New laptop, upgrade desktop, or neither?

[crazydog]

So, I was doing some laptop shopping with Dell's new XPS line that they just reintroduced, and I was approved for a dell preferred account, which is no interest for 18 months on a new system.

I decided that since Dell approved me, I'd try newegg, and they also approved me for the preferred account, with twice the limit Dell offered.

So aside from the 'yay my credit history is existent', I have a choice here: Should I buy a new laptop, upgrade my desktop, or just do neither?

My current laptop is an XPS M1530 whose motherboard died a few months ago, and I replaced it. I'm sure you're aware that these laptops are not meant to be taken apart, so now it's not in such great shape, although it still runs.

My desktop is a core2duo 3.00 @ 3.30 with 6GB of 800 MHz DDR2 RAM.

I can get a new XPS 15 for ~$1300 with all the bells and whistles I want.

I can build an i5 system (new mobo/cpu/hsf/ram) with 6GB of 1333 MHz DDR3 RAM for ~$650.
If anyone wants to buy my current mobo/cpu/hsf/ram which I posted here(http://theelders.net/forum/index.php?topic=8374.0), that'll greatly entice me to choose this option.

Suggestions? Comments? Ideas?

[Mustard]

One of my friends just got one of those new XPS systems and I must say it's pretty sweet. I think I'm gonna ditch my desktop soon for one of them. I played TF2 on it and ran amazingly well. I also tried Civ V and Empire: Total War on it and it ran both smooth with (nearly) everything jacked up.

I'm sort of in a position where I want to continue PC gaming I just don't want to to take up so much space. The new Dell's play the games I want them too and they're about the sexiest PC laptops on the market. I say you get one.

Edit: Oops, it would appear that they have new NEW XPS laptops. My friends is a Studio XPS 16, but hell even that kicks ass. These new ones look amazing.

[Frag_68]

For the same specs, you'll spend a lot more money on a laptop - generally almost twice as much as a desktop.  So it comes down to whether the portability is worth the extra $500-700 over a desktop.  Personally, I like having an awesome monitor and just replacing the tower every so often.  Then again, I build computers that still blaze after 4-5 years.

[crazydog]

For the same specs, you'll spend a lot more money on a laptop - generally almost twice as much as a desktop.  So it comes down to whether the portability is worth the extra $500-700 over a desktop.  Personally, I like having an awesome monitor and just replacing the tower every so often.  Then again, I build computers that still blaze after 4-5 years.

The thing is I already have both. They both run well, but the laptop is starting to show its age, and the real reason I'd be getting a new one is so I can give this one to my dad, since his 6 or 7 year old laptop isn't doing so well anymore.

[Frag_68]

You COULD be the good son and give him the new one. 

[crazydog]

You COULD be the good son and give him the new one. 

Bah. He doesn't need a gaming PC. If I were to do that I'd get him a lower end one. The most intensive thing he does is watch HD videos on YouTube.

[Luggage]

If you plan to keep gaming, I recommend the desktop option since you can easily keep upgrading the components as they show their age: much cheaper and longer lasting than laptop.

On the other hand, get a laptop so that you can no longer play games after a couple of years and then use your newfound time productively

[Baltika (#9)]

Buy your dad a new low end laptop (for Christmas) and rebuild your desktop.

[crazydog]

Buy your dad a new low end laptop (for Christmas) and rebuild your desktop.

Now there's an idea. But since my family is Jewish, and my parent's aren't very observant anymore, I think I'll wait til' his birthday in february.

[Frag_68]

Luggage ftw.

[crazydog]

Here's the build I'm looking at. Thoughts?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115067
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231150
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231179
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131621
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118046

My thoughts:
I went with the i5 over the i7 because I've heard that hyperthreading can in fact hurt performance on various games, and the increase it gives is on some games is so negligible, it's not worth it.

I want to stick with 6GB of RAM, which is why I'm doing the 2x2GB and 2x1GB, which is the same configuration I'm running now. I'd do 6x1GB but the selection on motherboards with 6 slots is too limited. I don't want to do 3x2GB because then I can't dual channel.

I was thinking about a Gigabyte motherboard, but I've heard so many bad things about the newer ones. Most often, it'll work for a while, and then it'll just get stuck in a reboot loop, and it's happened to way too many people for me to be comfortable with. The ASUS motherboard also provides me the ability to use my remaining 2 ATA hard drives that I'm not in the mood to replace yet.

[Frag_68]

Even though I'm an AMD guy (I feel they're a much better value), the i5 is a great processor.  You won't be unhappy with is.  Hyperthreading has improved, but is still sketchy as you mentioned.

I definitely support the ASUS route.  I think I've built 9 boxes in the last 10 years and all but one of them had ASUS boards.  Not a single complaint... the other was an MSI and it sucked.  That is a pretty expensive board though, any reason why you're going with that one?  USB 3.0 probably?

The only suggestion I have is to spend the extra $26 and go with 8 GB RAM.  I'd normally only suggest 4, but if you're going with 6 GB, the cost for that 2x1 pack doesn't make sense compared to the 2x2.

Remaining questions:
- GPU?
- What are you doing for HDDs?  Using 2 PATA drives and that's it?
- Why bother with the expensive CPU fan?  Are you OC'ing or just like the noise reduction?

[crazydog]

Remaining questions:
- GPU?
- What are you doing for HDDs?  Using 2 PATA drives and that's it?
- Why bother with the expensive CPU fan?  Are you OC'ing or just like the noise reduction?

I'm only replacing the motherboard, ram, and cpu. The rest of the system is staying as it is. I have a GTX 460 already, and I have 4 hard drives, two of them being PATA, so I need a motherboard with PATA support because I don't want a new hard drive (yet). I will be overclocking, and the noise reduction is a plus.

Also, I totally was oblivious to the price of the RAM. lulz. I will go with 8.

I could go cheaper and less featureful on the mobo, but I'd rather get something a little more future proof and not have to upgrade the motherboard for another 4 or 5 years.

[Lyriq]

Is that 460 good? I'm looking at getting one, but I gotta upgrade my power supply first. It came out of the box with 375 and my card is rated for 400 XD

[Fraggle79]

I got that card, very smooth... thought my 430Antec power supply would handle that in my system...nope. Bought a 650TX Corsair a few days later.

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