Gaming on a 15" laptop

ScarySquirrel · 21 Dec 2012 at 09:50

Hi all,

I''ll be in the market for a new laptop in the New Year and I'm pretty set on getting a Vortex III, however I don't know what size to go for.

I'm edging towards 15", I want something a little more compact and 17" laptops always seem way too big for me. It will be replacing a desktop (as I'm moving abroad) so it's likely that once I've moved it will never leave home again, but I'd like the option to take it places without it being too big.

However, is playing FPS games on a 15" laptop a real pain in the arse? It'll be 1920 x 1080 and I'm just worried that playing things like multiplayer BF3 will be really difficult on such a small screen.

Does the increased size of a 17" for gaming outweigh the more compact and portable 15" size?

Thanks

Marine-RX179 · 21 Dec 2012 at 10:24

To be honest I think your best option is to get a light 15" laptop with enough CPU and GPU grunt, and hook it up to a 1920 res 21.5"/24" monitor when you are home...that way you'd get the best of both worlds.

ScarySquirrel · 21 Dec 2012 at 10:53

Marine-RX179 said:
To be honest I think your best option is to get a light 15" laptop with enough CPU and GPU grunt, and hook it up to a 1920 res 21.5"/24" monitor when you are home...that way you'd get the best of both worlds.

Someone at work has just suggested the exact same thing, and to be honest I'm not sure why I didn't think of that before.

Looks like I can get a monitor similar to my current one in Canada for about £90! Sorted.

Thanks

L33 · 21 Dec 2012 at 16:08

I have no problem at all gaming on a 15" laptop. I far prefer it to the last 17" gaming laptop I had, I find the 17" reduces portability and found myself leaving it almost permanently on a desk.
The optional desk with monitor setup as you mentioned is a good balance in my opinion. Also bear in mind that the stock 17" Vortex 3 (P170EM)'s power supply is huge compared to the 15" (P150EM)'s smaller 180w unit, further reducing portability and while it is a novelty at first it'll quickly become a chore to lug around. They're actually identical machines inside, other than the P170EM having space for an extra HDD (although with the possibility of fitting 3 in the P150EM it seems a little unnecessary).

Pestilence · 22 Dec 2012 at 00:06

No problems for me gaming on a 15" Optimus. Last 17" laptop I had was just far too unwieldy. If you want to go bigger, just hook up a monitor to it.

ScarySquirrel · 22 Dec 2012 at 19:39

L33 said:
I have no problem at all gaming on a 15" laptop. I far prefer it to the last 17" gaming laptop I had, I find the 17" reduces portability and found myself leaving it almost permanently on a desk.
The optional desk with monitor setup as you mentioned is a good balance in my opinion. Also bear in mind that the stock 17" Vortex 3 (P170EM)'s power supply is huge compared to the 15" (P150EM)'s smaller 180w unit, further reducing portability and while it is a novelty at first it'll quickly become a chore to lug around. They're actually identical machines inside, other than the P170EM having space for an extra HDD (although with the possibility of fitting 3 in the P150EM it seems a little unnecessary).

That's good to know the power supply is smaller on the 15".

I'd likely drop having a DVD drive (and get an external USB one for when I do need it) so that I could fit two HDDs in the laptop.

Marine-RX179 · 22 Dec 2012 at 20:49

ScarySquirrel said:
That's good to know the power supply is smaller on the 15".

I'd likely drop having a DVD drive (and get an external USB one for when I do need it) so that I could fit two HDDs in the laptop.

Yea that's actually a good move. I can't remember the last time I used my DVD rom besides installing Guild Wars 2 (bought the CD retail version instead of digital version because of having slow internet at the time), and pretty much all my other games are on Steam

amok82 · 23 Dec 2012 at 21:34

L33 said:
I have no problem at all gaming on a 15" laptop. I far prefer it to the last 17" gaming laptop I had, I find the 17" reduces portability and found myself leaving it almost permanently on a desk.
The optional desk with monitor setup as you mentioned is a good balance in my opinion. Also bear in mind that the stock 17" Vortex 3 (P170EM)'s power supply is huge compared to the 15" (P150EM)'s smaller 180w unit, further reducing portability and while it is a novelty at first it'll quickly become a chore to lug around. They're actually identical machines inside, other than the P170EM having space for an extra HDD (although with the possibility of fitting 3 in the P150EM it seems a little unnecessary).

Thanks - I think that's finally helped me decide to go with a 15" P1x0EM

... Now just need to decide where to buy it from, as would want a pretty good warranty, for the first year anyway.