Inexpensive Laptop for Basic Gaming

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1NintendoFan

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Hey guys,

I need some help in buying a new laptop. I'm wanting to buy a laptop for my brother because he is always coming down to visit me, so I thought it would be nice to have a a computer that is just for him so he doesn't have to bring his laptop down with him every time... I may also have some other plans, i.e. trying to get him into a gaming a little bit again. So, while my main uses for the computer would just be basic web browsing, maybe also for storing photos and things, I wouldn't mind if it had the ability to play some basic games. I would just like to try and get him into some games again, maybe something along the lines of Peggle, Zuma, Plants vs. Zombies, etc. Nothing that really needs a lot of power, so I don't think that would really be an issue.

I have been looking into some options, seeing what is in the adds, etc. and I'm just having a hard time deciding on what I want. I have pretty much decided I'm done with HP/Compaq... I have used them for a few years and didn't have too many issues with them, however, lately I have been noticing the computers just don't last. My first Compaq laptop was bought in 2000, I believe and worked fine until I stopped using it completely (I barely used it, but it still worked) in 2010. However, the more recent computers I have purchased seem to stop working completely after 3 years... I don't mind dealing with a slow computer, but when they just give out all together I don't think it is a brand I want to stick with. So, I think I want to try something else.

Right now, I would say my top considerations would be Acer, Asus, Gateway and Apple. The computers I'm liking the most right now are Acer's, my only issue is that I bought a Netbook from them and after a year it would no longer take a charge, their only solution was to update the drivers, which bricked the netbook and they gave me no assistance with tech support at all because it was no longer in warranty. With HP, they will still try and help you if there is a problem, they just don't provide any parts or anything if it is outside of the warranty... so, I'm not sure how good their tech support would be if needed. I was considering the Macbook Air, mostly because I want a Mac... but think I could get a lot more for the money with a regular notebook... My goal would be to stay under $500, but could spend more if it was really worth it.

Right now, the two I'm most considering are:

http://www.staples.com/Acer-Aspire-TimelineX-AS5830T-6862-15.6-Laptop/product_332980

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ark=&IsFeedbackTab=true&Page=5#scrollFullInfo

Any other ideas, suggestions, etc. would be greatly appreciated!
 
I also found this one... it is going to be on sale next week for $499.99, seems like it may be a better deal:

http://www.staples.com/Toshiba-Sate...oduct_331466&cmArea=CIRCULAR#pr-header-331466

I was kind of staying away from Toshiba after doing some initial research, originally thought it may be a good option... but, I read in some reviews that people were having issues, and Toshiba would make them pay to ship the computer, only to be told that the problem was not covered by the warranty. I always thought Toshiba was a pretty good brand, so I'm not sure if I should consider them or not... but, I saw this and thought it may be something to look into.
 
Thanks for the info... so I guess then my most important question would be which brands are best to consider? I think pretty much anything would be decent enough to play basic games on , so I just want to make sure I'm getting something from a brand that is going to be pretty reliable.

I know Apple is not the ideal choice for inexpensive options, but I have been wanting to get an Apple computer for a while now and I thought this may be a good excuse to get one since the Macbook Air is somewhat inexpensive now... I guess I should just hold off and get my iMac instead :lol:

Thanks again for the info!

[quote name='littlebigphallus']If you only want to play Peggle, the Staples laptop looks pretty good (I don't follow AMD, sorry). You could also get a Toshiba satellite for under 400 (check out bestbuy). You might also want a dedicated graphics card, just in case. Here's a site that compares GPUs: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Graphics-Cards-Benchmark-List.844.0.html.

If you want a cheap laptop, avoid Apple at all costs.[/QUOTE]
 
I'd go with the newegg one, it should be able to handle games like plants vs zombies and maybe even l4d on low settings but it's also Acer so you might want some kind of insurance.
 
Thanks... so is my experience with Acer kind of the norm? I really don't feel like buying another laptop that is going to stop working on me after a few years... I also don't want to spend nearly as much on a warranty as the laptop, since it is a cheap laptop, the insurance will be a good portion of the price.

[quote name='exaznkid']I'd go with the newegg one, it should be able to handle games like plants vs zombies and maybe even l4d on low settings but it's also Acer so you might want some kind of insurance.[/QUOTE]
 
[quote name='exaznkid']I'd go with the newegg one, it should be able to handle games like plants vs zombies and maybe even l4d on low settings but it's also Acer so you might want some kind of insurance.[/QUOTE]

Either one of those laptops could easily play Left 4 Dead on highest possible settings.
Both laptops are better than my current computer and I can play all of these games at 1920x1080 at the highest settings: Batman Arkham Asylum, Condemned, Far Cry 2, Half-Life 2, Just Cause 2, Left 4 Dead 1 & 2, Mirror's Edge, Portal 1 & 2, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, and many more.
The only games I've tried that don't run well at medium settings or higher are Grand Theft Auto IV and Crysis.
 
Right now, the more power hungry games are not of concern to me... He hasn't really played games much since the NES, we played some on the SNES, but not as much, then when he got the Gamecube he was less interested in gaming... I just thought if I had something that I could put some of the more casual basic games on, I may be able to ease him back in to gaming .

If he starts to get more serious and wants to game more, then I would probably look into getting a gaming desktop so we would definitely have enough power... for now, I'm just concerned in getting a laptop that is fast with everyday things and that is going to last... not something that will be okay at first and then just die after a year or so.

I do appreciate the info, I'm pretty confident if the laptops could can run those games that they will be able to do most things we throw at it!

[quote name='PenguinMaster']Either one of those laptops could easily play Left 4 Dead on highest possible settings.
Both laptops are better than my current computer and I can play all of these games at 1920x1080 at the highest settings: Batman Arkham Asylum, Condemned, Far Cry 2, Half-Life 2, Just Cause 2, Left 4 Dead 1 & 2, Mirror's Edge, Portal 1 & 2, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, and many more.
The only games I've tried that don't run well at medium settings or higher are Grand Theft Auto IV and Crysis.[/QUOTE]
 
I've always been really disappointed with all laptops for gaming. Once they get hot forget about using them. They just get slow and uncooperative. I recommend just using them for productivity, emails, and movies.
 
[quote name='1NintendoFan']I also found this one... it is going to be on sale next week for $499.99, seems like it may be a better deal:

http://www.staples.com/Toshiba-Sate...oduct_331466&cmArea=CIRCULAR#pr-header-331466

I was kind of staying away from Toshiba after doing some initial research, originally thought it may be a good option... but, I read in some reviews that people were having issues, and Toshiba would make them pay to ship the computer, only to be told that the problem was not covered by the warranty. I always thought Toshiba was a pretty good brand, so I'm not sure if I should consider them or not... but, I saw this and thought it may be something to look into.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, certain models of the Satellite were recalled due to overheating issues, but the L775D doesn't seem to be faulty. Toshiba's customer service seems to be pretty good.

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Desktops-a...te-Notebooks-Recalled-for-Overheating-349682/

http://www.la.bbb.org/business-revi...ca-Information-Systems-Inc-in-Irvine-CA-41153

If you're going to play Popcap games, you don't need a quad-core. I doubt they're optimized for 4 cores. The quad-core in the $630 laptop doesn't seem to be that good anyway. If "Acceleration" is AMD's version of Turboboost, you're essentially overclocking just to get to a measly 2.3 ghz.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-A-Series-A6-3400M-Notebook-Processor.55753.0.html

Again, I can't speak for AMD.

There are so many laptops and deals out there, I'm just going to try to give you some pointers as to what you might want. If you want to stick with the Acer, that's fine and you can stop reading here. Here are some more deals on sub-$500 laptops:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834215126
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834157545
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=631873&Sku=A180-156302&cm_re=Homepage-_-Spot%2001a-_-CatId_17_A180-156302

Regardless of the games you're playing, you should get something decent because you never know if Popcap will start releasing games on the Frostbyte engine (lol) and because you don't want your computer crashing when browsing the interwebs. I've accumulated some bits of knowledge regarding hardware over the course of my life :)P), and what you're looking for is a decent clock speed (base 2.0 ghz or more, doesn't matter if it's dual or quad) with a good L2 cache (3MB or more) or 6MB of L3 cache if L2 is not available. You also probably want 4 gigs of ram (Windows 7 is a memory hog, and I mean it). If you can get a GPU, get it, because even the HD3000 lags on Minecraft (I have the HD3000...then again, Java is horribly optimized). Also, as you probably know, a bigger display means you need better hardware. Get a good battery (9-cell) if you want your laptop to last longer. Don't discharge lithium-ion batteries, either. Heh.

Of course, take what I say with a grain of salt...I'm not an expert and I've been out of the loop since the last time I built my computer (which was at least 4 years ago). If ever in doubt, just check the reviews. Someone correct me if I'm talking out of my ass.

Phew.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
[quote name='1NintendoFan']Thanks... so is my experience with Acer kind of the norm? I really don't feel like buying another laptop that is going to stop working on me after a few years... I also don't want to spend nearly as much on a warranty as the laptop, since it is a cheap laptop, the insurance will be a good portion of the price.[/QUOTE]

No, one of my teams bought an Acer and after a few months, the battery/charger were totally busted. The most reliable brands in my experience are Dell and Lenovo. The least reliable are Gateway and MSI.

[quote name='1NintendoFan']
If he starts to get more serious and wants to game more, then I would probably look into getting a gaming desktop so we would definitely have enough power... for now, I'm just concerned in getting a laptop that is fast with everyday things and that is going to last... not something that will be okay at first and then just die after a year or so.[/QUOTE]


In that case, your first 2 choices seem good enough. EDIT: However, I don't think they'll be able to play L4D2 at max settings, as a previous poster has mentioned. That's my "experience" talking. As Intel themselves state, the naming convention (i3, i5) has nothing to do with the power of the hardware. A bigger number doesn't make it better. Just look at all those crappy, budget Nvidia cards. There's also a huge gap between desktop and laptop hardware, as SK has proclaimed.
 
Those basic games should run on almost any labtop (as long as its 2.0 Core duo 2 or higher...)

Toshiba labtop are good. See if u can find A505-S6965. That labtop is pretty nice. Has P7350 core 2 duo process (2.1) and ati 512mb graphic card HD4570.

The graphic card is alright and not as good as the others but can play batman aa, fallout 3, resident evil , etc.

take you r time and shop around.
 
[quote name='Sk']I've always been really disappointed with all laptops for gaming. Once they get hot forget about using them. They just get slow and uncooperative. I recommend just using them for productivity, emails, and movies.[/QUOTE]

I used my old HP desktop replacement laptop for some gaming and didn't have any problems with it... I would say it was my favorite computer ever... Like I said, for the most part, I just want something for him to have while he is visiting. If we can play games on it, it would be a plus, but just basic games for now. I would just get a desktop, but I don't really have a place to put it at the moment... if I decide to get a gaming desktop, then I can figure something out, but I prefer console gaming anyway... I'm just trying to be sneaky and put a couple games I find really addictive on there, just to get him started :lol:

[quote name='littlebigphallus']Yeah, certain models of the Satellite were recalled due to overheating issues, but the L775D doesn't seem to be faulty. Toshiba's customer service seems to be pretty good.

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Desktops-a...te-Notebooks-Recalled-for-Overheating-349682/

http://www.la.bbb.org/business-revi...ca-Information-Systems-Inc-in-Irvine-CA-41153

If you're going to play Popcap games, you don't need a quad-core. I doubt they're optimized for 4 cores. The quad-core in the $630 laptop doesn't seem to be that good anyway. If "Acceleration" is AMD's version of Turboboost, you're essentially overclocking just to get to a measly 2.3 ghz.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-A-Series-A6-3400M-Notebook-Processor.55753.0.html

Again, I can't speak for AMD.

There are so many laptops and deals out there, I'm just going to try to give you some pointers as to what you might want. If you want to stick with the Acer, that's fine and you can stop reading here. Here are some more deals on sub-$500 laptops:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834215126
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834157545
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=631873&Sku=A180-156302&cm_re=Homepage-_-Spot%2001a-_-CatId_17_A180-156302

Regardless of the games you're playing, you should get something decent because you never know if Popcap will start releasing games on the Frostbyte engine (lol) and because you don't want your computer crashing when browsing the interwebs. I've accumulated some bits of knowledge regarding hardware over the course of my life :)P), and what you're looking for is a decent clock speed (base 2.0 ghz or more, doesn't matter if it's dual or quad) with a good L2 cache (3MB or more) or 6MB of L3 cache if L2 is not available. You also probably want 4 gigs of ram (Windows 7 is a memory hog, and I mean it). If you can get a GPU, get it, because even the HD3000 lags on Minecraft (I have the HD3000...then again, Java is horribly optimized). Also, as you probably know, a bigger display means you need better hardware. Get a good battery (9-cell) if you want your laptop to last longer. Don't discharge lithium-ion batteries, either. Heh.

Of course, take what I say with a grain of salt...I'm not an expert and I've been out of the loop since the last time I built my computer (which was at least 4 years ago). If ever in doubt, just check the reviews. Someone correct me if I'm talking out of my ass.

Phew.[/QUOTE]

[quote name='littlebigphallus']No, one of my teams bought an Acer and after a few months, the battery/charger were totally busted. The most reliable brands in my experience are Dell and Lenovo. The least reliable are Gateway and MSI.




In that case, your first 2 choices seem good enough. EDIT: However, I don't think they'll be able to play L4D2 at max settings, as a previous poster has mentioned. That's my "experience" talking. As Intel themselves state, the naming convention (i3, i5) has nothing to do with the power of the hardware. A bigger number doesn't make it better. Just look at all those crappy, budget Nvidia cards. There's also a huge gap between desktop and laptop hardware, as SK has proclaimed.[/QUOTE]

Thank you so much for all of your info. I just made a trip to Best Buy and was looking at some Lenovo's. They had some that were actually in my price range, I really didn't think I would find one for that price, but they did have some. They seemed to be a little more dated with the specs, but not too much, so it may be something to consider. I was reading some articles before I left and Apple and Lenovo were the top two brands for laptops in 2010 and 2011. So, I think I may start looking for Lenovo... I still seem to like the HP laptops the most, but I'm definitely staying away from those now. Acer has some I like, but I just don't know how reliable they are going to be and if it will be any better than HP. You have definitely given me a lot more to think about, so I'm going to start researching Lenovo tonight to see what I can get.

[quote name='The Punisher']Those basic games should run on almost any labtop (as long as its 2.0 Core duo 2 or higher...)

Toshiba labtop are good. See if u can find A505-S6965. That labtop is pretty nice. Has P7350 core 2 duo process (2.1) and ati 512mb graphic card HD4570.

The graphic card is alright and not as good as the others but can play batman aa, fallout 3, resident evil , etc.

take you r time and shop around.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the info... I definitely want something that is going to be fast. He always has brand new computers that are super fast, so I don't want to buy something that is going to make him pull his hair out. As long as it can handle some multi-tasking and some basic games, I think we will be fine... so, I'm just going to keep researching it before I make my final decision.



Thanks again to everyone for the replies, they have been really helpful!!!
 
[quote name='littlebigphallus']No, one of my teams bought an Acer and after a few months, the battery/charger were totally busted. The most reliable brands in my experience are Dell and Lenovo. The least reliable are Gateway and MSI.[/QUOTE]
This is going to be decent from person to person. In 20+ years, Gateways are the most reliable computers I've used (real Gateway, not eMachine) and Dells are one of the least reliable. They often come with spyware/adware pre-installed and they break down within the first year. In the years that I've been fixing computers, I've had to fix far more Dells (and Alienware) than anything else and their customer service is some of the worst I've dealt with. I would never ever recommend getting one. But this is from my own experience.

Acer is actually a pretty decent brand. They're not up there with the likes of Gateway or HP, but they typically have better hardware than Dell and eMachine. Still on the lower end of the spectrum from my perspective, but they are good for beginners and people who only need the basic functions of a computer. The only problem is that, as you have experienced, they often have faulty or loose charger ports that need to either be replaced or re-soldered. It's a cheap and simple fix, but not for the basic user who wouldn't even know how to open one of their labyrinthine laptops.

I've never dealt with Acer's customer service, but if their solution was to update the drivers, then either they are complete idiots or they were trying to bait you into paying them to fix it. I haven't messed around with an Acer built within the last two years, so maybe they have improved, but I can't really say. If you have a computer-savvy friend who can help you out if you have charger issues again, then the first laptop is a good deal (better than the one from Newegg).


But really, for your situation, I would look into just getting a netbook. After all, we are talking about a computer that is being used by a guest, which means it won't likely be required for any heavy-duty tasks. Running PopCap games like Peggle and Plants Vs. Zombies is something that any current computer can do with no problem. I can run them with no issues whatsoever on a computer that is about 6 years old. You can find a halfway decent netbook for less than $200 (and they're always going on clearance) and, unless your brother requires some major software, it should be able to fulfill his basic needs while also allowing you guys to play games.
 
Thanks for the info... I have always heard pretty good things about Gateway computers as well, but have not really researched them recently... I had a friend who purchased one and still used it 7 years later with no real issues. I have only had one Dell product and their customer service was horrible... we were on the phone for hours between holds and them not knowing what to do, eventually just returned the product and never looked back... I have never really heard too many positives on Dell either.

I guess if Acer is not as good as HP I should avoid them... I feel like HP has really gone down hill the last few years... even though when I'm looking at computers, if I don't pay attention to brand, their computers always appeal to me, I think I should avoid them... so, I guess Acer will be off the list as well.

My issue, as far as I know, was not with the actual charger or port. The computer would work just fine if it was plugged in, but it would not charge the battery at all... I guess it was a common problem and the only fix I was able to find anywhere was to update the drivers... I just wanted to double check with tech support if this was true and they didn't want to provide any assistance at all because it was more than a year old... when their only solution to fix the issue caused my netbook to brick, I decided that may not be my favorite brand.

I have considered the netbook route, but I already have one and I'm not a real big fan of them. Not only is the smaller size somewhat annoying, the slower speed is not really ideal. I'm used to using a laptop that is super slow and netbooks still annoy me... I would rather use my iPad over my netbook any day. He is used to doing a lot of multi-tasking and things and has fast computers, so I think I should try and get him a regular laptop. I would rather spend a little more and have something that is not only nice for him to use, but a nice backup option for me as well.

Thanks again for the info... I think I'm going to start looking more into Gateway and Lenovo!

[quote name='ZombieToast']This is going to be decent from person to person. In 20+ years, Gateways are the most reliable computers I've used (real Gateway, not eMachine) and Dells are one of the least reliable. They often come with spyware/adware pre-installed and they break down within the first year. In the years that I've been fixing computers, I've had to fix far more Dells (and Alienware) than anything else and their customer service is some of the worst I've dealt with. I would never ever recommend getting one. But this is from my own experience.

Acer is actually a pretty decent brand. They're not up there with the likes of Gateway or HP, but they typically have better hardware than Dell and eMachine. Still on the lower end of the spectrum from my perspective, but they are good for beginners and people who only need the basic functions of a computer. The only problem is that, as you have experienced, they often have faulty or loose charger ports that need to either be replaced or re-soldered. It's a cheap and simple fix, but not for the basic user who wouldn't even know how to open one of their labyrinthine laptops.

I've never dealt with Acer's customer service, but if their solution was to update the drivers, then either they are complete idiots or they were trying to bait you into paying them to fix it. I haven't messed around with an Acer built within the last two years, so maybe they have improved, but I can't really say. If you have a computer-savvy friend who can help you out if you have charger issues again, then the first laptop is a good deal (better than the one from Newegg).


But really, for your situation, I would look into just getting a netbook. After all, we are talking about a computer that is being used by a guest, which means it won't likely be required for any heavy-duty tasks. Running PopCap games like Peggle and Plants Vs. Zombies is something that any current computer can do with no problem. I can run them with no issues whatsoever on a computer that is about 6 years old. You can find a halfway decent netbook for less than $200 (and they're always going on clearance) and, unless your brother requires some major software, it should be able to fulfill his basic needs while also allowing you guys to play games.[/QUOTE]
 
Just thought I'd point out that I meant "This is going to be different from person to person". Ha ha. Anyway, it sounds like you ran into another Acer problem that I had completely forgotten about. Faulty charger ports are quite common in my experience, but the laptops are also really bad about running into the battery "memory effect" which basically means that when they aren't fully discharged, they "forget" to charge all the way. This may or may not have been your problem, but it's one of the first things their customer support should've gone over with you.

This is common with a lot of devices, especially cell phones, but Acer laptops seem to be really bad about it for some reason. If you still have the laptop/netbook, I would suggest looking into it if you haven't already. It can easily be prevented or fixed, but it's something that I think a lot of people aren't aware of.
 
Thanks for the info... unfortunately, I think that the netbook is completely done for, at least with what I am able to do for it... after installing the driver updates that customer service told me to install, the netbook would not turn on at all... so, I think it is pretty much a paper weight now :cry:

But I do appreciate the info, will keep it in mind for next time!

[quote name='ZombieToast']Just thought I'd point out that I meant "This is going to be different from person to person". Ha ha. Anyway, it sounds like you ran into another Acer problem that I had completely forgotten about. Faulty charger ports are quite common in my experience, but the laptops are also really bad about running into the battery "memory effect" which basically means that when they aren't fully discharged, they "forget" to charge all the way. This may or may not have been your problem, but it's one of the first things their customer support should've gone over with you.

This is common with a lot of devices, especially cell phones, but Acer laptops seem to be really bad about it for some reason. If you still have the laptop/netbook, I would suggest looking into it if you haven't already. It can easily be prevented or fixed, but it's something that I think a lot of people aren't aware of.[/QUOTE]
 
[quote name='1NintendoFan']Thanks for the info... unfortunately, I think that the netbook is completely done for, at least with what I am able to do for it... after installing the driver updates that customer service told me to install, the netbook would not turn on at all... so, I think it is pretty much a paper weight now :cry:

But I do appreciate the info, will keep it in mind for next time![/QUOTE]

I would contact Cs again and see what they can do. Update drivers shouldnt do that if its coming from them.
 
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