Good place to buy a $550 or under custom built/prefab laptop?

[Tmansdc]

Cause i'd really like to get one and theres a couple i see in stores here but they aren't so great on the video end. 4gb of ram and 2.2ghz dual core processor amd/intel is good and all but I would still want a better video accelerator then a radeon hd4200 but it doesn't seem possible.

Anyone could help me out here? Thanks appreciate it.

Sorry for the shoddy grammar i'm really sick/tired at this moment.

[Dhsu]

Yeah, once you put "laptop" and "video accelerator" into the same sentence, the $550 figure goes out the window. That's a pretty reasonable price point for a respectable gaming desktop, but I honestly don't think any laptops exist with the specs you're asking for at the price you're asking for.

[Level 99]

Gaming laptops are honestly just a hassle all around. More expensive than regular laptops and their gaming-equivalent desktops by-far, plus the increased heat generated, and with how quickly gaming parts become outdated these days, you're honestly just better off building a gaming desktop and getting a laptop for some small mobile stuff.

Are you dead-set on getting a laptop that can do gaming graphics?

[Sole Signal]

This is one of the better deals I've found at the big box level:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Gateway+-+Laptop+with+Intel%26%23174%3B+Core%26%23153%3B2+Duo+Processor+-+NightSky+Black/9548661.p?id=1218122908891&skuId=9548661

$600 for 4 gig of DDR3, Intel Dual 2.2 ghz, and a 500 gig HD. I won't be gaming on it, but some of the reviews claim good performance on a number of games.

[Nabeel Ansari]

a better video accelerator then a radeon hd4200 but it doesn't seem possible.

At $550 an HD 4200 is pretty good (on a laptop, for god's sake)... I'd stick with that.

You can't get gaming laptops cheap, that's like asking someone to sell you a new electric hybrid car for the same price as a 5 year convertible. xD

And about the laptop Sole Signal provided, that laptop has an integrated Intel graphics accelerator... plus it's gateway... I don't think you wanna go with that one... (Intel graphics doesn't seem so nice)

But, like Dhsu and Lvl 99 said... you're better off getting a gaming PC rather than a LAPTOP.

Part of the reason I don't like laptops is that you can't really upgrade anything past the RAM. RAM's not gonna increase your gaming performance (much). You want something flexible, something that you'll keep upgrading without having to spend $550 every time you do so (because, lvl 99 said, gaming parts become quickly outdated). On a PC, you can just upgrade the parts for much cheaper. You wouldn't have to buy a new 8 GB RAM laptop in a year, just buy two more sticks of 2 GB RAM (which is much cheaper).

[Tmansdc]

Nah I wasn't going to want to do gaming on one. Just want something a "tad" better then an hd4200

Mainly just for taking around doing internet and stuff on.

I'm going to get a gaming desktop later on in the year.

[Tmansdc]

I actually might buy the one that sole signal posted a link to. Doesn't seem like it would be too bad.

I mean I'm not looking to play new new games just a good amount/majority of stuff say from 2006 and earlier lol.

Plus what's wrong with gateways? My first two computers were gateway's and they were just fine.

And hd4200 is really better then a 4500mhd?

I am going to be getting a $600 or so gaming desktop in six months or so.

[Nabeel Ansari]

And hd4200 is really better then a 4500mhd?

It's Intel Integrated Graphics. I don't think you should choose it over ATi. :/

ATi 4200 HD has Direct X 10.1.

Intel Chip GM4500HD only has DirectX 10. ATI 4200 HD has 40 stream processing units and the GM 4500 HD has 10.

Intel GM 4500 HD is not "slightly" better. It IS "slightly" worse.

It's sounds like you're comparing numbers. (4200 to 4500)

They're different brands and they follow different model number systems. :/

[Dhsu]

According to this chart, the GMA X4500 (desktop version of the MHD) is in fact significantly worse than the HD4200. Judging by the other cards in the same tier, the 4200 actually seems like a decent card, but 2006 games might be a slight stretch for it. You should be able to play stuff like Source games just fine though.

[Nabeel Ansari]

According to this chart, the GMA X4500 (desktop version of the MHD) is in fact significantly worse than the HD4200. Judging by the other cards in the same tier, the 4200 actually seems like a decent card, but 2006 games might be a slight stretch for it. You should be able to play stuff like Source games just fine though.

HD 4200 should be able to handle 06 games just fine.

I have a radeon xpress 200m and THAT can handle games from around that time.

And the HD 4200 is, like... 100 times more powerful than mine?

[kitty]

I'm playing games like L4D2 just fine on this laptop with a 9800m GT 512mb in it. Its processor is pretty crappy too, Core 2 Duo 2.0ghz but I got the whole package for $650 about a year ago.

[Dhsu]

I'm playing games like L4D2 just fine on this laptop with a 9800m GT 512mb in it. Its processor is pretty crappy too, Core 2 Duo 2.0ghz but I got the whole package for $650 about a year ago.

From where? I'm seeing $500 listings on eBay for just the card alone.

[Nabeel Ansari]

I'm playing games like L4D2 just fine on this laptop with a 9800m GT 512mb in it. Its processor is pretty crappy too, Core 2 Duo 2.0ghz but I got the whole package for $650 about a year ago.

Looking at the specs for this GPU, I find it hard to believe you got a laptop for $650.

[prophetik music]

From where? I'm seeing $500 listings on eBay for just the card alone.

bullshit. that 9800GT's a last-gen mobile card that's been out for ages. there's a mobile 260 or 275 card out now that puts that thing to shame.

650 is a good deal, likely because the cpu is a piece of shit. but i don't think i'd call foul on it.

[Dhsu]

Why would I lie about something like this?

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m38.l1313&_nkw=9800m+GT&_sacat=See-All-Categories

[Nabeel Ansari]

there's a mobile 260 or 275 card out now that puts that thing to shame.

I took a look at the specs and benchmarks on notebookcheck...

It is worse than gtx 260m, but not so much that it would be considerably cheaper, and I found a retail laptop for $1800 with 260M...

The 9800M GT laptop isn't so far behind that it would be $1150 cheaper, even with a processor downgrade by .4 GHz.

[Salluz]

Don't get caught up with the novelty hype. The best decision is to make sure that your decision will benefit you in the long run.

[prophetik music]

Why would I lie about something like this?

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m38.l1313&_nkw=9800m+GT&_sacat=See-All-Categories

did you even bother to look at the specs of that particular card first before posting that? that's a dual-gpu card, hence the SLI in the name. it's two cards on one chip to save space.

a notebook graphics card isn't like a desktop graphics card. a 9800M wouldn't be dropped in like a 9800GT would be. it'd either be integrated onto the motherboard or installed directly from a factory. laptop graphics cards fall under the same pricing distinction as good agp and pci only cards do - if you need it, you've gotta pay a premium for it. hence the 1k pricepoint.

edit: neblix, what i just said applies as well. yeah, the 260's better by a little bit...than 2 9800M cards. of course it'll only be a little bit in that regard. also, like i said above, it's not a desktop card. what looks like a minimal gain is extensive for a laptop because of the limited heat profiles and power capabilities. 10% more performance isn't much in a desktop but is light years in a laptop. same goes with the cpus (also, like i told you in that email, ghz isn't everything. manufacturing processes, heat profiles, FSB...).

[kitty]

Got it from www.cyberpowerpc.com I dunno if you guys factor in shipping into these systems, but I live in Irvine and their factory/assembly warehouse is only 40 min away from me. Beats paying $60 for shipping. They don't have my model listed on their site anymore though.

...

So after writing the above I checked my invoice. $684 BEFORE taxes/shipping. After taxes it was $764.31 at 9.25% sales tax and a $16 e-waste fee. I also had a 5% coupon I found by googling for coupons

=============== =================================== ===== ========== ==========

ID-INFO 181507 NTBKX52900 1 0.00 0.00

BAG-101-101 CYBERPOWER ACCESSORY BAG 1 0.00 0.00

CPTSHIRT CYBERPOWER T SHIRT 1 0.00 0.00

CU-185-207 INTEL C2D T6400 2.0GHZ 2MB MOBILE 1 789.00 789.00

HD-306-106 NOTEBOOK HD 200 GB 7200 RPM SATA 1 15.00 15.00

RM-214-103 2 GB SODIMM PC6400 DDR2 800 NOTEBOO 2 0.00 0.00

NB-324-101 MSI 15.4" WXGA GO 9600M GT 512MB DDR3 1 0.00 0.00

NB-324-DVDRW MSI MS-1651 SUPER-MULTI DRIVE 1 0.00 0.00

MISC NO OPERATING SYSTEM 1 -83.00 -83.00

NC-109-201 INTEL MINI PCI WIRELESS 5300 AGN 1 0.00 0.00

BOX1 SYSTEM BOX AND FOAM 1 0.00 0.00

DISC REPEAT (5% Discount) 1 -36.05 -36.05

[Nabeel Ansari]

Got it from www.cyberpowerpc.com I dunno if you guys factor in shipping into these systems, but I live in Irvine and their factory/assembly warehouse is only 40 min away from me. Beats paying $60 for shipping. They don't have my model listed on their site anymore though.

...

So after writing the above I checked my invoice. $684 BEFORE taxes/shipping. After taxes it was $764.31 at 9.25% sales tax and a $16 e-waste fee. I also had a 5% coupon I found by googling for coupons

So the real reason it was so cheap, you're telling us, is that it did not come with an operating system. That explains a lot! And I thought you got a fancy Windows 7 Home Premium gaming laptop for 650$...

[Dhsu]

did you even bother to look at the specs of that particular card first before posting that? that's a dual-gpu card, hence the SLI in the name. it's two cards on one chip to save space.

a notebook graphics card isn't like a desktop graphics card. a 9800M wouldn't be dropped in like a 9800GT would be. it'd either be integrated onto the motherboard or installed directly from a factory. laptop graphics cards fall under the same pricing distinction as good agp and pci only cards do - if you need it, you've gotta pay a premium for it. hence the 1k pricepoint.

I don't see anything about SLI on the card I was referring to but the AGP/PCI thing makes sense.

Unfortunately, kittykar's laptop is actually more expensive now even without the operating system, since there doesn't seem to be an option for a CPU under 2.5GHz. Also the graphics card in question is actually a 9600M.

[prophetik music]

go figure =( components were super cheap for a while, right before sdram prices skyrocketed. that might have had something to do with it. i dunno.

[kitty]

Yeah my memory failed a bit there. Though I still got 64-bit Windows 7 Professional when it came out for $30. Still a pretty good deal even if the specs are bleh. It still plays the games so I'm not complaining.

[Sole Signal]

I actually might buy the one that sole signal posted a link to. Doesn't seem like it would be too bad.

I just bought it a few days ago. I really needed a laptop to give me mobile capability with web/image/video software; games are just a bonus.

I've tried a few older games on it; Halo and Battlefront 2 ran perfectly at max settings and max reso. Age of Empires 3 has some slowdown when there's a full screen battle going on but there are documented issues with it and Windows 7, so that may not be the best indicator. Haven't tried any orange box yet.