Been out of the PC scene. Need Lappy Spec Recommendation

hostyl1

hostyl1

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I last assembled my PC oh about 5 years ago. It serves me fine as the netbox / media server I use it as. However, it sucks for all things gaming newer than Far Cry (and it can barely play that). Lately, I have been getting an RTS itch. I tried to satisfy that want with C&C on the :360:, but, after playing the demo, I just found myself wanting a mouse and keyboard.

I'd basically have to re-do my whole PC to get a proper upgrade, and I've been thinking about getting a personal lappy (I have one thru my job) to take on trips and such. I figure if I could get a lappy for about $600 or less that could also game a bit, I'd be golden. I'm not looking to play Crysis or anything (not a big FPS fan). Just something that could play C&C: Red Alert 4 on medium settings or better.

Problem is, I've been so out of the loop, I no longer have a grasp of the hardware. I need help deciphering what is a *good* vid card and if someone could brief me on what the hell an Intel "Atom" proc is, I'd be grateful. I think it'd take me two weeks to go thru all the charts and graphs on anandtech and tomshardware to get the info I need. I'm hoping someone here can pare down things for me a bit.
Thanks in advance.
 
The Atom proc won't help you. It's for the netbook market and you won't find a decent GPU in one of those.

I have Dell Vostro 15.4" with a 256MB Nvidia 8600MGT. It's great for strategy games and such but there are concerns about the reliability. Basically Nvidia screwed us all and the 8000M GPUs are on borrowed time. You're better off looking at the 9000M series or, if you can find one, the ATI 4000 series.
 
I don't think he was asking about laptops specifically. But yeah, the Atom is a mobile CPU found in netbooks. You don't want a laptop for gaming :)

How much are you looking to spend?

edit: Wait, he did say a laptop. I saw PC and didn't see "laptop". Missed "lappy" ;)

All the same, I don't think you'll have a very good gaming experience on a < $600 laptop. A $600 desktop, however, is another story.
 
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For $600 you almost certainly won't be able to find a good gaming laptop. If you can spend 2 or 3 hundred more you could get a pretty decent laptop with a dedicated graphics card. Otherwise, looking at hp.com and dell.com the best you can get is a slower Dual Core Intel CPU with Intel's 4500 integrated graphics, which can't really run Command and Conquer 4 (see http://forums.vr-zone.com/showthread.php?t=280004).

Otherwise maybe you could find a better one second hand on craigslist or something.
 
My laptop I'm using is 2.0 ghz dual core with gb of ram, and a ati mobility radeon hd 2600, it cost me $400, and it plays erything fine. I've seen laptops with similar specs on sale all the time for about the same price, between staples, bestbuy, CC ect... you should be able to find one.
Did you mean red alert 3? I don't think cc 4 is out yet.
what are the specs on that old pc of yours? at a recent lan party I let some one borrow my 8 year old comp that had been sitting in the basement and using a newer video card(only seven years old) they where able to play everything on steam and Age of Empires 3 just fine.
 
[quote name='itachiitachi']My laptop I'm using is 2.0 ghz dual core with gb of ram, and a ati mobility radeon hd 2600, it cost me $400, and it plays erything fine. I've seen laptops with similar specs on sale all the time for about the same price, between staples, bestbuy, CC ect... you should be able to find one.
Did you mean red alert 3? I don't think cc 4 is out yet.
what are the specs on that old pc of yours? at a recent lan party I let some one borrow my 8 year old comp that had been sitting in the basement and using a newer video card(only seven years old) they where able to play everything on steam and Age of Empires 3 just fine.[/quote]

Yeah, I meant C&C RA 3. I cant really type well and I shouldnt even try typing in the dark while sleepy. My PC has:
AMD Athlon XP 2000+
1 GB DDR 800 ram
ATI Radeon 9600 SE (AGP)

It's the fact that the MoBo is AGP that is the sticky part. I dont want to put any more money into an AGP card, so if (when) I upgrade the box, I'm going for a pretty much complete overhaul. Besides, the CPU was underpowered when I bought it (used to overclock it, but have since backed off) so I'm not even sure it could keep a (any where near recent) GPU fed.

I know I could build a desktop for less that would suffice, but I'm also looking to fill the void of moblie computing. Like I said, I dont need to run the most intense games at the highest settings. Just some RTSes at medium-ish settings.

@will52: is there anyone with a remote interest at all in RTSes that have *not* played Starcraft? I've had that game since '98. After 10 years, I think it's okay to look into other games no? ;)
 
Dell outlet is a great place to start, if looking for an even older dell model the Inspirion 6400 has a nice video card too.
 
[quote name='hostyl1']Yeah, I meant C&C RA 3. I cant really type well and I shouldnt even try typing in the dark while sleepy. My PC has:
AMD Athlon XP 2000+
1 GB DDR 800 ram
ATI Radeon 9600 SE (AGP)

It's the fact that the MoBo is AGP that is the sticky part. I dont want to put any more money into an AGP card, so if (when) I upgrade the box, I'm going for a pretty much complete overhaul. Besides, the CPU was underpowered when I bought it (used to overclock it, but have since backed off) so I'm not even sure it could keep a (any where near recent) GPU fed.
[/quote]
That's better specs than my old comp, it should be able to run AoE 3, it should hold you over till you get a laptop. If you have any friends who do pc gaming one of them probably has old ram, video card, cpu ect.. that the could lend you.

here's a laptop that might meet your needs for under $400 http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9192786&type=product&id=1218053145724
but I would look around and find one that's a little bit more with a name brand video card.
 
It is almost impossible to get a laptop for 600 that has an adequate video card. You will be restricting yourself to an integrated video chip, which will play RA3 or any moderately new game poorly.

You should look for something with discrete graphics, like 9600mGT, a HD3650, or something in that neighborhood.

Avoid anything that has integrated graphics, like intel 965 graphics.
 
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