$2k Laptop - performance + battery life?

[lastchance]

I'm willing to shell at least $2000 on a laptop, looking for a computer to last 4 years.

I play games, and I really want to run top of the line games 4 years from now, though I don't expect to run it on anything but very low or low settings.

Battery life is important, 3 functional hours at least are almost necessary, and weight would be a very nice perk.

 

[kyleawesome]

I know it wouldnt be the most practical in your situation but my MacBook Pro is by far the best notebook I've ever worked with, amazing. It did run me about 2400 with memory upgrade and service plan, but I havent found anything it cant do, should be an alright gamer considering you can run windows under it, but you'd probably want to look at the alienware gamers or perhaps the XPS line from dell.

(once you hit OSX windows will seem like a joke though ;-) )

 

[kyleawesome]

forgot to post battery life

depending on what I'm actually doing with it, I get anywhere from 3.5-4 hours on a single charge.

 

[killernotebooks]

My Wakizachi system gets 2 good hours gaming and gets 3 hours if you allow the system to control the battery power by reducing the screen brightness and such.

The other thing to consider is the cost of additional batteries. Most of these companies completely rip you off on batteries. I charge $50 for an extra battery, which is what they should cost (of course that is for systems I sell, I don't carry other brands)

Same ODM that makes the MacBook Pro make the Wakizachi. Thing is awesome.

 

[polyformist]

If you want solid performance and a good xp based pc, check out the Alien Ware M9700, base model is well equiped and sports a basic price tag of 1999.00. It will almost surely destroy most systems on the market.

 

[killernotebooks]

The Alienware m9700 couldn't destroy the Executioner's freakin' empty beer can.

First of all it is a single core Turion deign, so you are investing a considerable amount in absolutely dead end technology as it can't be upgraded.

Stock with an ML-34 1.8 GHz

17" Screen, stock with 1440 x 900 resolution - higher cost you more.

512 MB on (2) 256 MB chips of Memory - That's really going to do a lot. The Executioner's VIDEO CARD has 512 MB of memory.

60 GB 5,400 rpm hard drive against the Executioner's 100 GB 7,200 stock

They try to pump you up on SLi - yet the the system only comes stock with a single 7900 GS 256 MB card! ADD $399 for the second card that TOM's Hardware already tested in SLi and it got kicked right out of it's boots by the 7900 GTX 512 MB.

I don't mean to be critical, but Alienware is a freakin' puppet of DELL and they are marketing one thing and delivering QUITE another. It is just short of bait and switch advertising IMHO. By the time the thing is configured as the "SLI Gamer" they headline, it is more like $3,000 and at the end of the day still a stinking single core Turion.

 

[polyformist]

The Alienware m9700 couldn't destroy the Executioner's freakin' empty beer can.

First of all it is a single core Turion deign, so you are investing a considerable amount in absolutely dead end technology as it can't be upgraded.

Stock with an ML-34 1.8 GHz

17" Screen, stock with 1440 x 900 resolution - higher cost you more.

512 MB on (2) 256 MB chips of Memory - That's really going to do a lot. The Executioner's VIDEO CARD has 512 MB of memory.

60 GB 5,400 rpm hard drive against the Executioner's 100 GB 7,200 stock

They try to pump you up on SLi - yet the the system only comes stock with a single 7900 GS 256 MB card! ADD $399 for the second card that TOM's Hardware already tested in SLi and it got kicked right out of it's boots by the 7900 GTX 512 MB.

I don't mean to be critical, but Alienware is a freakin' puppet of DELL and they are marketing one thing and delivering QUITE another. It is just short of bait and switch advertising IMHO. By the time the thing is configured as the "SLI Gamer" they headline, it is more like $3,000 and at the end of the day still a stinking single core Turion.

ROFLMAO, your info is a bit scew'd. In deed the core is single. It performs like a champ. I wasn't about to pay grand for a computer either way. this machine does twice the job my old one does. I am very happy. Thnx for your comments, they were noted, but for the most part pointless, since anyone can actually read a data sheet. :roll:


( to further this prefference the following machine barely compete's and it runs only $300 less than what I paid.) I think thats enough to blow out the flames once compaired directly.


http://www.killernotebooks.com/executioner/executioner_custom_configuration.aspx
Executioners Fully Loaded.

(I would deffend my product to, If the compitition was this steep)
8) :lol: just my 2 cents on it.

 

[Gavman42]

lol, I just got a dell e1705 with better specs then the alianware for $1400. If you want cheap get a dell, for the quality I'd say KN is the champ. If I could of scraped together the extra money I was going to get one. you just paid extra for plastic molding.

 

[polyformist]

lol, I just got a dell e1705 with better specs then the alianware for $1400. If you want cheap get a dell, for the quality I'd say KN is the champ. If I could of scraped together the extra money I was going to get one. you just paid extra for plastic molding.

Lets do an industry standard's test. 3dmark tends to be a good neutral ground. Here are my rounded scores. (While Plugged into an Outlet) I ran it with all options turned on at 1024x768 res. for an easy res. to use. =) I am very interested to see your results.

Do a 3dmark 2005 on your laptop.
roughly 9400 marks on the M9700

also Do a 3dmark 2006 on your laptop.
roughly 8700 marks on the M9700


I am interested in your score's. (I rounded down to the nearest 100's spot on each)

 

[polyformist]

lol, I just got a dell e1705 with better specs then the alianware for $1400. If you want cheap get a dell, for the quality I'd say KN is the champ. If I could of scraped together the extra money I was going to get one. you just paid extra for plastic molding.

I will take it as your either testing (wich takes a while) or you havent read the responce. =) Hope you post some data to back up your dell's performance =)

 

[polyformist]

Well I am guessing since their is no responce and about 4 hours has passed that one of two things has occured.

#1. Person had to goto work and thus hasn't had the chance to truely test the unit (most likely)

#2. The Dell performed well, but not that well.

#3. The person flamed with no real intension of backing him/her self with results. (/shrug) (E-Penis negative) (50dkp minus!)


Yes Alien Ware is in a Marketing Contract with DELL, but this is an advantage to both companies. Great Marketing Move for both companies! This gives Dell an alternate way to offer AMD products while keeping the money comeing through the same general pipelines =) On the other side of the situation if a Bussiness calls for servers, Alien has the option to reffer to DELL's bussiness services openly, wich means money stays in the family here again. Don't fool yourself in thinking their under the same roof, The Two companies are very different, and do not share facilities in any mannor. Read the review of the merger. Learn a little about Bussiness managment in the proccess.

 

[Gavman42]

lol, yes, I am at work. where I have to WORK, so as much as I'd like to lurk here all day, I can't. I'll run em tonight and and try an get em for you by tomorrow.

 

[polyformist]

lol, yes, I am at work. where I have to WORK, so as much as I'd like to lurk here all day, I can't. I'll run em tonight and and try an get em for you by tomorrow.

Woot you have come back =) much excitement. I am able to troll forums all day, I will await tommorow's testing =)

 

[furquanatique]

The Alienware m9700 couldn't destroy the Executioner's freakin' empty beer can.

First of all it is a single core Turion deign, so you are investing a considerable amount in absolutely dead end technology as it can't be upgraded.

Stock with an ML-34 1.8 GHz

17" Screen, stock with 1440 x 900 resolution - higher cost you more.

512 MB on (2) 256 MB chips of Memory - That's really going to do a lot. The Executioner's VIDEO CARD has 512 MB of memory.

60 GB 5,400 rpm hard drive against the Executioner's 100 GB 7,200 stock

They try to pump you up on SLi - yet the the system only comes stock with a single 7900 GS 256 MB card! ADD $399 for the second card that TOM's Hardware already tested in SLi and it got kicked right out of it's boots by the 7900 GTX 512 MB.

I don't mean to be critical, but Alienware is a freakin' puppet of DELL and they are marketing one thing and delivering QUITE another. It is just short of bait and switch advertising IMHO. By the time the thing is configured as the "SLI Gamer" they headline, it is more like $3,000 and at the end of the day still a stinking single core Turion.

Hi guys! I read the above comments by KilleNotebooks just to see which lappy would be good for me... i did a comparison of both the spects of both Alienware M9700 and the Executioner... well i must say the executioner was giving me the price: $3463 campared to Alienware M9700 with the price tag: $3200 (WITH THE SAME HARDWARE CONFIGURATION!)

The only minor Differences in Hardware were:

Alienware M9700: AMD Turion 2.33 Ghz VS Executioner: Intel Core2 Duo 2.33 Ghz

ALienware M9700: Nvidia Geforce 7900 GS SLI 512 MB VS Executioner: nVidia 7900 GTX 512 MB

ALienware M9700: 320 Gig RAID 0 Drives (160 x 2) VS Executioner: Maxed out 160 Gig HD

and yes the ALienware M9700 DID have evrything else mentioned on the executioners list: including all the IO Ports, AUdio Devices Etc...

And from the above list you maysee everything with the alienware is BETTER than what youde get with an Executioner... and yet the price difference is $200+!!! I mean WTF!?!

I truly shall go for an aleinware not only becuz it looks better, but also becuz its got better specs for a cheaper price...

Oh and the site looks better tooo [] No offense! Please!


P.S: Please note that i got the SLI deal when Alienware was offering $400 off for the other card... so i basically got an SLI upgrade FREE!!! All other thingies aside! []

 

[killernotebooks]

The only minor Differences in Hardware were:

Alienware M9700: AMD Turion 2.33 Ghz VS Executioner: Intel Core2 Duo 2.33 Ghz

A Turion single core vs. a Intel Core 2 Duo T7600 2.33 MHz isn't a minor difference. It's a GIGANTIC difference. It's a whole 'nother 2.33 Ghz processor, it's a 4 MB cace vs. 1 MB cache, it's 2 years newer technology and it spanks the pants off AMDs X2 dual core, let alone a single core. It's like comparing a bottle rocket to the space shuttle.

Not only that, Alienware's Turion system is NOT AMD's new AM2 platform... that means
:idea: It is running DDR memory not DDR2 (about HALF the bandwidth)
:idea: You can't upgrade the processor at all because there is a new CPU slot (Turion is the old one)
ALSO
:arrow: $100 shipping vs. included with Executioner
:arrow: 54g wireless ADD $150 for MIMO! Executioner is stock 108 Mbps G+ and MIMO 240 Mbps is $60
:arrow: WHY get a performance RAID0 set up, then throw 5,400 rpm drives in it? They CHARGE you just to configure a RAID0!
:arrow: NO CUSTOMIZATION except paint that is going to scratch off
8O It looks like a BOX.

ALienware M9700: Nvidia Geforce 7900 GS SLI 512 MB VS Executioner: nVidia 7900 GTX 512 MB

Within 2 weeks the Executioner will come with a nVidia 7950 GTX 512 MB the 7900 GS is not the second coming... it is a second rate card that is trying to capitalize on the 7900 mystique... it's marketing hype, the thing doesn't even come close to a 7800 GTX let alone a 7900 GTX!

ALienware M9700: 320 Gig RAID 0 Drives (160 x 2) VS Executioner: Maxed out 160 Gig HD

First, that's a 5,400 rpm drive. You don't go ALL OUT on everything, then get a 5,400 rpm drive, it is not performance smart. Better to get 7,200 and lessor processor then.

The Executioner has a RAID controller and can be configured RAID0 just like the review system on Tom's Hardware. It isn't listed because RAID0 is a touchy thing, it isn't the best solution for most people. It can be custom ordered and configured though for no extra charge, Alienware charges $160 for a RAID0 config alone!

I truly shall go for an aleinware not only becuz it looks better, but also becuz its got better specs for a cheaper price...

Hopefully you have a better understanding of the specifications, and see that this statement is way off base. That's ancient technology relatively speaking, and to RAID0 5,400 rpm hard drives to get a little extra space vs. the 7,200 rpm counterparts is silly.

And from the above list you maysee everything with the alienware is BETTER than what youde get with an Executioner... and yet the price difference is $200+!!! I mean WTF!?!

Killer Notebooks took the time to educate you as a consumer so you may now realize WhyTF instead of thinking Alienware is "BETTER" and "$200+ WTF".
Funny too is that when configured on Alienware's site this comes out to over $3,600?!?
$+300 for the 512 MB 7900 GS over the 256 version?!? Kids, those cards are $45 upgrades dealer cost from 256 to 512 MB - I'm sure FAR less to Alienware!
$+160 for the RAID0 "honor"?
$+150 for a MIMO wireless card?!!
Don't forget the $100 shipping from alienware!

 

[furquanatique]

Ok! I agree with you for the most part... simply because i was void of all that knowledge... thankyou foe enlightening me!

Another querie I have is that well... Intel Core 2 Duo is 2 theoretical cores on a single physical processor right?

and according to this link from your webpage:
http://www.killernotebooks.com/executioner/images/T7600-3DMark05.jpg

Compared to this image from a M9700 Reviewer:
http://www.straferight.com/new/content/view/507/38/

You can see he sez :
"Out of the box, I got a 3dMark05 score of 9880."

Here another link with the EXACT SAME SPECS as what I wanted found on this site, he sez he got his score in the 9400's (plugged):
http://forumz.tomshardware.com/mobile/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=47577&highlight=aurora+m9700

Whilst ur image on your executioners webpage shows a score of:
8610

Please id appreciate it if you could clear out this mess Im in! I am not against KillerNotebooks in any way... i just wanted your help! cuz ur the BOMB!
Thanks!

PS Im sorry for the language... i was a little p***ed at my cat for ruining(scratching) my cd's... 8O

 

[killernotebooks]

Well I can't really speak to what one person gets on a 3D mark score posted on the internet. I can tell you it is extrememly strange to have an identical 3D Mark number, even from the same system tested at different times.

Secondly, all my tests are an average of 10 consecutive runs of the system. To pull off a one time high number, and try to insinuate that it will always be that high, or will be that high with background processes running is somewhat shady.

When I run a test - it is of a system you are actually getting. It isn't everything stripped off, with the notebok set in the freezer while the test runs, it's as real-world as your going to get from a synthetic benchmark. I also can't give you a 7950 GTX 3Dmark score because i won't have one until the earliest next week.

Which brings me to the point that we are talking about a synthetic benchmark. The Futuremark 3DMark isn't optimized to use the dual core's second core. When you look at more synthetic benchmarks like PCMark05, which is going to give you overall system performance, this is what I found on the internet about the Alienware:

PCmark05 runs indenticaly with and without SLI and scores a respectable 3560 marks ...Inquirer Review

Big difference from the 6013 the Ex gets: PC05marks Image... that's almost 69% more overall performance!

The Core 2 Duo is essentially 2 "cores" on one die. Game over? Intel knocks out AMD.
There is extensive articles and reviews everywhere on the internet about the C2D, no one (including AMD) is arguing that the AMD chip, even in dual core variety can best the C2D... and let's remember, the Alienware has a single core, it is not the X2 dual core (like the Assassin will be next month dual 7950 GTX Turion X2)

 

[polyformist]

Well I commend your efforts on this, But after seeing the reviews around the ""WORLD"" M9700 has taken the flagship spot hands down. I see a few adds for the Killen Nic (a network card) but I rarely see reviews on Killer Notebooks. Then again I am based in the united states, this may have allot to do with the coverage.

Some key points to review are as follows.

Less than 15% of all programs on the market (includeing games) are Multi-Threaded apps -- this means Duel Core and Core Duo = slower than a normal cpu in over all performance rateings.

Less than 15% of all programs on the market (includeing games) are SLI or Xfire apps -- this means that 2 video cards is no better than a single one.

Basically what I am stateing here is that haveing 2 video cards creates no negative impact, but a multi core cpu could actualy cause problems.


Fine examble of this would be (City of Heroes / City of Villans) -- the game is perfect on single cores at 2 ghz, but a nearly 3ghz duel core / core duo isn't even stable enough to show you the into sequence let alone play consistantly. These are issues that have nothing to do with the physical hardware, and all due to how the program was writen!


The Alien Ware M9700 has been an awsome laptop! It has also been confirmed that the Turion 64 x2 edition wich is duel core will be completely compatible (35w version) with the bios and slot being used currently for the Turion based units. =)


I wish you all well, in the end its your choice to go for what you want! Enough Money will get you anything in this industry, its all a matter of what you want! I have to say Killer Notebooks have by far a cooler Laptop Case than Alien =)

 

[killernotebooks]

this means Duel Core and Core Duo = slower than a normal cpu in over all performance rateings.

Where on Earth did you come up with that? When you have a dual core CPU you can run a Widget, or a simple program that shows you CPU ultilization to either core. Web browsing with multiple tabs, content creation, opening a program, little things you never think take processing power hit the second CPU core.

Not only that, above we show the PCMark'05 sccore for a 2.4 Ghz Turion ALienware and the PC'05 Mark score for the Intel Core 2 Duo T7600 2.33 Ghz... it's almost 69% higher!

The other thing, there was an article on Tom's on games being specifically written for multicores now because they can offload processing tasks the video cards would normally have to handle for background and ambient graphic rendering.

...a multi core cpu could actualy cause problems.

I'm not sure where you heard that, but if we step back for a second and think about this, Intel and AMD have spent MILLIONS upon millions of dollars to come up with multi-core chips and bring them to market first. I think the actual chip makers pretty much know what they are doing when it comes to CPU's.

The Alien Ware M9700 has been an awsome laptop! It has also been confirmed that the Turion 64 x2 edition wich is duel core will be completely compatible (35w version) with the bios and slot being used currently for the Turion based units. =)

Dude, whoever told you that has not idea 1 what they are talking about. The Turion X2 Dual Core uses a Socket S1, COMPLETELY different than the Turion Socket 754. The X2 uses DDR2 RAM, the Turion DDR. If anyone thinks they are going to drop a Turion X2 Dual Core in a m9700... they are sadly mistaken.

 

[miro_refero]

I have an executioner and I am not a gamer. I run apps like Cubase SX and After Effects that can utilize multi core processors. Having a dual core machine will not cause any problems with any apps, the apps will simply not use the second core. On the other hand I have read about SLI configurations causing troubles in some multimedia creation apps.

 

[killernotebooks]

Hey Miro, do you have the HEAT soundtrack by any chance, or the Kill Bill soundtrack?

 

[polyformist]

I will further my research bro =), BTW if you have the City of Villians, try it out on a dual core cpu,

I have found the review on toms page here (bless this page) and indeed the alienware rep that had said yes on the AMD Turion X2 mobile processor slot was absolutely incorrect. I would have to say this is a strike against them in the knowledge catagory =(

KillerN. Man --> I thank you for enlightening me on the CPU slot type and the reality of the hardware.

I know the AMD x2's bomb on it, not sure about the core duo's by intel however. At this point, I would love to see you try to test something like COV on the 4 basic cpu types, I would take your advice to heart. A sale may just depend apon it as I have a friend getting ready to make his choice. He is completely sold on my alien (because he uses it daily!) But if we can produce direct statistics (he's a gamer like me) he would most likely go with your product if indeed it out performs the M9700 fully loaded.

1. AMD single core
2. Intel single core
3. AMD duel Core
4. Intel Core Duo's

 

[miro_refero]

Mark, I dont have those soundtracks. The heat soundtrack has got Einsturzende Neubauten on it !@ I must check this out.

 

[killernotebooks]

the alienware rep that had said yes on the AMD Turion X2 mobile processor slot was absolutely incorrect.

How messed up is that? Their own rep tells you that, then let's say you buy it, nad then go to upgrade it in 6 months, it doesn't work... what does Alienware do for you since he was wrong... I mean besides nothing.

Well, I have all of that info, kind of.
AMD single core Turion Mt-40 2.2 Ghz (is the Eliminator RED) vs. Intel Core Duo T2500 2.0 Ghz (wakizahi Blue) both with x1600 256 MB

That is a standard (old) core duo, not the core 2 duo, as you can see, CPU, Memory, and PcMarks are much higher.
This is an old test I ran of a 2.16 T2600 Core Duo vs. a 2.16 Core 2 Duo:

Now remember, that is with an x1600 video card, there are tons of articles finding exactly what I did htat the Core 2 Duo isbottlenecked by GPU's under 7800 GTX class, there is so much bandwidth and horsepower to the C2D it just can't use it al unless the GPU can keep up. So essentially, the C2D performs much higher than even these tests would suggest, couple that with the fact that you can get an even faster (T7600 2.33 Ghz) CPU, and I think you can extrapolate the data you wanted from these graphs.

Intel Core 2 Duo vs. Intel Core duo x1600 2.0 Ghz each.

But the data from that is going to give you raw CPU differences, is that what you want? I mean, because there isn't ANYWERE on the internet that says that Intels Core 2 Duo doesn NOT beat the X2 around the block.

There is no way the m9700 with a Turion is going to outperform a T7600 Core 2 Duo, it is simply impossible. The T7600 has 4.66 Ghz of collective Borg processing power with 4 MB of cache. Run a PC'05 Mark on the thing, I have all that data already with the 7900 GTX card in it.
This is an old one I ran:

 

[polyformist]

Thnx for the Quick responce =)

I like you more and more everyday =)

So I am left with a fairly perplexing peice of information. Maybe you can help clear this up for me.

as you recal I ran those tests when fresh out of the box with 3dmark 2005 and 3dmark 2006

3dmark 2005 --> 9400 marks on the M9700
3dmark 2006 --> 8700 marks on the M9700

both were ran at 1024x768, all options cranked, and I seem to recal I had it do like 10 total runs and took the average. Would you be so kind as to use the same res. and let me know your marks rateing. Because right now mine is destroying the KN upgraded units, and I think its all due to res being used. I am very interested in the actual results at same res.

could you run it and throw up the results. Now I am truely interested =)

I am also going to run mine at 1600 res when I get home, and I will post my results =)