that they TDP throttle their skylake CPUs if you consider overclocking, so I am somewhat remiss to recommend them. But I would ignore anything from ASUS and their crap quality control and quality assurance. Also, you're not allowed to do anything with an ASUS. If you so much as swap a HDD from slot 1 to slot 2, you void the ENTIRE system's warranty. Far less taking it apart and cleaning it which should be done regularly.

And in regards to the Aorus?

[Dackzy]

Just now, xaviersykora said:

And in regards to the Aorus?

DON'T

[Pendragon]

Inaddition to what D2 mentioned:

 

MSI GS43 suffers the same problems as the Razer Blade. Too little space too much heat. 

MSI GS63 is considered fine. They upgraded their cooling system to handle the 1060. But the battery life is around 1.5-2 hours on the GS traditionally. 

Asus GL502: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Asus-ROG-Strix-GL502VY-DS71-Notebook-Review.167930.0.html Actually only gets around 3.5 hours of battery life

Aorus X3: Shit. Same as the GS43 and Razer Blade. 

 

I personally like the P650XX but I can afford to wait until they roll out 15in 1440p/120hz screens for them. I agree with D2 in terms of Asus. I would never get a laptop from them, especially not a gaming laptop. 

[Pendragon]

3 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

And in regards to the Aorus?

Only worth considering the X5 v6 and only if they've done changes to their cooling system.

[D2ultima]

2 minutes ago, xaviersykora said:

And in regards to the Aorus?

I REALLY would avoid anything touted to be "thin and light" with Pascal. Just... end of story. And anything with the name "HP", "Dell", "EVGA" or "Acer" attached to it especially.

 

EVGA really don't know how to make a gaming laptop... I swear... 

[Pendragon]

13 minutes ago, D2ultima said:

Also, you're getting the machine from HIDevolution because they're a Prema Partner, which means unlocked system BIOS for personal tuning and better stability, and unlocked/stable video BIOS.

This needs to be stressed. Clevo laptops without a stable bios are worse than Asus laptops. Maybe not as bad as Acer, but definitely worse than Asus.