I’ve looked at these

Rock
Alienware
Dell
M-tech
Voodoo
Widow
Savrow

Well all of them seem ok but f****ing expensive. However I am going to take the plunge and forget about games like Crysis and Enemy territory (yes DarkOne its looks like the bol*kes) because if you always go for the latest games you leap frog hardware and software all of your life. So as I have Bf2, Rome total war, C&C and so on I think ill just get a laptop that plays these well. My old Desktop rig work a treat with them Athlon 3700 64 (single core), crucial balistix ram 1 gig, asus a8 deluxe, Ati 800xt 256mb, 160 gig ide hdd and so on. Now stats wise these aren’t great but if you buy the right make and model you can setup a good system but with laptops I’m a little lost. You have to payout a lot and then you are stuck with it.

Alienware- I’ve read that they where made buy a Taiwanese company as are alot of laptops, and then re-branded as Alienware. Now Dell have bought the company are they just going to get worse. They over heat and are loud but pack a punch (Amd 64 & Sli love it).

Rock- Lovely looking machines but expensive, so less people seem to have an opinion. And they don't have a big range of core duo 2. When you look at the Extreme SL that is cool but boy ill be saving all my life.

Savrow- Can't get on the website at the mo, but looked ok (similar to Rock crisp and dear) nice custom built Sony vaio.

Voodoo- look daft

Widow- couldn't have a spider on the top of the machine that look naff but girlfriend doesn't like spiders so she would leave it alone which is a good thing

M-tech- Heard differing reports about these, small company poor service, close links with silicone valley but their website is shockingly cr*p, and they seem to slag everyone off. They do have some good points about Dell and Aleinware.

Dell- nice machines, ugly though, silly lights that serve no purpose, Different laptops in Uk than America (with American Dell for the same money you get better graphics and sound card) They don't even give you a case.
However on most of the benchmarking they seem to fair well. Lastly if you spec up a Inspiron 9400 you get close to a XPS anyway for £300- £400 less (less potential for upgrades though as I maxed out the thing)

So what do I do next shoot myself I’m a bit lost now because the Dell dude on the phone said a low spec XPS would run most 2006 games, but he would say that

I would go for Dell or Rock if I could afford it.

One thing to watch out for and is not always expected - the size of the PSU. My friend purchased a Dell 9200 (old one) which had a kick ass spec, but used a 135W PSU, which was the size and weight of a house brick!

It's okay if your not travelling around with it, but if like me you have to lug the thing around every day its a pain in the ass. I would limit my choice to a system with a 90W PSU max. i.e Dell 9400. The XPS has a 135W one.

I would be tempted by the 6400 -

Components
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T5600 (1.83 GHz, 2 MB L2 cache, 667 MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows® XP Professional, SP2 (incl Operating System Re-Installation CD)
Collect & Return, 1 Year Service only
15.4" UltraSharp™ Wide Screen WSXGA (1680x1050) TFT Display with TrueLife™
2048MB 533MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM (2x1024)
80GB (7,200rpm) Hard Drive
Fixed Internal 8X DVD+/-RW with Software
256MB ATI® Mobility™ Radeon® X1400 HyperMemory™ graphics card
6 Cell, 56Whr Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Accessories
Intel® Pro Wireless 3945 802.11a/b/g Mini PCI Wireless LAN Card for Duo Processors
No Carry Case
Integrated Sound Blaster® Audigy® ADVANCED HD™ Audio- Trial Version
No Floppy Drive Option
No Snap on LCD Back Cover
Services & Software
No Security/Anti-Virus Protection
Microsoft® Works 8.5 - English
Network Assist - 90 Day Trial
Combo: Paint Shop® Pro and Photo Album® Trial
Resource CD - contains Diagnostics and Drivers
Also Includes
Internal Keyboard - UK/Ire (QWERTY)
List N10643A - BSD 6400
Inspiron Order - UK
System Documentation
English - Adobe Reader 8.5.8
65W AC Adapter
56.6k V.92 Capable Internal Modem & Adapter
Ghost 10 - 90 Day Trial
Dell™ Media Experience 3.0 Basic
Collect & Return, 1 Year Service only
Dell Internet Order.

For less than a grand.

or 9400

Components
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor T7200 (2.0 GHz, 4 MB L2 cache, 667 MHz FSB)
Genuine Windows® XP Professional, SP2 (incl Operating System Re-Installation CD)
Collect & Return, 1 Year Service only
17" UltraSharp™ Wide Screen WUXGA (1920x1200) TFT Display with TrueLife™
2048MB 533MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM (2x1024)
120GB (5,400rpm) Hard Drive
Fixed Internal 8X DVD+/-RW with Software
256MB DDR3 nVidia® GeForce™ Go 7900 graphics card
6 Cell, 56Whr Lithium Ion Primary Battery
Accessories
Intel® Pro Wireless 3945 802.11a/b/g Mini PCI Wireless LAN Card for Core 2 Duo Processors
No Carry Case
No Floppy Drive Option
No Snap on LCD Back Cover
Services & Software
No Security/Anti-Virus Protection
Microsoft® Works 8.5 - English
Network Assist - 90 Day Trial
Combo: Paint Shop® Pro and Photo Album® Trial
Resource CD - contains Diagnostics and Drivers
Also Includes
Internal Keyboard - UK/Ire (QWERTY)
List N10943 - BSD 9400 (3)
Inspiron Order - UK
System Documentation
English - Adobe Reader 8.5.8
90W AC Adapter
56.6k V.92 Capable Internal Modem & Adapter
Ghost 10 - 90 Day Trial
Dell™ Media Experience 3.0 Basic
Collect & Return, 1 Year Service only
Dell Internet Order.
Memory Upgrade from 1024MB to 2048MB
Integrated Sound Blaster® Audigy® ADVANCED HD™ Audio- Trial Version

for £1140

PSU ratings are shown in the small tech data on the Dell website.

Good luck!

Whow Horsy

Please please a little bit more of a discussion as I have researched a lot of them and the forum will have first hand experience. The 9400 you suggested is £150 pounds less than the XPS (low spec) allowing to upgrade which is one of the main reasons gamers worry about laptops. The thing is I’m tempted buy these DT replacements. Now they could be naff. The power pack doesn't bother me much to be honest but your right its somthing to consider if you use it for work and play as the last post I made suggest soz about that.

If people think that the Inspiron 6400 will do the job ill get it just to save money.


Cheers MadAnt for responding so quick 'o holely one' hehe litlle play on words mohahahaha pow pow pow pow :ph34r:

Just out of curiosity, you brit's don't have asus laptops over there? The shop i worked for sold lots of them. Always great value for money and i can personaly state that if u ever have a problem with them warrenty/RMA dealings with asus are A+ (well at least here in the netherlands.)

(i was responsible for RMA management for the shop and have expirienced several situations where Asus gave warrenty on clear user-abuse cases for example a cat peeying over laptop )

Smidsy do you think there is an ASUS that can play battlefield 2 and 2142?

No one Knows the true specs of Crysis.

Because fropm what I here Ausus and clevo and some others make most of the laptops in the world and then they are rebranded.

[/quote]
Smidsy do you think there is an ASUS that can play battlefield 2 and 2142?
[/quote]

Sure there is one, by chance it stands right besides me on my desk. Okay it's not the newest laptop out there (model's about a year old) but has Ati9800, 1,7ghz, 2gb ram, 80gb 7200rpm (to be hones i "haven't" got a clue what it costed, was a "present" from my former boss for great services rendered in the time i spent working for him).

But asus has several current laptop serie's with great hardware spec versus great value for money. Most serie's have "real" videocard sets like ati x series (700/800/1300/1600/1900) or nvidia series (6600/6800/7300/7600/7900)

@3rdegree

Did you finally find the gaming laptop for you?

I sure found mine Recently upgrade from an Asus Z92G to an Asus G2P gaming laptop. And a gaming laptop it is, it has better specs than my normal "rig"

17" model. Intel Core Duo T7400 (2,16Ghz 4MB Cache), 2048MB Ram, Ati X1700 512MB, 160GB 5400Rpm S-ATA

sure plays some nice BF2

Well i personaly would not recommend a laptop at all because we all know how they come out with a new latest and greatest graphics card in sometimes only 6 months and how a new processor comes out every year
i think you should just try and get a small desktop pc (one that has a compact case)
with that you can get a much better price and upgrade a component instead of whole computer

but. . if you insist on a gaming laptop (id sure like one if i could afford lol)
if it where me i would get the dell XPS mainly because its more first party, looks a little better, and has more support for when yours needs repaires and even upgrade service
also you definatly should wait 3 more months for them to release laptops with special quad cores, you dont have to wait but its a really big performance booster

iBUYPOWER Much cheaper and far more customizable. And you get your choice of Intel or AMD.

..err do either of you realise this thread has been necromanced and that its 2 years old ?