Powerful Laptop for Uni

[Mr Keshy]

^^
Look, I can guarantee you that a heavy MSI laptop is going to be the worst thing ever for taking notes in lectures but whatever.

@OP: i7s are generally useless for gaming since most games won't take advantage of hyperthreading. Given FSX is an old game I doubt it does, so you should probably find that out before you pay extra for one.

You could spend a little less on perhaps an i5 or something and get a cheap Inspiron or some other laptop for note taking as well. Possibility? But then that defeats the purpose of him getting just a laptop.

I don't think a 17" will fit on those little swivel tables either?

[Mao]

Thinking outside of the box here, if I was living on res I wouldn't be worrying about the most optimal laptop for gaming.

Because, y'know, socialising and assignments.

[Graphite]

When buying laptops on ebay, be really careful. There are a few sellers including the one that has been posted above who sell refurbished laptops as new. Most people cannot tell the difference hence the high positive feedback rating. Try to search their ebay ID on whirlpool before purchasing.

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1819853

[TommyLie]

Cheers for all the reply's chaps Can everyone please have a look at my original post though, I'm not actually looking at using this MSI laptop for 'gaming' at all (It will also explain why the CPU is so important) - FSX is not a game btw, it is a simulator and has assisted me greatly in learning to fly in reality, and hopefully will continue to do so. So why then exactly do I want to buy this expensive, heavy, laptop then? Several reasons:

1. I want a laptop simply because I can pack it up quickly and move it around easily. No cables, takes up much less space. And living 4 hours away from Monash it's inconvenient to have a desktop on res anyway imo. I'm not meaning so I can carry it with me everyday - like Mao said socializing is important and the best part about living on res, and its what I'll likely be doing when ever I'm outside. I just want the ability to move it effectively if I have to.

2. Because I want the ABILITY to be able to play FSX if I choose. I'm not a hardcore computer gamer in any way - I know given I'm looking at buying this system it may seem so - but FSX is a very very demanding program (Mainly due to a bad design) and is nearly entirely bound (in terms of frames per second) by the CPU, not the GPU. Hence I need a decent system with a powerful CPU if I want to play it smoothly when I choose too.

3. I need a powerful GPU for the graphics in FSX due to the HD addons I use, for example: http://fullterrain.com/product_ybbn.html  (The GPU will have next to no effect on FPS in FSX though, its all CPU - You will have to take me on my word for this too complicated to explain why, do a quick Google search if you still don't believe me ). Plus, like I said I want it too be able to play anything out today because, being a laptop and hence not upgradable, spending a couple of hundred less on the lower model GPU doesn't seem (too me) to be equivalent to the large difference in GPU power that does exist between the possible options and therefore, the time the whole system will last before it really becomes obsolete

4. If I decide to get the odd game (Which knowing me, will be a very visually realistic and hence demanding game eg. COD, BF3) I want to know that the $1000 or $2000 (what ever it may be, it is still a lot of money for me) that what I have spent will allow me to enjoy it properly.

This is basically my logic towards buying this system

@Russ, obviously I'm not the most informed of how I will be working in university, but I'll just say I can't imagine myself using a computer to take notes in a uni lecture anyway I'd much, much prefer to do it the way I've always done and hand write them, less distractions and I can put things where I want quickly and make side notes easily Are there actually any times though when I would/should/have to use a laptop for this? According to JinXi I wont even be using my own PC for any actual 'uni work'?

@QuantumJG & Chicken_65, while it would be very nice to have all that stuff I really doubt it will practical to bring to res lol Which is again the whole point, I still just feel that this MSI system is the best compromise. In my mind - and reality - it basically does everything I want and need it to. While it may not be the most practical laptop, it is still a laptop and therefore portable, I can't see myself taking it around uni on a regular basis.

[Mr Keshy]

Cheers for all the reply's chaps Can everyone please have a look at my original post though, I'm not actually looking at using this MSI laptop for 'gaming' at all (It will also explain why the CPU is so important) - FSX is not a game btw, it is a simulator and has assisted me greatly in learning to fly in reality, and hopefully will continue to do so. So why then exactly do I want to buy this expensive, heavy, laptop then? Several reasons:

1. I want a laptop simply because I can pack it up quickly and move it around easily. No cables, takes up much less space. And living 4 hours away from Monash it's inconvenient to have a desktop on res anyway imo. I'm not meaning so I can carry it with me everyday - like Mao said socializing is important and the best part about living on res, and its what I'll likely be doing when ever I'm outside. I just want the ability to move it effectively.

2. Because I want the ABILITY to be able to play FSX if I choose. I'm not a hardcore computer gamer in any way - I know given I'm looking at buying this system it may seem so - but FSX is a very very demanding program (Mainly due to a bad design) and is nearly entirely bound (in terms of frames per second) by the CPU, not the GPU. Hence I need a decent system with a powerful CPU if I want to play it smoothly when I choose too.

3. I need a powerful GPU for the graphics in FSX due to the HD addons I use, for example: http://fullterrain.com/product_ybbn.html  (The GPU will have next to no effect on FPS in FSX though, its all CPU - You will have to take me on my word for this too complicated to explain why, do a quick Google search if you still don't believe me ). Plus, like I said I want it too be able to play anything out today because, being a laptop and hence not upgradable, spending a couple of hundred less on the lower model GPU doesn't seem (too me) to be equivalent to the large difference in GPU power that does exist between the possible options and therefore, the time the whole system will last before it really becomes obsolete

4. If I decide to get the odd game (Which knowing me, will be a very visually realistic and hence demanding game eg. COD, BF3) I want to know that the $1000 or $2000 (what ever it may be, it is still a lot of money for me) that what I have spent will allow me to enjoy it properly.

This is basically my logic towards buying this system

@Russ, obviously I'm not the most informed of how I will be working in university, but I'll just say I can't imagine myself using a computer to take notes in a uni lecture anyway I'd much, much prefer to do it the way I've always done and hand write them, less distractions and I can put things where I want quickly and make side notes easily Are there actually any times though when I would/should/have to use a laptop for this? According to JinXi I wont even be using my own PC for any actual 'uni work'?

@QuantumJG & Chicken_65, while it would be very nice to have all that stuff I really doubt it will practical to bring to res lol Which is again the whole point, I still just feel that this MSI system is the best compromise. In my mind - and reality - it basically does everything I want and need it to. While it may not be the most practical laptop, it is still a laptop and therefore portable, I can't see myself taking it around uni on a regular basis.

My mistake, did not know of point 2 at all. Sorry!

[TommyLie]

Easy mistake, its quite strange. It's apparently something to do with the way Microsoft designed the FSX engine (Badly), which left it unable to benefit from anything other than raw CPU power for FPS, and a good GPU with lots of VRAM to (Hopefully) process the ground textures faster than your airplane flies! lol

[Mr Keshy]

Yeah, its a bit strange. It's apparently something to do with the way Microsoft designed the FSX engine (Badly), which left it unable to benefit from anything other than raw CPU power for FPS, and a good GPU with lots of VRAM to (Hopefully) process the ground textures faster than your airplane flies! lol

I see you're using the game for more serious purposes, what kind of controllers do you use if any?

[TommyLie]

Yeah, I have always loved aviation and for a long time (about 9 years) I wanted to be an airline pilot. Maybe I still will be one day.. But after discovering how much I also love learning about science and I guess just the world and nature in general I decided upon entering VCE to try get into Aerospace Engineering & Science I only use a joystick, no pedals or anything - it does have a throttle control on it as well as lots of other buttons you would expect. But really that's all I need, I'd personally rather spend money on flying lessons than build a cockpit in my room

I was using flight simulators 2 years or so before I first started getting real lessons, and I can tell you FS's helped a lot! I did my first solo flight in an Evektor Sports Star with only 6.7 hours of total flight experience, my instructor said the average was 15+ hours. I can tell you that was all due to FS

[Mr Keshy]

Yeah, I have always loved aviation and for a long time (about 9 years) I wanted to be an airline pilot. Maybe I still will be one day.. But after discovering how much I also love learning about science and I guess just the world and nature in general I decided upon entering VCE to try get into Engineering & Science I only use a joystick, no pedals or anything - it does have a throttle control on it as well as lots of other buttons you would expect. But really that's all I need, I'd personally rather spend money on flying lessons than build a cockpit in my room

I was using flight simulators 2 years or so before I first started getting real lessons, and I can tell you FS's helped a lot! I did my first solo flight in an Evektor Sports Star with only 6.7 hours of total flight experience, my instructor said the average was 15+ hours. I can tell you that was all due to FS

FSX was seriously one of the best sims I've played! I play a lot of iRacing now. Awesome car simulator. I have a cockpit with a G27 haha.
Gonna reinstall FSX and find my joystick and push throttle thing!

[Russ]

Easy mistake, its quite strange. It's apparently something to do with the way Microsoft designed the FSX engine (Badly), which left it unable to benefit from anything other than raw CPU power for FPS, and a good GPU with lots of VRAM to (Hopefully) process the ground textures faster than your airplane flies! lol

Your i7 still isn't going to help you if FSX doesn't take advantage of hyperthreading. Go find out if it actually does (I doubt it) before you spend the extra money

[Mr Keshy]

Your i7 still isn't going to help you if FSX doesn't take advantage of hyperthreading. Go find out if it actually does (I doubt it) before you spend the extra money

It doesn't utilise more than 2 cores.

http://www.overclock.net/t/846522/flight-simulator-x-support-intel-i7-hyper-threading

[kensan]

Hey guys, I was wondering if I could get some opinions on this laptop for home/uni use. I'm not a hard-core gamer so I don't need a separate gaming computer for home and a lighter ultra-book for uni, so I thought this would be a good option that would last me a while,
http://www.logicalblueone.com.au/store/543-horize-w550eu-ultranote.html
What I like about it is that is has the SSD + HDD, can't seem to find many with this option.
Anyway would like to hear people's thoughts on this, and is the pricing good? (sorry for hijacking this thread lol, didn't want to start a new one as it's a similar topic XD)
Thanks

[Bad Student]

The specs seem pretty good for the price. I've never heard of the brand Horize though.

[Mr Keshy]

Never heard of this brand either.

Perhaps you have a choice of second hard drive or optical drive? Something like that. For the specs, that looks very nice though. I can't comment on support or build quality however.

[Bad Student]

You should also make sure that it has a good quality keyboard and touchpad before you buy it otherwise you're gonna have bad time when you use it to type stuff.