G series- Which one?

After days of feverish forum checks and posts, I've finally decided on the Asus G50 series. Now, the only real difference between the G50V and G50VT models is the graphics card. The VT's packing a GeForce 9800m GS with 512 MB of GDDR3, the V's using a GeForce 9700m GT, again with the same amount and type of VRAM.

My budget's a max of about $1415, and I'm looking for one with a processor that's over 2.3 GHz. Which model do you recommend? Both are split into various models, with the only real difference between models being hard drive space and processor speed.

Which type and model gives me the most power for under or equal to my budget? I'm only looking for average prices here, since I'll be buying retail.

Thanks!

 

g50vt-x1 at best buy. i think its on sale right now

 

You can get the G50VT-X1 real cheap now, and the 2.26GHz processor has an overclock button to 2.49GHz.

 

There is a significant difference between the 9700M GT and 9800M GS. Since the G50V is EOL, I'd go with the G50Vt-A1 (currently $1449 with rebate). It's only a tad over your budget, but will be worth it in the long run.
Check Gentechpc for more details.

 

nice...

Considering the price, I think I'll go with the A1. I won't be buying online, though, I'll have to get one of the big store chains here to order it, or just buy it through retail if it's available. However, I haven't bought it yet, and any more suggestions would be more than welcome.

 

It will be very difficult to purchase an A1 at a physical store store since Asus has limited the A1s to online resellers, especially in the US.

 

Dammit. Have to get an order then. Luckily, though (or not), I'm not in the US. Unlike Gateway, retailers here stock Asus's basic notebooks, so I'll probably be able to get one of the large-scale chains to order for me. They have service centres here too, again, unlike Gateway, so that's a plus (I live in the UAE).

 

In that case you won't be able to get the G50VT-X1, cos it's a Best Buy US exclusive. Just get whatever G50VT series you can find. As long as it has the 9800m GS it'll be swell.

 

Hmmm... Can I upgrade the processor on it later? As in, can it be upgraded? Because up to 2.8GHz on a processor (over-clockable to over 3 GHz without major heat problems) is some pretty serious muscle for an under $2000 laptop

 

Yes, the CPU can be upgraded, but will automatically void your warranty. I believe the G50 can take a X9100, but a T9600 is a safe bet.

 

You can always upgrade the processor in the future. The quad core processor might work too!

 

hmmm... Honestly, until I can upgrade safely, I think I'll avoid a quad. I'll probably wait for my warranty to run out before getting a T9600 or something similar. Getting a quad in this thing would be AWESOME, but I really doubt that this rig, for all of its professionally-distilled awesomeness, will be able to stably run a quad core without heating up too much. Still, if I can upgrade the graphics and cooling with it, that could be an option in the coming years.

 

A GPU upgrade is not possible, unless Asus gives us a great surprise in the future. Just ask the G50V owners about GPU upgrading

 

meh, no point in upgrading a GPU like that anyway for the next few years, unless there's a MAJOR technology leap. If I get a better CPU (e.g: an extreme, or possibly a quad), then I'll need better cooling. I'll probably just pick up an extra fan station.