New Gaming Laptop 1000£-1300£

[Shine]

Hello guys, Oussebon , I'm planning to buy gaming laptop which I will use 90% for games in next 3-4 years. My budget is 1000£-1300£ (1400£ if there will be big difference in performance) The problem is, that my knowledge about computers is very close to 0 ...so I will need your help with spec. I'm MMO player so I will need something which will handle massive pvp battles, where there is a lot of skills animations on the screen ( Black Desert, Bless Online, Star Citizen in the future but also for upcoming Mass Effect Andromeda ). So I'm thinking 17.3" Proteus IV with some upgrades?

https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/proteusIV-17/3YyUhDAn3z/

Chassis & Display
Proteus Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)

Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Quad Core Processor 7700HQ (2.8GHz, 3.8GHz Turbo) ---> +100£ for 7820HK (2.9GHz, 3.9GHz Turbo). Will be here big difference?

Memory (RAM)
4GB Kingston SODIMM DDR4 2133MHz (1 x 4GB) ---> thinking +20£ for (1 x 8GB) or +90£ for (1 x 16GB)

Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1060 - 6.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1

1st Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7,200rpm) ---> +82£ for 480GB Kingston UV400 2.5'' SSD, SATA 6Gb (550MB/R , 500MB/W)? or take it as a disc 2...?
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 4 in 1 Card Reader (SD/SDHC/SDXC/MMC)

or maybe I don't need all this and I should upgrade 17.3" Optimus VIII ??? https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/notebooks/optimusVIII-17/

 

[johnymuss11]

I am not an expert especially with MMO's but an i7 may not be required, (correct me if I'm wrong) an i7 is only a benefit for certain things ie video rendering an i5 is usually perfectly good enough for gaming.

I will suggest an SSD for your OS and primary games. The SM961 by Samsung is by far the best. Then a 1TB HDD is usually good as its around £4 more expensive for double the capacity. Don't bother with the WD HDD though.

RAM wise, I would suggest 8GB at least and add another 8GB later. Or just have 16GB to start with, 4GB is notebook territory, really for gaming 8GB is minimum IMO.

Graphics cards wise I'm sure the 1060 could handle it but for future proofing as it is VERY difficult to upgrade laptops maybe go for the 1070 in the Defiance?

I just quickly chucked this together off the top of my head, have a look.

Chassis & Display

Defiance Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)


Processor (CPU)

Intel® Core™ i7 Quad Core Processor 7700HQ (2.8GHz, 3.8GHz Turbo)


Memory (RAM)

8GB Kingston SODIMM DDR4 2133MHz (1 x 8GB)


Graphics Card

NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1070 - 8.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1, G-SYNC


FREE FOR HONOR or GHOST RECON: WILDLANDS with select GTX 10 Series GPUs!


1st Hard Disk

1TB SLIM SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 128MB CACHE (5,400rpm)


M.2 SSD Drive

256GB SAMSUNG SM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3100MB/R, 1400MB/W)


DVD/BLU-RAY Drive

NOT REQUIRED


Memory Card Reader

Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)


AC Adaptor

1 x 200W AC Adaptor

Thermal Paste

ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND


Sound Card

Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + MIC/Headphone + SoundBlaster X-Fi MB3


Bluetooth & Wireless

GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8265 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11AC) +BT 4.0


USB Options

3 x USB 3.1 Type A, 2 x USB 3.1 Type C AS STANDARD

Operating System

Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit

Warranty

3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)

£1,569 in VAT

I know its a bit over. But food for thought.

Hope I have helped.

John


Disclaimer: Not an expert

 

[Oussebon]

---> +100£ for 7820HK (2.9GHz, 3.9GHz Turbo). Will be here big difference?

Not really for most games. The main point of that CPU is that you can overclock it. That might be an asset, but possibly not worth the cost and the potential warranty risk (Proteus doesn't have a pre-OCed option I think).

Memory (RAM)
4GB Kingston SODIMM DDR4 2133MHz (1 x 4GB) ---> thinking +20£ for (1 x 8GB) or +90£ for (1 x 16GB)

8gb as a minimum

1st Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7,200rpm) ---> +82£ for 480GB Kingston UV400 2.5'' SSD, SATA 6Gb (550MB/R , 500MB/W)? or take it as a disc 2...?

I'd get a 1TB HDD and add an M.2 SSD in the future as an upgrade.

You may want to consider the Defiance III https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/notebooks/defianceIII-15/ which has a gsync screen
Also if you do decide to drop loads of cash on the unlocked CPU, there's an option to get PCS to overclock it for you.

Hello guys, Oussebon

I'm not one of the guys? sad faic

 

[Shine]

I'm not one of the guys? sad faic

Sorry... actually I was writing to you Oussebon as you are the one who helps the most on this forum , that's why separate name. Anyway thank you guys for help.

I talked to my friends, read a lot, learn a lot and I will probably go with something like this. What do you think?

Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Quad Core Processor 7300HQ (2.5GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
16GB HyperX IMPACT 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 Ti - 4.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st Hard Disk
480GB KINGSTON UV400 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (550MB/R, 500MB/W)

Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 120W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
2 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Cinema 3
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8265 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11AC) +BT 4.0
USB Options
1 x USB 3.0 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Battery
Cosmos VI Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Keyboard Language
SINGLE COLOUR BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)

Price: £1,065.00 including VAT and delivery.

 

[Oussebon]

The Optimus is a lot less powerful than the Defiance due to having a weaker GPU. Obviously it's also cheaper.




A 17" Defiance with i7 6700HQ, 8gb RAM, 480gb UV400 SSD) costs £1310 - 23% more than the Optimus. But the GTX 1060 is around 40% more powerful. The Defiance also sports a gsync screen.

If you have the budget, the Defiance therefore represents more performance per £, and since you can't replace the CPU or the GPU in the laptops it should also last you longer before struggling to play modern games.

If you are going for a 500gb SSD, I would suggest at least the WD Blue rather than the UV400. The UV400 can be quite a lot slower despite only being £9 less.

 

[Shine]

Ok, so in the end I will go with something like this.

Chassis & Display
Defiance Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Quad Core Processor 6700HQ (2.6GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
16GB HyperX IMPACT 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1060 - 6.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1, G-SYNC
1st Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7,200rpm)
M.2 SSD Drive
250GB WD BLUE™ M.2 SSD (up to 540MB/s R | 500MB/s W)

My last few questions are:

1. Better to have 1 - ATA Hard Disk and 1 - M.2 SSD like I posted? If so I should install Windows10 on ATA hard drive or M.2 SSD?

2. What is a difference between 500GB SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7,200rpm) and 1TB SLIM SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 128MB CACHE (5,400rpm)? Which one is better or faster? They are same price...(I can see that there is 500gb more on second one)

3.Better to have 1, 500GB SSD..if so which one is better/faster? (500Gb SSD WD Blue is no longer available),
a) 480GB KINGSTON UV400 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (550MB/R, 500MB/W)
b) 500GB Samsung 850 EVO 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s(upto 540MB/sR | 520MB/sW) +29£
c) 480GB Hyperex Savage 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) +26£

4. 200W AC Adaptor will be ok for this setup or should I take 230W?

DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
External DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x Slim USB 2.0 External DVD-RW + 26£
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 200W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
2 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + MIC/Headphone + SoundBlaster X-Fi MB3
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8265 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11AC) +BT 4.0
USB Options
3 x USB 3.1 Type A, 2 x USB 3.1 Type C AS STANDARD
Battery
Defiance Series 4 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (60WH)
Keyboard Language
DEFIANCE SERIES RGB BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 2.0 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)Delivery +5£
PCS EXTRA-CARE DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND - MON-FRI, PRE-NOON +9£
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 5 to 7 working days
Quantity
1
Price: £1,417.00 -£1,440.00 including VAT and delivery.

 

[Oussebon]

1. Better to have 1 - ATA Hard Disk and 1 - M.2 SSD like I posted? If so I should install Windows10 on ATA hard drive or M.2 SSD?

3.Better to have 1, 500GB SSD..if so which one is better/faster? (500Gb SSD WD Blue is no longer available),
a) 480GB KINGSTON UV400 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (550MB/R, 500MB/W)
b) 500GB Samsung 850 EVO 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s(upto 540MB/sR | 520MB/sW) +29£
c) 480GB Hyperex Savage 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 560MB/sR | 530MB/sW) +26£

If buying a budget/mid range SSD like a WD Blue, I wouldn't buy it as an M.2 SSD. You would ideally want to keep the M.2 slot free for a really fast NVMe PCIe SSD (e.g. Samsung PM961, SM961).

If you can't afford one now and therefore buy a Sata III SSD instead, I would avoid the UV400 as it is a fair bit slower than some of the others for not all that much of a saving.

If buying a Sata SSD I would get either an 850 Evo or a HyperX Savage.

2. What is a difference between 500GB SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7,200rpm) and 1TB SLIM SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 128MB CACHE (5,400rpm)? Which one is better or faster? They are same price...(I can see that there is 500gb more on second one)

The 7200rpm one spins faster and so should perform faster. However, the 1TB one is twice the size. Since games, save files, saved gameplay video, etc can eat up a lot of space, personally I'd go for the 1TB one.

Note, however, that there is the WD Black 1TB HDD on offer: "1TB WD BLACK WD10JPLX" The WD black drives are very good (fast, and quite reliable) and isn't too much more expensive. So you could just go for one of those.

4. 200W AC Adaptor will be ok for this setup or should I take 230W?

I believe the 200W one is for the GTX 1060 and the 230W one is for the GTX 1070. So it should be fine. I'm sure PCS will give you the one you need

 

[Shine]

Originally I thought and hoped I will have to spend around 1000-1200£ for laptop which will last 3+ years and now I'm looking at 1400£ price (mostly because of huge difference between GTX 1050 ti and GTX 1060) +50£ on other stuff. At this point I need to count every £. I'm not doing any video rendering, recording or saving gameplay etc. so I don't need so much space. 500GB all together is what I need.

As I'm running out of time, and I need to finally buy this laptop which option for Hard Drive would you recommend?

1. 1st Hard Disk 500GB WD BLACK 2.5" WD5000LPLX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB CACHE (7200 rpm) and M.2 SSD Drive 256GB SAMSUNG SM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe
2. single 480GB Hyperex Savage 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s

really can't decide which one to choose...

In this topic https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?53252-Proteus-IV-17-3-a-good-choice you said:

It has a gsync screen, which means the refresh rate is synchronised to the GPU's FPS output. This can lead to smoother gameplay.

There are also a lot more reviews of the Defiance, including reviews by specialist tech websites: http://www.kitguru.net/lifestyle/mo...ecialist-defiance-iii-17-3-laptop-w-gtx-1060/

In this review on page 3 :

One thing to note, however, is that there is a Nvidia G-Sync sticker, when the panel does not support the technology. I can only assume it is included because the GTX 1060 is G-Sync capable when paired with a display that supports the technology

So.. Defiance is using G-Sync tech. or I will need different screen for it?

 

[Shine]

Bump...ehhh 20h waiting for a post to be posted, and it still came up as if there was no new replies in the topic. Really frustrating...

 

[Oussebon]

I'm pretty sure the Defiance has gsync. That comment in the review may have been because it was done right after that laptop released and either a gsync panel wasn't available then or the driver version hadn't enabled gsync on it yet (laptop panels don't do gsync in the same way as desktop monitors). If in doubt though, ask PCS I guess

1. 1st Hard Disk 500GB WD BLACK 2.5" WD5000LPLX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB CACHE (7200 rpm) and M.2 SSD Drive 256GB SAMSUNG SM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe
2. single 480GB Hyperex Savage 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s

The cost difference between a 500gb and 1TB WD Black is £13. I'd really recommend getting the 1TB one, since modern games can easily be 35-50gb in size.

If you can't decide which config you could always buy without an SSD and add one as a future upgrade when you have the cash for a 500gb fast M.2 drive or whatever you want.

If that doesn't appeal I'd go with the 256gb M.2 SM961 and a 1TB WD Black. You can add another sata SSD into the other 2.5" drive bay in the future if you ever need more SSD storage.

 

[Shine]

Yeah I know games this days are very big in size...but for last 5-6 years I never used more than 300GB on my 500GB HDD. If I'm not playing something I'm uninstalling game. Need SSD for OS and maybe 2-3 main games..but don't really need them to open in 5s so 256gb ssd will be enough.

Ok THANK YOU very much Oussebon for your time and help

kind regards

 

[Shine]

About GSYNC on Defiance III PCS replied:

Hi There,
First, I would like to thank you for contacting PC Specialist.
By default, the panel that comes with the laptop is a Gsync panel, so the laptop can actually use Gsync technology in built.
I hope this helps you with your query.

About.. HyperX IMPACT 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 8GB) PCS replied:

Hello there,
Thank you for your recent message. Unfortunately, I have found that this particular kit of RAM is no longer available through us. The option for 16GB is still available with the Kingston option though and this is identical in spec, just with 1 x 16GB rather than 2 x 8GB.

As I want dual channel I will go with 8Gb for now. Is there a reason why I should buy 8Gb Hyperex 2400Mhz over 8Gb Kingston 2133Mhz which is 12£ cheaper? Find out that difference in speed will give me only 2 FPS more.

 

[Oussebon]

In some games the FPS difference will be barely measurable. In other games it might add a few FPS on, e.g. WoW or FO4 and it might be a particular asset in those games to mitigate FPS drops in certain situations.

If you consider that the laptop is ~£1500, £12% is less than 1% of that and could be worth it. That said, not having it is pretty unlikely to make or break your gameplay experience.

 

[Shine]

Ordered yesterday morning (fast track 3 days) and it has already been dispatch, will arrive tomorrow

Anyway I have 2 more question.

1. I will need another 8gb ram stick for dual channel (have 8Gb Hyperex 2400Mhz) ...but does it have to be exactly same stick as I have or can be different brand?

2. When I receive my laptop..... all the drivers from CD's will be installed or I need to do it myself?

 

[rav007]

1) Exactly the same stick is advised for dual channel memory. Should be easy to find though, I got an 8gb stick from amazon which exactly matched the one that PCS supplied in my laptop.
2) Should be installed. Some may be missing, they put a sticker for the soundblaster Xfi5 on my laptop but didnt install the driver, maybe because I only asked for Win10 trial OS. Missing drivers, along with the manual, can be here: http://www.clevo.com/en/e-services/Download/default.asp

Take a look at the manual too, there are some features you may find useful in there. I created a thread on useful features in another part of the forum, technical help section I think.

 

[SpyderTracks]

2) Should be installed. Some may be missing, they put a sticker for the soundblaster Xfi5 on my laptop but didnt install the driver, maybe because I only asked for Win10 trial OS.

Yes, if you order without OS, they only install a test environment which won't be fully configured.

 

[Oussebon]

I will need another 8gb ram stick for dual channel (have 8Gb Hyperex 2400Mhz) ...but does it have to be exactly same stick as I have or can be different brand?

Before ordering more RAM, do check exactly what you have as PCS have just switched over to Corsair Vengeance for their 2400MHz SODIMM RAM. So it's possible your laptop shipped with that instead of the HyperX stuff.

 

[Shine]

Thank you rav007 for info.

Before ordering more RAM, do check exactly what you have as PCS have just switched over to Corsair Vengeance for their 2400MHz SODIMM RAM. So it's possible your laptop shipped with that instead of the HyperX stuff.

Spec on my existing pc on the website says Hyperex and price didn't change.... but I will double check it. Thx

 

[Jspec]

I've literally just started a thread to try and find a budget gaming laptop. it might be worth saving my penny for a little longer and getting a lot more. Great read guys, loads of info

 

[Shine]

Ok, I've go it, it's up and running...so far all good. Is there a way to find out ram brand without removing all the screws and bottom cover? System info only says 8gb.