[KiaraMarissa]

Hello everyone!

I am starting to look for a good laptop for when I go to uni next year. I saw on this forum that the Dell XPS series was recommended quite a few times, so I looked into that range. I really liked the XPS 15, because the 15z is too expensive for me and the 14z has a less good graphics card.

I'm not very good at computer stuff. So I don't really understand the difference between the intel i5 and the i7 processors. They say the i7 is quicker, but on the Dell website it says that the 2nd gen. intel i7-2670QM has 2,20 GHz with turbo boost 2.0 untill 3,10 GHz, while the 2nd gen. intel i5-2450M has 2,50 GHz with the same turbo boost. Doesn't that mean the i5 is quicker? Can anyone explain that, please?

http://configure.euro.dell.com/dells...l_id=xps-l502x
This is the Dell XPS 15 and has 750 GB hard drive, 6 MB RAM, the 2nd gen i7-2670M processor and a 2GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M graphics card. It costs €829.00 = 670 pounds.
I would go with 500 GB hard drive but that one is only 5 euros less expensive, so I figured it didn't really matter.
The same Dell XPS 15 but with an i5 processor would cost around 590 pounds. So would the i7 be worth it? I will be using the laptop for browsing, word processing and playing Sims 3.

I also really liked the Toshiba Satellite L755 series, which are also a little bit cheaper. Would you say Dell or Toshiba is the better, more reliable brand?

I am not a heavy gamer, but I do play Sims 3, which needs pretty good specs and a good graphics card. So I am pretty set on a Nvidia GeForce GT series graphics card. I don't think it matters if I have 4/6/8 MB Ram and I don't really need a 750 GB hard drive either. Are there any other laptops that you think I should look at? I'd like it to still be portable, so I don't want a laptop bigger than a 15.6 inch. Also, I wouldn't spend more than 700 pounds, unless it is on the BEST LAPTOP EVAR.

I can't take my desktop since I'm an international students and will be going to the UK by plane, otherwise I would.

Wow, I'm so very sorry for the long post.

TL;DR
- Difference between i5/i7? Is i7 worth 80 pounds more?
- Laptop with 2GB NVIDIA GeForce GT series graphics card (or similar), at least 4 MB Ram, 500 GB hard drive and intel i5 or i7 processor.
- Max 700 pounds.
- Max 15.6 inches.
- Dell XPS 15 or Toshiba satellite?

Thank you so much. Any help will be appreciated!

[S1L3NTPR3Y]

The i7 is a quad core (so should run twice as fast as the dual core i5 as it has four cores and the i5 has 2 cores; albeit slightly quicker ones) and thus I would say for just £80 it will ensure your laptop can handle top programs for probably the next 3-4 years. i7 (4x 2.2=8.8) vs i5 (2x2.5=5.0) Its not quite that simple but basically the i7 will be quicker.
You don't need a Nvidia GT 2GB for the Sims 3, though if the cost difference is marginal I would say get it as that way you will able to play most games on high-ish settings, and the sims on very high. Also same for the 750 GB hard drive if it is only a few pounds more you may as well get it as it will be much cheaper than buying a portable Hard drive later. I have always thought Dell to be a reliable brand, though I never had a problem with my Toshiba either.

[0range]

I have the Dell xps 15 (8 gb version) and have to say the laptop is pretty amazing! the JBL speakers are prob one of the best you can get in a laptop, and it comes with a built in subwoofer! The 1080p screen can be a bit well damaging to the eyes if your on it for a prolonged period of time at the given setting, but you can always turn that down.
The fan is pretty loud but I think that's a good thing, because it doesn't let the laptop heat up or well burn you. It is pretty heavy as well, in term of laptop of course.

Urmm it is pretty fast and well I think it's an amazing laptop!

I'm afraid I have no clue about the toshiba
If you have any more questions feel free to ask

[Gofre]

(Original post by KiaraMarissa)
I am not a heavy gamer, but I do play Sims 3, which needs pretty good specs and a good graphics card.

Just going to quickly chime in on this, but it really, really doesn't. I run the Sims 3 on max settings with my 2009 MacBook Pro which has a humble Core 2 Duo CPU and integrated graphics. It's a pretty old game at this point, virtually any computer made in the last year will laugh in its face.

[Anetata]

I would say, if, as you say you only want to browse the internet, use word processing software and run the sims then I think the XPS series might be a little too good for this :P

If this is truly what you want to do, then I would go with the Toshiba. My 4 year old average spec laptop runs it so I don't see why the Toshiba wouldn't. The requirements for the Sims aren't quite as high as some newer games, I'm sure.

I have an i5 with 5gb ram and dedicated graphics (cba to go into more detail) and I have been running the newest games on it on medium/high (depending on game), so unless you are planning on gaming, or using animation/design/3d design software, I would go with the Toshiba.

Don't get me wrong, the Dell XPS series is brilliant, but maybe you would be wasting money if you didn't use it to its full potential


You can get a really good laptop for what you want to do with it, for less than £700 if you look - I would also look at open box deals, or if you are comfortable, grade A refurbs for even better value



and P.s: DON'T buy from PC world, you are only going to get ripped off.

[KiaraMarissa]

(Original post by S1L3NTPR3Y)
The i7 is a quad core (so should run twice as fast as the dual core i5 as it has four cores and the i5 has 2 cores; albeit slightly quicker ones) and thus I would say for just £80 it will ensure your laptop can handle top programs for probably the next 3-4 years. i7 (4x 2.2=8.8) vs i5 (2x2.5=5.0) Its not quite that simple but basically the i7 will be quicker.
You don't need a Nvidia GT 2GB for the Sims 3, though if the cost difference is marginal I would say get it as that way you will able to play most games on high-ish settings, and the sims on very high. Also same for the 750 GB hard drive if it is only a few pounds more you may as well get it as it will be much cheaper than buying a portable Hard drive later. I have always thought Dell to be a reliable brand, though I never had a problem with my Toshiba either.

Thank you so much, your explanation of the difference between the i5 and i7 was great!

(Original post by 0range)
I have the Dell xps 15 (8 gb version) and have to say the laptop is pretty amazing! the JBL speakers are prob one of the best you can get in a laptop, and it comes with a built in subwoofer! The 1080p screen can be a bit well damaging to the eyes if your on it for a prolonged period of time at the given setting, but you can always turn that down.
The fan is pretty loud but I think that's a good thing, because it doesn't let the laptop heat up or well burn you. It is pretty heavy as well, in term of laptop of course.

Urmm it is pretty fast and well I think it's an amazing laptop!

I'm afraid I have no clue about the toshiba
If you have any more questions feel free to ask

Thank you as well! I hadn't even looked at the speaker tbh, but you make them sound great, I have pretty horrible speakers atm so it should be a nice change, if I end up buying it that is. The fans being loud isn't great, though. But I won't be taking it to lectures so it shouldn't be too annoying for others.

(Original post by Gofre)
Just going to quickly chime in on this, but it really, really doesn't. I run the Sims 3 on max settings with my 2009 MacBook Pro which has a humble Core 2 Duo CPU and integrated graphics. It's a pretty old game at this point, virtually any computer made in the last year will laugh in its face.

I didn't really realise that. I assumed it needed amazing specs since it runs really slow on my desktop (which is around 4 years old I think), it takes ages for all the objects and textures to load. I do have all of the expansions as well as a lot of downloads for the game, so that could be causing it.

(Original post by Anetata)
I would say, if, as you say you only want to browse the internet, use word processing software and run the sims then I think the XPS series might be a little too good for this :P

If this is truly what you want to do, then I would go with the Toshiba. My 4 year old average spec laptop runs it so I don't see why the Toshiba wouldn't. The requirements for the Sims aren't quite as high as some newer games, I'm sure.

I have an i5 with 5gb ram and dedicated graphics (cba to go into more detail) and I have been running the newest games on it on medium/high (depending on game), so unless you are planning on gaming, or using animation/design/3d design software, I would go with the Toshiba.

Don't get me wrong, the Dell XPS series is brilliant, but maybe you would be wasting money if you didn't use it to its full potential


You can get a really good laptop for what you want to do with it, for less than £700 if you look - I would also look at open box deals, or if you are comfortable, grade A refurbs for even better value

and P.s: DON'T buy from PC world, you are only going to get ripped off.

I guess you're right, and the toshiba is slightly prettier, not that looks will determine what laptop I'll choose. I do want a laptop that'll last me 5 years, if that is even possible nowadays. I think it might take longer for newer laptops to be much better than the XPS. I mean that the specs can still compete with them in two years. Maybe not.
Besides, the toshiba with i5 is only slightly cheaper than the XPS with i7. And I'm a really impatient person so the quicker the better.

I'm hoping I don't sound dumb now, but I don't really know what open box deals and grade A refurbs are? So if anyone could explain that, that would be great.
I'll probably be buying from a physical store or a webshop from the Netherlands, my country, and I don't think PC world is available here, so I won't buy from there! Thanks for the warning.

Again, thanks everyone

[Anetata]

(Original post by KiaraMarissa)
I'm hoping I don't sound dumb now, but I don't really know what open box deals and grade A refurbs are? So if anyone could explain that, that would be great.

Open Box deals are where you buy a laptop that has been returned for various reasons, often not even used, or sometimes used as a display item (I think thats right?). My newest laptop purchase was an open box laptop, and that took off about £180 off the price for me (quite a lot, compared to other open box deals but still worth looking), and it is literally a brand new laptop. If you were to buy one, I would suggest you inspect it very well upon receiving it, just in case. Sometimes you may also get 6 months warranty instead of the default year, however when I got mine, I still had the full warranty. It works brilliantly, and I definitely would recommend getting an Open Box laptop. I was sceptical at first, but now I know there was nothing to worry about.

Grade A laptops are refurbished laptops which are in 'as new' condition - different shops/sites may split grade A into A1/A2, you would have to look into that.

There are also grade B laptops which I believe are still in perfect working condition but may have some minor cosmetic damage - this takes off quite a bit off the price, so if you are willing to put up with a scratch or something, you can get amazing bargains.


Also, those type of deals are usually one-offs, and it may be hard to find a specific laptop, but my Fiancé recently found a Dell XPS 15 (L502x) directly from the Dell website, which was a Grade A refurb - for only £400, when usually they cost around £700, and it works brilliantly!


Hope this helped a little bit

[Intriguing Alias]

(Original post by KiaraMarissa)
.

Can you link us to the toshiba you're interested in?

[KiaraMarissa]

(Original post by hassi94)
Can you link us to the toshiba you're interested in?

http://nl.computers.toshiba-europe.c...ibaShop/false/
The toshiba Satellite L755-17X, in case the site doesn't work: it has an intel i5-2410M processor, 750 GB hard drive, 8MB DDR3 and a NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M graphics card. It costs roughly 680 pounds.

Sorry for the late reply, I was at work.

[Intriguing Alias]

(Original post by KiaraMarissa)
http://nl.computers.toshiba-europe.c...ibaShop/false/
The toshiba Satellite L755-17X, in case the site doesn't work: it has an intel i5-2410M processor, 750 GB hard drive, 8MB DDR3 and a NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M graphics card. It costs roughly 680 pounds.

Sorry for the late reply, I was at work.

It's pretty poor for the price IMO.

I'd say get this: http://www.asuslaptop.co.uk/proddeta...d=X53SC-SX041V

Has a quad core i7, a 520MX and 4GB RAM (there's no need for 8 but if you want get the £50 upgrade from the website - or do it yourself).

So pretty in-line with the XPS from a much more reliable manufacturer and £90 cheaper.

[KiaraMarissa]

(Original post by hassi94)
It's pretty poor for the price IMO.

I'd say get this: http://www.asuslaptop.co.uk/proddeta...d=X53SC-SX041V

Has a quad core i7, a 520MX and 4GB RAM (there's no need for 8 but if you want get the £50 upgrade from the website - or do it yourself).

So pretty in-line with the XPS from a much more reliable manufacturer and £90 cheaper.

Thank you! That one looks amazing. 4GB should be plenty for me. I have put more RAM in my desktop (pretty proud of that ) so I should be able to do it myself, if I feel it is neccessary.

Edit: I just googled the Asus X53SC-SX041V, and read a review. They weren't very positive about it and there aren't any other reviews, besides Italian ones. They say that it would run most games, but on low to medium settings. I'm not sure how reliable the review is. Do you have experience with this laptop that makes you recommend it? I've heard that Asus is great for laptops, so I don't understand why the review was a little bit negative.

(Original post by Anetata)
x

Oh wow, thanks. I never heard of that in the Netherlands. I guess I should google that to see if Dutch stores have it.

[KiaraMarissa]

What about the toshiba satellite L750/1RE ?
http://www.paradigit.nl/Paradigit/pr...e-paradigit-nl
Intel i7-2670/6GB RAM/640GB Serial ATA-300 5400 rpm/NVIDIA GeForce GT 525M graphics card
One website markets it for around 565 pounds which would make it much cheaper than the other laptops, with similar specs.
Or are toshiba laptops unreliable?

[rae_]

Bump

Not my thread but in a similar predicament...

And can some please explain to me what turbo boost is and how to get it

Gracias

[KiaraMarissa]

(Original post by rae_)
Bump

Not my thread but in a similar predicament...

And can some please explain to me what turbo boost is and how to get it

Gracias

I asked a family friend for advice and he told me that Toshiba was a reliable brand. So I'm either going to buy a Toshiba Satellite L750 1RC/1RE or a Samsung 300V5a-S01 since that came out as the best buy in a test. I couldn't find the laptops on UK sites with the same specs, so I'm not sure if you can buy them. But you can probably find something similar.

I can't really help you with what turbo boost is, as I don't really know..

[rae_]

Thanks

Where are you where are planning to get these laptops from?

The turbo boost was something I was told to get for computers with lower ghz thingymajigs than required for sims 3..

I'm really not techno savvy xD

[KiaraMarissa]

In the Netherlands there is a site that compares different websites that sell laptops for the best price. Through that site I found 4launch.nl was the cheapest for the samsung and the toshiba satellite L750 1RC, for the toshiba Satellite L750 1RE paradigit.nl was the cheapest.

I play sims 3 too! We're too cool for the world.

[rae_]

(Original post by KiaraMarissa)
In the Netherlands there is a site that compares different websites that sell laptops for the best price. Through that site I found 4launch.nl was the cheapest for the samsung and the toshiba satellite L750 1RC, for the toshiba Satellite L750 1RE paradigit.nl was the cheapest.

I play sims 3 too! We're too cool for the world.

Oh thanks

Yup, Sims 3 is awesome, nothing beats life simulator lol

[Intriguing Alias]

(Original post by rae_)
Oh thanks

Yup, Sims 3 is awesome, nothing beats augmented reality lol

Just to be awkward - Sims isn't augmented reality, and nor is it really virtual reality. As a genre it's a 'life simulator'/

[rae_]

(Original post by hassi94)
Just to be awkward - Sims isn't augmented reality, and nor is it really virtual reality. As a genre it's a 'life simulator'/

Edited