Graphics Card DILEMA! ? :O

So i've decided that i was going to purchase a laptop and unfortunately, i'm going to have to give up my pc to my parents for this laptop. Currently my pc is an Intel 3.0 ghz, 1.5gb ram, and a 6600GTOC BFG GeForce. I mainly play games like Counter Strike Source and hopefully the new TF2.

Now picking a laptop, i can not figure out which graphics card i want.
I can chooose
NVIDIA GeForce Go 7150M (UMA) ( 17" Resolution of 1440 x 900 )
or
NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS ( 15.4" Reslution 1280 x 800 )

The other specs are about the same
AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual-Core TL-58
2 GB ram

Main thing i really want to ask is if i can still run all the same things i can run on my pc with the 7150. Because i want the 17" and i have yet to find a decently priced laptop with 17" and the 8400 card. If everything works fine and great with the 7150 i would probably go buy it this weekend. But if for example the fps with the 7150 may not be as good as what my pc might be then i may have to hold out for a cheaper laptop with 17" and 8400.

Your answers are greatly appreiciated.

 

The 8400M will kill 7150M in gaming. I don't think either of the cards will have comparable performance to your DT 6600GT though. There are 17" notebooks with 8600M GS (*cough HP cough*) or 8600M GT. I don't know your price range so this is all I can tell you. CS:Source will run a lot better on 8400M since it's dedicated card whereas 7150 is integrated.

 

Well my price range is pretty 1000$ canadian, and I'm not looking for like 100fps on high settings. I"m just looking for something to get maybe just some nice smooth graphics, doesn't have to be top notch or anything. Right now i'm getting maybe 30 fps with my pc on high for CS:S. And those specs are from HP. And i'm not planning on playing the new games that might come out on my pc like crysis and direct x10 games.

 

The 7150 is unsuitable for any kind of reasonable settings or resolution on a 17" screen. The 8400M-GS is okay, but even it's desktop equivalent can't match the 6600GT, so the laptop card doesn't really come close. If you want any kind of comparable gaming performance to your old system, look for a Go7600, Mobility Radeon HD2600, or 8400M-GT or better. You could check out a Dell Inspiron 1520/Vostro 1500 with the 8600M-GT, which should work very nicely for you.

 

Resolution effect that much? currently on my pc i'm playing on 20" 1680 x 1050.
I really like larger screens, i don't know why. =/

 

if dell sells in canada I guarantee you can get a vostro for under $1000 with an 8600gt which will play cs on max with over 30 fps

 

yeah, I was going to recommend the Vostro, too. you can configure it better than those other 2 for 800-1000, and even less if you snag a coupon.

 

Resolution has a huge effect on gaming performance. The 8400M-GS is really unsuitable for gaming at any resolution above XGA, or perhaps WXGA. If you like larger screens look into a Dell Vostro 1700/Inspiron 1720 with an 8600M-GT.

 

Dells huh? I don't know about the laptops but a lot of my friends that have had their pc's had always complained about it always breaking down and everything. Hopefully they've changed this for the laptops and there are less problems?

 

I own the Dell Vostro 1500 with 1440x900 LCD and 8400M GS. CS:S plays well on it, but since you have the budget I'd step it up for a Vostro 1500 with 8600M GT.

Go here, click "Customize it" on the $749 model, Add the $50 LCD screen (middle option, 1440x900) and the $150 8600M GT, then it will be $949 plus tax. And I think that's in Canadian. If you aren't going to get the 8600M GT, then go with the Vostro 1400, it'll be a better deal with the 8400M GS.

 

Now Ram. How much is required? Is 1GB enough? will 2 be too much?
Also, i'm new to laptops so i was wondering if the graphics card be upgraded in the future like pc's can?

 

The graphics cards, in 99% of the laptops, will not be upgradeable. There's a thread about it linked in the sticky. For RAM, if you're using Vista you'll want at least 2GB, with XP at least 1GB. 3GB for Vista and 2GB for XP is preferred if you do alot of high end gaming.

 

End game being like.... the future games with Direct X 10 ?
I won't be doing much future gaming. When that comes i'd probably try to get a pc.

 

Was just looking at the Dell Vostro 1700 cause i like the 17".. and just wondering if
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5470 (1.6GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB)
is enough? the upgrade is another 200$ :S

 

What kind of games do you play, and what else do you use the computer for? Most likely, the T5470 will be fine.

 

I generally just play CSS and hopefully the new TF2.. Used to play World of Warcraft, but i've quite that horrible game .. I'm not quite planning on playing the crazy new games like Crysis yet, if i do, i'd probably would want to play that on a pc. So nothing to hardcore, simple games that are currently out.

 

Another vote for Vostro 1500 8600m GT here. Can't speak for durability/longevity since I've only had it a month, but so far pretty solid. Good deal at this point in time. The contsruction seems rugged too.

 

Well I'm playing on a vostro 1500
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5470 1.6GHz
8400 GS
2 GB ram
xp

CS:S and Half life 2 at 1280x 800
Most settings on high
Runs pretty good.
If I had more $$ I would have up the Vid card to the 8600gt
But tight budget

 

Alright i just saw this laptop in the paper, pretty decent i think here are the specs.

Intel Core 2 Duo T5250 1.5ghz
17"
Nvidia GeForce 8600M GS
2gb Ram.

Only thing that i'm wondering is the cpu. Others that i have seen were like 5450 1.6ghz but this is obviously different... But i wouldn't know how much worst compared the two since i haven't tried them or anything. What do you guys think?

 

For a 17" those specs look underpowered to me. The processor is really slow compared to the T7xxx series and you're getting an 8600 GS which is not as powerful as its GT big brother. Unless you're getting a below-average price for a 17" laptop go with htwingnut's Vostro specs.

 

Hmmm alright, i have one last question.
Cpu
Intel Core 2 Duo T5250 1.5ghz this means it dual core which means 2... does that mean it runs as like a 3.0 like my pc cpu intel p4 3.0 ?

and also
What if it was a 15" Intel Core 2 Duo T5250 1.50Ghz 8400GS 2gb Ram.
Sounds similar to the 17" but this is 15".

 

Performance between both CPUs is likely to be the same speed-wise but the Core 2 Duo should be better because of a faster FSB.

 

15" Intel Core 2 Duo T5250 1.50Ghz 8400GS 2gb Ram.
I think after a long while of research, that is the laptop i will be purchasing.
I hope it all works well =/

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pr...angid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10093796&catid=25315
Please let me know what you guys think!!

 

Well im in the same boat as you. Im up in the air between a vostro 1500 and vostro 1700. I have been out of gaming for awhile but look to do some gaming with a new laptop. This 7 year old desktop is very outdated and dying quickly.

Something like $779 for the vostro 1500 with the GeForce 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8600M GT and only $949 for a vostro 1700 with the same video card 160GB ram over 120GB ram on the vostro 1500. Same processors.

Bang for buck...its up in the air between 1500 or 1700. Have not seen any other computers with taht great of a video card around the same $700-1000 price range.

Threerick - I checked out some of those pavilions in a local store around here i really liked them, they feel really great, nice quality. As long as your not doing serious gaming i think you will be fine.

Unfortunate i dont get any hands on feely-feely with Dells

 

I've actually decided to go with the 1500 Vostro
15 Inch
Intel Core 2 Duo T7300 ( 2.0 GHz )
2GB Ram
256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT

The main reason why i didn't really wanna go for dell was because it was not stable with all my friend's Dell PCs. And second of all, i hate ordering online cause i'm paranoid with putting my credit card and such up on the interweb. Also i hate shipping, i want it RIGHT now. But Seeing that the price is exactly the same as the ones i listed above and Does not even come close to the Vostro 1500 ( performance wise ) I've decided to take a shot at it. Rather be happy and wait then complain how it's not what i wanted when it's too late

 

The Vostro 1500 with your specs is going to rock the boat if you're going to play the likes of CS:S and TF2 .

 

Now, with this new laptop, do you think, it will be possible to play that new game that will come out soon, called Crysis? Heard it would be pretty awesome.

 

If your going for an 8600M GT I would definitely either consider Dell or HP. I've had experience with dell and have been EXTREMELY unimpressed but I think I've just had bad luck (they have POOR customer service), but either way I would actually call up Dell and they will drop a hundred or 3 off of the price of the notebook. Use this guide from someone on the forum:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=2297993#post2297993

Remember, I called up Dell just to mess with it. One rep gave me over $300 off a $1700 laptop and offered to get her "manager" involved and see if they can go lower. Some other guy told me the lowest he could possibly go was $100 off. Remember to "shop" around for reps. Find a nice rep that is willing to give you the best deal. Sometimes its best to go in with a story of some kind to motivate them. I've thought about being honest and telling them that I was just rep shopping and seeing who would go the lowest (since I assume they go by commission). However, the story that I went with was that I had previously called many other name brand laptop companies and spoken with representatives and told them to give me the BEST PRICE POSSIBLE. I refused to tell her the prices that they gave me as that wasn't really fair to the other companies, and I would tell her that other companies had given me a lower price for a laptop that was essentially exactly the same. Don't be afraid to call back and try again, and don't worry if you mess up. At the end see if you can get a quote and be creative. It's a bunch of fun :-D

EDIT: I recommend anyone do this even if your not wanting to buy a laptop. It's crazy fun, and it's insane how much Dell will drop the price (not so much on their XPS systems though).
I've done this with Toshiba also with their Satellite X205 SLI-1 laptop, but I could only get them to drop $100. It didn't help that it was a non-customizable laptop. Good luck!

 

I've just purchased the
Vostro 1500
T7300 2.0ghz
2gb Ram
8600M GT

my first budget was only 1000$ and... i just can't resist paying more for such greater performance :S... but well worth it i guess.