Dilemma: 8600M-GT vs. GeForce Go 7950GTX - Help!

Ok, so here's my situation. I'm looking to upgrade to a nice portable mid-to-high gaming machine to take to friends houses and LANs when we're not all going nuts on console games. Anyways, I've got 2 choices:

1.) Dell Inspiron 1720 - This unit would be brand new from Dell.ca, and with my upgrades comes to the $2050 with the 3 year Complete Care warranty, basic spec outline:

T7250 2.0 Ghz
160GB 5400 RPM
8600M GT 256MB Graphics Card
2GB RAM

2.) Dell XPS m1710 - This unit would be refurbished in pristine condition with also a 3-year Complete Care warranty from Dell, also coming to $2050. Basic spec outline:

T7200 2.0 Ghz
160GB 7200 RPM
GeForce Go 7950 GTX 512MB
2GB RAM

Note: Both computers list their RAM as "Shared Dual Channel." What the heck does that mean, exactly?

On to my dilemma...

Which do I get? I'm sure the 7950 GTX will perform better in games, but would it be silly to make such a large purchase and get a DX9 card over a DX10 card? I'm really stumped here and have no clue what to do. That's why I'm turning to you guys for help!

Break it down for me, HELP!

 

Neither, I would get the dell 1730. you can probably get the price down to around 2500 for a much better computer than both. 1720s are not worth 2050.

 

The 8600M GT. Practiclly Evryone will tell you the 7950, but that is wrong. Think about it, no 8 series will outrun a 7 series. Its just common sense, a newer product line and newer GPU will not be outrun by an older 7 series. nVIDIA wouldnt do that, it makes no sense, its obvios. Plus, Direct X 10 is a plus. The 8600M is a better GPU, but Dell is crap.

 

Thanks for not helping at all.

The Dell 1730 with it's base configuration with taxes and shipping comes to $3200.

A whopping $1150 more than the two laptops I listed in my original post. Good job, though?

Anyways, the reason the price on the 1720 is so high is because I upgraded the screen to the 1920x1200, upgraded the video card, and a number of other things. It's a nice setup, all in all, just having a hard time deciding between the two.

 

well, seeing how you don't do any research yourself on this forum infexion, my post is actually more helpful than you can ever imagine.

I told you two important things, your 1720 configuration was grossly overpriced (check my computer configuration, you think a 17 inch screen and a higher resolution is a 800 dollar premium? i don't think so), and the dell 1730 can be had for 2500. I stand by both as you can get education discount and figure out a way (through forums) to get 3 year warranty. The base configuration is actually 2699.99 and there is a 200 dollar xps coupon floating around on the forums as well. I know it's a 500 dollar premium, but if you want to be protected for the future dell 1730 would be the best thing. If not, I would go with the G1S from Asus, or if you must do dell, I would just save money and follow my advice. Research this forum, get your laptop for 1500 tops.

 

I can't make any sense of that post. If you're saying the 8600M-GT is the better gaming card than the Go7950GTX, then you're incorrect. Just because a card is one generation newer doesn't automatically make it a better performer.

DirectX 10 is not showing many benefits right now. I have seen reduced performance and visuals using it versus DirectX 9 in Crysis on an 8700M-GT. I would not use it as a purchase factor.

Anyway - original poster, have you considered the Toshiba X205 SLI? You can get dual 8600M-GTs for a shade under $2,000 - the price should be similar in Canada, I haven't checked but it's worth a look nonetheless. The Toshiba X205 has a lot of great features for the money, it's definitely one of my favorite 17-inch notebooks. See our review here:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=3856
I'll have a review of the SLI one coming up in a few weeks.

If you want to save a big bundle of money you could go for the non-SLI X205 with the 8700M-GT.

 

Chaz,

Thank you for the wonderful reply.

Something to note though is that I would need a Canadian retailer to order from. Most places I was looking at would ship to Canada but I would be paying duties/taxes at the border, and I refuse to do that.

Also, one of the reasons I have been considering Dell over other manufacturers is that it offers that 3-year CompleteCare plan that covers any/all accidental damage? Do other manufacturers offer similar plans?

Also note that the $300 cost of the warranty is included in both of my price tags. So, essentially, I'm only paying $1700 for each laptop - and $300 for the warranty.

Let's keep this going, I'd love to decide/order soon!

 

The base Toshiba X205 should still be less than $1,700 Canadian though, try searching around. An 8700M-GT is significantly more powerful than a single 8600M-GT. I know you can get extended warranties on Toshibas with accidental damage protection.

If you can't find the Toshiba though, the Dell is not a bad machine. Personally I'd recommend getting the Vostro 1700 instead of the Inspiron 1720 because it's considerably better built.

 

Chaz,

So if you were to decice between the two configurations/machines listed in my original post you're saying to go with the Inspiron/Vostro over the XPS?

I'll begin to have a look for the Toshiba now.

EDIT: Toshiba.ca wants $2500+tax/shipping without a warranty for the X200.

http://www.toshiba.ca/web/product.grp?lg=en&section=1&group=1&product=7210&category=

Le sigh.

 

I say the XPS. The Vostro/Inspirons are really cranked out without much time put into build quality. Im happy with mine, but I payed less than half of what you would be paying. For 2k you can do better than the quality of the Inspirons.

My friend has that XPS and its killer, much better game performance, better build, and looks much cooler.

Hope that helps

 

orrrrrrrrr.....you can wait about 2 weeks and hopefully get one with 8800m....

 

Elitist ignorant individuals like yourself make me laugh.

Are you naive enough to believe that a laptop with an included 8800M will launch at the price-point I've mentioned?

My budget is around $2000-2100. There is not going to be a notebook released that will include the GPU you mentioned within my price range. Mark my words, if you please.

Chaz: What's your opinion on Inspiron/Vostro? If I'm doing the upgrade on the Inspiron on the screen and the graphics card and all that jazz, would it over-price it enough that I should go with the XPS?

Cheers,
Paul

 

I say the XPS. The Vostro/Inspirons are really cranked out without much time put into build quality. Im happy with mine, but I payed less than half of what you would be paying. For 2k you can do better than the quality of the Inspirons.

My friend has that XPS and its killer, much better game performance, better build, and looks much cooler.

Hope that helps

(I thought maybe you missed my post at the bottom of page 1)

 

I saw your post, and appreciate the input. I'm trying to gather as much opinion/experience as possible to make the right choice here on which laptop to get.

Was hoping Chaz to drop in and give his opinion on the two original notebooks listed as well, if he had to chose, because he seems to have quite a bit of experience using all kinds of notebooks.

I'm excited to get a really nice notebook, that's all!

 

In the end, either choice will give you great performance, good luck on the decision!

 

If you have honestly narrowed it down to those 2 choices then definitely get the 7950. I mean, you say you are worried about getting a DX9 card over a DX10 one, but the DX10 one can't even handle DX10 with high settings. Trust me, I know, I even have the DDR3 version in my G1S. However, like Chaz said, try to shop around for a laptop with an 8700 if you want performance near the 7950 as well as DX10. If not, then the 7950 is the easiest and best option as it is still the king of mobile cards until the 8800.

 

I'm in the same boat as Infexion.

I'm a techie myself and have done some substantial research on this subject. I think by now I know my GPU lessons well, but God is it ever hard to decide between the 79xx series and the new 8600 or 8700 series?

There's some attractive deals on laptops with the 79xx GPUs as they're slowly phasing out, but the whole DirectX 10 issue and the vast choice for the 8600 GT laptops just makes it very difficult to choose.

I need opinions. As many as I can get!

Thanks guys.

BTW, this is my first post here yayyyyyyyyy!

 

Where can I find a Canadian retailer with a laptop that has an 8700 in it that will fit into my budget with a reasonable warranty? I've been looking to no avail.

 

Synthetic, if the choice is between an 8600 and a 7950, then the very obvious choice is the 7950. If it's between an 8700 and a 7950 then the choice is a bit harder, but I still think the 7950 edges out the 8700 even though it doesn't support DX10. Like people have said, DX10 hasn't made any noticeable jumps over DX9 unless you are looking at the two through a microscope. However, if you think DX10 is definitely worth it, then get the 8700.

 

ok listen buddy, you can kill the philosophical talk....for 2100 you can customize an alienware with 7950gtx, then you should definitely be able to get one with 8800m. First of all, there will most likely be two versions of the 8800 since alienware released infomation that their 15in apparently would be available with 8800m. So before you laugh at "Elitist individuals" like myself, know that I'm only giving advice/suggestion. There really is no need to be rude. The XPS m1730 you can get for 2500ish with dual 8700s...other companies will probably offer 8800m notebooks for around your range.

 

Philosohpical talk? Oh boy, I won't begin addressin this.

Just a heads-up, incase you didn't write, we're talking CDN here; which includes retailers that ship within Canada to avoid duties/taxes.

The XPS m1730 base model with taxes and shipping from Dell.ca is $3100-3200. If my math is right, that's about $1000 over my budget.

This isn't even taking into account that you're simply speculating. Whether your speculation/guesses are educated or not, they still are guesses none the less.

 

check this: this seems around your range i would think....single 8800gtx 512....

http://forum.notebookreview.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=12300&d=1194972417

if you are talking in CDN dollars then my apologies, I failed to notice that. But 2100 CDN= about 2200USD so you should still be ok...

 

Basically what I'm saying is that don't get the Inspiron 1720, because the Vostro 1700 is a better built version of it.

The XPS is your best bet for gaming, so get that if you can't find the Toshiba for significantly less.

Please keep it under control in here; I don't like having to close threads or delete posts if possible.

 

That's also a 15.4'' without a 1900x1200 resolution, although I will consider it.

Keep in mind the shipping Alienware charges, opposed to Dell. And taxes on top of that price you posted. My $2100 budget is taxed and shipped.

EDIT: On top of not including tax/shipping, and the reduction in screen/resolution, it also only has 1GB of RAM. -_-'

Also - doesn't include a 3 year complete coverage warranty like both notebooks I mentioned. Valued at $300.

Cheers,
Paul

 

ahh i see. again sorry for the rudeness on my behalf. now as for your choices, 1720 does not have good build quality although i have not owned one so i'm speaking only from what i have seen. Have owned a m1710 with 7950 and all i can say is that it gets pretty darn hot to the point you can't put it on your lap or on any heat damageable surface for that matter.

 

how the hell ur 1720 came out to 2050? i ordered one with better configs tha ur and tha came out to 1125$ after coupon. and now tha theres a 500$ off coupons it should be tha much cheaper

 

Upgraded the screen resolution to 1920x1200.
Upgraded to 8600M-GT.
$300 CompleteCare Warranty.
Taxes + Shipping.

...?

 

there is also a $200 off deal for xps orders i think so if you get the 1710 you might be able to get it to 1900

 

Please someone help me find the X205 in Canada that will fall in my budget. Just watched a video review and I'm still drooling.

 

This doesn't look good:
http://www.toshiba.ca/web/product.grp?lg=en&section=1&group=1&product=7210&category=
The Toshiba X205 is insanely expensive in Canada. A similarly configured one in the US is hundreds less.

How close are you to the United States? Best Buy and Circuit City carry it and you could walk in and get it.

 

toshibadirect.ca

try the satellite x200 first model with the 8700.

 

Exactly, and I'm pissed. I'm contacting US retailers to see if they will ship to Canadian addresses and if I will be forced to pay taxes/duties. 'Cause I know some large computer companies are relieved of those taxes when shipping goods to Canada.

After all the raving about the x205, I want it so bad now. Hehe. The one for $1500 on TigerDirect.com is good - right?

X205-9349 is the model number.

Also, a new deal as come to light for me.

Sealed Dell XPS M1710 with the same processor as the first I listed (2.0ghz) but it has a 5400RPM hard drive and 7900 GS instead of the 7950 GTX.

Good thing though - it's $1500 sealed straight from Dell. Yay, nay?

 

It's base price from ToshibaDirect is $2500 - if you didn't see?

That's already $400 over my budget, not including taxes/shipping.

 

whoops, thought it was 2100, my bad.
anyway, a customized sager one would work also. check this out

Sager NP5791 Custom Laptop (Built on Clevo M570RU) Sager NP5791 Custom Laptop (Built on Clevo M570RU)
- 17" WSXGA "Matte" Super Clear Ultra Bright Screen (1680x1050)
- Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
- Standard Dead Pixel Policy
- ~Intel® Core™2 Duo T7250 2.0GHz w/2MB L2 On-die cache - 800MHz FSB
- 512MB PCI-Express nVidia GeForce 7950GTX w/GDDR3 (User Upgradeable)
- None Standard
- ~ 2,048MB DDR2 667 PC2 5300 (2 SODIMMS) Dual Channel Memory
- None Standard
- NP5790 Orange Frame Trim Color
- ~Combo 8x8x6x4x Dual Layer DVD +/-R/RW 5x DVD-RAM 24x CD-R/RW Drive w/Softwares
- ~ 160GB 5400RPM (Serial-ATA 150)
- None Standard
- Internal 7-in-1 Card Reader (MS/MS Pro/MS Duo/MS Pro Duo/SD/Mini-SD/MMC/RS)
- Internal Bluetooth 2.0+ EDR
- Built-in Intel® PRO/Wireless 4965 802.11 a/g/n
- None Standard
- Built in 1.3Megapixel Camera
- None Standard
- Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included
- Integrated System Speakers - Included
- Basic Black Business Case - Included
- Smart Li-ion Battery (8-Cell)
- 110/220V 120W Auto Switching AC Adapter - Included
- None Standard
- None Standard
- None Standard
- Integrated Fingerprint Reader
- None Standard
- None Standard
- None Standard - Drivers & Utility Software Only
- None Standard
- None Standard
- Sager 3 Year Parts & Labor Warranty w/ Lifetime 24/7 DOMESTIC Toll Free Customer Service (Special Promotion)

$1997.00
shipping would add up to around 2050-2100 ish

this is from xoticpc
https://www.xoticpc.com/shopping_cart_show.php?wconfigure=yes

 

Looking at the Sager models is something I plan to do tonight.

Your suggestion, although it looks great, is being shipped from the United States.

Meaning, I'm going to be paying some hefty duties on it when it arrives at my doorstep in Canada.

Anymore suggestions?

 

well u see i want a new notebook as well for around 1600 cdn, what im planning on getting is the asus g1s-a1 with a 8600m gt gddr3.

 

Where are you getting the ASUS in Canada at?

 

How far into canada do you live?

I'd say it's might be worth a road trip if you live reasonably close to the border and can grab a suitable laptop for hundreds less.

I am still quite happy with my x205-9349. The 8700GT is great at resolutions 1280x1024 and below (1440x900 is less pixels than 1280x1024) and is an amazing overclocker.

As for the 8600 vs the 7950GTX... its not a contest. the 7950GTX will best it in pretty much everything by a significant margin.

One thing not mentioned... even if you aren't going to go for an 8800m...
I'd still wait for their release.
Once they come out, prices will likely drop on the earlier cards.

 

KernelPanic has a point. I mean, the first 8800M laptop released will be an AlienWare. Hello,overpriced,anyone?
As soon as other manufacturers start the preparations, a lot of new gaming notebooks with the 8800M will appear, and we all know that competition will mean lower prices!
Just wait, there are only 5 more days and you will see just how good the 8800M is over the 8600Gt or the 7950GTX !

 

Uhm, I'm about 1.5 hours from Buffalo, NY. Unfortunately, I don't drive, but I'm hoping I'll be able to coerce a friend into taking me if I indeed decide to go this route. Of course, that may void warranties on notebooks purchased in the US. Yes/No?

Yeah, from the research I've been doing - it clearly is no contest, but I still would love to have a DX10 card. Which is now why I've set my sights on either 8600/8700/8800 cards.

The Toshiba X205 looks like a great value. But where locally would I find it in Buffalo if I were to cross on over and how the heck would I get that back over without paying taxes? Don't they thoroughly search your vehicle and what not? (If this sort of thing can't be discussed here since it's probably 'illegal' not claiming things, feel free to modify my post accordingly.)

I'm still on the prowl, and if it's only 5 days away.. I suppose I can wait. I'm always so eager to make a purchase, but if it's going to drop the prices or if I can find a notebook with an 8800M in my budget, it's probably worth the wait.

Let's keep it going though with recommendations for 8700M laptops and where in Canada/Buffalo (location-wise in Buffalo, so I know where to go) that I can get one!

 

So if someone were to buy a laptop in the US and then he/she had to move to Canada their warranty is null? I don't think so... at worst you could find a friend in the US to be the "send back to" address.

My guess is that Buffalo would have a Best Buy or Circuit City or some other retailer of some sort nearby. The x205 series is a self-contained box that has no configuring... this is bad in one way and good in another. For you, this means retailers will have it just as it was reviewed and not with $800 of goodies tacked on. The only bad news is you can't tack on the goodies if you wanted them.

We'd have to ask the locals if they know a place that retails it. A trip to the yellow pages and perhaps a few retailer Web Pages might do the trick too.

I am not going to discuss border protocol laws as frankly I do not know the exact rules or even HOW to break them. I thought the border patrol wanted to stop people from blowing things up and killing people. Why would anyone care if you bought a laptop in the US?

However, every time I have crossed the canadian border they ask if we have anything to declare and if we say no they do a cursory look over the vehicle and then let us through. Granted, nearly every time I have gone over the border I have had 1 or 2 hockey bags in the back of the vehicle along with hockey sticks as I was going to play in a tounament or attending an event usually tied in with hockey. Not once have my bags been rifled through... granted my last trip across the border was 6-7 months ago.

The crossing back over to the US side has gotten a bit stickier for US ctizens... now you require a passport where before they just said to bring a birth certificate and quite frankly, it was never checked. I've brought numerous laptops over the border and not one has been checked or given the border people on either side any pause at all... granted it was my laptop and I brought it back and forth over the border... but if I was to leave it somewhere I find it hard to believe they would notice.

So, if a US citizen buys a laptop and then visits a friend in canada and brings his laptop, and then sells it to his canadien friend... what happens then?

I'd say it's worth the wait unless you find a stellar deal of some sort.

 

InFeXiOn, I think you can get the X205 at bestbuy.com. You can order it online and pick it up at a local store. There are two configurations available, one with 8700GT and another with dual 8600GT. Both of them are available pick up around Buffalo,NY. Plus they are on sale now. 1349 USD for the 8700GT and 1849 USD for the dual 8600GT.

However, Bestbuy doesnt offer warranty outside U.S. But they do have a warranty plan for carry-in for 249 USD. so i guess you need another trip when it breaks. Lol This is all, as far as my research goes. Hope it helps. Good luck on your purchase.

I second the previous post, just said no when they ask you. I dont think they keep record of everything. If you are nervous about it, you can try to ditch the box and take the plastic off everything, to make it look like a used laptop


P.S.
I include a screen shot of the search result on bestbuy.com. The link is too messy to include in my post. So just go there search for "Toshiba X205", then check the pick-up availability for them.

 

Is the processor on the X205-S7483 a severe bottleneck on the system?

The video card is a 8700M-GT, so even though it's only DDR2- it's still solid, right?

I mostly play WoW, and want to run it at max settings with 60+ FPS, obviously, as well as some other games.

 

The X205-S9349 ships from Amazon for $150 more but packs the video card with DDR3 memory, a step-up over the lower model, right?

It's also got a better processor and HD-DVD.

Any other things I'm missing?

Oh, and is it worth the $150 step-up? 'Cause I can afford it.

 

8600GT with GDDR3 is worth the money if the model is a 15". If it's the X205 17" you're buying there are better options like the 8600GT SLi configuration.

I didn't realise 8700GT came in DDR2 variants, all of them are supposed to come with GDDR3 memory. Are you sure you got the details correct?

More processor power is always good, especially since yours is for gaming. Some PC games like Supreme Commmander and World in Conflict love brute processing power.

 

http://www.toshibadirect.com/td/b2c/rdet.jsp?poid=394305&seg=HHO

Scroll down.

It's DDR2.

The one from TigerDirect/Amazon is DDR3 and has a faster processor and HD-DVD drive.

I need someone to ship it to that lives in Buffalo! Volunteers? Hahaha. I don't want to get the crappy version from BestBuy (but I will if I have to). But I only have one friend in Buffalo and he said maybe, and will let me know soon. =(

 

it does look better. I think its worth it. DDR3 is 11%-20% faster than the DDR2. HD-DVD and T7100 is also a plus.

However you are still buying from Tigerdirect, not Amazon if you check carefully. You will have to pay full tax on it. But, it should stay within a reasonable price.

So, I say go for it, if u can find someone to ship to. If not, you will need a trip to Bestbuy then.

 

No one to ship it to. Yet. =\

Taxes, I really don't care. My budget is like $2000, so it's fineeee. Haha.

Amazon/TD needs stores. >_<

 

I think they ship internationally, dont they? Cant you just let them ship to your house? You can call them to confirm. 888-999-3600 is the number

 

Duties/taxes would be expensive as hell.

I'm going to just bring it across the border without claiming it, most likely.

If there's a moderator/reputable member in Buffalo who wants to make $50, I can ship to their house if they meet me at the Buffalo/Ontario border with it, or somewhat near it. Gosh, I want this notebook too bad now.

Bleh, we'll see what my friend says.. I suppose.