Gaming Laptop Recommendations c.1k

KraniX

KraniX

KraniX

Soldato
Joined
23 Mar 2004
Posts
3,967
Location
Yorkshire
Hi guys,

Looking for a gaming laptop, moved into new flat and no room for my desktop beast so gonna need a new system as my Dell XPS 1530m with it's 2.2 and 8600m GT just ain't cutting it and wanted some help finding the best gaming laptop I can for around a thousand pounds, would be willing to spend a couple of hundred more but if I can keep it around 1k the wife will be happier :)

Don't need Blue Ray and would prefer 15" screen over 17" or above so I can get more eye candy enabled.

Any ideas?
 
hi
could always take my dell xps 1730 off my hands :D

XPS M1730 Smoke Gray with White LED Backlights
Processor: X9000 Intel Core 2 Extreme 2.80GHz (6MB Cache, 800MHz FSB)
Memory: 4GB DDR2 800MHz
Hard Drive: 2 x 160GB Serial ATA (SATA) 7200 RPM, in raid 0
Display/Screen: 17.0" 1920x1200 (WUXGA) CCFL UltraSharp Widescreen Graphics Card: 2 x 512MB nVidia GeForce 8800M GTX SLI (Total 1GB)
 
You sure it has to be laptop - I mean if you have space to fit put a laptop on a desk then maybe you could go for a small desktop and get more power for less money?
 
The flat is just too small really, I did think of getting a Shuttle type small form factor again but I don't have a desk just the dinner table in the open plan lounge which I can use for a bit then pack away, if I suggest to the missus that I use that as some sort of permanent area for my PC I think I'll be sleeping in the spare room indefinitely ;)

Oh and thanks for the offer wattsy but I'd like something brand new.
 
KraniX said:
The flat is just too small really, I did think of getting a Shuttle type small form factor again but I don't have a desk just the dinner table in the open plan lounge which I can use for a bit then pack away, if I suggest to the missus that I use that as some sort of permanent area for my PC I think I'll be sleeping in the spare room indefinitely ;)

Oh and thanks for the offer wattsy but I'd like something brand new.
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This is kind of what I do atm, although we have a separate dining room, just wanted something that could be put away when it was not needed.
One thing i would recommend is you factor into your cost a Laptop riser(with silent cooling) as they make all the difference.
You will need a Wireless KB/mouse too tbh, as gaming eats laptop keyboards.
I recommend the Logitech Unified stuff, very little lag and great for gaming.
I use the M505 mouse + K340, along with a BV Riser stand.
 
@ushmins, thanks but am now thinking I need to up my budget to get a decent class 1 GPU though, no point me spending a lot of money and getting a machine that's not good enough from the beginning.

@Its Me, cheers, have a decent wireless mouse/keyboard but the riser/cooler is a good idea and something I'll def look at getting.
 
~15" Clevo chassis based would be my reccomendation - bit bulkier than some 15" and heavier due to uprated cooling - but they tend to handle the heat better than others with high end GPUs.
 
Do not order from Kobalt. Absolutely shocking customer service. They have a total disregard for deadlines, reposnding to emails, and issuing refunds promptly. They're a completely amateur operation that arrogantly thinks they can cope with the huge (unwarranted) demand for their systems.
 
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Souness said:
Do not order from Kobalt. Absolutely shocking customer service. They have a total disregard for deadlines, reposnding to emails, and issuing refunds promptly. They're a completely amateur operation that arrogantly thinks they can cope with the huge (unwarranted) demand for their systems.
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Take a look at the MSI GX740.

For it's £999 RRP, you get a Core i5 430M, paired with a Radeon Mobility 5870. 4GB RAM, 17" 1650 x 1080 screen.

The 5870 is the fastest single mobile GPU currently available, so it's sub 1K price looks like a bargain.
 
Souness said:
Do not order from Kobalt. Absolutely shocking customer service. They have a total disregard for deadlines, reposnding to emails, and issuing refunds promptly. They're a completely amateur operation that arrogantly thinks they can cope with the huge (unwarranted) demand for their systems.
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Alienware (Dell) are even worse :(
The UK market overall is pretty poor compared to the US comparative, so despite thier flaws Kobalt are still one of the better suppliers in the UK. I won't disagree Kobalt are struggling to keep up with the demand though, which I think even they'll agree in some scenarios is hurting them badly, taking on more people would likely be in thier best interest as soon as they can afford it, now they have a larger premises. I've been bitten by the alternatives, and...well look at where Rock went to see how much worse it can get. Fujitsu-Siemens as an example are also no better.
I'll agree from what I've read that you haven't had a very good expience with Kobalt at all, on the plus side at least you haven't had to bring court action into it though, which is how bad SOME of the companies out there are, along with companies like Zepto going under.

@mea98rm

Looks like a good spec, if the cooling is up to an uprated processor thats definately competetive, as the uprated GPUs are one of the most expensive deciding points, and MSI as a laptop brand/chassis are usually pretty decent.
 
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Souness said:
Do not order from Kobalt. Absolutely shocking customer service. They have a total disregard for deadlines, reposnding to emails, and issuing refunds promptly. They're a completely amateur operation that arrogantly thinks they can cope with the huge (unwarranted) demand for their systems.
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I just received my g680. They missed the deadline once, but promptly replied to all comments left on the order page.

Very happy with the system so far :)
 
Hellsmk2 said:
I just received my g680. They missed the deadline once, but promptly replied to all comments left on the order page.

Very happy with the system so far :)
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Do you mean the G860?
I was making one up on their website, do you have to select the colour options or can you leave them blank and just get it bog standard?
 
Aye, I meant the g860.

I left the colour option blank - didn't want a bing bling alienware box.

It's a lightning fast system - can't recommend it enough.

There is the mesh rebadged msi gx740 for 999 that has already been mentioned. It's an absolute bargain at that price, and is definitely the strongest gaming rig you can buy for a grand by some distance. I had an order with Mesh that was delayed for nearly 3 months, then arrived a few weeks after I'd cancelled the order.
 
Hellsmk2 said:
Aye, I meant the g860.

I left the colour option blank - didn't want a bing bling alienware box.

It's a lightning fast system - can't recommend it enough.

There is the mesh rebadged msi gx740 for 999 that has already been mentioned. It's an absolute bargain at that price, and is definitely the strongest gaming rig you can buy for a grand by some distance. I had an order with Mesh that was delayed for nearly 3 months, then arrived a few weeks after I'd cancelled the order.
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The g860 looks like a fantastic machine, very high one (i7 with the 5870 or 285M for a bit more) i looked at is £300 less than my 2.8 cd2, 280M i bought a year ago.

Love to read some bench marks, have you tried 3dmark06? Ooo and some temps as well!

Do they give you the original win7 disks? I had heard they do and not some crummy resource disk.
 
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Kobalt

The negative comments about Kobalt PC's lack of info after ordering and waiting for delivery are justified because it does happen,but not for everyone,and after a waiting a month or so you DO end up being the owner of a VERY competitivly priced top end gaming PC. I have had my Kobalt G870 for a couple of months now and it performs flawlessly.Plus you get a 2 yr warranty
But if you can only afford to spend a grand then the MSI GX740 is good spec for your money..
 
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sychnant said:
The negative comments about Kobalt PC's lack of info after ordering and waiting for delivery does happen,but not for everyone,and after a waiting a month or so you DO end up being the owner of a VERY competitivly priced top end gaming PC. I have had my Kobalt G870 for a couple of months now and it performs flawlessly.Plus you get a 2 yr warranty
But if you can only afford to spend a grand then the MSI GX740 is good spec for your money..
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I think the OP might have abandoned this thread so i dont think my question will get answered.
What are the stress temps like on yours?
 
Temps

I get 1300 score with 3Dmark 06 and my temps are normally GPU 48/50 on idle and about 66 gaming or stress CPU about 45 idle and 58 Gaming.
(Standard G870 Laptop i7 720 CPU) Ati Graphics
 
I'm presuming you mean about 13000 3DMark06.

The tests I've seen put the 5870m in the Clevo chassis at about 8500-9000 (stock) GPU score in vantage as well. Its basically a downclocked desktop 5770 after all.
 
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