Replacement for XPS M1730

[basilios01]

Looking to replace my XPS M1730 (specs in signature below):

1) What is your budget?

~$2500

2) What size notebook would you prefer?

17"+

3) Where will you be buying this notebook? You can select the flag of your country as an indicator.

USA

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

Open to just about anything.

5) Would you consider laptops that are refurbished/redistributed?

Probably not.

6) What are the primary tasks you will be performing with this notebook?

Primarily, this is going to be a gaming rig. Work stuff would include data crunching with Excel and SAS, along with multiple web pages at the same time (usually to hit web-based business intelligence applications). I type a lot, so the keyboard needs to be of quality construction.

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

It will get moved between two rooms in the house fairly regularly, but I won't travel with it much (maybe 2 or 3 times a year).

8) Will you be playing games on it; if so, which games or types of games?

Yes, and a lot. About the only types of games that I don't play are flight/driving simulators and MMORPGs.

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?

None, really. When it has to move, it will simply go from one outlet to another.

10) Would you prefer to see the notebooks you're considering before purchasing it or buying a notebook on-line without seeing it is OK?

You mean people actually buy computers in a store?

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows, Mac OS, Linux, etc.

Windows.

12) From the choices below, what screen resolutions would you prefer?

Would love to get another 1920x1200, but that doesn't seem possible, so 1920x1080 will do.

13) Do you want a glossy/reflective screen or a matte/non-glossy screen?

Glossy.

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

I would prefer simple, monochromatic styling. However, I will take a little "flare" (Alienware, I am looking at you) if it is the best system available within my budget.

15) When are you buying this laptop?

ASAP

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?

I need to be able to game on it reliably for at least three years.

17) How much hard drive space do you want? Do you want a SSD drive?

I would like to have an SSD for Windows and Office; otherwise, a 750 GB HDD should work just fine for me.

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a CDRW/DVD-ROM, DVD Burner or Blu-Ray drive?

DVD-RW should be fine.

Additional information:

1) I have owned Dells exclusively for the last 12 years and have really never had a problem with any of them. I have never bought an extended warranty, but I am thinking about doing so for this computer (regardless of where it comes from). I mostly think extended warranties are just a good way to give a company extra money, but I have read numerous posts where people who have been around the forum a while (and with lots of rep) highly encourage it. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

2) I have never, ever run any type of benchmark program on my computer (unless FRAPS counts, and I have only done that a few times), so I don't need an "extreme" machine. Obviously, OC'ing is something I am also not interested in. I am also not a tinkerer, so aside from adding memory or installing a new hard drive, I have no desire whatsoever to go any further than removing the keyboard.

3) The AMD 7970 seems to be king of the hill right now, but based on what I have read AMD's drivers scare me to death. I have only had one AMD card in the past and I didn't have any problems with it. However, the only games I played at the time were Baldur's Gate II and Neverwinter Nights, so its not like I was really stressing the card. Also, AMD seems to be on the outside-looking-in in terms of working with game developers, while NVIDIA seems to be pretty chummy with everyone, which makes me think I should go with Team Green. However, the best NVIDIA is offering right now is the 675, which is just a rebranded 580, and I have no idea how soon it will be before they will offer anything better. Again, I don't care about benchmarks; all I want is smooth gameplay at reasonably high settings.

4) Any thoughts on using either FirePro or Quadro for gaming? The M6600 is something that would work for me if I can get the gaming performance I need out of either of those GPUs.

Thanks!

[s2odin]

If gaming is your primary concern, do not go FirePro or Quadro. They may perform the same as a 570M (FirePro M8900) or the Quadro 5010M, the drivers are designed for work applications and not gaming. Plus the 7970M is twice the performance of those cards.

AMD drivers are no different than Nvidia other than Nvidia releases slightly better modded drivers (and Nvidia doesn't release them themselves). There have been probably 15-20 topics recently with people looking to buy a new laptop who have bad experiences with AMD drivers but there is no proof that they are "bad".

For a simple style, the Sager NP9170 / Clevo P170EM - XOTIC PC - Sager Custom Gaming Laptop is your best option (or from any reseller - XoticPC, Mythlogic, GenTechPC, PowerNotebooks etc) or the Alienware M17x R4 from Alienware if you wanted to go the flashy route.

[basilios01]

Thanks for the input! Most of what is causing me indigestion vis-a-vis AMD vs. NVIDIA can be found here. However, I am not sure if this is strictly an SLI vs. CF issue. I am starting to think that it might be my fear of the unfamiliar (i.e., AMD) that is giving me pause.

Thanks again!

[Curs3]

The AMD cards have evolved from crappy driver support to very good standards wherein they are as good as Nvidia. With that being said the best card out there is the AMD7970m which is the best single GPU solution offered by any brand. Also it does beat the 675m by quite a bit. Hence I would not reject the 7970m on grounds of performance or history of poor driver support. Things have changed a lot now and that is reflected in the response for the 7970m. I am sure if the driver support was as bad as you fear every one out there must be thinking about the same thing. But it isnt. The response for the 7970m though based mostly on the performance, is also due to the fact that AMD has improved its driver support in the past few yrs. So in my opinion the 7970m is definitely the best option for you.

And as s2odin suggested the NP9170 is a very good choice as it does end up to be the cheapest 17" to have the ivy bridge and the 7970m. Also the build quality of the Sager is no way inferior to the other brands for its lower cost. Hence the NP9170 from Xoticpc or Powernotebooks would be a very good option.

You can also look into the Satori P170EM which is the same laptop but offered by Malibal.

An Alienware M17x with the 3610QM, 1920x1080 screen and the 7970m is also within your budget. Hence its just a matter of what you exactly want.

[Curs3]

Yes, the SLI and the CF offerings have always had issues in certain games and in certain resolutions. But I am sure these issues are far less and probably nil in the case of single GPU's.

[basilios01]

Thanks to the both of you for your input! I had kind of pieced together what you both said by reading (and re-reading) through some threads, but it is very helpful to see the answers to my questions in one place.

[basilios01]

OK, so I have it narrowed down to either one of the various incarnations of the P170EM or M17x R4. So, aside from the aesthetic differences (which I don't care about), the only significant differences appear to be the in-home warranty service (which is pretty nice) and the horrific price disparity (which isn't so nice). And yes, I know you need to haggle with the CSRs at Dell to get a better deal (and yes, I have already tried Allan and only got about 13% off, which isn't enough and he couldn't price match). Am I a missing any other huge differences between the two? In-home service is nice, but I am not sure it is worth the $200+ more it would cost to go with Dell. Thoughts?

[Karamazovmm]

What is the config? post them here

[basilios01]

Processor: 3610QM
OS: 7 HP
RAM: 16GB 1600MHz
HD: 500GB w/ 64GB mSATA Boot Drive
GPU: 7970M
Screen: 1920x1080
WiFi / Bluetooth: 6250
Warranty: 3yr w/ Accidental Damage Service
Extra AC Adapter

With discount, Alienware wanted ~$2700. Same system at Mythlogic is ~$2500. A couple of points:

1) I know I can get the RAM for much cheaper on my own, but I kind of wanted it to be covered under the warranty. Same thing applies to SSD and HDD.
2) Part of the problem with Alienware's price is that I have to pay taxes on it. No taxes, this problem goes away (assuming I would still get the same discount). BUT, still money I have to pay.

[Karamazovmm]

ouch!

I would just grab the 6gb of ram that comes with it, and upgrade it when you receive, it wont void the warranty at all. and it being covered by warranty is a non issue, ram is quite cheap, it also has its own warranty mind you.

with that economy you can just purchase the samsung 830 256gb and put it in the m17x. which is one of the most reliable SSDs out there, with low failure rate, and the RMA process is quite fast as well, so no issue in it being covered, since it also has its warranty.


I would go for the m17x simply because it has a better keyboard. I do think it will look bad at work though.