Confused about which laptop to buy. (Have read the buying guides)

[shadowguy]

Hello all, I'm new to this forum so I have read the rules and the Laptop guides also before posting, but I'm still confused about which laptop I should get.

First things first: My budget is somewhat limited, 40k

I want a laptop from Dell, HP or Lenovo but I favor HP and Lenovo because many of Dell's laptops exclude the numpad and the build quality feels flimsy.
My main use will be web browsing and watching movies and some CPU intensive tasks like media transcoding and compiling from source code, but it should be able to run games like Crysis 2, GTA IV, COD Black Ops, Sniper, NFS MW2, Blur Vitality, Left for Dead, BF3 and the Assasin's Creed series.

Now the main thing I'm confused about is whether I should get a laptop with dedicated graphics or Intel Core i5 3rd gen with Intel HD 4000 graphics as I am really impressed with the performance of the latter. I have played GTA IV, Black Ops, BF3, Assasin's Creed full series and Batman Arkham City on an Intel HD 4000 without any problems on low-medium settings and I really dont care if I play a game on lowest settings because only the gameplay matters to me.

I have spent hours and hours browsing Flipkart and I havent found a laptop with 3rd gen Ci5 and dedicated graphics for under 40k. Also I want at least 500GB (though more is better) storage and 4GB RAM.Most of them are 3rd gen Ci3 with dedicated graphics. So my question is, should I go for a 3rd gen Ci3 + graphics or 3rd gen Ci5 without?
As processing power is of higher priority for me than graphics, I dont think a dedicated graphics card will be needed for the games I'm gonna play.

It should also have easily available drivers for Linux (wlan, ethernet at least) because I'm gonna be using BackTrack Linux a lot.
I really don't care about battery life but I guess something around 2-2.5 hrs will suffice, even if its lower than that, it isn't that much of a problem.It shouldn't overheat too much though.

And about OSes, It doesn't matter FreeDOS is good enough, but if there's a laptop which matches my needs and has a licensed OS under 40k, I have no problems.

I have shortlisted the following laptops but my mind is still too much in a mess to make a decision so what I really need now is human feedback


Lenovo Ideapad Z580 (59-347587) Laptop (3rd Gen Ci3/ 4GB/ 1TB/ Win8) - Lenovo: Flipkart.com


HP Pavilion G6-2309TU Laptop (3rd Gen Ci5/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Win8) - HP: Flipkart.com


Dell Inspiron 15 3521 Laptop (3rd Gen Ci5/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Linux/ 1GB Graph) - Dell: Flipkart.com


Dell Inspiron 15R 5521 Laptop (3rd Gen Ci3/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Win8/ 2GB Graph) - Dell: Flipkart.com


Dell Inspiron 15R 5521 Laptop (3rd Gen Ci3/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Win8/ 2GB Graph) - Dell: Flipkart.com


HP Pavilion G6-2232TX Laptop (3rd Gen Ci3/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Win8/ 1GB Graph) - HP: Flipkart.com


HP Pavilion G6-2229TU Laptop (3rd Gen Ci5/ 4GB/ 500GB/ DOS) - HP: Flipkart.com


Dell Inspiron 15 3521 Laptop (3rd Gen Ci3/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Linux/ 1GB Graph) - Dell: Flipkart.com


*www.flipkart.com/lenovo-essential-...GEGH&ref=f4f7b717-0241-4623-9b1f-1c9c081017ad


All feedback (even negative) is appreciated.

Edit: I forgot to say, screen size has to be 15.6 inch

 

[pushpak888]

I know you haven't listed Samsung but do consider the below laptop as it is good for the price paid..

Samsung NP300E5V-S02IN Laptop (3rd Gen Ci3 (3120M)/ 4GB/ 750GB/ DOS/ 1GB AMD Radeon™ HD 8750M Graphics). Cost Rs.33,000.

Its has more advance processor and better graphic card compared to the rest and comes cheap as well, the only disadvantage is no 3.0 USB but it is not a big worry to me as i don't use any 3.0 Devices yet.

I just bought it on ebay @ Rs. 31,300 using ebay discount. its a option worth noting for your needs and in your budget.

 

[$hadow]

If you want to play ac series do not buy machine with amd card. Since it gives poor fps in amd. Try getting a machine with nvidia and now for your question 3rd gen i3 do not have boost where as 3rd gen i5 does have turbo boost so my vote goes to 3rd gen i5 variant.

 

[pushpak888]

Well i suggest samsung, As most game don't require 3.1 GHz cpu speed, i bought the Samsung NP300E5V-S02IN on ebay and will provide a review when i get the delivery.

 

[powerstarprince]

Consider this option if u need i5+gpu and numpad for below 40k
*www.samsungindiaestore.com/products/Laptops/NP350V5X-S01IN_NP350V5X-S01IN

Or this if u can consider one without numpad for the sake of build quality
Dell Vostro 3560 Laptop (3rd Gen Ci5/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Linux/ 1GB Graph) - Dell: Flipkart.com

Or this one if u can get it below 40k from local shop
HP Pavilion G6-2016TX Laptop (3rd Gen Ci5/ 4GB/ 500GB/ Win7 HB/ 1GB Graph) - HP: Flipkart.com

 

[shadowguy]

I know you haven't listed Samsung but do consider the below laptop as it is good for the price paid..

Samsung NP300E5V-S02IN Laptop (3rd Gen Ci3 (3120M)/ 4GB/ 750GB/ DOS/ 1GB AMD Radeon™ HD 8750M Graphics). Cost Rs.33,000.

Its has more advance processor and better graphic card compared to the rest and comes cheap as well, the only disadvantage is no 3.0 USB but it is not a big worry to me as i don't use any 3.0 Devices yet.


I just bought it on ebay @ Rs. 31,300 using ebay discount. its a option worth noting for your needs and in your budget.

Wow that is indeed a very good choice I am surprised I never came across it. Thanks for the choice!

If you want to play ac series do not buy machine with amd card. Since it gives poor fps in amd. Try getting a machine with nvidia and now for your question 3rd gen i3 do not have boost where as 3rd gen i5 does have turbo boost so my vote goes to 3rd gen i5 variant.

Actually I have played AC Brotherhood on the HD 7670M and it performed quite well I think. Even Black Ops. The only nvidia cards which come in this range are GT 610M, 620M, 630M which fail in performance compared to 7670M






One more question to all: How would the HP G6 2313AX be? Its got an AMD A10 APU 4600M, 6GB RAM, 1TB HDD, a 2GB HD 7670M running in crossfire with a 7660D ( provided with the APU) which beats the 630M easily.

 

[rider]

@shadowguy Samsung NP300E5V-S02IN Laptop would be the best choice for you.

 

[shadowguy]

Have any info about the Wireless card? Which brand? Model no.?

 

[powerstarprince]

dude u can get the gt 730m card within 40k in inspiron 14r laptop. But it comes with ulv proc, it's not that bad as u think though..

 

[shadowguy]

Which processor?

Also could anyone give info on the HP G6 2313AX?

 

[Harsh Pranami]

One more question to all: How would the HP G6 2313AX be? Its got an AMD A10 APU 4600M, 6GB RAM, 1TB HDD, a 2GB HD 7670M running in crossfire with a 7660D ( provided with the APU) which beats the 630M easily.

Yeah it is good. I'm using g6-2005ax and I'm a satisfied customer. And that is better than those U processors of intel.

 

[powerstarprince]

Which processor?

Also could anyone give info on the HP G6 2313AX?

i3 3227u proccy @ 1.9 ghz. Check these links
The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

The intel ulv processors are actually fast similar to the mobile ones, but they are slightly underclocked just to save battery life and also heat less.. so body remains cool.
In general ulv dual core is similar to the a10 of amd..

 

[ankitkr091]

i3 3227u proccy @ 1.9 ghz. Check these links
The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

The Dell Online Store: Build Your System

The intel ulv processors are actually fast similar to the mobile ones, but they are slightly underclocked just to save battery life and also heat less.. so body remains cool.
In general ulv dual core is similar to the a10 of amd..

U processors are crap for gaming. And thats an i3u . This will be a huge bottleneck considering gt 730m is a very good gfx card.

 

[shadowguy]

Yeah even benchmarks show that i3 3227u (PassMark - Intel Core i3-3227U @ 1.90GHz - Price performance comparison) is worse than A10 4600M (PassMark - AMD A10-4600M APU - Price performance comparison)

Well i suggest samsung, As most game don't require 3.1 GHz cpu speed, i bought the Samsung NP300E5V-S02IN on ebay and will provide a review when i get the delivery.

Eagerly waiting for your review

 

[powerstarprince]

It depends... right now most games don't take much of the cpu. Only if u play multiplayer or online game where lots of physics is needed.. then u should opt for a quad core.
It won't differ much if it's an i3 or an i5. The clock speed really won't help more, but few games specify a min. clock rate so that game will run ideally and won't lag due to dip in performance. This clock is only for the specified proccessor in the min requirements. Likewise, your proccy can perform better even at lower clocks .. like the i3 @ 2 gigs can perform better than a4 @ 3 gigs of turbo boost.

Benchmarks are to compare everything between components. The a10 can be more but in general it's not observed much.. for a normal user it won't be very fast compared to i3 ulv. But if u want benchmarks to tell which one is better, the i3 ulv will fall very close to a8.

 

[shadowguy]

Yeah i3u beats the a8 but not the A10.
I'll wait for a review of the Samsung NP300E5V-S02IN now.

 

[shadowguy]

I'm leaning towards the HP 2313AX but Flipkart says that its a Flipkart only model. Shouldn't it be available from the people who supply it to Flipkart? (distributors I think)

 

[Cilus]

1st of all, all the modern games are pretty much sensitive to both the number of threads CPU can handle and the speed at what it is running. Now both i3 and i5 mobile processors come with Hyper threading enabled and therefore can handle 4 threads simultaneously. Games like BF3, Crysis 2 and 3, Far Cry 3 etc, can use 4 threads pretty well. Now i5 comes with Turbo boost which can enable higher speed mode at demanding situation and can offer pretty good performance advantage over an i3 of same generation. And regarding GPU bottleneck, both 3rd gen i3 or i5 can easily handle cards like GT 730M or HD 8750M. These graphics cards are not at all as powerful as their Desktop counterparts and a decent CPU can handle them easily.
If gaming is one of the main purpose of a Laptop then watch for an i5 (even a 2nd Gen will do) and cards like HD 8750 or GT 640M/GT 730M. ULV processors are not recommended here.