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Laptop advice

Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
I am looking for a good place to purchase a solid laptop. Are there any recommendations?

I am particularly looking for a development machine that would be capable of running the most demanding of emulators at a decent speed. I have been so out of touch with computer hardware, what would be recommended as minimal and what is considered the best hardware for cpu/video? Is quad-core worthwhile?

Thanks!
 
MasterPhW

MasterPhW

Master of the Emulation Flame
Quad Core for a laptop is a no go, if you want to work on batterie power.
And the price is just to high atm.
I've got my developing laptop from a great German shop, you can put together all the parts to fit your needs.
The bad thing is, they won't ship outside of europe, BUT I could send it to you if you like these offers. Send me a PM if you're interested.
Alienware is also great, but also expensive as hell. BUT afaik they ship worldwide and you can put together you dream laptop aswell.
You'll need a Dual Core (C2D) and a DirecX 10 capable gfx (Nvidea 8XXX) card to get back in modern coding. They will also run nearly every game without problems.
That's it atm...
 
R

revl8er

That Damn Good
For computer hardware, just get a decent dual core processor. Maybe a 2.0ghz or so. I'm sure you know to get at least 2 gigs of ram and as for the video card get a dx10 capable video card. I bought mine from cyberpowerpc but I have heard so many bad things after I got my laptop about them. I haven't had a problem with their service though, and they are reasonably priced. I wouldn't really go with Alienware due to their prices.
 
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
I am not a big fan of Dell in general, but for the most part they seem to have the best deal right now on an XPS.

I am thinking I configured a system having everything I -=need=- and it ran up to $2,200 USD. My limit is about limit is about $2,500 so I still have some wiggle room. I know I can build one hell of a desktop for that, but I need portability. Still looking for the best features vs price. I also need to do a little research to see if a 6MB cache is much better than a 4MB cache. I know the difference between 2MB and 4MB is pretty big so I am definately making sure it has 4.
 
t0rek

t0rek

Wilson's Friend
mmm, DirectX 10 is not needed for emus, and AFAIK no laptop videocard would handle the big DirectX10 titles like Crysis at High settings, so with a good Directx9 card you will be fine
 
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
I am starting to settle in on the following:

Intel Core 2 Duo T9300
4 GB RAM
GeForce 8600+

The only reservation I have is how much better I could make this if it didn't have to be a laptop! :'(
 
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
For sure. I intend to do projects that utilize x86 and x64. I also intend to use Vista and DX9/DX10 compatibility. My main desktop will be a test site for all x86-single core/DX9 compatibility tests. So my laptop needs to be the opposite extreme. I am also thinking about the 8800. I found a halfway decent laptop that I don't need to go overseas for that has what I am looking for with an 8800 GTX for about $2,200. It's about $200 over my desired budget but from what I am reading, the 8800 GTX is quite a bit better than 8700 or lower. idk... I am just about to order and forget. I hate shopping for new expensive stuff. You should see me furniture shopping. I am awful! I have to visit each store half a dozen times.

I am currently getting my heart set on : http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np5792-custom-laptop-built-clevo-m570ru-p-2276.html
 
R

revl8er

That Damn Good
Azimer said:
You can trust a store to purchase from but I wouldn't give them something I purchased to fix.
Click to expand...

Totally agree, I would probably fix it myself if possible. If it came down to it I would just take out my hard drive and let them do whatever to fix it.
 
Falcon4ever

Falcon4ever

Plugin coder / Betatester
I'm using a Zepto notebook (got it since sept 2007)
( http://www.zepto.com/country/default.aspx )

It's a Zepto Znote 6224w
( http://www.zepto.com/Shop/Notebook.aspx?notebookid=644 )
CPU: Intel Core2 Duo T7500 (2.20 GHz)
Video: NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT (512 MB)
Displaysize: 1440x900 (14 inch widescreen)
Memory: 2gb

The availabilty of CPU types changes frequently, but i think the T9xxx series can be ordered now.

What I really like about it is the low weight, good performance (I can play most new games on medium quality) and 64b/dualcore support (great if you develop stuff).
 
Last edited:
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
It is indeed a little heavy but I don't intend to lug for blocks. Most I will need to carry it is about 5 minutes while I unpack my car. I needed something this high-spec to do everything I intend to do in the future.
 
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