14 replies to this topic

[Belgarion1066]

ok I want to upgrade my laptop so it can play guild wars 2 comfortably and a decent setting (and yes it has to be a laptop)

my current model is a DELL XPS M1730

system model: MXG071

BIOS: phoenix ROM BIOS PLUS version 1.10 A09

Processor: Intel® core ™ 2 duo CPU T8100 @ 2.10 GHz (2 CPUs) , ~2.1GHz

Memory: 2046MB RAM

DirectX version: DirectX 10

Display: NIVIDIA Geforce 8700M GT

if anything else is needed just ask

I don't know that much about computers so patience would be appreciated

[Silentverdict]

I'm assuming by upgrade you mean buy a new one. There aren't really any ways to upgrade individual components in most laptops.

Going with that assumption, do you want to stay with Dell? Is there a size you're looking for? How about a price point? The more info we have, the better we can help.

[Belgarion1066]

firstly do you think my current laptop could play the game?

well I would prefer to just upgrade certain parts... but if that isn't possible I suppose I could just get a new one

I don't mind if its Dell just want the best for the price

and I could spend up to £1000

[Silentverdict]

You could probably run it at low settings if you just did PVE and ranked PVP. WvW would be a total slideshow, and I'm not sure if other things would work well.

As for upgrades, I don't know many places to search for UK prices, but I found this on Dells site:

http://configure.eur...el_id=xps-l702x

It's got an i7, and a nvidia 555m, which according to notebookcheck.com should run things well.

[Guinsoona]

I'd really suggest buying a new laptop, the only way to future proof your laptop right now is dependent on whether your rig's gpu is upgradeable, and if so, to what extent.

Most Dell laptops I've seen is running a MXM-slot type card. You can almost run any MXM card, but sometimes the newer ones won't be supported by your Motherboard's bios so you have to modd it.

Save the trouble and buy a new one

Do check out this forum thread for more info http://forum.noteboo...-xps-m1730.html

As I may not be too knowledgeable of laptops aged for than 4-5years or so.

[pokerbuddy]

I would get sager.. just a little more than 1k about 1.4-1.6k depending on your configuration. 1.2k -1.5k is the best price point for gaming laptops, but most of the name brand pc manufacturers go cheap near there (except Asus an Msi, however they tend to be a little more expensive for the parts). Alienware overprices everything and usually doesn't have near the same specs like asus or msi gaming laptops, let alone sager.

I would recomend the new sager 17 in and 15 in laptops because they both have mxm for gpu cards at least (some have it for cpu). This means that they are user replaceable and upgradable (however a little trickier than a desktop respec). They also have one of the best laptop cooling systems. The cpu and gpu have their own independent heatsink and fan. The vram has its own heatsink and shares the fan with the gpu. All come standard with full HD (1080p) and lighted keyboards. The standard gpu is nvidia 670m, upgradable to a 675m and higher up a backordered 7970m HD radeon (same performance of a 6950 HD radeon desktop version, and that is saying much for a laptop). Soon the 680m will be released for the models too that will compete with the 7970m HD.

Other than the price to quality raito, I would get it not only for the good standard specs and upgradability, but also the heat control it has (I have experience with the worst laptop kind available, HP laptop... they haven't learned (or still ignore) that separating the descrete gpu heatsink and fan system from the cpu's would prevent the overheat issues (that everyone complains about with HP laptops) in the first place)

http://www.sagernote...del_name=NP9150

http://www.sagernote...del_name=NP9170

-Enjoy!

[Belgarion1066]

thanks everyone I am looking at all of them atm

with the sager u say its upgradable so in a couple of years I can change some of the insides right?

and do the basic specs play it will enough?

[Belgarion1066]

ok I've looked at the sager (17") a bit more and I'm thinking of getting:

.3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core™ i7-3820QM (2.7GHz - 3.7GHz, 8MB Intel® Smart Cache, 45W Max TDP)

.AMD Radeon HD 7970M (2048MB) GDDR5 DX11

.16GB - DDR3 1333MHz Dual Channel Memory (4 SODIMMS)

with everything else as standard

what are ur thoughts?

[Silentverdict]

That laptop would kick ass and run GW2 with no problems.

As for upgradeablility, it looks like the laptop you picked is upgradeable in the Gpu but not CPU, which I think is fine. I'm not 100% positive I'm seeing that right, but it makes the most sense to me. The CPU is going to last you a good long while, you'll probably be able to upgrade the GPU a time or two before the CPU slows you down at all.

If you've got the cash for it, I say full steam ahead.

[Belgarion1066]

thats sounds good then

yeah its a bit more than I originally wanted to spend but it is worth it

[Belgarion1066]

wat is the effect of overclocking? are there any negatives?

[Hegr]

wat is the effect of overclocking? are there any negatives?

Overclocking pros/cons are like some medicine commercials you see on tv. They list 1 great benefit and like 20 different possible side effects. So this will sound completely horrible and turn you away, but its really not that bad.

Benefit: Faster CPU
Negatives: Blue screens, increased heat, shorter lifespan, voids the warranty. Im sure there are more Ive skipped.

[Silentverdict]

Overclocking all depends on the component too. These days you can get much more performance out of CPUs overclocked than anything else, thanks to unlocked multipliers in CPUs like the always popular i5 2500k. GPUs receive some benefit, but it's usually harder to do, and you get less of a performance increase for your effort.

Generally you run hotter and less stable when overclocking, so usually the first thing you do after increasing the speeds is running your computer through rigorous tests to make sure it's stable, then keep checking the temps to make sure it's not overheating.

Big problem with laptops is they have inferior cooling than desktops due to their size, and are often designed so they keep within respectable heat limits only when running at stock speeds, so they can fit as much in as possible. Once you start overclocking, you run out of headroom FAST and the temps increase to dangerous levels.

[Belgarion1066]

hmmm is 2.7 GHz good enough to not need to over clock?

[Silentverdict]

From what I'm seeing review-wise, that processor will be fine.

Stock speeds will run things well, and you should be able to OC that card if you need to somewhat. One thing to remember though, is that the Ghz on a card only tell part of the story. A 2.7 ghz i7 ivy bridge is WAY faster than a 2.7ghz core 2quad for example, mostly because of more efficient processes among many other things I'm not nearly smart enough to understand. They're important in their own right, but it's kind of like basing everything in a video card off of the memory size. Sure that's important, and games use it for their requirements, but it only tells part of the story. Hope that makes sense.

TL;DR that computer kicks ass, you'll be happy with it