[flagyl]

I have $2500.00 that I can spend from my job for educational materials, which includes computers. While I will use the pc for work, I will also use it for leisure. In the past, I always went with a desktop for the 'power' and the potential to expand with a new motherboard, hard drive, etc (I've actually never done that however...still a little too chicken to do that as of now).


I was wondering what others here thought of gaming with a laptop over a desktop. I will be playing flight sim games (with HOTAS), driving sims, realtime and turn-based strat games. I may even dip my toe in the FPS pool (but I'll probably stick with my PS3/360 for the majority of my FPS gaming).


Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

 

[Tinker]

If you want the best PC gaming then desktop. You can run many of the older racing sims like rFactor/GTR2/GTR Evo/GTR Legends with a laptop, but newer titles like DiRT2 PC or NFS: SHIFT PC will require a powerful PC and graphics card. There are gaming spec laptops but they are not really that portable, more as mobile desktop replacements but tend to be expensive. As far as flight sims again that would be dependent on the sim. MS Flight Sim requires a pretty hefty PC and graphics to make it really shine.

 

[TFCommanderBob]

From a purely gaming standpoint, Desktop is the obvious choice. You will always get better performance for the dollar, and better longevity. You would need to spend most if not all of that 2500 in order to get a laptop which will hold its own in games.


However I think the information in your post doesn't address issues that will prove more key- laptops are much more versatile because they are mobile. If this is for work, I'm sure they would appreciate you being able to bring that $2500 along.


An expensive laptop with a dedicated graphics card would probably play games to some extent (lower graphics levels), and have a blu-ray player and hdmi output for TV viewing. I would get a laptop.

 

[rr6966]

I have a couple of desktop pc's and a laptop. I use my laptop for web browsing, paying bills, some older non demanding games, but I use my desktops for real gaming and video editing etc. For $2,500 you could build a awesome game machine and buy moderate laptop for $400-600, and this would last you longer and be better value than a $2,500 gaming laptop, with a relative short life expectancy in real gaming power.

 

[DaveFi]

Laptops are made to have pretty much built-in-obsolescence, that's why they aren't very suitable for the latest game playing. The best "closed platforms" for gaming (as you previously stated) are gaming consoles. Otherwise go cheap on a laptop/portable, and then decide what you want your gaming platform to do. Gaming is moving more towards the console market anyways, so if you don't feel the need for gaming PC you can do quite well with a XBOX 360 or Playstation 3.

 

[257Tony]

With $2500 you could easily build a robust gaming desktop, and have money left over for a nice laptop for portability. Figure $1800 for the desktop, that leaves you $700 to get a really nice lappy....

 

[flagyl]

Thank you all for your replies. You guys are right...I'd probably just use the laptop for more word processing and looking at data, pdfs etc.


Any suggestions on what I should get considering my budget? I was planning on checking out Tom's Hardware and Firing squad to start (I don't necessarily want bleeding edge, but I do want good enough for a year or two of good performance before I need to think of tinkering with the pc).


Also on the subject of monitors...I was thinking of using a tv as my monitor (I have a 32" LG and a 50" Pio Kuro Elite...and I'm thinking of getting one of those Vizio LED with internet connectivity). Do you guys think that's a good idea? (I don't have 20/20 vision

).

 

[257Tony]



Quote:
Originally Posted by flagyl /forum/post/18222887


Thank you all for your replies. You guys are right...I'd probably just use the laptop for more word processing and looking at data, pdfs etc.


Any suggestions on what I should get considering my budget? I was planning on checking out Tom's Hardware and Firing squad to start (I don't necessarily want bleeding edge, but I do want good enough for a year or two of good performance before I need to think of tinkering with the pc).


Also on the subject of monitors...I was thinking of using a tv as my monitor (I have a 32" LG and a 50" Pio Kuro Elite...and I'm thinking of getting one of those Vizio LED with internet connectivity). Do you guys think that's a good idea? (I don't have 20/20 vision

).

I use a 37" 1080p LCD and love it. My desk is fairly deep, so I sit about 3.5 feet back and I really like it, especially for gaming.


As for your PC, i think a core i5, a 5850/5870 with 4-6 GB of DDR3 along with the usual quality mobo, psu, etc would make a great rig and still leave tons of money left over.