BEST OS for Gaming/multimedia

I will be using my laptop for mostly Gaming/surfing the web and occasionally watching movies...I am hearing that XP Pro is a much better choice for gaming....which should I choose Vista or XP Pro ?? Also, IF Vista...32-Bit or 64-Bit??? I appreciate any advice you can give me!

 

Depends on your config. For the average gaming rig XP Pro will yield better performance.

 

Yeah, either that or XP MCE...

 

Thanks for the feedback - it would be a WUXGA 17'', 8800 GTX GPU, at least a T8300 CPU with 4 GB RAM, 200 GB 7200RPM HD....

 

With that config, just get Vista x64 (for 4GB of RAM). I suggest a T9300/9500 CPU.

The 5 FPS you will loose with Vista are insignifiant on a 8800GTX....

 

Interesting....thanks for the feedback....However, there are other posts that claim Vista 64 drastically slowed down certain games...namely Crysis....is this issue restricted to Crysis alone? I'm looking for the best bang for my buck....I'll get XP Pro if it's worth it, but its more expensive than Vista 64..so I'm not too sure what I should get for my purposes of gaming/movies/web surfing...plus I was under the impression the cpu was of lesser importance..as well as that the extra 2 GB of RAM would have negligible effects on gaming performance...would a T8300 suffice..would there be that much difference with a 9300 or 9500?

 

The difference between XP and Vista is very small, so unless you're super attached to XP, just go for Vista. Most people here seem to find that they like it more than XP after using it for a few weeks.

Also, unless you plan to get 4GB of RAM, just stick with 32-bit. If you want 4 GB of RAM, then go for 64-bit.

Keep in mind that most manufacturers (like Dell, HP) charge inordinately high prices for upgrading to 4GB. It's much more cost-effective to buy the lowest amount possible and upgrade to 4 GB yourself. It's usually quite easy and you'll save a lot of money.

 

I dunno, the only case I heard was someone here on this forums. It's supposed to be the same thing. Crysis uses 64bits instructions if I recall so it might just be a coding error (first x64 game?)

T8300->T9300 would have a bigger impact than 3GB RAM -> 4GB RAM.
The price difference is pretty low so....

For a good laptop:
Sager NP 5792
T9300
8800M GTX
4GB DDR2 533-667
Vista HP X64
$2300


EDIT: Just look at some benchmarks. The only difference is at low-800x600 where 32bits runs better. Otherwise it's same thing. http://www.start64.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1721&Itemid=104

 

Where are you pricing this?

 

I'll vote XP SP3 for sure.... my tests with SP3 RC1 beat out Vista x86 and x64... even with SP1

go check out:
- www.xoticpc.com
- www.powernotebooks.com
... more in Clevo Guide.

 

XP is 5-10% faster than Vista in gaming.

XP is fine, but you are buying a top-of-the-line DX10 card.
It will run XP's DX9 just fine and honestly DX9 does almost everything DX10 does right at this point in time (the DX10 particles effects are nice, though)

but... you will have an 8800GTX... and no DX10?

Given that Vista drivers, support and overall performance has jumped through the roof lately it seems very likely Vista will do the same thing XP did... overtake its predecessor as community support polishes off the stupid things microsoft did to it.

If you absolutely must have that 5-10%
(Vista at 30 fps means XP will get 33fps, Vista at 60fps means XP gets 66fps, Vista at 100fps means XP gets 110fps)
Then get XP.

Me personally?

After SP1, Vista is without a doubt overall the best Micrsoft OS IMHO.

 

Ah, thanks. I have xotic's configurator bookmarked in my browser but I thought for some reason those specs would cost much more...

Oh well

 

Nobody said SP1 would've better performances than XP.

If you want raw performances XP will be better but I doubt you're gonna see a difference, especially on a 8800GTX.

EDIT: Didn't see the 2nd page, reason to no quote.

Well, if you buy it from Dell or Alienware it will be $4000. You can buy them directly at sagernotebooks.com