I was afraid this would be the answer, but was kinda hoping against hope that maybe the tech had really improved since the late 1990s/early 2001. Oh well, the more things change..
Recommend a laptop
- Thread starter Chainsaw
- Start date
I was afraid this would be the answer, but was kinda hoping against hope that maybe the tech had really improved since the late 1990s/early 2001. Oh well, the more things change..
Mustrum_Ridcully
Legend
The tech might have improved, but it has used those improvements to get more computing power out of each Watt. And of course, games need more computing power now, too, for better graphics and physics...
My only suggestion is to ensure that your Notebook either has Windows XP or WIndows 7. Both require less power (computing and electricity) than Vista.
I personally prepare Windows 7, but I am the kind of guy that jumps on the new and shiny - and also work and develop for it since a while now...
Aside from that, you should ask yourself:
- How mobile do your respectice notebooks to be? Do you want to use them while aboard a plane or train? Or do you merely need to fit it into your suit or brief case and unpack it only at a hotel or office?
- How much gaming do you expect to do when travelling?
- Are both of you going to game at the same time?
- Do you expect to switch a lot between gaming and working on the notebook?
- Are you more interested in surfing or working on your travels?
I think:
- If you're mostly focused on getting online, a netbook will suffice. You won't store many personal or work-related files on that thing, so it would be easy to share the netbook with your wife without many conflicts.
- If you want to work, a notebook with a little larger display (and keyboard) will probably be preferable. Also, you will keep a lot of your files on it, so you want to use it most of the time.
- If both of you game a lot, both of you will want a high end machine. If only one of you does game a lot, a single gaming machine should be enough.
- If you don't really have the time to game while travelling, you probably don't need a gaming notebook for that.
- Working in a train or plane requires a small notebook, you just don't have that much space to "unfold" it or to transport it. A 15 inch display might already turn out to be too big, 13 inch and less are probably better.
- For gaming, a notebook in the 15 to 17 inch area is probably a good idea, and I don't think you will find smaller ones anyway.
- Gaming at home does not require a notebook. A desktop can be fine, giving you more performance for your $, allowing you to use a big (19, 22 or more inches) display.
Upgrading possibilities and all that are nice, but unless you want to do that yourself, I wouldn't really put this as important. It's always a hassle, even if it comes out cheaper.
It's possible that you two might be well served with two different notebooks - one gaming notebook and one netbook. As long as you don't get envious of each other.
("Why do I get the kiddie notebook again?")Maybe a combination of desktop/notebook/netbook would also work great.
Of course, the easiest solution might be to get yourself two identical notebooks. This way, you need to learn only one machine and can help each other out with technical issues.
That might get expensive if you want full gaming capability, and it will not be very useable. When it comes to technical equipment, think about what kind of "new tech" do you want?
- HDMI support? I use my notebook (macbook pro) as my DVD player most of the time, it works better than my (albeit cheap) dedicated DVD player. And of course, you can also bring Hulu or similar services easily to your big TV this way.
- Bluray? Some Sony Vaio notebooks come with that - we just got my father one to his 50th birthday. It looks pretty decent... And you don't need an additional device.
- Multitouch/Tablet PC functionality? A lot of new stuff happens in this area, it remains to be seen if it is just "cool" or actually something that will become more common.
- Docking Station? I personally don't really see the big benefit, to be honest, as long as you have a VGA/DVI/HDMI Out to connect a monitor or beamer, and enough USB ports for USB sticks, mouse and an external keyboard (if you want one).
- Bluetooth. Wireles mice, mobile phone data exchange and more?
- Flashdrives or "regular" hard disk? Flashdrives are faster and, without movceable parts, don't have trouble working when it gets a little rougher, but they are a lot more expensive and offer less space.
When it comes to software, look out for special offers. For example, I think there are some Office Student and Home licenses for families for example, and simillar offers for Windows.
Mustrum_Ridcully
Legend
I think this is the Notebook we got my father: [ame="http://www.amazon.de/Sony-VGN-NW21ZF-Notebook-Intel-Blu-ray/dp/B002RL884U"]Sony Vaio VGN-NW21ZF/S.G4[/ame]. I can't find the exact model on amazon.com, but this seems close, I am not just not sure it has Bluray: [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Sony-VAIO-NW-VGN-NW275F-Widescreen/dp/B002TEGCCU/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&s=pc&qid=1259582347&sr=1-13"]Amazon.com: Sony VAIO NW Series VGN-NW275F/S - Core 2 Duo T6600 / 2.2 GHz - RAM 4 GB - HDD 320 GB - DVD?RW (?R DL) / DVD-RAM / BD-ROM - Mobility Radeon HD 4570 - Gigabit Ethernet, IEEE 802.11n - WLAN : 802.11b/g/n - Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit - 15[/ame]
A friend of mine got a decent gaming notebook: An Acer Aspire 7738g
Though he warns that there are some quality issues, but it seems to work well enough to play games.
(If that counts anything- his computer scores higher than my desktop on the windows index rating... Of course this means I have to upgrade soon. )
A friend of mine got a decent gaming notebook: An Acer Aspire 7738g
Though he warns that there are some quality issues, but it seems to work well enough to play games.
(If that counts anything- his computer scores higher than my desktop on the windows index rating... Of course this means I have to upgrade soon.
)
Mustrum_Ridcully; Of course this means I [I said:
The computer "arms race" eventually became more than I could handle, heh. I loved having the "best" computer, but grew weary of paying for it. Plus, I work in front of one every day now and that dulls the hobby appeal for me.
Part of me longs for the days when I was naive enough to *believe* the person who told me I'd never need more than the 20 meg hard drive I added to my 286-12 (blazing speed, wow).
start at bing.com. Go to either HP or Lenovo, and get 20% off your purchase. Or, try the Acer at Newegg.com that has 4gbDDR3 and a GT 130M. However, if you have the patience for Lenovo's web site today, you can get the same machine there with a gt240M for less money (don't take the 15% discount from them, get the 20% from Bing).
Mustrum_Ridcully
Legend
I haven't upgraded for two years or so now, so it does't seem excessive to me. Still not sure I need it.
No, that's wrong. I am sure I do not need it. My computer is running fine with all the games I own and play. My problem is more getting old games to run. (Independence War, please... why don't you run?
)
babomb
First Post
The arms race has died down lately, at least a little. The bleeding edge still follows Moore's Law, but PC games don't target the bleeding edge as much as they used to. I bought a moderate gaming PC (I like to target the sweet spot where you get 75% of the power for 50% of the price) two years ago, and with a few exceptions like Crysis, I can still run most new games at close to the highest settings.
I was at a Windows95 presentation and during the Q&A, I asked if it would support my new 1.2GB drive that needed a boot overlay to overcome the CMOS limit on drive size. Before the MS rep could answer, some dumb ass in the crowd shouted, "what would you ever need 1.2GB of space for?"
It seems that short sighted people in technology have always existed.
To the OP, it's your money, but are you sure you want to spend on a gaming PC that has a short life cycle, requiring regular upgrading just to keep up with the latest game?
For $300, you can get a PS3 or 360 that plays Dragon Age. Either console has a longer run left than the typical PC in the "games race"
For $300-500, you can get a laptop with 2GB of ram, and some Windows OS that'll surf the web and run Office.
It's your call, but as a guy who works in the tech industry, I got out of playing PC games in 2000 or so. I got tired of the constant churn for faster processors/video/memory just to play the latest game. Whereas Sony has kept to a 6 year cycle on every playstation platform. Every one of my PS's has been a first release unit and survived past the launch of the new generation. Though it churned a little faster, even MS is sticking to that, namely because they know Sony is on a 6 year clock, so at this point, they can also stick to 6 years and still get a year headstart with the "next" xbox.
Thanee
First Post
I'm actually fairly sure, that if you sum up the money you pay for console gaming in a six year cycle, especially considering the higher price for the games themselves, and the money for PC gaming, if you do not overpay (i.e. not buy the biggest baddest stuff, but the reasonable sweet spot stuff, upgrading every two years or so; which is completely sufficient to play every game put out), the difference is much less than one might think.
And that does not even cover the fact, what else you can do with the PC besides gaming (and watching videos).
Bye
Thanee
And that does not even cover the fact, what else you can do with the PC besides gaming (and watching videos).
Bye
Thanee
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