Thinking about m11x, questions

Ok, so my two year old HP dv2700SE is slowly dying. It has treated me well, despite the nividia gpu overheating issues. So its time for something new. I am on a budget, so the cheaper the better, which isnt the best approach when needing a devent laptop.

So I saw the MX11 is going for 599$ until march 31st, so Im gonna purchase in the next two weeks or so. First question is this, is there a laptop that even competes with the mx11? I have checked every boutique company and there doesnt seem to be a 13" laptop with a discrete video card etc for the price dell is offering?

what are the drawbacks to the 599$ deal? is it the R1? Im not sure what the changes are between the r1, r2, and r3.

I was about to build a gaming desktop for the first time in 5 years and then just get a small netbook for when I travel etc..However this would fullfill both requirements for me. Im a gamer but dont play every new game on the highest settings the day they come out. I still fire up CS:source every once in a while, but would like to try out the new starcraft and COD. I do a lot of graphics design and figure I can hook it up to a larger 24" monitor that I have for that. Same with website design etc...

Based on what I use it for do you think its a good idea? I jsut havetn read a lot of negative's to be honest. any ideas or comments would be great!

 

I think that they are great machines and there is really no competition for them. The 599 one is the R1, the only big difference is the lack of a core I processor. You would want 4gb of ram it in as well!

 

the r1 is awesome and nothing i can find close to those specs at that price. i love it.

but if you are thinking of games like sc2 on a high rez monitor you might want to go with a r2 refurb for almost the same price.

the r1 will be able to play that game but the r2 will give you a bit more fps in cpu intencive games. and since your thinking of making this your main rig you may get might get more out of jumping up to the r2 (i5/i7 cpu) than someone with a gaming desktop to fall back on for more demanding games.

 

I just hope they dont sell out in the next few weeks at 599$, thats my only fear.

 

It seems like to me that they plan to discontinue the R1 at the end of the sale possibly.

 

yeah I just hope they have enough in stock to last a few more weeks, I dont get my bonus until then

 

The $599 sale ends TODAY, the 18th. Just to let you know. I asked a dell customer service rep. Unless he was lying or misinformed, you better jump on it quick. the refurb R2's also are going like hot cakes. There are no more left at the 700 prices on the website so you may try calling in to see if they ahve any. They were gone in less than 24 hours.


But to sum up, r1 and r2 are identical in nearly everything except a few things. R1 is smooth black surface, while R2 is like soft matte type. r2 has core processors (i5 or i7) and the graphics are run by NVIDIA Optimus meaning it changes between the gt335m and intel graphics on its own. R1 has both graphics but it is hybrid graphics and you manually switch.

The r1 also has way better battery life usually around 7 or even 8 hours on intel graphics and 3-4 gaming, while the r2 tops at around 4-5 power saving. The r2 is much hotter temperature wise, while the r1 is relatively cool. Other than that, they're pretty much the same. Seeing as how the r2 refurb would cost a tiny bit more than a brand new r1, id take the r2 and hook it u pto an external monitor and be done with it but then, like i said, they seem to be already gone in that price range.

 

Be sure to enter that code to get $50 off any alienare system under $1000. Drops price to 550! Im not sure were i found it though last time.

 

on their website it says March 31st 2011, guess we will find out day after tomorrow.

 

The R1 is a great machine. It's perfect for a college student who wants a super portable laptop that can still game reasonably well.

The 4 gigs is a must, though.

 

its 11.6 inches, not 13. =)

but i love this little laptop (i got the R2). i'd highly recommend (from what i've read) to get a refurbished R2...the i-series +throttle stop makes this little thing a beast.

in any case, you cant go wrong with this.