As I mentioned in an earlier [thread=26673]thread[/thread], I've had some problems with my old laptop. After bringing it back to life for about a month, it went completely dead a couple of weeks ago. The time is thus here to go spend some money.
Whilst I earlier went for a monstrous gaming laptop to cover all my needs, I have a bit of a different approach this time. I do want a decent computer for gaming (even though I haven't had much time for it lately, I want to take it up again (WotLK, here I come :flirty:)). But I also want a laptop with a fair battery time which is not too large and heavy to carry around - but it should still be able to handle some gaming (at low quality).
My choice is therefor to go for both a relatively nice gaming desktop computer together with a mid-sized laptop - with a total cost at no more than NOK 20000 (about GBP 2100). I have always been a fan of Dell, so I think I've landed on the following two options: an XPS M1330 laptop (http://www.dell.co.uk/content/products/productdetails.aspx/xpsnb_m1330?c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&ref=lthp&s=dhs) and an XPS 430 desktop (http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/desktop-xps-430?c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&s=dhs&%7Eck=mn). I'm pretty happy with the specs, but I thought I should ask here if anyone has any final comments/warnings/suggestions before I place the final order. The systems are as follows:
XPS M1330
Base: Intel® Coreâ,,¢ 2 Duo-prosessor T8300 (2,40 GHz, 800 MHz FSB, 3 MB L2-buffer)
Minne: 4096 MB 667 MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM [2 x 2048]
Grafikkort: 128 MB nVidia® GeForce® 8400M GS
Harddisk: 200 GB harddisk med fritt fall-sensor (7200 RPM)
Trådløs tilkobling: Intel® Next-Gen Wireless N Mini-kort - Europa - Core 2 Duo Processors
Bluetooth: Dellâ,,¢ TrueMobile 355 intern Bluetooth-modul - europeisk
Primærbatteri: 9-cellers primært litiumionbatteri (85 W/t)
LCD: Tynn og lett 13,3-t. UltraSharpâ,,¢ WXGA (1280 x 800) White-LED-skjerm (300 nit) m/TrueLifeâ,,¢
XPS 430 desktop
Grunnleggende: Intel® Coreâ,,¢ 2 Quad Core Processor Q8200 (2.33GHz, 1333MHz, 4MB cache) - PREMIUM Chassis
Minne: 4096 MB, 1067 MHz tokanals DDR3 SDRAM [4 x 1024]
Videokort: Grafikk: 1 GB ATI Radeon 3870 X2-grafikkort
Harddisk 750 GB (7200 rpm) seriell ATA/100-harddisk med 16 MB DataBurstâ,,¢-buffer
Diskett- og mediestasjoner: 19-i-1-mediekortleser (Bluetooth)
Lydkort: Integrert HDA 7.1 Dolby Digital-lyd
Trådløst nettverk: Internal Enhanced Wireless 802.11n PCIe-kort - Europa
(I already have a 24" Dell 2407WFP monitor)
This results in NOK 9760 for the laptop and NOK 9540 for the desktop - all in all just below my initial limit. And I think those should cover my needs for the next years :)
So, any comments from anyone?
Desktop wise I'd look for a slightly better Graphics card (I like the 4870, but I imagine the X2 of that would bump up the price a good deal). It's by no means bad, but buying a little higher up the ladder is cheaper than upgrading. All the other specs look good to me. Especially Ram.
As for the Laptop that should cope with basic games, though I'm not a laptop gamer myself, best check with others on this front.
Quote from: T-Bag;270510Desktop wise I'd look for a slightly better Graphics card (I like the 4870, but I imagine the X2 of that would bump up the price a good deal).
Thanks for the input T-Bag - it's exactly that kind of stuff I need to hear about, as I know squat about different kinds of brands and models when it comes to these things, all I have pretty decent knowledge about is how many byts and Hz etc I ought to have.
Sadly, the 1GB Radeon 3870 X2 is the best available option 430-series. If I want to have something better, I have to start looking at the 630-series which has a starting price of NOK 12190, offering a DUAL SLI 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9800GT graphics card. Meaning it's a bit more expensive than what I had in mind, so don't think that will be much of an option.
Check out the Dell re-sellers market on Ebay. I bought my laptop that way (from Ecomputers (http://stores.shop.ebay.co.uk/eComputers-LTD__W0QQ_armrsZ1)) after Gandalf pointed me in that direction. I've since purchased laptops for my father and my sister this way and all have been cracking laptops with a big discount and full warranty. I saved a packet on each one, so it is worth checking out their stock (which turns over pretty quick), it allowed me to get what I wanted and keep within the budget I had set which would otherwise have been impossible.
TL.
I bought the XPS 420 with virtually the same spec as your mentioned 430 about november last year. (Same Gphx card. It is sweet)
I could not be happier with it.
It is quiet.
Fast.
And plays wow at a constant 60fps with VS on.
I also have an XPS M1710 from about 2 years ago which still plays WoW at about 30fps (think the fps would be much better if i reinstalled wow tbh and reinstalled addons from scratch rather than a copy from the main pc)
Again a very nice laptop and sturdy.
Hope any of this helps.
Quote from: TeaLeaf;270529Check out the Dell re-sellers market on Ebay. I bought my laptop that way (from Ecomputers (http://stores.shop.ebay.co.uk/eComputers-LTD__W0QQ_armrsZ1))
Thanks for the tip TL. But for these kinds of purchases I think I'd prefer to by new from the retailer. In Norway we also have very good and strong customer rights, so I do not depend on the extra warranty you buy from Dell (and I don't know how my Norwegian consumer rights would be if I bought through eBay either).
Quote from: smite;270537I could not be happier with it.
Nice to hear that you're happy with yours smite. The decision always becomes easier when you hear good reviews from others :)