Need an opinion on a new laptop..

[BuddyB]

We'll soon be purchasing a laptop. I'm favoring ASUS, and the one I'm looking at is what they call a "Gaming" machine. I'm not into games, but as you already know, multimedia and video. So, the question is, is the gaming machine just as capable as a multimedia device? I get the feeling it is, but wanted to run it by my peers, who for the most part, probably know more than I.

This is the device: ASUS ROG G750 Series G750JX-DB71 Gaming Notebook Intel Core i7 4700HQ (2.40GHz) 16GB Memory 1TB HDD 256GB SSD NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M 3GB GDDR5 17.3" Windows 8 64-Bit

[sidd finch]

I think the basics are chip speed, ability to increase ram, graphics card and internal hard drive speed (many laptops run at 5400 rpm which is slow) are the biggest factors. Not to mention your wallet size

Comparing these aspects will help to make an informed decision.

Sidd

[BuddyB]

Good thoughts Sidd. I'm going to spend about 1500.00 on this thing, and I want it to be good for a while. Chip speeds in that price range I've found to be 2.4 Ghz; have not checked HD speed, but will, thanks for the suggestion, and the same for the graphics card..important. Increasing RAM is important, but not as much as the other two.

[jackfalbey]

For video editing, you'll want to have your video & media files on a different hard drive than the OS, so you'll want to look for a laptop with either eSATA or USB 3.0. You'll also probably want an HDMI out so you can use a second monitor or play back on an HDTV.

Other than that, for the $1500 price range, you should be able to get an i7 CPU, at least 8GB RAM, an SSD for the OS & programs, a full-HD 1920x1080 screen, and a good Nvidia GeForce GTX gaming video card.

Here's an example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6834233050

[Dave McElderry]

I'll make a couple of comments, which cost neither of us anything, and you can take them for whatever you think they might be worth. I spent more than that on an ASUS laptop once, thinking that I would get an awesome machine. It turned out not to be so. The physical build quality was poor - the hinges wore out in about a year of normal use. When the battery failed, just out of warranty, I found that I couldn't even buy a new one from ASUS. Just plain not available in a machine that was about 15 months old. ASUS customer service was non-existent. They just didn't care. To this day I will choose anything other than ASUS brand in any technology device, if at all possible.

Beyond those brand-specific issues, I found that because the technology changes so quickly I never should have put that much money in the machine. I swore to never buy a high-end laptop again. You get much more bang for your buck in a desktop machine. If you've already told us your reasons for going with a laptop instead of a desktop please excuse my lapse of memory. And if you think I'm all wet, that's okay too.

[jackfalbey]

Good points, Dave. If the portability of a laptop is needed, that's one thing... but $1500 in a desktop will get you a 6-core 3.4 GHz i7, 32GB of RAM, a good video card, and a fast RAID array to edit from.

[BuddyB]

This for my wife, not me. I'm a desktop guy; hate track pads, etc; and I know you can hook up a mouse to the critter. It is for portability and good to travel with, and for me that's about it. Jack, it's coincidental I know, but I am looking at that laptop and considering. I've had two or 3 desktops with ASUS motherboards and they have been beautiful, so Dave that is the reason I've considered the ASUS. Three Christmas' ago I bought Bonnie a 15.6 with 2 gigs of RAM from Toshiba; I added 2 more gigs, and it's truly been a a good machine, but it's beginning to wear out from use. Bonnie is a heavy user. I've also looked at Toshiba machines and am considering one there, also in the 1500 price range. I want her multimedia ready and no hiccups. The current Toshiba will hesitate and hang on a lot of videos. I've cleaned the machine pretty well, and it improves performance but still hangs on videos. Two USB ports have died, and I may try a reinstall of Win7/32 to see it there will be any changes. All-in-all it's time for a new computer and she wants a laptop; one reason is she goes to trade shows and needs a computer, so it serves a dual purpose. Dave and Jack thanks for the input. It does give me some things to think about.

[jackfalbey]

Is your wife going to be doing any video editing on the laptop? If not, and she's just looking for multimedia playback / general computing, a Core i3 laptop with Intel HD graphics should be more than sufficient. The problem with her current Toshiba may be that the CPU and/or GPU is underpowered, or the hard drive is a 5400RPM unit.

What you'll want to look for is a Core i3 or i5 CPU 6-8 GB of RAM, a 1920x1080 screen, a 7200RPM hard drive or - even better - an SSD, HDMI out if she needs to output video to a larger display, and USB 3.0 if she brings a lot of multimedia files with her to trade shows. Battery life is probably important too, so here are some laptops with great battery life:

http://blog.laptopmag.com/all-day-stron ... -notebooks

$1500 is going to be more power than she needs unless she's doing video editing or high-end gaming. You ought to be able to get her a great laptop for her needs under $1000 and you can put the difference toward a nice weekend getaway!

And of course user reviews on sites like Newegg and Amazon are a great way to tell if it's going to be a good laptop in the long run.

[BuddyB]

Thanks Jack for the info. This will help in my decision. She does not do any editing, so I may travel a different route. I'm very much into overkill on occasion. Again, thank you.

[Ron Hunter]

FWIW, I love my MacBook Pro laptop I bought as a certified refurb directly from Apple a few months ago. Since your wife doesn't need to do any editing you can likely get a great MacBook Air, refurb, from Apple for much less than $1500. User interface is very simple and intuitive, machine is very light weight, has very long battery life, and build quality goes without saying.

The refurb was eligible for Apple Care, just like a new one, and it came with a one year warranty too. This is my first Apple laptop and I'm sold on it.

Check out the Apple store's refurb area. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[BuddyB]

Bonnie is a little hesitant on a Mac because we've been on PCs so long. But, it is certainly worth considering and talking about. Thanks Ron.

[BuddyB]

We all admit, Ron, that the Mac is the greatest. Bonnie says NO! She says the apps and stuff we use are too expensive on the Mac. Soooo, I guess PCs are where we'll stay. Enjoyed the input though, thanks.

[Ron Hunter]

Macs now come with very useful apps installed for free, out of the box. Pages (like Word), Keynote (like PowerPoint), Numbers (like Excel), iPhoto and iMovie are on the machine out of the box for no extra charge. Granted, those programs are not as full-featured as more expensive apps (think Microsoft Office) but they will do 95% of what most people need to do on a computer. And once you use a TrackPad during web surfing, a Windows PC just isn't the same. I know, I've used PCs for almost 20 yrs (I'm an engineer) but my new MacBook Pro laptop is fantastic. I once thought that only "artsy people who don't know how to use a computer" were Mac users. I don't think that anymore. I still use PCs but I prefer my Mac.

The only program I have purchased for my MacBook Pro is Final Cut Pro X ($299), but she wouldn't need to do that. Try finding a copy of Premiere Pro, latest generation, for $299.

You might want to take her to a local electronics store (Best Buy?) and let her hold a MacBook Air. You really need to hold one to appreciate just how small and light it is. (I got the Pro because I knew I would edit video on it.)

I'm not trying to sell you a Mac Buddy, I just want you to have all the facts. I hope you find a machine she will be happy with!

[BuddyB]

Ron, you've gone way beyond the call of duty. Thank you so much for your input. I will have my Bonnie read this. We'll see what the response is.

[BuddyB]

Does anyone have any thoughts on Lenovo. My baby is not wanting a Mac. Thanks.