I will be going to college next year, and, although I would love to bring a desktop, it just isn't feasible. So, I need a good laptop to bring with me that can run TF2 fairly well.
As for more specific requirements...
I really don't want a laptop with any obnoxious gaming branding on it.
It would be nice to have a screen size of 14-17 inches, as I will be carrying it to classes.
I want a laptop with a graphics card, nothing huge, but something good enough to run TF2 in DX8.
A HDD is fine, but a SSD would be a nice bonus. Not really particular on size, as I only use 100 GB on my desktop right now.
A Touch screen is not necessary.
Memory around 8GB would be good.
A backlit keyboard would be a bonus.
My budget is currently around $1600. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!
I will be going to college next year, and, although I would love to bring a desktop, it just isn't feasible. So, I need a good laptop to bring with me that can run TF2 fairly well.
As for more specific requirements...
[list]I really don't want a laptop with any obnoxious gaming branding on it.[/list][list]It would be nice to have a screen size of 14-17 inches, as I will be carrying it to classes.[/list][list]I want a laptop with a graphics card, nothing huge, but something good enough to run TF2 in DX8.[/list][list]A HDD is fine, but a SSD would be a nice bonus. Not really particular on size, as I only use 100 GB on my desktop right now.[/list][list]A Touch screen is not necessary.[/list][list]Memory around 8GB would be good.[/list][list]A backlit keyboard would be a bonus.[/list]
My budget is currently around $1600. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!
So, are you buying a laptop for TF2 or for college?
So, are you buying a laptop for TF2 or for college?
eggtartSo, are you buying a laptop for TF2 or for college?
I think he wants one for both.
[quote=eggtart]So, are you buying a laptop for TF2 or for college?[/quote]
I think he wants one for both.
I bought a Lenovo Ideapad Y580 (15.6, nVidia 660M GTX, 2.4Ghz i7, back lit keyboard) last year when my old laptop died and I got it for sale for $900 and bought a 256GB SSD for like $200 to stick in it, it's still running TF2 fine, of course I mostly use it for occasional PUG, not sure if it would be good enough for fulltime competitive gaming.
IMO, it's pretty nice balance between being a gaming laptop and a normal laptop, it's not overly heavy at least not for me since I've been carrying it to classes almost every day for the past year. The biggest thing is that it's not flashy like my old Sager laptop.
You could definitely get a newer model for $1600, or if time isn't an issue you could probably look for a sale between now and when college starts.
I bought a Lenovo Ideapad Y580 (15.6, nVidia 660M GTX, 2.4Ghz i7, back lit keyboard) last year when my old laptop died and I got it for sale for $900 and bought a 256GB SSD for like $200 to stick in it, it's still running TF2 fine, of course I mostly use it for occasional PUG, not sure if it would be good enough for fulltime competitive gaming.
IMO, it's pretty nice balance between being a gaming laptop and a normal laptop, it's not overly heavy at least not for me since I've been carrying it to classes almost every day for the past year. The biggest thing is that it's not flashy like my old Sager laptop.
You could definitely get a newer model for $1600, or if time isn't an issue you could probably look for a sale between now and when college starts.
I think 17" is too big and heavy to carry around. With that budget I'm pretty sure you can get a really good laptop there. :)
I think 17" is too big and heavy to carry around. With that budget I'm pretty sure you can get a really good laptop there. :)
EpicBroccoliI bought a Lenovo Ideapad Y580 (15.6, nVidia 660M GTX, 2.4Ghz i7, back lit keyboard) last year when my old laptop died and I got it for sale for $900 and bought a 256GB SSD for like $200 to stick in it, it's still running TF2 fine, of course I mostly use it for occasional PUG, not sure if it would be good enough for fulltime competitive gaming.
IMO, it's pretty nice balance between being a gaming laptop and a normal laptop, it's not overly heavy at least not for me since I've been carrying it to classes almost every day for the past year. The biggest thing is that it's not flashy like my old Sager laptop.
You could definitely get a newer model for $1600, or if time isn't an issue you could probably look for a sale between now and when college starts.
I heard that the Y series from Lenovo, although very cost effective, has a short battery life (as in 3 hours or less). Do you have any experiences where you wished your battery life was longer?
[quote=EpicBroccoli]I bought a Lenovo Ideapad Y580 (15.6, nVidia 660M GTX, 2.4Ghz i7, back lit keyboard) last year when my old laptop died and I got it for sale for $900 and bought a 256GB SSD for like $200 to stick in it, it's still running TF2 fine, of course I mostly use it for occasional PUG, not sure if it would be good enough for fulltime competitive gaming.
IMO, it's pretty nice balance between being a gaming laptop and a normal laptop, it's not overly heavy at least not for me since I've been carrying it to classes almost every day for the past year. The biggest thing is that it's not flashy like my old Sager laptop.
You could definitely get a newer model for $1600, or if time isn't an issue you could probably look for a sale between now and when college starts.[/quote]
I heard that the Y series from Lenovo, although very cost effective, has a short battery life (as in 3 hours or less). Do you have any experiences where you wished your battery life was longer?
Sager and Clevo both make solid gaming notebooks with minimal branding
[url=http://www.sagernotebook.com/index.php]Sager[/url] and [url=http://clevo.com/en/index.asp]Clevo[/url] both make solid gaming notebooks with minimal branding
honestly dude get a laptop for school work and a desktop that you can use at your dorm. Having to lug around a gigantic gaming laptop for school work is gonna get old really fast.
honestly dude get a laptop for school work and a desktop that you can use at your dorm. Having to lug around a gigantic gaming laptop for school work is gonna get old really fast.
I got a 15 inch laptop and regret it. I almost never take it to class. Its too big to use comfortably on many of the desks and it is too heavy since I also have to carry notebooks and textbooks. Battery life is also not as much as desired. Wish I would've gone with a 12-13 inch one without an optical drive and no dedicated GPU.
Highly recommend bringing your desktop.
I got a 15 inch laptop and regret it. I almost never take it to class. Its too big to use comfortably on many of the desks and it is too heavy since I also have to carry notebooks and textbooks. Battery life is also not as much as desired. Wish I would've gone with a 12-13 inch one without an optical drive and no dedicated GPU.
Highly recommend bringing your desktop.
I bought a Lenovo Y410P last thanksgiving when it was on sale for $720 ($785 including taxes), andit's been a great desktop replacement with an external monitor (I got LG IPS234 too during thanksgiving for $130 from Newegg) and your favorite gaming keyboard/mouse (Im using Amazon BAsics and Logitech G400). I get around 100-120 FPS on TF2 all the time at 1920x1080 (with maxframes config), same for CS:GO and it can run may new games at ~60 FPS at 1920x1080. Plus its not that heavy (around 5 lbs with charger) so I can carry it around for school. Its a great laptop and I would recommend it.
I bought a Lenovo Y410P last thanksgiving when it was on sale for $720 ($785 including taxes), andit's been a great desktop replacement with an external monitor (I got LG IPS234 too during thanksgiving for $130 from Newegg) and your favorite gaming keyboard/mouse (Im using Amazon BAsics and Logitech G400). I get around 100-120 FPS on TF2 all the time at 1920x1080 (with maxframes config), same for CS:GO and it can run may new games at ~60 FPS at 1920x1080. Plus its not that heavy (around 5 lbs with charger) so I can carry it around for school. Its a great laptop and I would recommend it.
Sager is awesome.
Get this backpack:
http://www.everki.com/17-3-inch-laptop-backpacks/concept-premium-checkpoint-friendly-laptop-backpack-up-to-17-3-detail
As I said, I can't bring a desktop. My parents, who are giving me half of the money, think a desktop doesn't promote being social. I would argue that a laptop can do the same, but they are stubborn...
So, I know I shouldn't get a laptop above 15 inches. Is TF2 more CPU or GPU intensive?
As I said, I can't bring a desktop. My parents, who are giving me half of the money, think a desktop doesn't promote being social. I would argue that a laptop can do the same, but they are stubborn...
So, I know I shouldn't get a laptop above 15 inches. Is TF2 more CPU or GPU intensive?
You could EASILY find a beast laptop for college that would run tf2 just as good, if not better than your desktop. It shouldn't even be that hard to find it in your price range. 2 years ago I decided to look for a gaming laptop because I was tired of lugging my tower to lans all the time. I took my time and looked around and found this...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834214626
17.3" 120hz display
560m gtx
i7 CPU
Dropped an extra 80gig ssd in there for the OS and it is a beast. Paid like $1100 for it. It was supposed to be $2000 but it was technically "open box" because its original shipping box was damaged, and so were the 3D glasses it was supposed to come with, but that saved me around $900
Look for deals like that. Also, stay away from popular gaming laptop lines like Alienware or the Asus RoG, and especially the Razer ones. All decent, but over priced. Look into the Toshiba Qosmio line (Qosmio is their gaming line). I can tell you from first hand experience they are very good.
You could EASILY find a beast laptop for college that would run tf2 just as good, if not better than your desktop. It shouldn't even be that hard to find it in your price range. 2 years ago I decided to look for a gaming laptop because I was tired of lugging my tower to lans all the time. I took my time and looked around and found this...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834214626
17.3" 120hz display
560m gtx
i7 CPU
Dropped an extra 80gig ssd in there for the OS and it is a beast. Paid like $1100 for it. It was supposed to be $2000 but it was technically "open box" because its original shipping box was damaged, and so were the 3D glasses it was supposed to come with, but that saved me around $900
Look for deals like that. Also, stay away from popular gaming laptop lines like Alienware or the Asus RoG, and especially the Razer ones. All decent, but over priced. Look into the Toshiba Qosmio line (Qosmio is their gaming line). I can tell you from first hand experience they are very good.
Your parents are silly.
Source engine games are mostly CPU intensive, especially if you lower settings
Your parents are silly.
Source engine games are mostly CPU intensive, especially if you lower settings
I bought a laptop with similar requirements though a much lower budget. I ended up getting a Sager from these guys. So far I have been pretty happy with it. I ended up customizing mine a bit so it wouldn't include an operating system since I can get a copy for free through my universities Microsoft Alliance thing. My budget was around $800 and I got a laptop that runs TF2 decently, I imagine for your budget you can get something much better.
https://www.xoticpc.com/custom-gaming-laptops-notebooks-clevo-sager-notebooks-ct-95_51_162.html
I bought a laptop with similar requirements though a much lower budget. I ended up getting a Sager from these guys. So far I have been pretty happy with it. I ended up customizing mine a bit so it wouldn't include an operating system since I can get a copy for free through my universities Microsoft Alliance thing. My budget was around $800 and I got a laptop that runs TF2 decently, I imagine for your budget you can get something much better.
https://www.xoticpc.com/custom-gaming-laptops-notebooks-clevo-sager-notebooks-ct-95_51_162.html
freakinYour parents are silly.
Source engine games are mostly CPU intensive, especially if you lower settings
I know. And thanks.
[quote=freakin]Your parents are silly.
Source engine games are mostly CPU intensive, especially if you lower settings[/quote]
I know. And thanks.
A few months ago I picked up a ChromeBook for $250 and I love it. It's super portable and does everything I need for school/work. With a $1600 budget, you'd still have plenty of money left to build a solid desktop to use for gaming or anything else that would require a bit more power.
A few months ago I picked up a ChromeBook for $250 and I love it. It's super portable and does everything I need for school/work. With a $1600 budget, you'd still have plenty of money left to build a solid desktop to use for gaming or anything else that would require a bit more power.
EpicBroccoliIMO, it's pretty nice balance between being a gaming laptop and a normal laptop, it's not overly heavy at least not for me since I've been carrying it to classes almost every day for the past year. The biggest thing is that it's not flashy like my old Sager laptop.
Posting (and playing) from a Y580. It's been a workhorse for me, runs tf2 smoothly (150-200fps for me, with chris' maxframes... which I haven't updated since the Carter administration), as well as just about everything else.
The battery life is on the low side (I can get 2-2.5 hours on a full charge), and it is ever so slightly large, but it has served me well for two years now and has shown no signs of slowing down.
I should mention the battery life has never really been a problem for me, but you might have more trouble if you require more mobile use than I put mine through.
[quote=EpicBroccoli]IMO, it's pretty nice balance between being a gaming laptop and a normal laptop, it's not overly heavy at least not for me since I've been carrying it to classes almost every day for the past year. The biggest thing is that it's not flashy like my old Sager laptop.
[/quote]
Posting (and playing) from a Y580. It's been a workhorse for me, runs tf2 smoothly (150-200fps for me, with chris' maxframes... which I haven't updated since the Carter administration), as well as just about everything else.
The battery life is on the low side (I can get 2-2.5 hours on a full charge), and it is ever so slightly large, but it has served me well for two years now and has shown no signs of slowing down.
I should mention the battery life has never really been a problem for me, but you might have more trouble if you require more mobile use than I put mine through.
i would get a macbook but that probably would not work as well as a good laptop for the same price
i would get a macbook but that probably would not work as well as a good laptop for the same price
Since you can no longer buy a Y580, would anyone suggest the replacement Y510p?
Since you can no longer buy a Y580, would anyone suggest the replacement Y510p?
make sure u get an illuminated keyboard regardless of what ur gettin, its awful without one bro
make sure u get an illuminated keyboard regardless of what ur gettin, its awful without one bro
Erici would get a macbook but that probably would not work as well as a good laptop for the same price
probably???
Apple will slap a logo on a macbook powered by a core2duo and charge you more than an overpriced Razer/Alienware laptop with an i7.
[quote=Eric]i would get a macbook but that probably would not work as well as a good laptop for the same price[/quote]
[b]probably???[/b]
Apple will slap a logo on a macbook powered by a core2duo and charge you more than an overpriced Razer/Alienware laptop with an i7.
why dont u get a small and portable yet powerful laptop and buy a seperate monitor and keyboard ?
why dont u get a small and portable yet powerful laptop and buy a seperate monitor and keyboard ?
Rickmake sure u get an illuminated keyboard regardless of what ur gettin, its awful without one bro
rick knows what hes talking about
[quote=Rick]make sure u get an illuminated keyboard regardless of what ur gettin, its awful without one bro[/quote]
rick knows what hes talking about
chiveEpicBroccoli...
I heard that the Y series from Lenovo, although very cost effective, has a short battery life (as in 3 hours or less). Do you have any experiences where you wished your battery life was longer?
For me, the battery is perfect for going to 1-2 classes that are one hour each. I usually set my laptop to power saving mode and it's good enough for those two classes. Battery life's never been a huge problem for me since plugs are plentiful at my uni both in and out of the class room.
In full disclosure though, I did have an issue with my power button where sometimes it doesn't work but I resolved it by taking apart my laptop and tightening a loose cable.
For me, I just picked the IdeaPad because it was on sale on SlickDeals, dunno if price is a huge issue for you but I suggest buying the SSD separately since you can get some great deals on them
[quote=chive][quote=EpicBroccoli]...[/quote]
I heard that the Y series from Lenovo, although very cost effective, has a short battery life (as in 3 hours or less). Do you have any experiences where you wished your battery life was longer?[/quote]
For me, the battery is perfect for going to 1-2 classes that are one hour each. I usually set my laptop to power saving mode and it's good enough for those two classes. Battery life's never been a huge problem for me since plugs are plentiful at my uni both in and out of the class room.
In full disclosure though, I did have an issue with my power button where sometimes it doesn't work but I resolved it by taking apart my laptop and tightening a loose cable.
For me, I just picked the IdeaPad because it was on sale on SlickDeals, dunno if price is a huge issue for you but I suggest buying the SSD separately since you can get some great deals on them
i got the lenovo y410p and other than a harddrive failure which they fixed and terrible battery life (like 2 hours), it's good for gaming (does tf2 60fps w/o any configs) and everything else. backlit keyboard you can turn off and on is very nice i love it.
i got the lenovo y410p and other than a harddrive failure which they fixed and terrible battery life (like 2 hours), it's good for gaming (does tf2 60fps w/o any configs) and everything else. backlit keyboard you can turn off and on is very nice i love it.