Buying laptop for school

[Taurous]

Hey MMOC, my wife and I are going back to school! She's going for 3D animation, and I am going for computer systems tech. These two programs require that we have our own laptops for school, so I am looking to buy two laptops. I have come up with this list below, but I am not limiting myself to these few choices.

I have not yet heard back what they want for system reqs, all I know is they say I need to spend between $1000 and $2000... So not very helpful. Anyone with experience in these areas, or with any of these laptops?

I would like to do some moderate gaming on this laptop when I can, Overwatch on high/ultra for example.

An SSD would be nice, but not something I will go out of my way for.

Does anyone feel like one of these laptops has more bang for its buck than the others?

All prices are CAD:

- $1,499.99 Lenovo IdeaPad Y700 80NV00Q9US Gaming Laptop 6th Generation Intel Core i7 6700HQ (2.60 GHz) 16 GB DDR4 Memory 1 TB HDD 256 GB PCIE SSD NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M 4 GB 15.6" Windows 10 Home 64-Bit

- $1,029.99 MSI GL62 6QF-627 15.6" Intel Core i7 6th Gen 6700HQ (2.60 GHz) NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M 8 GB Memory 1 TB HDD Windows 10 Home 64-Bit Gaming Laptop

- $1,399.99 ASUS ROG GL553VD-DS71 15.6" Intel Core i7 7th Gen 7700HQ (2.80 GHz) NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 16 GB Memory 1 TB HDD Windows 10 Home 64-Bit Gaming Laptop

- $1,199.99 MSI GL62M 7RE-624 15.6" Intel Core i5 7th Gen 7300HQ (2.50 GHz) NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 8 GB Memory 1 TB HDD Windows 10 Home 64-Bit Gaming Laptop

- $1,349.99 MSI GL62M 7RE-623 15.6" Intel Core i7 7th Gen 7700HQ (2.80 GHz) NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 8 GB Memory 1 TB HDD Windows 10 Home 64-Bit Gaming Laptop

- $1,332.47 MSI GP Series GP62 6QF-480CA Gaming Laptop 6th Generation Intel Core i7 6700HQ (2.60 GHz) 16 GB Memory 1 TB HDD NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M 2 GB GDDR5 15.6" Windows 10 Home

Thanks for your help.

[Fascinate]

http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/produ...=287_customize

i5, 256gb ssd, gtx 1050ti for 850 bucks.

Page showing all the options for the new inspiron 7000 series:
http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/produ...15-7567-laptop

[Logwyn]

I find it odd they don't list the recommended specs. You can't just tell a 3D animator to go get a laptop! Does she needs software that is tied to an OS as in does she need a MAC for the software.

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http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/produ...=287_customize

i5, 256gb ssd, gtx 1050ti for 850 bucks.

Page showing all the options for the new inspiron 7000 series:
http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/produ...15-7567-laptop

Are you suggesting just 8 gigs of RAM for a 3D animator? Or are you assuming they know what to get?

[Fascinate]

I find it odd they don't list the recommended specs. You can't just tell a 3D animator to go get a laptop! Does she needs software that is tied to an OS as in does she need a MAC for the software.

- - - Updated - - -



Are you suggesting just 8 gigs of RAM for a 3D animator? Or are you assuming they know what to get?

That's why i linked the page with all the options, the top end one comes with 16gb's. I have no idea how much ram they need, but they did link a bunch with 8gb's so....

As far as i am aware the dell inspiron is the best priced option when you take into account the new kaby lake CPU's and gtx 1050 graphics chips.

[Taurous]

http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/produ...=287_customize

i5, 256gb ssd, gtx 1050ti for 850 bucks.

Page showing all the options for the new inspiron 7000 series:
http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/produ...15-7567-laptop

http://www.dell.com/ca/p/inspiron-15...?ref=PD_Family

$1249 CAD

And actually, I just assumed she needed a laptop. Her program costs & supplies does not mention needing a laptop, but mine does. Maybe they have their own for the animators.

We are going to an information session on Wednesday to get a bunch more info about the programs so we'll find out the exact reqs then.

[Fascinate]

Yep i figured itd be around there, its competitive with the MSI you linked above just depends on how much storage and ram you need. I like dell laptops they have more experience than most, the dell has good speakers too which is rare on a laptop if that matters to you.

[Taurous]

I find it odd they don't list the recommended specs. You can't just tell a 3D animator to go get a laptop! Does she needs software that is tied to an OS as in does she need a MAC for the software.

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Are you suggesting just 8 gigs of RAM for a 3D animator? Or are you assuming they know what to get?

I wasn't really sure about how much to get, I've never done anything close to 3D animating before. The laptops I linked look good for a programmer I think, as I have never had more than 8 gigs and it has never been an issue.

[Fascinate]

I wasn't really sure about how much to get, I've never done anything close to 3D animating before. The laptops I linked look good for a programmer I think, as I have never had more than 8 gigs and it has never been an issue.

The dells are also easily upgradeable, you could get the model i linkedl and toss another 8gb's of ram in if you want:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lQB7F8mMW0

Could even add a 2.5" HDD if you needed more storage above the 256gb ssd.

[Taurous]

The dells are also easily upgradeable, you could get the model i linkedl and toss another 8gb's of ram in if you want:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lQB7F8mMW0

Could even add a 2.5" HDD if you needed more storage above the 256gb ssd.

You know, I don't know about the wife, but I could probably get away with a single 256GB SSD.

I'm probably jumping the gun anyways, don't know enough about the program to really make a decision now, I just really like buying computers.

[Fascinate]

You know, I don't know about the wife, but I could probably get away with a single 256GB SSD.

I'm probably jumping the gun anyways, don't know enough about the program to really make a decision now, I just really like buying computers.

Very few programs require more than 8gb's of ram but you never know Just nice to have one that can be upgraded without voiding warranty. Post back when you get all the requirements im sure one of these dells would be fine. Whatever you do dont buy something with a gtx 9 series, they use a lot more power and are a lot slower, gtx 1050 and ti are the best affordable mobile GPU's right now.

[Denpepe]

I know MSI has some workstation laptops which might be better suited for 3D animation, depending on what you need.

[carson11]

Got for a laptop with a high resolution screen. Apple is best. I use a MacBook air


http://pc4u.org/best-laptops-for-college-students/

Infracted - Mythbredor

[Kokolums]

If I'm shopping for a laptop, I look a Sagernotebook.com and I look at the Clevo models on Xoticpc.com.

You can get budget models there or top of the line. Neither one loads up the laptop with bloatware.

Xoticpc has a Clevo with an i7-7700 and a 1050 starting at $700.
http://www.xoticpc.com/sager-np5855-clevo-n855hj.html

Sager has a similar model for $800, but it comes with windows 10 while that is an addon for the Xoticpc Clevo.
https://www.sagernotebook.com/Notebook-NP5855.html

I'd probably go with Xoticpc because I like their selection of SSDs better.

[Shuji V2]

Very few programs require more than 8gb's of ram but you never know Just nice to have one that can be upgraded without voiding warranty. Post back when you get all the requirements im sure one of these dells would be fine. Whatever you do dont buy something with a gtx 9 series, they use a lot more power and are a lot slower, gtx 1050 and ti are the best affordable mobile GPU's right now.

GTX9 series are perfectly fine, don't just disregard them because they're an older generation. The difference between a 1050 vs 960M and a 1050ti vs 970M is quite minimal in terms of performance. In terms of power consumption, sure, but during class or at home you'll mostly have it plugged in making it not such a huge issue. The performance of the new series really starts to kick in at the 1060 model, but those are priced considerably higher as well. So if you could get a cheap 960M/970M or even a 980(M) then by all means go for it since the performance gain isn't noticeable by a lot and since everyone is trying to sell 10 series laptops now the 9 series could have some nice discounted models.

Also whoever suggested an Apple macbook, lol at you sir. Enjoy your Intel HD.

To the OP, if your wife is going to animate by all means she will need a dedicated GPU and therefor should stay away from macbooks at all costs. The reason being macs don't offer a discrete GPU which is quite mandatory for GPU heavy apps. It would also cause considerable downtime when rendering and become a huge burden on her workflow simply for not having a dedicated GPU. Besides that, all of the major 3D software packages supports Windows, so that shouldn't be an issue. As for you, I'm sure as a programmer you would be fine with a laptop from 2010 and don't really need a laptop like the ones you linked. But it's sure as hell awesome being able to play all the latest games at high-ultra 60FPS on those just like on a desktop. ;D So if you have money to blow and would like to use it for more intensive stuff then go for it. ^^