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Geek Culture / New Laptop Advice - I Think Ive Found One

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RUCCUS
19
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Joined: 11th Dec 2004
Location: Canada
Posted: 16th Aug 2008 16:16 Edited at: 16th Aug 2008 16:18
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College is starting in less than a month, and I need a sturdy laptop to handle my work. Thing is Im going to college for 3D animation, so Im essentially going to need a gaming laptop, which I know are hard to come by for "good" prices.

So far Ive established I need something with at least 2GB of RAM, and 200GB of HDD Memory. Id prefer an NVidia Graphics card instead of an integrated one. In terms of size, Im not that picky, but around 15" seems the norm and reasonable for something focused on graphics. Obviously Id rather Windows XP instead of Vista, but either way it will need to be Windows as a lot of my graphics software wont run on Macs / Linux without a crap load of work. Finally, I have around $900 to spend "comfortably" so far (I have more saved for other college stuff that I could delve into if necessary).

So after all my research, I *think* Ive found something that fits my needs...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834147758

2GB RAM, 200GB HDD, NVIDIA GeForce 7150M Integrated Graphics Card ( ), 14.5" screen, Windows Vista Home Premium OS ( ), AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-60 2.0G CPU, runs at 2GHz, and to top it all off its $700.00, right in my budget.

Aside from the integrated graphics card (which I was wondering about. Does this make it impossible to change the graphics card?) and the Windows Vista OS, it seems like a good choice.

Just wondering if anyone here has a notebook they're using for college / gaming or has any advice on a different one for me.

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5867Dude
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Joined: 26th Jun 2006
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Posted: 16th Aug 2008 23:56
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Vista Home Premium on a intergrated card. That will be a struggle

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flickenmaste
16
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Joined: 2nd May 2008
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Posted: 17th Aug 2008 03:18
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check out a dell vostro 1500 from the dell outlets


[url=http://userbarmaker.com/][img]
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RUCCUS
19
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Joined: 11th Dec 2004
Location: Canada
Posted: 26th Aug 2008 06:15
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Im not really comfortable with dells. Ive done a little more searching and found this:





Specs:

Windows Vista Home Premium.
3GB Ram
250GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS Dedicated (Not Integrated) Graphics Card.
13.5" Widescreen.
Intel Core 2 Duo T5750 2.0G CPU.
5400rpm.
$899.99

It meets all of my requirements. The only downside so far is a) the design on the keyboard looks stupid, and b) the Windows Vista issue, which I can eventually fix. Hopefully.

Any comments?

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flickenmaste
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Posted: 26th Aug 2008 07:27
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well the 8400 and ooookkaay graphic's card...if u really want some pro tips on laptops go to forum.notebookreview.com and post there...thats where i found my laptop cause i posted what I wanted on it and i got fast replys


[url=http://userbarmaker.com/][img]
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NeX the Fairly Fast Ferret
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Joined: 10th Apr 2005
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Posted: 26th Aug 2008 10:34
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Ha, I 3D model on this laptop. It uses an Intel GMA chipset. And you know what? It's just as responsive and smooth as any other PC I've used. Sure, some operations take about ten seconds, but I'm personally unsure as to why you would need a 8400 for 3D modelling. You'll only ever be seeing one object from a scene containing potentially hundreds. Half the time it wouldn't have all the lighting effects etc. Quite a bit of the time it wouldn't even be textured.

Just my two pence.

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CoffeeGrunt
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Joined: 5th Oct 2007
Location: England
Posted: 26th Aug 2008 13:39
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Home Premium's not bad once you get used to the layout......

Nice laptop by the way....looks awesome....

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SamHH
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Joined: 9th Dec 2006
Location: Vermont
Posted: 26th Aug 2008 14:16 Edited at: 26th Aug 2008 14:47
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Get this laptop, I have it and it is great.
http://www.shopping.hp.com/store/cto_store/notebooks/KL086AV;HHOJSID=2hrpLznbjnRWpJ3GS4t1JPyB2FmLY2nnXZhnvbvp7L1zmHbqWJ0s!1200783181
Doesn't have a cruddy design and has up to an 8600 with 512mb dedicated!.


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draknir_
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Joined: 19th Oct 2006
Location: Netherlands
Posted: 26th Aug 2008 16:18
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I have an 8400 in my laptop, trust me its not much good. When i run 3ds max it gives me all kinds of horrible flickering when I move the camera, and I cant run any games newer than 2005 at a decent resolution.
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RUCCUS
19
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Location: Canada
Posted: 27th Aug 2008 01:11 Edited at: 27th Aug 2008 01:11
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Wow "i want to game", thats actually a decent find. Im going to see if its on newegg but Im really considering that one. Thanks.

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SamHH
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Posted: 27th Aug 2008 04:04
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No Problem Happy to keep you from buying a bad laptop lol.


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RUCCUS
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Posted: 27th Aug 2008 13:31
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Ofcourse, I went through the entire process of customizing the laptop and getting it to exactly what I wanted. Got my credit card info, and was ready to buy the thing, when I see its only available to US customers. Awesome.

And the hp canada site doesnt let you customize the laptops, or even order online for that matter. Stupid.

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Alucard94
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Location: Stockholm, Sweden.
Posted: 27th Aug 2008 17:46
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Now that's just idiotic. I mean what the f really.
Maybe try and look for some used ones on ebay or a like, they usually ship to everywhere, heck, I live in Sweden and I ordered something from Ebay. Just cost a bit of shipping.


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Xenocythe
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Location: You Essay.
Posted: 27th Aug 2008 20:54
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Well RUCCUS, if you really think its worth the buy, you can always send it to some family in America.. if you have any... and have them mail it straight to you in Canada.

3.11 We do not tolerate posts made for the purpose of putting down another forum member, group of members, religion, our company, our staff or any of our moderators, past or present.
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RUCCUS
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Posted: 28th Aug 2008 02:00
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Yeah Im thinking about it. The only issue is if I do, the warranty is scrapped. Well, not scrapped, but if I ever need to get it repaired, I need to send it back to the states, as they wont allow the canadian hp company fix it if its under U.S warranty.

Honestly I thought Canada was getting caught up with the world. The hp canada site is horrid compared to the U.S one. Im going to call them.

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SamHH
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Posted: 29th Aug 2008 03:43
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RUCCUS I bought my laptop online at best buy, it was a bit cheaper and I could pick it up in the store. That might be an alternative to the hp bs.


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SamHH
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Posted: 9th Sep 2008 17:16 Edited at: 9th Sep 2008 17:17
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Double post
Sick deal from tigerdirect.
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4040158&csid=ITD&body=MAIN#detailspecs


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