How many years will this setup last me for future games to come?

Model: Dell XPS M1710
Processor: T2600 Intel Duo Core
Video Card: Nvidia 512mb 7900gtx
Ram: 2gb 667mhz
HD: 80gb 7200rpm

I am in the military and in my free time I love to game. However, I am always on the move so I need something that I can bring with me to play my games, such as BF2, WoW, CS:Source and future games to come.

 

A good long while, 2 years at least, 3-4 if you pop a memrom down the road

 

That is a big laptop.. when you say on the move... you don't mean in a backpack I hope.. You need a duffle bag to fit that thing in.

 

It will probably run todays games at high settings, but come a year from now, it won't be able to run the newest games at high settings. Thats just the sad, sorry truth about computers and computer games. I don't know if that will be able to handle Battlefield 2142 when it comes out, if you plan on playing that, at the highest settings. Of course, if you don't care about high settings, you will be all set for years to come, if the laptop lasts that long...

 

1 year

This is a great laptop but when you will install Vista that need at least 512mo ram and 128mo gpu ram you will be a little bit short for the latest game at hight settings.

 

That notebook should see you through for a couple years. Probably one of the best gaming notebooks you could buy right now.

 

Battlefield 2142 is going to have the same minimum specs as BF2. Yes there will be a higer level of settings, but come on, he's got a **** 512mb 7900GTX. If you dont think he can top out BF2142 with that then you must be smokin something funny. The only laptop on the market out today that is more powerful is an Alienware thats got 2 7900GS's in SLI, and RAID hard drives. Yeah its likley got 30 minutes of battery, but its still more powerful.

 

It will more than likely be able to run everything at max with smooth performance for at least 1 and 1/2 or 2 years.

Look at the 6800 ultra, it still can perform games pretty decent
Then the 7800GTX, that card has been out for, if im right, for 8 months.

 

but we have a few big engines coming out...

crytek, unreal and that physics game or w/e that i can think of.

I'd be happy with that system and its the best you can do for now.

 

It makes me want to bang my head in to a desk when I read someone saying that your system will not run any games once you install Vista when it comes out...Um...why is everyone so hyped about Vista? Because it looks pretty? Because it runs better? Because it has all sorts of nice features?

Are you happy with XP? If so, stick with XP. I /hate/ the idea of an operating system that hogs almost half of your system resources. It is a HORRIBLE idea. You should not need the equivalent of a gaming system to simply run your operating system.

And besides, who honestly switches to a new operating system right away? Most people wait for the bugs to be ironed out and to see if its really worth the upgrade. Look at the trends, and you'll see a lot of people stuck with 98SE for a LONG time before upgrading - usually to XP, which isn't a horrible OS (considering its from Microsoft).

So don't worry about Vista. Now to get back on topic:
Will that system run future games?
Yes.

Will you get 100fps?
No.

Will it be playable?
Heck yeah.

Laptops are not intended for gaming, but you sure as heck can play games on that laptop and you will be able to play games on it for a long time (in fact, the best answer you had was from the guy who said: If your laptop last that long). The chances are likely that your laptop will die or start to fail before you notice that you are unable to play games on it anymore.

Only the most hardcore of gamers with an eye for exceptional detail will notice then things start to suck. The average player will not notice it and will be quite happy. I can get in to some specific examples but I don't want to make this post any longer than it already is.

My main points are: Don't worry about Vista unless you enjoy using an operating system that demands too much from your system so that it looks pretty and has features that in the end, you don't really need (especially if you just want your games to run as fast as possible).

I'll be honest and say I have not read a lot about Vista - but in the real world, most people will not be using it right out of the gate. It'll take time for people to switch over and eventually Microsoft will drop support for older operating systems in order to get the last hold-outs over to their new OS. But I assure you it will be a LONG time before they drop support for XP because its just too well established and popular.

Sorry for the length and partial-rant.

 

2 years tops

 

Thank you for all of the great posts guys!! My last laptop was the XPS Gen 1 and I loved it. Even though it was pretty heavy, it could still handle games like BF2 and FEAR. Too bad I dropped it....the LCD screen cracked...and the warranty expired. Well, I ordered my XPS M1710 with the 3 year completecare plan and I can not wait to get it!!!!!! I think I got a good deal on it for $2900 with the backpack and the specs I mentioned above, except I got a 100gb 7200rpm HD. I also do not plan on upgrading to Vista anytime soon. I will just stick with my XP and I know how everyone says this is a pretty heavy machine.....a few lbs lighter than my old one....I didnt even think my older laptop was that heavy...so I am not concerned about that. I know I will be happy with this for years to come and take care everybody