Notebook to buy for 2k

[corthor]

1) What is your budget?
The max i want to spend is 2k
2) What size notebook would you prefer?
c. Thin and Light; 13" - 14" screen
d. Mainstream; 15" - 16" screen



4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?

a. Like:Alienware,XPS,HP,Apple(planning to dual boot)
b. Dislike:Acer

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?
NO

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
School,some gaming,entrateinment

7) Will you be taking the notebook with you to different places, leaving it on your desk or both?
Both

8) Will you be playing games on your notebook? If so, please state which games or types of games?
Crisis,COD

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?
5hrs or more


11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Windows or MacOS


Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
Yes

15) When are you buying this laptop?
Before school starts

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?
3or 4 yrs

Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 640GB? Do you want a SSD drive?
500 or more,no SSD

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a CDRW/DVD-ROM, DVD Burner or Blu-Ray drive?
yes, Cd,DVD blue ray would be nice

[fr0styable]

I've owned an M14X, a MBP 13", and had a lot of hands on time with MBP 15" and if you're planning to dual boot, I'd go for the MBP 15". People can start flame wars and "Apple this" and "PC that" but I don't think there is any denying the build quality of an Apple computer. In my opinion, they're put together better than a high end PC like the M14X. When you pick up a Mac, it looks and feels like a computer thats gonna last you for 4+ years. And if you treat it with care, it will.

Just my two cents.

[TigerBlood]

I agree with Fr0st, but you can still get as good of a machine as a macbook pro. I know your mind is probably set on the M14x and macbook 15.4" but there is also ASUS which have proven to be more stable laptops than alienware's. I talked to a guy who has worked on and taken pc's apart for 20+ plus years and he says the ASUS G53 and G73 series are just about the best built pc's, but thats his opinion. Asus started making good motherboards before the even went into making computers, plus ASUS are cheaper too.
Yes it sounds like i am trying to dissuade you, and I am, but let me say this, Alienware has always been expensive. Alienware is not reliable IMO. Macs are.
Now Mac is expensive because everyone likes mac and is still a growing business. They use a price ceiling thing to prevent shortages and of course make money to continue their expansion. Apple has lived up to their reputation. If Mac were to lower their prices, would they be able to keep up with inventory? since i mean, who wouldn't go for a cheaper macbook pro? well, not many. They have great customer service too.

Also you could check out Gaming Laptops - XOTIC PC - Gaming Notebooks - Custom Laptops - Custom Notebooks
You could get the best of both worlds there.

[corthor]

Thx TigerBlood and fr0styable i really appriciate your responce, i do like both computers and i think they are very nice built and i am leaning more to the mac but there is just more sepcs on the alien ware or any other computer at that price than the mac although true, you buy the brand ,sevice, and quality.

[TigerBlood]

Thx TigerBlood and fr0styable i really appriciate your responce, i do like both computers and i think they are very nice built and i am leaning more to the mac but there is just more sepcs on the alien ware or any other computer at that price than the mac although true, you buy the brand ,sevice, and quality.

Hi corthor,
Another word of advice, people out there say that dual boot isn't that smooth on the mac. Others do. I am not sure, but i heard windows can be slow on mac since its native OP is macintosh, not windows. Anyways are you going to use windows a lot, I mean it is something to keep in mind.
When someone says something can do, how well will it do it?

[TigerBlood]

This might be useless info but Alienware fans are very loud.

[lupusarcanus]

The drivers for MBP's aren't as good as their Mac counterparts. When I had my Mac, only two things really frustrated me:

The trackpad was awful in Windows, and the speakers were very quiet in Windows.

It should also be of note that GPU switching (IIRC) does not work in Windows -- it's always stuck with the power hungry dedicated GPU. While good for gaming, battery life is dramatically reduced.

My two cents: if you need/want Windows (or Linux), do NOT get a Mac.

[TigerBlood]

The drivers for MBP's aren't as good as their Mac counterparts. When I had my Mac, only two things really frustrated me:

The trackpad was awful in Windows, and the speakers were very quiet in Windows.

It should also be of note that GPU switching (IIRC) does not work in Windows -- it's always stuck with the power hungry dedicated GPU. While good for gaming, battery life is dramatically reduced.

My two cents: if you need/want Windows (or Linux), do NOT get a Mac.

I 100% agree with you.

[hawk1410]

I've owned an M14X, a MBP 13", and had a lot of hands on time with MBP 15" and if you're planning to dual boot, I'd go for the MBP 15". People can start flame wars and "Apple this" and "PC that" but I don't think there is any denying the build quality of an Apple computer. In my opinion, they're put together better than a high end PC like the M14X. When you pick up a Mac, it looks and feels like a computer thats gonna last you for 4+ years. And if you treat it with care, it will.

Just my two cents.

Ahemm Macs are of okay quality and you can get better specced and much better enterprise class laptops in the same price range(Hp Elitebooks and Thinkpads and Precisions). But the thing Macs are good at is packing a lot of power in a slim profile with good build quality.

[Leoben]

Does it have to be something from Apple or Alienware?

If not maybe take a look at Sager's NP8130.