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Greetings
I’m thinking of buying a laptop primarily for Starcraft 2. It should match the following criteria:
1. Avoid the massive overheating problems that laptops are prone to have (for this reason I’m leaning towards ASUS, particularly the K53SV series, which are supposed to allow the heat to dissipate well).
2. Being able to run Starcraft gameplay smoothly even in high supply 3v3 and 4v4 games.
3. Run the game at a decent frame rate at medium settings.
4. And finally it would be great if it wasn’t too expensive. 
My questions are on the specs. Im leaning towards investing in a I7-2630QM Processor, but im wondering if a I5-2430M will get the job done. As for the GPU, is a GeForce GT 540M good enough for smooth medium settings gameplay, or should i go for a GT 550? If you where to choose between a I7 system with a GT 540 GPU and a I5 system with a GT 550, what would you pick?
All advice will be much appreciated.
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Check out the Sager NP5160. It's got the 540M and i7 2630QM and it runs SC2 pretty well. Actually, right now patch 1.4.1 is causing some weird FPS issues with a lot of macs and mobile GPUs and it seems as though my laptop (which is the NP5160) is one casualty of this issue so it's running not too well right now. I do remember how it performed before the patch though. I only played on low settings and the game ran perfectly. 200/200 food battles on creep still were smooth. As for medium settings, I don't really remember too well, but I do remember that I could play 1v1's pretty well with it.
So look into the Sager NP5160. I bought mine from xoticpc.com and I got the upgrade for the i7 2630 and I got it with no OS installed, sine I could get W7 for $30. If you have any more interest in it, just ask me.
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I would get a quad core, just to be future proof, although http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpus/2010/08/18/how-many-cpu-cores-does-starcraft-2-use/2 shows that sc2 doesn't benefit from anything more than 2. Future games will obviously utilise quad cores more, although tbh, especially in a laptop, the graphics card will always limit more than a CPU.
As for the graphics card, checkout http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GT-550M.42264.0.html . If you're knowledgable on desktop GPU's, then you'll see laptop ones are pretty dire in comparison XD but that's what you work with I'm afraid. And honestly, try and get THE best GPU you can.
If it's a choice between an I7 with a gt540 or an I5 with a GT550, take the GT550 every single time, without a doubt.
Again, if you know what you're doing, or even if you don't, go do a little research, I would recommend http://eurocom.com/ , as they allow you to PROPERLY customize a laptop.
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On November 02 2011 06:54 Arghnews wrote:I would get a quad core, just to be future proof, although http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpus/2010/08/18/how-many-cpu-cores-does-starcraft-2-use/2 shows that sc2 doesn't benefit from anything more than 2. Future games will obviously utilise quad cores more, although tbh, especially in a laptop, the graphics card will always limit more than a CPU. As for the graphics card, checkout http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GT-550M.42264.0.html . If you're knowledgable on desktop GPU's, then you'll see laptop ones are pretty dire in comparison XD but that's what you work with I'm afraid. And honestly, try and get THE best GPU you can. If it's a choice between an I7 with a gt540 or an I5 with a GT550, take the GT550 every single time, without a doubt. Again, if you know what you're doing, or even if you don't, go do a little research, I would recommend http://eurocom.com/ , as they allow you to PROPERLY customize a laptop.
Getting a quad-core in your desktop to be "future-proof" is quite stupid. Although it's generally accepted that most games will use 4threads in future, nobody can predict when this will actually happen, and looking at how long it's been taken I'd estimate Q-core to be required past the lifespan of a 2630. Spending more money than you need to be "future-proof" is dumb
A gt550 will run starcraft absolutely fine on medium settings. A 2630QM will provide very marginal benefits over a 2410M for SC2, so if that's your goal, that's all you should be getting
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As I said, the GPU matters far more than a CPU 
It's the place to spend money.
More cores will never hurt, if you can afford a quad core over a dual, go for it, but spend more cash on the GPU before the CPU
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I bought an msi ge620dx (i5). Pretty cheap in Sweden and also Denmark from the looks of it.
It's not a perfect laptop but I'm happy with it due to the performance + screen for the price.
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United Kingdom20326 Posts
SC2 only uses 2 cores.
Nothing will run endgame 4v4s smoothly, ive got an i7 950 @4ghz and i fall below 60fps at 800v800 supply 4v4s even without fighting because of CPU (lowest graphics settings, gtx580 at like 10% utilization because of cpu cap)
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Thanks for the feedback guys.
I wont try to get a “future proof laptop”, I’m just trying to get the best SC2 computer within my current means (wont be playing any other games seriously until Blizzard releases their next RTS). Also by team games running smoothly I just mean without lag disturbing the game too much.
I heard that SC2 cant take advantage of more cores, but isn’t the I7-2630QM superior to the I5 models in other regards, in the amount of cache for example? In other threads its claimed that SC2 is a CPU demanding game rather than a GPU demanding game. I’m wondering how much difference on actual game performance there is between GT 540 and GT 550, when its just on medium setting. In this test the GT 540M have a respectable frame rate of 54 on medium: http://www.notebookcheck.net/StarCraft-2.35167.0.html
For the brand I’m pretty set on ASUS, though I will check out Sager and MSI. Also looking at Levono Thinkpads, but they seem expensive.
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The Lenovo Ideapads seem good to me, just from pure spec standpoints, as the y570 comes with a GT555, which is a lot better than the GT540M. I've also been told that HP's Dv6t/dv7t series is pretty good, if you upgrade the graphics to a 6770.
A ton of people know a lot more than me though.
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The Lenovo Ideapads seem good to me, just from pure spec standpoints, as the y570 comes with a GT555, which is a lot better than the GT540M.
"The performance is depending on the used version of the card (see above). The 3DMark 06 performance for example ranges from 8857 points (Lenovo Ideapad Y570) to 13000 points (MSI GX780R). The GT 555M in the Lenovo therefore is just a fast GT 550M." - (source)
And the 550 actually scores worse than the 540. (source)
I stumbled across this because I just ordered a laptop with a 555 and wanted to check it's performance regarding to sc2, so... Don't get that one?
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On November 02 2011 12:17 SnetteL wrote:Show nested quote +The Lenovo Ideapads seem good to me, just from pure spec standpoints, as the y570 comes with a GT555, which is a lot better than the GT540M. "The performance is depending on the used version of the card (see above). The 3DMark 06 performance for example ranges from 8857 points (Lenovo Ideapad Y570) to 13000 points (MSI GX780R). The GT 555M in the Lenovo therefore is just a fast GT 550M." - (source)And the 550 actually scores worse than the 540. ( source)I stumbled across this because I just ordered a laptop with a 555 and wanted to check it's performance regarding to sc2, so... Don't get that one?
There's two gt555m's
One is significantly better than the other
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Just wanted to add, I have the ideapad y470(14 in. version with 550m) and it runs ultra at 30 fps in 1v1s, haven't tested it out much as I mainly use my desktop, but it is a great laptop, only problem so far is the battery life, which is a bit on the low side. Also, I got the i3 version since future proofing in my opinion is rather wasteful as it wastes money in the long run with the prices decreasing so fast.
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On November 02 2011 13:18 CharlieBrownsc wrote:Show nested quote +On November 02 2011 12:17 SnetteL wrote:The Lenovo Ideapads seem good to me, just from pure spec standpoints, as the y570 comes with a GT555, which is a lot better than the GT540M. "The performance is depending on the used version of the card (see above). The 3DMark 06 performance for example ranges from 8857 points (Lenovo Ideapad Y570) to 13000 points (MSI GX780R). The GT 555M in the Lenovo therefore is just a fast GT 550M." - (source)And the 550 actually scores worse than the 540. ( source)I stumbled across this because I just ordered a laptop with a 555 and wanted to check it's performance regarding to sc2, so... Don't get that one? There's two gt555m's One is significantly better than the other
Also I don't think their methodology is great in those tests. Like a laptop that has a good bios and doesn't throttle SC2 with the SB mobile CPU will give much better results to whatever GPU there is in the laptop. Also I guess drivers etc will affect performance.
But 550m is slightly better and not worse than 540m in that link.
And there are 4 versions of 555m.
Regarding getting an ASUS: if you want cheapst SC2 performance then I think the MSI GE620DX is a better choice than any Asus because their 555m model that has very similar specs is a full 1000kr more expensive.
But something like http://www.komplett.dk/k/ki.aspx?sku=647343 isn't bad. Note though that the i7 won't really help in SC2 and most other games are GPU dependent.
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On November 02 2011 15:22 Aeternus wrote:
I have the ideapad y470(14 in. version with 550m) and it runs ultra at 30 fps in 1v1s.
Aeternus do you play team games? If so can that Levono Ideapad handle 500+ supply games?
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Thanks for the recommendation Sablar. I´ll have to look into the cooling aspect of MSI and other brands, as this is the main reason I’m leaning towards ASUS/Levono (my current laptop overheats like crazy lol).
Based on what you guys said there is little advantage of getting a I7 processor compared to I5, and there is not much difference between Geforce GT 540 and GT 550. Would it make sense simply to settle for a high GHz I5-2430M system with GT 540 and as much RAM as possible?
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On November 02 2011 19:14 Negent wrote:
Thanks for the recommendation Sablar. I´ll have to look into the cooling aspect of MSI and other brands, as this is the main reason I’m leaning towards ASUS/Levono (my current laptop overheats like crazy lol).
Based on what you guys said there is little advantage of getting a I7 processor compared to I5, and there is not much difference between Geforce GT 540 and GT 550. Would it make sense simply to settle for a high GHz I5-2430M system with GT 540 and as much RAM as possible?
For just SC2 in medium: those specs should be fine and i7 wouldn't really help SC2. RAM isn't really important for SC2 and 4gb leaves lots of room for background applications as well. 1366x768 resolution is good unless you want more for something else. There is normally a noteable difference between 555m and 540m though.
But it can be hard to be very specific about requirements. Problem is that pricing on these things isn't exactly what you would expect Sometimes you can find a cheaper laptop with better components, like an i7 and 540m for the same price as i5.
My MSI has pretty good cooling. The CPU gets really hot after long SC2 sessions but it keeps going and doesn't slow down due to overheating and the laptop itself isn't very hot underneath. But Asus should have equal or better cooling, though only great when it comes to the huge G-models. I don't know about lenovo cooling but I thought it was pretty standard.
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On November 02 2011 13:18 CharlieBrownsc wrote:Show nested quote +On November 02 2011 12:17 SnetteL wrote:The Lenovo Ideapads seem good to me, just from pure spec standpoints, as the y570 comes with a GT555, which is a lot better than the GT540M. "The performance is depending on the used version of the card (see above). The 3DMark 06 performance for example ranges from 8857 points (Lenovo Ideapad Y570) to 13000 points (MSI GX780R). The GT 555M in the Lenovo therefore is just a fast GT 550M." - (source)And the 550 actually scores worse than the 540. ( source)I stumbled across this because I just ordered a laptop with a 555 and wanted to check it's performance regarding to sc2, so... Don't get that one? There's two gt555m's One is significantly better than the other
You can read do you?
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On November 02 2011 19:44 Sablar wrote:
For just SC2 in medium: those specs should be fine and i7 wouldn't really help SC2. RAM isn't really important for SC2 and 4gb leaves lots of room for background applications as well. 1366x768 resolution is good unless you want more for something else. There is normally a noteable difference between 555m and 540m though.
Thanks mate. How about this model then:
ASUS N55SF S1161V
Intel® Core™ i5 2410M Processor 2.3 GHz
NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 555M 2GB DDR3 VRAM
8 GB DDR3 1333 MHz SDRAM
2 GB video memory
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mine is G73 and heat is totally not an issue
Sage is also known to have extremely good cooling performance, you should look at that.
(there is a difference between normal usage temperature cooling and a high stress level temperature cooling)
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For a budget gaming laptop, Fusion in my opinion would be the way to go. Where are you ordering from?
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EPT
