01/04/2009, 02:22 PM
01/04/2009, 02:33 PM
Vegetano1 Wrote:SchmilK Wrote:mac sucks
you want a gaming laptop browse here..good lapotps start at $960..skrew dell and alien ware...again like mac, you pay more for the logo...
http://www.mtechlaptops.com/
they have raid0/1/5 boot drives 2x 1gb 9800GTX in sli video cards, quad core cpu core2duo or xeon, up to 8gb ram...no mac can touch that, and it gives alot of desktops a run for the money!
Hardcore notebooks,. YEAH!!
Ok... so you have a laptop that has a quadcore, and 2 graphics cards in SLI...
So how long will your battery last?
01/04/2009, 10:26 PM
Long enough to power up, that's about it.
01/04/2009, 10:46 PM
Assassinator Wrote:At best, 1 hour in Power saver mode.Vegetano1 Wrote:SchmilK Wrote:mac sucks
you want a gaming laptop browse here..good lapotps start at $960..skrew dell and alien ware...again like mac, you pay more for the logo...
http://www.mtechlaptops.com/
they have raid0/1/5 boot drives 2x 1gb 9800GTX in sli video cards, quad core cpu core2duo or xeon, up to 8gb ram...no mac can touch that, and it gives alot of desktops a run for the money!
Hardcore notebooks,. YEAH!!
Ok... so you have a laptop that has a quadcore, and 2 graphics cards in SLI...
So how long will your battery last?
Games like a Grrl Wrote:Long enough to power up, that's about it.
A little longer...
But then, quad core (rather, performance) notebooks kill the point of notebooks. These are so expensive, so bulky and so complicated, that you'll run into problems only a little later after wasting money on them. Why not wait till you get home to start gaming? Who plays serious games on the move anyways?
02/04/2009, 06:50 PM
Some interesting points.
For customisability, I don't think that this is really a big deal amongst general users. I've actually never customised a machine further than building it. And if I did, it'd probably be the RAM/HDD, which you can do on notebooks. In many cases, upgrading the CPU will require you to change the mobo as well (and potentially many other things) unless you happened to buy a really low end CPU, then plan to upgrade to a high end later on. Graphics cards aren't really catered on notebooks anyway. I believe optical drives can be replaced and I can't think of a whole lot of PCI/PCIe cards that an average user would add on (and most of these you can get through USB or the laptop expansion thingy).
Parts breaking can be an issue, though it's something you hope doesn't happen...
Screen: for a normal desktop, you have to buy a screen anyway. So you can still do it and plug the laptop into the bigger screen.
Your average laptop today can already do many multimedia functions quite well, including watching movies, video encoding and basic 3D rendering. You'd really have to be an enthusiast to require more.
Theft and permanency... well, if you don't require portability, still having it can be a bonus if it is portable. If you leave it at home, you probably have a number of other more valuable things at home which can be 'borrowed'...
For customisability, I don't think that this is really a big deal amongst general users. I've actually never customised a machine further than building it. And if I did, it'd probably be the RAM/HDD, which you can do on notebooks. In many cases, upgrading the CPU will require you to change the mobo as well (and potentially many other things) unless you happened to buy a really low end CPU, then plan to upgrade to a high end later on. Graphics cards aren't really catered on notebooks anyway. I believe optical drives can be replaced and I can't think of a whole lot of PCI/PCIe cards that an average user would add on (and most of these you can get through USB or the laptop expansion thingy).
Parts breaking can be an issue, though it's something you hope doesn't happen...
Screen: for a normal desktop, you have to buy a screen anyway. So you can still do it and plug the laptop into the bigger screen.
Your average laptop today can already do many multimedia functions quite well, including watching movies, video encoding and basic 3D rendering. You'd really have to be an enthusiast to require more.
Theft and permanency... well, if you don't require portability, still having it can be a bonus if it is portable. If you leave it at home, you probably have a number of other more valuable things at home which can be 'borrowed'...
02/04/2009, 08:07 PM
well won't batteries get better over time too i mean one thing has to complement one another otherwise one of them would become so pointless that they have to get rid of the other one too and if batteries still are like they are today 75+ years from now wee'll see an end to notebooks cause they will have terrible battery power and the only way to use it is like a desktop and at least get yourself a desk for a desktop...
and if i must say that i prefer desktops now anyways but i guess if you would like to have a more portable desktop then go ahead and get an overpriced one (maybe depending on how good wee use our tech in the future)
and if i must say that i prefer desktops now anyways but i guess if you would like to have a more portable desktop then go ahead and get an overpriced one (maybe depending on how good wee use our tech in the future)
02/04/2009, 08:26 PM
ZiNgA BuRgA Wrote:Some interesting points.
For customisability, I don't think that this is really a big deal amongst general users. I've actually never customised a machine further than building it. And if I did, it'd probably be the RAM/HDD, which you can do on notebooks. In many cases, upgrading the CPU will require you to change the mobo as well (and potentially many other things) unless you happened to buy a really low end CPU, then plan to upgrade to a high end later on. Graphics cards aren't really catered on notebooks anyway. I believe optical drives can be replaced and I can't think of a whole lot of PCI/PCIe cards that an average user would add on (and most of these you can get through USB or the laptop expansion thingy).
Parts breaking can be an issue, though it's something you hope doesn't happen...
Like I said earlier, "your average user"... however even in that case, the desktop will be a cheaper alternative. the price difference between a semi-decent desktop and a notebook of similar configuration is vast. Also, the biggest customizability is the ability to build the system on your own. With a laptop, you pretty much have to stick with what the manufacturer provides.
ZiNgA BuRgA Wrote:Screen: for a normal desktop, you have to buy a screen anyway. So you can still do it and plug the laptop into the bigger screen.
Your average laptop today can already do many multimedia functions quite well, including watching movies, video encoding and basic 3D rendering. You'd really have to be an enthusiast to require more.
My point was the same. However, don't you think its rather stupid to buy a laptop and then also buy a bigger screen? I mean, its a double expense.
Also, an enthusiast would hardly buy a laptop for his or her primary activities.
ZiNgA BuRgA Wrote:Theft and permanency... well, if you don't require portability, still having it can be a bonus if it is portable. If you leave it at home, you probably have a number of other more valuable things at home which can be 'borrowed'...What's your point here?
02/04/2009, 09:56 PM
feinicks Wrote:Like I said earlier, "your average user"... however even in that case, the desktop will be a cheaper alternative. the price difference between a semi-decent desktop and a notebook of similar configuration is vast. Also, the biggest customizability is the ability to build the system on your own. With a laptop, you pretty much have to stick with what the manufacturer provides.Netbooks are really not that expensive these days. The configuration is weaker, but the point is, do you really need the power?
Is having an Core i7 CPU that much better than a Core 2? Apart from the aforementioned games and multimedia applications, what does the former CPU actually do better than the latter?
A AU$580 MSI Wind U100 will get you:
- Intel Atom 1.6GHz
- 1GB DDR2 RAM
- 120GB HDD
- 10in screen
- Windows XP Home
- 802.11b/g + Bluetooth
- Card reader
- 1.3MP Camera
- Laptop Keyboard/mouse
Let's say wee add another 1GB DDR2 RAM stick for AU$20 bringing the total to AU$600.
Compare the desktop:
- Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 @2.5GHz (AU$105)
- Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2L M/B (AU$78) [includes integrated video & sound]
- 2GB DDR2 RAM (AU$29)
- WD 160GB SATA HDD (AU$57)
- Coolermaster CAC-T05 with CM 460W PSU (AU$117)
- Windows XP Home (AU$155)
- Netgear WG311 Wireless PCI Card 802.11G (54Mbps) (AU$29)
- Webcam + Card reader (~AU$16)
TOTAL AU$586, and that doesn't include the screen, keyboard or mouse (let's assume you buy one of these for the netbook as well).
The desktop really isn't that much better...
feinicks Wrote:My point was the same. However, don't you think its rather stupid to buy a laptop and then also buy a bigger screen? I mean, its a double expense.Not really. Desktop » you buy screen.
Laptop » don't have to buy screen, but you still can. The laptop screen just becomes a bonus.
feinicks Wrote:Wasn't addressed to you :PZiNgA BuRgA Wrote:Theft and permanency... well, if you don't require portability, still having it can be a bonus if it is portable. If you leave it at home, you probably have a number of other more valuable things at home which can be 'borrowed'...What's your point here?
02/04/2009, 10:16 PM
ZiNgA BuRgA Wrote:A AU$580 MSI Wind U100 will get you:
- Intel Atom 1.6GHz
- 1GB DDR2 RAM
- 120GB HDD
- 10in screen
- Windows XP Home
- 802.11b/g + Bluetooth
- Card reader
- 1.3MP Camera
- Laptop Keyboard/mouse
Let's say wee add another 1GB DDR2 RAM stick for AU$20 bringing the total to AU$600.
Compare the desktop:
- Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 @2.5GHz (AU$105)
- Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2L M/B (AU$78) [includes integrated video & sound]
- 2GB DDR2 RAM (AU$29)
- WD 160GB SATA HDD (AU$57)
- Coolermaster CAC-T05 with CM 460W PSU (AU$117)
- Windows XP Home (AU$155)
- Netgear WG311 Wireless PCI Card 802.11G (54Mbps) (AU$29)
- Webcam + Card reader (~AU$16)
TOTAL AU$586, and that doesn't include the screen, keyboard or mouse (let's assume you buy one of these for the netbook as well).
The desktop really isn't that much better...
Actually, in that example, it is quite a bit better.
E5200 is more than twice as good as a 1.6GHz Atom, and the 2GB ram compared to 1GB is twice as good. 160 > 120 for HDD, and desktop HDDs are faster. The webcam and wireless aren't crucial. And the good thing about upgrading a desktop is that you can carry stuff over, stuff like DVD drive, HDDs, PSU and chasis are often carried over, saving you a bit of money.
And the CPU difference here is sort of different from your Core2 vs i7 comparison. A decent core2 (lets say E8400) can do pretty much everything you want. It can run you 2 or more 1080 vids at the same time, and play the most hardcore games out there, just as good as an i7 (games are mostly GPU), and can encode videos decently fast. So going up to i7 doesn't offer all that much benefits... But the Atom doesn't do everything you want, (you have trouble playing even one 720p vid, you can't play hardcore games, and you encode slow as hell). So going up does give you benefits.
02/04/2009, 11:15 PM
ZiNgA BuRgA Wrote:feinicks Wrote:Like I said earlier, "your average user"... however even in that case, the desktop will be a cheaper alternative. the price difference between a semi-decent desktop and a notebook of similar configuration is vast. Also, the biggest customizability is the ability to build the system on your own. With a laptop, you pretty much have to stick with what the manufacturer provides.Netbooks are really not that expensive these days. The configuration is weaker, but the point is, do you really need the power?
Is having an Core i7 CPU that much better than a Core 2? Apart from the aforementioned games and multimedia applications, what does the former CPU actually do better than the latter?
A AU$580 MSI Wind U100 will get you:
- Intel Atom 1.6GHz
- 1GB DDR2 RAM
- 120GB HDD
- 10in screen
- Windows XP Home
- 802.11b/g + Bluetooth
- Card reader
- 1.3MP Camera
- Laptop Keyboard/mouse
Let's say wee add another 1GB DDR2 RAM stick for AU$20 bringing the total to AU$600.
Compare the desktop:
- Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 @2.5GHz (AU$105)
- Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2L M/B (AU$78) [includes integrated video & sound]
- 2GB DDR2 RAM (AU$29)
- WD 160GB SATA HDD (AU$57)
- Coolermaster CAC-T05 with CM 460W PSU (AU$117)
- Windows XP Home (AU$155)
- Netgear WG311 Wireless PCI Card 802.11G (54Mbps) (AU$29)
- Webcam + Card reader (~AU$16)
TOTAL AU$586, and that doesn't include the screen, keyboard or mouse (let's assume you buy one of these for the netbook as well).
The desktop really isn't that much better...
feinicks Wrote:My point was the same. However, don't you think its rather stupid to buy a laptop and then also buy a bigger screen? I mean, its a double expense.Not really. Desktop » you buy screen.
Laptop » don't have to buy screen, but you still can. The laptop screen just becomes a bonus.
If you are looking at a computer that is to be used by a general home user. then you have to consider the fact that they will be playing Hi-Def and other hi quality format. If they want to watch movies, they will go in for big screens. At least a 19" screen. That said, the netbook you mentioned, doesn't have a large screen neither a processor that is comfortable with hi def. Also, 1080 will soon to be bettered by more hi-def standards.
Also, my argument about the screen is that you have to invest more on a big screen again, after buying a laptop. With a desktop, its pretty much part of the package.
One thing that wee haven't discussed is that the desktops them self are becoming smaller and more portable (to an extent), while becoming more and more powerful. I really don't see that laptop completely replacing desktops, for an average user, who doesn't have to work on the go.