msi gx 640 or asus g73

hello all, in the market for a gaming laptop, had an order on the ENVY 15 but shipping delays made me cancel the order - now i am down to three laptops: the MSI GX 640, and two versions of the ASUS G73, the best buy sitting sealed in box on my room, and the G73 i can get from tigerdirect for $1550 (the 640 gig hd version - with BING which i have never used it may go down to around $1400) - question is this: i do not mind the 1600 x 900 screen on the best buy verision, but have read that it is a low quality screen as far as colors and blacks (i know this is subjective it's just that having spent $1300 on it - $1199 plus tax), i don't want to get a subpar screen) - the standard 1080 p screen at tigerdirect and xoticpc, powerpc, etc.... is the best i can get with the G73.

so do i just forget ASUS and get the GX640 (have not read many in depth comments about the screen quality (resolution is one thing, panel quality is another and in my opinion much more important). any thoughts ?

 

Well, I've heard from the forums that the GX640's screen is relatively good, while the BestBuy G73's screen is relatively poor, but I have no objective proof of that.

 

I hear the screen quality is acceptable on the Gx640, there's a nice review done here on the MSI forum.

 

Get the Asus with the 640 gb version. It has a much better screen, keyboard and better cooling as well. If you don't mind the size then definitely get the Asus its a much better bet. Don't go for the best buy version. Read the anandtech review, they specifically mention that the screen on the G73 is excellent. The MSI is only good if you need a 15 inch version, and have an extremely tight budget. The GX640 is really up in the air right now, there haven't been any reviews (except for the one on the forums).

http://www.anandtech.com/show/3662/asus-g73jha2-affordable-xlsized-gaming

 

Go for the MSI, its just ordinary, small, light, and the cooling of the 640 is fine, and not to mention the 640 is about 1000 times more easier to repair/upgrade then the asus.

Only thing the asus has is more power, but thats about it, as for the other features, people haven't said they're spectacular.

 

Or you could get the MSI GX740? It's more in competition with the G73 than the GX640.

One thing to consider: MSI backs these laptops with a 3 year warranty and 1 year accidental. Asus doesn't.

 

asus backs them with 2 years standard and 1 yea accidental.

"asus doesnt" ...really?

 

Bit of a misconception... ASUS offers 2 year global warranty with 1 year accidental on their ___ - A_ laptops. Other than that the warranty will differ depending on the retailer. For example ASUS laptops from Best Buy have a different warranty because Best Buy wants to sell you their own warranty.

As far as the two laptops go, you are comparing two fairly different machines. The gx640 is a 15in machine with an i5 and weighs just under 6 lbs. The G73 is a 17in monster with an i7 weighing 8.5 lbs. With the 640 you'll get around 2 hrs or maybe a bit more of max battery and the G73 will get 1.5 hrs if you're lucky.

 

Well, I'll be honest, I can't say anything about ASUS however, I got yesterday the 640 and sadly it isn't working anymore. I have been struggling till now with this laptop - the screen would go black all of a sudden and I had to keep powering it off, than on again. Now, it is not coming back on anymore - the fan makes noise but I cannot see the hd blinking/working. Apparently I'm not the only one having issues with this 640, and tomorrow I'll call MSI and see what they can do. I definitely want either my $1,1000 back or a functioning laptop, that's for sure.

 

my word.
I'm now torn.
I want the GX740...
but I also want the GX640
I'm just in between the $200 differnece for higher spec processor and gpu...
like...
in two years, 5870 will run games @ lets say 25fps... (heavy games), and 5850 will run them at 20...
$200 is really worth a 5 fps difference?

 

Sucks man, its the bus issues i will begin heavy investigation into the issue tommorow.

 

That's the first I've heard of the screen going black like that. I hope my GX640 is fine when it arrives.

 

my new one works perfect, also my friend got one and his is fine, u probley just got a bad egg return and replace.

 

Since you just bought it, i would suggest to call the reseller first, its brand new, amazon usually will send you another (if in stock), else you can just return it.

 

Thank you for the advice, I'll do just that then.

 

It depends on what you want out of your laptop. For me the biggest issue is portability, so that brings me to a 15in screen. If portability isn't an issue why not go for 17? $200 will give you a bigger screen, more powerful processor, and a more powerful gpu. If you tried to upgrade a 640 with the i7 720QM you'd pay a heck of a lot more than $200

 

Around 300 with free shipping off of eBay (for the proc alone).

PROOF IN THE FORM OF A LINK

 

Plus voiding a 3 year with 1 year accidental warranty...

 

You can just pop the old proc back in when you ship it back (if needed).

I have seen the inside of one of these GX640's before and I never noticed any "Warranty Void if Removed" stickers.

Apparently Asus does not care much if you remove them (Experiences with the G50VT-X5 )

 

You'd have to keep the old CPU rather than sell it if you wanted to do that, though.

 

Yes but, what I mean is, in the long run, say, 2 years from now... I might upgrade to the "newest best thing"...
Will hte 5850, and the i5-430m suffice for 2 years? thoughts?
i believe the 5850 is very powerful... perhaps the 2nd fastest single notebook gpu out there atm....
i might not game at mega-high resolutions, but at lower ones with higher graphics settings...

 

It will definitely do the job for 2 or 3 years; the difference is really not very large between the 5850 and the 5870, and 1680x1050 is a decent middleground for resolution.

 

lackofcheese, you have drawn a smile in my face.

 

I don't think there will be much difference between both computers performance wise other than the benchmark software... you might lose a couple frames here and there, but your eye won't notice the different between 40 frames and 42. If you wanted uber perfect graphics in all games you'd be going with a dual gpu laptop anyway.

 

Desktop, you mean.

 

+1 on Desktop...
I quit using my desktops a long time ago and "reserved" $1500 for Notebooks...
If I get the GX640, I could get it for under $1200, could have $300 free for games, cooling pad, etc...
*is seriously excited*

 

Well, if you wanted uber uber, then desktop... but there are dual gpu laptops for more portable gaming.

 

Also the 720qm just went down in price as a reseller upgrade at gentech, so if you really want to upgrade for $300 which the warranty in tact do that

 

Keep the old CPU if you DONT want to avoid warrenty, your allowed to swap components out just fine on the MSI.

 

Does that mean, if I dont have xotic upgrade the cpu for me, and I decide to do it myself later, that the warranty isnt void? Or is that a bit too imaginative to think?

 

I'd say its not too imaginative because its through a reseller not with MSI direct, email xotic and ask, they could possibly give you permission.