Laptop for Academic

[MapleRebel]

I'm searching for a reliable laptop for academic research. It's doing double duty as a personal laptop in the after-hours, so I'd like it to be able to play some lighter games like Diablo 3 and Path of Exile. This a desperately needed replacement for my 2011 13 MacBook Pro.

 

My priorities are portable (4.5lbs or less), 14 to 15 inch screen, traditional clamshell is fine. Smaller footprint is preferred for carrying around. I'm willing to pay a bit more for premium build, but it doesn't have to be flashy.

 

I'd like a nice screen, suitable for writing and viewing archival photos. Here's where I'm confused. Is there any merit to going above 1080p for reading text?

 

I do some light GIS work, so this is another reason for a decent GPU. 

 

Nice keyboard would be a plus. This is the main reason I won't consider a MacBook.

 

My budget is 2000 Canadian, with a little wiggle room to go up if needed.

 

Options I've considered:

 

X1 C6. I played with this at my campus store. Love the size and form factor, but I find it hard to pay that price--even with Perks--when it doesn't have a decent GPU for my low key gaming. Also, I heard the sound isn't very good even by laptop standards.

 

Surface Book 2 15....I actually bought this but it was way over budget and mercifully my bank killed the transaction because of their hyper-active fraud detection.

 

XPS 15 9560. 4k model is available for my budget, but it feels a little bad buying last year's model right before refresh. Also not sure about the merits of 4k.

 

XPS 9570 (?) FHD. I don't have much use for 6 cores, but the 1050ti and the hope of better cooling is attractive.

 

Any suggestions would be appreciated. It's pretty easy to get lost in this sea of specs. 

[Streetguru]

16 minutes ago, MapleRebel said:

 

Just grab a Ryzen 5 APU laptop, or find something with an i5/i7 and GTX 1050/ti

[genexis_x]

Take a look at Yoga 720 15 and Ideapad 720s 15, both with 7700HQ CPU. XPS 15 has issues. You might also want to wait for more CFL-H options.

[Pendragon]

I think something right up your alley would be the Kaby Lake G. The AMD chip is around a 1050 level while being cooler and quieter. 

 

Check the HP Spectre x360 15 (with AMD GPU)

[Froody129]

7 hours ago, ZM Fong said:

Take a look at Yoga 720 15 and Ideapad 720s 15, both with 7700HQ CPU. XPS 15 has issues. You might also want to wait for more CFL-H options.

Agreed on waiting for CFL options. What problems does the XPS have though? 

[genexis_x]

1 hour ago, Froody129 said:

Agreed on waiting for CFL options. What problems does the XPS have though? 

This article almost covers all the issues: https://www.ultrabookreview.com/19675-im-not-buying-new-xps-15-9570/

Also: 4K panel has awful response times and iGPU don't work properly with it, OKish keyboard and camera placement

[MapleRebel]

I'll take a look at the new Vega systems, assuming I can find them on HP's site. At least the HP x360 has a normal-ish keyboard. Too bad about the numpad. I prefer centred keyboards. My main concern is that the newish GPU / CPU combo won't get supported for very long by Intel / AMD. 

 

The Lenovo 720 is really hard to find information about. Are there any reviews out there?

 

Finally, are there any promising CFL-H options that are on the horizon?

 

This board is amazing btw. I posted somewhere else and I got spammed by Clevo / Sager suggestions.

[genexis_x]

6 minutes ago, MapleRebel said:

At least the HP x360 has a normal-ish keyboard.

Spectre x360 has great keyboards

6 minutes ago, MapleRebel said:

The Lenovo 720 is really hard to find information about. Are there any reviews out there?

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Lenovo-Yoga-720-15IKB-7700HQ-FHD-GTX-1050-Laptop-Review.227572.0.html

6 minutes ago, MapleRebel said:

Finally, are there any promising CFL-H options that are on the horizon?

CFL-H is still new. Wait for more options, so far nothing with CFL-H CPU suits you

6 minutes ago, MapleRebel said:

I posted somewhere else and I got spammed by Clevo / Sager suggestions.

Options like P950ER/P950EP6 is good if you don't mind the OKish battery life (>4hrs web browsing). Also the GPU is overkill for you.

[MapleRebel]

Thanks! I guess I was looking up the 720s ideapad. I didn't realize there was a difference.

 

I didn't mean to imply there was anything wrong with Clevo / Sager, I was just looking for something a little more mainstream that balanced performance with portability.