gaming laptop help
I'm currently looking to buy a gaming laptop without breaking the bank, mainly for playing just sims... I've found these two https://www.bestbuy.com/site/dell-g7-15-6-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i7-16gb...
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@FaithCarbo Both those laptops are good, and both have their drawbacks. The first only has a small (128 GB) solid state drive, so you've have to install everything on the larger, and much slower, HDD. This wouldn't affect how TS4 runs, but you'd definitely notice it with other apps, or when you were downloading files (music, movies, etc.) in anything more than small amounts. Also, you could do better on the price. (I'm not a huge fan of Dell, either, but it's not terrible.)
The second one has an even stronger graphics card, although the first one's model is strong enough, but its processor is significantly weaker. This wouldn't affect TS4 either, at least not now, but you might notice the difference a couple of years down the road. I do like its large SSD though, as well as its price.
I looked around a bit, and I found a few other options for you to consider. This one, at $1000, has the same 8750H and 1060 as the first model you found, and an IPS screen, although still 15.6". Some Acers have heating issues, but this model's reviews are excellent.
https://www.amazon.com/Acer-Predator-Overclockable-Aeroblade-PH315-51-78NP/dp/B07CTHLX8C
It does have one drawback, which is its single 256 GB SSD. But it has a user-accessible slot for a second 2.5" drive, so you could get, say, one of these 1 TB SSDs for another $108. (Be sure to check your user manual before ordering it, but almost all drives are compatible with almost all computers, as long as you get the correct form factor, in this case 2.5".)
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Inch-Internal-MZ-76Q1T0B-AM/dp/B07L3D19MY
If do-it-yourself isn't your thing, I found a few more options that are all variations on the same computer, with the same processor and graphics card. This one is the cheapest, at $1150 with an additional $100 rebate, and the only one with a 15.6" screen.
This one is on sale for $1180 for the next six days. Its advantages over the one above are that its larger drive is an SSHD, which will be a bit slower than an SSD but significantly faster than an HDD; and that it has a 17.3" screen.
If you really want a better graphics card, the good options start at a bit more. There are several, but this one, at $1325, looks like the best way to go, although I didn't do as thorough a search for the stronger cards.
https://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Tracer-III-17-Turbo-VR-300
And of course, if you have any questions, or these aren't quite what you want, feel free to ask.
Thanks so much! Will defintley look into those options!
- Hey so out of all that you listed what do you think would be best option? All vary around same price so I'm not worried about price just want best performance.
@FaithCarbo All of these computers are well made and have good reputations, running more demanding games than TS4 quite well. You could expect any of them to handle TS4 on ultra settings for the lifetime of the laptop. Plus, all of the companies (besides Cyberpower) make good monitors too, so I'd expect their screens to look great.
If I were buying, the biggest differences to me would be the graphics card and the hard drives. A solid state drive is much faster than a mechanical drive, and a bit faster than an SSHD; and I'm impatient. So I'd cross off the middle models. My laptop's 15" screen is enough for me, but if you'd like using a 17" screen more, then the last model is the way to go. I would also be happier with the newer and somewhat stronger graphics card, not for TS4 but because I anticipated possibly wanting to play other games that would benefit from the extra power.
The bottom line is, do the extra features of the Cyberpower justify its extra price? For the Acer, you'd spend $1000 before tax on the computer, plus another $110 on the extra 1 TB SSD. If I were buying the Cyberpower, I'd upgrade its default 512 GB SSD to the 1 TB version ($50), and get the faster RAM ($30). So the total price would be $1405, although you could pass on either of those upgrades if you weren't interested. The difference in RAM speed is minimal, and more internal storage is only worth it if you're going to use it.
Is the extra $300 worth it to you? I honestly think it's a close call, and it will partly depend on how long you plan to keep this computer. The longer that is, the more the money is justified.
P.S. I just noticed that Cyberpower is offering a free $50 AmEx gift card for orders placed today, so be sure to grab that if you go with that laptop. There's always something on sale though, so don't worry if you miss it.
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