Need help with laptop hunting
 

Hey,

I am in the market for a laptop. Been looking at this MSI at NCIX (Even though it's out of stock:blarg:)

NCIX.com - Buy MSI GX640-098US Intel Core i5 430M 4GB 500GB 15.4IN WSXGA+ Radeon HD5850 Windows 7 Premium Notebook - 9S7-165611-098 In Canada.

I plan on doing some gaming on it and miscellaneous stuff. It looks promising and I only play Global Agenda ATM which requires very little in graphics horsepower.

Anyways, whats your opinions on this laptop??

Nice! 5xxx series! Price is fair for what it is, considering its new. If you don't do intense gaming it is a bit excessive. Battery life might not be too hot. I only had 1 MSI and it was solidly built and well designed.

I need something with the extra horsepower when needed...If I do go to qatar, it will be a long lonely trip :bleh:.

Just need to sell my desktop now!

What's your budget like. MSI isn't known for quality notebooks, you really want to look into an Asus, Lenovo, Toshiba or even a Dell. I'm also looking for a similar notebook myself except with less horsepower than yours.

Check out the Dell Vostro notebooks, those are business class, but honestly you get about the same horsepower, the new intel i3/i5/i7 processors, 4GB RAM, depending on your model 320GB/500GB/640GB hdds also. Insiprons are cheap, but word is that their chassis is plastic and stuff, so it can be damaged easily, also the amount of glossy surfaces, very prone to finger marks everywhere.

Something like this guy.. NCIX.com - Buy ASUS N61JV-QHDA1W-CBIL Intel i5 430M 4GB 500GB 16IN HD GeForce GT320M Windows 7 Premium Notebook - N61JV-QHDA1W-CBIL In Canada.

Cheaper, (could be missing something).. but better company altogether.

if it were me i would seriously look at something from dell/ibm. Why you may ask. Both IBM and Dell have global part warehouses and excellent turnaround time for those who purchase the complete care/accidental damage protection. It would suck for you to get your new laptop. show up in qatar and find the lcd cracked.

^ yup there's perks those are great when buying a laptop. still not purchased yet ah miggs the good things are the more you wait the cheaper most things get hehe

Dell yes, but IBM is now only really good in business laptops, for mainstream/gaming you really want to look for Dell, Asus, Acer isn't too bad, it's a hit and miss. HP I won't consider, if you can afford a Toshiba go for it, they are very good laptops, and as well as Lenovo, their support is awesome. I'm not dissing MSI, but since they are almost unknown in the laptop industry, I would avoid them, I would also avoid Samsung.

Might also want to consider Sony, they really started getting their sh!t straight and getting really nice laptops, also their customer support has improved.

But I'll stick to my original recommendation, anything from Asus in gaming is your best bet, their 1yr accidental coverage warranty should be a selling point by itself, no other company offers that for free.

If you're getting Dell, avoid their Insiprons, go for their Studio Line or XPS line, much better build quality, especially their Studio Line, the chassis is well built, and the price is pretty darn good, anything more powerful than that, you'd be looking into stepping in the XPS or Alienware line.

If you don't mind it being Acer/Gateway...

Gateway 15.6" Intel Core i3-330M 2.13GHz Laptop (NV5909H) - Black - Future Shop

My cousin got it and I used it for around an hour and absolutely love it. The lowest the price has gone to was $699. I'm waiting for the price of it to drop before I pick one up myself.

If you can afford it, you should definitely go for asus / toshiba / lenovo (although lenovo dont really have gaming laptops). Asus has some great gaming laptops out there for sale, and the quality of Asus is up there. Dont ignore other brands completely, sometimes you'll be lucky to get them on sale and it'll be too good a price to pass up -- Just make sure to do your research first on the laptops, theres many reviews out there im sure.

I am still 110% sold on ASUS UL30/50/80 series notebooks. Best all around and best battery life PLUS it is so light and easy to carry.