Allegro Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 I'm thinking of getting a laptop with the following specs, but I'm concerned about how hot it might get... I've never had a laptop, but I feel like overheating used to be a big issue with them in the past. Would getting something like this be a bad idea? I'm looking to have a machine that I can do video editing/effects work on as well as gaming. ASUS G73JH-A1 Gaming Notebook - Intel Core i7-720QM 1.6GHz Quad Core - 8GB DDR3 - 1TB (2x500GB) HDD - ATI RADEON HD 5870 1GB GDDR5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegro Posted July 12, 2010 Author Share Posted July 12, 2010 Also, I suppose I should add, that I'm moving from Canada to Australia... from what I understand computers are fine with the different voltage... I would just need a plug adaptor... Am I wrong on this? Is it bad to get a computer like this when going to a different continent? I was planning on getting something before I go since it looks like it will be less costly to buy here than to buy there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johner Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 I happened to buy a similar laptop recently, as I needed it in a hurry for travel and Amazon could deliver it overnight cheap. I went with the Nvidia GPU since I've heard not great things about ATI's Linux support. I've only had it a couple of weeks, but so far it's served as a really nice mobile desktop replacement, and I've seen zero instability running pretty heavy loads under Ubuntu 10.04-64bit and (less frequently) Windows 7. It's nice and fast, and having a true HD res screen in the 15.6" form factor is great. Keyboard, ergonomics, etc. are quite good, though not great. While I've seen no instability, it definitely runs hot, as in don't put anything you value next to the vent on the left-hand side when rendering. And if you use an external mouse, I hope you're right-handed. It would probably get uncomfortable actually sitting on your lap at times. Also, as you might expect with the CPU and GPU combination, battery life is unimpressive. So more mobile desktop than true "laptop", IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Macha Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 (edited) from what I understand computers are fine with the different voltage... I would just need a plug adaptor... Am I wrong on this? Should be OK. Your device will have printed the voltage range somewhere. In some countries you need clunky adaptors (UK!) but you can always buy a new powersupply. Haven't heard good things about ATI and CG... Be careful about warranty. It's not always global. Edited July 12, 2010 by Macha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old school Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 There is no need to purchase a power supply if you want a native plug as most have a detatchable power cord from the PS. All you need to fetch is a new cord with the right plug end. Some ps have the two plug and some have the three plug inputs so you need to get the right power extension chord. Just don't swipe my UK one (and yes an external uk adaptor is bulky). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malexander Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 If you're running Windows then ATI works just fine. Linux support is still teething, though. There appears to be a resource leak in the drivers that gradually cause them to run slower as more GL apps have been opened and closed. A GL app crash will quickly hasten this issue. Eventually, any GL app will crash on startup, and an X restart is required. Compatibility with Houdini is fine otherwise on both platforms. Ironically, ATI currently works much better with OSX. Go figure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegro Posted July 12, 2010 Author Share Posted July 12, 2010 If you're running Windows then ATI works just fine. Linux support is still teething, though. There appears to be a resource leak in the drivers that gradually cause them to run slower as more GL apps have been opened and closed. A GL app crash will quickly hasten this issue. Eventually, any GL app will crash on startup, and an X restart is required. Compatibility with Houdini is fine otherwise on both platforms. Ironically, ATI currently works much better with OSX. Go figure. Good to hear. I rely too much on non-linux compliant software for me to use that as my OS at home, so hearing that it should be fine with Houdini on Win (I'll be using win7x64) settles my nerves... from what I see it looks like it should be fine with the Adobe suite, so I guess I'll probably pick it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kumpa Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 i got sony vaio z (13.1"hd screen, i7 2.66, gf 300 1gb, 4x 64 ssd raid0)few weeks ago, spent two weeks installing linux but was worth it. A bit expensive but it probably is most powerful laptop in its class and is actually cheaper than macbook pro. For same price you get equal specs and 4x 64gb ssd in raid0 for free, and sony's nvidia has 1gb ram opposed to 52 found in macs, and 13.1" hd display with 98% adobe rgb gamut is unmatched by any laptop display i have seen so far. And weighs 1.3 kg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegro Posted July 16, 2010 Author Share Posted July 16, 2010 i got sony vaio z (13.1"hd screen, i7 2.66, gf 300 1gb, 4x 64 ssd raid0)few weeks ago, spent two weeks installing linux but was worth it. A bit expensive but it probably is most powerful laptop in its class and is actually cheaper than macbook pro. For same price you get equal specs and 4x 64gb ssd in raid0 for free, and sony's nvidia has 1gb ram opposed to 52 found in macs, and 13.1" hd display with 98% adobe rgb gamut is unmatched by any laptop display i have seen so far. And weighs 1.3 kg. I ended up going with a custom Vaio... saw too many anti-ati things so decided to keep looking until I found something with nvidia. Customization Details * Intel® Core™ Quad i7-740QM processor (1.73GHz) * 16.4" VAIO Premium Display (1920x1080) Full HD * NVIDIA® GeForce® 330M GPU (1GB VRAM) * Keyboard Backlight * 640 GB SATA Hard Disk Drive [5400 rpm] * Blu-ray Disc™ Read and Write Drive * Large Capacity Battery * Microsoft Windows® 7 Professional x64 * 8GB (4GBx2) DDR3-SDRAM-1333 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted July 17, 2010 Share Posted July 17, 2010 nice one Stephen...I just got a macbook pro...it's pretty sweet 'my first mac' we can compare them when I see you in Sydney! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegro Posted July 17, 2010 Author Share Posted July 17, 2010 nice one Stephen...I just got a macbook pro...it's pretty sweet 'my first mac' we can compare them when I see you in Sydney! Ha, sweet, sounds like there will be a bunch of ex-Torontonians there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted July 18, 2010 Share Posted July 18, 2010 there will be 3 of us from C.O.R.E.....that Ben is one persuasive fellow... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted July 19, 2010 Share Posted July 19, 2010 I cut off the american plug on my macbook pro and put a South African one on when I got here... works fine. Way easier than fiddling with adapters. M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegro Posted July 19, 2010 Author Share Posted July 19, 2010 I cut off the american plug on my macbook pro and put a South African one on when I got here... works fine. Way easier than fiddling with adapters. M I'd be more likely to consider that if I weren't there short term Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted July 20, 2010 Share Posted July 20, 2010 Well the only reason I had to cut the cord was that the US plug is permanently attached. The SA plug I put on uses old school screws... so presumably wherever I travel I can just remove that one and attach the local countries' plug. Easy peasy. But yes... short term may be a consideration (like, a few weeks ). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ykcosmo Posted July 21, 2010 Share Posted July 21, 2010 (edited) there will be 3 of us from C.O.R.E.....that Ben is one persuasive fellow... Oh ?? didn't know so many people are in Sydney now... Are you in Sydney now Michael ? -.-! And Allegro, see you when you get Sydney...hahaha.. It's nice to meet people have had known for long time ! Edited July 21, 2010 by ykcosmo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegro Posted July 21, 2010 Author Share Posted July 21, 2010 Oh ?? didn't know so many people are in Sydney now... Are you in Sydney now Michael ? -.-! And Allegro, see you when you get Sydney...hahaha.. It's nice to meet people have had known for long time ! Yup! I'll be arriving in September (provided there's no problems with my visa in the next few weeks) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted July 21, 2010 Share Posted July 21, 2010 Oh ?? didn't know so many people are in Sydney now... Are you in Sydney now Michael ? -.-! And Allegro, see you when you get Sydney...hahaha.. It's nice to meet people have had known for long time ! I'll be there around the 7th of August....if I can get my place packed up in time... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ykcosmo Posted July 21, 2010 Share Posted July 21, 2010 I'll be there around the 7th of August....if I can get my place packed up in time... Where are you now ? -.-! See you guys in Sydney then ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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