[strange_man]

Hi everyone,

I am looking for a good laptop to take with me to university when I depart in September. Being an avid gamer, I know that getting a good laptop will be crucial, because I play games such as Half-Life 2 and World of WarCraft (and will do so in University too). Can anyone help me out?

My requirements are:
- A budget of $14000 maximum
- A processor speed of 1.83 GHz or higher
- PREFERABLY a nVidia GeForce graphics card, but if you think ATI is better (or more suited to my particular needs) then that will be fine too

Any help would really be welcome!

[lowlight]

I was in the exact same situation, check it out

[bensky]

Guys,

Check this monster out, Dell HK, Inspiron 9400

http://dellstore04.sg.dell.com/publi...05951929565596

Ben

[jayinhongkong]

I'm on my Dell 9400 right now and believe me it is INCREDIBLE!

[bensky]

Hi Jay,

I am seriously thinking of buying this laptop, all that power for 12K.

Jay, what is the weight like, because I work in HK and SZ and travel 1-2 times a week between the two cities. Is it a really shoulder busting, what is the best transport method, use a rucksack or a trolley luggage type.

Also, which LCD screen do you have, the standard or the Truelife, is it worth the extra money.

Thanks for any info,

Ben

[jayinhongkong]

Ben, it's heavy (almost 8 lbs) but it''s worth it for me. I use a slim laptop case myself. I have the regular WXGA screen - wish I'd got the WUXGA now. I do however have the Core Duo 2.0 and a GeForce 7800...

[penguinsix]

alienware has some very cool gaming laptops. But you should buy it soon as Dell just bought out the company.

[jayinhongkong]

Alienware is really overpriced though...the Dell XPS kicks ass, but it's not available here...

[strange_man]

Hey Jay,

What kind of games do you play on the 9400, and how well do they run?

Also, I was thinking about getting the Toshiba Tecra M4.. any help if this is a good choice or not?

Thanks alot!

[lowlight]

I had a Dell 9300, the precessesor to the 9400. My advice is to overclock the video card, because it comes set at a VERY low speed (you could say that the video card doesn't even deserve the name "7800" or "6800" at its default setting)

Overclocking is easy, and using NVIDIA's built-in tools, safe. It will dramatically improve gaming performance. I wouldn't bother playing games on it at all without first overclocking the video a bit.