Optimus IV 15" vs 17"

[Layperson]

Hi guys, I've been lurking these forums for a couple of weeks, reading up on various laptop builds, and I've decided on my own build. My final question though, is whether I should go for the 15" or 17" version of the Optimus IV.

Optimus Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)

Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Mobile Processor i7-3610QM (2.30GHz) 6MB
Memory (RAM)

8GB SAMSUNG 1600MHz SODIMM DDR3 MEMORY (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card

NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 660M - 2.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 11
Memory - Hard Disk

120GB KINGSTON HYPERX 3K SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 555MB/sR | 510MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk

500GB WD SCORPIO BLACK WD5000BPKT, SATA 3 Gb/s, 16MB CACHE (7200 rpm)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive

8x SATA DVD±R/RW/Dual Layer (+ 24x CD-RW)
Memory Card Reader

ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
Sound Card


GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® ULTIMATE-N 6300 (450Mbps)

Power Lead & Adaptor

1 x UK Power Lead & 120W AC Adaptor

3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Dead Pixel Guarantee

1 Year Dead Pixel Guarantee Inc. Labour & Carriage Costs (£19)
Insurance

PCS EXTRA-CARE DIAMOND DELIVERY - MON-FRI, PRE-NOON (£9)
Build Time

Price: £860.00 including VAT and delivery.

This laptop will be used almost exclusively for gaming - I'll be reformatting my old laptop and using it as a word processing machine.

Weight is not an issue. My question really is - what difference, other than the size, can I expect from the 15" and 17" versions?

Since I'm writing this thread, I may as well ask about future modification - were I to add another stick of RAM (to boost it up to 12GB), would this affect my warranty if it wasn't done through PCS upgrade service?

Thanks in advance guys n gals! Very excited about placing this order.

 

[Music Guy123]

For the size, simply just your choice! I'd recommend the 17" they are lovely to use! Just a thought, would you consider a desktop, seeing as you aren't doing much moving around? They are much better value for money. As for the modification. There isn't a vast amount you can upgrade on a laptop, RAM is one of the few parts you can though! And no, your warranty will still stand, providing your installation didn't cause the problem. If you buy the RAM from PCS, then ring them up and let them vaguely guide you through the installation, you should be covered I hope this helps!

 

[Layperson]

Thanks for the quick response! I'm not in a position to buy a desktop presently, though I had considered the Inferno to tide me over till I graduate and decide what I'm doing with my life (final year of university) But the screen resolution and single drive bay is what's currently swaying me to the larger Optimus.

 

[Keithg]

I have the 17" and am very happy with my choice. My old machine was 15.3" (although only 13xx x768) and I am noticing a big improvement especially in the MMO's and strategy games I play.

 

[Music Guy123]

Looks like the optimus should be fine for you. I'd suggest 17" it's so much of a joy to use with the extra screen space!

 

[Layperson]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I've thought it over and the 17" is just too tempting! I'll be back at the end of the month with a review!