Which laptop should i go for---Lenovo W520 v. H-P Envy 17

[cbcuono]

I am in market for new laptop. Current one I've had for ~6 yrs, so I don't swap out every year or so. I'm not a big gamer; do like to watch movies. Workwise, mostly Office 2010 suite type stuff, often with multiple windows open plus browser w/ multiple windows.

The 2 that have my attention right now are

1) Lenovo W520 w/ i7-2720QM, 8GB DDR3, 500GB SATA @ 7200, DVD, nVIDIA Quadro 1000M-2GB/Intel hybrid GPU, 15.6" @ native 1920x1080, Bluetooth 3.0, USB 3.0, Win 7 Pro

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/779565-REG/Lenovo_427637U_ThinkPad_W520_4276_37U_15_6.html

2) H-P Envy 17 w/ i7-2670QM, 8GB DDR3, 750GB SATA @ 7200, Blu-ray w/ DVD burner, AMD Radeon HD 7690M XT-1GB GPU, native 1920x1080, Bluetooth (? version), USB 3.0, Win Home Premium

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/838827-REG/HP_Hewlett_Packard_A9P78UA_ABA_17_3_Intel_Core_i7_2670QM.html

They are priced within $20 of each other, so cost factor is negligible. Considering for the longer time ownership (3 yrs+) could anyone offer some insights, suggestions. Thanks so much

 

[WR2]

I'm not a big gamer

Ok, what kind of gamer are you?

You're OK with the different size (15 vs 17) and weight?

Envy 17 is definitely oriented more as a premium home entertainment option.
Lenovo W520 has the business class ruggedness and reliability thing going for it. It also has an anti-glare matte screen.

 

[cbcuono]

First, Thanks for your reply.
As for gaming, I'm over 60 so that should tell ya' something. Dabbling to keep the neuronal circuits active would be a good description, I think.
I was thinking 17" H-P w/ Blue Ray for movies, etc., but somewhat put-off by its weight. I was surprised, though, at its battery life per Reviews I've read
I like the reliability of the Lenovo brand, and the matte screen too as you mention. It also weighs ~2# less than H-P. Battery life is somewhat lower.
H-P comes w/ 2-year warr on the Envy line. Not sure what Lenovo's is.
Leaning towards Lenovo now.

 

[WR2]

As for gaming, I'm over 60 so that should tell ya' something. Dabbling to keep the neuronal circuits active would be a good description, I think.

Not as much as you think. As a fellow sexagenarian who hangs around the forums here I can tell you there isn't any single 'one size fits all' for gaming expectations.

That Lenovo's NVIDIA Quadro 1000M graphics card will at least let you dabble in some of the recent computer games on low/medium settings if you ever get the urge to fire up a few extra neurons.
For comparisons - it's roughly equal to a Nvidia Geforce GT 540M or AMD Radeon HD 7670M


HP Envy 17 (2012) Review

Lenovo ThinkPad W520 Review

 

[cbcuono]

Thanks for the additional perspective, and the reviews. They jibe with others I've read. The retrevo.com site suggests that the value is in the Lenovo right now, considering features & price point.

http://shop.retrevo.com/m/s/Lenovo-W520-4276-Laptops-review-manual/id/23914ag219/t/1-2/#allPrices

http://shop.retrevo.com/m/search/productpage?c=1020&og=1935285&m=24060876

Appreciate comparison of GPUs. How much of a performance impact is there with the 2GB onboard a Quadro 1000M vs. the Radeon HD 7690 XT with 1GB?

Much appreciated.

 

[WR2]

About zero impact really.
Im most cases the higher clocks trump the extra VRAM.

Have you thought about the Lenovo T520? It's not often we have people looking at the Workstation models (W520) for personal home office/entertainment laptops.

 

[cbcuono]

You must have seen my scribbled notes! I've been scouring for several weeks now, probably longer than I care to admit.

I did consider a T520:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/779495-REG/Lenovo_42404EU_ThinkPad_T520_15_6_Notebook.html

As I compared that with the W520, I found the i-7 processor was a bit different with the faster being in the T520. But, the W520 has native 1920x1080 resolution, 4 more GB RAM, a dicrete GPU w/ switching, USB 3.0, 9 v. 6 cell battery, and probably a few other doo-dads that I can't recall ....and all for about $230 more. That was why I have been considering the W520. I guess if I had to list what I would consider desirable in a 3-4 year investment, it would be the most current processor (i-7), followed by screen resolution, discrete GPU, faster HDD (I can always upgrade later to SSD), and current generation connectivity. I didn't mention that I do a fair amount of hobby photography, so that's where connectivity comes in.

This dialogue is very helpful, BTW. Thanks lots.

 

[WR2]

The Lenovo website lets you configure your options for both the W520 and T520.
The W520 does have a higher performance graphics card but it's sounding like that isn't a priority for you.

 

[cbcuono]

Interesting. I have not been focusing at the Lenovo build-it site, but rather on vendors offering pre-configured packages---quicker, plus, free shipping, no 10% state sales tax, etc.

On the T520, all I found were units with integrated Intel GMA HD3000, not the discret GPU of the W520

Thx!

 

[cbcuono]

Best answer selected by cbcuono.