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My laptop for work is biting the dust and I'm being asked to pick out a machine from bestbuy.com or http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ for a replacement. Budget is under $1,400. I am a windows guy but I dont mind getting a mac as long as I can bootcamp it (thats simple right?) - It looks like they already have some haswell laptops, but the only options are these for an i5: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?atclk=Processor+Type_Intel+Core+i5+Haswell&ci=18818&N=4110474292+4033986829 Which seems sort of pathetic on clock speed, 1.3ghz? Is that $1,300 option acceptable or is there a current better option? I want to play some games (not too crazy, I have a desktop for the intensive ones) but I also don't want a dog either. Am I better off trying to wait a little longer if I can?
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Jun 11, 2013 18:31
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What I advise you to do is purchase a MacBook Air, 13", with this- or last-years' processor generation. HD 4000 is really capable, and HD 5000 is overkill (in my point of view) but if you like games for the eye candy and not for the actual gameplay then pay the premium for a new one.
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Jun 11, 2013 18:31
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BotchedLobotomy posted:My laptop for work is biting the dust and I'm being asked to pick out a machine from bestbuy.com or http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ for a replacement. Budget is under $1,400. Pick up last (or this, if you wait) year's 13" MBA or just get a Samsung Chromebook for the sake of having a work laptop.
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Jun 11, 2013 18:33
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Just how big is an OSX install? I wouldn't mind going the Air route, but if you only get a 128GB, with both a Windows and OSX install, you're gonna get pinched for space. Does the Air take an mSATA SSD, and is it user replaceable?
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Jun 11, 2013 18:34
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sports posted:While touch-based interfaces are cool, the gimmick wears off quickly and you'll probably end up just using the laptop as you normally would. VulgarandStupid posted:Does the Air take an mSATA SSD, and is it user replaceable?
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Jun 11, 2013 18:38
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Doctor rear end in a top hat posted:That's what a lot of people say that haven't used them (me included). Then you read reviews from AnandTech and people say they find themselves reaching for the screen to do simple stuff like scrolling more often than the touchpad. The thought of a fingerprint-covered screen doesn't really appeal to me, though. Also, as Haswell rolls out, I say one thing: Nobody should have to buy discrete graphics in a laptop past June. Nobody. Unless, of course, you are a solid modeler who makes 1000 part assemblies in Inventor while working in a nomadic tribe. You do not really need the mediocre graphical gains that are present in a laptop graphics card. HD 5000 is really capable and should cover everyone except extremely niche professional markets.
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Jun 11, 2013 18:45
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BotchedLobotomy posted:It looks like they already have some haswell laptops, but the only options are these for an i5: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?atclk=Processor+Type_Intel+Core+i5+Haswell&ci=18818&N=4110474292+4033986829 VulgarandStupid posted:Does the Air take an mSATA SSD, and is it user replaceable?
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Jun 11, 2013 18:48
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Has there been any word on when the new thinkpads will roll out? Nothing on Google reveals anything and I'm unsure how far behind things lag for them. Though, about the Macbook Air, it would be able to handle games to some extent? What would really make the CPU strain as I'm the HD 5000 wouldn't be the first bottleneck on the system (and it'd allow for meh framerates on most modern games turned down low right? Do people release benchmarks for macbooks somewhere?). I'm a bit split on which computer I'd want as I think both types would work for me. Master_Odin fucked around with this message at 19:05 on Jun 11, 2013 |
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Jun 11, 2013 19:02
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Someone in the last thread mentioned that a sales rep told them they'd be announcing refreshes on the 13th
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Jun 11, 2013 19:03
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Master_Odin posted:Has there been any word on when the new thinkpads will roll out? Nothing on Google reveals anything and I'm unsure how far behind things lag for them. Haswell processors are more than fast enough for basically any game. The GPU will be the bottleneck if you're cranking settings up, or trying to play metro last light or something. Otherwise, it'll be fine.
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Jun 11, 2013 19:09
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sports posted:While touch-based interfaces are cool, the gimmick wears off quickly and you'll probably end up just using the laptop as you normally would. Is it possible for you to post a fact in this thread, or at least a link to at least support your statement? Looking through your ambitious post history in this brand new thread, you aren't contributing anything here.
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Jun 11, 2013 19:11
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Hadlock posted:Is it possible for you to post a fact in this thread, or at least a link to at least support your statement? Looking through your ambitious post history in this brand new thread, you aren't contributing anything here. We determined sports was a troll a long time ago.
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Jun 11, 2013 19:21
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Hadlock posted:Is it possible for you to post a fact in this thread, or at least a link to at least support your statement? Looking through your ambitious post history in this brand new thread, you aren't contributing anything here. I don't consider numerical quantities "stats" or "evidence" in computer recommendation, aside from the price. I'm going off of honest, personal, observation in situ to better direct prospective buyers to the right path. I'm terribly sorry I can't provide numbers for your liking. I'm more about what a laptop "does", not what it "is". And even then, numbers aren't going to factor into what the laptop "is", after all. Honestly, I'd rather give people a straightforward recommendation than subject them to the pains and horrors that is "tech journalism". Engadget, The Verge, etc., etc., are all really lovely and poorly written- and I can't begin to fathom what kind of masochism/autism it takes to read about clock rates and benchmarks all day. I just wish people would focus on qualitative, day-to-day uses when choosing a laptop. I'm glad that you do monitor these threads for content.
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Jun 11, 2013 19:23
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WHERE MY HAT IS AT posted:Someone in the last thread mentioned that a sales rep told them they'd be announcing refreshes on the 13th I'd also like to note that the prices on Ivy Bridge models seem to be lilting downward even harder than before. The T430s is now <$800 on the main site, before it would be just under $800 on the B&N Gold portal. So the 13th, or "soon", seems to be quite realistic.
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Jun 11, 2013 19:55
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Hadlock posted:Is it possible for you to post a fact in this thread, or at least a link to at least support your statement? A link to what? How would a link be useful?
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Jun 11, 2013 19:56
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shrughes posted:I'd also like to note that the prices on Ivy Bridge models seem to be lilting downward even harder than before. The T430s is now <$800 on the main site, before it would be just under $800 on the B&N Gold portal. So the 13th, or "soon", seems to be quite realistic. This is a very good deal. If anyone wants a new laptop, be sure to check out last year's selection of ThinkPads and MacBooks.
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Jun 11, 2013 20:01
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Doctor rear end in a top hat posted:That's what a lot of people say that haven't used them (me included). Then you read reviews from AnandTech and people say they find themselves reaching for the screen to do simple stuff like scrolling more often than the touchpad. The thought of a fingerprint-covered screen doesn't really appeal to me, though. Scrolling with a touchscreen on Windows 8 isn't pretty. Two finger trackpad scrolling (or even hitting the spacebar) is far better, because with Windows 8 (at least with IE) you have to drag the page at the speed your finger moves. There's no acceleration. If IE had a Kindle-style tap-the-right-side-of-the-screen-for-page-down, it would be a lot better. (Incidentally, phones also would be vastly improved. When I made a Hacker News iPhone reader app, adding big long invisible buttons on the left and right sides for pagedown/pageup made for a much better experience than the browser's drag-based scrolling.)
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Jun 11, 2013 20:41
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Here is a German review of the new T431s http://www.notebookcheck.com/Test-Lenovo-ThinkPad-T431s-Ultrabook.93580.0.html Points: - This will be the design of thinkpads to come - No Clamshell - Body feels less sturdy than older models - Screen is thinner and is of lesser built quality than previous offers, which was already their weak point - Still Milspec - Less connection ports - Still good access to most components via removable back plate BUT - BATTERY NON REMOVABLE - The keyboard is good - No thinklight (bummer lol) - The new touchpad is good, but of course without the buttons its automatically poo poo so it is poo poo - The display is still not very good - Battery power is what you would expect It's another definite but logical step in the direction of a consumer notebook. It gives ultrabook status and is a lot more portable. Thinkpads become less and less sturdy and try to be more pretty. Removal of the top mouse buttons is a terrible idea but since the nipple mouse will probably not survive another model iteration anyway it doesn't matter. Removal of the clamshell design is a bummer, as is the worse build quality. The non-removable battery is a disaster. Other than that it is a good computer, but then so is an Apple. I don't really see any improvement as such but since you have to move somehwere I understand the direction they are going. I guess buying a cheap T430 or somesuch in the next months would be nice. I have the slight hope that they might chose to go back to a more sturdy and traditional design for the W series but there's no indication for it.
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Jun 11, 2013 22:30
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Boner Slam posted:Thinkpads become less and less sturdy and try to be more pretty. Removal of the top mouse buttons is a terrible idea but since the nipple mouse will probably not survive another model iteration anyway it doesn't matter. Removal of the clamshell design is a bummer, as is the worse build quality. The non-removable battery is a disaster. Where are you getting that it's less sturdy / worse build quality than the old design? I can't see it in the review. I've had the X1 Carbon for a bit over half a year and it withstands travel and my general clumsiness just as well as my old T420s. The non-clamshell design is fine I think, it doesn't open spontaneously when you drop it. I agree the buttons being gone is terrible, the touchpad isn't bad but I have it disabled anyway. Although the X1 Carbon seems great for travel, the limited connection options make it impractical. Having to drag along adapters for VGA (that don't work half the time) and ethernet defeats the point of a small laptop really. If there's a Haswell refresh (or is that going to be 440s?) with non terrible screen I'll probably get it.
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Jun 11, 2013 23:01
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The T431s's battery is replaceable, you just need a screwdriver: http://support.lenovo.com/en_US/detail.page?DocID=PD026726 Also, being less sturdy (if it even is so) makes sense when the product doesn't cost $1800 (in 2004 dollars) anymore. shrughes fucked around with this message at 23:13 on Jun 11, 2013 |
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Jun 11, 2013 23:11
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I want: -15" (13" if I can't afford what I want in 15") with at least 1600x900 hopefully -Intel core (anything) -Dedicated graphics in the mid-range -SSD (hopefully) -$800-ish I want this in a 'normal' laptop form factor. I don't want a GAMING laptop, but I do want to be able to play 'real games' if I need to. I find it difficult to find a laptop like this with dedicated graphics. I can probably pick something out like this on newegg, but I was hoping someone had a specific recommendation for brand/model. I want to know that it's not going to overheat/get extremely hot or extremely loud with the fans. I understand this will probably happen during gaming, but I don't want it happening at desktop. I also want good build quality and there are a lot of brands out there. I'm ok with even no-name or off-brands if they make a good laptop. Also, I actually would like to perhaps get this as a refurb/used laptop as I really don't care if it's brand new. Are there any good refurb or used laptop sites besides ebay? I don't like Ebay.
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Jun 12, 2013 00:04
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Bleh Maestro posted:I want: Closest I can think of is a T430.
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Jun 12, 2013 00:09
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sports posted:Closest I can think of is a T430. It looks like They only have one dedicated graphics option and it's on the low end. At least when I just went through their little 'build your own' program just now. But, I'll do a bit of digging and see if that card may be satisfactory to me.
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Jun 12, 2013 00:12
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Bleh Maestro posted:It looks like They only have one dedicated graphics option and it's on the low end. At least when I just went through their little 'build your own' program just now. But, I'll do a bit of digging and see if that card may be satisfactory to me. Have you checked out the new integrated graphics in Haswell? It's come a long, long way.
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Jun 12, 2013 00:48
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Bleh Maestro posted:It looks like They only have one dedicated graphics option and it's on the low end. At least when I just went through their little 'build your own' program just now. But, I'll do a bit of digging and see if that card may be satisfactory to me. You might want to get a Haswell HD 5000 laptop. Integrated graphics perform just as well as even higher-range mobile GPUs, nowadays.
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Jun 12, 2013 00:49
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sports posted:You might want to get a Haswell HD 5000 laptop. Not quite, seeing as the 780m is pretty drat close to equivalent to a desktop 680. That said, the HD5000 is still very good.
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Jun 12, 2013 00:55
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Hey hey, I posted this in the hardware questions thread and they sent me over here. I'm tossing up between two laptops, 1) Samsung (forgot to catch the model number on this) 2.4 Ghz intel i7 8Gb DDR3 RAM 1 TB SATA HDD Radeon HD 7670M 2) Sony SVE15129CGB 3.2 Ghz Intel i7-363QM 4Gb DDR3 (+4Gb optional upgrade to a total of 8) 750Gb SATA HDD ATI HD 7650M 2Gb They're both researched, and are the two best I've found in my price range and with availability. I'm tempted by the Sony due to the higher clockspeed but at the same time I'm concerned it might be noisy, especially after a year or two. Ideal use is InDesign with large file sizes, but it wouldn't hurt to play a game or two on there as well.
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Jun 12, 2013 01:56
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WHERE MY HAT IS AT posted:Not quite, seeing as the 780m is pretty drat close to equivalent to a desktop 680. That said, the HD5000 is still very good. What he meant was actual moible GPUs, IE ones that are feasible to carry around. 
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Jun 12, 2013 02:04
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I EVER SPENT
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Tossing up between a 13" rMBP or one of the new 13" MacBook Airs. Can anyone weigh in with some advice or things I should be considering?
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Jun 12, 2013 02:52
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Clown Meadows posted:Tossing up between a 13" rMBP or one of the new 13" MacBook Airs. Can anyone weigh in with some advice or things I should be considering?
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Jun 12, 2013 02:54
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I'm looking to buy a new laptop to replace my Dell M1730 and could use some recommendations. I'd like one capable of playing modern games, streaming and other GPU/CPU intensive activities. I also would like a 15 inch monitor at least. Essentially I want a good amount of power in a reasonably sized machine. My budget is 1500 dollars.
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Jun 12, 2013 03:23
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Clown Meadows posted:Tossing up between a 13" rMBP or one of the new 13" MacBook Airs. Can anyone weigh in with some advice or things I should be considering? On what time frame? The CPU refresh is pretty big for battery life and graphics. The new Airs should have a faster GPU than the outgoing rMBP. The Air is a better buy at the moment because its a brand-new refresh and should actually end up pretty similar in single-threaded speed. Whenever the Haswell rMBP comes out it'll be a harder question.
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Jun 12, 2013 03:35
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Also worth considering is that the Air natively runs at 1440x900. The rMBP runs at doubled 1280x800. You can scale it to retina-esque 1440x900 or (I presume) 1680x1050, and it'll look pretty good. But you might feel like a bad person, since really it's scaling down 2880x1800 or 3360x2100 down to 2560x1600. My general feeling is that if you want a machine for doing work on, the 13" rMBP would be better. But then really maybe you just want the 15" rMBP, if screen pixelage is so important to you. (And why would that be? Because you don't have a real place to work, with monitors to plug in to. I think a 13" laptop is something where you would be using its built-in screen infrequently enough, unless you're a college student or on-the-go salesguy, that it's not worth the cost of the IPS retina screen (paid in weight, battery life, and dollars). However, your situation might be such that it is. These factors depend upon what your life is like.
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Jun 12, 2013 03:48
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Brain In A Jar posted:Hey hey, I posted this in the hardware questions thread and they sent me over here. I'm tossing up between two laptops, It's hard to say anything without knowing which models you're comparing. However the Sony E series is a consumer level laptop, I've had one for 3 years and while it's been great for round the house I don't think it would stand up to a significant amount of abuse. I probably wouldn't want to carry it around with me if that's what you're doing. You've chosen one with a 1366 x 768 screen which would be a bad choice for design work. This is probably all redundant because haswell integrated GPUs mean that the choices you've made are obsolete - but I'll let someone else come up with recommendations for what you should get (Vaio Pro looks nice?)
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Jun 12, 2013 10:55
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Boner Slam posted:Here is a German review of the new T431s Hmmm while battery is much better than the T430s its still not enough - they're definitely falling behind the competition there :/
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Jun 12, 2013 10:59
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dissss posted:Hmmm while battery is much better than the T430s its still not enough - they're definitely falling behind the competition there :/ It's on an Ivy chip, not Haswell. That laptop has been out for a few months already.
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Jun 12, 2013 13:26
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Does MSI have a jump on the haswell release? They are the only ones I can find with haswell chips.
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Jun 12, 2013 16:44
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The Macbook Air has it
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Jun 12, 2013 16:50
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I'm excluding apple...and talking about windows laptops.
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Jun 12, 2013 17:00
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Bleh Maestro posted:I'm excluding apple...and talking about windows laptops. Why are you excluding Apple? The Macbook Airs are perfectly good machines, and it's not too crazy anymore to buy a Mac and then never run OSX ever on it.
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Jun 12, 2013 17:20
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