Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Post
  • Reply
Teriyaki Koinku
Nov 25, 2008

Bread! Bread! Bread!

Bread! BREAD! BREAD!
I'm currently living in a foreign country and planning to buy a new laptop in October or November. How can I make sure the Windows OS is pre-installed in English? Or is that something I need to do after buying and booting up for the first time?

E: Also, how do you mainly decide between a multimedia/productivity laptop and a gaming one? Thinking of either the HP Envy 15 or the HP Omen 15, but really leaning towards the latter.

Teriyaki Koinku fucked around with this message at 14:03 on Sep 12, 2020

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Grumpwagon
May 6, 2007
I am a giant assfuck who needs to harden the fuck up.

My friend is looking for a gaming laptop. He doesn't really have a set budget as this isn't his primary gaming device, just something he wants to bring to his GF's house and play WoW/Slay the spire and such. That said, he's a developer and has some money to throw around, so having the ability to play newer games for the future would be good too. It'd be nice if it was a little portable, but that's lower priority. I don't do laptops, but I do know it's a bad idea to buy a new gaming desktop GPUs because of the 3070/3080. Is it a similarly bad time to buy a gaming laptop? If not, what's the thread recommended gaming laptop? I saw that ASUS being recommended a page ago, should I be looking in that direction?

Grumpwagon fucked around with this message at 14:45 on Sep 12, 2020

etalian
Mar 20, 2006

Grumpwagon posted:

Is it a similarly bad time to buy a gaming laptop? If not, what's the thread recommended gaming laptop? I saw that ASUS being recommended a page ago, should I be looking in that direction?

Well with laptops there's always something better around the corner and will probably take until 2021 to start seeing laptop 3000 series GPUs.

I picked the G14 after doing lots of research and feels it's the best mid range laptop with solid build quality for people who can't go over ~$1500.

Worf
Sep 12, 2017

If only Seth would love me like I love him!

etalian posted:

Well with laptops there's always something better around the corner and will probably take until 2021 to start seeing laptop 3000 series GPUs.

I picked the G14 after doing lots of research and feels it's the best mid range laptop with solid build quality for people who can't go over ~$1500.

This is my recommendation too, and I'll echo what another poster chimed in the last time I made the rec:


just be aware that model doesn't have a built in webcam



Also just like last time, i'm gonna remark that it amuses me that this is unironically very valuable information right now lmao

Gobbeldygook
May 13, 2009
Hates Native American people and tries to justify their genocides.

Put this racist on ignore immediately!

Gobbeldygook posted:

I opened my 470s and it wasn't responding, although it was powered on. Then I noticed a tipped over cup a few feet away. It was sitting in a very shallow puddle of water. I powered it off, opened it up, and it's currently air-drying. There was some moisture inside although not as much as I feared.

How long should I let it dry before trying to power it on? What are the odds it survives?
update: I disassembled it, let it dry for five days, and then it successfully booted it up. Thinkpad wins again.

I took this picture of Andy demanding breakfast not knowing the laptop he was standing on was sitting in a puddle of water. If you look to the back-right you can see the cup of water he tipped over.

i am kiss u now
Dec 26, 2005


College Slice
My girlfriend wants to get her sister a basic laptop for her birthday coming up in October. She really just needs it for some basic web stuff, zoom, word processing and the likes. She has a pixel phone so that's why I was really leaning towards the chrome OS. CANNOT BE APPLE unfortunately for a variety of reasons (one big one being she's already in the google ecosystem). I was looking into the Acer R13 or the Lenovo Flex 5 but would like some other recommendations as well. The OP said HP PSUs were not great but I don't know how relevant that is. Are the Celeron processors in the chromebooks actually any good? Because that opens up some more choices.

Also, is there any reason to avoid the chrome OS in this case especially for her who hasn't owned a computer in a while or is it really just perfect for that? I thought originally about finding a used Windows-based Lenovo T series but Chrome just seems to make sense? We'd like to keep it around $500 max so we're open to suggestions if there's a slightly older model that would suite her well.

TITTIEKISSER69
Mar 19, 2005

SAVE THE BEES
PLANT MORE TREES
CLEAN THE SEAS
KISS TITTIESS




Chromebook Megathread

etalian
Mar 20, 2006

i am kiss u now posted:

Also, is there any reason to avoid the chrome OS in this case especially for her who hasn't owned a computer in a while or is it really just perfect for that? I thought originally about finding a used Windows-based Lenovo T series but Chrome just seems to make sense? We'd like to keep it around $500 max so we're open to suggestions if there's a slightly older model that would suite her well.

Well the main weakness of Chrome OS is just can't download anything off the internet for programs.

Still for people who care about computing basics (watching videos / browsing internet) the concept works very well.

Statutory Ape posted:

This is my recommendation too, and I'll echo what another poster chimed in the last time I made the rec:

just be aware that model doesn't have a built in webcam

Also just like last time, i'm gonna remark that it amuses me that this is unironically very valuable information right now lmao

Yeah the lack of a webcam was a strange design idea for the G14.

Still would recommend given how the G14 with the custom 4900HS CPU is faster than many full size intel 15" laptops from last year and Asus really packed in lots of value when you look at the hardware specs you are getting for a sub $1500 price-point.

As with a weight of 3.5" pounds, 14 inch screen and 9.5 hours of battery life it offers much better portability than full size 15" laptops.

etalian fucked around with this message at 01:36 on Sep 13, 2020

isndl
May 2, 2012
I WON A CONTEST IN TG AND ALL I GOT WAS THIS CUSTOM TITLE

etalian posted:

Yeah the lack of a webcam was a strange design idea for the G14.

I mean, pre-corona it made perfect sense. It's extra cost and complexity for a feature that relatively few people used (I certainly never used the camera on my previous laptops except out of curiosity) and they didn't expect the massive surge in video conferencing. By the time lockdowns started manufacturing had already begun and it was too late to change it.

i am kiss u now
Dec 26, 2005


College Slice

Well poo poo, don't know how I missed that one.


etalian posted:

Well the main weakness of Chrome OS is just can't download anything off the internet for programs.

Still for people who care about computing basics (watching videos / browsing internet) the concept works very well.

Right-o

Teriyaki Koinku
Nov 25, 2008

Bread! Bread! Bread!

Bread! BREAD! BREAD!
After doing some more research/feedback from others, I think I'll go with the Lenovo Legion instead. Found a pretty good deal well within budget for what I need.

E: specs if you're curious -

Lenovo Legion model R7000p
CPU: AMD R7-4800H
RAM: 32 GB DDR4 3200
GPU: nVidia RTX2060 6GB GDDR5 vRAM
Storage: 1 TB SSD
144 hz refresh rate
1920x1080p IPS resolution
15.6 inch monitor
2.35 kg weight

Teriyaki Koinku fucked around with this message at 19:50 on Sep 14, 2020

Grumpwagon
May 6, 2007
I am a giant assfuck who needs to harden the fuck up.

etalian posted:

Well with laptops there's always something better around the corner and will probably take until 2021 to start seeing laptop 3000 series GPUs.

I picked the G14 after doing lots of research and feels it's the best mid range laptop with solid build quality for people who can't go over ~$1500.

Thanks! I'll pass it along

runaway dog
Dec 11, 2005

I rarely go into the field, motherfucker.
What do you guys think a fair asking price for a Zephyrus G14 with the ryzen 9/2060/16GB ram would be? It's basically like new never left the house.

Worf
Sep 12, 2017

If only Seth would love me like I love him!

4000 Dollar Suit posted:

What do you guys think a fair asking price for a Zephyrus G14 with the ryzen 9/2060/16GB ram would be? It's basically like new never left the house.

1.1k USD is what open box ones at best buy sell for, as a benchmark

runaway dog
Dec 11, 2005

I rarely go into the field, motherfucker.

Statutory Ape posted:

1.1k USD is what open box ones at best buy sell for, as a benchmark

drat really, that's troubling.

runaway dog fucked around with this message at 03:28 on Sep 14, 2020

Worf
Sep 12, 2017

If only Seth would love me like I love him!

4000 Dollar Suit posted:

drat really, that's troubling.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_dcat=177&_fsrp=1&_sacat=0&_nkw=ZEPHYRUS+G14&LH_Complete=1&_from=R40&rt=nc

these are the completed ebay auctions for the g14. just note that theres a differnt model with a lesser GPU than yours also included when you look through

shut up blegum
Dec 17, 2008


--->Plastic Lawn<---
After looking around for a while, I've stumbled upon the Lenovo IdeaPad L340-15IRH Gaming 81LK01GFMB (what a name).
Specs are as following:

15,6"
Intel Core i5-9300HF
GeForce GTX 1650
16 GB of RAM DDR4 (SODIMM) (1x 16 GB slot apparently, not sure if that's upgradeable)
512 GB SSD

I've found it for 849 EUR, but it's sold out at the moment. Any similar laptops around that price? It's sort of the max I want to spend. I'm OK with refurbished stuff too, but that's hard to find where I'm at (Belgium).

Instant Grat
Jul 31, 2009

Just add
NERD RAAAAAAGE

shut up blegum posted:

After looking around for a while, I've stumbled upon the Lenovo IdeaPad L340-15IRH Gaming 81LK01GFMB (what a name).
Specs are as following:

15,6"
Intel Core i5-9300HF
GeForce GTX 1650
16 GB of RAM DDR4 (SODIMM) (1x 16 GB slot apparently, not sure if that's upgradeable)
512 GB SSD

I've found it for 849 EUR, but it's sold out at the moment. Any similar laptops around that price? It's sort of the max I want to spend. I'm OK with refurbished stuff too, but that's hard to find where I'm at (Belgium).

I got one of those, though with a 4600H instead of an Intel chip and 8 gigs of RAM instead of 16. Looking at images, the shell seems identical between the two. Mine does have two slots for RAM, theoretically, but it has proven totally impossible for me to get the bottom off. There's not really anywhere to get leverage.

Quinntan
Sep 11, 2013
My sister is looking for a new device to replace her laptop for teaching work at a school. It'll only ever do stuff like word, PowerPoint etc, but a long battery life is wanted, as well as a decent bit of storage. A HDMI/VGA out and ethernet port are also wanted. The budget is about €500.

Hadlock
Nov 9, 2004

Refurbished T480

Niwrad
Jul 1, 2008

Anyone have experience with 2-in-1's? Was looking at the HP Envy x360. Mainly for general use but wouldn't mind being able to throw on a few low intensity games (Civilization, Fall Guys for instance). Don't need super high end graphics or anything. From what I'm reading, the Ryzen integrated graphics is pretty good? Does this seem like a nice deal?

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/hp-env...p?skuId=6403441

Figure I'll upgrade the RAM on my own.

Basically just trying to find a 2-in-1 that I can play some games on.

Canned Sunshine
Nov 20, 2005

CAUTION: POST QUALITY UNDER CONSTRUCTION



I'd wait to see how the updated 2-in-1s from Dell and others perform that use Tiger Lake and Xe graphics (replacement for Iris Plus).

FWIW, I don't game on it, but I really like my XPS 13 2-in-1 for general usage. I mostly use it for work meetings so I have something portable since I had a desktop at work, but they're now getting us laptops thanks to Covid. I will still probably use it though for meetings since it's a lot lighter than the laptop they're getting us.

Edmond Dantes
Sep 12, 2007

Reactor: Online
Sensors: Online
Weapons: Online

ALL SYSTEMS NOMINAL
How does this Lenovo ThinkPad E595 look for general power usage/coding/light gaming?

Ryzen 5 3500U (4C / 8T, 2.1 / 3.7GHz, 2MB L2 / 4MB L3)

16GB SO-DIMM DDR4-2400

SSD 512GB M.2 2242 PCIe NVMe 3.0x4

AMD Radeon Vega 8 Graphics

CH Science
Sep 11, 2019

^^^ I don't have that one, but do have a Huawei with almost identical specs. Gaming on it is pretty hit or miss. I had to run Tekken 7 at 720p AND 50% render scale to get a decent 60fps out of it, but older/indie stuff and less fps-dependent games are quite playable. Everything else about it is fantastic for general computing, and I'd bet that Thinkpad is better built than my Huawei to boot.

Can anyone recommend a decent laptop stand so I don't have to feel like I'm staring at the floor while gaming/working at my desk? Something foldable would be cool but not required.

Just curious what ya'll use. Difficult to tell if something like https://www.amazon.com/Adjustable-Aluminum-Computer-Ergonomic-Compatible/dp/B07WBYCTNX/ will just be flimsy garbage or not without seeing it in person.

Laptop is a Razer Blade 15 Advance which cools itself decently sitting on a normal flat surface so not to worried about venting/fans

CH Science fucked around with this message at 19:44 on Sep 15, 2020

Hadlock
Nov 9, 2004

CH Science posted:


Just curious what ya'll use. Difficult to tell if something like https://www.amazon.com/Adjustable-Aluminum-Computer-Ergonomic-Compatible/dp/B07WBYCTNX/ will just be flimsy garbage or not without seeing it in person.

Laptop is a Razer Blade 15 Advance which cools itself decently sitting on a normal flat surface so not to worried about venting/fans

Apple sells two laptop stands on their website by a company I've not personally heard from, at the $60 and $80 price point. I would guess that they've been reasonably vetted before being sold on their website. But that's way way more expensive than the $20 model you listed.

wolrah
May 8, 2006
what?

CH Science posted:

Can anyone recommend a decent laptop stand so I don't have to feel like I'm staring at the floor while gaming/working at my desk? Something foldable would be cool but not required.

Just curious what ya'll use. Difficult to tell if something like https://www.amazon.com/Adjustable-Aluminum-Computer-Ergonomic-Compatible/dp/B07WBYCTNX/ will just be flimsy garbage or not without seeing it in person.

Laptop is a Razer Blade 15 Advance which cools itself decently sitting on a normal flat surface so not to worried about venting/fans

If you're looking at something in that class, depending on what random stuff you might have around you could probably DIY a solution that at least lets you figure out what height and angle you like before spending money on a commercial solution.

I spent a few years using a laptop stand built out of K'nex because it did the job well and was effectively infinitely adjustable.

shut up blegum
Dec 17, 2008


--->Plastic Lawn<---
A local shop is doing a promotion, the Lenovo Legion 5 15ARH05 AMD Ryzen 7 4800H for 900 EUR. Original price is 1099.
Specs are as follows:
AMD Ryzen 7 4800H
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650
16 GB RAM
512 GB SSD

AFAIK it's this one but with 16 GB of RAM.

Sounds like a good deal to me? c/d?

Hulk Krogan
Mar 25, 2005



CH Science posted:

^^^ I don't have that one, but do have a Huawei with almost identical specs. Gaming on it is pretty hit or miss. I had to run Tekken 7 at 720p AND 50% render scale to get a decent 60fps out of it, but older/indie stuff and less fps-dependent games are quite playable. Everything else about it is fantastic for general computing, and I'd bet that Thinkpad is better built than my Huawei to boot.

Can anyone recommend a decent laptop stand so I don't have to feel like I'm staring at the floor while gaming/working at my desk? Something foldable would be cool but not required.

Just curious what ya'll use. Difficult to tell if something like https://www.amazon.com/Adjustable-Aluminum-Computer-Ergonomic-Compatible/dp/B07WBYCTNX/ will just be flimsy garbage or not without seeing it in person.

Laptop is a Razer Blade 15 Advance which cools itself decently sitting on a normal flat surface so not to worried about venting/fans

I have this exact one for my G14 and I'm happy with it.

MichiganCubbie
Dec 11, 2008

I love that I have an erection...

...that doesn't involve homeless people.

Hey everyone! I'm looking for a new computer, as light as possible. Coming from a 2014 HP Spectre x360. Ideally I'd like:

13 inch
Touch Screen
Able to run CK 3 and maybe Fall Guys, not a big PC gamer, would like a dedicated card, but understand that's unlikely
lightweight, ultrabook sized if possible, I'd love something in the 2.5-3 pound range
Need a webcam
Would like 4k, but don't want OLED
No gaudy colors or leds or anything too "gamer-y"


I'm probably missing some obvious requirement somewhere, but I appreciate any pointers that anyone would have!

Ugly In The Morning
Jul 1, 2010
Pillbug

MichiganCubbie posted:

Hey everyone! I'm looking for a new computer, as light as possible. Coming from a 2014 HP Spectre x360. Ideally I'd like:

13 inch
Touch Screen
Able to run CK 3 and maybe Fall Guys, not a big PC gamer, would like a dedicated card, but understand that's unlikely
lightweight, ultrabook sized if possible, I'd love something in the 2.5-3 pound range
Need a webcam
Would like 4k, but don't want OLED
No gaudy colors or leds or anything too "gamer-y"


I'm probably missing some obvious requirement somewhere, but I appreciate any pointers that anyone would have!

What’s your budget?

MichiganCubbie
Dec 11, 2008

I love that I have an erection...

...that doesn't involve homeless people.

Ugly In The Morning posted:

What’s your budget?

Pretty open, but I'd prefer to stay under 1600. I was looking at the 2020 Dell XPS 13 and the new Spectre, but I'm open.

Worf
Sep 12, 2017

If only Seth would love me like I love him!

MichiganCubbie posted:

Pretty open, but I'd prefer to stay under 1600. I was looking at the 2020 Dell XPS 13 and the new Spectre, but I'm open.

ive had both and both are good. it probably could come down to price or whether theres a different arrangement of ports on the model that you prefer

i found the dell to feel smaller (in a good way) and like the KB more.

i also tend to think generally that dell is a better company to buy from and be supported by


E: also the HPs fans were louder and ran more often, although it was for work so i never undervolted it like i did the dell. but it was distracting and annoying in pitch to me

fwiw i've seen people have the opposite experience ITT so ymmv

Worf fucked around with this message at 22:00 on Sep 16, 2020

AzureSkys
Apr 27, 2003

I'm going to be traveling a bit for work and have wanted to get a laptop I can do decent gaming with, as well as something portable for a bit of VR stuff. I really like the recommendation for the Asus G14, but kind of would like a bigger screen. Is the G17 good to go with instead, or other options better? I mainly want a 17" screen and RTX 2060 around $1.5k or so (if I can find one, they seem to be sold out all over).

I've been eyeing the Acer Helios 300 or the Acer Nitro 5, too, and trying to decide.

AzureSkys fucked around with this message at 00:13 on Sep 17, 2020

Hadlock
Nov 9, 2004

If you were fine with a 1060 I'd suggest the X1 Extreme but it won't get the 2/3000 series GPU for a couple more weeks probably. The other option, the XPS 15 also is stuck with the 1060 for now

I can't say how well those consumer class laptops with the 2060 will hold up to regular travel

Worf
Sep 12, 2017

If only Seth would love me like I love him!

1650max-q i think

AzureSkys
Apr 27, 2003

Some of the 15" ones I'm seeing might work well, too. I'd like a numpad, as well, for other stuff I typically work on but don't see them much in that size. I stay in one spot for a few weeks, so mainly it's used in the hotel. I've been lugging around an old Asus G53 for the past decade in addition to my 17" work laptop, so I don't mind if it's not super portable friendly. My next trip is in mid-October for 3 weeks, so I'm hoping to grab something before it, but can wait and see what may come out for these X1s.

Hadlock
Nov 9, 2004

AzureSkys posted:

I'd like a numpad, as well, for other stuff I

No, you really don't

There's a universe of USB numpads out there that you can drag around with you, that won't compromise your laptop selection, and also make the laptop easier to cart around

Membrane keys, clicky keys, plastic, metal, wood it's all available for usually under $25

The other big advantage is that you don't have to sacrifice half of your right shift, delete, return keys, / key etc

Numpad laptop keyboards are full of all sorts of compromise you don't want to deal with

MichiganCubbie
Dec 11, 2008

I love that I have an erection...

...that doesn't involve homeless people.

Hadlock posted:

No, you really don't

There's a universe of USB numpads out there that you can drag around with you, that won't compromise your laptop selection, and also make the laptop easier to cart around

Membrane keys, clicky keys, plastic, metal, wood it's all available for usually under $25

The other big advantage is that you don't have to sacrifice half of your right shift, delete, return keys, / key etc

Numpad laptop keyboards are full of all sorts of compromise you don't want to deal with

That's one of the reasons why I walked away from 15 inch HPs. I hate the cramped keyboard with the numpad.

Annath
Jan 11, 2009

Batatouille is a great and funny play on words for a video game creature and I love silly words like these
Clever Betty
Question:

I'm selling a Windows laptop. With Microsoft's Windows 10 system, how do I wipe the laptop but keep the license valid for the buyer? And can I install LibreOffice for the buyer after wiping without logging into my own MS account?

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

sirbeefalot
Aug 24, 2004
Fast Learner.
Fun Shoe
Windows' built in reset has an option to remove everything, and there's a secure erase check as well. If you do that and set it up with a local account you can install whatever before selling it. If you don't connect to the internet during initial setup it should allow local account creation (and should allow you to delete all the shortcuts for Candy Crush et al before they're downloaded for the first time). After you wipe it you can remove it from your Microsoft account at https://account.microsoft.com/devices/.

sirbeefalot fucked around with this message at 20:48 on Sep 17, 2020

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • Post
  • Reply