Random Question Thread: Tech

[Mrbeansman]

My PSPs DPad is sticking something fierce on a control basis when I have the system on. solution?

[Salodin]

Don't know if this will work, but I opened my psp to clean the joystick and noticed I was also able to get under the dpad. Try opening it up and seeing if you have something stuck or sticky underneath it that you can clean.

[Xno Kappa]

Did you try any of the other outputs on the xbox? I'm assuming its like the ps3 here where there is a separate analog out. Also, try other hdmi ports on the tv?

HDMI cable is giving me nothing and AV cable is giving me audio but weird lines scrolling visually. Is my Xbox dying? It was completely fine a couple of days ago.

I don't feel like fucking with another inevitable RRoD. Is it hard to transfer the hard drive from a fatbox to the slims?

[Yugl]

XPS 17 or Alienware for gaming and working on documents (Both at the same time!)? Any generic list of comparisons between the two?

[Jojimbo]

XPS seems better value, Alienware can use better GPU however it will cost $500 more for an alienware with same cpu/display but worse hdd/ram and 560m vs XPS with 550M

Does it have to be a Dell? Asus G74 are much better value for money than either options.

900p / 8GB RAM / 560m G74 Refurb for $950
1080p / 12GB RAM / 560m G74 for $1400

These have slightly better CPU (2670QM vs 2630QM in the Asus which is 0.2GHz slower), using the Dell online builder:
1080p, 8GB RAM, 560m Alienware costs $2124
1080p, 8GB RAM, 555m XPS costs $1400

[Yugl]

I would like it to be Dell just because I'm familiar with the company and *believe* they have solid standards (Incoming tech people laugh!), but I'm willing to try other brands if it has the support of BG tech. I heard from Radec that a solid state drive will rampantly boost the start up power of my laptop and am looking to implement that if it makes a significant difference. Also, I play on an external monitor, so I'm guessing the screen resolution on the laptop won't matter so much? Non-external monitor usage will typically be limited to Microsoft word.

[hey]

Would definitely recommend going with asus for laptops.

so I'm guessing the screen resolution on the laptop won't matter so much? Non-external monitor usage will typically be limited to Microsoft word.

Well, ultimately it's up to you. If all you use it for is word, and internet browsing, i'm sure you could live with 900p. Obviously you can still benefit from a larger resolution for such things, and i would always recommend it (posting from laptop with a 900p resolution, and honestly, i'd kill for an extra 180 pixels), but it's up to you. If you are going to primarily use another monitor, it may not be worth the cost for a higher resolution.

edit: i forgot to lol at the dell comment, so lol.

[Isiolia]

I would like it to be Dell just because I'm familiar with the company and *believe* they have solid standards (Incoming tech people laugh!), but I'm willing to try other brands if it has the support of BG tech.

Personally, I would only make a point to go with Dell/Alienware if you are also intending to purchase their comprehensive warranty coverage. We've got hundreds of laptops in service here at work, Dells, Sonys, HPs, a few Fujitsus, Apples of course... The reason to buy Dell is the service, not the hardware, which is nothing special (not particularly bad either, though I mostly see their business class machines). XPS vs Alienware...eh, I wouldn't be surprised to see both coming out of the same ODM factory (along with several other brands).

Also, yes, an SSD is a worthwhile thing to look at getting...but upgrading storage/RAM is usually more cost effective if you do it yourself later.

[Stromgarde]

I would like it to be Dell just because I'm familiar with the company and *believe* they have solid standards (Incoming tech people laugh!), but I'm willing to try other brands if it has the support of BG tech. I heard from Radec that a solid state drive will rampantly boost the start up power of my laptop and am looking to implement that if it makes a significant difference. Also, I play on an external monitor, so I'm guessing the screen resolution on the laptop won't matter so much? Non-external monitor usage will typically be limited to Microsoft word.

Avoid Dell like the plague. I've had good experience with Sony Vaio hardware personally.

[Yugl]

Sony Vaio has been bad from my experience. I'm looking into Asus now since that seems to be what everyone recommends. I'm guessing the ideal set up with include a SSD and i7. I couldn't find a rank order list of graphics cards using google though. Given the experience I had, I want to avoid overheating problems the most for my new laptop.

[Jojimbo]

Bit old but Asus/Toshiba/Sony are considered the most reliable brands.

Here's a comparison of Laptop GPUs

[Yugl]

That site brings up the fact that the better the GPU, the worse the battery life. I'm guessing this just means that it drains battery life quicker? Is it possible to reduce the strain on the battery when not using the charger?

[Jojimbo]

Pretty much, the better the GPU/CPU the more power the laptop uses so the quicker the battery drains. And as they can't increase the size of battery relative to the increase in power consumption (vs less powerful laptop) the overall battery life decreases.

"gaming" laptops aren't really meant to be used off the charger for actually playing games I think; just browsing web/writing documents is fine but expect a couple of hours max of battery while playing games.

I would assume the general rules of removing battery while on mains (if you don't mind being affected by powercuts) etc apply to reducing strain on the battery but other than not play games I don't think there is much you can do while not on the mains (although I'm not terribly familiar with what you can do, never really had to pay any attention to it)

[Yugl]

Yeah, my main use on/off will be for documents and the internet. A total of 2.5-4hrs wouldn't be bad though. Given what my LS has said, I should buy a laptop with a good processor and GPU, but upgrade the RAM and hardrive separately. If so, do I need to look for a specific SSD or w/e and if so, how?

[hey]

You probably won't need to upgrade the ram. A good gaming laptop will likely come with 8 gb already anyway, and having more than that won't make any difference for gaming. If you want an ssd though, you will likely need to buy it separately. Any 2.5" ssd should work fine.

[Yugl]

Ok, and after a bit more research, I hear SSD have a problem with a limited number of rewrites but that the newer ones will be outdated before they are rewritten. Is that really a lot of time given technology's fast paced advancement?

[Salodin]

Iirc, yes it's true that ssd only have so many rewrites in them, but it's just like normal hard drives; they will all fail eventually. By the time your drive has reached it's limit on rewrited, you'll have already gotten a new one to replace it.

[hey]

Iirc, yes it's true that ssd only have so many rewrites in them, but it's just like normal hard drives

Well not quite. Obviously all hard drives will fail eventually, but ssds can be killed fairly quickly if you constantly write to them. With a few precautions though, they will indeed last long enough that you'd want to replace it before it dies anyway.

[Fereydoon]

So, getting a new monitor sometime this week, most likely friday. Looking for something 21-23", what else should I be looking for in a monitor? Budget of 100-150ish, cheaper the better obviously.

[Jojimbo]

Looking up reviews of monitors that are in your price range would be best, other than resolution/connectivity/size there isn't much you can compare spec wise between different manufacturers (and if you buy from a shop then the settings on display units could be less than optimal). Although you could probably get away with buying anything as it's cheap.