High quality laptop for gaming/college

[hamisgood]

1) What is your budget?
~$1500 but if an extra hundred or so will get me a significant improvement I can do that

2) What size notebook would you prefer?
15" or above

3) Where will you buying this notebook?
US

4) Are there any brands that you prefer or any you really don't like?
Not particularly, I just don't want anything flashy (lots of LEDs) or visibly for gaming. (I guess that rules out Alienware unless you can get them unbranded)

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

6) What are the primary tasks will you be performing with this notebook?
Some work for school, browsing, and gaming as well, nothing beyond that

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?
All kinds, from Minecraft to BF3 in terms of graphically demanding games (doesn't need to run at max but hopefully I can play almost all games)

9) How many hours of battery life do you need?
A few hours, not the most important thing but would be nice

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?
I'd like to see it but if that's not possible then I'm OK

11) What OS do you prefer? Windows (XP or Vista or Windows 7), Mac OS, Linux, etc.
Windows 7 (I might already have a disk)

Screen Specifics

12) From the choices below, what screen resolution(s) would you prefer?
1920x1080 would be best

13) Do you want a Glossy/reflective screen or a Matte/non-glossy screen?
I don't know much about this but if Matte is a major compromise in quality then Glossy

Build Quality and Design

14) Are the notebook's looks and stylishness important to you?
No

15) When are you buying this laptop?
About a month from now

16) How long do you want this laptop to last?
Around 4 years

Notebook Components

17) How much hard drive space do you need; 80GB to 640GB? Do you want a SSD drive?
Okay, so I built a desktop at home but I'm going away to school and will not have access to it. I'd hate to see the drives I put in it go to waste, can I install them in the laptop myself or do I need to order them built in? I doubt I can use the 1TB 3.5" drive but I got a 128GB (OS and general programs) and a 256GB (Games) Crucial C300 SSD.

18) Do you need an optical drive? If yes, a DVD Burner, Blu-ray Reader or Blu-Ray Burner?
No, anything's fine

I'm happy to respond and give extra information if needed. Also, if I am able to move over those drives, could I just get a laptop with no drives and just put in the OS SSD? Would the laptop boot into the OS from my desktop or would it recognize that it is a new system? Thanks for helping.

[alexsd123]

Look into the Sager NP9150 with a 7970m.

Order from Xoticpc, LPC Digital, or some other reseller. If you call them you can get it without a hard drive for less money. It should be around $1500...

xoticpc link

[hamisgood]

I have seen a lot of recommendations for that Clevo from a few different resellers. However, the price will be changed significantly based on the answers to my questions about the SSDs. If anyone knows whether the OS and other drive can be moved like I mentioned in the first post, I would love to know. Also, how negatively does a matte screen affect picture? I don't like glare but I want a high quality picture and if that will be compromised by matte I'll go glossy.

[Antietam27]

also, is it worth the $95 they're asking to bump up to the 95% color gamut screen?

[Pancho&Lefty]

Go matte, it will be better in 98% of all circumstances. I think Sager lacks in screen choices as well so if you want a nice 95% matte screen I think Eurocom might be one of the few companies offering it.

[hamisgood]

OK, so what I've been thinking is it might be easier to just move the 256GB SSD over and leave my 128 in my old computer. Does anyone know what the Clevo P150EM offers in its frame in terms of hard drive slots? Are there two internal slots for 2.5" hard drives and then a place for an optical drive? All my other questions still stand as well.

[RiverandSky]

The P150EM has one storage drive slot. Eurocom, I know, gives customers the option to replace the optical drive with a storage drive. Not sure of any others who provide that option. Anyone?

[sirsweet]

The P150EM has one storage drive slot. Eurocom, I know, gives customers the option to replace the optical drive with a storage drive. Not sure of any others who provide that option. Anyone?

All resellers I have looked at provide that option (MALIBAL, LPC-Digital, XoticPC, Mythlogic, and a couple others). All the resellers offer nearly the exact same options. Off the top of my head, I know some only offer the matte screen with the 95% gamut.