New laptop - Sager workhorse

[pailhead]

I'm about to buy a new laptop, a sager 5790

 

http://www.pctorque.com/sager-5790-gaming-computers.php

 

The rig looks perfect, and i'm going for the 2.2 cpu and 4gigs of ram. The only thing that i'm not sure about is the video card. There's an 8 series dx10 card which costs $100 less than the top of the line 7950gtx. I'm not really a hardcore gamer but i definitely like to play games, so i'm not sure what to do. It seems to me that at this point it's only a question of saving a $100 which i don't mind sparing for something that's better.

 

Any thoughts?

[AJLynn]

If I'm reading this correctly the 7950 is the desktop version. It will use more power, and the 8700 will probably be more than enough for anything you're going to do.

[pailhead]

I think its the GO version, i already have the 7800gtx go, it's predecessor. I fear that the 8700 is too inferior in the series, but i guess that it will be a while until the 8800gtx comes out.

[Macpod]

If desktop performance is anything to go by, the 7950 will be slightly faster than the 8700.........although i don't think a 7950GTX desktop card ever came out? ive only heard of the GX2 which is another beast altogether.

 

but the 8700 will consume less power, is cheaper, is DX compatible(not that relevant) and will play any game on the market today.

[pailhead]

I wouldn't really mind the extra $100 if it's going to serve me for the next 2 years. I'm not sure about the battery life, i'd have to take a look at some comparisons (but so far i haven't found any reviews) but i thought that battery life is something you need to forget anyway when you're thinking 17".

[Macpod]

well.........both will be enough for the next two years if you are talking about work stuff but neither will let you play new games at full resolution that will come out next year. the 7950GTX wont let you play any of the DX10 games at all.

 

if you need to use this comp for 2 years then go for the 8700, its not as fast as the 7950GTX for current games but it will atleast let you play DX10 games.

 

8700 will be easier on the batteries. I think the 17inch macbook pro gets 3-4 hours and it has a similar graphics card.

[pailhead]

I don't think that it's possible to squeeze out 3-4 hours out of a 17" laptop. The screen alone will consume a lot of power, although i've never worked on a mac, maybe apple has figured something out that the competition hasn't.

 

Anyway, i decided that i will go with the 7950 GTX, but now there's another dilema that i'm in. SCREEN

 

I already own a 17" sager with the glossy 1920x1200 screen. I don't really pay much attention to the reflections, but sometimes it does get in the way.

The resolution is really tiny, so i'm trying to figure out if i really do get more workspace, or just a cleaner picture. Because of the screen size, i find myself zooming in on my workspace all the time. On a 24" screen with the same resolution i could see the big picture, on a 17" i find myself looking at details all the time, so i'm not really sure if i actually have any benefits from a higher resolution.

 

The WSXGA is matte, and cheaper, i dont know if i should go with that.

[reflexion]

have a look at http://www.rjtech.com, they build custom laptops.

 

The sager is only a clevo m570mu prebuilt. It may end up cheaper to try rjtech.

 

Just for the info, I have the exact same computer and I get 2 hours MAX of battery life. (t7200, 7950gtx, 2gb 1 x 160 and 1 100gb 7200rpm

 

If I was you, I would go with the 1600x1024 resolution. I have the 1900x1200 and I dont even use it cause its givin me headaches

 

 

 

 

M570RU Clevo M570RU Notebook Computer, 17" LCD

$1,289.00 $1,289.00

Display: 17 WSXGA+ Matt

Video Card: nVidia 7950 GTX 512MB $100.00 $100.00

CPU: T7500 $360.00 $360.00

DDR2 Memory: 2GB DDR2/667 - 2 $110.00 $110.00

Memory Brand: Corsair $20.00 $20.00

HDD: 100GB SATA 7200rpm $130.00 $130.00

CD: 8x DVD+/-RW DL

External FDD: None

Battery: 8-Cell Li-Ion Battery

AC Adapter: Standard

Network Adapter: Integrated GBLAN

WLAN: Intel 4965N + Bluetooth $45.00 $45.00

OS: None

Software: None

Carry Bag: Included

TV Tuner: None

Warranty: 1 Year

LCD Protection: None

Installation: Install

Ship Schedule: Regular

Total: $2,054.00

[pailhead]

I've speced out the one that i'd like to get from sager, and it's about $100 more.

 

 

I think that i might go with the wuxga again... i don't really mind the resolution, but i would like to know if a matte screen would be more comfortable.