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GHz & RAM

smsfrarsmsfrar Member Posts: 12
in Hardware

I'm in need of a new laptop and was wondering if anyone could give me some good tips when it comes to GHz & RAM. I want it to be economical and still be good enough for gaming, video capture and music storage.

Thanks, smsfrar

"Amazing how you can do without the essentials of life, so long as you have the luxuries".

Comments

  • CleffyCleffy Member RarePosts: 6,414

    You probably want a multi-core system with atleast 2.0 GHz clock speed, and 4 GB of ram.  It also needs something with a little more Oomph then an Intel GMA 4500.  The one you get highly depends on the limits you want to achieve in gaming.  Do you want to play WoW, or do you want to play Crysis?  The costs will be different accordingly.

  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    Sure.

    Ram: 4gb DDR2 memorys are very cheap right now and will get far. The DDR3 is a little bit faster but costs a lot more. 4gb DDR2 will beat 2gb DDR3. A nice laptop with 4gbs DDR2 will perform excelent.

    Processor:

    there are 2 important things with processors: Speed and number of  cores. A single core processor sucks. At least 4 is preferably but laptops with it costs a lot of money. Dual core is the minimum. I would reccomend at least 2,66 Ghz processor speed, the more the better. Intels Core2duo processor should work best for a laptop, at least in acceptable pricerange.

    Also get a laptop with an acceptable graphics card in. A geforce 105M 512 mb should perform enough for games.

    And don't forget to get a 22"+ screen to plug it into when you are home. That a keyboard and a mouse makes your gaming experience a lot better.

  • QuizzicalQuizzical Member LegendaryPosts: 25,499

    What's your budget, how soon do you need it, how long at a time do you plan on using it while not plugged into a wall, and what sort of games are you looking to play?  Assume that a given level of performance will cost you about twice as much in a laptop as in a desktop, so unless you're willing to spend a fortune, don't plan on maxing graphical settings in modern games.

    For memory, I'd say get 4 GB.  That should be enough for quite some time to come.  For a processor, Core 2 Duo is probably the way to go if you need one right now, with the frequency dictated by your budget.  Unfortunately, AMD has nothing remotely competitive in notebook processors at the moment, so Intel can and does charge an arm and a leg.  That could change shortly with the release of mobile Athlon II processors, which probably won't be as fast or as power efficient as the best Core 2 Duos, but should be a lot cheaper and may be good enough.  If you're looking for a more high-end processor, Intel will release Clarskfield (to be branded as Core i7) shortly, which is a Nehalem-based quad core with Intel's Turbo Boost, to shut down some cores and overclock others on the fly without power consumption getting out of hand for applications that aren't heavily threaded.

    My real advice, though, is if you want a computer that will be good for gaming, get a desktop.

  • CleffyCleffy Member RarePosts: 6,414

    I disagree that AMD doesn't have a competitive notebook.  Right now you can get an AMD based notebook that can play WoW and the typical Korean MMO, while costing less then most netbooks.  Sub-$800 AMD has the best laptop.

  • smsfrarsmsfrar Member Posts: 12
    Originally posted by Quizzical


    What's your budget, how soon do you need it, how long at a time do you plan on using it while not plugged into a wall, and what sort of games are you looking to play?  Assume that a given level of performance will cost you about twice as much in a laptop as in a desktop, so unless you're willing to spend a fortune, don't plan on maxing graphical settings in modern games.
    For memory, I'd say get 4 GB.  That should be enough for quite some time to come.  For a processor, Core 2 Duo is probably the way to go if you need one right now, with the frequency dictated by your budget.  Unfortunately, AMD has nothing remotely competitive in notebook processors at the moment, so Intel can and does charge an arm and a leg.  That could change shortly with the release of mobile Athlon II processors, which probably won't be as fast or as power efficient as the best Core 2 Duos, but should be a lot cheaper and may be good enough.  If you're looking for a more high-end processor, Intel will release Clarskfield (to be branded as Core i7) shortly, which is a Nehalem-based quad core with Intel's Turbo Boost, to shut down some cores and overclock others on the fly without power consumption getting out of hand for applications that aren't heavily threaded.
    My real advice, though, is if you want a computer that will be good for gaming, get a desktop.



     

    My budget is 1k  and looking at the first of next year adn as far as game wise something that can handle Star wars galaxies to Halo. I was thinking of Alienware???

    Thanks everyone for the great advice:)

    "Amazing how you can do without the essentials of life, so long as you have the luxuries".

  • JosexphJosexph Member Posts: 121
    Originally posted by smsfrar

    Originally posted by Quizzical


    What's your budget, how soon do you need it, how long at a time do you plan on using it while not plugged into a wall, and what sort of games are you looking to play?  Assume that a given level of performance will cost you about twice as much in a laptop as in a desktop, so unless you're willing to spend a fortune, don't plan on maxing graphical settings in modern games.
    For memory, I'd say get 4 GB.  That should be enough for quite some time to come.  For a processor, Core 2 Duo is probably the way to go if you need one right now, with the frequency dictated by your budget.  Unfortunately, AMD has nothing remotely competitive in notebook processors at the moment, so Intel can and does charge an arm and a leg.  That could change shortly with the release of mobile Athlon II processors, which probably won't be as fast or as power efficient as the best Core 2 Duos, but should be a lot cheaper and may be good enough.  If you're looking for a more high-end processor, Intel will release Clarskfield (to be branded as Core i7) shortly, which is a Nehalem-based quad core with Intel's Turbo Boost, to shut down some cores and overclock others on the fly without power consumption getting out of hand for applications that aren't heavily threaded.
    My real advice, though, is if you want a computer that will be good for gaming, get a desktop.



     

    My budget is 1k  and looking at the first of next year adn as far as game wise something that can handle Star wars galaxies to Halo. I was thinking of Alienware???

    Thanks everyone for the great advice:)

     

    Don't do it. Yes Alienware has some nice comps, good specs, awesome cases, good hype. But hell bro that's just like buying a rolex compared to a watch that does the same thing.. Alienware overprices their comps by the hundreds, in the end your just buying the name and case. So your best bet is to find something off newegg, being the non-laptop guru i am, I couldn't help you to much other than that.

  • noquarternoquarter Member Posts: 1,170

    Originally posted by smsfrar
    Originally posted by Quizzical

    What's your budget, how soon do you need it, how long at a time do you plan on using it while not plugged into a wall, and what sort of games are you looking to play?  Assume that a given level of performance will cost you about twice as much in a laptop as in a desktop, so unless you're willing to spend a fortune, don't plan on maxing graphical settings in modern games.
    For memory, I'd say get 4 GB.  That should be enough for quite some time to come.  For a processor, Core 2 Duo is probably the way to go if you need one right now, with the frequency dictated by your budget.  Unfortunately, AMD has nothing remotely competitive in notebook processors at the moment, so Intel can and does charge an arm and a leg.  That could change shortly with the release of mobile Athlon II processors, which probably won't be as fast or as power efficient as the best Core 2 Duos, but should be a lot cheaper and may be good enough.  If you're looking for a more high-end processor, Intel will release Clarskfield (to be branded as Core i7) shortly, which is a Nehalem-based quad core with Intel's Turbo Boost, to shut down some cores and overclock others on the fly without power consumption getting out of hand for applications that aren't heavily threaded.
    My real advice, though, is if you want a computer that will be good for gaming, get a desktop.

     
    My budget is 1k  and looking at the first of next year adn as far as game wise something that can handle Star wars galaxies to Halo. I was thinking of Alienware???
    Thanks everyone for the great advice:)


    What kind of screen size are you looking for? 15.4" or 17"+? This is a good example of having everything you need in a $1k laptop: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220566
    It's got 4gb ram, a dual core ~2.5GHz processor, and an excellent GPU (Geforce 240M). It's all this affordable because of the 15.4" screen though.


    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834101176 has the 17" screen, slightly slower CPU and GPU though to make up for it.

    By January things will look a little different though but those have the things I would be looking for. Things I would avoid are RAID HD's in a laptop (unnecessary heat for almost no performance - gaming laptops already have enough heat issues) and anything with integrated Intel graphics.

  • CleffyCleffy Member RarePosts: 6,414

    There are 4 brands I recommend for laptops.  Asus, Acer, MSI, and Sager.  I would wait until you are close to buying before picking one.

  • Death1942Death1942 Member UncommonPosts: 2,587
    Originally posted by noquarter


     
     


    What kind of screen size are you looking for? 15.4" or 17"+? This is a good example of having everything you need in a $1k laptop: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220566

    It's got 4gb ram, a dual core ~2.5GHz processor, and an excellent GPU (Geforce 240M). It's all this affordable because of the 15.4" screen though.


    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834101176 has the 17" screen, slightly slower CPU and GPU though to make up for it.
    By January things will look a little different though but those have the things I would be looking for. Things I would avoid are RAID HD's in a laptop (unnecessary heat for almost no performance - gaming laptops already have enough heat issues) and anything with integrated Intel graphics.

     

    holy crap that 17" one rocks.  So very tempted to buy it right now...

    MMO wish list:

    -Changeable worlds
    -Solid non level based game
    -Sharks with lasers attached to their heads

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