Gaming laptops on a budget / bare minimums for good performance

I'm thinking about buying a new laptop, but i'm on a budget, trying to keep it close to $1000. I'm a little bit tech savvy, but I'm by no means an expert or authority on gaming rigs, and the bare minimums I need to smoothly run current games.

I've priced out a few different laptops, of all sorts of brands. Obviously, there are many different conflicting opinions on which brands are , largely based on personal experience and preference.

This is what I'm looking at right now. Wanted to know what your opinions were, and if you had any reccomendations.


3rd gen intel i7-3610QM @ 2.3GHz, 6MB L3 cache
NVIDIA GeForce GT650 w/ 1gb GDDR5 memory
8 gb DDR3 memory (2 dimm)
750 gb 5400 rpm hard drive

All replies appreciated

 

GT650m is slightly on the weak side. Try this:
MSI GE70 0ND Gaming i7 3610QM 8 gig Nvidia GTX 660M 2 GDDR5 - SteelSeries key | eBay

3610qm, GTX 660m although manufacturer refurbished

 

I know it is a little over $1000 but this Sager 9130 should be good for a few years (plus you can upgrade the GPU) GenTech PC - Systems
There is some excellent info here on it: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sag...1-pm150em-faq-thread-read-before-posting.html

 

What about used laptops still in warranty? You can find near maxed out M17xR2/R3 for that much still in warranty. M17xR2 with 5870M CF with non-extreme i7 in warranty can be found under 1k with 1200p RGBLED screens. You can probably get R3 with i7 quad + 6970/6990M for pretty cheap too.

Also you didn't mention which games you are going to be playing, that makes ALL the difference. Games like Civ 4, GTA4, SC2 require a bit more CPU horsepower than GPU to a certain point.

 

might be better posting here > What Notebook Should I Buy? - A Laptop Buyers Guide and filling out this > http://forum.notebookreview.com/wha...ould-i-buy-form-must-read-before-posting.html

 

Hello,

If you are planning to get a 3rd gen i7 CPU + gaming GPU, I would strongly suggest bite the bullet and save our hard earned cash for 7970M.
Latest 12.11 drivers became extremely stable and reliable with virtually no underutilization issues.

 

Not always up to date, but good info here.

Gaming Laptops Junky - personal gaming laptops recommendations

I'd be on the look out for a Dell Outlet coupon and a deal there. People seem to bash AW for their value (price/performance), but I got my M14X R2 for close to $700 shipped and I have no complaints at all.

 

Check out the Sager NP6350, add i7-3630QM, 660m, 8GB DDR3, Windows 7 or 8. Email larry at lpc-digital.com and he'll likely be able to get it to you for under $1000, maybe with a few extras.

Or go with the xoticpc Force (based on MSI) with similar specs: http://www.xoticpc.com/force-16ga009-msi-16ga-msi-ge60-barebones-p-5035.html

 

You can definitely get a new laptop for around $1000.00 that will play new games very very smoothly. However, be honest with yourself. Are you really going to be playing all the games out or just one or two for the next year or more. I know a lot of people who really are not tech nerds like myself and they still spend $1500.00 every year on new gear just for games like WoW or LoL. You can get a awesome used laptop, or heck, even one of the new A6 AMD laptops would do you fine. I've seen nice G74's (older models) go for around $700.00 sometimes.

I'll be honest though, I have never really gotten into modding laptops but I have always been into desktops builds etc. I've had many laptops. MSi, Toshiba, Sager, Alienware, Asus. Dell XPS', Eurocom. haha so I know whats a good deal and whats not from buying so often, but I am by no means a guru like some of these guys.


Here are some that I myself like:

Sager NP6350
Sager NP6350 / Clevo W350ETQ - XOTIC PC - 15.6" Custom Gaming Laptop

Awesome laptop. I'd either upgrade to a SSD or a i7. I think the i5's are pretty powerful.

or

Sager NP9130 - Gaming Laptop (Clevo P151EM1)

Sager NP9130 - Custom Sager Laptop | XOTIC PC - (Clevo P151EM1)

Awesomely powerful laptop for the price. If you don't mind spending 85 more bucks then don't hesitate to get this.

 

Here's an option @ $999.
Qosmio X870-BT3G23 Laptop

 

Splurge a little. MSI currently has a 7970M equipped machine that comes with anti-reflective 1080p screen, steel series backlit keyboard, and likely the best laptop speakers (means nothing, 3/4" speakers are crap, but for some reason this matters to some), and overall good build, warranty and cooling system.

Go for that. The MSI GX60. This is by far and away the best bang for the money laptop I have ever seen. If this was available when I bought mine, I would have bought it in a heartbeat. It's such an incredible value.

 

The best cost/performance Gpu now is used 670m/6970m/6990m system or GX60 which can have around 1100ish(no windows and remove every upgrade) [this of course discounting everything else...]

Edit: actually come with windows on the GX60 Oo

http://www.pro-star.com/index.cfm?m...id=20136534&ramid=80146326&batteryid=10148205

1040 if you change all the ram/hdd/cd rom options to lowest and the coupon works