Help in selecting a decent 3D supported gaming Laptop?

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I wanna buy a 3D supported gaming Laptop. I intend to use it for regular gaming on weekend and 3D movies. I've found Asus G74SX but it is priced at 120000 INR on ebay. That is way too much.

1) What is your budget? (INR or USD)
Ans) 80K INR

2) What size notebook would you prefer?
d. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen
e. Desktop Replacement; 17"+ screen

3) Which country will you buying this notebook?
Ans) India. Could try importing from the Amazon/newegg if overall cost is cheaper than locally available version.

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
Ans) None

5) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
Ans) Weekend gaming, watching movies and a lot of browsing/editing/typing.

6) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?
Ans) I'll have to carry it with me on daily basis. So yeah it should be mobile and light.

7) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?
Ans) Yes.(Alan Wake,SWTOR, L.A noir, Assasins Creed brotherhood, Crysis 2)

8) How many hours of battery life do you need?
Ans) This is not important for me.

9) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?
Ans)If its available locally then i wont mind in going out and checking it out once.
10) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Ans) Windows 7
Screen Specifics

11) What screen resolution(s) would you prefer?
It should be full HD 1080p

the dell xps 17 is exactly that will serve your purpose however you will need to extend your budget by extra 9k
Dell XPS 17 Laptop Details | Dell India

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Is there any upcoming launch from Dell, Asus or HP which may result in nice discount on their current premium Laptops? I can hold of buying the lappy till july. My college start from 16th July so I'm in no rush to buy it at the moment.

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Dell XPS 17 does seem like everything i need. I think i can stretch my budget to get it. I just wanna know one thing. The default XPS 17 comes with 4gb RAM. Doest it have free RAM slot for later upgrade? Cuz i would like to upgrade to 12gb after a few months. So is it possible? And if yes would it be more costlier then doing the upgrade at the purchase itself or around the same price?

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Okay so I've customized a config. The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

I know its 17K above my budget but i'll have that much by july

Earlier i was going for 12 GB RAM upgrade and 2.20Ghz proccy. But then i thought it would be cheaper to upgrade the proccy now and upgrade RAM later. Thus went with 4gb RAM and 2.50Ghz proccy.

You will never need 12GB of RAM.

No point of upgrading CPU. Instead, opt these changes through Dell:

8 GB RAM
2 yr Complete care service (worth every penny)

Sadly, dell is not giving option of 7200rpm HDD .

The total comes to 98k, now, spend on a SSD if you have more money left. This config will be much more worthy.

antisocialbratt said:
Is there any upcoming launch from Dell, Asus or HP which may result in nice discount on their current premium Laptops? I can hold of buying the lappy till july. My college start from 16th July so I'm in no rush to buy it at the moment.

not that i have heard of and no rumors either...

antisocialbratt said:
Dell XPS 17 does seem like everything i need. I think i can stretch my budget to get it. I just wanna know one thing. The default XPS 17 comes with 4gb RAM. Doest it have free RAM slot for later upgrade? Cuz i would like to upgrade to 12gb after a few months. So is it possible? And if yes would it be more costlier then doing the upgrade at the purchase itself or around the same price?

woo why do you need 12gb ram... 4gb or max 6gb should suffice your needs...

dashing.sujay said:
You will never need 12GB of RAM.

No point of upgrading CPU. Instead, opt these changes through Dell:

8 GB RAM

2 yr Complete care service (worth every penny)

Sadly, dell is not giving option of 7200rpm HDD or backlit keyboard.

The total comes to 98k, now, spend on a SSD if you have more money left. This config will be much more worthy.

+1 for this... spend your money on the amc

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Strange. I've seen videos on YouTube where xps 17 has backlit. And sorry to sound like a noob but what is amc?

antisocialbratt said:
Strange. I've seen videos on YouTube where xps 17 has backlit. And sorry to sound like a noob but what is amc?

Backlit is included by default, didn't noticed that earlier.

AMC= annual maintenance contract or simply extended warranty

A

Ohhh. I thought it was something like that

anyway is there any other 3d lappy in that price range? Would love to compare it with some. How about envy 17 3d? Is it good?

Any views on Sony VAIO F217 3D? It cost around 85000, Has i7 2820QM clocked at 2.80 wit turbo boost to 3.40Ghz, 8gb RAM, Nvidia 540M. on paper it sounds as good as Dell XPS 17 3d. Proccessor is better than XPS but RAM cannot be upgraded beyond 8gb. And screen is 16 inches.
How is the 3D in both of them? Which one has better 3D gaming and 3D movie viewing? And by how much is 555M of xps better than 540M of Sony

sony vs hp vs dell... well dell is a winner... dells 3g nvidia gt555 is a bit faster than hp's Radeon HD 7690M. and then dells FHD is the best amongst the 3. also you get 17inch display with dell... i would choose dell if i were you. but if you dont want to exceed your budget then hp is the best bet

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But I've read that sony is better for 3d movies cuz of 240hz refresh rate . Is that true?

555M is LOT better than 540M. No way to go for 540M.

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Okies... So Dell it is. Now lets just wait for my birthday next month

dashing.sujay said:
555M is LOT better than 540M. No way to go for 555M.

you mean go for 555m!!! :-D

antisocialbratt said:
Okies... So Dell it is. Now lets just wait for my birthday next month

goood

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I have some more questions

1) Does this have Facial Tracking? I saw that as an free upgrade in US website of Dell.
2) Are there any coupons for this? Or can i find it cheaper than Dell website anywhere else?
3) Is it ok if i get just the 4gb RAM at the time of purchase? Cuz i wanna get the best CPU dell is providing so I'll spend more on that and upgrade RAM a couple of months later.
4) Does the version of windows have any effect on the performance of the lappy? If yes then which one should i get?
5) Are there any known problems which i should know about XPS 17 3D?
6) Does they provide 3D glasses or i have to buy them later?
7) Does it have switchable graphics?
8) Who's 3D is better? Sony or Dell.

Thats all for now

A

I'm again confused. I've seen a couple of videos and reviews and everyone is praising the 3D display of Sony. It appears it is best for 3D viewing. So if I'm only gonna play games casually then isn't it better to buy Sony Vaio 217?
Its GPU is just 10-20% slower. Other than that I'm getting quite a deal with 2830QM 2.80ghz Proccy,8gb RAM, and 540M GPU for 85K. Whereas dell is offering 2370QM 2.0Ghz, 4gb RAM and 555M for the same price. If i try to get the proccy and RAM same as sony then Dell's price increases to 99K. So is spending 14K extra for 20% more GPU power and 1 Inch bigger screen justified?

Is there any Sony owner out there?

antisocialbratt said:
I'm again confused. I've seen a couple of videos and reviews and everyone is praising the 3D display of Sony. It appears it is best for 3D viewing. So if I'm only gonna play games casually then isn't it better to buy Sony Vaio 217?
Its GPU is just 10-20% slower. Other than that I'm getting quite a deal with 2830QM 2.80ghz Proccy,8gb RAM, and 540M GPU for 85K. Whereas dell is offering 2370QM 2.0Ghz, 4gb RAM and 555M for the same price. If i try to get the proccy and RAM same as sony then Dell's price increases to 99K. So is spending 14K extra for 20% more GPU power and 1 Inch bigger screen justified?

Is there any Sony owner out there?

the more you check out online reviews the more confusing it will get... i would recommend you visit a sony store and check out the display. the display is something you should check out in person, since thats the most important aspect of the laptop for you... i did not check out my hp's display when i got it and trust me i was very frustrated a few days when i had it (the display is not all that great), but now everything is ok since im used to it...

antisocialbratt said:
I have some more questions

1) Does this have Facial Tracking? I saw that as an free upgrade in US website of Dell. - US & Indian models are diff.
2) Are there any coupons for this? Or can i find it cheaper than Dell website anywhere else? - No.
3) Is it ok if i get just the 4gb RAM at the time of purchase? Cuz i wanna get the best CPU dell is providing so I'll spend more on that and upgrade RAM a couple of months later. - Get it then.
4) Does the version of windows have any effect on the performance of the lappy? If yes then which one should i get? - Not at all.
5) Are there any known problems which i should know about XPS 17 3D? Google can tell you better.
6) Does they provide 3D glasses or i have to buy them later? - Yes.
7) Does it have switchable graphics? I don't think so.
8) Who's 3D is better? Sony or Dell. You can't say without using.

Thats all for now

antisocialbratt said:
I'm again confused. I've seen a couple of videos and reviews and everyone is praising the 3D display of Sony. It appears it is best for 3D viewing. So if I'm only gonna play games casually then isn't it better to buy Sony Vaio 217?
Its GPU is just 10-20% slower. Other than that I'm getting quite a deal with 2830QM 2.80ghz Proccy,8gb RAM, and 540M GPU for 85K. Whereas dell is offering 2370QM 2.0Ghz, 4gb RAM and 555M for the same price. If i try to get the proccy and RAM same as sony then Dell's price increases to 99K. So is spending 14K extra for 20% more GPU power and 1 Inch bigger screen justified?

Is there any Sony owner out there?

Go for Sony if you really gonna play games "casually", otherwise Dell.

btw where are you getting Sony for 85k ?

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I saw one listing on ebay but before i could decide it expired. Other sony listings are above 100000 inr. So if i don't get any 90k-ish listing around the time i'm gonna purchase the lappy then I'll get xps 17.

Isnt there any other sony user out there? Would love to have some thoughts on gaming and 3d movies.

There are many sony users including me but no body has 3D model.

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I'm torn between xps 17 3d and sony 217 3d.

Gamer inside me roots for xps but i know that i won't get much time for gaming for next two years cuz of studies, other than some casual weekends. On the other hand , I love 3d movies thus i want the 3d viewing experience to be amazing. Everywhere i read, Sony gets the brownies for it.

Then eat the brownies.

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I think i'm gonna use the 10% discount coupon on available listings of Sony 217 3d. It will come around as 94k which is awesome price considering the lappy with similar config(although a better card) from dell india website cost around 115k. Sony has better screen and has firewire support. I mostly play sports games like Ashes cricket, fifa12 and occassionally assassins creed, Split second, Alanwake, LA noire. All those game should have no problem running in high settings with 54. M of sony. So i wont miss 555m.

A

Okay. I think I'll have to try both lappys before taking a decision. Where can i find them in Bangalore?

SP road.

antisocialbratt said:
Okay. I think I'll have to try both lappys before taking a decision. Where can i find them in Bangalore?

absolutely, thats a wise decision... akho dekhi par hi vishwaas karna chahiye!!! :wink:

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Whats going on with Dell India website. When i started this thread they were giving 6 Bluray Movies with the XPS 17 3D. 2 Days ago they reduced that to 3 movies only and now today they just vanished completely. Grrrh.... They should have decreased the price a bit atleast if they are not giving any Blurays with the system

these are just marketing strategies.. when you want to place a new order for xps you can speak to the sales rep and negotiate the cost and freebies.. dont worry about that...

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I'll wait till the end of this month to buy the lappy. I'm hoping that Dell would refresh its XPS 17 3D with a new Processor or/and GPU.

Another question. How much does Asus g74sx 3d cost in India and where can i find a asus store in Bangalore? Is it worth spending extra bucks and get this instead of xps 17 3d?

Only difference between XPS 17 3D and Asus G74sx is the GPU. Dell has 555m while asus has 560M. Also dell has better CPU "2760QM" compared to Asus's 2630QM.
So i did some research and found this on another forum
"Always watch the data rate and memory bus, which ultimately determine your memory bandwidth.

The GTX is always consistant, with a 192-bit bus and the GDDR5 rate (60GB/s bandwidth).

The GT 555M can come in a variety of flavors, including a 128-bit DDR3 with the same bandwidth as your GT 525M (). There is also a DDR3 with a 192-bit bus which is a step up, and a GDDR5 128-bit which has 50GB/s bandwidth nearly matching the GTX's 60GB/s.

Now, this makes the GDDR5 GT 555M worth considering when priced considerably less than the GTX, aside the crappy fillrates (which are well worse than the other 555M, and nearly as low as the 525M). But if you're not paying a whole lot more for the GTX card, it definitely is worth skipping past the GDDR5 GT 555M."

So if there's any truth in what this guy said then which 555M does XPS 17 has? and what should i do? If Asus is really that much better then i can wait another month to get extra moolah to buy Asus.

Get hands on XPS 17 and check which version it carries, otherwise 560M is the way to go, but do contact Asus its warranty and other issues.

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I know there are some issues with Bios and trackpad in Asus. Read about them on forums. Just wanna know which of these two is more reliable. I need a laptop which would serve me for next 3 years atleast without problems. I can't be bothered with a defective Lappy and carrying it to service center again and again. Need it for college work.

You're getting too much sceptic. Get the XPS.

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I might just do that. How much difference is there in the gaming performance of 555m and 560m? Is it just in the numbers or it is pretty noticeable in actual gaming?

I think i'll go with XPS 17. It has a option for 3 years warranty whereas asus is giving just 1 years. So XPS would give more peace of mind. Moreover a Asus G74SX would stand out in a Business School classroom.

560M is ahead of 555M by a good margin.

A

How about this lappy? Toshiba Qosmio X500-X8310 Does this one supports the 3D? It comes in the same price tag but a monster of a screen at 18.5 inches

antisocialbratt said:
How about this lappy? Toshiba Qosmio X500-X8310 Does this one supports the 3D? It comes in the same price tag but a monster of a screen at 18.5 inches

lol you are getting too superstitious. I say you stick with the xps. I wouldnt even bother looking at the toshiba since you said that reliability is primary for you.

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I have a month to pass before i would buy the lappy. So why not look at all the options. I've checked on flipkart and a 3D sensor is mentioned in specifications. But apart from that there is no mention of 3D capability. So thats why I'm asking here. If 3D is possible on that lappy and watching 3D movies is a first for me than gaming then why not go for a full HD 18.5 inch screen.

Don't believe specs on flipkart; they do a hell lot of errors.

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I guess its not 3D. Found out on google that its just a shock sensor for HDD. Why the hell would you name it 3D sensor :/
So this lappy is out of the race.
IS there any other 3D lappy in this price range?(Other than Xps,Sony and Asus g74sx)

antisocialbratt said:
I guess its not 3D. Found out on google that its just a shock sensor for HDD. Why the hell would you name it 3D sensor :/
So this lappy is out of the race.
IS there any other 3D lappy in this price range?(Other than Xps,Sony and Asus g74sx)

not that i can think of!!!!

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So is there any Asus Showroom in Bangalore? I've got a price of 112000 from a retailer in mumbai with free shipping but I'll prefer to pick up the machine locally.

antisocialbratt said:
So is there any Asus Showroom in Bangalore? I've got a price of 112000 from a retailer in mumbai with free shipping but I'll prefer to pick up the machine locally.

i think you should contact asus helpline and they will provide you the number of the sales manager. Since this is a premium laptop you will get more attention and you can negotiate with the manager. But at the same time check out this link for the sales line ASUS - Facilities and Branches

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Contacted a local asus dealer and he told me that asus g74sx is currently out of stock but it is expected to be in stock in 2 weeks. Another good news he gave is that Asus is refreshing the g74sx with gt580m and a new ivy bridge processor. Awesome.
He expect the price to be around 120000