Laptop that will Last

[Byrthnoth]

Yeah, I realize it's not really going to happen. However, I'm at the beginning of graduate school and I need to buy a laptop with a grant before the grant disappears. I have an additional grant for less money and I can combine them, but the second one comes with strings attached (must buy from Dell/Apple/Lenovo/HP) and what I need is basically determined by the department tech guy who gives me a computer quote for my needs.

So, my quote came back. He wants me to get a Vostro 3700 series (Dell's business line). I can work with it, but my issue is mostly with the graphics card. GT 330M. How do I tell if I can rip it out and replace it with a Radeon Mobility 5780? It's a 17.3 inch screen, but the 5780 is supposedly "leik x-bawx hooj." I'm basically interested in the case specs for it and have no idea how to find them.

Also, before you ask, Alienware isn't an option.

[sruon]

Ask Dell if their(this) laptop use a MXM interface for the graphic card, but I doubt they do.
If it is MXM you can remove and replace it by any other MXM card

Quite honestly this is a very expensive route (a MXM card costs a lot afaik)

Take it with a grain of salt, never done that or even touched a laptop with MXM interfaces but I think that is somewhat accurate.

[Icari]

most laptops will have integrated graphics cards and those are not able to be changed out, if you are lucky enough to find a laptop that has a card that is not integrated it will cost you a TON to replace it with one that will fit and do what you want.

[Senji]

Does the laptop have to be from the dept guys list, dell/hps student discount line, or just a regular model? Posting grant amount could help people find you one, also if it has to be that amount or less or not.

[Byrthnoth]

Okay, so he pretty much chooses the computer if I use that grant (I don't think he has any real restrictions besides providers), but I get to approve/disapprove and I can probably make a countersuggestion. He seems like a reasonable guy. $2000 without strings, $750 put the strings on.

$750 disappears first, but maybe I could buy an ipad (lol) or a netbook or something with it and just get a laptop off newegg with the 2k.

I didn't realize that laptops all use integrated graphics still. Some conversation I had either with the tech guy or someone else made me think they'd all gone modular.

[Krandor]

Yeah, I realize it's not really going to happen. However, I'm at the beginning of graduate school and I need to buy a laptop with a grant before the grant disappears. I have an additional grant for less money and I can combine them, but the second one comes with strings attached (must buy from Dell/Apple/Lenovo/HP) and what I need is basically determined by the department tech guy who gives me a computer quote for my needs.

So, my quote came back. He wants me to get a Vostro 3700 series (Dell's business line). I can work with it, but my issue is mostly with the graphics card. GT 330M. How do I tell if I can rip it out and replace it with a Radeon Mobility 5780? It's a 17.3 inch screen, but the 5780 is supposedly "leik x-bawx hooj." I'm basically interested in the case specs for it and have no idea how to find them.

Also, before you ask, Alienware isn't an option.

Unless you 100% know for a fact that the computer is offered with a 5780, your answer is going to be no.

Have you looked at HPs business line? Their *high* end business models (with Quadro GPUs) are downright awesome, and the current quadros can push out graphics for current games pretty well.

[Byrthnoth]

When you say *high* end business model, what are you talking about?

He's proposing an i5-520M with a GT 330M. I could probably bump the CPU up to an i7, but it looks like the system will be pretty badly limited by the graphics card. Seems kinda stupid to pair a top of the line CPU with a middle/low tier graphics card that you can't swap out.

[fishstix]

they're not all integrated, but it's more like custom made, hardly modular

[Gredival]

Any way you could trick them into an Alienware by going through Dell somehow? I just got an Alienware and I went through Dell EPP, invoice is Dell, etc. Really it's only a brand now.

[Byrthnoth]

I think I'm just going to send an e-mail to the effect of, "Well, that looks okay but the graphics card is a little low-end for a current model, eh?" and go with it. In the end, it's a laptop. I'll have about $1400 left on the larger grant after I get it to buy a desktop in ~1.5-2 years.

[Isiolia]

Any way you could trick them into an Alienware by going through Dell somehow? I just got an Alienware and I went through Dell EPP, invoice is Dell, etc. Really it's only a brand now.

Yeah, I ordered an M11x for my brother a few weeks ago, it's all basically Dell - hell, the thing even comes with a Dell AC adapter.

[Kohan]

Alienware is a wholly owned subsidy of Dell, so if they've told you Alienware is unacceptable, I would bring this up in the discussion (if you haven't already). Alienware = Dell, essentially. The former just creates PCs which cosmetically look different, but contain 100% Dell-sourced parts.