Good Laptop For £1000

[jarif]

When i finish my GCSE's i want to buy a awesome laptop for £1000 that can run skyrim with ULTRA ENB mods like RealVision like a beast. Im interested in getting an Alienware.

• Can you help me what to get including Desktop or Laptop?. Im not a Computer expert also
• what ENB is best for skyrim without lag?
• Should i get Alienware....

 

[snapzit]

I like a desktop for gaming or other intense use. I built the one I am using two years ago and haven't had a bit of a problem or lag. With all the parts, no software, it cost around $1,700 US to build. Laptops are fine if you need portability, but they tend to overheat, so use a cooler of some sort if you get one. With a good desktop, you can change out a fried graphics card if you have to, upgrade CPU, add fans or liquid cooling, and expand your hardware selection.

Here's what I have:

Intel i7 2600k CPU, unlocked
Asus P8P67 pro motherboard (AMD Crossfire & Nvidia SLI capable)
Nvidia GTX 560 Ti twin Frozer GPU
850 watt modular power supply
CPU cooler - heat sink & fan
8 GB RAM
Sound Blaster X-fi Titanium PCIe sound card
1 TB hard drive
Media card reader
DVD writer/reader
Blu-ray writer/reader
Full sized case with 4 fans installed, set up for adding 3 more if needed. Individual fan controls.

The motherboard, CPU and GPU can be overclocked if I want to, but so far I haven't seen a need for it.

Alienware is just a fancy (and expensive) Dell computer. There are other gaming laptops on the market. If you want to get one, look around on Google to compare features and price. The gaming laptops are all pretty expensive. A desktop will cost less, have a bigger screen and will probably be more durable.

Unless you really need the portability, I'd go with a good desktop. You'll have a bigger choice of components and monitor size, and a more durable machine for the money. I just did a quick search, and all of the laptops I saw were at least as expensive as my desktop; many of them were much more expensive. You can put the money you save into a beautiful monitor, back-lit mechanical keyboard or programmable mouse.

Your ENB and/or mod choices will be dictated by the quality of your computer, and particularly your GPU and sufficient RAM.

 

[Daelon DuLac]

When i finish my GCSE's i want to buy a awesome laptop for £1000 that can skyrim with ULTRA ENB mods like RealVision like a beast. Im interested in getting an Alienware.

• Can you help me what to get including Desktop or Laptop?. Im not a Computer expert also
• what ENB is best for skyrim without lag?
• Should i get Alienware....

Considering 1K pounds is almost 2K USD, you should most definately be able to find something great! I'm only spending 1K USD over here to have an entire tower built for me with all the latest and greatest and that includes a 30% markup for the assembler!

 

[Daelon DuLac]

I like a desktop for gaming or other intense use. I built the one I am using two years ago and haven't had a bit of a problem or lag. With all the parts, no software, it cost around $1,700 US to build. Laptops are fine if you need portability, but they tend to overheat, so use a cooler of some sort if you get one. With a good desktop, you can change out a fried graphics card if you have to, upgrade CPU, add fans or liquid cooling, and expand your hardware selection.

Here's what I have:

Intel i7 2600k CPU, unlocked
Asus P8P67 pro motherboard (AMD Crossfire & Nvidia SLI capable)
Nvidia GTX 560 Ti twin Frozer GPU
850 watt modular power supply
CPU cooler - heat sink & fan
8 GB RAM
Sound Blaster X-fi Titanium PCIe sound card
1 TB hard drive
Media card reader
DVD writer/reader
Blu-ray writer/reader
Full sized case with 4 fans installed, set up for adding 3 more if needed. Individual fan controls.

The motherboard, CPU and GPU can be overclocked if I want to, but so far I haven't seen a need for it.

Alienware is just a fancy (and expensive) Dell computer. There are other gaming laptops on the market. If you want to get one, look around on Google to compare features and price. The gaming laptops are all pretty expensive. A desktop will cost less, have a bigger screen and will probably be more durable.

Unless you really need the portability, I'd go with a good desktop. You'll have a bigger choice of components and monitor size, and a more durable machine for the money. I just did a quick search, and all of the laptops I saw were at least as expensive as my desktop; many of them were much more expensive. You can put the money you save into a beautiful monitor, back-lit mechanical keyboard or programmable mouse.

Your ENB and/or mod choices will be dictated by the quality of your computer, and particularly your GPU and sufficient RAM.

I'm guessing the 1TB RAM and 5TB harddrive I'm having built is a little bit of overkill then. I just want to be sure that I can play all the ES stuff easily and that my other 1/2 can play all the Star Wars stuff smoothly.

 

[Joker]

I'm guessing the 1TB RAM and 5TB harddrive I'm having built is a little bit of overkill then. I just want to be sure that I can play all the ES stuff easily and that my other 1/2 can play all the Star Wars stuff smoothly.

No, not overkill, not at all.....

 

[utael]

how the hell do you get 1TB of ram? honestly no computer or operating system you can commercially get can handle that much.

 

[Dagmar]

how the hell do you get 1TB of ram?

You don't. RAM sticks max out at 8GB each and mobos only host up to 8 slots for them. Windows 8 Professional and Enterprise cap out at 512 GB so anything more is a total waste of money but even without that fact it's a waste of money for the overwhelming super-majority of PC users to have more than 8GB of RAM even for hardcore PC gamers. Unless you run multiple applications from a professional design suite your PC is never even going to approach using 8GB of RAM.

 

[utael]

You don't. RAM sticks max out at 8GB each and mobos only host up to 8 slots for them. Windows 8 Professional and Enterprise cap out at 512 GB so anything more is a total waste of money but even without that fact it's a waste of money for the overwhelming super-majority of PC users to have more than 8GB of RAM even for hardcore PC gamers. Unless you run multiple applications from a professional design suite your PC is never even going to approach using 8GB of RAM.

I was refering to dulac one of my jobs is to manage media servers for concerts I see two 12 u spaces filled with 3 servers each with 32 gigs of ram and needing more...

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk HD

 

[Dagmar]

I was refering to dulac one of my jobs is to manage media servers for concerts I see two 12 u spaces filled with 3 servers each with 32 gigs of ram and needing more...

I'm not sure what your point is. He's talking about his PC not a server. I was simply pointing out why he was probably joking.

 

[Halkin]

I was refering to dulac one of my jobs is to manage media servers for concerts I see two 12 u spaces filled with 3 servers each with 32 gigs of ram and needing more...

Sent from my GT-P3113 using Tapatalk HD

i'm guessing he's just having a bit of fun, i cant see 1tb ram in a home desktop lol. even the EVGA SR-2 motherboard 'only' supports 48gb thought its a few years old now being an x58 chipset. a newer board like the insanely expensive asrock x79 extreme manages up to 64gb

5tb hardrive space certainly isnt unrealistic, i have 12tb in my media server at home

 

[Daelon DuLac]

how the hell do you get 1TB of ram? honestly no computer or operating system you can commercially get can handle that much.

Not commercial. We have a group of professional gamers here in Portland that build hardware for folks (I have a friend that is a member). I would have to ask her where they get stuff, although, I am quite sure that it's not in the most up and up kind of way. You should see her systems. She's the only person I've ever met that actually has an entire room in her house dedicated to her gaming network! Apparently there are some really cool things you can do when you're really, really tech savvy. Me, I'm not that savvy so I have to pay for the priviledge!

 

[Daelon DuLac]

Just spoke with my friend w/the gaming association and, apparently the 1TB ram is based on the Intel LGA2011 S4600LH (Lizard Head Pass) Server Board. I have no idea what it is, how it's used or what it means, but, those of you who are techies would probably understand. From what little I know, all I can say is... ??? (http://www.tweaktown.com/news/22066/intel_s_latest_server_board_supports_up_to_1tb_of_ram/index.html) here's the link that she suggested I reference.

I have to bow to Dagmar here as she is obviously much more experienced in such matters than I, that, perhaps I should ask my friend to pull back a bit. From what I'm seeing on this sort of stuff, I don't really need a pentagon computer for goodness sake!

 

[Joker]

Just spoke with my friend w/the gaming association and, apparently the 1TB ram is based on the Intel LGA2011 S4600LH (Lizard Head Pass) Server Board. I have no idea what it is, how it's used or what it means, but, those of you who are techies would probably understand. From what little I know, all I can say is... ??? (http://www.tweaktown.com/news/22066/intel_s_latest_server_board_supports_up_to_1tb_of_ram/index.html) here's the link that she suggested I reference.

I have to bow to Dagmar here as she is obviously much more experienced in such matters than I, that, perhaps I should ask my friend to pull back a bit. From what I'm seeing on this sort of stuff, I don't really need a pentagon computer for goodness sake!

Hey, if you can afford it, why not? You can say for certain that the lag isn't a memory issue, and your refresh rate should be phenomenally high......Not to mention the speed of any and all applications that you would run....

 

[Daelon DuLac]

Hey, if you can afford it, why not? You can say for certain that the lag isn't a memory issue, and your refresh rate should be phenomenally high......Not to mention the speed of any and all applications that you would run....

Since it is also my intention to use this computer for my graphic/video work and my desktop publishing empire, I have to agree with you that, maybe it might be interesting. I'll let y'all know what kind of performance I get and the final cost w/specs when it's done at the end of August (why so long? don't ask me). As there's a 30% markup on the billing for it, I would assume actual would be around $800. Not a bad option for anyone who actually does know how to build their own system!

 

[Halkin]

Just spoke with my friend w/the gaming association and, apparently the 1TB ram is based on the Intel LGA2011 S4600LH (Lizard Head Pass) Server Board. I have no idea what it is, how it's used or what it means, but, those of you who are techies would probably understand. From what little I know, all I can say is... ??? (http://www.tweaktown.com/news/22066/intel_s_latest_server_board_supports_up_to_1tb_of_ram/index.html) here's the link that she suggested I reference.

I have to bow to Dagmar here as she is obviously much more experienced in such matters than I, that, perhaps I should ask my friend to pull back a bit. From what I'm seeing on this sort of stuff, I don't really need a pentagon computer for goodness sake!

oh my that is quite tasty!

 

[Dagmar]

LOL. That's a server board for use in server networks for high performance computing not a PC mother board. Server board RAM sticks are available in 16GB size. Server boards set up with 1TB RAM, as the article implies, are meant for high end applications such as running a website that hosts lots of streaming media.

Your OS is likely to be a Linux-based OS (the Enterprise version of Windows 8 can "only" use 512GB of RAM) unless the intent is that the machine will run multiple desktop environments.

It's your money but for PC gaming, unless you're using it to host an online gaming platform, it's an understatement to say that it's overkill. There isn't a single PC game that will tap into even a tenth of the RAM capacity. Ditto for any commercial software designed for use on a desktop PC.

Did you give them an actual price range? Server boards generally cost more than PC mother boards and that particular server board costs over $1,000 for the current version on the market. I know they said that it's not that actual board but if the board is based on the same architecture I don't see how it can be so cheap that the entire PC will end up being $800 with a 30% markup, especially when the most current high end video cards cost over $400 and the cost of 1TB of RAM is likely to be over $400 as well (an 8gb stick for PC mobos is over $50).

 

[Daelon DuLac]

LOL. That's a server board for use in server networks for high performance computing not a PC mother board. Server board RAM sticks are available in 16GB size. Server boards set up with 1TB RAM, as the article implies, are meant for high end applications such as running a website that hosts lots of streaming media.

Your OS is likely to be a Linux-based OS (the Enterprise version of Windows 8 can "only" use 512GB of RAM) unless the intent is that the machine will run multiple desktop environments.

It's your money but for PC gaming, unless you're using it to host an online gaming platform, it's an understatement to say that it's overkill. There isn't a single PC game that will tap into even a tenth of the RAM capacity. Ditto for any commercial software designed for use on a desktop PC.

Did you give them an actual price range? Server boards generally cost more than PC mother boards and that particular server board costs over $1,000 for the current version on the market. I know they said that it's not that actual board but if the board is based on the same architecture I don't see how it can be so cheap that the entire PC will end up being $800 with a 30% markup, especially when the most current high end video cards cost over $400 and the cost of 1TB of RAM is likely to be over $400 as well (an 8gb stick for PC mobos is over $50).

Thank you! This is very helpful. I do know that the quote on the board is about $400 by itself (one of the group actually works for Intel so is getting it or something similar at cost).

As you're the expert, I think I'll need to have a conversation with my friend. As I'm not all that build savvy, your advice is priceless. Perhaps it really would be better if I just bought something off the rack rather than had it built and had my friend simply install extra RAM and harddrive space as well as make sure that the video/graphics and sound cards are the best. I wondered why she was saying that the tower would need to be so large and that I would need so much room.

I actually found a couple of HP's that seem to fit all the specs that have been quoted in this thread for around 1000 USD (but I understand that HP has a tendency to overheat), both w/8GB rams or a Dell for around 1200 with 16GB. Neither have nVidia's (they both have Radeon HD 7750's). I like the Dell because it has a 3TB+ (3526GB) on the harddrive. If the nVidia is the way to go though, I do have the option of an Asus or an HP. It would be nice to be able to afford one of the 6K ones, but, please... why would I spend more on gaming than I would put down on a new car!

Thoughts?

 

[utael]

Not to mention servers don't have great video card capability they are designed to send data out the network not to keep graphics on the machine. Is check twice before someone says they can build you a machine with 1000$ with specs like that

 

[Daelon DuLac]

Not to mention servers don't have great video card capability they are designed to send data out the network not to keep graphics on the machine. Is check twice before someone says they can build you a machine with 1000$ with specs like that

All I can say is that I am thankful that y'all are to tech savvy. Great advice. I think it may be best just to buy the desktop and upgrade from there.

 

[Dagmar]

Your friend is clearly getting you the server board at cost so it's extremely tempting to take it regardless if the overall build is going to be in that range. I'm still skeptical though because as I mentioned, while RAM is generally cheap, in that volume it should cost hundreds of dollars even on volume discount. Ditto for the video card. Then of course there are the costs of the other components (CPU, cooling system, power supply, tower case etc.)

If the team putting your PC together does this all the time for PC gaming rigs I wouldn't be too concerned with how the PC as a whole performs but I really have to question the whole point of even using the server board. It's rather unorthodox and certain components are not readily commercially available for normal desktop PC consumers if they need to be replaced (e.g. the 16GB RAM sticks).

As I mentioned before the RAM is wasted for anything outside of high performance computing for running multiple professional applications that most people don't even use and I always find it highly questionable when PC manufacturers, custom or off the shelf, try to sell a configuration with more than 8GB of RAM to the general market. Also, while an extra 8GB of ram is relatively cheap and what I see in a lot of builds (16 total), but an extra 1016GB is not.

Gaming towers are larger because the larger dimensions allow for better air circulation for cooling or, for liquid cooling systems (for room for the reservoir and kink free tubing).

I wouldn't get off the shelf regardless. Even if you don't use your friend's group to build the PC there are plenty of sites that allow you to customize the parts on your computer with much more flexibility than retailers like Dell and HP. CyberPower is one of the more popular ones.