Gaming Laptops

[Mr. Keith]

Hi. My computer is getting old and crusty and it is just about time to start thinking about my next computer. I want a laptop and I want to play strategy games like Civ IV, GCII, and Sins of a Solar Empire.

But I am unsure if this is really the best decision, given cost and other considerations.

My first question is, what type of equipment do I need to make sure these types of games run well? Is a speedy processor necessary? Do I need to go as high as 2.4 or 2.5 dual core? Or can I get away with like a 1.8? Also, how much RAM should I go with? Would it be worth my while to go as high as 3 gigs?

I ask these questions because I have read that the system requirements are not always accurate. Also because I am not historically a computer gamer. My current computer is not a gaming rig in any way, shape or form.

My other question is regarding general usefulness. If I get a 17" screen (I wouldn't go with a 15.4" screen), is this thing going to be overly clunky? I won't be traveling too much. Mainly I want it so I can sit on the couch with the laptop on my lap. Or lounge around any way I see fit. Does getting a big laptop defeat the purpose of this?

My final question is regarding overheating. My understanding is that faster processors are prone to running hot. How big of a concern is this. Would this affect marathon gaming sessions, or anything else?

Thanks kindly for your responses.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Gaming + laptop do not mix very well. Not even putting it onto your lap. So the question is, do you want a gaming rig, or do you want a laptop. Because if you're not gonna travel with it, then you might as well get a desktop instead. If you do want a laptop though, look at ones such as the Dell M1730, although thats fairly expensive.

 

[duckmanbro]

I would highly recommend my laptop.

It's the one in my signature, and is more than powerful enough to run Civ IV at high settings with 4x (I think) anti-aliasing.

Dell XPS M1530/3gb RAM/2.2gHz Core2Duo/256mb nVidia GFX. Definitely worth getting 3gb RAM seeing with Dells now, all you get on the XPS range is Vista.

EDIT: I highly recommend you don't use it on your lap. The HDD is located at the front left, and often gets hot with my wrist just leaning on it whilst typing...

 

[Mr. Keith]

So the question is, do you want a gaming rig, or do you want a laptop.

Both.

I see what you're saying, though. Maybe I'll start looking at gaming desktops.

 

[Mr. Keith]

EDIT: I highly recommend you don't use it on your lap. The HDD is located at the front left, and often gets hot with my wrist just leaning on it whilst typing...

Yeah, see I think this is a concern for me. Although your computer does look pretty sweet.

 

[Speedo]

A "gaming laptop" usually defeats most of the purposes of a laptop:
-heavy
-large and difficult to carry
-very poor battery life (power-hungry CPUs and video cards)

And for all of that, their performance is usually somewhat mediocre, and for the price of a decent "gaming laptop" you can get a very kick-ass gaming desktop.

 

[Enkidu Warrior]

I bought a gaming laptop even though I was well aware of the contradiction, for a very specific reason - I was moving to a different country and didn't want to worry about shipping a desktop.

It's been a few years now, I'm about to buy a new rig and I'm in pretty much the same situation - I'll likely have to move countries again with whatever computer I buy. So am I going to get a gaming laptop again? No chance.

I'll gladly go to the trouble of getting my desktop shipped back home when the time comes, because I don't want to spend a lump more for a lower performance rig with all sorts of inherent maintenance nightmares, a display half the size, a hard disk half the size, and nowhere near as much potential for custumisation and upgrading.

Unless you have a really compelling reason to get a laptop (and with gaming laptops almost no such reasons exist - gaming laptops are not in anyway portable, all-in-one desktop systems save space even more efficiently, and sitting even a modest gaming laptop on your lap for more than 5 minutes would earn you a trip to your local burn ward and leave you as sterile as a rock), desktop systems are superior in every possible way.

If you were buying an office rig then I'd definitely recommend a small, flexible and stylish laptop, but a gaming laptop is just impossible to recommend, even as I sit here typing this reply on one.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

If you do have a large budget, you could buy a decent rig for around 1000$ and then get a laptop for the other 1000$ that would have gone towards the gaming laptop. That way you can have a very decent performance gaming machinr, and a laptop if you need it.

 

[Mr. Keith]

If you do have a large budget, you could buy a decent rig for around 1000$ and then get a laptop for the other 1000$ that would have gone towards the gaming laptop. That way you can have a very decent performance gaming machinr, and a laptop if you need it.

This is what I've been thinking about doing. And I think it would make the most sense.

For my purposes, I think I'll go with like a 2.4 dual core processor, 2 gigs ram, and a 256 mb video card. And I can always upgrade later.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

You can get a 512mb 8800GT now for not very much money, and thats what I suggest you get. 256mb just isnt enough for high res games anymore.

 

[Mr. Keith]

Definitely going to suck it up and get another desktop. Thanks for all of your input.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Post the planned configuration in here and we can give you more advice on it

 

[boarder]

I was a desktop man for years, but recently got a laptop for gaming,(broken leg couldnt sit at my desk and not much else to do with a broken leg) it sits nicely on my lap and isnt to heavy, runs all my games well, fps online shooting bf2 civ etc.
Its coreduo2ghz,4gigs ram,256vid card,17 inch screen, all for 1700nz dollars.
Ill never go back to a desktop now. So much more comfortable lying on my couch then sitting at a desk.

 

[Mr. Keith]

I was a desktop man for years, but recently got a laptop for gaming,(broken leg couldnt sit at my desk and not much else to do with a broken leg) it sits nicely on my lap and isnt to heavy, runs all my games well, fps online shooting bf2 civ etc.
Its coreduo2ghz,4gigs ram,256vid card,17 inch screen, all for 1700nz dollars.
Ill never go back to a desktop now. So much more comfortable lying on my couch then sitting at a desk.

See, now why'd you have to go and do that. I had my mind all made up, and now this.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Yet for that amount of money you can get a laptop on which you can do your work comfortably, and a desktop to go along with it for when you want to game.

 

[Enkidu Warrior]

See, now why'd you have to go and do that. I had my mind all made up, and now this.

Well, if you can't sit at a desk then that's certainly a compelling reason to go with a laptop. There aren't many others though. What attracts you to a laptop?

 

[Mr. Keith]

Well, if you can't sit at a desk then that's certainly a compelling reason to go with a laptop. There aren't many others though. What attracts you to a laptop?

It's really that I got sick of being hunched over at my desk alone in a room for hours on end during marathon Civ sessions.

That, and I spend a lot of time on the internet, and I would just like to be able to watch TV and hit up the message boards at the same time.

And of course, I would like the option to take my computer with me whenever I would like.

I am by no means dead set on getting a laptop. I just want to make sure I get the best computer for me.

And I don't know anybody that has a laptop they use for gaming, so I am just trying to gather research.

I just thought a laptop might be right since I only plan on playing strategy games. I won't be playing in first person shooters or anything crazy like that. That stuff is reserved for my XBox. Mainly though, I just want to make sure I do the right thing (TM Spike Lee).

 

[Enkidu Warrior]

I understand your situation and those are all very good reasons for wanting a laptop. Realistically though by kitting out a laptop to be capable of running even a humble strategy game like Civ 4, you're going to be throwing out many of the advantages that made you want one in the first place. The following comments are based on my gaming laptop which handles Civ 4 comfortably but would explode if I tried to play current FPS games, so I guess it would be comparable to what you're considering buying.

It's really that I got sick of being hunched over at my desk alone in a room for hours on end during marathon Civ sessions.

You and me both. Having a flaming hot laptop with a battery life of about 1 hour when playing Civ 4 will be of minimal help in arranging a more comfortable gaming setup though. Desktops have come a long way - there are various solutions to this problem that don't require you to pay through the nose for an inferior specification. Get a nice big monitor and a wireless keyboard and mouse for a fraction of the price.

That, and I spend a lot of time on the internet, and I would just like to be able to watch TV and hit up the message boards at the same time.

A laptop would be ideal for this, but a gaming laptop is too unwieldy and has insufficient battery life to really make it comfortable. Get a TV tuner for a fraction of the cost, or get a dedicated laptop without the gaming spec.

And of course, I would like the option to take my computer with me whenever I would like.

My laptop is theoretically mobile, but I wouldn't carry it anywhere unless I had to. There are some wonderful laptops out there now that you can throw in your bag and not notice they're there. Gaming laptops are more like carrying a PS3 around - they're heavy and you'll need a power socket if you want to do more that see the windows start up screen.

I am by no means dead set on getting a laptop. I just want to make sure I get the best computer for me.

Oh for sure. A genuinely portable gaming laptop would be great, but in reality they don't exist and current gaming laptops are really only a better choice for a fairly niche market, basically when desktops just aren't an option.

And I don't know anybody that has a laptop they use for gaming, so I am just trying to gather research.

I'm happy to help.

I just thought a laptop might be right since I only plan on playing strategy games. I won't be playing in first person shooters or anything crazy like that. That stuff is reserved for my XBox. Mainly though, I just want to make sure I do the right thing (TM Spike Lee).

Yeah, those were pretty much my thoughts when I got this machine. Civ 4 is not a low spec game though. For better or worse gaming has reached the level where you do need a system designed at least to some extent with gaming in mind. These considerations unfortunately do away with all of the things that make laptops great.

Bite the bullet and try to put together a desktop system that gives you a more comfortable and flexible gaming experience or get a truly mobile laptop and resign yourself to the fact that it's not going to get any further than Civ 3. Or splash out and get both.

 

[Strato]

I have a "gaming" laptop. I needed it because I move around about every three months, and a desktop would be too bulky to carry (and not entirely practical to chuck onto a plane).

That said, my Toshiba P200 is great. Big 17" screen, numeric keypad (good for the earlier versions of Civ where I tended to use keyboard for movement) and has a bit of grunt. As I type this, I have it sitting on my lap, and while not the most comfortable thing around (and weighs around 3kg) it does the job. I also play Civ IV on this laptop and heat is fairly negligible. So far, no pins and needles in my leg

Battery life on my system is around 1.5 hours... But I need CPU under load and the system cranking away for it to be that bad, when just running normally, it is actually quite efficient.

As far as specs go:

Dual Core 2.16GHz processor, 2GB memory (looking at upgrading to 3GB however) running Vista Home Premium. Has an nVidia GeForce Go 7600 which has 256MB dedicated video memory, and takes another 256MB from system memory. Though according to my adaptor information, it says it has 1023 total available graphics memory, no idea why it believes that extra memory is available, unless of course it is the driver. Also 2 160GB hard drives are on the system too, no hard disk space shortages to report on.

When people see my laptop physically, they call it a monster because it is so big, but over time, it feels like it has shrunk and I don't even notice the size anymore.

Needless to say, Enkidu Warrior raises some very good points with the other options available out there and I would seriously consider his suggestions.

What have I sacrificed for getting a laptop. For one, my graphics card by todays standards is out of touch. In fact, my timing in buying the laptop was poor because nVidia was just releasing the 8000 series of cards I believe. However, I can not upgrade my graphics card, or anything else for that matter except for the ram, and maybe the hard drives, though a good old fashioned external drive does the job there. Plus I'd really love to get a bit of surround sound happening, again, not possible with what I have (though the speakers are of high quality and do the best they can).

Oh, and one other thing, if you do get a gaming laptop, then don't rely on the manufacturer to provide too many driver updates. http://www.laptopvideo2go.com is the place to go for laptop graphics driver updates. I needed it for one game in fact, Medal of Honour Allied Assault was stuffed when using the toshiba driver.

My system also runs a Civ IV standard map with high graphics settings really well, even in the late game, I barely even notice any time in between turns. Medieval Total War II also runs pretty well too. Gal Civ II is perfect. I'm not sure about SOASE yet, I'm yet to get it (though I intend too, looks awesome). World in Conflict and Sup Com I've had to tweak a little but they certainly are playable.

And even though its showing its age, Far Cry (the original) still looks and runs with full AWESOMENESS, graphics set to max and runs without a hitch.

One problem with sitting back on a bed or on a couch is that is can be a little uncomfortable for me at times, I do prefer to have this system sitting on a table, where air flow is better and I can maintain a more suitable posture. But then, I did have one night where I was up until the sun rose playing Civ on my bed, and either I was going to do my back in or my eyes were going to bleed if I didn't go to bed soon... sigh, just ONE more turn?

 

[boarder]

Battery life isn't important to me as its always plugged in while im using it, I have no need to take it anywhere.
I do understand that this is different from why a lot of people do get laptops though.
i.e. portabilitie

I say get that laptop man you won't regret it I didn't.