Xps 15 L502x 1080p upgrade vs 720p + 1080p external monitor

Hey there. I know that this question has been asked countless times before, and i know that the 1080p screen is the better choice, but my question is as stated in the title.

I will be buying the xps 15 mainly because its way cheaper the the 15z, so dont ask me to go 15z or anything like that, cause bulky-ness isnt an issue.

So back to main issue:

I will be buying the Xps 15 soon, and im wondering which investment will be a better option.

Xps 15 720p screen and a External monitor which is at 1080p( AOC Professional 21.5" E2241VWA), Which cost 7700krs(1,201.66 USD)

Or

Xps 15 1080p screen at 8500krs (1,326.51 USD)

So theres a big price difference between the two.

Computer will be used mainly for Programing, photoshop, 3D modelling, and lots of Movies. I will also be using it for gaming, mainly Dota, and the upcoming sequel, and Skyrim, and thats pretty much it.

Ive considered buying a desktop that is cheaper, and more powerful, but i will be moving to another country in around 7 months, and would be needing to buy a laptop for university anyways.

But just to add it in anyways, heres the Desktop specs i was planning to buy.
AMD Phenom2 X4 955, AM3 3.2Ghz, 4Gb Ram,Radeon HD6850 1GB, 1TB HD.
+ External Monitor + 10' Laptop, which estimates to 10 000krs(1,560.60 USD). The desktop and External monitor will cost 7000krs(1,092.42 USD) This on the other hand will be used mostly for gaming, and stuff mentioned above.

But the main question is about the Xps 15, and also dont recommend a Sager/clevo, because it becomes really expensive, when you include shipping fee and VAT, which totals to 10 000krs(Np5160 with just a matte screen 1080p upgrade)

But ye, Suggestions and input please

 

if you dont want to use 1080p while on the go, then the 720+1080external would be ideal

I use 3 monitors on my home rig, and once you start using more than 1, you will never want to go back

 

^^^ Portability + PhotoShop and movies on the go = XPS 1080p screen.

 

You are ignoring the fact the E2241VWA quality isn't anywhere near the quality of the xps 15 display. The cheapest wide-gamut display available is -i think- the U2411 which is approx €400 (~$450-500).

 

Hmm the thought of having dual monitors never occurred to me.

If i do choose to do dual-monitors, would a 1Gb graphic card be enough, or would 2Gb be a better choice? In dells customization page, i have the option of having a 1Gb 525M or a 2Gb 540M.

 

1GB is fine, the second monitor doesn't effect Vram usage much at all.

However, the 540 is significantly faster than the 525.

Ideally you would choose a 1GB 540, but it sounds like that isn't an option.

 

The GT540m is not significantly faster than the GT525m. It's the same card but clocked clocked 12% higher which translates to only a small performance boost. Besides, you can overclock it yourself.

 

I think due to this, the Xps 1080p will be a better option, so i guess i will be buying the buying this instead of the 2nd screen option, and with the 525M seeing that, there is not much differnce between the 540M.

Thanks.

 

Of course you can get an U2311 for the price of €200, should be near the qaility of the xps 15 display (IPS, but not wide gamut). But i really dont see the advantage of having a "good" external display rather than a good internal display. If you're using it as a desktop 95% of the time i wouldn't buy a notebook...