FFXIV Hardware Requirements

[shidobu]

as you can't upgrade it and the gaming ones almost always suffer from heat and driver issues.

Alienware m17 owner here i game at work. With 0 problems don't always believe what u read. My laptop runs just fine playing these games.

Bioshock 2
Assassins creed 2
Cod MW2
Batman Arkham Asylum
Mass Effect 2
Street Fighter 4
All on highest settings running at 1440x900

Just because some people get shit experiences doesn't mean everybody does. I almost bought into the "don't buy a gaming laptop they blah blah blah" but im extremely content/satisfied with mine. So honestly if u feel like you want your desktop on the go, buy one.

Few things
Gaming laptops = shit battery life 2-3 hrs playing video games. 4-6(if your lucky) just browsing web using power saving settings. Be near a plug if u plan on gaming away from home.
You wont be having these things in your lap for long periods of time. They are heavy and heat up pretty nice.

All and all if your hell bent on one. Get it, just be sure your surroundings leave you around a plug when your on the go.

[Toxictaru]

Beyond the fact that I have minimal amounts of space, I need something I can drag back and forth to school. I'm not going to buy a POS laptop for that and then spend even more money for a desktop that I have no space for. Now, how about we stop questioning whether or not I have enough fucking space or if I am lazy, and answer the simple question I posed.

If I say I need a laptop, I need a laptop. I don't mean "hey, I see this laptop, but what I really want is for people to tell me that I need a desktop." There are reasons people need to have something portable. I want something that is a combination of functional for what I need as far as school is concerned, and something that is able to hold up reasonably well for an MMO that is coming out in 6 months or so.

[Hyan]

I was looking for a laptop for the exact same reasons as you about a month ago.

After like 3 weeks of research I came to a conclusion that it's not worth it to buy a gaming laptop if you don't have tons of extra cash you want to throw away for little gain. I decided to buy a decent desktop PC and a cheap laptop and save few hundred euros in the process. Haven't regretted it so far.

You will be spending even more money if you want both in one, just for the sake of only having one machine instead of *gasp* two. I don't personally think it's worth it. It's your money tho, no need to listen us.

[Jinko]

For what a laptop could offer you, you would be better of getting a PS3 and getting it for that.

Buy a laptop for school and play FF14 on the PS3.

[Adajer]

Beyond the fact that I have minimal amounts of space, I need something I can drag back and forth to school. I'm not going to buy a POS laptop for that and then spend even more money for a desktop that I have no space for. Now, how about we stop questioning whether or not I have enough fucking space or if I am lazy, and answer the simple question I posed.

If I say I need a laptop, I need a laptop. I don't mean "hey, I see this laptop, but what I really want is for people to tell me that I need a desktop." There are reasons people need to have something portable. I want something that is a combination of functional for what I need as far as school is concerned, and something that is able to hold up reasonably well for an MMO that is coming out in 6 months or so.

playing while in class too maybe? >.>

[Purrrfect]

A few weeks ago I was talking about having money accessible to me shortly, that I won't have available near launch.

I've decided that the best road for price and performance is going to be the Asus G73 series of fun stuff.

As such, this is what I am looking at. Comments?
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16834220695

No idea how it compares price-wise to similarly equipped notebooks, but it will not have a problem with xiv from the looks of it.

[Metafox]

A few weeks ago I was talking about having money accessible to me shortly, that I won't have available near launch.

I've decided that the best road for price and performance is going to be the Asus G73 series of fun stuff.

As such, this is what I am looking at. Comments?
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16834220695

I've been in the same boat with school, I'm on my second hp laptop at the moment. The customized hp laptops have been relatively cheap, but it looks like they aren't offering any graphics cards nearly as good as that one you've got there at the moment. As far as I know, you've got a good deal, but it would be nice if you could get someone with a more professional opinion.

[Kryssan]

Beyond the fact that I have minimal amounts of space, I need something I can drag back and forth to school. I'm not going to buy a POS laptop for that and then spend even more money for a desktop that I have no space for. Now, how about we stop questioning whether or not I have enough fucking space or if I am lazy, and answer the simple question I posed.

If I say I need a laptop, I need a laptop. I don't mean "hey, I see this laptop, but what I really want is for people to tell me that I need a desktop." There are reasons people need to have something portable. I want something that is a combination of functional for what I need as far as school is concerned, and something that is able to hold up reasonably well for an MMO that is coming out in 6 months or so.

And we're just telling you that we think its a bad idea. Whether or not you listen to us is your prerogative. I had a 'gaming' laptop for when I was deployed overseas, because I couldn't fit a desktop computer in 2005 in my rack. As a nuke with an additional NEC for the IT rate, on the ship I was quite often requested to assist with laptop issues, and I had my own as well. I'm not telling you this to annoy you, I'm telling you what I consider to be good advice for your situation. Take it or leave it but don't whine about it - you asked for it.

[Toxictaru]

What I asked was whether or not the laptop, based on specs, is going to be ok. What I didn't ask was for someone to try and lecture me about the pros and cons of a laptop and a desktop.

I'm not retarded, I -know- a desktop would be better. I'd RATHER have a desktop, but my options are limited. My brother has his daughter at our place for up to a week at a time, and as such, I end up having to play from bed for nearly 2 weeks a month. There is no place for a desktop there. I need something portable, and thats why I am asking about laptops.

Also, your negative experience isn't necessarily everyone elses. Desktops aren't all immune to the same problems laptops have.

[Celeras]

Well, we answered you. It will 'play', probably to the equivilant of a $500 desktop from 3 years ago. It will never be able to max out the game, so I guess how you interpret the answer depends on what you consider "handling" the game.

To me, it would be no.

[Metafox]

On the issue of reliability, I can say that my first HP laptop lasted almost exactly 3 years. The battery died after 1.5 to 2 years, but it worked fine without the battery. I carried it around quite a bit, so I didn't exactly treat it well. I don't really know how well this compares to other brands, but I wouldn't worry about it.

As for whether or not you need a laptop with reasonable performance, it seems a little silly that people would try to make that decision for you.

[Jak]

I bought a desktop about one year ago (to the date almost) and after seeing some of these specs I'm getting a little worried as my specs don't seem to be even close to top notch by this boards standards. Maybe I'm over-reacting.. should I be worried? I like to run games at their best (graphics wise) so if I should upgrade anything, please tell me! Specs are..

Intel Core2 processor Q9400 Quad Core (2.66 Ghz, 1333FSB)
8 Gigs DDR2 SDRAM at 800 Mhz
Dual 1024MB ATI Radeon 4870
Vista 64-Bit

I don't think anything else about my computer matters spec wise. Should I be worried about my graphics cards? To date everything looks really nice and I can run a lot of games at full graphics that have recently come out without lagging (e.x. Dragon Age: Origins looks amazing) at all.

[Metafox]

Can anyone confirm if this chart is reasonably accurate? According to the chart, dual 4870s is very good.

[Jak]

I dunno, I've heard mixed reviews on my cards. General concensus says they are great as a pair.. but then I hear that most games don't even take advantage of the crossfire or whatever it is that runs them both.

[Jinko]

Can anyone confirm if this chart is reasonably accurate? According to the chart, dual 4870s is very good.

Yup 4870 x2 is a good card for its age.

[loyaltrekie]

Just because some people get shit experiences doesn't mean everybody does. I almost bought into the "don't buy a gaming laptop they blah blah blah" but im extremely content/satisfied with mine.buy one.

I can't believe you actually got 'conned' into buying an Alienware, lol.

The reason people tell you not to buy a gaming laptop - is that it's hard to upgrade, they tend not to have long battery life(one of the key positives of a laptop, is to have mobility), and they are a lot harder to repair.

When I met my current fiancee, she actually owned an Alienware M15, and bought an M17(pretty much fully upgraded) right after we got together. While yes, it does have the hardware to play whats currently on the market at high and will have the hardware to push quite a few games in the future just fine. The issue is the hardware it's self was greatly overpriced for what she got, she'll never be able to upgrade when she needs to, and the mobility of the laptop is non-existent - It's a fairly bulky unit, with very low battery life. My desktop cost nearly half of what her laptop did, and outperforms her M17 in every technical respect, and has the ability to upgrade whenever I please.

If you need something for school and want a gaming rig - it's better to split the two functions into two different units; get a desktop for your home needs(music, video, gaming, etc). If you are in a graphic/video heavy field where you need a laptop get a mac(about the only thing they are good for), and if you only need a laptop for basic 'word processing' and research for school get a netbook - very cheap and effective and has a ton of mobility.

I tried taking her laptop a few times on business trips and I'll tell you that it was quite a hassle - especially when compared to my laptop I use for work. I would never recommend a gaming laptop for any form of gaming - in which you can be home majority of the time you game - while, yes, it kinda sucks to not be able to play all of my library when on the road - I couldn't imagine having to lug around a gaming laptop everywhere I go(whether it's business or school).

[shidobu]

I can't believe you actually got 'conned' into buying an Alienware, lol.

The reason people tell you not to buy a gaming laptop - is that it's hard to upgrade, they tend not to have long battery life(one of the key positives of a laptop, is to have mobility), and they are a lot harder to repair.

I think you didn't read all of my post. In the line that you quoted and edited out btw. i said
"if you feel like you want your desktop on the go, buy one". Not everyone that goes looking for gaming laptops are complete idiots. I knew what i was getting into. And it works for what i use it for, to game.

[bluefan]

I'm fine with my gaming laptop. I have a decent desktop as well, but I rather carry around my 12lb gaming laptop then my 70lb desktop + 24" monitor to my friends and LAN partys.

Gaming laptops have their markets, and they continue to sell very well. Almost all major manufacturers have a fresh line up of models slated for this year. Mines about 4 years old, so I'll definitely be getting a new one for XIV. Not as cost effective as desktops of course, but like a lot of other things, you pay a bit more for convenience.

[Kalisa]

<insert gaming laptop debate here>

In the end, there's a lot to be said for someone walking up to you and saying "Hey, want to go over to X's house?" and being able to say "sure," fold up your laptop, slide it into your bag, toss your plug in, and go do whatever you'd care to do--including play your favorite cutting-edge MMO with your friends--elsewhere for a few hours without having to unhook and unplug your life as you'd have to do with a desktop (even one with a minicase).

Of course, debates can rage endlessly about how you could do that with a cheap server and a cheap notebook with a VPN or other remote computing solution, but it really just completely comes down to personal preference. If someone's OK with spending $2k every couple years because they can't update their old rig, that's that. They're going to get a laptop.

[Cephius]

There's nothing wrong with gaming laptops. They're just incredibly price inefficient, and have shorter lifespans than desktops. If you have the money to burn and like the convenience... more power to you.