Hello everyone,
So I have a Dell inspiron 15R 5537 Laptop at present (i5-4200U, 1.6 2.6Ghz, dual core, 4GB RAM and AMD 8600M (?) I think lol).
It plays some games fine on Dolphin but I am looking for an upgrade to a better laptop mainly for Dolphin, Wii-GC; PS2 and PSP emulation purposes and PC games. Desktop out of the question for me due to my Uni and work.
I lurked these forums and others for quite some time now, found out info about Dolphin usage in relation to various CPUs and GPUs, could not find anything on this Laptop and it's CPU for Dolphin emulation, have my heart set on buying it, so I ask for your advice in this matter.
The laptop I am considering is this:
http://www.dell.com/au/p/inspiron-15-555...=PD_Family. Reason being it is the best in my budget ($1200) that I can buy with ease in Australia, and being new.
I apologise for the link having 3 models, but I am considering the middle one in the lineup with these specs:
New Dell Inspiron 15 5000: 5th Gen Intel Core i7-5500U Broadwell Processor (4M Cache, to 3.00 GHz). 8GB Dual Channel DDR3L RAM 1600MHz (4GBx2) and NVIDIA GForce920M 4GB DDR3.
I care more about compatibility and stable FPS as opposed to picture perfect graphical emulation, and if it can play twilight princess and demanding; or most of the wii games library, with stable FPS, medium or low settings and minimal problems, that is good with me. Had a wii but it broke, and I need a new laptop anyway so I humbly ask for your advice if this laptop is good enough.
Very sorry for the lengthy thread, could not reduce the word count but tried my best.
don't use the intel igpu, other than that it looks good
(05-11-2015, 03:52 AM)NKF98 Wrote: [ -> ]don't use the intel igpu, other than that it looks good
Thank you for your reply. So by the intel igpu you mean the intel HD graphics? Of course I won't
.
with 1200$ i could buy a customizable gaming laptop that at least 10 times faster than that low end overpriced dell
(05-11-2015, 01:40 PM)admin89 Wrote: [ -> ]with 1200$ i could buy a customizable gaming laptop that at least 10 times faster than that low end overpriced dell
Hello admin89, which customizable gaming laptop would you recommend and from which site? I would love to buy a laptop
like that if given an option online but Australia has extremely overpriced laptops, gaming laptops there are very expensive.
(05-11-2015, 01:40 PM)admin89 Wrote: [ -> ]with 1200$ i could buy a customizable gaming laptop that at least 10 times faster than that low end overpriced dell
Not for AU$1200, you can't.
(05-11-2015, 02:16 PM)knight114 Wrote: [ -> ]Hello admin89, which customizable gaming laptop would you recommend and from which site? I would love to buy a laptop
like that if given an option online but Australia has extremely overpriced laptops, gaming laptops there are very expensive.
The first thing you should really consider is if you really need a laptop.
If you do, you should be able to squeeze a laptop with a quad-core Intel processor in your budget (Intel Core i7-4xxxMQ or i7-4xxxHQ). Those are not low-voltage processors like the i7-4xxxU processors are, and come with higher clock speeds and more thermal headroom, giving you a lot more power to use when trying to run Dolphin on it. Don't listen to NKF98's comment on Intel HD Graphics, the latest ones are more than capable of keeping up with Dolphin (Intel HD Graphics 4600 can run most games at ~2x IR).
Don't limit yourself by looking at the manufacturer's websites, go on electronic and computer retailer sites as well. They tend to give you much better deals.
The first thing you should really consider is if you really need a laptop.
If you do, you should be able to squeeze a laptop with a quad-core Intel processor in your budget (Intel Core i7-4xxxMQ or i7-4xxxHQ). Those are not low-voltage processors like the i7-4xxxU processors are, and come with higher clock speeds and more thermal headroom, giving you a lot more power to use when trying to run Dolphin on it. Don't listen to NKF98's comment on Intel HD Graphics, the latest ones are more than capable of keeping up with Dolphin (Intel HD Graphics 4600 can run most games at ~2x IR).
Don't limit yourself by looking at the manufacturer's websites, go on electronic and computer retailer sites as well. They tend to give you much better deals.
[/quote]
Hello Callum027, thank you for the tips. I followed and browsed through electronic and computer retailer sites for gaming laptops in my range and found these 3 to be the best, but cannot customize as they start from $1200-$1300, so can only buy them with the base specs. If you could help me decide which is the best out of these 3 I would appreciate it as I can find a difference in GPU only.
I am trying to decide between the base, non custom models of these:
SAGER NP8651 :
http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np8651-clev...-7690.html
ASUS GL551JW-DS74 :
http://www.xoticpc.com/asus-gl551jwds74-p-8093.html
MSI GE62 APACHE-002 :http://www.xoticpc.com/msi-ge62-apache002-p-7855.html
As they all have this i7-4720HQ HM 86 chipset and stock 8GB DDR, the Sager and Apache have 8GB DDR3 1600mhz RAM, while
the Asus has 16GB DDR3 1600mhz RAM.
Last difference is Nvidia G force GTX 970M GDDR5 (3.0GB) with optimus in the Sager, GTX 960M GDDR5 (2.0GB) with Optimus in the ASUS and GTX 965M GDDR5 (2.0GB) w/ Optimus in the Apache.
I am thinking to go with the Sager NP8651, due to the GPU. What do you recommend?
If you need a laptop for Dolphin , I will tell you what laptop you should buy
_It must be a a gaming laptop and customizable ( Able to select aftermarket thermal compound like Arctic MX-4) . Why ? Normal laptop will overheat when running Dolphin without a doubt . Normal OEM thermal compound will not last long like aftermarket one (8 years vs 6 months ~ 1 year) . If your thermal compound is dead , your laptop will be like a boiling egg and will die shortly (Even Apple is still using crappy thermal compound on their MacBook Pro series )
_Never buy laptop from those non-gaming laptop manufacturer like Dell (Alienware belongs to dell but alienware is overpriced ) , Acer , Lenovo , Asus (Asus does make gaming laptop but most of their laptop are multimedia laptop)....
_Dell Inspiron series are known for overheating ...
Quote:AU$1200
OOPS ! my mistake then . But for that price , you could find a Sager laptop on Xoticpc.com (they will ship to Australia ) . If I remember correctly , there is i7 4750HQ model (Intel HD 5200 Iris Pro) for 900USD ~ 1200AUD
Iris Pro has eDRAM cache , it's on par with GT 740M (of course , it's faster than GT 920M)
I7 5500U is a dual core processor . For Dolphin , a quad core should be 20% faster than a dual core
Thank you for your reply admin89. I understand, I checked on xoticpc.com but could not find an i7 4750HQ Sager model, only 4720HQ
Sagers, so would that be better? Also Intel HD 5200 Iris Pro is better than Nvidia Gforce GTX970M? If not, then I will go with the Sager.
But you are right, I think I will buy a $800-900 Sager so that the shipping balances out and falls in my budget of $1200.
One last question, the only thermal compound offered on xoticpc is the IC Diamond Thermal Compound apart from OEM and I can't afford an aftermarket one and apply as I have never replaced PC or Laptop parts/thermal compunds before, so will that diamond compound suffice?
GTX 950M is better than all iGPU (include the newer Iris Pro 6200)
GTX 970M is high-end mobile GPU . Of course , no way a low-mid range HD 5200 can compare to this beast
IC diamond 7 is top of the line aftermarket thermal compound , it's made from real nano diamond after all
IC diamond 7 carat > Arctic MX-4
Just check all models , it seems the i7 4750HQ is sold out . In this case , I think i7 4710MQ + GTX 950 model will do the job , not too pricey (under 900USD) . Make sure you choose "COPPER COOLING UPGRADE" and "IC diamond" option when you customize it