Hows this laptop for gaming?

Kevbo887

Kevbo887

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Debating getting this laptop

http://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-IdeaPa...362431880&sr=8-2&keywords=lenovo+IdeaPad+Y500

Currently I have a desktop with 8gb ram and win 7 radeon 6870 and a amd phenom II x4 810 (2.60ghz) with 8 gb of ram.

Basically my computer has been acting up big time, and I really would love to take a laptop with me thats able to handle current games (and maybe some future games) on my travels, as I cant bring my desktop.

Basically I was wondering if for that price if its a good deal. I basically want it to play Battlefield 3, Skyrim, the new tomb raider and Crysis 3.

What do you guys think? I obviously know a desktop is much more bang for your buck, but im kind of getting away from that option with all of my traveling. Heck, I barely game anymore because the time I am home, id much rather spend with my family, so at least I on the road I can do some gaming rather than just watching movies and reading to pass the time.

Thanks guys, its appreciated.
 
I would say that it's marginally better than your desktop. Gaming wise, I personally own a GTX 650 and it can run most games at 1080p med+high/ 900p high+very high, so you should be good with two 650Ms.
 
Hmmm so it is better than my desktop? Well thats good news. I honestly dont know a ton about computer hardware anymore so I didnt want to go drop money on something thats inferior to what I own. Granted the portability factor plays a huge role now. But knowing that its better by a bit is huge.

Anyone else have any input, so far from what Ive had for responses Im totally leaning towards it, but just wondering if anyone here has used one, or heard from personal experience of people who have (video card and performance wise). Thanks!
 
[quote name='Kevbo887']Hmmm so it is better than my desktop? Well thats good news. I honestly dont know a ton about computer hardware anymore so I didnt want to go drop money on something thats inferior to what I own. Granted the portability factor plays a huge role now. But knowing that its better by a bit is huge.

Anyone else have any input, so far from what Ive had for responses Im totally leaning towards it, but just wondering if anyone here has used one, or heard from personal experience of people who have (video card and performance wise). Thanks![/QUOTE]

One more thing, the 650 is way too slow memory wise at stock speeds. The program, EVGA Precision, is fantastic for overclocking video cards. Before overclocking the memory, I was getting an average of about 35 fps and after overclocking the memory, I was getting a solid 60.
 
dunno, no one really benches those but they seem weak for gaming. Just going by the 3dmark 11 scores on this page
this page may also be useful

keep in mind that you cannot transfer the desktop performance for the chip over to laptop. A 650m is nowhere close to a GTX 650. Same goes for every tier of GPU.
 
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[quote name='aShufflinZombie']I would say that it's marginally better than your desktop. Gaming wise, I personally own a GTX 650 and it can run most games at 1080p med+high/ 900p high+very high, so you should be good with two 650Ms.[/QUOTE]

A GTX 650 and GT650 are two VERY different cards. The GTX 650 is made for gaming and the GT650 is more of a card for multimedia, video editing, CAD, etc.

That said, I'm not sure how it stacks up to your desktop. A google search will answer that for you.
 
IMO, if you need a laptop right now, go for it. Haswell is coming out sometime this year and if you are willing to wait, you might be able to get something a little bit better.
 
[quote name='Kevbo887']So im going to go on the consensus that my desktop is currently much more powerful?[/QUOTE]

Yes. Google is your friend.
 
SRRY to butt in. If you did get that Laptop you should look into getting a faster HDD, that whole 5200RPM thing doesn't sit well with me.
 
[quote name='thegreatest']Yes. Google is your friend.[/QUOTE]

Couldnt find a direct comparison. Only a single card not sli
 
So you think i should do it? Probably the i7 version. I just hope the graphic cards will hold up a few years in terms of staying up to par for gaming
 
That graphics card will last you 4 years easily, though it will probably be running lower setting after 2-3 years.
I'm not sure you are going to find a price much better than that with out going to an outlet or waiting many months for a insane sale.
 
Yah, I was thinking that. Im going to take one more night to sleep on it. Decided if I do get it im going to costco. They have the same computer, but instead of the i5 and 8gb of ram its got an i7 16gbram and a 16gb ssd cache drive in it as well. Only for $100 more.

I figured that would help to ram up gaming?
 
I'm not sure how much the extra ram will help you with most current games.

Is the SSD cache part of the drive or a separate drive? Make sure it has an Msata slot before you buy it. Installing your OS and your games on an Msata will give you load and boot speeds that can't be matched by any amount of ram.
 
if you really want to get into major pc gaming DON't get a labtop come on now. Labtops are waste of money if you plan on upgrading later on. desktop is the way to go if you are really into gaming on pc tons.
 
[quote name='TimboSliceGB']if you really want to get into major pc gaming DON't get a labtop come on now. Labtops are waste of money if you plan on upgrading later on. desktop is the way to go if you are really into gaming on pc tons.[/QUOTE]

Im def no hardcore gamer nor a graphics whore. Plus i already stated that desktops arent really an option due to travel
 
Looking at passmark scores the 650m sli would be somewhere around 10% weaker than your desktop.

Note I have no clue how reliable those scores are and there is no direct comparison I could find.

I simply took the GTX 670MX score (2051) which is a little weaker than the 650m SLI , and a Radeon HD 6970M (which scored 2610) and is apparently more powerful than the 650M SLI. Split the difference and it gives me a score of 2330 so I assume the 650M SLI would score somewhere around there.

Your current card (the Radeon HD 6870) scored a 2537, so I'm guessing roughly 10% weaker for the 650M SLI.

If that works for you, here is the equivalent I imagine of the 650M SLI and the kind of performance you can expect from it

It should get you 60FPS or so for Tomb Raider on High but maybe not run well enough on Ultra.

These are all guesses based on the scores and cards I looked at so sorry but it may be pretty inaccurate.
 
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Here is an easy way to see what you can expect from a 650m SLI

Note that the game has to support SLI for it to give you that performance. Maybe most do though I have no clue.

Also, reviews for the Lenovo state the cpu/gpu are throttled when not plugged in so it's basically not possible to game with it unplugged. Not something I'd personally care about since it'd be silly to play any intensive game with your laptop unplugged.

Now after everything I've said, performance-wise I don't know if you could beat the bang for the buck in a laptop. This looks to be a pretty good laptop for $1200 though and it's a 17.3" if you want something bigger. Note though the 650M SLI looks to be just a little bit more powerful than the 670M.
 
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I would honestly avoid anything less than a 660m if you are going to play more than WoW or LoL ever. My roommate caught the 1080p 660m i7 bluray drive lenovo y580 on sale from the lenovo website for under 1k and it seems to be doing a great job so far. I would strongly the y580 as it is a great compromise
 
[quote name='contradude']I would honestly avoid anything less than a 660m if you are going to play more than WoW or LoL ever. My roommate caught the 1080p 660m i7 bluray drive lenovo y580 on sale from the lenovo website for under 1k and it seems to be doing a great job so far. I would strongly the y580 as it is a great compromise[/QUOTE]

Yep that's exactly what I'm currently using :) I can safely run Tomb Raider on high and get 45-50 fps, but only get about 15 fps or so on Ultra.

A 650M SLI is more powerful though since it's 2 of them. It's still not quite as good as his current desktop though.
 
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[quote name='ShockandAww']Yep that's exactly what I'm currently using :) I can safely run Tomb Raider on high and get 45-50 fps, but only get about 15 fps or so on Ultra.

A 650M SLI is more powerful though since it's 2 of them. It's still not quite as good as his current desktop though.[/QUOTE]

what are you talking about? sli sucks in laptops its not freaking the same as it is in desktops.

you would be better off going for the better single card solution tbqh. dont even talk to me about sli in laptops until you are talking about a 680 or 7970 mobile sli / cf setup respectively.
 
You get microstuttering and the cards just aren't fast enough if the game doesn't fully scale to sli. If your budget it a bit more, try to find a refurbished msi gx60. It will game really well for the money, but honestly its all up to you and your budget
 
Im not expert on anything here, but i'd think you'd want to get a laptop that is overpowered by today's standard so it will still be viable in the future. Without being able to upgrade parts and pieces you will be stuck with whatever you choose right? So it would seem like you would want to make sure what you choose will still be powerful enough in 2-3 years
 
I would actually recommend the sager np9130 through XoticPC. They're offering a free upgrade to the 670mx which is roughly equivalent to the 675m that I had in my old rig which could max crysis 1 and 2. The price is also pretty sweet... if there is ever a chance of you upgrading the gpu later though, get the np9150. I'm pretty surr the np9130 is upgradable but it wont be able to do flagship cards with it's psu
 
[quote name='retrad']what are you talking about? sli sucks in laptops its not freaking the same as it is in desktops.

you would be better off going for the better single card solution tbqh. dont even talk to me about sli in laptops until you are talking about a 680 or 7970 mobile sli / cf setup respectively.[/QUOTE]

What I was saying if you'd pay attention, was the 650M SLI is better than a 660M but not as powerful as his current desktop card.

I agree I would absolutely not buy an SLI laptop because of issues already mentioned, I'd get a single card. Also, sli = 2 cards. Twice the power consumption. Bleh.

[quote name='Kevbo887']Also how does the 670mx compare to the 650m sli? Maybe i should check out xotic pc?[/QUOTE]

If you want a decently priced powerful laptop get either that or the 675m. 675M is better. If I were to buy one today it's what I'd try to get for a decent price.

As for the comparison I think the 670mx is a little weaker.
 
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[quote name='Kevbo887']Also how does the 670mx compare to the 650m sli? Maybe i should check out xotic pc?[/QUOTE]

If you want a decently priced powerful laptop get either that or the 675m. 675M is better. If I were to buy one today it's what I'd try to get for a decent price.

As for the comparison I think the 670mx is a little weaker.
 
Any major difference between the 670 mx and 675 mx that would warrant the price? I also saw a 7970m on xotipc pc with an i7 for like $1400 ish. Is the 7970m really good?
 
[quote name='Kevbo887']Any major difference between the 670 mx and 675 mx that would warrant the price? I also saw a 7970m on xotipc pc with an i7 for like $1400 ish. Is the 7970m really good?[/QUOTE]

670mx is about 10% weaker than a 675mx. And yep looks like 7970m is a little better than 675mx.
 
[quote name='Kevbo887']Also any recommendations? $1300 max[/QUOTE]

If you don't mind refurbished...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834230907

Or you can spend a little over budget for a new one with slightly better specs..

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834230408

As far as I am concerned, the ASUS G series or MSI G series are the only gaming laptops worth looking at.

Edit: These aren't bad options either...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152372
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834152370
 
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That one with the 7970m is highly regarded from what i read for everything but the proccessor. I heard its terrible for gaming?
 
I would recommend the gx60 over the ge60... its got a weaker processor, but amazing graphics... the sager/clevo laptops are good but I agree that msi has a better fit/finish. I would recommend the gx60 or np9150 (get a gaming mouse for them and a headset). Both will be very good for gaming
 
[quote name='Kevbo887']That one with the 7970m is highly regarded from what i read for everything but the proccessor. I heard its terrible for gaming?[/QUOTE]

It's a bit weak but if your choice is between the i7 and a 660m and the 7970m I would choose the 7970m. All of the hate being heaped on it is coming from high end msi and alienware gamers "for $500 more... blah blah blah" still think the np9150 with 670mx will be faster though
 
Ya i just read some user reviews and benchmarks on msi w the 7970. Doesnt actually seem bad as far as gaming goes. Seems like everyone bashing it arent gamers but instead coders and video editors
 
[quote name='Kevbo887']Ya i just read some user reviews and benchmarks on msi w the 7970. Doesnt actually seem bad as far as gaming goes. Seems like everyone bashing it arent gamers but instead coders and video editors[/QUOTE]

Pretty much. Dont expect performance miracles but that rig should be good to go for music movies and mainstream gaming. As long as you aren't expecting to max bf3 you will be good.

Full disclosure: I own a sager np9150 special edition and it destroys at gaming... that 680m and 95% color gamut screen might have something to do with it though
 
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