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I am finally buckling down and buying myself a new laptop, because my current device is just not cutting it anymore, in any way shape or form.
My theory is to get myself a decent gaming laptop, and utilize its considerable horsepower primarily for software development and productivity, but still be able to use it to game if I want to game and I'm not near my desktop.
My requirements are as follows:
- Budget: 1200-1400
- CPU: i5 or i7 (preferably i7)
- Memory: 16GB. This is not flexible, I do not trust 8GB to get done what I need to do.
- Storage: SSD+HDD (at least 120GB on the SSD, at least 500GB on the HDD) or 1TB HDD
- GPU: Something that can do 1080p60 at med-high settings. I would rather lose a little visual fidelity in order to maintain a higher FPS. I run a 3570k, 8GB DDR3, and an MSI 670 2GB on my desktop, so I would like soemthing that can give me a comparable experience to that.
- Monitor: 15in, 1080p native. I really don't want anything more than 1080p.
- Quality of Life: I would prefer something low key, no crazy RGB or crazy lines and colors. This is a laptop that will be mainly used for work/school, with gaming as a lower priority. And something I will not hate using for multiple years.
4 models have stood out to me (prices are before tax and fees, as of post date):
1. Dell Inspiron Gaming 7000 Series
- 7577 (1060 6GB): 1,199
- 7567 (1050Ti 4GB): 1,099
2. Lenovo Legion Series
- Y520 (1050Ti 4GB): 1099
- Y520 (1060 3GB): 1299
- Y720
3. MSI GL62VR (1060 6GB): 1099
4. MSI GE62VR (1060 3GB): 1199
All of the prices I listed are for configs that include an i7 7700HQ (the hyperthreading would be a boon for emulation or virtualization for mobile development), 16GB DDR4, a good storage set-up, and either a 1060 or 1050Ti with a good amount of VRAM. And they are all within or very close to my ideal budget range. The Dell and Lenovo appear to have more QoL issues than the MSI, but nothing I couldn't deal with, except for maybe a bad screen. Currently, I'm looking at the MSI and the Dell over Lenovo.
What I am looking for from y'all is more opinions. Am I out of my mind to buy a gaming laptop for not gaming purposes? Is there something about any of these 4 devices that I don't know that I should? Am I an idiot for looking for those specs in that budget and expecting high quality? Can I get by on an i5 and still be able to handle the emulation/virtualization workload? Am I wrong about 8GB vs 16GB? Give it to me folks.
My theory is to get myself a decent gaming laptop, and utilize its considerable horsepower primarily for software development and productivity, but still be able to use it to game if I want to game and I'm not near my desktop.
My requirements are as follows:
- Budget: 1200-1400
- CPU: i5 or i7 (preferably i7)
- Memory: 16GB. This is not flexible, I do not trust 8GB to get done what I need to do.
- Storage: SSD+HDD (at least 120GB on the SSD, at least 500GB on the HDD) or 1TB HDD
- GPU: Something that can do 1080p60 at med-high settings. I would rather lose a little visual fidelity in order to maintain a higher FPS. I run a 3570k, 8GB DDR3, and an MSI 670 2GB on my desktop, so I would like soemthing that can give me a comparable experience to that.
- Monitor: 15in, 1080p native. I really don't want anything more than 1080p.
- Quality of Life: I would prefer something low key, no crazy RGB or crazy lines and colors. This is a laptop that will be mainly used for work/school, with gaming as a lower priority. And something I will not hate using for multiple years.
4 models have stood out to me (prices are before tax and fees, as of post date):
1. Dell Inspiron Gaming 7000 Series
- 7577 (1060 6GB): 1,199
- 7567 (1050Ti 4GB): 1,099
2. Lenovo Legion Series
- Y520 (1050Ti 4GB): 1099
- Y520 (1060 3GB): 1299
- Y720
3. MSI GL62VR (1060 6GB): 1099
4. MSI GE62VR (1060 3GB): 1199
All of the prices I listed are for configs that include an i7 7700HQ (the hyperthreading would be a boon for emulation or virtualization for mobile development), 16GB DDR4, a good storage set-up, and either a 1060 or 1050Ti with a good amount of VRAM. And they are all within or very close to my ideal budget range. The Dell and Lenovo appear to have more QoL issues than the MSI, but nothing I couldn't deal with, except for maybe a bad screen. Currently, I'm looking at the MSI and the Dell over Lenovo.
What I am looking for from y'all is more opinions. Am I out of my mind to buy a gaming laptop for not gaming purposes? Is there something about any of these 4 devices that I don't know that I should? Am I an idiot for looking for those specs in that budget and expecting high quality? Can I get by on an i5 and still be able to handle the emulation/virtualization workload? Am I wrong about 8GB vs 16GB? Give it to me folks.
