Budget gaming laptop

[Kalahari]

Hi,

Got a budget of £650 total at most.

I'd like the best possible spec for the money but am not too sure which base unit to even pick to start my spec.

I'll be playing Warcraft, World of Tanks and hopefully Diablo on it.

Not to bothered about playing with lower graphics settings if I have to.

World of tanks specs here Tanks

Oh also considering onlive gaming so would a faster processor be better to help with that?

I'll have a poke around and see if I can come up with a spec myself but any suggestions gratefully received.

I'd consider a desktop only as last resort and it'd have to come with monitor but I'm ok for mouse/keyboard and speakers.

Kalahari

 

[Kalahari]

This one idea I've had...

Chassis & Display
Genesis III: 15.6" Glossy HD LED 16:9 Widescreen (1366x768)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Dual Core Mobile Processor i5-2520M (2.50GHz) 3MB
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
nVIDIA® GeForce® GT 630M - 1GB DDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
750GB WD SCORPIO BLUE WD7500BPVT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 8MB CACHE (5400 rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
Memory Card Reader
Internal 9 in 1 Card Reader (MMC/RSMMC/SD: Mini, XC & HC/MS: Pro & Duo)
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Network Facilities
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® N130 802.11N (150Mbps) + BLUETOOTH
USB Options
3 x USB 2.0 (UMA) OR 2 x USB 3.0 & 1 x USB 2.0 PORTS (GT 630M)
Battery
Genesis Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (48.84WH)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 65W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Keyboard & Mouse
INTEGRATED UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1.3 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Insurance
1 Month Free Laptop Insurance inc. Accidental Damage & Theft
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 6 to 8 working days
Quantity
1

 

[Kalahari]

And the other...

Chassis & Display
Enigma III 540: 15.6" Glossy FHD LED (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i3 Dual Core Mobile Processor i3-2350M (2.30GHz) 3MB
Memory (RAM)
8GB SAMSUNG 1333MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
nVIDIA® GeForce® GT 540M - 2GB DDR3 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
750GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD7500BPKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 3 in 1 Memory Card Reader (SD, MMC, MS)
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Network Facilities
ENIGMA GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS 802.11N + BLUETOOTH 3.0
USB Options
1 x USB 3.0 PORT + 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS AS STANDARD
Battery
Enigma Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,200 mAH)
Power Lead & Adaptor
1 x UK Power Lead & 120W AC Adaptor
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Keyboard & Mouse
INTEGRATED UK KEYBOARD
Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1.3 MEGAPIXEL WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Insurance
1 Month Free Laptop Insurance inc. Accidental Damage & Theft
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 6 to 8 working days
Quantity
1

 

[Troublesum]

Hi Kalahari,

With that budget and the builds above I think you will be ok for WOW & WOT but you will most definitely struggle with Diablo 3... and as long as you only play WOW & WOT for the next few years you should be good but if you are planning on playing any recent games then again you will have problems. Unless you have £1000+ (I wouldn’t spend less than £1200+ on a gaming laptop) to spend on a gaming laptop I would not recommend it as its only going to be able to play old games (WOW / WOT) you can get a much more powerful Gaming PC (mid-level) for your budget that will be able to play most modern games at respectable settings.

This is just my opinion and I know if I got a laptop for £650 I would get tired of its lack of performance on games and then have to get a new one in 6 - 12 months but that’s just me and it’s your decision maybe others can give advice on experiences they have had with lower spec laptops for gaming.

Hope my input helps you

 

[Agito]

I'd go with the 2nd spec Kalahari provided due to the higher RPM HDD.

On the Diablo 3 note, its not a demanding game graphically. I played the beta on my friends older "lapdog" which has GT350M and it was working ok on medium settings. Nothing really to complain about appart from the fact that the game looks like it was made 8 years ago even if you max it out.

 

[clancy2k]

For that kind of money, you'd be MUCH better off getting a desktop. a £650 laptop really isn't good enough for gaming imo. unless you only plan to play 5 year old games.